Prime Minister
Scottish Grand Committee
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Prime Minister if he will instruct the Secretary of State for Scotland to table a motion for the Scottish Grand Committee to sit. [56521]
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The Prime Minister: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland will continue to debate and discuss issues relating to Scotland with Members of Parliament and other colleagues.
Special Advisers: Disciplinary Proceedings
Caroline Flint: To ask the Prime Minister on how many occasions disciplinary action has been taken against special advisers since May 2010. [56229]
The Prime Minister: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for West Bromwich East (Mr Watson) on 15 November 2010, Official Report, column 565W.
Wales
Trade Unions
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff of her Department are entitled to work (a) full-time as trade union representatives and (b) part-time on trade union activities; how many such staff are paid more than £25,900 annually; and what the cost to the public purse of employing such staff on such duties was in the latest period for which figures are available. [56450]
Mr David Jones: We are too small a Department to warrant a full-time trade union representative and currently have no one undertaking part-time activities. Trade union support to staff is currently provided through the Ministry of Justice. The last time anyone undertook such activities was 2009-10 when one member of staff at Band C spent the equivalent of 1.5 days in total on trade union-related activities or duties facility time.
Deputy Prime Minister
House of Lords: Reform
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to engage the public in his proposals on House of Lords reform. [56170]
Mr Harper: The Government published a White Paper and draft Bill on 17 May, which will be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny by a Joint Committee of both Houses. We expect this Committee will call for evidence and receive representations. The Government also welcome all contributions.
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he has assessed the merits of holding a referendum on options for House of Lords reform. [56172]
Mr Harper: At the last election, all three main political parties were committed to reform of the House of Lords. The Government consider they should move forward on this issue and published a White Paper and draft Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny on 17 May.
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Members: Conduct
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether his forthcoming legislative proposals for the recall of hon. Members from their constituencies will apply to instances of misconduct committed before the entry into force of the proposed legislation. [57017]
Mr Harper: The Government are committed to bringing forward legislation to introduce a power to recall Members of Parliament. We are currently considering what would be the fairest, most appropriate and robust procedure and we will announce the details of our proposals before the summer recess.
Voting Rights: Prisoners
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of compensation payments for prisoners not enfranchised if proposed changes to the law on prisoner voting are not implemented. [41336]
Mr Harper: As the Attorney-General made clear during the Commons debate on this issue on 10 February 2011, Official Report, column 526, it is very difficult to make an accurate estimate of the cost to the public purse, since we cannot know the number of prisoners that may bring a claim, nor can we be certain exactly how much compensation each prisoner might be awarded.
However, if the entire UK sentenced population in the prison system (over 70,000 prisoners) were to bring claims, and on the basis that about £1,000 to £1,500 of compensation and costs might have to be paid in each case, clearly the matter has the potential to be very costly.
Priti Patel: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will notify the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe of (a) the decision of the House on and (b) the results of the Division on the motion on Voting by Prisoners of 10 February 2011, Votes and Proceedings, No. 115; and if he will register with (i) the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, (ii) the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and (iii) the Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe on objection to the contents of press release 283(2011) issued by the Human Rights Commissioner Thomas Hammarberg. [51571]
Mr Harper: No. It is the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers that is responsible for supervising the implementation of European Court of Human Rights' judgments. The Government notified the Committee of Ministers of the outcome of the recent backbench debate on prisoner voting rights in an Information Note provided ahead of the 1,108(th) meeting. The Information Note is available on the Committee of Ministers' website:
https://wcd.coe.int/wcd/ViewDoc.jsp?id=1753877&Site=CM &BackColorInternet=C3C3C3&BackColorIntranet=EDB021 &BackColorLogged=F5D383
I understand that the Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Hammarberg, requested a bilateral meeting with the Secretary of State for Justice at the “High level Conference on the Future of the European Court of
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Human Rights” which took place in Izmir, Turkey on 26 and 27 April 2011. At that meeting, the Secretary of State for Justice was clear that the Court must focus on truly important cases and have proper regard to the judgment of national Parliaments and courts.
Mr Hollobone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to enfranchise convicted prisoners in line with the ruling from the European Court of Human Rights. [57016]
Mr Harper: The Government asked the European Court of Human Rights to reconsider its recent judgment on prisoner voting rights (known as “Greens and MT”)—and was disappointed that the request was refused. The UK has six months from the date of the judgment becoming final to bring forward legislative proposals to amend the law on prisoner voting. The Government are considering the next steps.
Cabinet Office
Departmental Travel
Maria Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much each Executive agency of his Department has spent on travel by (a) private hire vehicles, (b) trains, (c) buses, (d) commercial aircraft and (e) private aircraft since May 2010. [56079]
Mr Maude: Between May 2010 and March 2011 the Cabinet Office's Executive agency, Buying Solutions, reduced expenditure on travel by 26% (compared with the same period in 2009-10) to £870,066. During that period the agency spent £13,043 on private hire vehicles, £522,827 on trains, £541 on buses, and £115,688 on commercial air travel. The agency did not spend anything on private aircraft.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much has been spent on travel in respect of (a) each of his Department's Executive agencies and (b) the chief executive of each such agency since May 2010. [56185]
Mr Maude: Between May 2010 and March 2011 the Cabinet Office's Executive agency, Buying Solutions, reduced expenditure on travel by 26% (compared with the same period in 2009-10) to £870,066. Of that total, £15,987 was incurred by the previous chief executive of the agency.
Government Departments: Correspondence
Alison McGovern: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the standard response time is for Government Departments to reply to letters from hon. Members on constituents' concerns or requests for information. [57048]
Mr Maude: The standard response target for responding to correspondence from hon. Members is 20 working days though a number of Departments have set themselves more demanding targets of 15 working days or less.
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Mortality Rates
Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the mortality rates of (a) (i) widows and (ii) widowers under the age of 35 and (b) the general population were in each of the last five years; [56729]
(2) what the five most frequent causes of death in (a) widows and (b) widowers under the age of 35 were in the latest period for which figures are available; [56730]
(3) what the age-standardised death rate per 100,000 men between age 40 and 69 who (a) smoke and (b) do not smoke and who were (i) married, (ii) single, (iii) divorced, (iv) widowed and (v) cohabiting was in the latest period for which figures are available; [56846]
(4) which 100 wards had the highest mortality rate in the latest period for which figures are available. [56848]
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 Parliamentary Questions asking:
1. What the mortality rates of (a) (i) widows and (ii) widowers under the age of 35 and (b) the general population were in each of the last five years. (56729)
2. What the five most frequent causes of death in (a) widows and (b) widowers under the age of 35 were in the latest period for which figures are available. (56730)
3. What the age-standardised death rate per 100,000 men between age 40 and 69 who (a) smoke and (b) do not smoke and who were (i) married, (ii) single, (iii) divorced, (iv) widowed and (v) cohabiting was in the latest period for which figures are available. (56846)
4. Which 100 wards had the highest mortality rate in the latest period for which figures are available. (56848)
Table 1(a) attached provides the number of deaths, mid-year population estimates and age-specific mortality rates for widowed men and women aged under 35, in England and Wales, for 2005 to 2009 (the latest year available).
Table 1(b) attached provides the age-standardised mortality rates for males and females of all ages, in England and Wales, for 2005 to 2009 (the latest year available).
Age-standardised rates are standardised to the European Standard Population and they are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. It is ONS policy not to calculate age-standardised rates where there are less than 10 deaths in a group, as standardised rates based on small numbers of events are susceptible to inaccurate interpretation. Therefore age-specific rates have been provided in Table 1(a).
Information on the marital status of the deceased is supplied at death registration in confidence, under the Population (Statistics) Acts. Due to the small numbers of deaths of widowed men and women aged under 35, information on frequently recorded causes of death have not be provided, in line with the ONS policy on protecting confidentiality within birth and death statistics.
Table 2 attached provides the age-standardised mortality rate per 100,000 population, for men aged between 40 and 69 who were (i) married (ii) single, (iii) divorced and (iv) widowed, in England and Wales, for the year 2009 (the latest year available).
It is not possible to provide mortality rates for people who smoke (3a) and do not smoke (3b) or people who are cohabiting (3v), as information on the deceased's smoking status and living arrangements is not collected at death registration.
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Table 3 provides the 100 wards which had the highest mortality rates, in England and Wales, for 2009 (the latest year available). A copy has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
The number of deaths registered in England and Wales each year by sex, age, cause, marital status, and place of death are published annually on the National Statistics website at:
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www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=15096
| Table 1a: Number of deaths, mid-year population estimates and age-specific mortality rates for widowed men and women aged under 35, England and Wales, 2005 - 09 (1,2,3,4) | ||||||
| Rate per 100,000 population | ||||||
| Male | Female | |||||
|
|
Deaths | Population | Rate | Deaths | Population | Rate |
| (1) Population estimates and deaths for widowed men and women exclude men and women who were surviving civil partners. (2) Populations estimates for widowed men and women are rounded to the nearest 100 and include figures for those who have married abroad. (3) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. (4) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. | ||||||
| Table 1b: Age-standardised mortality rates for males and females, in England and Wales, 2005 - 09 (1,2,3,4) | ||||||
| Rate per 100,000 population | ||||||
| Male | Female | |||||
| 95% confidence intervals | 95% confidence intervals | |||||
|
|
Rate | Lower limit | Upper limit | Rate | Lower limit | Upper limit |
| (1) Age-standardised mortality rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the European Standard Population. Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. (2) Confidence intervals are a measure of the statistical precision of an estimate and show the range of uncertainty around the estimated figure. Calculations based on small numbers of events are often subject to random fluctuations. As a general rule, if the confidence interval around one figure overlaps with the interval around another, we cannot say with certainty that there is more than a chance difference between the two figures. (3) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. (4) Figures are for deaths registered in 2009. | ||||||
| Table 2: Age-standardised mortality rates for men aged 40 to 69 by marital status, England and Wales, 2009 (1,2,3,4,5) | |||
| Rate per 100,000 population | |||
| 95% confidence intervals | |||
| Marital status | Rate | Lower limit | Upper limit |
| (1) Age-standardised mortality rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the European Standard Population. Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. (2) Confidence intervals are a measure of the statistical precision of an estimate and show the range of uncertainty around the estimated figure. Calculations based on small numbers of events are often subject to random fluctuations. As a general rule, if the confidence interval around one figure overlaps with the interval around another, we cannot say with certainty that there is more than a chance difference between the two figures. (3) Mortality rates for men in current or dissolved civil partnerships or who are surviving civil partners are not given as population estimates are not available. (4) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. (5) Figures are for deaths registered in 2009. | |||
Energy and Climate Change
Departmental Research
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what (a) longitudinal and (b) other (i) research and (ii) collection of data his Department has (A) initiated, (B) terminated and (C) amended in the last 12 months; and what such research and data collection exercises undertaken by the Department have not been amended in that period. [56758]
Gregory Barker: DECC Commissions significant volumes of research and data collection. DECC will be publishing a Science and Innovation Strategy in July that will set out our approach to evidence collection and research, and this document will provide information on science research projects.
DECC conducts a number of statistical surveys and an annual report that list these is published by the Government Statistical Service at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=12732
Since the last publication of this report, DECC has been reviewing the data collection for local authorities carbon emissions and has also stopped the data collection for the local authority fuel poverty indicator (which has been replaced by central modelling for all LAs by DECC). DECC statistics are available on the DECC website at:
http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/statistics.aspx
23 May 2011 : Column 385W
Energy: Housing
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to ensure that vulnerable elderly people are able to participate in the Green Deal scheme. [57061]
Gregory Barker: In recognition that some households may need additional support to benefit from energy efficiency improvements available through the Green Deal, we are developing an energy company obligation that will focus on the needs of the poor and vulnerable, including the elderly in those groups.
Energy: Prices
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to page 82 of the Plan for Growth, what timetable his Department has set for the publication of a framework to cap the effects of levy-funded support on energy bills. [57201]
Gregory Barker: The Control Framework for DECC levy-funded spending referred to on page 82 of the Plan for Growth has already been published and is available on HM Treasury's website:
http://hm-treasury.gov.uk/psr_controlframework_decc.htm
Energy: Sales
Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department’s policy is on implementing Ofgem’s recent recommendation in its retail market review that all telesale approaches made to micro-businesses should be recorded. [56642]
Charles Hendry: We support the proposals set out by Ofgem in its recent report on the retail market review. It is open to Ofgem to consider and implement any changes in the regulation of the market to ensure it works in the interests of consumers. This includes the introduction of new rules governing telephone sales activities in the micro-business sector.
Energy: Telecommunications
Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will bring forward proposals to ban the use of roll-over energy contracts in the telecommunications market. [56643]
Charles Hendry: As the independent regulator, it is for Ofgem to consider the need for additional regulatory protection in the retail supply market. In its recent Retail Market Review, Ofgem proposed to prevent suppliers automatically rolling customers on to a new fixed term product without their express consent and asked for consultation responses by 1 June 2011. Details of the proposal are available at:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Markets/RetMkts/Compet/Documents1/Decision_letter_FINAL.pdf
Fuels: Prices
Mr Douglas Alexander:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential long-term effect on global
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fuel prices of trends in the economies of
(a)
Brazil,
(b)
the Russian Federation,
(c)
India and
(d)
China. [56403]
Charles Hendry: The Department of Energy and Climate Change publishes a range of scenarios for oil, gas and coal price assumptions for the period up to 2030, which are used in the Department’s analytical work. The analysis to produce these scenarios has considered the impact of global economic growth. The range of fuel prices produced illustrates the high level of uncertainty around future price drivers such as global economic growth rates. The higher fuel price scenarios capture the impact of strong growth in emerging economies.
These assumptions can be found on the Department’s website at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/statistics/projections/file51365.pdf
Oil: Prices
Mr Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2011, Official Report, column 582W, on fuel: prices, what recent assessment he has made of the potential effects of speculation on oil prices following recent movements in the price of oil. [56870]
Charles Hendry: The Government have not made any further assessment on the potential effects of speculation on oil prices following the recent oil price movements, beyond the assessment in the answer I gave on 17 March 2011, Official Report, column 582W.
Radioactive Waste
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 3 May 2011, Official Report, columns 693-94W, on radioactive waste, what proportion of the high level waste (HLW) inventory is (a) high activity liquor and (b) vitrified HLW; what quantities of HLW and other radioactive waste streams he estimates will be created from the spent fuel from a possible future new build programme; and if he will provide the radiological value for each of the waste volume totals listed in his reply. [56134]
Charles Hendry: High Level Waste is a by-product from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel and arises in the UK initially as a radioactive liquid. Sellafield Ltd continues to use vitrification technology to condition liquid HLW into a form that can be passively stored for many decades until transported to a Geological Disposal Facility. The total radioactive content for all HLW in stock is about 80,000,000 TBq which is about 95% of the total radioactive content of all wastes in the UK Radioactive Waste Inventory. Approximately 50% of the total HLW inventory in stock has been conditioned.
Government are not currently expecting any proposals to reprocess spent fuel from new nuclear power stations and has stated that new nuclear power stations should proceed on the basis that spent fuel will not be reprocessed. Spent fuel is expected to be stored until it can be disposed of. Should proposals for new build reprocessing come forward in the future, they would need to be considered on their merits at the time and the Government would expect to consult on them.
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Small amounts of Intermediate Level Waste (ILW)/Low Level Waste (LLW) will be created from handling new build spent fuel but these are expected to be minimal and have not been calculated separately from overall ILW and LLW estimates.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information his Department holds on the quantities of reprocessing waste that have been created at Sellafield and Dounreay reprocessing and waste treatment plants. [57100]
Charles Hendry: The 2010 UK Radioactive Waste Inventory (UKRWI) is available online at:
23 May 2011 : Column 388W
www.nda.gov.uk/ukinventory/
and describes stocks of radioactive waste and radioactive materials held in the UK at 1 April 2010 as well as the predicted arisings from the operation and decommissioning of existing nuclear installations.
It is not possible to specifically identify wastes that have arisen solely from reprocessing activities from the process to compile the 2010 UKRWI. To identify this subset of wastes would require the site operators to perform a further detailed analysis which would have a considerable financial cost. However the latest information, as reported in the 2010 UKRWI, shows the total volume of radioactive waste in stock on 1 April 2010 at Sellafield and Dounreay was:
| Location | Waste type | Waste volume at 1 April 2010 (cubic metres) |
These figures represent stored waste that has arisen from all activities on the sites, including arisings from nuclear power station operations and decommissioning, reprocessing, defence and R&D activities. The figures do not include waste that has already been disposed of or any waste that has been repatriated to overseas customers.
Wind Power: Seas and Oceans
Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what guidance his Department and its predecessors issued on planning consents for offshore wind farms from 2003 to 2007. [57086]
Charles Hendry: In 2004 the then Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) issued general guidance on the offshore wind farm consents process. A copy of the guidance can be found at:
https://www.og.decc.gov.uk/EIP/pages/files/file22990.pdf
In 2005, the DTI issued two sets of guidance connected to the environmental impact assessment of offshore wind farms dealing with seascape and visual impact (URN 05/1583) and a methodology for the assessing the marine navigation safety risks (URN 05/1948). Both publications can be obtained from DECC publications at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/publications/
Defence
Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations
Mr Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what consideration he has given to the introduction of new safety measures for helicopters operating in Afghanistan; [56189]
(2) what recent reviews his Department has undertaken of the adequacy of safety measures for helicopters operating in Afghanistan. [56190]
Peter Luff: The safety of our helicopters is continuously reviewed. Threats to safety are identified through regular safety inspections, a joint air safety assurance audit was carried out on the task force joint aviation group in February, and discussions between the front-line helicopter users, the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff for Capability's Staff, and Defence Equipment and Support. These threats are assessed and where possible mitigation is then put in place through new equipment, training, tactics or procedures to ensure that the risk to life cannot practically be reduced further. The Department's aviation safety management systems are subject to formal audit by the Military Aviation Authority.
As a result of this process, our helicopter fleets have been significantly enhanced to meet the demands of operations in Afghanistan. Investment continues to improve our helicopters' protection against attack, to make landings in Afghanistan's dusty conditions safer, to improve the safety of helicopter fuel systems and to provide better situational awareness for aircrew.
Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK military personnel served at least one tour in Afghanistan between 2001 and the most recent date for which figures are available. [56336]
Nick Harvey: As at 31 March 2011, 103,260 past and present members of the UK armed forces have been identified as having deployed to Afghanistan since 2001. This figure does not include personnel who deployed to Afghanistan between the periods 1 January 2003 and 14 October 2005 for which data are not available.
Mrs Moon:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what specialist training UK armed forces receive on the UK’s commitment to implement UN Security Council
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resolution 1325 on women, peace and security prior to deployment to Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement. [56389]
Nick Harvey: Though UK armed forces personnel do not receive specific training on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution (UNSCR) 1325 prior to the deployment in Afghanistan, all personnel deployed to any operational theatre will undertake, as part of their pre-deployment preparation, law of armed conflict training. This covers issues relevant to UNSCR 1325, such as the status of protected persons including women and children, and the humane treatment of captured persons. Pre-deployment training will also highlight the cultural sensitivities for that country.
In November 2010, the UK published a revised action plan on UNSCR 1325 following a review by the Ministry of Defence, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development. The plan includes a commitment to the development and delivery of pre-deployment training on cultural (including gender) awareness for the UK armed forces. The Ministry of Defence is currently developing such training.
Air Force: Redundancy
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 1 March 2011, Official Report, columns 21-22WS, on the armed forces redundancy process, how many service personnel he expects to be made redundant from the Royal Air Force (a) in each region, (b) on each base and (c) at each rank. [44439]
Mr Robathan [holding answer 23 May 2011]:I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 4 March 2011, Official Report, column 639W.
Aircraft Carriers
Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the inclusion of (a) steam catapults and arrestor hooks and (b) electro-magnetic propulsion units in the design specification of a new aircraft carrier. [56500]
Peter Luff: As announced in the strategic defence and security review on 19 October 2010, we will fit one of the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers with catapults and arrestor gear to operate the more capable carrier variant joint strike fighter.
Investigations into the aircraft launch and recovery systems—and a wide range of other factors—are under way. At this stage, the US Electro-Magnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) catapult and the US Advanced Arrestor Gear (AAG) recovery system appears to be the most promising solution, though we have not ruled out steam catapults or MK7 arrestor gear.
We currently expect to take firm decisions on the overall conversion strategy in late 2012.
Armed Forces Day
David Morris:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government the waiving
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of fees by local authorities for the closure of roads for events to mark Armed Forces Day. [56799]
Peter Luff: The closure of roads and the fees involved are a matter for local authorities. Applications for roads to be closed or for the fees for doing so to be waived should be made directly to the local authority concerned. However, we strongly urge that the public, both as individuals and groups, as well as local authorities, take the opportunity on 25 June 2011 to show their support for the men and women of the armed forces, both current and former, who rise to the very difficult challenge of maintaining the defence of the realm.
Armed Forces: Conditions of Employment
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the statement of 16 May 2011, Official Report, columns 25-42, on armed forces covenant, how increased council tax relief for military personnel serving on operations overseas will be funded. [56651]
Peter Luff: The detailed arrangements for funding the increase in council tax relief have yet to be finalised.
EU Law
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the provisions of Directive 2009/81/EC on the UK defence industry; and if he will make a statement; [55486]
(2) when he plans to transpose Directive 2009/81/EC into UK law; [55487]
(3) from which provisions of Directive 2009/81/EC the UK is exempt. [55520]
Peter Luff: An assessment of the impacts of the provisions of directive 2009/81/EC was published during both public consultations on implementing the directive, and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) sought specific advice on its impacts, including the effects on industry. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House. A final assessment is being prepared as a result of comments received.
The MOD plans to transpose directive 2009/81/EC into UK law on 21 August 2011, as required.
The UK is not exempt from any of the provisions of directive 2009/81/EC. However, the directive does include a number of exemptions for specific procurements which will be considered on a case-by-case basis. These include article 346—known as the “warlike store exemption”—that we can use when we need to put measures in place to protect our essential security interests as well as a number of other exclusions at articles 12 and 13.
Falkland Islands: Military Aircraft
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many quick reaction alert activations have taken place in the Falkland Islands in the last 12 months; and how many aircraft (a) took part and (b) were airborne within the alert time in each such case. [56819]
23 May 2011 : Column 391W
Nick Harvey: In the last 12 months there have been six quick reaction alert activations in the Falkland Islands. These have involved between one and two aircraft and on each occasion the aircraft were airborne within the prescribed alert time.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many aircraft for which his Department is responsible are permanently based in the Falkland Islands. [56821]
Nick Harvey: The following table sets out the aircraft which British Forces South Atlantic Islands has in its permanent establishment:
| Aircraft type | Number |
The Sikorsky aircraft are operated by Brintel. In addition, British forces in the South Atlantic have command of the helicopter operating from the frigate or destroyer assigned to the Atlantic Patrol Task (South).
Improvised Explosive Devices
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the £67 million of additional funding for countering improvised explosive devices announced by the Prime Minister on 10 June 2010, what new capabilities (a) have been and (b) are to be delivered as a result of that funding. [56829]
Peter Luff: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given on 15 March 2011, Official Report, column 207W, by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence.
Joint Strike Fighter Programme
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence where joint combat aircraft (a) training, (b) maintenance, (c) overhauls and (d) logistic systems are being developed; and at what cost to the public purse in each such case. [56564]
Peter Luff: To meet the joint combat aircraft requirement, we are collaboratively developing a joint strike fighter air system with the US and other international partners, having contributed £1.555 billion to the systems development and demonstration (SDD) phase of the programme, so far. SDD not only develops the aircraft, but also the training system, maintenance and overhaul requirements and associated logistic and information systems.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the number of jobs the joint combat aircraft programme will provide over its lifetime in (a) the UK and (b) each partner nation. [56565]
Peter Luff:
The Department has not made an estimate of the number of jobs that the joint strike fighter (JSF) programme will provide throughout its life. We do not
23 May 2011 : Column 392W
have any information as to the number of jobs which may be created in other participant nations. However, in the production phase, British companies secured some 15% of the JSF industrial programme estimated at around £35 billion.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much has been spent in the (a) system design and development phase and (b) production, sustainment and follow-on development phase of the Joint Strike Fighter programme in each year to date; [56864]
(2) what the budget allocation is for the system design and development phase of the Joint Strike Fighter programme; [56865]
(3) whether any financial liabilities remain for the system design and development phase of the Joint Strike Fighter programme; [56866]
(4) how much funding his Department expects to allocate to the production, sustainment and follow-on development phase of the Joint Strike Fighter programme in each of the next four years. [56867]
Peter Luff: To meet the Joint Combat Aircraft requirement we are collaboratively developing a Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) air system with the US and other international partners through the JSF Systems Development and Demonstration (SDD) phase.
The total UK expenditure to date on the SDD phase of JSF is £1,555 million with a final forecasted outturn of the SSD phase of £1,827 million, which is within our formal approval of £2,034 million. Similarly, the total UK spend to date on the Production, Sustainment and Follow-on Development (PSFD) phase is £270 million.
The total cost of the production, sustainment and follow-on development will be determined when the main investment decision point is made. The Ministry of Defence does not publish estimates of the costs of programmes before this point as to do so would undermine our commercial position.
Libya: Armed Conflict
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the air strike during which it was reported that Saif al-Arab al-Gaddafi was killed was carried out by British forces. [56499]
Nick Harvey: It is NATO policy not to release details of which nations have carried out specific air strikes against Gaddafi’s forces.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Sentinel R1 surveillance aircraft have transferred from Afghanistan to Libya in the last 12 months; and for what length of time in each such case. [56820]
Nick Harvey: No Sentinel R1 aircraft have transferred from Afghanistan to support operations in Libya.
Nuclear Weapons
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on (a) nuclear proliferation and (b) the militarisation of space. [56678]
23 May 2011 : Column 393W
Nick Harvey: The UK is committed to non-proliferation under the terms of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the cornerstone of the international security architecture. We continue to call on all states that have not yet done so to accede to the NPT as non-nuclear-weapon states.
The UK supports the principle of free access to and use of outer space in accordance with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the review of alternatives to the nuclear deterrent to be completed. [57089]
Nick Harvey: The review is expected to take around 18 months to complete.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the National Security Council will have a formal role in the review of alternatives to the nuclear deterrent. [57090]
Nick Harvey: As set out in the Strategic Defence and Security Review (Cm7948), the National Security Council approved the Trident value for money study and decided to proceed with the renewal of Trident and the submarine replacement programme. The aim of the review is to fulfil the coalition programme for Government by assisting the Liberal Democrats to make the case for alternatives: the National Security Council will not have a formal role in the review.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to whom the review of alternatives to the nuclear deterrent will report. [57091]
Nick Harvey: I will oversee the study and it will report jointly to the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much of the cost of the review of alternatives to the nuclear deterrent will be met by (a) the Cabinet Office and (b) his Department. [57092]
Nick Harvey: Costs will be met from within existing departmental budgets. It is too early to predict how much will fall to the Cabinet Office and how much to the Ministry of Defence.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of staff he plans to allocate to his review of alternatives to the nuclear deterrent; and what budget he plans to allocate to the review. [57093]
Nick Harvey: The study will be led by a senior civil servant and a dedicated project manager in the Cabinet Office. They will draw together inputs from a range of experts in the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Defence and other Departments. Costs will be met from within existing departmental budgets.
23 May 2011 : Column 394W
Special Air Service
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what his Department's policy is on commenting on matters relating to the Special Air Service; [56696]
(2) what his Department's policy is on recruitment to the Special Air Service. [56777]
Nick Harvey: It is the longstanding policy of this and previous Administrations not ordinarily to comment on matters concerning UK special forces.
Trident Submarines: Safety
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the safety performance in relation to accidents involving a loss of coolant of the proposed reactors for future Trident submariners. [55422]
Nick Harvey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 May 2011, Official Report, columns 1090-91W.
Communities and Local Government
Affordable Housing
Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what criteria will be used when making allocations from the New Homes Bonus to (a) eco-towns and (b) other forms of development. [56380]
Grant Shapps: The New Homes Bonus is designed to incentivise all increases in housing supply, including new homes, conversions and empty properties brought back into use. It is for local authorities and their communities to decide the type of homes they want and the shape of future development, including proposals for eco-towns.
For all developments, the New Homes Bonus is based on the council tax from the net increase in effective housing stock with a further enhancement of £350 for affordable homes and will be paid for the following six years. Further details of the calculation are published in the New Homes Bonus—Final Scheme Design on the Department's website at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/housing/housingsupply/newhomesbonus
Allotments
Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the implications of the provisions of the Localism Bill for the future provision of allotments by local authorities; and if he will make a statement. [56239]
Greg Clark:
The Localism Bill provides important new opportunities for communities to expand provision of allotments; the number of which have fallen by 17%
23 May 2011 : Column 395W
since 1996 against a rise in waiting list numbers from four people waiting for every 100 plots in 1996 to 57 per 100 plots last year.
There are a number of measures in the Localism Bill that will enable local people who are interested in food growing and cultivation to play a bigger role in planning, designing, managing and maintaining community green spaces for this purpose.
New “Neighbourhood Planning” provisions in the Bill will provide communities with a means to boost the amount of space for food growing with powers to protect existing allotments and identify new plots. A referendum at the end of the process ensures communities have the final say on whether a neighbourhood development plan or development order comes into force in their area. 17 communities are currently trialling Neighbourhood Planning, including in Bermondsey where the community is looking at open spaces around council estates being used to provide allotments as part of their neighbourhood plan.
The “Community Right to Challenge” will give voluntary and community groups the right to express an interest in taking over the running of a local authority service. This will make it easier for local groups with good ideas to put them forward and drive improvement in local services, which will include the management of allotments.
Through the “Community Right to Buy” provisions in the Bill, the Department is seeking to require local authorities, to maintain a list of land and buildings identified by local people as assets that are of value to them and to give community groups a fair chance to prepare a bid and secure the funding to buy them if they come up for sale on the open market. These facilities could include green spaces from community gardens and parks, to orchards and allotments, and are not restricted to publicly owned land.
Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to ensure that people on low incomes are not excluded from renting allotments from their local authorities due to the level of charges; and if he will make a statement. [56240]
Robert Neill: Local authorities are expected to abide by the relevant legislation, namely section 10 of the Allotments Act 1950, which states that an allotment must be let at a rent that a tenant may reasonably be expected to pay.
Advice on the considerations relevant to the setting of rents is set out in section 4 of “Allotments: A plotholders Guide”, available from the Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens' website using the following link:
www.farmgarden.org.uk/ari
Guidance is also available for local authorities on managing allotment costs in "A Place to Grow"; downloadable from the LGA website at
www.lga.gov.uk
Common Land
George Freeman:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what assessment he has made of the effects of town or village green
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applications on rates of construction of new affordable housing; and if he will make a statement; [56635]
(2) what recent representations he has received on town or village green applications; and if he will make a statement. [56636]
Richard Benyon: I have been asked to reply.
I am aware of the difficulties which some applications to register new town or village greens can cause, particularly where an application is made in response to advanced plans for development of a site, but DEFRA has made no specific assessment of the effects of registration applications on the provision of affordable housing. I also appreciate the importance local communities can place on both open space and new development, and that there has to be confidence that the relevant decision-making processes are working coherently in the interests of the community as a whole.
I have received representations about the registration system from a number of Members and from others, including in relation to affordable housing, and am considering whether changes to the greens registration system are required. I hope to make an announcement about our plans in the near future.
George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many town and village green applications were made in each of the last five years; what proportion of applications were successful in each such year; what the average length of time taken was to process an application in each such year; and if he will make a statement. [56711]
Richard Benyon: I have been asked to reply.
Registers of town or village greens are held by local authorities, and data on registration activity are not reported to Government. Surveys of registration activity were carried out in late 2007 and late 2009, and the following data are estimated by scaling up for non-responding authorities. Values relate to the number of applications received or determined (as the case may be) in the specified year, and do not indicate the outcome relating to applications received in a particular year. Data collected in 2007 on the time taken to process similar applications under the Commons Registration Act 1965 showed an average period of 16 months among those authorities providing an answer.
| Estimated number of greens applications in England, 2005 to September 2009 | ||||
| Number of green applications | ||||
|
|
In year | Determined (1) | Granted | Rejected |
| (1) Values in this column should equal the sum of the following two columns. However, there are various discrepancies, probably owing to applications considered over several years being assigned to the wrong year. (2) The criteria for application were amended with effect from April 2007, by the implementation of section 15 of the 2006 Act. These data include applications under both the 1965 and 2006 Acts. | ||||
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Energy Performance Certificates
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 17 May 2011, Official Report, column 147W, on energy performance certificates, what his policy is on requiring all domestic properties in England to have an energy performance certificate. [57018]
Andrew Stunell: All domestic properties in England and Wales are required to have an energy performance certificate on the sale, rent or construction of a building. Since 2007 over 6.2 million energy performance certificates have been produced for dwellings.
Fire Services: Manpower
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many firemen there are per head of population. [56485]
Robert Neill: The latest numbers of firefighters per head of population in England are shown in the table:
| Number of firefighters at 31 March 2010, England | ||
|
|
Headcount | Headcount per 1,000 heads of population (1) |
| (1) Calculation based on population for England of 51.8 million Source: “Fire and Rescue Service Operational Statistics”, Department for Communities and Local Government, and Office for National Statistics Mid-year Population Estimates | ||
Homelessness
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of households likely to make homelessness applications as a consequence of the overall benefit cap in the 12 months following its introduction. [57076]
Grant Shapps: The Government estimate of the number of homelessness applications as a consequence of the overall benefit cap is as contained in the DWP Impact Assessment. The link to the DWP Impact Assessment can be found at:
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/household-benefit-cap-wr2011-ia.pdf
Housing: Environment Protection
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether strategic environmental assessments will apply to neighbourhood plans; and if he will make a statement. [52762]
Greg Clark: A neighbourhood development plan once adopted by the local planning authority will form part of the statutory development plan. If it contains policies that are likely to have significant environmental effects it could trigger the strategic environmental assessment directive.
23 May 2011 : Column 398W
Local Government: Pensions
Jim McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate his Department has made of the likely change in the number of members opting out of the Local Government Pension Scheme as a result of the increase in employee contributions. [56802]
Robert Neill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Wallasey (Ms Eagle) on 14 February 2011, Official Report, columns 539-40W.
Mayors
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what powers local authorities in areas where a mayor is to be directly elected will have to replace serving shadow mayors appointed before the first direct election for mayor; [56668]
(2) on what date he expects to appoint shadow mayors in each city in England where directly-elected mayors are to be introduced. [56687]
Robert Neill: The Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my hon. Friend the Member for Hazel Grove (Andrew Stunell), indicated to the House at Report stage of the Localism Bill that we would listen carefully to the points made on the mayoral provisions in the Bill, particularly on such issues as shadow mayors. We are now reflecting on the comments we have heard and intend to come back to these matters when the Bill is considered in the other place.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) when he expects cities which vote in favour of introducing directly-elected mayors in May 2012 will hold the first such elections; [56670]
(2) what his policy is on provisions to allow local authorities with a shadow mayor to hold direct elections for an elected mayor before May 2013. [56719]
Robert Neill: Our expectation is that where there is a vote in favour of introducing a directly-elected mayor at a referendum, the first mayoral election will be held shortly thereafter.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance he plans to make available to local authorities with directly-elected mayors on working relationships with directly-elected police and justice commissioners. [56671]
Robert Neill: It will be for the directly-elected mayor and directly-elected police and crime commissioner for an area to develop and maintain an effective working relationship on which they will be accountable to their local electorates. It is already the case that local authorities and police authorities work together on issues like local policing, CCTV and licensing.
23 May 2011 : Column 399W
Planning
Dr Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to increase involvement in the planning process of communities which live in close proximity to proposed developments but which are in the development envelope of another local authority. [56709]
Robert Neill: Local authorities are already required to publicise planning applications to local communities in a range of ways. Details of these requirements are set out in article 13 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2010.
Clause 102 of the Localism Bill introduces a new requirement for applicants for certain types of development to consult the local community in advance of submitting a planning application, and to have regard to any views raised.
Both statutory provisions apply where a development is close to the boundary of another local authority.
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the presumption in favour of development proposed in the Plan for Growth. [56950]
Robert Neill: Ministers are in discussion about the presumption in favour of sustainable development, with a view to publishing a draft shortly.
Sky Lanterns: Safety
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment his Department has made of the potential fire risk arising from the use of Chinese lanterns. [57140]
Robert Neill: Fire and rescue incident records show these products resulted in 125 incidents attended in 2010-11, none of which caused substantial damage. This compares to over 100,000 outdoor fire incidents attended by fire and rescue services each year.
Justice
Aarhus Convention
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what resources his Department has allocated to implementation of the provisions of the Aarhus convention. [56425]
Mr Djanogly: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the lead Government Department on the implementation of the Aarhus convention. As with similar initiatives, no dedicated resources have been allocated by the Ministry of Justice to this area. Instead actions arising out of the implementation of the convention affecting this Department are handled by relevant officials as part of their normal business.
23 May 2011 : Column 400W
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the likely effects of Lord Justice Jackson's proposals on civil litigation costs on the UK's compliance with the terms of the (a) Aarhus convention and (b) Ruggie mandate. [56426]
Mr Djanogly: 'Reforming Civil Litigation Funding and Costs in England and Wales—Implementation of Lord Justice Jackson's Recommendations: The Government Response' was published on 29 March 2011, setting out the way forward on the proposals following full consultation. An updated impact assessment was published alongside this response.
Corruption
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 16 March 2011, Official Report, column 453W, on corruption, what tasks he plans to complete in his role as the UK's international anti-corruption champion during the remainder of 2011. [56413]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: My first priority as champion, and focus this year, has been to ensure the effective implementation of the Bribery Act 2010, which I have announced will be commenced on 1 July this year. In the short term, raising awareness of the Act overseas to ensure that the trading reputation of UK businesses is enhanced is a clear priority.
I am now also considering other areas of international anti-corruption and with Ministers and officials I have been exploring the focus of UK anti-corruption activity and, in particular, the focus of my efforts as champion.
I am undertaking bilateral meetings with foreign Government Ministers and judges to encourage and offer support to them to raise anti-corruption standards in their own countries. I have already discussed this with a number of Ministers and justice office holders in Romania, Slovenia and Turkey and will continue to have these discussions with counterparts in the European Union, candidate and neighbourhood countries. I visited Croatia in April to discuss progress towards accession to the European Union, of which implementation of anti-corruption measures is key. My Department will continue to monitor and encourage improvements in anti-corruption standards in EU candidate and neighbourhood countries. As part of the Memorandum of Understanding I have signed between the UK and the Russian Federation, we will work together to tackle corruption, with the aim of strengthening stable trade between our two countries.
I will have strategic oversight of the peer evaluations which the UK will undergo in June and July by the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention and UN Convention Against Corruption to assess compliance with these international standards.
County Courts: Judgments
David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many county court judgments have been awarded to individuals against financial institutions in each of the last three years; and how many remain to be enforced after judgment. [56654]
23 May 2011 : Column 401W
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice does not hold figures centrally on the number of county court judgments awarded to individuals against financial institutions.
The administrative computer systems in the county courts contain the records of all county court judgments made and the names of judgment creditors and judgment debtors involved in these. However the judgment creditor names have not been classified according to whether they are individuals or otherwise and the judgment debtor names have not been classified according to whether they are financial institutions or otherwise. These classifications could be obtained through the manual examination of the electronic records only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental CCTV
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many CCTV cameras are installed in and around his Department's premises; and how much such cameras (a) cost to install and (b) cost to operate in the latest period for which figures are available. [56839]
Mr Blunt: In 2010-11, the latest period for which figures are available, there were 192 CCTV cameras installed in the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) central London administrative estate and the United Kingdom Supreme Court. It is not possible to provide information on their installation costs as CCTV systems are usually installed as part of a wider refurbishment, and in most cases many years ago. The average annual cost of maintaining these cameras is £112 each. It is not possible to disaggregate other costs related to their operation.
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Additionally, in public sector prisons in England and Wales the number of systems rather than individual cameras is recorded. The number of cameras in each system will vary depending on the category of prison. There are 1,300 CCTV systems. It is not possible to disaggregate their installation and operating costs.
Obtaining information from other MOJ agencies, arm’s length bodies and contracted prisons would incur disproportionate cost.
Departmental Research
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what (a) longitudinal and (b) other (i) research and (ii) collection of data his Department has (A) initiated, (B) terminated and (C) amended in the last 12 months; and what such research and data collection exercises undertaken by the Department have not been amended in that period. [56753]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: We regularly review our research and collection of data. Therefore the content of the work changes in consultation with stakeholders and with regards to costs, quality, need and burden. We do very few longitudinal projects in the sense of the project tracking the same respondents over a period of time. Details of external social research projects commissioned, terminated or amended by the Department since May 2010 are set out in Table 1. It also shows details of data collections. A number of these data collections are a by-product of existing management information systems and therefore require minimal resource to collect.
Table 2 shows research and data collections that are on-going and have not been amended in the last 12 months.
23 May 2011 : Column 403W
23 May 2011 : Column 404W
|
Time Intervals Survey of Criminal Proceedings in Magistrates' Courts |
|
|
High Court, Appellate Courts and other judicial data for official statistics |
|
Offenders
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders in the prison estate (a) ran away from home as a child, (b) were taken into care as a child, (c) were excluded from school as a child, (d) were unemployed before prison, (e) suffer from two or more mental disorders, (f) had a drug abuse problem prior to their imprisonment and (e) had an alcohol problem prior to their imprisonment. [56459]
Mr Blunt: A representative sample of 1,435 reception prisoners from Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR), a study of adult prisoners sentenced to between one month and four years in prison in 2005 and 2006, self-reported the following:
24% were taken into care as a child;
42% were expelled or permanently excluded from school (63% were temporarily excluded);
68% were not in paid employment (excluding casual or cash-in-hand work) in the four weeks before custody;
17% received treatment/counselling for a mental health or emotional problem in the 12 months before custody and 20% reported they needed help for a mental health or emotional problem at the time of the interview;
81% had used drugs at some point prior to custody;
22% had drunk alcohol every day in the four weeks prior to custody.
Prisoners were not asked whether they had run away from home as a child.
Offenders: Bank Services
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what information his Department holds on the number of offenders leaving prison who have a bank account. [56460]
Mr Blunt: Information on the number of offenders leaving prison who have a bank account is not routinely collected. A survey by the Legal Service Research Centre in 2007 reported that 40% of people in prison surveyed had no current account or other financial products. An evaluation by Liverpool John Moores University in 2008 found that 69% of prisoners at one prison had no bank account.
We recognise that access to bank accounts and other basic financial services can positively contribute to the rehabilitation of prisoners and their resettlement into society, and we are working closely across Departments and with banks to increase provision.
Prisoners on Remand
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners were held on remand for (a) 12 to 24 months, (b) 24 to 60 months and (c) over 60 months in each year since 2007 for which figures are available. [56791]
Mr Blunt: Data are not held centrally on the length of time each individual prisoner spends on remand. However, using the data held, it is possible to estimate the average time on remand which is between eight and nine weeks.
Prisons: Crimes of Violence
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) National Offender Management Service and (b) Prison Service staff in each prison establishment were treated for injuries sustained as a result of assaults by offenders in each year since 2007 for which figures are available. [56789]
Mr Blunt: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) does not record data in the requested form. However, NOMS does record and publish statistics on assaults on staff which include assaults on prison officers. The statistics show the number of incidents in which staff have been involved, but do not include the number of individual injuries received by staff or the treatment they received. They do include figures for assaults by type of injury received. Figures for staff and prisoner injuries have been collated in the published statistics.
Figures for assaults on staff broken down by establishment can be found in the published Ministry of Justice Safety in Custody statistics at the following link.
23 May 2011 : Column 405W
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/prisons-and-probation/safety-in-custody.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.
Prisons: Manpower
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many full-time diversity officers were employed at each prison establishment in the latest period for which figures are available. [56427]
Mr Blunt: Prison establishments employ staff with specialist responsibilities around equality and diversity issues with a variety of job titles, such as race equality officer and disability liaison officer, as well as diversity officer. In the period 1 January 2011 to 31 March 2011 such staff spent an average of 77 hours each week per establishment working on equality and diversity issues. 124 prisons reported that an average of 35 or more hours per week was spent on these issues. Information on the number of staff that work full-time on these issues is not collected centrally and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost by contacting each establishment.
Prisons: Repairs and Maintenance
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which prisons will be put out to maintenance and operation tender in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013, (iii) 2014 and (iv) 2015. [56461]
Mr Blunt: The Ministry of Justice is currently developing the Offender Services Competition Strategy in line with commitments in the Breaking the Cycle Green Paper and the Ministry of Justice Business Plan. The strategy will set out how competition will be used within Offender Services and outline a timetable for competition in this period.
Prisons: Sexuality
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison diversity officers trained in the handling of issues on sexual orientation there were in the latest period for which figures are available. [56428]
Mr Blunt: Information about specific training attended by prison officers is not available centrally and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost by contacting each establishment. Every prison has a manager with lead responsibility for equalities issues, and the publication “A guide to working with lesbian, gay and bisexual offenders in custody”, produced by NACRO, has been distributed to all prison establishments.
Prisons: Training
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will assess the merits of setting minimum training standards for prisons working jointly with prisoners, their children and families; and if he will make a statement. [56374]
Mr Blunt:
NOMS already has training standards in place for all its central training provision through the use of National Occupational Standards in Custodial Care. The importance of prison officers working with
23 May 2011 : Column 406W
prisoners, their children and families is reflected in their initial training and other training they receive throughout their career as part of their continuing professional development.
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours of prison officers' initial training consists of training on working jointly with prisoners, their children and families; and if he will make a statement. [56375]
Mr Blunt: Initial training for newly recruited prison officers provides officers with an understanding of the importance of working effectively with prisoners and their families. There are two sessions, totalling three hours, which focus specifically on working jointly with prisoners, their children and families.
Rape: Research
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to publish the research report on the frequency of false allegations of rape in response to the recommendations of the Stern Review; and who is undertaking the research for the report. [56901]
Mr Blunt: An analysis of police and CPS casefiles, relating to cases proceeded against for serious sexual and violent offences, is being undertaken by TNS-BMRB following a competitive tender through the MOJ Research Framework. The project—which will explore further the evidence for false allegations of rape—is under way, and a report of the findings will be published in accordance with the Government Social Research Publication Guidelines when it is ready.
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/Assets/GSR%20Publication%20Guidance%20-%2029%20Jan%202010_tcm6-35775.pdf
Risley Prison: Suicide
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to reduce the number of suicides at HMP Risley; and if he will make a statement. [56679]
Mr Blunt: Each death in custody is a tragedy. The National Offender Management Service is committed to reducing the number of self-inflicted deaths in prison custody.
Regrettably, there have been three self-inflicted deaths at HMP Risley in the last 12 months.
There do not appear to be any immediate common factors between the three deaths. Unfortunately, clusters of deaths can occur randomly due to the relatively small numbers involved.
Each death is subject to an investigation and, since 2004, these have been undertaken by the prisons and probation ombudsman. Strenuous efforts are made to learn from each death and improve our understanding and procedures for caring for prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm.
23 May 2011 : Column 407W
Trade Unions
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff of (a) his Department, (b) HM Courts and Tribunals Service, (c) HM Land Registry, (d) the National Offender Management Service, (e) the National Archives and (f) the Office of the Public Guardian are entitled to work (i) full-time as trade union representatives and (ii) part-time on trade union activities; how many such staff are paid more than £25,900 annually; and what the cost to the public purse of employing such staff on such duties was in the latest period for which figures are available. [56446]
Mr Djanogly: 189 full-time equivalent staff were engaged in trade union activity representing the 78,000 staff in the Ministry of Justice within the 2008-09 financial year. The estimated total salary cost of such activity was £6.3 million. This work includes national work in MOJ and national and some local work in NOMS.
Facilities agreements between the Ministry of Justice and the trade union sides follow the provisions of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 and the ACAS Code of Practice ‘Time off for Trade Union Duties and Activities’, available at:
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2391
The number of trade union representatives working full and part time in the individual business units of the Department and the number of those with a salary of more than £25,900 could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
Tribunals: Special Educational Needs
Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of tribunal cases on provision of special educational needs support found in favour of a family bringing a case against a local authority (a) in total and (b) in each local authority area in each of the last five years. [56384]
Mr Djanogly: The following table shows the proportion of judgments made by the first-tier tribunal—special educational needs and disability (formerly special educational needs and disability tribunal) that were at least partially found in favour and fully found in favour of the appellant when compared to the overall number of special educational needs (SEN) decisions made by the tribunal:
| Special educational needs appeal findings | ||
| Percentage | ||
| Academic year | Proportion of SEN appeals found partially in favour of the appellant | Proportion of SEN appeals found in favour of the appellant |
It should be noted that any amendment to the statement in the appellant's favour is counted as a partial success whereas only a full dismissal of an appeal is counted a success for the local authority.
23 May 2011 : Column 408W
The tribunal is engaged in a number of measures which aim to ensure that only those cases that really need to come before it do so. For example, it is encouraging local authorities to review their files earlier and to settle cases earlier where it is appropriate to do so.
The information on judgments broken down by local authority is not routinely collected and would require running reports for each academic year for each of the 150 local authorities. This could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, information is available on the overall number of appeals registered against each local authority and can be found in the first-tier tribunal—special educational needs and disability annual reports at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/corporate-reports/tribunals/send.htm
Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what (a) time series, (b) comparative geographical and (c) other data his Department holds on the number of cases relating to provision of special educational needs support in which the local authority decision was contested by the family and the case (i) did and (ii) did not go to a tribunal in each of the last three years. [56385]
Mr Djanogly: Information on the number of appeals made to the first-tier tribunal special educational needs and disability are published in its annual reports and are available at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/corporate-reports/tribunals/send.htm
The statistics are recorded on an academic year basis (September to August). They include a breakdown of registered appeals by local authority and the number of registered appeals that are decided at a hearing and the numbers of appeals that do not reach a hearing through judicial strike out, withdrawal by parent or concession by local authority.
The number of first-tier tribunal—special educational needs and disability appeal receipts and disposals by calendar year have previously been published annually by the Tribunals Service (now Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service) in its annual report available at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/corporate-reports/tribunals/index.htm
Neither the tribunal nor the Department for Education hold information on the number of contested cases that do not result in a tribunal application.
Home Department
Crown Relocations
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many contracts her Department holds with Crown Relocations; and what the (a) purpose and (b) monetary value of each contract is. [56233]
Damian Green: The Home Department, inclusive of its Executive agencies, holds one contract with Crown Relocations to (a) provide relocation and tenancy management services to the UK Border Agency officers posted to Juxtaposed immigration controls at Brussels and Paris. The (b) monetary value of the two-year contract is £230,000.
23 May 2011 : Column 409W
Death Certificates
Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) average, (b) shortest and (c) longest time taken between the issuing of a medical certificate of cause of death and the issuing of the certificate for burial or cremation was in the latest year for which figures are available. [56638]
Damian Green: No analyses are made of the length of time between the issuing of a medical certificate of cause of death and the issuing of the certificate for burial or cremation. There is no precise point at which a death is certified and so the medical certificate may be issued on the same day as the death, or on the following day or occasionally even a few days later. No central record is kept of the dates of issue of medical certificates of cause of death.
Likewise, certificates for burial or cremation are not all issued at the same point in the process. The majority are issued at the time of the registration of the death but some are issued prior to registration. No central record is kept of the dates of issue of certificates for burial or cremation.
Departmental Travel
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on ministerial travel by (a) ministerial car, (b) train, (c) bus, (d) commercial aircraft and (e) private aircraft since May 2010. [50205]
Damian Green: Since May 2010, for greater transparency, all information relating to ministerial overseas travel, including cost is published on the Home Office website on a quarterly basis at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/about-us/non-personal-data/hospitality-business-expenses/
Expenditure relating to ministerial car, train and bus travel can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with Cabinet Office Ministerial Code, specifically section 10 which stipulates that all travel arrangements should be efficient and cost-effective.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much each Executive agency of her Department has spent on travel by (a) private hire vehicles, (b) trains, (c) buses, (d) commercial aircraft and (e) private aircraft since May 2010. [56072]
Damian Green: Expenditure for the three Home Office agencies, since May 2010 is as follows:
| Criminal Records Bureau | |
|
|
£000 |
| Note: Expenditure rounded to the nearest £000. | |
23 May 2011 : Column 410W
| Identity and Passport Service | |
|
|
£000 |
|
(d) Commercial air travel expenditure May 2010 to March 2011 |
|
| Note: Expenditure rounded to the nearest £000. | |
| UK Border Agency | |
|
|
£000 |
|
(d) Commercial air travel expenditure May 2010 to April 2011 |
|
| (1) This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Note: Expenditure rounded to the nearest £000. | |
The Department expects all official travel within Executive agencies to be carried out by the most efficient and economic means available, taking into account the cost of travel and subsistence, savings in official time, management benefit and the needs of staff with disabilities. This is in accordance with the Civil Service Management Code and the Ministerial Code.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent on travel in respect of (a) each of her Department's executive agencies and (b) the chief executive of each such agency since May 2010. [56180]
Damian Green: The Home Office had three executive agencies over the period in question (1 May 2010 to 31 March 2011)—Identity and Passport Service, UK Border Agency and Criminal Records Bureau. Travel expenditure of the agency and of the chief executive for each agency is shown in the following table:
| Agency | (a) Total expenditure on travel (rounded to the nearest £000) | (b) Travel expenses of chief executive (£) |
Further detail on Home Office Board members expenditure is available on the Home Office website using the following link:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/about-us/non-personal-data/hospitality-business-expenses/
The Department expects all official travel within executive agencies to be carried out by the most efficient and economic means available, taking into account the cost of travel and subsistence, savings in official time, management benefit, and the needs of staff with disabilities. This is in accordance with the Civil Service Management Code and the Ministerial Code.