Higher Education: Admissions
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of children (a) in receipt of and (b) not in receipt of free school meals in each local education authority area went on to higher education in each year since 2001. [57381]
Mr Willetts: I have been asked to reply.
The latest available information on the numbers of maintained school pupils by local authority area who were in receipt of free school meals aged 15 and progressed
24 May 2011 : Column 634W
to higher education by age 19 will be placed in the Libraries of the House. Matched higher education data are available only from 2005/06.
Care should be taken when comparing progression rates across local authorities as these are raw figures and are not benchmarked against prior school attainment or other student characteristics that can influence progression rates
Figures for 2008/09 will be available in autumn 2011.
Pupils: Disadvantaged
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of pupils aged 16 to 18 years in sixth-form colleges and school sixth forms were from highly deprived backgrounds in 2009-10. [56468]
Mr Gibb: Table 1 shows the number and percentage of pupils(1) aged 16 to 18 in sixth-form colleges(2) by the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) deprivation decile.
(1) Includes students who were aged 16 to 18 on 31 August 2009.
(2) Includes all students (full and part-time) recorded on the individualised learner record as being an active student at a sixth-form college on 1 January 2010.
| Table 1: Pupils aged 16 to 18 in sixth-form colleges by IDACI decile in January 2010 | ||
| IDACI decile (%) (1, 2) | Number of pupils (3) | Percentage of pupils |
| (1) Each super output area in England is given an IDACI score which ranks it between one and 32,482, one being the most deprived. (2) IDACI bands are based on 2007 IDACI scores. (3) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. Percentages are calculated on pre-rounded data. Individual numbers may not sum to the total due to rounding. Note: 573 students have been removed from the above table as their IDACI score was unknown. Source: Individualised Learner Record (ILR0910_L05_LEARNER). | ||
Table 2 shows the number and percentage of pupils(1) aged 16 to 18 in schools(2) by IDACI deprivation decile.
(1) Includes solely registered and main registration of dually registered pupils aged 16 to 18.
(2) Includes maintained secondary schools, city technology colleges, academies, maintained special schools and non-maintained special schools.
| Table 2: Pupils aged 16 to 18 in schools by IDACI decile in January 2010 | ||
| IDACI decile (%) (1, 2) | Number of pupils | Percentage of pupils |
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| (1) Each super output area in England is given an IDACI score which ranks it between one and 32,482, one being the most deprived. (2) IDACI bands are based on 2007 IDACI scores. Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. Percentages are calculated on pre-rounded data. Individual numbers may not sum to the total due to rounding. 2. 1,485 pupils have been removed from the table as their IDACI score was unknown. Source: January 2010 school census. | ||
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Pupils: Reading Berkshire
Mr Rob Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children resident in the area covered by Reading local authority have been educated in other local education authority areas in (a) 2011 to date and (b) each year since 2005. [57012]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 23 May 2011]:The information requested for the years 2005 to 2010 is provided in the following table. The latest information for 2011 will be published on the Department’s website in June.
| Pupils (1) resident in Reading local authority educated in schools maintained by other local authorities in each year since 2005 | ||
|
|
Number of pupils | Percentage of pupils |
| (1) Includes solely registered and main registration of dually registered pupils. Notes: 1. Includes pupils aged 5 to 15 attending local authority maintained primary, maintained secondary, city technology colleges and academies. Pupils aged five and over attending maintained special schools and non-maintained special schools. Excludes pupils reported to be boarders. 2. Includes pupils in national curriculum year groups reception to year 11 attending local authority maintained primary, maintained secondary, maintained special schools, non-maintained special schools city technology colleges and academies. Excludes pupils reported to be boarders. | ||
Schools: Catering
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 11 May 2011, Official Report, column 1280W, on further education: catering, whether he has received reports of any schools that do not have (a) kitchens and (b) cafeterias on any of their sites. [56366]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 19 May 2011]: The School Food Trust collects information about kitchen facilities as part of its annual survey of school lunch take up. The following table is adapted from the 2009-10 survey report (table 11, page 22), and shows that just over three-quarters of primary schools and nearly all secondary schools had kitchen facilities (either full production or regeneration/mini kitchens), based on responses from 138 local authorities for primary schools and 135 local authorities for secondary schools. The full survey report can be found at:
http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/school-cooks-caterers/reports/fifth-annual-survey-of-take-up-of-school-meals-in-england
| Facilities for food preparation in primary (1) and secondary schools in England, 2009-10 (2) | |||||||
| Percentage | |||||||
| No facilities | |||||||
|
|
Full production kitchen | Regen or mini kitchen | Hot food transported from another school | Hot food transported from another source | Sandwich/cold food only | FSM only (3) | Unknown |
| (1) Primary plus special combined. (2) Adapted from table 11, fifth annual survey of take up of school lunches in England, School Food Trust, 2010 (3) Percentages will not add to 100% as FSM only is a subset of no facilities: sandwich/cold food only. Note: Base: primary 138 local authorities; secondary 135 local authorities. | |||||||
The survey does not collect information on dining facilities, including cafeterias.
The Department also receives occasional correspondence seeking information about possible sources of funding for building or improving kitchens and dining facilities. Schools may use their own devolved formula capital to support improvements to their catering facilities, and local authorities can also provide capital funding where it is the local priority.
Schools: Crimes of Violence
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers in each region of England have reported physical assaults on them in each of the last three years. [56999]
Mr Gibb: Information is not available in the form requested.
The Department collects information on the reason pupils are excluded from school. Data on reasons for exclusion include information on physical assault, verbal abuse or threatening behaviour against an adult, but not specifically against teachers or school staff.
Information on the number of permanent and fixed period exclusions which have been given the reason
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‘physical assault against an adult’ for 2006/07 to 2008/09 is shown in the table.
24 May 2011 : Column 638W
| Primary, secondary and special schools (1, 2, 3) : number of fixed period and permanent exclusions for physical assault against an adult (4) : 2006/07 to 2008/09, in England, by region | ||||||
| 2006/07 | 2007/08 | 2008/09 | ||||
|
|
Number of fixed period exclusions | Permanent exclusions (4) | Number of fixed period exclusions | Permanent exclusions (4) | Number of fixed period exclusions | Permanent exclusions (4) |
| (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2 )Includes city technology colleges and academies. (3 )Includes maintained and non-maintained special schools. Excludes general hospital schools. (4 )Figures relating to permanent exclusions are estimates based on incomplete pupil-level data. Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of component parts as numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census | ||||||
The latest available data on exclusions were published in the Statistical First Release ‘Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusions from Schools in England 2008/09’ on 29 July 2010 at:
http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000942/index.shtml.
Schools: Finance
Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding his Department provided to maintained schools for the teaching of (a) history, (b) geography and (c) religious education in each of the last five years. [55821]
Mr Gibb: Schools' baseline funding includes provision for them to deliver a broad and balanced curriculum. No specific funding allocation was made on top of this for the teaching of history, geography and religious education.
Teachers
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers there are per head of population. [56483]
Mr Gibb: In January 2009 the headcount of full and part-time teachers in service in publicly funded schools in England was 502,500. This is approximately 1.0% of the population in England. These are the most recent comparable figures available.
Teachers: Training
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much per capita his Department spent on teacher training in each of the last five years. [56478]
Mr Gibb: The information is not available in the form requested. The following tables show the funding paid out by the Training and Development Agency for Schools for initial teacher training and the registrations of new entrants to mainstream and employment-based training routes (including Teach First).
| Funding | ||||||
| £000 | ||||||
| Financial year | ||||||
|
|
|
2009-10 | 2008-09 | 2007-08 | 2006-07 | 2005-06 |
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24 May 2011 : Column 640W
| Registrations | |||||
| £000 | |||||
| Academic year | |||||
|
|
2009/10 | 2008/09 | 2007/08 | 2006/07 | 2005/06 |
Business, Innovation and Skills
Adult Education: Finance
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department and its predecessor allocated to each further education institution for the further education of those over the age of 24 in each of the last five years. [56698]
Mr Hayes: In November 2010 the coalition Government published “Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth” which set out the eligibility criteria for Government funding for further education and skills and the budget available for 2011-12.
This Government have introduced a single Adult Skills Budget for provision for adults aged 19 and over, enabling colleges and training organisations to offer the range and balance of programmes, from basic skills to higher level skills, in the mode of delivery that will best meet the needs of learners, employers and communities.
The previous Government provided funding for participation to further education institutions split between two key budgets—Adult Learner Responsive and Employer Responsive—and planned by programme and level of provision. These plans did not allocate funds by age group.
Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre
Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will assess the performance of the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre in promoting and supporting UK manufacturing. [57316]
Mr Willetts: Manufacturing is a priority area of activity for the Technology Strategy Board. The performance of the High Value Manufacturing Technology and Innovation Centre established by it will therefore be monitored and assessed, on an ongoing basis, in the context of the centre's contribution to the wider programme of work being taken forward by the Technology Strategy Board.
Together with the Technology Strategy Board, we will also monitor more specific measures including the ability of the centre to leverage private sector contract funding; attract grant funding from EU and national research programmes; the number of businesses they support and create; and the nature and scale of their interactions with the knowledge base.
The centre is comprised of a group of seven existing research and technology centres including the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), situated in Rotherham.
Apprentices
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of individuals over the age of 24 years who would be eligible to pay fees for apprenticeships in academic year 2013-14 under his proposals. [56702]
Mr Hayes [holding answer 23 May 2011]: In November 2010 the coalition Government published “Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth” which set out the planned changes to the entitlements to full funding further education and skills for adults in England. This document also set out the Government’s plan to expand apprenticeships and introduce fee loans for the 2013/14 academic year for adults aged 24 and over starting qualifications at level 3 or above, providing access to £398 million of resource for teaching and learning by the end of this spending review. At level 2, apprenticeships are currently co-funded with the state and the employer both contributing. This will continue to be the case in the 2013/14 academic year.
The Apprenticeships programme is demand-led and so it is not possible to predict levels of participation in 2013/14. The Statistical First Release(1) provides the latest data on the proportion of starts and completions on apprenticeships by age (under 19, 19 to 24 and 25+) and level (intermediate, advanced and higher).
(1)http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/3AEFF9BC-8E53-41A1-8BCA-385DF0DB12D3/0/SFR_March11_Published_May_Updatepdf.pdf
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether apprenticeships for those over the age of 24 years will be subject to further education fees in the 2013-14 academic year. [56703]
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Mr Hayes [holding answer 23 May 2011]: As set out in “Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth” in November 2010, from the 2013/14 academic year the Government will introduce loans for those aged 24 and above studying for qualifications at level 3 and above. For advanced apprenticeships taken by those aged 24 and above, it will be assumed that employers will continue to make a contribution as at present to the cost of the apprenticeship, and that the individual will take out a loan to cover the cost borne by the provider.
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to his Department’s strategy document, Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth, what assumptions he has made of the proportion of further education fees paid by those over the age of 24 years undertaking an apprenticeship that will be allocated to (a) his Department, (b) the provider of further education and (c) the employer. [56885]
Mr Hayes [holding answer 23 May 2011]: As set out in “Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth” in November 2010, from the 2013/14 academic year the Government will introduce loans for those aged 24 and above studying for qualifications at level 3 and above. For advanced apprenticeships taken by those aged 24 and above, it will be assumed that employers will continue to contribute to the apprenticeship as at present, and the individual will draw down a loan to cover the cost borne by the provider. The up-front cost of the loan will be met by the Government, and repayment terms for the individual will mirror those being adopted for HE student finance, with an income threshold of £21,000 for repayment to begin, and write off outstanding loan amounts after 30 years.
Bakery Products
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make an assessment of the effect of below-cost selling of bread on employment conditions in the baking industry. [57346]
Mr Davey: Matters related to below-cost selling fall to the competition authorities to investigate.
Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisers
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) on what date special advisers in his Department last used the Government car pool to travel in an official capacity; and on how many occasions a special adviser in his Department has travelled to their home address using the Government car pool since May 2010; [56087]
(2) how much his Department spent on special advisers' travel by (a) Government car, (b) private hire car, (c) train, (d) bus, (e) commercial aircraft and (f) private aircraft since May 2010. [56097]
Mr Davey: There are no civil servants or special advisers in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills entitled to the use of a car from the Government car pool.
The use of official cars and taxis by civil servants, including special advisers, is governed by the requirements of the Civil Service Management Code.
24 May 2011 : Column 642W
Costs of travel undertaken by special advisers could be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Employment Agencies
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether limited company contractors who are in business on their own account fall within the scope of the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. [R][56704]
Mr Davey: Under the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 the definition of an agency worker excludes those who are in business on their own account where the status of the hirer is that of a client or customer of a “profession or business undertaking”—where there is a business to business relationship. Simply putting earnings through a limited company would not in itself put the individuals beyond the possible scope of the regulations.
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has any plans to review the operation of the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 and its associated guidance. [R][56705]
Mr Davey: A review of the agency workers directive will be carried out by the European Commission, in consultation with member states and social partners at Community level, by 5 December 2013. In addition BIS will be closely monitoring the impact of the agency workers regulations in the UK and will have conducted a post-implementation review by December 2013. The main source of information for the formal evaluation and ongoing monitoring is likely to be the Labour Force Survey/Annual Population Survey but other surveys and research may also be relevant carried out by Government or other bodies.
English Language: Universities
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions (a) he and (b) his officials have had with their counterparts in the Home Department on the effects of English language requirements on universities in the academic year 2011-12; and if he will make a statement. [57302]
Mr Willetts: I am in regular contact with the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), to discuss migration issues affecting universities and colleges, including the impact of the tier 4 visa regulation changes that came into effect in April this year. Similarly BIS officials continue to meet regularly with officials in the UK Border Agency. The higher education sector has made very clear to us all their concerns about the implementation of the new English language requirements mid-way through the recruitment cycle for the next academic year.
Export Credit Guarantees
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much debt each country owes to the Export Credits Guarantee Department; and what the expected final payment date is in each case. [56411]
24 May 2011 : Column 643W
Mr Davey: Debt owed by sovereign Governments to the Export Credits Guarantee Department as at 28 April is listed by country in the following table. An expected final payment date, where this has been agreed, is shown.
| Country | Agreed final payment date | Total debt (£ million) |
Fossil Fuels: Export Credit Guarantees
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the annual carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel projects in respect of which a guarantee has been issued by the Export Credits Guarantee Department since May 2010. [57365]
Mr Davey: The Export Credits Guarantee Department’s (ECGD) policy is to report the greenhouse gas emissions of category A and category B projects as defined by the 2007 OECD “Council Recommendation On Common Approaches on the Environment And Officially Supported Export Credits” where emissions during the operations phase are estimated to be above 100,000 tonnes CO2e per annum. The information is published in ECGD’s Annual Review and Resource Accounts.
Since May 2010, ECGD has supported export contracts for two such projects: the Portovaya gas compressor station in Russia and the Kayan petrochemical complex in Saudi Arabia, for which the estimated annual greenhouse gas emissions are 1.0 million tonnes CO2e and 5.9 million tonnes CO2e respectively.
Higher Education: Admissions
Mr Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2011 to the hon. Member for Altrincham and Sale, Official Report, columns 712-13W, on higher
24 May 2011 : Column 644W
education: admissions, whether the Higher Education Statistics Agency collects information on
(a)
the number of students who previously attended independent schools,
(b)
the drop-out rate of such students from higher education and
(c)
degree results of such students. [54045]
Mr Willetts: The previous school type of higher education students is collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). This information is collected for full-time undergraduate students who apply through UCAS. Institutions are encouraged to provide this information for students who do not apply through UCAS but coverage is not complete.
HESA publish non-continuation rates (Table 3) and HE entrant numbers (Table 1) on their website
www.hesa.ac.uk/pi
broken down at HEI level. However, they do not publish their non-continuation rates by school type and the entrant numbers reflect participation rates for young people entering university from state schools and colleges.
BIS analysts have used the information HESA hold to show degree classifications for qualifiers who are recorded as previously attending an independent school. To minimise non-response, coverage has been restricted to UK domiciled full-time first degree qualifiers. For this group of students, 13% have missing or unknown previous school type information.
| UK domiciled full-time first degree qualifiers who previously attended an independent school by degree classification UK higher education institutions. Academic year 2009/10 | ||
| Degree classification | Number | Percentage of total classified |
| Note: Figures are based on a HESA qualifications obtained population and have been rounded to the nearest five, proportions are based on pre-rounded figures. Certain qualifications gained at first degree level are not subject to classification of the award, notably medical and general degrees. These together with ordinary degrees and aegrotat qualifications will be excluded from this analysis. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). | ||
Estimates produced by Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) analysts indicate that there were 30,500 young entrants to full-time first degree courses in UK higher education institutions (HEIs) from independent schools. Some 4% of these young entrants were no longer in an HEI in the following academic year.
Higher Education: Finance
Ben Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what support will be available under the new student finance system to those considering leaving higher education because of changes to their families’ financial circumstances; [54507]
(2) what measures are in place to ensure that support is provided to those not estranged from their parents whose parents withhold financial support from their university education; [54508]
24 May 2011 : Column 645W
(3) what plans he has to ensure that the needs of those who are not estranged from their parents but whose parents refuse to contribute towards the cost of their higher education are met by the new student finance system. [54509]
Mr Willetts: All eligible full-time students are able to take out an up-front student loan to finance their tuition costs and a loan to help towards their living costs, regardless of their household income. This will remain the case when the Government’s new finance arrangements for higher education are implemented in September 2012.
The Government have announced that up-front tuition loans will also be available for new students starting full-time distance learning and part-time courses from September 2012 onwards, regardless of their household income.
All full-time students can apply for means-tested grants to help towards their living costs. A proportion of the loan for living costs entitlement is also means-tested.
In those cases where a student is not assessed to receive a full grant, the Government ask students to seek a contribution from their parents—or in the case of independent students, their husband, wife or partner. The support system operates on the assumption that these family members are willing to provide a financial contribution towards the student’s living costs.
Students facing particular financial hardship can also apply for help from the discretionary Access to Learning Fund through their university or college.
The income assessment for means-tested support is usually determined on the basis of the student’s household income for the financial year two years prior to the financial year in which they make their application for student finance. If a student’s household income in the financial year in which they make their application for student finance is likely to be at least 15% less than that used in the initial assessment, a student can ask for their entitlement to be calculated using the lower household income.
Local Enterprise Partnerships
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effects of the current economic situation on companies who are not represented by local enterprise partnerships. [56353]
Mr Prisk: No assessment has been made of the effects of the current economic situation on companies who are not represented by local enterprise partnerships. Currently 94% of all active enterprises are covered by a local enterprise partnership and we are continuing to work with new Partnerships as they develop their proposals.
The Department is in the process of putting in place the capacity to collect information on current business conditions across the country which will be coordinated centrally where that is appropriate. These activities include the now up and running BIS local offices and a regular national business survey which should be able to track changes in business conditions over time at subnational levels.
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Manufacturing Industries
Jonathan Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to ensure that sufficient (a) school and college leavers and (b) graduates have the skills to support growth in the manufacturing sector. [56872]
Mr Hayes: Manufacturing is vital to achieving strong, balanced and sustainable growth and we are committed to improving skills at all levels to support that growth. In schools we have introduced the English Baccalaureate which will help to drive up participation and attainment rates in mathematics and science, and we will also provide additional support to improve take up. At technician level we are expanding demand-led apprenticeships to address skill needs at intermediate and associate professional level, including manufacturing, and we are growing the number of higher apprenticeships with a focus on advanced manufacturing.
Apprenticeships provide an important vocational route to help people move into higher-level skills development and give their employers the opportunity to contribute. We are looking much more ambitiously at creating clear progression routes for apprentices through to graduate, post graduate and professional level qualifications. In higher education we continue to provide additional funding for science, technology and engineering degrees and want universities to ensure that students are aware of the benefits of undertaking these subjects. We want businesses to engage more with universities in course design and work placements so that businesses such as manufacturing employers can help develop courses that will provide attractive employment to sustain and strengthen their competitiveness.
Press: Competition
Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on when the OFT review of its decision to extend the exemption afforded to newspaper and magazine distributors from section 131 of the Enterprise Act 2002 will take place; and if he will make a statement. [56662]
Mr Davey: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has not had any meetings with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) relating to newspaper and magazine suppliers. Any competition review of this market is a matter solely for the OFT.
Royal Mail
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with Royal Mail Group on revaluation of the colleague shares scheme. [57232]
Mr Davey: ColleagueShare is a Company incentive scheme set up in 2007 by Royal Mail in agreement with Government. The Department, therefore, has had discussions with Royal Mail about the operation of the scheme including their valuation of the ColleagueShares.
The final value of the ColleagueShares will not, however, be known until the end of the scheme in 2012.
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So far, dividends of £1,600 have been paid to ColleagueShare holders and the scheme is expected to have paid out £2,200 to most members by the time it closes in March 2012.
Small Businesses
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the effects of regulation on small businesses in England. [56957]
Mr Prisk: In November last year, the Better Regulation Executive published a report called ‘Lightening the Load’ which looked at the impact of regulation on the UK's smallest businesses. Through interviews with 500 micro-businesses (businesses with fewer than 10 employees), the report provided an important insight into the issues that these businesses face in dealing with regulation.
The Government also regularly engage with organisations which represent small businesses to discuss the issues which are of importance to their members, of which regulation is one.
‘Lightening the Load’ is available on the BIS website:
http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/better-regulation/docs/l/10-1251-lightening-the-load-regulatory-impact-smallest-businesses.pdf
Technology Transfer: Developing Countries
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to Article 66.2 of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, what steps his Department is taking to promote technology transfer of environmentally sound technologies to least developed countries. [56388]
Mr Davey: Article 66.2 of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) states that:
“Developed country members shall provide incentives to enterprises and institutions in their territories for the purpose of promoting and encouraging technology transfer to least-developed country members in order to enable them to create a sound and viable technological base.”
It does not specifically mention environmentally sound technologies.
The UK, as part of the EU, reports annually to the WTO on its implementation of Article 66.2. The latest report includes support for: the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF), Development Partnerships in Higher Education (DelPHE), and Business Call to Action (BCtA). These initiatives have included projects on climate and the environment. For example, in November 2010 the AECF held a competition on ‘Renewable Energy and Adaptation to Climate Technologies’ to seek private-sector partners for projects in East Africa.
Trade Unions
Mr Raab:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff of (a) his Department, (b) the UK Space Agency, (c) Companies House, (d) the Insolvency Service, (e) the National Measurements Office and (f) the UK Intellectual Property Office are entitled to work (i)
24 May 2011 : Column 648W
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. [56433]
Mr Davey: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) (excluding UK Trade and Investment), has two full-time trade union representatives. BIS follows the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service's Code of Practice ‘Time off for Trades Union Duties and Activities’:
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2391
In accordance with this, the Department grants facilities time to 35 staff for industrial relations and trade union activities. The majority of these have an allocation of 24 days or less. Thirty four members of staff are paid more than £25,900 (full-time equivalent) annually. The cost of the amount of facility time the Department allocates is £356,557 for the financial year 2010-11.
I have asked the chief executives of the Insolvency Service, Companies House, the National Measurement Office, the Intellectual Property Office, UK Space Agency and the Skills Funding Agency and they will respond to my hon. Friend directly.
Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 19 May 2011:
The Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question concerning the number of staff in The Insolvency Service who 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.
In 2010/11, two staff were employed as full time trade union representatives and twenty three staff were awarded facility time (time off to undertake trade union activities in accordance with the ACAS Code of Practice) in connection with employee relations or trade union activity. Of these 25 staff, 13 were paid over £25, 900 annually, but not, necessarily, wholly for their trade union work. The overall salary cost for such duties, in 2010/11, was £79,124.
Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 19 May 2011:
I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 16 May 2011, UIN56433 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
Companies House has one member of staff who works as a full time Trade Union representative and eleven members of staff who work part time on Trade Union activities. Of these staff two are paid more than £25,900 annually. The cost for the financial year 2010/11 of employing staff on such duties was £61,331.
Letter from Peter Mason, dated 19 May 2011:
I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office (formerly National Weights and Measures Laboratory) to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 16/5/2011 [reference 2010/5431 ] to the Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, asking how many staff 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.
The NMO does not have any staff working full time as trade union representatives but does have 3 members of staff who are able to claim “facility time” for undertaking union activities in relation to the representative machinery within the Agency. All of these members of staff earn more than £25,900 per annum. According to the Agency's time recording system, 42 hours were
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spent on such activities in the Financial Year to 31 March 2011, at an estimated cost of £2,105. As NMO earned some external income as well as its funding from Government, not all of this is a cost falling on the public purse.
Letter from John Alty, dated 18 May 2011:
I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled 16th May 2011, to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) is an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). The IPO does not employ full time trade union officials, but four of its employees are entitled to work part time on trade union activities. Three of these have a full time equivalent annual salary over £25,900. In 2010/11 the cost to the IPO of employing these staff on trade union duties was approximately £13,785. IPO is a trading fund so does not rely on public funds.
Letter from Dr David Williams, dated 19 May 2011:
Thank you for your question addressed to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills asking how many staff (a) his Department (b) the British National Space Agency, (c) Companies House, (d) the Insolvency Service, (e) the National Measurements Office and (f) the UK Intellectual Property Office 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. (56433)
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In response to your question, no staff from the UK Space Agency are employed either full or part time on trade union activities. Regarding the question of eligibility, anyone who is a union member may be eligible to be employed on Trade Union activities but we do not hold details of which staff are trade union members.
Letter from Geoff Russell, dated 19 May 2011:
Thank you for your parliamentary question addressed to the Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills asking how many staff in the Skills Funding Agency (the Agency) 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.
Please be advised that in the Agency:
there are no trade union representatives entitled to work full-time;
there are at present 28 part-time union representatives, 24 of whom are paid over £25,900; and
the total annual cost to the public purse of employing such staff is £247,131.63 which comprises £190,101.25 salary costs that the Agency pays for trade union representatives' facility time and £57,030.38 for 'on costs' in respect of employer's national insurance and pension contributions.
The following table shows an anonymised breakdown of cost for each of the 28 trade union representatives.
| PCS/c ost breakdown as at 31 March 20 11 | ||||||
| Allocation | Facility time | |||||
| Trade union rep roles | % FTE | Actual FTE | Allocation/w eek | Days/week | Annual salary (£) | Total costs (£) |
Universities
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what guidance his Department has provided to universities on the promotion of community involvement; and if he will make a statement. [56958]
Mr Willetts:
Higher education institutions (HEIs), as independent bodies, set their own priorities for community
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involvement. They already engage with their communities in many ways, including providing access to sports facilities, museums, theatres and galleries; community volunteering by staff and students; and creating lifelong learning opportunities for a diverse body of learners. The Higher Education-Business and Community Interaction (HE-BCI) Survey shows that 0.75 million people attended free public lectures in 2008-09 and over 1.6 million paid to attend performances at UK HEIs.
The Department has not issued guidance promoting community involvement but has provided, via the Higher Education Funding Council for England, £52 million up to 2008-09 under the HE Active Community Fund to help promote staff and student volunteering. This has helped to establish volunteering as a strong presence in the sector, and many volunteering opportunities available in universities involve links with local communities and groups.
Universities: Overseas Students
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many offers of places in British universities made to students from outside the EU for academic year 2011-12 had been accepted by 20 March 2011; and if he will make a statement. [57268]
Mr Willetts: At 21 March 2011, there were 3,751 applicants domiciled outside the EU who had firmly accepted offers to higher education courses at UK institutions, via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). This is out of a total of 42,729 non-EU domiciled applicants at the same date.
This includes applicants who had been given both conditional and unconditional offers for places. It also includes applicants who have chosen to apply for deferred entry.
Those applicants who have not given firm replies will include those who were not obliged to give a reply to any offers received by this point in the cycle, in addition to those applicants who at that point had not received replies to all of their choices, or whose main scheme choices were all unsuccessful.
Scotland
Housing Benefit
Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people in (a) Fife and (b) Glenrothes receive (i) housing benefit and (ii) local housing allowance. [53151]
Steve Webb: I have been asked to reply.
As at January 2011, there were 30,780 housing benefit claimants in the Fife local authority, of which 4,600 were assessed under the local housing allowance rules. In the Westminster constituency of Glenrothes, there were 10,060 housing benefit claimants in total, of which 1,550 customers were assessed under the local housing allowance rules.
Notes:
1. The data refer to benefit units, which may be a single persons or couples, and are rounded to the nearest 10.
2. Recipients are as at second Thursday of the month.
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3. Local housing allowance tenants (LHA) may include a small number of non-LHA cases making a new claim since 7 April 2008.
4. This will include recipients in caravan accommodation.
5. The data incorporate the local authority changes from 1 April 2009.
6. SHBE is, a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data are available monthly from November 2008 and January 2011 is the most recently available release.
7. Tenure type does not include recipients with unknown tenure type.
8. Local housing allowance was introduced in the Private Deregulated sector from April 2008.
9. Parliamentary constituency is based on the address of the HB recipient and are for the Westminster Parliament of May 2010.
10. Note that local authority data are based on the authority administering the benefit claim. It is possible for the recipient to reside in a different LA to the one administering their HB/CTB claim. Therefore it may not always be possible to make direct comparisons between parliamentary constituency and local authority data
11. Parliamentary constituency breakdowns are now available for January 2011 housing benefit and council tax benefit caseloads. There are at present no plans to repeat the exercise for any further time periods.
Attorney-General
Prosecutions: Northamptonshire
Mr Hollobone: To ask the Attorney-General in which three categories of offence the Crown Prosecution Service has brought the highest proportion of successful prosecutions in Northamptonshire in the last year for which figures are available. [57015]
The Attorney-General: During the year ending March 2011, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in Northamptonshire had an overall successful prosecution outcome of 86.9%. In line with national performance, the three categories of offence that brought the highest proportion of successful prosecutions were:
|
|
Percentage |
Health
Bowel Cancer: Health Services
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effects on bowel cancer patients of travelling long distances on public transport to hospital appointments; and if he will make a statement. [56750]
Paul Burstow: We have made no specific assessment of the effects of travelling long distances on public transport to hospital appointments on bowel cancer patients. However, we know anecdotally that many cancer patients want to receive treatment closer to home.
In 2007 the National Radiotherapy Advisory Group report “Radiotherapy: developing a world class service for England”, recommended that, where possible, patients should not travel more than 45 minutes for radiotherapy
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treatment. This recommendation followed feedback received at a patient workshop. In 2009 the National Chemotherapy Advisory Group report, “Chemotherapy Services in England: Ensuring Quality and Safety”, recommended that chemotherapy services should be localised where clinically appropriate and that patients' views on the experience of receiving chemotherapy should be sought and acted upon. Both advisory groups feature patients in their membership.
However, as acknowledged in “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”, patients may wish to choose different providers for different forms of treatment and care and this will impact on travelling times. For example, a patient may be prepared to travel further for surgery from a specialist provider with better outcomes, but may wish to receive treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy closer to their home. A copy of the strategy has already been placed in the Library.
Breast Cancer: Screening
Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Bolton have been invited to attend breast screening by Royal Bolton Hospital in each of the last five years. [57083]
Paul Burstow: The information is not available in the format requested.
Information on the number of women aged 45 and over invited by Bolton, Bury and Rochdale Breast Screening Unit for the last five years is shown in the following table:
| Women invited | |
|
|
Number |
| Notes: 1. The number invited relates to women with screening status classifications of ‘first call’, i.e., first invitation for routine screening, or ‘routine recall’, who are sent invitations. 2. Early recalls are not included in the table and neither are general practitioner and self-referrals to the screening programme. Early recalls are non-routine invitations at less than the standard screening interval. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care. | |
Breast Cancer: Surgery
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women undergoing surgery for breast cancer aged (a) 49 years and under, (b) 50 to 59, (c) 60 to 69, (d) 70 to 79 and (e) over 80 years in each (i) cancer network and (ii) primary care trust were offered immediate breast reconstruction surgery in the latest year for which figures are available. [56783]
Paul Burstow: The information is not available in the format requested.
The National Mastectomy and Breast Reconstruction Audit collected data on women having a mastectomy and immediate and delayed reconstruction surgery between 1 January 2008 and 31 March 2009. There are four audit reports and these are available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
www.ic.nhs.uk/mbrreports
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It is important to note that although all eligible English national health service trusts participated in the audit, not all eligible cases were submitted to the audit, and not all of the cases submitted had complete clinical data. The audit only collected data on the surgeries described above; it did not include all breast cancer surgery, such as breast conservation surgery. Some women who initially have breast conservation surgery will have a further procedure, which may be a mastectomy with or without breast reconstruction.
The Second Annual Report reported that of cases submitted to the audit, 48% of mastectomy patients were offered immediate reconstruction. The audit collected data by NHS trust and cancer network.
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women aged (a) 49 years and under, (b) 50 to 59, (c) 60 to 69, (d) 70 to 79 and (e) over 80 years had mastectomies in each (i) cancer network and (ii) primary care trust in the latest year for which figures are available. [56803]
Paul Burstow: The information is not available in the format requested. A table of information on count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) for females, where there was a primary or secondary procedure or intervention of mastectomy, has been placed in the Library.
A table of information on count of FCEs for females where there was a primary or secondary procedure or intervention of mastectomy and a primary diagnosis of breast cancer has also been placed in the Library.
The information is provided by primary care trust of residence and for the requested age groups. Information is not available by cancer networks. The latest available information is for 2009-10.
Cancer: Drugs
Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in Bolton have accessed drugs through the Cancer Drugs Fund to date. [57082]
Paul Burstow: The Department does not hold the information requested.
The Cancer Drugs Fund was launched on 1 April 2011 to help thousands of cancer patients access the drugs their clinicians believe will help them. We made an additional £50 million available to strategic health authorities in 2010-11 which has already helped over 2,400 patients in England to access the cancer drugs their clinicians recommended.
Cancer: Health Services
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the National Cancer Information Network's equality metrics; and how these metrics are being utilised by his Department to tackle cancer inequalities; [56546]
(2) what progress his Department has made in providing information to pathfinder GP consortia on the equality and inequality characteristics of their cancer populations. [56659]
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Paul Burstow: The National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) established the Equalities Portal in March 2010, bringing together a range of equality metrics. The aim is to support local services in commissioning cancer services that are appropriate for their local populations. Since its launch the Portal has been accessed over 2,150 times. The content of the Portal is currently arranged by primary care trust (PCT), and the NCIN is committed to ensure the portal reflects the new commissioning arrangements.
The National Cancer Action Team (NCAT) is raising the importance of reducing inequalities and promoting equality in their early discussions with emerging pathfinder general practice (GP) consortia. The NCAT will be discussing with them what equality metrics might be useful as part of the information analyses that the NCIN can provide for GP consortia.
Carers
Malcolm Wicks: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of carers have received a carer’s assessment under the provisions of the Carers Act 1995 in each (a) region and (b) local authority area. [56462]
Paul Burstow: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care collects and publishes information on the number of carers in receipt of an assessment (separately and jointly) with the cared-for person. The proportion of carers receiving an assessment cannot be provided as the total number of carers, including those that are not known to a local authority, is not collected centrally.
The following table shows the data available for the number of carers in England who received an assessment or review separately or jointly in 2009-10, by region and local authority area.
| The number of carers in England who received an assessment or review separately or jointly in 2009-10, by region and local authority area— England 2009-10 | |||
| Government office region | Number of carers assessed or reviewed separately | Number of carers assessed or reviewed jointly with the client | Total |
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| Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest five. | |||