Hydroelectric Power
Mr Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) whether his Department has considered any proposals to develop hydropower facilities on the River Thames; [60111]
(2) whether the evaluation of the Romney Weir hydroelectric power project has been completed. [60112]
Charles Hendry: It is for the Environment Agency and the relevant local authorities rather than DECC to consider proposals to develop small hydropower schemes.
I understand that the Romney Weir hydropower scheme is due to be completed in October this year. The evaluation of the scheme required by the Environment Agency will include some pre-completion survey work. Once the scheme is operational, there will be monitoring of the geomorphology. The new fish pass will be monitored to assess fish passage across the weir as part of the overall assessment of the scheme.
Insulation: Housing
Mr Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent steps his Department has taken to assist low income homeowners in properties without cavity wall insulation to make their houses more energy efficient. [59977]
Gregory Barker: In preparation for the Green Deal, the Government have restructured and extended the Carbon Emission Reduction Target (CERT) to December 2012, providing a greater focus on targeting energy efficiency measures at the poorest and most vulnerable households. This will result in an estimated 1 million households in the 'priority' and 'super priority' groups receiving cavity wall insulation.
In addition, the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) drives the delivery of whole house retrofits to improve the energy efficiency of homes in low income
17 Jun 2011 : Column 999W
areas and the Warm Front scheme, which will continue for a further two years, provides assistance to fuel poor households through the installation of heating and insulation measures.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will make representations to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the compatibility of the decision on confidentiality in respect of IPCC processes and procedures taken at the 33rd session of the IPCC with article 2 of the Principles Governing IPCC Work. [59658]
Gregory Barker: The Government consider that the IPCC decision is consistent with the Principles Governing IPCC Work. As part of the ongoing work of the Task Group on Processes and Procedures, the IPCC agreed to develop transparency and openness further by taking forward discussions of ways to widen expert comments in the development of IPCC reports. My officials will participate fully in these discussions.
Natural Gas: Exploration
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2011, Official Report, column 347W, on natural gas: exploration, if he will publish the results of the geomechanical study on the recent seismic tremors near Blackpool upon completion; and if he will make a statement. [60210]
Charles Hendry: This geomechanical study, which commenced recently, is expected to take 30-60 days. Upon completion I anticipate that the results will be published and, as I have already indicated, the implications of this information will be reviewed before any decision on the resumption of hydraulic fracture operations is made.
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2011, Official Report, column 549W, on natural gas exploration, whether he has any plans to meet (a) the Health and Safety Executive and (b) environment agencies to discuss unconventional gas. [60215]
Charles Hendry: I have no current plans to meet these organisations, but my officials have a regular dialogue with the Health and Safety Executive and the environment agencies regarding natural gas exploration.
Renewables Obligation
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to publish (a) the details of the Renewables Obligation banding review and (b) the date of publication of the report of the review. [60213]
Gregory Barker:
The first phase of the Renewables Obligation banding review, the independent report carried out by Arup on generation costs and deployment potential
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across the renewables electricity sector, was published on 10 June 2011. A copy of Arup's report is available on DECC's website at the following location:
www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/meeting_energy/Renewable_Ener/renew_obs/renew_obs.aspx
We will publish the consultation, which will include the proposed ROC levels for the various technologies, later this summer. The Government response to the RO banding review consultation will be issued before the end of the year. This will contain the finalised banding levels to be introduced from April 2013 (April 2014 for offshore wind).
Windpower
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate his Department has made of the cost-effectiveness of onshore wind power. [59442]
Charles Hendry: Using the findings from Arup (2011)(1), DECC have calculated the cost per MWh of electricity generated by small (<5 MW) and large scale (>5 MW) onshore wind power.
(1) Arup (2011), Review of the generation costs and deployment potential of renewable electricity technologies in the UK, can be found at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/news/pnl1_47/pnl1_47.aspx
These costs are expected to reduce over time. Onshore wind is one of the most cost-effective sources of renewable electricity.
The table compares the cost per MWh of onshore wind to the cost per MWh of non-renewable electricity generation from Mott Macdonald (2010)(2). Costs are expected to reduce over time for nuclear and CCS technologies as they are deployed more widely and the technologies mature. The costs of unabated fossil plant are estimated to increase over time driven by higher future carbon prices.
(2) Mott Macdonald (2010), UK Electricity Generation Costs Update, can be found at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/Statistics/Projections/71-uk-electricity-generation-costs-update-.pdf
|
|
Levelised costs £/MWh |
| Notes: 1. The onshore wind levelised costs are based on Arup (2011) central capital and operating expenditure estimates for a small and large onshore wind reference plant. They assume a 2011 project start and are discounted at 10%. The assumed load factor is 29% for large onshore wind and 25% for small onshore wind. The assumed installation lifetime is 24 years. 2. The levelised costs of non-renewable technologies are based on Mott Macdonald (2010) central capital and operating expenditure estimates. They assume a 2009 project start and are discounted at 10%. | |
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when (a) she and (b) other Ministers in her Department were first informed of the discovery by researchers from the university of Cambridge of a new strain of MRSA in milk from a British herd; and what steps she plans to take to address the issue. [59460]
Mr Paice [holding answer 15 June 2011]:The former Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for Leeds Central (Hilary Benn) and Ministers were first informed of the novel MRSA strain that had been identified by the university of Cambridge on 24 September 2009. On 1 June 2011, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden (Mrs Spelman), was notified of the impending publication of the university of Cambridge's paper on this novel MRSA strain.
As a result of the university of Cambridge notifying the Department of the identification of this novel strain in 2009, DEFRA, including its Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), alerted colleagues from the Department of Health, the Health Protection Agency and the Food Standards Agency about the initial findings. As a result of the consequent discussions, DEFRA commissioned the university to undertake some further work to enhance understanding of the origin and the significance of this new finding. Included within this additional work was the investigation of some cattle staphylococcus aureus isolates that the VLA had retained as an archive after a research project into mastitis (inflammation of the udder) in cattle. None of these isolates were identified as MRSA by the VLA using normal testing protocols, although a few showed some resistance to the antibiotics commonly used to identify MRSA. These isolates identified by VLA as having a degree of resistance underwent further examination during this additional research and some were shown to be similar to the strain identified by Cambridge.
Now that this research has been completed, DEFRA will continue to collaborate with public health bodies that are all represented at the DEFRA Antimicrobial Resistance Coordination (DARC) group. A sub-group specifically on MRSA will also continue to monitor all new developments relating to all types of MRSA and will advise on potential policy options accordingly. Further research projects will be commissioned on antimicrobial resistance. Their scope will continue to be prioritised, and this will be informed by the DARC group, which assesses risk to help target funding to where it is most needed.
The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency will continue to test clinical samples from cows with mastitis (and other diagnostic submissions from cows and other farmed species) and so monitor such material for the presence of staphylococcus aureus and whether such isolates demonstrate resistance to antibiotics. The VMD is responsible for authorising all veterinary antimicrobial products and monitors the overall volume of sales and any suspected adverse reactions (including
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being notified about suspected failures in effectiveness, which may be an indication of the development of antimicrobial resistance).
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Afghanistan: Corruption
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the level of corruption in the Afghan Government; and what mechanism he uses to measure such levels. [59716]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: I have been asked to reply.
Corruption threatens economic growth in developing countries; in Afghanistan, it hampers socio-economic development, undermines the legitimacy of the Government and prevents the delivery of services to the Afghan people. The coalition Government will not tolerate corruption and in all their development programmes do their utmost to eliminate it.
At the Kabul Conference in July 2010 the Afghan Government made several key commitments to tackle corruption. The international community, led by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), monitors progress against these commitments. Progress to date has been mixed, but there have been some significant achievements, such as the establishment of a Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (MEC) comprised of Afghans and international experts, which will assess performance against agreed anti-corruption benchmarks.
The UK Government monitor Afghan perceptions of corruption using a range of survey data gathered by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), The Asia Foundation and Integrity Watch Afghanistan.
Caribbean Court of Justice
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress his Department has made in supporting a Caribbean Court of Justice to address capital appeals from Commonwealth nations in the Caribbean. [59948]
Mr Lidington: To date three Commonwealth Caribbean countries have adopted the Caribbean Court of Justice as the final court of appeal: Barbados, Belize and Guyana. It is for the Government of the country concerned to decide whether they wish to retain the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as their highest court of appeal.
Foreign Relations
Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2011, Official Report, column 207W, on foreign relations, if he will place in the Library a copy of the research on global perceptions of the UK which his Department has received in the last 12 months. [60075]
Mr Hague: We are unfortunately unable to place access details to the Gallup WorldView online tool or place the GfK research in the Library as this would contravene the terms and conditions of the subscription agreements we have with our suppliers, which protects their commercial and intellectual property rights.
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IBM
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many contracts his Department holds with IBM; and what the (a) purpose and (b) monetary value of each such contract is. [58688]
Mr Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has a central record of one contract with IBM, worth approximately £1,000.00 per year, for software support.
UK Membership of EU: Referendums
Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the policy of the Government is on a referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union. [58903]
Mr Lidington: This Government believe that membership of the European Union is in the national interest, bringing with it significant benefits to the UK. On that basis this Government have no plans to hold an in/out referendum.
Health
Bladder Cancer
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps (a) his Department and (b) the NHS are taking to raise awareness of the (i) risk factors, (ii) diagnosis and (iii) treatment of bladder cancer. [60443]
Paul Burstow: Smoking is the biggest cause of preventable bladder cancer. Healthy lives, healthy people: a tobacco control plan for England, published on 9 March 2011, sets out a range of national actions to support local evidence-based activity to reduce smoking rates in England. The link between tobacco use and cancer is clearly made in the plan, a copy of which has already been placed in the Library.
To improve the diagnosis, treatment and care of patients with all cancers, including bladder cancer, on 12 January 2011 we published “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”. The strategy sets out an ambition to save an additional 5,000 lives every year by 2014-15 through earlier diagnosis of cancer and improved access to screening and radiotherapy. To support earlier diagnosis of cancer the Government have committed over £450 million over the next four years, which includes provision for the funding of awareness activity.
The focus of future campaign work will be determined by evaluation of current cancer awareness activity.
This includes £9 million to support 59 local projects focusing on breast, bowel and lung cancer and £1.75 million that has trialled a national bowel cancer campaign in two regions. However, we know that not all the 5,000 lives can be saved by tackling these common cancers alone, and we are considering how we might extend the previous campaigns to cover other cancers, including bladder cancer.
In 2002 the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published Improving Outcomes in Urological Cancers which sets out best practice for the national health service for the diagnosis, care and treatment of patients with urological cancers, including bladder
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cancer. Our cancer strategy confirms that NICE Improving Outcomes Guidance will continue to be a feature of all commissioned cancer services.
Cancer: Drugs
Dr Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has assessed the effects on the Cancer Drugs Fund of potential changes to guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence for cancer drugs which are funded by the NHS. [59820]
Paul Burstow: We have made no such assessment.
The Department published “Guidance to support operation of the Cancer Drugs Fund in 2011-12” on 23 March 2011. This makes clear that strategic health authorities will need to manage their share of the Cancer Drugs Fund in a way that enables them to respond to the changing profile of available treatments and potential fluctuations in the numbers of patients presenting for specific treatments.
A copy of the guidance has already been placed in the Library.
Cancer: Health Services
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to ensure co- ordination of cancer services in (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13, (c) 2013-14 and (d) 2014-15. [59935]
Paul Burstow: Primary care trusts will continue to take responsibility for the co-ordination of cancer services until they are abolished, and their functions in the relevant area transferred to new clinical commissioning groups, local authorities and the National Health Service Commissioning Board (CB). As set out in the Government's response to the NHS Future Forum report, the intention is to create a new duty for clinical commissioning groups to promote integrated services for patients and to strengthen the duty on the NHS CB. The NHS CB will promote innovative ways of demonstrating how care can be made more integrated for patients.
To support the co-ordination of cancer services, we have said that cancer networks will now continue to receive funding in 2012-13 and that, subject to legislation, the NHS Commissioning Board will support strengthened cancer networks in the future. The National Cancer Director, Professor Sir Mike Richards, has been asked to begin work to strengthen the cancer networks and to engage them to understand how best to improve outcomes for patients.
Those areas of cancer commissioning that are currently covered by national or regional specialised commissioning, such as children's cancer services, will continue to be subject to similar arrangements, through the NHS CB.
Care Homes
Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidelines his Department has issued on the size of care homes; [60554]
(2) what guidelines his Department has issued on the location of care homes. [60555]
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Paul Burstow: The Department has not issued guidance on the size and location of care homes. It is for local authorities, working with providers, to ensure that sufficient numbers of suitable care home places are available to meet the needs of their populations.
Care providers must register with the regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and comply with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/781), which include requirements around the suitability of premises. A copy of the Regulations has already been placed in the Library.
Regulation 15 includes a requirement on safety and suitability of premises, which requires the registered person to ensure that service users and others are protected against the risks of unsafe or unsuitable premises.
Regulation 22 requires the registered person to ensure that at all times, sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff are employed in order to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of service users. In addition, the CQC has the power to impose conditions on registration which might include restricting the number of service users a service may care for to ensure that services are safe and of an acceptable quality.
If providers fail to comply with the regulations, the CQC may take enforcement action.
Folic Acid
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to respond to the recent recommendation of the Standing Advisory Committee on Nutrition advocating the fortification of some foodstuffs with folic acid; and if he will make a statement. [59650]
Anne Milton: We will respond to the recent recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition's report on folic acid fortification of some foodstuffs in due course.
Health Services
Kwasi Kwarteng: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to initiate a campaign to inform the general public about alternatives to using (a) accident and emergency and (b) GP health services. [59923]
Mr Simon Burns: There are currently no plans for a national campaign to promote alternatives to accident and emergency and general practitioner services. It is the responsibility of local national health service organisations to promote the range of services they provide.
National Association of Primary Care: Finance
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department provided to the National Association of Primary Care in the latest period for which figures are available; for what projects such funding was provided; and what the criteria for assessing (a) progress and (b) the outcome of each such project are. [60416]
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Mr Simon Burns: The National Association of Primary Care (NAPC) has received funding from the Department for a range of projects and sponsorships, including those aimed at improving engagement with frontline clinicians. For example, the Department has funded the NAPC (and other primary care organisations) to support it in its work on the transition to the new clinical commissioning arrangements.
Key criteria for success have included proactive clinical leadership and engagement with frontline general practitioners (GPs), and the provision of advice and support to GPs as they begin to form clinical commissioning groups.
Details of funding awarded to the NAPC since April 2010 are as follows:
National Clinical Commissioning Network
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) remuneration and (b) other payments his Department has provided to his Department's National Clinical Commissioning Network Lead since May 2010; and whether he is an employee of the Department. [60418]
Mr Simon Burns: Dr James Kingsland was contracted to the Department to undertake the role of National Clinical Commissioning Network lead. Since May 2010; the Department has provided £37,318.40 in remuneration to Dr Kingsland for work he has undertaken in this role.
National Clinical Commissioning Network: National Association of Primary Care
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of potential conflicts of interest between the role of his Department's National Clinical Commissioning Network Lead and his role as President of the National Association of Primary Care; and what steps he has taken to manage any such conflict of interest. [60417]
Mr Simon Burns: In undertaking his role as lead for the National Clinical Commissioning Network, Dr James Kingsland has acted in his capacity as an individual general practitioner (GP), providing clinical leadership for the Network, in order to avoid potential conflicts of interest with his role within the National Association of Primary Care.
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Social Services
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role local partnership boards have in commissioning care services. [59992]
Paul Burstow: Learning Disability Partnership Boards provide local leadership on service delivery and development. Their influence and ability to hold services to account should ensure that local needs will take priority when it comes to commissioning care services.
Home Department
Immigration: Crime
Mr Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reports of suspected immigration offences the UK Border Agency and its predecessor received in each of the last five years; and how many such reports were acted upon. [60102]
Damian Green: Reports of suspected immigration and/or customs offences received by the UK Border Agency, and their outcomes, are not recorded centrally. Information is recorded and assessed at the local level, and acted upon according to regional priorities.
Therefore, the information requested over a five-year period could be obtained only by the detailed examination of individual local records at disproportionate cost.
The agency acknowledges the need to improve the end-to-end process of allegations handling in our response to the Independent Chief Inspector's (ICI) report on how the UK Border Agency receives and uses intelligence. A copy of the UK Border Agency response to the ICI report has been placed in the Library.
Members: Correspondence
Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter of 17 February 2011 from the right hon. Member for Leeds Central regarding Lynn Watson, ref: M3415/11. [60016]
Nick Herbert [holding answer 16 June 2011]: I wrote to the right hon. Member for Leeds Central on 16 June 2011.
Offenders: Rehabilitation
Laura Sandys: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the resettlement of ex-offenders. [59803]
Mr Blunt: I have been asked to reply.
The Government's policy is to deliver more effective resettlement outcomes, through:
Probation, police and other local services taking an integrated approach to managing offenders;
rehabilitating offenders from drug dependency to drug-free lives, and to support them to make a full contribution to society;
getting offenders into jobs and with somewhere to live so that they can pay their own way; and
tackling mental health problems.
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Police: Dorset
Mr Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers were (a) in Dorset Police and (b) assigned to Bournemouth in each of the last 10 financial years. [60125]
Nick Herbert [holding answer 16 June 2011]:Available data for Dorset, Bournemouth and Bournemouth and Poole police force areas are provided on Tables A and B respectively.
| Table A: Police officer strength in Dorset as at 31 March, 2001 to 2010 and 30 September 2011 | |
| Dorset | Number |
| (1) These are full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. They include all officers less staff on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave (comparable with previously published figures) (2) Full-time equivalent figures on a comparable strength basis (excludes those on career breaks, or maternity/paternity leave). The Police Numbers Task Force (2001) recommended that a clear presentation was made of the numbers of staff employed by police forces including those seconded into the force and those on any type of long or short term absence. These new calculations were first used in 2003. and are not comparable with data prior to March 2003. The data from 2003 onwards used here are termed comparable because they have been calculated on the old basis to allow comparison. | |
| Table B: Police officer strength (1, 2 ) in Bournemouth and Bournemouth and Poole as at 31 March 2001 to 2010 | ||
| Full-time equivalent (1) | ||
|
|
Bournemouth | Bournemouth and Poole |
| n/a = Not available. Basic command unit data were not collected centrally by the Home Office prior to 2003. * = Not applicable (1) Police personnel statistics are not collected by parliamentary constituency. Data have been provided for Bournemouth basic command unit for 2003 to 2008. In 2009, the basic command unit breakdown within Dorset changed. The figure for 2009 and 2010 is for ‘Bournemouth and Poole'. (2) These are full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Figures include officers on career break or maternity/paternity leave. | ||
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Police: Pay
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department gave to the Chief Police Officers' Staff Association in the latest period for which figures are available. [60220]
Nick Herbert: No funding has been provided to the Chief Police Officers' Staff Association in the last five financial years.
Police: Termination of Employment
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2011, Official Report, column 345W, on police: termination of employment, what regulations required police forces to issue leavers with a certificate showing (a) final rank and (b) the period of service in that force between 1980 and 1995. [60103]
Nick Herbert: The relevant regulations were regulation 21 of the Police Regulations 1979 (with effect from 1 January 1980 until 14 June 1987) and regulation 21 of the Police Regulations 1987 (with effect from 15 June 1987 until 7 March 1995).
International Development
Adaptation Fund
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funds his Department plans to provide to the UN Climate Adaptation Fund in each of the next four financial years. [59817]
Mr O'Brien: The UK Government welcomed the establishment of the Adaptation Fund which is designed to support developing countries to make the investments needed to protect poor people from the impacts of climate change. We want the fund to be a success and the UK is an active member of its board. No decision has yet been taken on a possible UK contribution in the next four years. In considering whether to do so we will rigorously assess the ability of the fund to deliver results, impact and value for money for the poor people it is set up to serve.
Caribbean: Climate Change
Dr Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to assist Caribbean countries to adapt to climate-related challenges and develop greener economies. [59767]
Mr O'Brien:
The UK Government are helping Caribbean countries to adapt to climate challenges in a number of ways. Support from the Department for International Development's (DFID's) regional programme is helping build evidence on the potential effects of climate change for Caribbean countries. For example, we have funded detailed studies of climate change on tourism investments. We plan to help 228,000 people in vulnerable communities build their resilience by making their homes safer and stronger and will support introduction of hazard insurance
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products for small scale farmers and businesses in the region. We will invest in efforts to develop low carbon energy and the protection of marine habitats and livelihoods of fishermen/women most at risk.
The region also benefits from UK contributions to global programmes such as the Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience (PPCR) and the Climate Development and Knowledge Network which are helping countries integrate climate change adaptation and risk reduction into future policy and investment decisions.
Developing Countries: Climate Change
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the provision of loans or assistance to developing countries in implementing climate change reduction programmes through the World Bank. [59818]
Mr O'Brien: The UK Government provide both loans and grants for climate change programmes in developing countries, including through the World Bank.
Ethiopia: Overseas Aid
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations he has received on the use of UK development aid by the Government of Ethiopia. [59807]
Mr O'Brien: The Secretary of State receives occasional representations, from members of the public and non-governmental organisations, about the use of development aid by the Government of Ethiopia. Issues raised have been: access to health and education services provided across Ethiopia with support from the UK and other donors; Ethiopia's plans for hydropower; commercial farming; democratisation; the role of NGOs; the humanitarian situation; and consultation on priorities for the Department for International Development's programme in Ethiopia.
Justice
Bill of Rights Commission
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent progress has been made by the Commission on a British Bill of Rights. [59802]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: The Commission met for the first time on 6 May. It has published provisional dates for its meetings on its website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/about/cbr/index.htm
and has indicated that it will be publishing further details of its work programme in due course.
Bribery
Sir Alan Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with non-governmental organisations on the 2010 Foreign Bribery strategy; and what plans he has to proceed with the strategy. [59922]
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Mr Kenneth Clarke: As International Anti-Corruption Champion, I have discussed the issue of foreign bribery with a number of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) including Transparency International UK and the Bond Governance Group.
The matter of whether or not to proceed with the previous Administration's Foreign Bribery Strategy in its entirety is under consideration. However, several of the objectives in the strategy have now been met, or are progressing. One of the strategy's key objectives to strengthen the law will be achieved when the Bribery Act 2010 commences on 1 July this year. The Government have also made progress in supporting ethical business and further work is ongoing to reduce foreign bribery by strengthening international anti-corruption efforts, including working closely with British embassies overseas to address reports of bribe solicitation by foreign public officials.
Business: Government Assistance
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress his Department has made in encouraging small businesses to bid for Government contracts. [60184]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: On 3 June the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) published its small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) action plan. The full action plan including details of the desired outcomes and success factors along with upcoming contracting opportunities are available on the MOJ's website at the following address:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/about/procurement-and-commercial/sme.htm
The MOJ'S plan is also available on the Cabinet Office's website along with other Departments’ action plans at the following address:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/content/small-and-medium-enterprise-sme-action-plans
Progress against each action will be monitored both by the MOJ and the Cabinet Office.
Capital Appeals: Commonwealth Nations
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council has resources adequate to enable it to deal with capital appeals from Commonwealth nations. [59947]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: I am satisfied that the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is adequately resourced to deal with all the capital cases which come before it.
Community Care: Unpaid Work
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice who will hold the community supervision order in the event of a private company winning the tender to provide unpaid work in England and Wales. [59694]
Mr Blunt:
Following the award of contract, an unpaid work requirement imposed as a single requirement of a community or suspended sentence order will be the responsibility of the unpaid work provider. If the order contains any other requirement in addition to unpaid
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work, including a supervision requirement, the management of the order will be the responsibility of the relevant probation trust.
Community Orders
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the setting of conditions of community sentences by prison governors and probation officers under his proposals for payment by results schemes. [59899]
Mr Blunt: The Government's plans for piloting payment by results for offender rehabilitation were outlined in the Ministry of Justice Green Paper “Breaking the Cycle: Effective punishment, rehabilitation and sentencing of offenders”. At least two of the planned pilot projects will involve offenders managed on community sentences.
The selection of requirements for community sentences is solely the responsibility of the courts. The Government currently have no plans to extend this responsibility to prison governors, probation officers or other third parties.
Providers of probation services have a statutory duty to assist the courts in determining the appropriate sentence to pass. This is met through the provision of advice in the form of a Pre-Sentence Report. This function is reserved to the public sector under the Offender Management Act 2007.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to evaluate the findings of the pilot on reducing administrative burdens associated with community orders undertaken by the Surrey and Sussex Probation Trust. [59905]
Mr Blunt: A report on the Professional Judgement Project that ran in the Surrey and Sussex Probation Trust was circulated to chief executives and chairs of probation trusts on 12 April 2011. Although too early for data on final outcomes of community sentences, the report found that 98% of those who responded to a staff survey said the new permission to exercise professional judgment had helped them to do their work better and 96% said it had enabled them to match their time and resources more appropriately to the risks and needs of the offenders they were supervising. The learning from the project informed the development of the national standards for the management of offenders (2011) issued this year. I have placed copies of the reports and annexes in the House of Commons Library.
Coroners: Reform
Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has any plans to improve the complaints procedure in relation to the conduct of individual coroners following his decision not to establish the post of Chief Coroner. [60470]
Mr Djanogly:
On 19 May we published for consultation a draft National Charter for the Coroner Service which included the process for complaints. As at present, complaints about a coroner's personal conduct should be made to the Office for Judicial Complaints. Complaints about the administration of the coroner service should be made in the first instance to the coroner and copied to the relevant local authority. Complaints may also be
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made direct to the local authority. If dissatisfied with the response, the next step would be to complain to the Local Government Ombudsman. The greater level of information in the Charter will ensure that those coming into contact with the coroner service are made aware of, and able to access, the relevant complaints procedure.
Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) whether he has any plans to revise arrangements for the allocation of coroners inquests in relation to the death of members of the armed forces; [60575]
(2) what plans he has to monitor the standard of investigations into deaths of members of the armed services following his decision not to establish the post of Chief Coroner. [60576]
Mr Djanogly: The statement made by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke) on 14 June 2011, Official Report, columns 64-66WS, set out our plans for reform of the coroner system, including the transfer of a number of functions vested in the office of the chief coroner.
This included powers under sections 12 and 13 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 which allow for the transfer of cases involving the deaths of service personnel abroad from England and Wales to Scotland where appropriate (or from Scotland to England and Wales). This function will be transferred to the Lord Chief Justice.
Monitoring arrangements for service personnel deaths will remain as at present. This involves the publication of quarterly written ministerial statements with details of the inquests of service personnel who have died in operations and exercises overseas, the latest of which can be found on the Parliament website at:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm110512/wmstext/110512m0001.htm
Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 14 June 2011, on coroner reform, whether the functions of the Chief Coroner which are to be transferred to the Lord Chief Justice will be delegated to a single named judge; and what criteria will be used to determine the judge or judges to whom such functions will be delegated. [60580]
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Mr Djanogly: It is for the Lord Chief Justice to determine whether the relevant functions should be delegated to an individual, named judge and the criteria informing any such decision.
Crime: Victims
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of victims of crime made a victim personal statement in each year from 2001 to 2010. [60041]
Mr Blunt: Information on the number or proportion of victims who made a victim personal statement to the police is not held centrally.
However, data from the Witness and Victim Experience Survey indicate that, in 2009-10, 43% of respondents remembered being offered the opportunity to make a victim personal statement and, of these, 55% said they actually did so. The survey interviewed victims and prosecution witnesses aged 18 and over, whose case resulted in a charge, between four and six months after the case had closed. Victims and witnesses in sensitive cases (such as sexual offences or domestic violence, crimes involving a fatality, or any crime where the defendant was a family member or a member of the witness's or victim's household) were not included on ethical grounds.
Since September 2007 victims who have opted into the probation service's statutory Victim Contact Scheme have been able to submit a victim personal statement to the Parole Board where the board is conducting a hearing in relation to a prisoner. The number of victim personal statements submitted to the Parole Board is not held centrally.
Legal Aid
Claire Perry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much the Legal Services Commission spent on legal aid in (a) each region of England and (b) Wales (i) in total and (ii) per head in each of the last five years. [60212]
Mr Djanogly: The information requested is shown in the following tables. Table 1 also includes spend which cannot be attributed across a region, such as telephone spend. In this case the expenditure has been apportioned across the regions on a pro-rata basis.
| Table 1: Legal aid spend in each region | |||||||||||
| Total spend by region (£ million) | |||||||||||
|
|
West Midlands | South East | South West | Eastern | Wales | Yorkshire and Humberside | London | North West | North East | East Midlands | Total |
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| Table 2: Legal aid spend per head | |||||||||||
| Per head average by region (£) | |||||||||||
|
|
West Midlands | South East | South West | Eastern | Wales | Yorkshire and Humbers i de | London | North West | North East | East Midlands | Total |
Legal Aid: Asylum
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse of (a) legal aid for asylum appeals and (b) the administrative costs associated with such appeals was in each year since 1997-98. [60579]
Mr Djanogly: It is not possible to answer the question in the format requested. Legal aid expenditure in asylum and immigration cases for 2003-04 onwards is shown in the following table. However it is not possible to disaggregate asylum from other immigration cases. The figures include representation in judicial reviews.
The Legal Services Commission (LSC) does not record centrally the administrative costs associated with immigration and asylum cases.
|
|
Total (£ million cash) |
Multi-Agency Public Protection
Mr Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the role of lay advisors to Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) is; and what qualifications are required for participation by lay advisors in MAPPA meetings. [60413]
Mr Blunt: By virtue of section 326 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (the 2003 Act), the responsible authority for each MAPPA area must keep the arrangements which it has established for the assessment and management of eligible offenders under review in consultation with persons appointed by the Secretary of State as lay advisers in relation to that authority. Lay advisers are members of the public. The responsible authority will consult and seek the advice of its lay advisers in various ways, including through the lay advisers attending and contributing to meetings of the local MAPPA Strategic Management Board.
In accordance with the Secretary of State's guidance to the responsible authorities, issued under section 325 of the 2003 Act, lay advisers act as informed observers and ask challenging questions which may not have occurred to the professionals involved and thereby act as a critical friend. Under the same guidance, lay advisers are not expected routinely to attend MAPPA meetings, which are operational in nature, and even where they do so, should not be involved in decision-making about risk assessments and risk management plans for individual offenders.
Individuals do not need any formal educational qualifications in order to be appointed to the role of lay adviser, but in the recruitment process they will be assessed for a range of personal qualities including an interest in local community and social issues, and a capacity for emotional resilience.
Mr Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what guidance his Department issues to those appointed as lay advisors to Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements boards. [60414]
Mr Blunt: The Ministry of Justice does not issue any central guidance to those appointed as lay advisers. However, in his guidance to the MAPPA responsible authorities issued under section 325 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, the Secretary of State provides guidance on the nature and responsibility of lay advisers.
In addition, the responsible authority in each MAPPA area is required to provide an induction programme consisting of relevant reading material, a range of visits to criminal justice premises including a prison, a police station and a probation office, and attendance at meetings. The responsible authority must also nominate a person to provide continuing support and guidance during their time as lay advisers.
Mr Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on what dates the Lay Advisors to the Staffordshire and West Midlands Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) have been present at meetings of the MAPPA Board since 1 April 2010. [60415]
Mr Blunt: Staffordshire and the West Midlands are separate MAPPA areas. One or both of the lay advisers in each area have attended meetings of the respective Strategic Management Board on the following dates since 1 April 2010:
2 June 2010
5 September 2010
17 November 2010
27 April 2011
15 July 2010
18 November 2010
20 January 2011
17 March 2011
19 May 2011.
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Offender Management Services
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to publish the comprehensive competition programme for all offender management services proposed in his Department's Green Paper on reoffending. [59900]
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 be published shortly.
Offenders: Training
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of offenders refused to engage in education and skills courses in each year since 1995. [59893]
Mr Blunt: Neither the Skills Funding Agency nor the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) hold information centrally relating to the numbers of offenders who refuse to engage in courses. However, data collected tells, us that, since the implementation of the Offender Learning and Skills service, the proportion of offenders in prison participating in learning and skills provision has risen from 30% to over 41%.
Offenders serving community sentences often access mainstream training and education as part of their sentence plan. No statistical data are held in respect of those who refuse to engage.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to his Department's Green Paper, Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders, page 33, paragraph 112, which business leaders his Department has identified to champion employers working with offenders on skills-based programmes to support rehabilitation. [59916]
Mr Blunt: Both the Green Paper “Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders” and the recently published offender learning review “Making Prison Work: Skills for Rehabilitation” place skills and employment at the heart of rehabilitation. Both reviews place significant emphasis on relationships with employers in ensuring that skills training and development for offenders match the skills demands of employers and the business community.
To ensure dialogue between Government and employers, a number of business leaders have been brought together to lead the Employer Forum for Reducing Re-Offending, acting as advisers, champions and advocates to other employers regarding supporting offenders to obtain employment. The forum is driven by a leadership team chaired by James Timpson OBE, Chief Executive of Timpson Ltd and comprises membership of 14 other companies including Marks and Spencer, DHL, Mitie Group, Greggs, Cisco Systems, Transport for London, Sodexho, Bovis Lend Lease, SERCO and Compass Group.
Within the wider forum of employers, there are many other private sector organisations currently supporting skills training in both custody and community including National Grid and its extensive supply chain of companies,
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Sainsbury's, Enterprise plc and Tesco. There are many other examples of successful partnerships across the National Offender Management Service, whether employers are recruiting offenders directly from prison, running a prison workshop, providing work placements or helping shape policy and practice.
Prisons: Mental Health Services
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the name is of each pilot treatment and case management project being undertaken as part of the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder Programme; [59896]
(2) when he plans to publish the findings of the pilot treatment and case management projects being undertaken as part of the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder Programme; [59897]
(3) when he plans to undertake the joint consultation with the Secretary of State for Health on the reconfiguration of existing services to support those with mental health issues on the secure estate. [59898]
Mr Blunt: There are 30 separate projects within the programme, representing the various phases of assessment, treatment, management and workforce development. Additionally, the programme has established a range of non-forensic projects providing specialist services to people with personality disorder in the community. The following table shows each project separately.
| Service Name | Lead organisation | PD Pathway |
|
Cambridge Complex Cases and Peterborough PD service Addenbrooks Hospital |
||
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| (1) PIPES (Psychologically Informed Planned Environments) are discrete residential units, either in prisons or approved premises, which provide a particularly safe and supportive environment so that offenders can be supported following a period of more intense treatment. | ||
There are a series of separate research activities into the various elements of the programme, covering treatment, progression and management in the community. The key research areas are:
two evaluations of the four male DSPD treatment sites in high secure hospitals and the high secure prison estate. One, undertaken by the university of Oxford focuses on the treatments offered and patients' responses to treatment. The other, by Imperial College, is concerned with staffing and organisation within the four sites. A MOJ report summarising the findings of these projects is currently progressing through quality assurance processes in preparation for publication. Copies of the full academic reports will be available on request in due course.
A qualitative evaluation of the Primrose Unit (the DSPD treatment pilot for women at HMP Low Newton) has been commissioned to evaluate whether the risk posed by offenders to others and to themselves is reduced. The evaluation is due to start imminently and will conclude in 2012, with results available in 2013.
Evaluations of elements of the six progression units (known as PIPES) have been commissioned, the results of which are due in 2013.
A randomised control trial (RCT) of the Resettle project is currently under way and will report in 2013.
The joint Ministry of Justice and Department of Health formal consultation on the Offender Personality Disorder Pathway Implementation plan, which includes increases in the number of treatment places in prisons, development of a range of community and custody based pathway services for high harm offenders and changes to the NHS based DSPD pilots services closed on 12 May. A Government response will be published shortly following joint consideration by Ministers in MOJ and DH.
Prisons: Training
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department expects to spend on prison rehabilitation as part of the Work Programme in each year of the comprehensive spending review period. [59894]
Mr Blunt:
The Work Programme will see providers paid by the Department for Work and Pensions for the results they achieve in getting the unemployed off welfare and into work. The DWP and the Ministry of Justice are working on plans that could lead to more offenders across the country being referred to back to work support through the programme. We are also working to see how Work Programme providers could be incentivised
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further to work with offenders and reducing reoffending. We will identify the costs and benefits of this approach as we develop the policy.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment his Department has made of the potential barriers to independent providers offering work and training for offenders in prison. [60037]
Mr Blunt: In our Green Paper, “Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders”, we asked how we should best use the expertise and innovation of the private and voluntary sectors to help develop the working prison. We received many useful responses from the public and independent providers, and continue to engage with a range of organisations on a number of issues as we develop our policy.
Probation: ICT
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to establish an integrated IT system for probation lots and private sector operators to tender for unpaid work. [59634]
Mr Blunt: Probation trust and private sector providers of community payback (unpaid work) will be required to access and maintain data held on the national applications to be used by probation trusts for the case management and risk management of offenders in the community. This will ensure that the same risk assessment tool is used and a single view of the offender is available irrespective of the organisation delivering the service.
Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which occupations are exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, as amended. [59999]
Mr Blunt: Part III of schedule 1 to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 lists those occupations that are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 ('Act'). Subsequent orders have since been made that add to and amend the list of occupations included in this schedule and can be found in the relevant years' Exceptions Order. The following is a consolidated list of current occupations in the Exceptions Order:
1. Firearms dealer
2. Any occupation in respect of which an application to the Gaming Board for Great Britain for a licence, certificate or registration is required by or under any enactment.
3. Any occupation which is concerned with:
(a) the management of a place in respect of which the approval of the Secretary of State is required by section 1 of the Abortion Act 1967; or
(b) in England and Wales, carrying on a nursing home in respect of which registration is required by section 187 of the Public Health Act 1936 or section 14 of the Mental Health Act 1959; or
(c) in Scotland, carrying on a nursing home in respect of which registration is required under section 1 of the Nursing Homes Registration (Scotland) Act 1938 or a private hospital in respect of which registration is required under section 15 of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1960.
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4. Any occupation which is concerned with carrying on an establishment in respect of which registration is required by section 37 of the National Assistance Act 1948 or section 61 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968.
5. Any occupation in respect of which the holder, as occupier of premises on which explosives are kept, is required pursuant to regulations 4 and 7 of the Control of Explosives Regulations 1991 to obtain from the chief officer of police a valid explosives certificate certifying him to be a fit person to acquire or acquire and keep explosives
6. Approved legal services body manager.
7. A regulated immigration adviser.
The Exceptions Order also lists those professions, offices, employment, licences, certificates, permits and proceedings that are exempt from the operation of the Act.
Scotland
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of contracts issued by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which he is responsible were awarded to small and medium-sized enterprises in (i) Scotland, (ii) South Lanarkshire and (iii) Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency in the latest period for which figures are available. [60198]
Mr Kenneth Clarke: The Ministry of Justice does not centrally hold this information based on geographical location. It could be obtained only by a number of staff manually reviewing large volumes of records at a disproportionate cost to the Department.
Young Offenders: Probation
Ben Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on supporting the transition between youth offending and probation services when a young offender reaches 18. [59942]
Mr Blunt: Our policy is to ensure a smooth transition between youth and adult justice services at age 18 to ensure that there is continuity and consistency in access to services. As part of this the Youth Justice Board are piloting an IT portal designed to share information between Youth Offending Teams and probation, and have developed a youth to adult protocol for local areas to use as young people transition from youth to adult justice services.
Scotland
Corporation Tax
Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the rates of corporation tax in Scotland. [60392]
Michael Moore: I met with the First Minister on 12 May to discuss the requests for further devolution made by the Scottish Government. The First Minister committed to send detailed proposals on each of his requests. To date, no information has been received.
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Transport
Ports: Liverpool
Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the evidential basis is for his Department's revised policy on ports, state aid and competition rules in relation to Liverpool City Council's planned future usage of Liverpool cruise terminal. [59321]
Mike Penning: There has been no such change in policy. Use of the City of Liverpool Cruise Terminal for ‘turnaround’ operations is currently precluded by a grant condition. I have indicated that the condition might be lifted if an appropriate proportion of grant were to be repaid, recognising the effect on competing terminals that have not received subsidy. This would be subject to consultation, and to state aids clearance as necessary.
Roads: Repairs and Maintenance
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on resurfacing A-roads in the last five years. [55329]
Norman Baker: For the roads which are the responsibility of the Highways Agency, the agency's annual accounts over the past five years has reported the following in terms of expenditure on maintenance.
|
|
£ million |
Expenditure figures have been adjusted to account for spend relating to roads trunked or detrunked in the financial year.
The expenditure figures provided are for maintenance on the strategic road network managed and maintained by the Highways Agency. This includes renewal of the road surface and repairs to structures, as well as routine
17 Jun 2011 : Column 1024W
maintenance such as gully clearing, white lining, cleaning and winter maintenance, but not costs associated with private finance initiative contracts.
To disaggregate the cost of A-roads for the Highways Agency can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The Department for Transport also provides capital funding for highways maintenance to local highway authorities and it is for each individual highway authority to decide how to allocate this money, including resurfacing of A-roads for which they are responsible.
Figures detailing how much has been spent by local authorities specifically on resurfacing of A-roads are not held centrally. Information on overall expenditure for structural maintenance on A-roads by local authorities is routinely published on the Department for Communities and Local Government website at the following weblinks:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/localgovernment/localregional/localgovernmentfinance/statistics/revenueexpenditure/revenue200910/localauthoritydata/
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/capitallocaldata200910
Trade Unions
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff of (a) his Department, (b) the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, (c) the Driving Standards Agency, (d) the Government Car and Despatch Agency, (e) the Highways Agency, (f) the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, (g) the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency and (h) the Vehicles Certification 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. [56449]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport, including its seven Executive Agencies, permits elected representatives of an officially recognised trade union to have an annual allocation of paid time off from their official duties (‘facility time’), in order to undertake their role as trade union officers.
The information requested has been provided in the following table.
| Organisation | Full-time trade union representatives | Part-time trade union representatives | Number of full-time and part-time trade union representatives paid more than £25,900 | Annual cost of trade union activities to the public purse (£) | |
| (1) VOSA figure includes overtime, travel and subsistence and fuel costs. Note: The table is based on trade union representatives and their annual costs as at 1 April 2011. | |||||
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Treasury
Banks: Finance
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the long-term monetary value of the shares in (a) the Royal Bank of Scotland, (b) Lloyds Banking Group and (c) Northern Rock reviewed by UK General Investments Ltd. [60583]
Justine Greening: The Government's shareholdings in financial institutions are managed by UK Financial Investments (UKFI). UKFI's objective is to dispose of the investments in an orderly and active manner, within the context of an overarching objective of protecting and creating value for the taxpayer, paying due regard to financial stability and to acting in way that promotes competition.
UKFI is responsible for recommending sales to the Chancellor in line with its Framework Document and Investment mandate. The decision to proceed with a sale ultimately rests with the Chancellor.
With regard to Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group specifically, the future movements in the share prices of any publicly traded company are inherently difficult to predict.
The Chancellor announced in his Mansion House speech that he has decided to put Northern Rock plc up for sale, to banks or mutuals, based on recommendations from UKFI. This follows advice from UKFI that a sale process is likely to generate the best value for the taxpayer and should be explored as a first option.
Banks: Regulation
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what reporting his Department requires from (a) the Royal Bank of Scotland, (b) Lloyds Banking Group and (c) Northern Rock. [60582]
Justine Greening: UK Financial Investments has been set up to manage the Government's investment in financial institutions including the Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds Banking Group and Northern Rock.
As part of the Royal Bank of Scotland's participation in the Asset Protection Scheme, the bank is contractually required to regularly provide information to the Asset Protection Agency, an executive agency set up to run the scheme.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what (a) quarterly and (b) annual stretch targets have been set for the Project Merlin agreement; and if he will make a statement; [60621]
(2) for what reasons stretch targets were not published alongside capacity targets in his Project Merlin statement on 9 February 2011; [60622]
(3) what role the Bank of England has in monitoring banks' performance against stretch targets under the Project Merlin agreement; [60623]
(4) what assessment he has made of Project Merlin's performance in increasing lending to small and medium-sized businesses since February 2011. [60558]
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Justine Greening: The Merlin commitment agreed with the banks is £190 billion of gross new lending facilities to UK corporates, including facilities of £76 billion to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The banks will be judged against these published and agreed numbers. Figures published in May by the Bank of England show that the five banks participating in the Merlin lending accord agreed new lending facilities of £16.8 billion to UK SMEs in the first quarter of this year. The Bank of England will continue to report the banks' new lending facilities on a quarterly basis for the duration of the Merlin agreement.
Departmental Public Bodies
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2011, Official Report, columns 759-60W, on departmental public appointments, for what reason the answer referred to a website that cannot be found; and how many (a) women and (b) men no longer serve on public bodies sponsored by his Department because of decisions to close, merge or reorganise such bodies taken since his appointment. [51436]
Justine Greening: The website referred to remains live and available to the general public. The answer to the second part of the question, as of 18 June 2011, is (a) none, and (b) none.
Legal Aid
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential costs to the public purse resulting from proposed reductions in civil legal aid. [60404]
Justine Greening: The impact of all policies, including the impact on the public purse, is considered carefully as part of both formal impact assessments and the Cabinet Committee clearance process.
Wales
Departmental Regulation
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what regulations her Department introduced between 1 March 2011 and 31 May 2011; and what the estimated costs of implementation were for those affected in each case; [60323]
(2) what the name is of each regulatory measure revoked by her Department between 1 March and 31 May 2011; and what estimate she has made of the potential annual saving to those affected by each revocation. [60487]
Mr David Jones: No regulations have been introduced or revoked by the Wales Office during these periods.
EU Law
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales for what European directives in force on 1 April 2010 her Department is responsible; and what European directives for which her Department is responsible have come into force since 1 April 2010. [60702]
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Public Expenditure
Dr Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions she has had with the Welsh Local Government Association on the effects of the outcome of the 2010 Spending Review on the delivery of front-line services in Wales; and if she will make a statement. [60093]
Mr David Jones: The delivery of local government services is devolved in Wales, and, as such, is a matter for the Welsh Government.
The Welsh Government received a fair settlement in both the comprehensive spending review and the Budget. The reduction in the Welsh Government's budget is smaller than the UK average and the Budget, despite being fiscally neutral, allocated an additional £65 million to the Welsh Government.
Maintaining front-line services across the UK is an important matter, though it is for the Welsh Government to decide how to allocate resources in devolved areas.
In taking forward the localism agenda, the Government are freeing local government in England from central and regional control so that they can ensure services are delivered according to local needs. I hope the Welsh Government will bring the same benefits to the citizens of Wales.
Work and Pensions
Atos
Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much (a) will be paid to Atos Healthcare for the current contract to provide medical services to his Department and (b) Atos Healthcare has been so paid to date. [60609]
Chris Grayling: The information is as follows:
(a) The contract with Atos Healthcare is demand driven. Our profile of costs to date lead us to estimate a total contract value in the region of £1 billion over the lifetime of the contract (from 1 September 2005 to 31 August 2015). The scope of the services includes medical assessment, medical advice, IT support infrastructure and maintenance of facilities.
(b) The amount paid to date (for each financial year) to Atos Healthcare for medical services is set out in the following table:
| Financial period | £ million |
| Source: DWP Commercial Intelligence database. | |
Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which companies tendered for the contract to provide medical services to his Department. [60610]
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Chris Grayling: Companies that tendered for the medical services contract were:
Atos Origin UK (trading as Atos Healthcare);
Capita; and
Vertex (part of the United Utilities Group)
Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of appeals against decisions made by Atos Healthcare were upheld in the latest period in which figures are available. [60616]
Chris Grayling: Decisions on entitlement to employment and support allowance (ESA) are made solely by the Department's decision makers. Atos Healthcare provide a recommendation after they have completed the work capability assessment (WCA) and this is taken into account, along with any other relevant information, when the decision maker decides on the final outcome of the claim.
For ESA claims that started between October 2008 and February 2010, that were found fit for work at the initial work capability assessment and had an appeal heard by February 2011, 39% found in favour of the appellant, meaning their entitlement to ESA was reinstated.
The Department regularly publishes official statistics on ESA and the WCA. The latest report was published in April 2011 and can be found on the internet at the following link:
http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/esa_wca/index.php?page=esa_wca_arc
Poverty: Children
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in workless households in (a) March 1983 and (b) March 1991. [60349]
Mr Hurd: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated June 2011:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your question asking how many children were living in workless households in (a) March 1983 and (b) March 1991 (60349).
Labour Force Survey household datasets are available only from April-June 1997, so the requested information is not available.
Published data on children in workless households can be found at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/work0910.pdf
Social Security Benefits
Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the Vale of Glamorgan have been claiming out of work benefits for 10 years or more. [60411]
Chris Grayling: Following are the number of claimants who have been claiming out of work benefits for more than 10 years in the Vale of Glamorgan. It should be noted that incapacity benefit was replaced by employment support allowance from October 2008.
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(a) No jobseeker's allowance claimants have been receiving benefits for more than 10 years in the Vale of Glamorgan.
(b) 1,580 incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance claimants have been receiving benefits for more than 10 years in the Vale of Glamorgan. Employment support allowance was introduced in 2008 and therefore there are no claimants on this benefit who have been claiming for more than 10 years.
(c) 140 income support/pension credit claimants have been receiving benefits for more than 10 years in the Vale of Glamorgan. This figure refers to claimants of income support (and males age 60-64 claiming pension credit) that are not also claiming incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance.
Note:
Figures are sourced from the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study and have been rounded to nearest 10.