| 2009 - 10 | ||||
| Transaction date | Merchant | Town | Spend category | Transaction amount (£) |
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20 July 2011 : Column 1106W
The Government Procurement Card spend categories depend on how the vendor classifies their business. Some transactions under the ‘restaurants and bars’ line related to the purchase of gifts on official business, and were excluded from the figures provided in my written answer of 9 June 2011, Official Report, column 447W.
The single transaction listed under ‘leisure activities’ was a ministerial working dinner and should therefore be added to the figures provided in my written answer of 9 June 2011, Official Report, column 447W.
My Department is committed to greater transparency over the use of the Government Procurement Card than under the last Administration, and has strengthened checks and balances to ensure protection of taxpayers’ money.
Local Government Finance
Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his policy is on the powers of local authorities to raise finance through the issue of municipal bonds; and if he will make a statement. [61816]
Robert Neill: Under the prudential system local authorities are able to borrow for capital projects without Government consent, provided that they can afford the borrowing costs. Authorities are free to choose the source of these loans, and may borrow, should they wish to do so, by issuing bonds.
Also the Local Government Resource Review is considering how, in the context of changes to the business rate system, Tax Increment Financing can be introduced. Tax Increment Financing enables borrowing against future increases in business rate receipts to help fund the development of infrastructure.
Local Government: Procurement
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to encourage local authorities to tender through Contracts Finder. [67253]
Robert Neill: In February, a new, free-to-use, online Contracts Finder portal was launched to make it easier and cheaper for small and medium enterprises and the voluntary and community sector to bid for public sector opportunities.
Procurement in local government is a matter for local discretion and my Department does not wish to prescribe to local authorities how they should conduct their business. My Department does, however, encourage local authorities to consider tendering through Contracts Finder. I am also delighted to say that the noble Lady, Baroness Eaton, supported Contract Finder while Chair of the Local Government Association, vowing that the Local Government Group will, through the Local Productivity Programme, spearhead its roll-out across local government.
Planning Inspectorate
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost to his Department of the Planning Inspectorate was in 2010-11. [67706]
Robert Neill [holding answer 19 July 2011]: The Planning Inspectorate received funding of £38.136 million from my Department in 2010-11.
Social Rented Housing
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside of 13 July 2011, Official Report, column 390W, on immigration: housing, what definition of habitual residence his Department provides to (a) registered providers of housing and (b) local authorities; and if he will make a statement. [67767]
Andrew Stunell: Habitual residence is not defined in legislation. It is a matter of fact, taking into account all the circumstances in a particular case. Decision makers must consider a variety of factors including the general nature of a person's residence in the UK; their reasons for coming to the UK; and the length of their actual residence here.
The 2002 Code of Guidance on the Allocation of Accommodation and the 2006 Homelessness Code of Guidance provide detailed advice to local housing authorities about the factors which they should take into account when considering whether an applicant is habitually resident in the context of eligibility for social housing and homelessness assistance.
Third Sector
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which charities and voluntary organisations Ministers in his Department have visited since 12 May 2010. [67430]
Robert Neill [holding answer 19 July 2011]: Details of all meetings with, and visits to, external organisations and their representatives by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and all Ministers in his Department, including charities and voluntary organisations, are published on the DCLG website:
www.communities.gov.uk/corporate/transparencyingovernment/ministerialdata
More recent data will be published here in due course.
20 July 2011 : Column 1107W
Travellers: Caravan Sites
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many planning appeals involving Gypsy and Traveller site (a) planning applications and (b) enforcement actions Mr Clive Kirkbride has determined in each year since his appointment; and how many such appeals have been (i) allowed and granted permission in favour of the Gypsy or Traveller site and (ii) refused permission. [67012]
Robert Neill: The following table shows the number of planning and enforcement appeals decided by Clive Kirkbride each year, since his appointment at the end of 2002.
| Planning appeals | Enforcement appeals | |||
|
|
Number allowed | Number refused | Number allowed | Number refused |
These results should be read in conjunction with the Introduction to the section of the Planning Inspectorate's Statistical Report for 2010-11 that shows the percentage allowed and dismissed by Inspector. In particular:
All cases are considered on their individual merits, and on the basis of the evidence submitted;
Inspectors do not select their own casework, and all work on a variety of case types; and
Inspectors are rigorously trained to ensure that they develop and maintain the skills necessary to undertake the work that they are given. These skills will influence the type of cases they deal with.
www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/statistics_eng/10_11/stats_report_final_2010_2011.pdf
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the name is of each planning inspector who has determined an appeal concerning Gypsy and Traveller sites in each of the last five years; and in how many and what proportion of such cases (a) the appeal was allowed in favour of the appellant and (b) the appeal was dismissed in favour of the local planning authority's original decision. [67088]
Robert Neill: Tables showing the names of planning inspectors who have presided over one or more such planning appeals in the last five years (2006-10), and the proportion allowed and dismissed have been placed in the Library of the House.
Justice
Criminal Responsibility
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make it his policy to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14; and if he will make a statement. [66497]
20 July 2011 : Column 1108W
Mr Blunt: The Government have no plans to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14.
Courts: Rural Areas
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his most recent assessment is of the projected level of access to justice in rural communities in each of the next four financial years. [66365]
Mr Djanogly: The Government published a full impact assessment alongside its response to the legal aid reform consultation. This outlines our best estimate of the likely impact of proposals, though ultimately impacts will be driven by behavioural responses to the reforms and these are very difficult to predict with any degree of accuracy. However, we have also undertaken to carry out a full post-implementation review of the reforms following their implementation.
Crown Dependencies
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has any plans to visit the Crown dependencies in the next year. [66646]
Mr Djanogly: My noble Friend, Lord McNally, Minister with responsibility for the Crown dependencies, has visited all three Crown dependencies within the last 12 months and plans to make return visits in the near future.
Regulation: Guidance
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what process his Department follows for the production of regulatory guidance; and how many officials of his Department were involved in the production of such guidance on the last date for which figures are available. [67202]
Mr Djanogly: Guidance is produced by my Department when users need information to be confident that they can comply with the law. Guidance is compliant with the code of practice on guidance and is tested with stakeholders so that it is comprehensive and meets user needs.
Figures are not available on the number of officials involved in the production of guidance.
Employment Tribunals Service
Mr Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many employment tribunal (a) hearings were cancelled by the tribunal, (b) hearings were listed as floaters, (c) hearings were listed within 26 weeks of receipt in single jurisdiction claims, (d) hearings had to be adjourned as a result of being part-heard and (e) written judgments were sent to the parties within four weeks of the conclusion of the hearing in each region in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average period of time taken was to list pre-hearing reviews in each region. [67395]
Mr Djanogly:
Employment tribunals list various types of hearings, including case management discussions,
20 July 2011 : Column 1109W
pre-hearing reviews, full/final hearings (which include assessment of remedies, where relevant) and review hearings.
Listing of hearings in cases (including the cancellation, postponement or adjournment of cases) is a judicial matter. Once listed, ‘cancellations’ can occur, for example, where the claim is resolved, settled or withdrawn before the hearing is scheduled to take place; where a postponement request is made by one or both of the parties and accepted by the tribunal; or where the employment tribunal itself postpones the hearing on its own volition for any number of reasons.
In relation to part (a) of the question, Table 1 shows all hearings marked as ‘postponed by Tribunal’ on the HMCTS management information system. It is not possible to discern the cause of the postponement (for example whether it was at the instigation of parties, or the tribunal's own volition).
| Table 1: Hearings ‘Postponed by Tribunal’ in the financial year 2010-11 | ||
| Region | Total h earings postponed | Full hearings postponed |
| (1) There were no postponements by tribunal recorded in Scotland in 2010-11, in 2009-10 there were two. Notes: 1. Hearings are marked as ‘postponed by Tribunal’ on the tribunal management information system. These are hearings where, for a variety of reasons including cancellation, that the hearing has been postponed by the tribunal. It is not possible to separate out the reasons for the postponement. Therefore the table gives indicative figures for the total number of postponements by tribunals, of which cancellations will be a subset. 2. All figures by region in the latest period for which figures are available. Rounding: Figures in the tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 remain as unit values; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to the nearest 100. Source: ET Central database July 2011 | ||
In relation to part (b), employment tribunal offices are not required to collate and record this information. Those that do do not report the data so that they can be collated and held centrally. Accordingly, it is not possible to provide the information requested.
In relation to part (c), Table 2 shows the number of ‘singles’ cases that were listed within 26 weeks of receipt of the original claim.
| Table 2: Single cases with hearings listed within 26 weeks of receipt for the financial year 2010-11 (1) | |
| Region | Single cases with hearings listed for hearing within 26 weeks |
20 July 2011 : Column 1110W
| (1) There were 50,200 cases listed in the financial year 2010-11, of which 77% were listed for a first hearing within 26 weeks. Data on the percentage of single accepted cases where the first hearing began within 26 weeks of receipt (rather than being listed within that period), and the employment tribunals' performance against the 75% target, is published regularly. The latest available information, for the 2010-11 financial year is available on the MOJ website. Note: All figures by region in the latest period for which figures are available. Rounding: Figures in the tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 remain as unit values; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to the nearest 100. Source: ET Central database April 2011 | |
In relation to part (d), Table 3 shows hearings that were adjourned as a result of being part-heard.
| Table 3: All part heard hearings for the financial year 2010-11 | ||
| Region | Total hearings ‘part-heard’ | Full/ final hearings ‘part-heard’ |
| Note: All figures by region in the latest period for which figures are available. Rounding: Figures in the tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 remain as unit values; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to the nearest 100. Source: ET Central database July 2011 | ||
In relation to part (e), Table 4 shows the number of written judgments that were sent to the parties within four weeks of the conclusion of the hearing.
| Table 4: Judgments sent to parties within 4 weeks of decision (single claims only) for the financial year 2010-11 (1) | |
| Region | Judgment sent within four weeks |
20 July 2011 : Column 1111W
| (1) There were 10,600 judgments issued in financial year 2010-11, of which 86% were issued within four weeks of the final hearing. Note: All figures by region in the latest period for which figures are available. Rounding: Figures in the tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 remain as unit values; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to the nearest 100. Source: ET Central database April 2011 | |
In relation to the final part of the question about listing pre hearing reviews, Table 5 shows the average time taken to list such hearings in each region.
| Table 5: Listing times for pre-hearing reviews for the financial year 2010-11 | |
| Region | Average time from receipt to pre-hearing review ( days ) |
| Note: All figures by region in the latest period for which figures are available. Rounding: Figures in the tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 remain as unit values; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to the nearest 100. Source: ET Central database July 2011 | |
Identification Procedures
Esther McVey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the extent to which (a) victims and (b) witnesses of crime participating in a video identification parade are able to pre-identify suspects through social media. [66099]
James Brokenshire: I have been asked to reply.
While no specific assessment of the extent of such pre-identification has been conducted, video identification procedures, like all other identification procedures, are conducted by the police in accordance with the requirements of Code of Practice D issued in accordance with the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE). In addition, the police service has a dedicated group specialising in video identification, which works with the CPS and others, including the Home Office, to identify any issues which might require changes to Code of Practice D.
We are satisfied that the provisions of Code of Practice D balance properly the need for the police to secure admissible identification evidence with the need for safeguards for suspects. In particular, paragraph 3.29 requires that
20 July 2011 : Column 1112W
“Each eye-witness involved in the procedure (whether they are a witness or victim) shall be asked, after they have taken part, whether they have seen any film, photograph or image relating to the offence or any description of the suspect which has been broadcast or published in any national or local media or on any social networking site and, if they have, they should be asked to give details of the circumstances, such as the date and place as relevant. Their replies shall be recorded.”
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is then responsible for considering the evidential implications of any such prior identification when deciding whether the suspect should be charged and for disclosing relevant information to the defence in the event of subsequent proceedings.
Juries: Age
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to raise the age limit for people eligible to serve on juries. [66239]
Mr Blunt: The previous Government's ageing strategy, ‘Building a Society for All Ages’ (2009), gave an undertaking to review the upper age limit for jury service. A public consultation ran from 16 March to 8 June 2010 and drew 44 responses. We are now considering the issue in the light of the consultation.
Legal Aid Scheme
Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of individuals in receipt of legal aid were (a) under the age of 18 and (b) identified as having a physical or mental disability in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many cases in that period in respect of which such aid was granted concerned clinical negligence. [65915]
Mr Djanogly: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) is able to provide this information and it is shown in the following table. Figures relate to civil representation only for the financial year 2009-10.
|
|
Overall proportion of legal aid recipients (percentage) | Total number of clinical negligence cases |
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many persons aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 to 24 years were in receipt of civil and family legal aid in respect of each type of justiciable matter that will (i) be and (ii) not be eligible for legal aid following the implementation of the Government's proposals in the latest year for which information is available; what proportion of all recipients this represented in each case; and what the cost to the public purse was in each case. [66387]
Mr Djanogly: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) is able to provide this information and it is shown in the following table. The current data and estimated impact of the reforms are based on 2009-10 closed cases relating to volume and cost of civil family and non-family legal aid for those aged under 18, 18 to 24 and 25 plus.
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| Volume (thousand ) | Cost (£ million) | % volume | % cost | ||||||||
|
|
|
Current | In scope post reforms | Out of scope post reforms | Current | In scope post reforms | Out of scope post reforms | In scope post reforms | Out of scope post reforms | In scope post reforms | Out of scope post reforms |
| Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded appropriately therefore the totals may not sum to their individual components. 2. Telephone advice data are not available by age. Consequently, telephone advice figures have been excluded from this table and saving/volume reduction figures do not tally with those in the published impact assessments. 3. The figures sum legal help and legal representation. | |||||||||||
Health
Alcoholic Drinks: Rehabilitation
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will assess the provision of support available to alcohol and drug rehabilitation centres in (a) Pendle, (b) Lancashire and (c) England. [67038]
Anne Milton: Drug and alcohol treatment services are commissioned locally, with funding provided by a combination of central Government funding and local funding provided by a range of local partners including the local authority, health, policy and probation. In Pendle, they are commissioned by Lancashire Drug and Alcohol Action Team who also provide support to delivery of services across the county.
The Government's Drug Strategy, published in December 2010, highlighted the need for local areas to build close links between residential rehabilitation and other services when commissioning support to help people recover from dependence on drugs and alcohol. In a series of initiatives funded by the Department, the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) has:
allocated over £65 million since 2007-08 for capital projects to improve the provision of rehabilitation facilities;
launched Rehab Online, a web-based directory of residential services in 2010; and
held a series of regional events in 2011 to raise the profile of such services.
Later this year, the NTA will be responding to the consultation on Building Recovery in Communities by publishing updated advice on models of care for people dependent on drugs and alcohol.
Conditions of Employment
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many meetings officials of his Department have had with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on the Government’s employment law review since May 2011. [67215]
Mr Simon Burns: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave him on 21 June 2011, Official Report, columns 252-53W. No meetings have taken place between the Department of Health and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on this topic.
Dental Health: Children
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the level of tooth decay in children aged (a) five to 12 years and (b) 12 to 15 years old in Peterborough constituency; and if he will make a statement. [67006]
Mr Simon Burns: The “NHS Dental Epidemiology Programme for England Oral Health Survey of five-year-old Children 2007/2008 and 12-year-old Children 2008/2009” shows that the average number of decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) among five and 12-year-old children in the area of Peterborough Primary Care Trust was 1.60 and 0.70 respectively compared to a DMFT. of 1.11 and 0.74 respectively for England as a whole.
The full results of the survey are available at:
www.nwph.net/dentalhealth/
The two tables from the survey that include the above data have been placed in the Library.
20 July 2011 : Column 1115W
Departmental Procurement
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many procurement contracts his Department has awarded to small businesses since May 2010. [67235]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department fully supports the Government's initiative regarding small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and utilises a wide range of organisations within this category who provide an essential contribution to the delivery of the Department's objectives. An average of 17% of purchase order value was placed with small businesses over the past two years.
During the period 1 May 2010 to 13 July 2011, the Department placed a total of 11,225 purchase orders worth £512 million with commercial suppliers, academic institutions, third sector organisations and independent contractors, of which 3,666 worth £82 million were from SMEs. This represents 32.5% of the total orders.
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of procurement contracts offered by his Department have been advertised on the Contracts Finder website since the website's inception. [67236]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department has advertised a total of 243 contracts or tenders on the Contracts Finder website, since the website's inception up to 18 July 2011. The Department does not hold a consolidated record of the total number of contracts and tenders offered by it during this period, and therefore cannot confirm the proportion that those advertised on Contracts Finder represent of the total.
Regulation: Guidance
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what process his Department follows for the production of regulatory guidance; and how many officials of his Department were involved in the production of such guidance on the most recent date for which figures are available. [67204]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department circulated the Government's “Code of Practice on Guidance on Regulation, BRE, 2009”, to assist policy officials when producing regulatory guidance.
Information on the number of officials engaged in production of regulatory guidance is not collected centrally and would require disproportionate effort to collate and compile.
Departmental Responsibilities
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many meetings he has had with hon. Members of each political party since May 2010; [67164]
(2) if he will consider keeping data on the number of times (a) he and (b) officials of his Department have declined a request for a meeting from an hon. Member of each political party; [67187]
(3) on how many occasions a request for a meeting by an hon. Member of each political party was refused by (a) a Minister in his Department directly and (b)
20 July 2011 : Column 1116W
his Department on behalf of a Minister in November 2010. [67580]
Mr Simon Burns: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Department has no plans to keep such data.
Hepatitis
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to ensure equity between regions in provision of treatment for hepatitis C. [67501]
Anne Milton: The NHS Commissioning Board will be responsible for ensuring that services, including for the treatment of hepatitis C, are commissioned so as to ensure consistency of high quality provision across the country and to address inequalities in access.
IVF: Nottinghamshire
Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will assess the compliance of Nottinghamshire Primary Care Trust with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines on the provision of IVF; [67301]
(2) if he will review the decision of Nottinghamshire Primary Care Trust not to fund IVF treatment for Susi Henson; [67335]
(3) if he will review (a) the eligibility criteria for IVF treatment used by Nottinghamshire Primary Care Trust and (b) their application to the case of Susi Henson. [67336]
Anne Milton: The provision of NHS services, including in vitro fertilisation, is a matter for the national health service locally. It would not be appropriate for the Department to become involved in this matter.
Primary care trusts are well aware of their statutory commissioning responsibilities and the need to base commissioning decisions on clinical evidence and discussions with local general practitioner commissioners, secondary care clinicians and providers.
The NHS deputy chief executive, David Flory, wrote to primary care trust commissioners on 11 January 2011 to highlight to those involved in commissioning fertility services the importance of having regard to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence fertility guidelines, including the recommendation that up to three cycles of in vitro fertilisation are offered to eligible couples where the woman is aged between 23 and 39.
A copy of this communication has already been placed in the Library and is available at:
www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/documents/digitalasset/dh_123405.pdf
Landfill: Health Hazards
Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he has commissioned on potential health risks to children living in close proximity to landfill sites. [67785]
20 July 2011 : Column 1117W
Anne Milton: No studies have been commissioned specifically of childhood. The Department has commissioned research previously on the risks of some types of cancer among people living close to a landfill site and of birth outcomes in babies born to mothers living near sites compared to those living further away (Jarup et al, 2002. British Journal of Cancer Volume 86, pages 1732-1736 and Elliott et al, 2001. British Medical Journal Volume 323, pages 363-368). A slight increase in congenital anomalies was found but no excess risk of cancer. The independent advisory Committee on the Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) considered these studies and noted that the findings for birth outcomes were not consistent, and that the study provided no evidence that the rates of anomalies increased after sites had opened:
http://cot.food.gov.uk/cotstatements/cotstatementsyrs/cotstatements2001/sahsulandfill
The COT considered further studies in 2010 and found the results reassuring. In particular, it found no cause for concern for the health of families with infants or for couples who live in the vicinity of landfill sites and who are considering having a baby:
http://cot.food.gov.uk/pdfs/cotstatementlandfill201001.pdf
Naloxone
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has any plans to make Naloxone available on the NHS. [66844]
20 July 2011 : Column 1118W
Mr Simon Burns: Naloxone is available through the NHS in England. It is for the devolved Administrations to make decisions about expenditure on individual medicines.
Nurses: Foreign Workers
Mr Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many foreign-trained nurses are working in hospitals in England. [67029]
Anne Milton: The data are not held centrally. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) collects data on the number of admissions to the NMC register by country.
Nurses: Training
Mr Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nursing training places were provided in each region in academic year 2010-11; and how many such places will be provided in 2011-12. [67028]
Anne Milton: Information on nursing training places is not collected by the Department by academic year, but by financial year. The following table provides the actual training commissions of diploma and degree programmes provided for 2010-11 and planned for 2011-12 by region.
| Strategic Health Authority | 2010-11 actual commissions for diploma programmes | 2010-11 actual commissions for degree programmes | 2011-12 planned commissions for diploma programmes | 2011-12 planned commissions for degree programmes |
Orthopaedics
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the tariff price for specialist orthopaedic operations. [67371]
Mr Simon Burns: Prior to their final publication, the 2011-12 tariffs for orthopaedic operations were shared with clinicians and providers of specialist orthopaedic services to check for any anomalies or perverse clinical incentives.
In 2011-12 specialist orthopaedic procedures continue to attract a ‘top-up’ payment in addition to the tariff price. This year the top-up is set at 24%.
Work on the 2012-13 tariff is under way, and as in previous years the draft tariff will be shared with providers of specialist orthopaedic services for comment in the autumn.
Out-patients: Attendance
Dr Phillip Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department collects information on the number of out-patient clinics that are cancelled by hospital consultants within six weeks of their scheduled date. [67337]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department does not collect information on cancelled out-patient clinics.
Palliative Care: Finance
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on palliative care in each year since 2005-06. [67107]
20 July 2011 : Column 1119W
Paul Burstow: This information is not collected centrally. The Department has conducted a special exercise to collect information on new investment in end of life care in 2009-10 and 2010-11 and on expenditure on specialist palliative care in 2006-07 and 2010-11. The 2006-07 and 2009-10 data have been published on the Department's website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_086270.pdf
www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_118810
respectively, and the data for 2010-11 will be published when the exercise is complete.
Private Patients
Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received from patients who pay for private hospital treatment for the purposes of avoiding the risk of acquiring a serious infection in an NHS hospital; and if he will make a statement. [67489]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department has identified no representations of this type from patients in the last six months.
The Government have made clear it is a key priority that the national health service operates a zero tolerance approach to all avoidable health care associated infections. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections are at their lowest ever level since mandatory surveillance was introduced with infections falling by 22% in 2010-11 compared to the previous year. Over the same period, clostridium difficile infections fell by 15%.
Public Health England: Speech Therapy
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps Public Health England will take to use speech and language therapists to improve educational and employment outcomes. [66850]
Anne Milton: Public Health England will hold the up-to-date evidence on which public health interventions work, and how to deploy them effectively, across the range of public health practice. This includes such areas as speech and language therapy, where the Government recognise the significant contribution speech and language therapists can make to addressing costly challenges such as poverty, poor mental health, antisocial behaviour, educational attainment and reablement. The Department will publish a consultation document on a Public Health Workforce Strategy in the autumn. To inform this work, a Public Health Workforce Strategy Working Group, chaired by a regional director of public health has been established. Members of the group include representatives from a range of health and local government organisations, including the Co-Chair of the National Allied Health Professional Advisory Board.
Rural Areas
Julian Smith:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether officials of his Department have had recent discussions with the Rural Communities Policy
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Unit in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. [67152]
Anne Milton: Departmental officials have met with the Rural Communities Policy Unit on several occasions to discuss the forthcoming Rural Statement. The last meeting was on 15 June 2011.
Southern Cross
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration he has given to providing additional resources to the Care Quality Commission to take steps to ensure standards are met in care homes previously owned by Southern Cross. [67406]
Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has considered the provision of additional funding to the Care Quality Commission in respect of the registration of new operators of Southern Cross care homes. [67470]
Paul Burstow: I refer the hon. Members to the written ministerial statement I gave on 19 July 2011, Official Report, columns 105-06WS.
Each year, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) agrees its business plan and financial allocation with the Department. Its financial position is then kept under constant review during the financial year. If the CQC requires additional resources, it will supply a business case which the Department will consider.
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what process will be followed to ensure that landlords who purchase former Southern Cross care homes are (a) fit to operate the homes and (b) financially viable. [67407]
Paul Burstow: Landlords already own the homes, as I outlined to the House on 12 July 2011, Official Report, columns 163-64.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has processes in place to extend registration to include additional care homes, where the provider is already registered subject to meeting the registration requirements.
New providers will have to apply for registration and be subject to the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, including assurance of financial viability under paragraph 13 of the CQC (Registration) Regulation 2009.
Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Care Quality Commission on the registrations it will be required to undertake following the collapse of Southern Cross. [67471]
Paul Burstow: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement I gave on 19 July 2011, Official Report, columns 105-06WS.
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Home Department
Animal Experiments: Dogs
Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Animals Scientific Procedures Inspectorate last inspected premises for beagles at Harlan Wyton; and what the outcome was of that inspection. [67013]
Lynne Featherstone: The establishment was last inspected by the Animals Scientific Procedures Inspectorate on the 18 April 2011. No issues of non-compliance with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 or the establishment’s certificate of designation were identified.
Animal Experiments: Scotland
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many animals were used in procedures regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2010. [66925]
Lynne Featherstone: During 2010, in Scotland, there were 579,905 animals used in regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many regulated procedures were carried out under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2010. [66926]
Lynne Featherstone: The number of regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2010 was 590,826.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) mice, (b) rats, (c) guinea pigs, (d) hamsters, (e) rabbits, (f) horses and other equids, (g) sheep, (h) pigs, (i) birds, (j) amphibians, (k) reptiles, (l) fish, (m) cats, (n) dogs, (o) new world primates and (p) old world primates were used in procedures conducted in Scotland and regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in 2010. [66927]
Lynne Featherstone: During 2010, in Scotland, there were 323,740 mice, 36,890 rats, 1,091 guinea pigs, 755 hamsters, 1,683 rabbits, 27 horses and other equids, 4,706 sheep, 447 pigs, 12,750 birds, 817 amphibians, 193,543 fish, four cats, 442 dogs, 40 new world primates and 370 old world primates used in regulated procedures started under the 1986 Act. No reptiles were used.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, which were conducted in Scotland in 2010, was performed in (a) public health laboratories, (b) universities and medical schools, (c) NHS hospitals, (d) Government Departments, (e) other public bodies, (f) non-profit making organisations and (g) commercial organisations. [67047]
Lynne Featherstone:
During 2010, in Scotland, the total number of procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 was 590,826. Of these,
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469,481 or 79% were carried out at universities or medical schools, 33,325 or 6% at Government Departments, 46,556 or 8% at other public bodies and 41,464 or 7% at commercial organisations. None were started at public health laboratories, NHS hospitals or non-profit making organisations.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of procedures regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, which were carried out in Scotland, was conducted without anaesthesia in 2010. [67049]
Lynne Featherstone: There were a total of 590,826 regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2010 of which 414,528 (70%) used no form of anaesthesia.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) genetically modified animals and (b) animals with a harmful genetic defect were used in regulated procedures conducted in Scotland under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in 2010. [67050]
Lynne Featherstone: A total of 579,905 animals were used in regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2010, of which 212,811 were genetically modified and 12,752 were animals with a harmful genetic defect.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, which were conducted in Scotland in 2010, was carried out for (a) fundamental and applied studies other than toxicology and (b) toxicity tests or other safety and efficacy evaluation. [67051]
Lynne Featherstone: During 2010, in Scotland, the number of regulated procedures started for non-toxicological purposes under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 was 543,050 (92%), and the number started for toxicological purposes was 47,776 (8%).
Badgers
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the costs to police authorities of implementing a badger cull; and what advice her Department has received from the Association of Chief Police Officers on this matter. [67867]
James Brokenshire: The Home Office is working closely with officials in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Association of Chief Police Officers on this matter in order to produce an estimate of costs to police authorities.
Biometrics
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the UK Borders Agency takes when a facial recognition machine fails to operate. [67598]
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Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has a service level agreement with the gate supplier and gate servicing and reliability are delivered in line with that contract. In the case of one machine failing to operate, that gate would be closed and an engineer called to repair it; if a bank of gates became inoperable they would be closed and passengers would be processed at the manual control.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the comparative (a) cost effectiveness and (b) effectiveness of (i) facial recognition equipment and (ii) UK Borders Agency staff at border controls. [67599]
Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has completed an evaluation of facial recognition technology and this confirmed that the equipment operates securely and to an acceptable performance level. The technology is already cost effective in ports with high volumes of eligible users. Over 4.5 million transactions have already taken place and forecasts indicate that over 20 million border crossings will have been facilitated using automation by 2013-14.
Facial recognition gates have been introduced to assist Border Force officers in facilitating legitimate travel.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many errors in facial recognition equipment operated by her Department have been reported since its introduction. [67606]
Damian Green: Since 2008 there have been over 4.5 million transactions. There have been six reported incidents of facial recognition equipment making a false match, four of which were established to be false alarms. On the remaining two occasions the false matches were detected immediately by Border officers and no breach of the border occurred. System changes were put in place to improve the performance of the equipment following these two incidents.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance is given to staff of her Department on the steps to take in the event of a facial recognition equipment failure at border security control. [67607]
Damian Green: Staff are instructed to log a call with the helpdesk, who will assess the severity of the fault and send an engineer if appropriate. If fewer than three gates in a bank of five are available for use, staff will close the bank and direct passengers to the manual control. This fault reporting procedure follows the same process as for other IT equipment used at the Border.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who within her Department is accountable for the performance of facial recognition machines used by her Department. [67608]
Damian Green: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency is accountable for performance within the agency.
John McDonnell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she plans to take to assess the effectiveness of the introduction of facial
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recognition equipment for border security and integrity; and what timescale she has set for such an assessment. [67609]
Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has completed an evaluation of facial recognition and this confirmed that the technology operates securely and to an acceptable performance level. The performance of the technology will be assessed regularly to ensure it continues to operate securely and effectively. Forecasts indicate that over 11 million passengers per year are expected to use automated border crossings by 2013-14.
Public Demonstrations
Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department takes to ensure public protests are carried out in a safe and peaceful manner. [53623]
James Brokenshire: The policing of protests is an operational matter for the police. The Government are committed both to ensuring that the law facilitates peaceful protests, and that the police have the powers they need to deal with any violence and disorder.
Departmental Redundancy
Mr Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) each non-departmental body for which she is responsible has spent on redundancies since May 2010. [66336]
Damian Green: The following table has been provided using Office for National Statistics guidelines for workforce management reporting.
The changes to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS) in December 2010 obliged Departments to offer “voluntary redundancy” on terms equivalent to “voluntary exit” under the compensation scheme before it can issue notice of compulsory redundancy to any member of staff. The costs in the table relate to staff who have accepted compulsory redundancy terms only, as our HR and finance systems record as a separate category those leaving on that basis, but cannot differentiate staff who leave on “voluntary exit” terms and those who have accepted “voluntary redundancy” under the compensation scheme.
| Table 1: How much has been spent on redundancies in (a) her Department and (b) each non-departmental body for which she is responsible for since May 2010 | |
|
|
Cost (£) |
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| (1 )Not applicable. Notes:1. Extract date 30 June 2011. 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand pound. Source: Individual finance departments for each area. | |
Regulation: Guidance
Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what process her Department follows for the production of regulatory guidance; and how many officials of her Department were involved in the production of such guidance on the last date for which figures are available. [67203]
Damian Green: The code of practice for guidance is set centrally and is published by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills. The Home Office does not keep a central record of the number of officials involved in the production of guidance.
Deportation
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what oversight mechanisms are in place to ensure that enforced removals from the UK are monitored by an independent body. [67624]
Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has used private sector escorting companies to undertake enforced removals for nearly 20 years. These companies operate within a clear framework set out in legislation and in a set of operating standards and instructions which are published on the agency's website. The role of escorts is subject to oversight by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons, who undertakes both announced and unannounced inspections. The agency has, over the past few years, introduced a number of measures to ensure the protection of staff and detainees. These include the use of contract monitors at the main airports used for departures, and an Independent Monitoring Board at Heathrow airport.
We are satisfied that escorts act professionally, ensuring those in their custody are treated with dignity and care. Where detainees complain that the use of force has been excessive, the matter is investigated by the UK Border Agency's Professional Standards Unit. If a complainant is unhappy with the response, they can ask for the issue to be re-examined by the prisons and probation ombudsman, whose role was extended in 2006 to investigate complaints by immigration detainees.
Entry Clearances: Overseas Students
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 12 July 2011, Official Report, columns 275-6W, on entry clearances: overseas students, (1) how many of the publicly funded further and higher education institutions that contribute to the eight per cent. non-compliance rate were sixth form colleges; [67636]
(2) what the level of compliance was for independent schools. [67637]
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Damian Green [holding answer 19 July 2011]: Further analysis of the data used to produce the published reports could be undertaken only at disproportionate cost.
Immigration Controls: Channel Tunnel Railway Line
Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of employing immigration and customs staff at (a) Ebbsfleet International station and (b) Ashford International station in (i) 2009-2010 and (ii) 2010-2011. [67601]
Damian Green: Ebbsfleet, Ashford and Stratford International stations are covered on a mobile risk-led basis resourced from St Pancras. St Pancras is specific to Eurostar train operations from Brussels and Paris, and the United Kingdom Border Agency incurred the following pay costs for the years stated.
(i) 2009-10 £1.3 million; and
(ii) 2010-11 £1.7 million
There has been an increase from two mobile teams in 2009-10 to three teams in 2010-11.
Khat
Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of trends in the use of khat in the last 10 years. [64754]
James Brokenshire [holding answer 11 July 2011]: A question on the use of khat was added to the British Crime Survey in October 2009 to provide estimates on the level of khat use within the general household population. Prior to this no assessment of prevalence was made by the Department.
First estimates (based on six months data) published in July 2010 show that 0.2% of adults reported using khat in the previous year. As this is the first time the data have been collected, no trend information is available. New estimates for from the 2010-11 BCS will be published end July 2011.
Source:
Hoare, J. and Moon, D. (2010) ‘Drug Misuse Declared: Findings from the 2009/10 British Crime Survey (England and Wales)’
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/drugs-alcohol-research/hosb1310/hosb1310?view=Binary
Members: Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Minister of State for Immigration plans to reply to the letter of 23 May 2011 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to David Goodbourne. [63995]
Damian Green: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 7 July 2011.
Mr Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letters of 4 May and 20 June 2011 from the hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay regarding a constituent, Mr Matthew McDonald. [66154]
20 July 2011 : Column 1127W
James Brokenshire [holding answer 14 July 2011]: A reply was sent on 18 July 2011 by the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Arundel and South Downs (Nick Herbert), who apologises for the delay in responding to my hon. Friend.
Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter of 30 March 2011 on behalf of the constituent of the hon. Member for Workington, Mr N. Hebert. [66410]
James Brokenshire: A response to the letter was sent on 14 July 2011 by the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Arundel and South Downs (Nick Herbert), who apologises for the delay in responding to the hon. Member on this matter.
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letters from the Member of the Scottish Parliament for Banffshire and Buchan Coast of 25 February and 10 May 2011 on the Tier 2 certificate of sponsorship scheme. [66771]
Damian Green: A reply to the letter of 25 February was sent to the hon. Member on 22 March 2011. I will arrange for a copy of that response to be sent to her. There is no trace of receipt in the Home Office of the further correspondence dated 10 May 2011.
Mr Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the interim reply to the hon. Member for Walsall North of 27 June 2011, ref M10105.11, when the hon. Member for Walsall North will receive a substantive reply to his letter of 31 May on the Winsor report. [66073]
James Brokenshire [holding answer 14 July 2011]: A reply was sent on 18 July 2011 by the Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Arundel and South Downs (Nick Herbert), who apologises for the delay in responding to the hon. Member.
Police: Civilians
Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many non-uniformed staff in each police authority area have been (a) made redundant, (b) required to reapply for their position and (c) asked to retrain for posts formerly undertaken by uniformed officers in the last 12 months; [66821]
(2) what the cost of redundancies was in each police authority area in 2010-11; and what estimate she has made of the likely costs in 2011-12; [66823]
(3) what estimate she has made of the cost of managing changes to contracts of non-uniformed staff in respect of (a) redeployment, (b) retraining, (c) interviewing and (d) redundancy in each police authority area. [66822]
James Brokenshire
[holding answer 18 July 2011]:The management of policing resources—including the
20 July 2011 : Column 1128W
numbers of police staff employed and the associated costs—is a matter for individual chief constables and their police authorities.
Information on the number of dismissals and voluntary resignations of police staff (excluding police community support officers and designated officers) by police force area as at 31 March 2010 is set out in the table. Compulsory redundancies are contained within dismissals and voluntary redundancies are contained within voluntary resignations. The Home Office does not collect figures specifically for the number of non-uniformed staff in each police authority area that are required to reapply for their position and have been asked to retrain for posts formerly undertaken by uniformed officers.
Information on the costs of managing changes to contracts for non-uniformed staff, or redundancy costs is not collected centrally. Redundancy (and other) costs are included within the CIPFA Police Service Statistics publication, available via
www.cipfastats.net
although police forces do not report this information separately from some other areas of expenditure. No estimate of any future costs of redundancies in each police authority area has been made centrally, since this is a matter for individual chief constables and their police authorities.
| N umber of dismissals and voluntary resignations of police staff (excluding police community support officers and designated officers), by police force area, as at 31 March 2010 (1) | ||
| Police staff | ||
|
|
Dismissals | Voluntary resignations |
20 July 2011 : Column 1129W
| (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. | ||
Police: Health
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will introduce an annual basic fitness test for police officers. [67875]
James Brokenshire: Tom Winsor has indicated he will be looking at fitness testing for police officers in part 2 of his Independent Review of Police Officer and Staff Remuneration and Conditions. The Secretary of State for the Home Department, will consider his recommendation when he presents this in January 2012.
Police: Wales
Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were in each police authority in Wales in each of the last five years; and what the planned complement was in each authority in each of those years. [67847]
James Brokenshire: The latest available information in the following table shows police officer strength in Wales, by police force area, 2006 to 2010, as at 31 March (full-time equivalents). The planned complement in each authority is a matter for individual police forces and authorities.
| Police officer strength in Wales, by police force area, 2006 - 10 as at 31 March (full-time equivalents ()1) | |||||
| Wales | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
| (1) The table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. | |||||
20 July 2011 : Column 1130W
Private Detectives: Regulation
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures govern the supervision and regulation of the private investigation industry. [66075]
Lynne Featherstone: There is no current licensing regime for private investigators. The Private Security Industry Act 2001 contains provisions for the regulation by the Security Industry Authority (SIA) of individuals conducting private investigations. We are currently considering whether these provisions should be brought into force.
The Government announced last October that there will be a phased transition by the end of 2013 from the SIA to a new independent regulatory regime for the private security industry, which will place a greater focus on licensing businesses. Any regulation of private investigators which is brought into force before then will be included in the transition to the new regime.
Private Investigators: Licensing
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what licensing regime applies to private investigators. [66225]
Lynne Featherstone [holding answer 14 July 2011]:There is no current licensing regime for private investigators. The Private Security Industry Act 2001 contains provisions for the regulation by the Security Industry Authority (SIA) of individuals conducting private investigations. We are currently considering whether these provisions should be brought into force.
The Government announced last October that there will be a phased transition by the end of 2013 from the SIA to a new independent regulatory regime for the private security industry, which will place a greater focus on licensing businesses. Any regulation of private investigators which is brought into force before then will be included in the transition to the new regime.
Theft: Metals
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to reduce the incidence of scrap metal theft. [66634]
James Brokenshire: The Government are concerned at the extent of metal theft and the serious impact it can have on the national infrastructure and on local communities. The Home Office is working closely with the police (through the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Metal Theft Working Group) to tackle this criminality and to reduce the stolen goods market that drives it. We are currently exploring what other action can be taken to reduce metal theft.
UK Border Agency: Data Protection
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints the UK Border Agency has received on breaches of data protection from (a) UK residents, (b) persons held in detention and (c) overseas applicants for visas since its inception. [67745]
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Damian Green: The Agency currently receives approximately 25,000 subject access requests per year for personal information under section 7 of the Data Protection Act 1998.
Since 2009, the Agency has received 166 complaints made to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) relating to the Data Protection Act. These complaints have been broken down into years;
2009: 53
2010: 91
2011: 22
The ICO recently published the total number of breaches of the Data Protection Act referred to them over the last 12 months. The Agency had 10 breaches, all of which related to subject access requests. The ICO’s website can be accessed at:
http://www.ico.gov.uk/about_us/how_we_comply/disclosure_log/201107.aspx
Business, Innovation and Skills
Apprentices
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) how many people started an apprenticeship in the first nine months of academic year (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2010-11 in each parliamentary constituency in England; [66830]
(2) how many people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 24 and (c) 25 years and over started an apprenticeship in academic year (i) 2011-12 and (ii) 2011-12 in each constituency in England. [66831]
Mr Hayes [holding answer 18 July 2011]: I have made provisional data showing apprenticeship starts by parliamentary constituency and age for the first nine months of the 2010/11 academic year available in the Libraries of the House. Data for 2010/11 are the latest year for which provisional data are available.
Information on the number of apprenticeship starts by parliamentary constituency is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people started an apprenticeship in each parliamentary constituency in England in the latest year for which figures are available. [66832]
Mr Hayes [holding answer 18 July 2011]: I have made final full year data showing apprenticeship starts by parliamentary constituency for 2009/10 available in the Libraries of the House.
Information on the number of apprenticeship starts by parliamentary constituency is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current
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Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the factors contributing to the difference in the number of (a) additional 25+ apprenticeship starts and (b) 16-18 and 19-24 apprenticeship starts in the first three quarters of 2010-11. [67902]
Mr Hayes [holding answer 19 July 2011]: Apprenticeships are demand led; we do not plan our apprenticeships places or starts by age group. There are a number of factors that contribute to the number of apprenticeship starts including the current climate in the economy, the demand made from employers to employ apprentices, and the age and employment background of the various demographic groups applying for Apprenticeships places.
In previous years there was a limit placed on the number of apprenticeship places for those aged 25 and above. In the current academic year, 2010/11, this limit has been removed. As a result, demand from this large cohort has been strong, leading to an increase in the number of apprentices aged over 25 above overall growth across the programme. The increase in starts at 16-18 is in line with the number expected to implement the Government's strategy to raise the participation age(1).
Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current
(1) For the first nine months of 2010/11 there were 326,700 apprenticeship starts made up of:
Under 19: 102,900 (31.5%)
19-24: 102,800 (31.5%)
25+: 121,000 (37.0 %).
Source:
Individualised Learner Record.