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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 6 September 2011
Deputy Prime Minister
Lords Reform
Mr Watson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many responses he has received to his consultation on the draft House of Lords Reform Bill to date. [69775]
Mr Harper: The Government invited comments on the proposals in their White Paper and draft Bill on House of Lords reform, rather than launching a formal consultation. As of 18 August, the Government have received 65 representations.
Ministerial Meetings: News Corporation
Steve Rotheram: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he last met (a) James Murdoch, (b) Rebekah Brooks and (c) Andy Coulson. [67364]
The Deputy Prime Minister: The Government are committed to publishing details of meetings with newspapers and other media proprietors, editors and senior executives.
Details of my meetings held with proprietors, editors and senior media executives, including James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks, since the formation of the Government can be found on
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk
I have had no meetings with Andy Coulson since he resigned from No. 10.
Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority Committee
Management
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what the roles and responsibilities are of the (a) Director of Policy and (b) Head of Policy of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority; and if he will make a statement. [68613]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking about the roles and responsibilities of the Director of Policy and Head of Policy at IPSA.
The Director of Policy's overall role is to oversee the strategic direction and management of policy development in IPSA, making recommendations to the Chief Executive and the IPSA Board.
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The Head of Policy is the Director's deputy, and leads the policy team day to day. The team as a whole comprises four people, and as a small team, responsibilities are carried out flexibly.
The policy team advises the IPSA Board on a range of policies and issues. It has taken the lead in the development and maintenance of the MPs' Expenses Scheme, and associated reviews and consultation, including the current review of MPs' staffing needs. The team will lead the policy work on MPs' pay and, when IPSA receives the powers, MPs' pensions.
The Director also has a role as a member of the IPSA executive's senior leadership team, providing direction and support to the organisation as a whole. The Director chairs IPSA's contingency panel, which meets weekly, to consider any contingency applications from MPs. The Head of Policy will chair the panel meetings in the Director's absence.
Government Procurement Card
Charlie Elphicke: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, how many staff of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority hold (a) a Government Procurement Card and (b) other corporate charge cards. [68889]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many staff of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority hold (a) a Government Procurement Card and (b) other corporate charge cards.
Two members of staff at IPSA hold Government Procurement Cards. No other corporate charge cards are used.
Members: Allowances
Adam Afriyie: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, pursuant to the Answer of 4 July 2011, Official Report, columns 956-7W, on Members: allowances, whether the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority intends to make an assessment of the effectiveness of its schemes in restoring public confidence and trust in (a) hon. Members first elected in May 2010, (b) other hon. Members and (c) Parliament. [64903]
Mr Charles Walker [holding answer 11 July 2011]: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge , dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking whether IPSA intends to make an assessment of the effectiveness of its schemes in restoring public confidence and trust in (a) hon. Members first elected in May 2010, (b) other hon. Members and (c) Parliament.
Through the MPs' Expenses Scheme, IPSA has put in place a set of rules, underpinned by the principle of independent regulation, which, it believes will contribute to the restoration of public confidence in the manner in which MPs' expenses and costs are reimbursed.
We commissioned an opinion poll as part of the first annual review of the MPs' Expenses Scheme in November 2010. We will
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carry out further such surveys as part of our regular review of the scheme. In doing so, we have no plans to distinguish between MPs elected in 2010 and other MPs.
A recent survey commissioned by the National Audit Office found that 55% of the general public thought that the situation with regard to MPs' expenses had improved in the last year.
Andrew Griffiths: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what the average time taken by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority was to transfer funds to an hon. Member after receipt of an expense claim in the latest period for which figures are available. [68485]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what the average time taken by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority was to transfer funds to an hon. Member after receipt of an expense claim in the latest period for which figures are available.
In July 2011, the latest month for which figures are available, the average time to process claims from receipt of evidence to reimbursement by bank transfer was between six and eight working days. During this period, 98.61% of claims requiring reimbursement were processed within the 12 working day target.
As of the week commencing 8 August 2011, for which provisional figures are available, the average time to process claims from receipt of evidence to reimbursement by bank transfer was between three and six working days. During this period, 98.75% of claims requiring reimbursement were processed within the 12 working day target.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2011, Official Report, column 437W, on Members: allowances, what assessment the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has made of the (a) cost-effectiveness and (b) impact on public confidence in Parliament of (i) real-time publication of claims and (ii) annual publication of claims. [69100]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2011, Official Report, column 437W, on Members: allowances, what assessment the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has made of the (a) cost-effectiveness and (b) impact on public confidence in Parliament of (i) real-time publication of claims and (ii) annual publication of claims.
IPSA assessed the cost-effectiveness of real-time publication of claims as compared to monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly publication of claims and found that real-time publication would be considerably more costly than bi-monthly publication. Our view is that less frequent publication would not be in the interest of either the public or of MPs.
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IPSA also publishes annualised totals once each year. It would be neither practical nor cost-effective to publish totals more regularly, nor would it provide an accurate picture of expenditure.
More specific data on the comparative costs of different approaches to publication is available in IPSA's submission to the Speaker's Committee for the IPSA (11 SCIPSA 24, available via the Committee's webpage at www.parliament.uk/scipsa).
IPSA’s approach to public confidence is set out in its answer to parliamentary question 62624 (Schemes), 13 July 2011, Official Report, column 395W.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, whether the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority uses any measure to assess the effect of its schemes on public confidence in Parliament; and whether any such measurements have been made. [69126]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking whether the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority uses any measure to assess the effect of its schemes on public confidence in Parliament; and whether any such measurements have been made.
IPSA's approach to public confidence is set out in its answer to PQ 62624 (Schemes) on 13 July 2011, Official Report, column 395W.
Through the MPs' Expenses Scheme, IPSA has put in place a set of rules, underpinned by the principle of independent regulation, which we believe will contribute to the restoration of public confidence in the manner in which MPs' expenses and costs are reimbursed.
We undertook a poll of the public as part of the annual review of the MPs' Expenses Scheme in November 2010 and a majority of respondents believed that IPSA would ensure that MPs were only paid legitimate expenses. We will carry out further surveys as part of our regular review of the expenses scheme.
A recent survey commissioned by the National Audit Office found that 55% of the general public felt that the situation with regard to MPs' expenses had improved in the last year.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what assessment the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has made of the findings of the National Audit Office's survey of hon. Members published on 7 July 2011 in respect of the proportion of hon. Members who have decided not to claim expenses to which they believed they were entitled since the inception of the administration of hon. Members' expenses by this Authority. [69127]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what assessment the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has made of the findings of the National Audit Office's survey of hon. Members published on 7 July 2011 in respect of the proportion of hon. Members who have decided
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not to claim expenses to which they believed they were entitled since the inception of the administration of hon. Members expenses by this Authority.
We will consider the findings of the survey when we respond to the report of the Public Accounts Committee later this year and when considering future improvements to the MPs' Expenses Scheme and the system which we operate.
The National Audit Office noted in their report that the principal reason cited by MPs for not claiming an expense was that “it was only a small claim”. We also note the NAO's recommendation to MPs that
“MPs should submit claims for all expenditure they legitimately incur as part of their work, and should make contingency claims when the total value of their needs exceeds the budget available to them. Unless they do so, it will be difficult for IPSA to understand the real cost of supporting MPs to do their jobs well”.
This supports the advice that IPSA has given to MPs since we began operations.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what consideration the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has given to requiring published data to be comparable, disaggregated and standardised in formulating its policy on claims publication. [69128]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Scott Woolveridge, dated 5 September 2011:
As Acting Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what consideration the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has given to requiring published data to be comparable, disaggregated and standardised in formulating its policy on claims publication.
IPSA gave consideration to these points when formulating its publication policy.
We now publish data on expense claims made on a bi-monthly basis on our website
www.parliamentarystandards.org.uk
These data are published in a standard, disaggregated format, which ensures that they are easily comparable.
We have also published aggregated data for the financial year 2010/11, which allows for further useful comparison.
Wales
Procurement
Owen Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what methodology her Department used to estimate savings to the public purse made in respect of its procurement and purchasing since May 2010. [69281]
Mr David Jones: As a small Government Department the Wales Office uses the procurement buying power of a large Government Department, the Ministry of Justice, to ensure maximum savings to the public purse.
Upon her arrival the Secretary of State introduced a standard class rail travel rule for Ministers and all staff at the Wales Office. This policy has more than halved the Department's travel costs for last year, saving us more than £91,000 compared to 2009-10.
In addition to this, the introduction of a new government contract for hotel bookings has also saved the Department over £12,000 in 2010-11 compared to the previous financial year.
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Energy Supply
Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether she has met (a) Welsh Government Ministers and (b) the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change regarding the devolution of decision-making on consent for energy projects with a generating capacity of 50 to 100 megawatts. [69395]
Mrs Gillan: I have regular discussions with the First Minister and the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change regarding energy policy in Wales.
The current system provides a streamlined regime that minimises delays and ensures investor confidence.
We have no plans to devolve the decision-making on consent for energy projects with a generating capacity of 50-100 megawatts.
Prime Minister
Health Professions: Meetings
Ian Lucas: To ask the Prime Minister how many face-to-face meetings he has had with (a) social workers, (b) teachers, (c) nurses, (d) doctors, (e) police officers and (f) business leaders since his appointment. [68826]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Wavertree (Luciana Berger) and the hon. Member for Ogmore (Huw Irranca-Davies) on Monday 5 September, Official Report, column 4W.
Overseas Visits
Mr Ainsworth: To ask the Prime Minister what plans he has to visit the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. [68482]
The Prime Minister: We have good relations with Saudi Arabia. A number of ministerial visits have already been made in 2011, and I expect to make visits to the Gulf States, including Saudi Arabia, in the future.
Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Prime Minister (1) what plans he has to discuss human rights in Russia and the issue of prisoners of conscience with his counterpart during his visit to Russia; [68608]
(2) which (a) companies, (b) organisations and (c) business people will accompany him as part of the business delegation to Russia in September 2011; and if he will make a statement; [68609]
(3) which Government Ministers will be accompanying him on his visit to Russia; [68610]
(4) whether he intends to raise the ruling by the European Court of Human Rights concerning Mikhail Khodorkovsky during his visit to Russia; and if he will make a statement. [68611]
Robert Halfon: To ask the Prime Minister (1) whether he plans to meet (a) human rights groups and (b) other non-governmental organisations during his visit to Russia; and if so, which ones; [69004]
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(2) if he will raise (a) the case of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev and (b) human rights in general with the President of the Russian Federation during his forthcoming visit to Russia. [69006]
Sajid Javid: To ask the Prime Minister whether he plans to meet (a) human rights groups and (b) other non-governmental organisations during his visit to Russia; and if so, which ones. [69013]
The Prime Minister: Russia is an important partner for the UK in international security, trade and commerce; a country with whom we seek frank and productive relations. My proposed visit will be a key opportunity to strengthen our foreign policy cooperation, to discuss human rights issues and the rule of law, and to develop further our significant and mutually beneficial commercial relations. No topics will be off limits. Further details will be forthcoming.
Attorney-General
Sexual Offences
Philip Davies: To ask the Attorney-General in how many cases where an offender has been charged with rape and murder (a) the rape charge was not prosecuted and (b) the offender was not placed on the Violent and Sex Offender Register in the latest period for which figures are available. [69734]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains no central record of the number of defendants prosecuted where an offender has been charged with rape and murder and (a) the rape charge was not prosecuted and (b) the offender was not placed on the Violent and Sex Offender Register.
This information is held on individual case files, and may only be retrieved by locating and examining every relevant file in each CPS office in England and Wales which would incur a disproportionate cost.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture: Food
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the recommendations of the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development on consulting farmers on the technology required to increase productivity in the food sector. [69446]
Mr Paice: The International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development report was published in 2008 and is followed by the more recent Foresight report: The Future of Food and Farming(1). DEFRA is working with Government funders, research councils and the agriculture industry to boost technology through innovative collaborative research and development via the Agriculture and Food Innovation Platform (and formerly LINK Programmes) to increase productivity without impacting on the environment.
(1)http://www.bis.gov.uk/foresight/our-work/projects/published-projects/global-food-and-farming-futures/reports-and-publications
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Biodiversity
Mr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what progress has been made towards international co-ordination of the conservation of high seas biodiversity; [69391]
(2) what her policy is on the conservation of biodiversity on the high seas. [69392]
Richard Benyon: The Government are committed to working with our international partners to improve the conservation of high seas biodiversity. The UK played a key role in the establishment in 2010 of six High Seas Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in the North East Atlantic under the OSPAR Convention, building on the work that established the world's first High Seas MPA under the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in 2009.
The UK fully supports the United Nations General Assembly resolutions 61/105 and 64/72, particularly as they relate to the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems from the impact of bottom fishing on the high seas. The UK has worked within the EU to review the actions that have been taken to date and what still needs to be done to ensure the long term protection of these ecosystems and deep-sea species.
Progress has been made, for example, in establishing an access regime for vessels engaged in deep-sea fishing in the North East Atlantic and on the protection of the high seas where no regional fisheries management organisation exists. However, more work is needed in a number of areas, for example to improve the scientific knowledge on deep-sea species and their habitats.
Through the International Whaling Commission, the UK will continue to strongly support the moratorium on commercial whaling, introduced in 1985/86 and will continue to work with other countries to achieve greater conservation and protection of cetaceans.
However, the Government recognise that threats to high seas biodiversity are increasing and further work is required. In the Government's Natural Environment White Paper we have set out a commitment to work towards delivering a new global mechanism to regulate the conservation of marine biodiversity in the high seas. We consider that such an agreement, working within the framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, should set up a clear means of designating High Seas Marine Protected Areas, building on the work undertaken in Regional Seas Agreements, such as OSPAR.
We have already made progress on this issue. Working in co-operation with other nations we secured agreement for the United Nations General Assembly to consider, at their meeting in September 2011, a recommendation to consider the need for a new multilateral agreement which would cover MPAs, and environmental impact assessments for deep sea activities. The UK, working with our EU partners and other nation states, is committed to press for a global response to the management of high seas biodiversity and sees this recommendation as a key step in the process.
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Bovine Tuberculosis
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what criteria will need to be met by groups of farmers who are granted a licence to cull badgers to control bovine TB. [69404]
Mr Paice: Applications for a culling licence must meet a range of strict criteria. These are set out in the draft guidance to Natural England, on which we are currently consulting with key stakeholders, at:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/consult/files/bovinetb-guidance-ne-110719-annexa.pdf
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects badger culling under the revised guidance to begin. [69405]
Mr Paice: If we decide to proceed with a policy of badger control, we propose to take a precautionary approach through a pilot of the policy, initially licensing two areas in the first year. Monitoring of controlled shooting in these areas would be overseen by a panel of independent scientific experts. If the results confirm our assumptions about the effectiveness and humaneness of controlled shooting, then and only then would the policy, be rolled out more widely.
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many responses were received to the first public consultation into a cull of badgers to control bovine TB. [69406]
Mr Paice: As set out in the “Consultation on Guidance to Natural England on the implementation and enforcement of a badger control policy”, 59,540 responses were received to the public consultation carried out in autumn 2010. The summary of responses is available at:
www.archive.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/tb-control-measures/
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will estimate the cost to the public purse of a programme of gassing badgers in each 150 square kilometre area approved for a badger cull to control bovine TB. [69407]
Mr Paice: As set out in the ‘Consultation on Guidance to Natural England on the implementation and enforcement of a badger control policy’, published on 19 July, we are proposing to permit only two culling methods, controlled shooting and cage-trapping and shooting. We have ruled out gassing, snaring, lethal injections and oral poisons for the time being on grounds of humaneness, effectiveness, cost or risks to other wildlife.
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Welsh Government about the potential for a joint strategy to combat bovine TB in affected areas which cross the border between England and Wales. [69408]
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Mr Paice: Bovine TB is a devolved issue and, while we work closely with the Welsh Government, we have no current plans for a joint strategy. However, we recognise that this disease does not respect national borders and will continue to co-operate with the Welsh Government and seek to coordinate activity as far as possible.
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cattle were slaughtered as part of the bovine TB eradication programme in each of the last 10 years. [69410]
Mr Paice: The following table shows the number of cattle slaughtered under bovine TB control measures, as test reactors, inconclusive reactors or direct contacts, in England, in the last 10 years.
| Number of cattle slaughtered | |
| Source: DEFRA's VetNet Animal Health database | |
Carbon Emissions
Jim McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent progress she has made on the introduction of mandatory reporting of carbon emissions by UK-based corporations. [69438]
Mr Paice: A public consultation on options to make corporate reporting of greenhouse gas emissions more widespread and consistent was held between 11 May and 5 July. The Secretary of State is currently considering the Government’s response to the consultation and will make an announcement in the autumn.
Fishing Quotas
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many fixed quota allocations for UK fish stocks are fished by (a) foreign companies and (b) UK-based companies which are majority-owned subsidiaries of overseas companies. [69842]
Richard Benyon: Information regarding the holdings of Fixed Quota Allocation units is recorded in terms of the ownership of licences or licence entitlements that the units are linked to. Ownership of the licence is based primarily on the ownership of the vessels the licences are linked to, with the details of the individual person, groups of persons or companies being those that are recorded by the UK Register of Shipping and Seamen. Within the UK Register of Shipping and Seaman, the nationality of the individuals or companies concerned is not recorded. As such the information requested is not available.
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Grasslands
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much financial support her Department plans to provide for natural grasslands in each of the next four financial years. [69293]
Richard Benyon: Fully natural grasslands are very rare in England and are limited to high altitude grasslands and, in the lowlands, some very exposed, unstable south-facing slopes in southern England on chalk/limestone where the prevailing environmental conditions prevent shrub and tree invasion. These rare natural grasslands do not require active management so agri-environment schemes are not required to maintain them.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what assessment she has made of the potential contribution of semi-natural grasslands to (a) carbon storage, (b) flood prevention, (c) water purification and (d) crop pollination; [69294]
(2) what assessment she has made of the potential contribution of grasslands to climate change mitigation through carbon storage and sequestration. [69301]
Richard Benyon: The UK National Ecosystem Assessment (UKNEA) reported on 2 June 2011. This independent study, of which DEFRA was the major funder, considered the contribution of semi-natural grasslands to a wide variety of ecosystem services across the UK. Chapter 6 of the full technical report, available on the UK NEA website, gives details of the contribution that semi-natural grasslands make to carbon storage and sequestration, flood prevention, water purification and crop pollination, and these issues are further discussed in Chapter 14 – Regulating Services.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what support her Department plans to provide to farmers to maintain semi-natural grasslands in each of the next four financial years. [69295]
Richard Benyon: Committed expenditure under the specific agri-environment scheme option aimed at maintaining semi-natural grassland stands at £3.9 million per annum. Further expenditure will be committed as new Environmental Stewardship agreements are negotiated. The current Rural Development Plan for England programme allows additional commitments for the management of semi-natural grasslands to be made up to 13 December 2013.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the application of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive to semi-natural grassland sites with an area of less than two hectares. [69296]
Richard Benyon: The Environmental Impact Assessment (Agriculture) (England) (No2) Regulations 2006 which transposes the directive, sets a two hectare threshold for uncultivated land or semi-natural areas.
Below two hectares screening notices can be used that disapply this threshold from a particular area of land. These may be served by Natural England if:
(a) it reasonably believes that an uncultivated land project is likely to be carried out on the land;
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(b) the extent of the project would fall below the threshold applicable to it in the area where it would be carried out; and
(c) it considers, in accordance with selection criteria (relating to characteristic, location and potential impact of a project), that the project would be likely to have significant effects on the environment.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the proportion of semi-natural grassland which is protected by the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive. [69297]
Richard Benyon: All semi-natural grassland types, apart from upland acid grassland, have been identified as priority habitats under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP). In England, the total area of BAP semi-natural priority grasslands is estimated to be 184,054 hectares.
The Environmental Impact Assessment (Agriculture) (England) (No2) Regulations 2006 set a threshold for application of the directive to sites equal to or greater than two hectares. Consequently, the directive applies directly to 47% of the resource of BAP priority semi-natural grassland.
In addition, the regulations can also be applied to a particular area of land below this threshold in certain circumstances.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on widening the definition of semi-natural within the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive to include grasslands that support wildlife species other than plants. [69298]
Richard Benyon: Semi-natural areas are not defined in the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive and the definition of semi-natural is provided by the body responsible for nature conservation designations in each member state.
England's definition of semi-natural areas was set by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee working together with an expert group.
When DEFRA held a consultation on the draft EIA (Agriculture) Regulations in 2005 implementing the directive responses from environmentalists and farmers made quite clear the need for a transparent and easily applied test for semi-natural areas. We believe that the current regulations and guidance reflect this requirement.
We therefore have no plans to review this definition.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will assess the status and extent of semi-natural grasslands outside sites of special scientific interest. [69299]
Richard Benyon: There are 184,054 hectares of Biodiversity Action Plan priority semi-natural grassland habitat in England. Approximately 33% (60.738 hectares) of this is not within sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs).
A sample survey undertaken in 2005 showed that an average of 21% of the lowland semi-natural grassland outside SSSIs was in favourable condition.
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Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the level of (a) semi-improved and (b) intensively-managed improved grassland in each of the next four years. [69302]
Richard Benyon: Biodiversity 2020—our new strategy for biodiversity in England—includes outcomes to be achieved for priority habitats by 2020. Priority habitats are those listed under section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and include a number of different grassland habitats, for example lowland meadows and upland calcareous grassland.
These outcomes include increasing the proportion of priority habitats in favourable or recovering condition to 90% by 2020 and increasing the overall extent of priority habitats by at least 200,000 hectares by 2020. The outcomes are to be achieved by 2020 and are not broken down by year.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will assess the capacity of the Single Payment Scheme to take account of the environmental value of semi-natural grasslands. [69455]
Mr Paice: It is a condition of payment under the single payment scheme that farmers have to meet a range of environmental standards known as cross- compliance. These include a requirement for farmers to adhere to specific regulations in the Environmental Impact Assessment (Agriculture) (England) (No 2) Regulations 2006. These regulations are designed to protect uncultivated land and semi-natural areas from being damaged by agricultural work. They also guard against possible negative environmental effects from the restructuring of rural land holdings. The regulations apply to projects that are greater than two hectares, but this threshold can be disapplied where it is thought that a project of less than 2 ha may have a significant impact on the environment. For example, this may be due to the particularly high environmental quality of the land or the cumulative impact of the project.
Cross-compliance also requires farmers to avoid over grazing or unsuitable supplementary feeding on natural or semi-natural vegetation.
There is a broader obligation in the EU rules governing cross-compliance that member states need to monitor the proportion of agricultural land that is ‘permanent pasture’ and maintain levels of ‘permanent pasture’ above a minimum ratio, set on a historic basis. However the EU definition of ‘permanent pasture’ does not distinguish between natural/semi-natural grassland of high environmental value and enriched and reseeded grassland of low environmental value so provides little protection to the former. The Task Force on Farming Regulation recognised this failing in the current system. The UK will consider this issue as part of the forthcoming negotiations to reform the CAP.
Marine Animals
Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of scientific research concerning the global viability of marine life. [69548]
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Richard Benyon: DEFRA has not carried out any such assessment. However, the UN regular process for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment will be producing a first global integrated assessment of the state of the marine environment. This is due to be completed by 2014.
Ragwort
Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many local authorities have been fined for allowing ragwort to grow on highway verges since 2007. [69580]
Richard Benyon: Common ragwort is one of five injurious weeds specified in the Weeds Act 1959. The Act does not make it illegal to have weeds growing on land, but provides that the Secretary of State can serve an enforcement notice for the occupier to take action to prevent the spread of weeds to neighbouring land. If an occupier of land unreasonably fails to comply with an enforcement notice, he or she may be guilty of an offence, and, on conviction, liable to a fine.
Since 2007, no local authorities have been fined in connection with the 1959 Act. However, Natural England, the agency responsible for enforcing the Act, has followed up complaints about the proliferation of ragwort with various measures including site inspections, clearance requests and the issue of enforcement notices.
Water Supply
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the provision of capital funding for fencing or water supply through the Entry Level Stewardship scheme. [69300]
Mr Paice: There is no capital funding available in the Entry Level Stewardship scheme.
The Uplands Entry Level Stewardship scheme contains capital works options for boundary restoration and fencing in certain circumstances. Capital payments are not available for water supply as part of this scheme.
Justice
Civil Disorder
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what types of offences perpetrators of public disorder in August 2011 were (a) charged with and (b) prosecuted for; and what the sentences were in each case. [69253]
Mr Blunt: We are currently publishing frequent updates on people being dealt with by the court system in relation to the disturbances on 6-9 August. These reports can be found on the Ministry of Justice website at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/ad-hoc/index.htm
Charging data are not collated centrally by the Ministry of Justice.
As the publication notes, the Chief Statistician will review the quality of data and release further breakdowns as reliable data become available. It is intended to release further data on 8 September. A more detailed release will be published on 15 September containing detailed information on age, gender, offence committed, sentence given, and previous criminal history.
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Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the level of assistance available to victims of crime during recent public disorder; what response he provided; and if he will make a statement. [69826]
Mr Blunt: The Ministry of Justice has not received any representations on the level of assistance available to victims of crime during the recent public disorder.
The Government are determined to ensure that victims of crime receive the support they need. This year the Ministry of Justice has provided more than £47 million in funding to victims' organisations, including £38 million to Victim Support. Any victim of the recent public disorder can contact Victim Support for free and confidential practical advice, emotional support, and information about the criminal justice process and other forms of support that may be appropriate.
In line with recent announcements by the Deputy Prime Minister, we are also considering how best to afford those affected by the riots the opportunity to explain the impact of the crimes upon them and to make sure that offenders face up to the consequences of their actions.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the average (a) fine and (b) sentence was for each offence committed during the recent incidents of public disorder (i) in each police force area, (ii) by sex of the offender and (iii) by age group of the offender; and if he will make a statement; [69830]
(2) how many (a) males and (b) females in each age group were (i) arrested and (ii) prosecuted for each criminal offence during the recent incidents of public disorder; and if he will make a statement; [69831]
(3) how many (a) cautions and (b) fines were imposed for (i) vandalism, (ii) graffiti, (c) theft, (iv) criminal damage and (v) anti-social behaviour in each district and unitary council area in England during recent public disorder in respect of people (A) of each sex and (B) in each age group; and if he will make a statement. [69834]
Mr Blunt: The Ministry of Justice is currently publishing frequent updates on people being dealt with by the court system in relation to the disturbances on 6-9 August. These reports can be found on the Ministry of Justice website at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/ad-hoc/index.htm
As the publication notes, the chief statistician will review the quality of data and release further breakdowns as reliable data become available. It is intended to release further data on 8 September. A more detailed release will be published on 15 September containing detailed information on age, gender, offence committed, sentence given, and previous criminal history.
Civil Disorder: Criminal Injuries Compensation
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many claims have been submitted under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in respect of incidents during the disturbances in August 2011; and what estimate he has made of the cost of compensation which will be paid in respect of those claims. [69785]
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Mr Djanogly: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) has put special measures in place to track claims arising from these disturbances, and has received two such claims as of 18 August. The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2008 (the Scheme) gives people two years from the date of the incident in which they were injured to apply for compensation, so it is too early to say what the total number of claims might be. CICA cannot currently estimate the cost of those claims already in the system because they will need to receive and assess the relevant evidence for each case.
Conveyancing: Estate Agents
Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will examine the practice of solicitors and conveyancers paying referral fees to estate agents; and if he will make a statement. [69764]
Mr Djanogly: This issue has been considered recently in the Office of Fair Trading's home buying and selling report and by the Legal Services Board (LSB). The Government are not currently pursuing further work specifically in relation to referral fees and estate agents, although it has indicated that it is sympathetic to a ban on referral fees in personal injury cases, and is currently considering the way forward.
Courts: Sunderland
Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answers of 21 July 2010, Official Report, column 322W and 9 February 2011, Official Report, column 241W, on courts: Sunderland, what recent progress has been made on the proposed rebuilding of court premises in Sunderland; and if he will make a statement. [69840]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice continues to review its investment priorities in the light of the current spending review settlement. The business case for new court facilities in Sunderland is in the process of being examined to establish its priority in an updated court building programme. Officials are reviewing all deferred court projects, of which the Sunderland project is one. The review is planned to be completed by February 2012. I will write to you with the outcome of the review when it is known and by March 2012 in any event.
Telephone Services
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much funding he has allocated to each telephone helpline operated by his Department in 2011-12; and what the purpose is of each such helpline. [68553]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice has identified that there are key characteristics which define a helpline. These are:
That the telephone line provides tailored advice or guidance to citizens or businesses (as distinct from communicating simple, standard information, or providing a transactional service);
That the telephone line is citizen or business facing.
Using this definition, there are currently four helplines funded by the Ministry of Justice.
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Legal Services Commission Community Legal Advice helpline
Provides free help and legal advice relating to debt, housing, employment, education and welfare benefits, tax credits and family issues for those eligible for legal aid.
Budget allocation: approximately £23,000,000
Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority helpline
Provides tailored advice on applying for criminal injuries compensation.
Budget allocation: £1,177,516.
Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) Customer Contact Centre
Provides advice relating to OPG services including: the registration of Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs); the supervision of Deputies appointed by the Court of Protection; and the Public Guardian's role in adult safeguarding.
Budget allocation: £723,000(1).
Provides tailored advice to clients and stakeholders.
Budget allocation: £250,000(1).
(1) CFO and OPG are both self-funding organisations. As a result, although these figures are included in our budget, each sum is reimbursed by CFO and OPG respectively.
Internship
Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Wavertree of 19 October 2010, Official Report, column 706W, on departmental work experience, what the beginning and end dates were of each unpaid internship; for how many weeks each such intern worked in the Department; what the number of hours worked by each such intern per week was; and whether each such intern worked fixed hours. [69476]
Mr Djanogly: The three unpaid interns worked three days a week (22 hours) over three months during the period September 2009 and May 2010. There are no specific records to confirm whether the hours worked were fixed or not.
Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) persons undertaking unpaid work experience, (b) unpaid interns and (c) other persons in unpaid positions were working in his Department as of 1 July 2011. [69511]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice does not record centrally the numbers of persons undertaking unpaid work experience. To establish this information will require an examination of locally held records and this will incur a disproportionate cost.
The Ministry of Justice is developing a policy on work experience in order to meet its commitment to provide a minimum of 100 work placements during 2011-12.
Domestic Violence: Immigrants
Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what legal aid costs were incurred in respect of women granted indefinite leave to remain under the domestic violence rule in 2009. [69479]
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Mr Djanogly: The Legal Services Commission does not record the reasons for granting indefinite leave to remain. It is therefore not possible to identify costs incurred in cases where women have been granted indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom on the ground of domestic violence.
Driving Under Influence: Sentencing
Dr Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what consideration he has given to bringing forward proposals to increase sentences available for offences of causing death by dangerous driving by individuals over the legal limit for alcohol consumption. [69690]
Mr Blunt: The offence of causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs or having failed either to provide a specimen for analysis or to permit analysis of a blood sample carries a maximum penalty of 14 years’ custody. The offence of causing death by dangerous driving also has a maximum penalty of 14 years. We do not have any plans to change this.
Employment and Support Allowance: Appeals
Duncan Hames: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of the Employment and Support Allowance Appeals Tribunal Service in 2010-11. [69838]
Mr Djanogly: The total cost to the Tribunals Service of employment and support allowance (ESA) appeals during 2010-11 is calculated by multiplying the average cost of an individual first-tier tribunal-social security and child support case by the number of ESA appeals decided during the year. There were 176,600 ESA appeals decided in 2010-11 and the total estimated cost of clearing those cases, based on the above calculation, was £42.207 million.
European Court of Human Rights
Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in respect of which legislative provisions a final court judgement has referred to section 3 of the Human Rights Act 1998 as the main provision determining the interpretation of such provisions; and which Convention right or rights were at issue in each case. [68672]
Mr Djanogly: The information is not available in the form requested and could not be provided except at disproportionate cost.
Homicide
Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of requests by the families of murder victims for a specific exclusion zone to be imposed on the offender following release have been met in full in each year since 2005. [69459]
Mr Blunt: The information requested is not held centrally by this Department.
It is for the independent Parole Board to determine whether a life sentenced prisoner may be released from custody on completion of his tariff (that is, the minimum
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period which must be served in custody for the purposes of punishment and deterrence). It is also for the Parole Board to determine the conditions to which the life sentenced prisoner should be subject on release.
Under the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004, the families of murder victims have the right to make representations to the Parole Board as to the licence conditions, including exclusion zones, to which the life sentenced prisoner should be made subject on release from custody. Victims make such representations through a victim liaison officer provided by a probation trust.
The probation offender manager, who will be responsible for enforcing the licence conditions, also makes recommendations to the Parole Board as to the licence conditions to which the life sentenced prisoner should be subject on release, and in doing so must consider not only victims' representations but also the need to promote the offender's rehabilitation.
In order to be lawful, licence conditions, including exclusion zones, must in every case be necessary and proportionate to manage the risks presented by an offender.
Human Rights
Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 26 April 2011, Official Report, column 144W, on human rights, whether there have been further declarations of incompatibility under section 4 of the Human Rights Act 1998 since 26 April 2011. [68583]
Mr Djanogly: There have been no further declarations of incompatibility under section 4 of the Human Rights Act 1998 since 26 April 2011. The last such declaration was made in November 2010 in the case of R (on the application of Royal College of Nursing and others) v. Secretary of State for Home Department.
Legal Costs
John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will assess the likely effects of the provisions of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill on the capacity of (a) HM Revenue and Customs, (b) small businesses and (c) insolvency practitioners to pursue delinquent directors in insolvency litigation. [67484]
Mr Djanogly: Ministry of Justice officials are in ongoing contact with officials at HMRC and the Insolvency Service regarding the impact of the reforms on insolvency proceedings.
Prison Sentences
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many previous convictions and for what offence each person serving an indeterminate sentence for public protection had; [69823]
(2) what offences each person serving an indeterminate sentence for public protection was convicted of; how many previous convictions each such person had; what the previous offences were in each case; and what the equivalent figures were in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [69829]
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Mr Blunt: Table 1 as follows shows the number of prisoners serving an Indeterminate sentence for Public Protection (IPP) by offence as at 30 June 2008 to 2010. Table 2 shows the numbers of previous convictions for these prisoners. Data on the offences for which these prisoners were previously convicted are not held centrally.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
| Table 1: Population of prisoners serving an Indeterminate sentence for Public Protection (IPP), England and Wales, 2008, 2009 and 2010 | |||
| As at 30 June | |||
|
|
2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
| Table 2: IPP (1) prisoners in prison establishments under sentence at 30 June 2008, 2009 and 2010 , by proportion of previous convictions (2) , England and Wales | |||||||
| Proportion of offenders by number of previous convictions (percentage) | |||||||
| At 30 June | IPP population | 0 | 1 to 2 | 3 to 6 | 7 to 10 | 11 to 14 | 15+ |
| (1) Indeterminate sentence for Public Protection (IPP). (2) Based on data matched to the Police National Computer. Data S ource and Quality: These figures have been compiled using the Ministry of Justice's extract from the Police National Computer. Like any large scale recording system the PNC is subject to errors with data entry and recording. The PNC is regularly updated so that further analysis at a later date will generate revised figures. | |||||||
Reoffenders
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what research his Department has commissioned on the reasons for the differences in reoffending rates of male prisoners (a) under and (b) over the age of 21. [69568]
Mr Blunt: Research on the reasons for the differences in reoffending rates of male prisoners under and over the age of 21 has not been commissioned. However the MoJ publishes annual National Statistics on the re-convictions of adults (aged 18 or over) and the reoffending of young people (aged 10 to 17).
Re-conviction on adults discharged from prison is available in Table A5 at the following link:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/reoffending/adults.htm
While reoffending data on young people discharged from prison are in Table A5 at the following link:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/reoffending/juveniles.htm
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We recognise that the reoffending rate for young people leaving custody is too high. Custody for young people is a last resort and used only for the most serious and persistent offenders. Young people leaving custody are therefore a challenging group with complex and wide-ranging problems which require intensive intervention and support.
Small Claims
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many small claims settlements set at a rate of £1 or less per month for a total amount payable of £50 or more were adjudicated by the Court Service in 2005. [69573]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice does not hold figures centrally on the number of small claim cases which had a settlement rate set at £1 or less per month for a total amount payable of £50 or more in the county courts.
The administrative computer systems in the county courts contain the records of all small claim hearings which take place in England and Wales. However the systems do not identify the outcome of these hearings, the total amounts the defendant must pay back, as well as the rate at which they should pay these back are not recorded. Therefore the information requested can be obtained through the manual examination of the electronic records only at disproportionate cost.
Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether there is a standard criterion for the repayment rates set by the small claims court service. [69574]
Mr Djanogly: There is no standard criterion set by the Ministry of Justice for determining repayment rates following judgment in small claims proceedings within the county courts. Setting repayments after a small claims hearing is a judicial function governed by the County Court Act 1984.
Social Security Benefits: Appeals
Mr Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many appeals against decision on application for (a) disability living allowance and (b) employment and support allowance there have been in St Helens South and Whiston constituency in each of the last three years; and how many such appeals were upheld. [68904]
Mr Djanogly: HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) do not have an administrative office in St Helens South and Whiston. Appeals submitted within the right hon. Member's constituency are heard at the Social Security and Child Support hearing venues in Warrington and Runcorn. The following table shows the number of disability living allowance and employment and support allowance (ESA) appeals received and the number of decisions found in favour of the appellant in the Warrington and Runcorn venues in each of the last three years.
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| Warrington and Runcorn hearing venues | ||||
| Disability living allowance appeals | Employment support allowance appeals | |||
|
|
Received | Upheld (decision in favour of the appellant) | Received | Upheld (decision in favour of the appellant) |
| Note: The above data are for appeals received by HMCTS and allocated to Warrington and Runcorn venues. The figures may include some appeals from outside St Helens South and Whiston constituency and may not include all constituency cases. ESA was introduced in October 2008 and replaced Incapacity Benefit (IB). The first appeals against ESA decisions were not received until January 2009 and this is reflected in the figures. | ||||
Mr Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average waiting time was between submission of an appeal against a decision on the award of (a) employment and support allowance and (b) disability living allowance and the date of the appeal hearing in (i) St Helens South and Whiston constituency, (ii) Merseyside and (iii) England in (A) the latest period for which figures are available and (B) each of the last three years. [68905]
Mr Djanogly: HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) do not have an administrative office in St Helens and Whiston. Appeals submitted within the right hon. Member's constituency are heard at the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) hearing venues in Warrington and Runcorn. The following table shows the average time in weeks from submission of an appeal to HM Courts and Tribunals Service until the date of the first appeal hearing for employment and support allowance (ESA) and disability living allowance (DLA) appeals.
| Average appeal waiting time to first hearing | ||||||
| Weeks | ||||||
| Warrington and Runcorn venues | Liverpool venue (1) | England venues | ||||
|
|
ESA | DLA | ESA | DLA | ESA | DL A |
| (1) HMCTS do not have a definition of Merseyside therefore the data supplied relate to ESA and DLA appeals processed by the Liverpool administrative centre. ESA was introduced in October 2008 and replaced incapacity benefit. The first appeals against ESA decisions were not received until January 2009 and this is reflected in the figures. | ||||||
Longer than usual waiting times for a hearing have resulted from an unexpectedly high level of appeals received across the Department for Work and Pensions. In response HMCTS has significantly increased its capacity. The most recent published management information shows that, nationally, 30% more SSCS appeals were cleared between April 2011 and June 2011 when compared with the same period in 2010 and 71% more when compared with the same period in 2009.
Bill of Rights
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse was of developing a dedicated website for the Commission on a UK Bill of Rights. [69110]
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Mr Djanogly: The web pages of the Commission on a Bill of Rights are based on the existing justice.gov.uk platform. Any costs associated with them relate only to staff time, and were met by the Ministry of Justice, as the Commission's sponsoring department, using existing resources and budgets.
Young Offenders: Remand in Custody
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many children were (a) remanded in custody or (b) subject to court ordered secure remand for a week or less in the last year for which information is available. [69423]
Mr Blunt: Data on remand episodes, which are the periods a young person spends in custody, are recorded by the Youth Justice Board on their secure accommodation clearing house system. Data held centrally by the Ministry of Justice do not include the length of time spent on remand.
This could be ascertained by reference to individual court files, which could be achieved only at disproportionate cost. The following table shows the number of custodial episodes, of one week or less, ended in the secure estate during the financial year 2009-10. As a young person may have more than one remand episode in a year, the actual number of individuals will be less than the total shown.
| Custodial episodes for children and young people remanded for a week or less, for the financial year 2009-10 | |
| Remand type | Number |
| Source:YJB secure accommodation clearing house system database. | |
Treasury
Economic Growth
17. Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential implications for the economy of the most recent figures for economic growth. [70011]
Danny Alexander: Our economic policy objective is to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility's forecasts published at Budget take full account of the policy measures announced in both the spending review and Budget 2011. The OBR forecasts the economy to grow throughout 2011 and in every year of the forecast. It will publish a fully updated forecast in the autumn.
18. Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential implications for the economy of the most recent figures for economic growth. [70012]
Danny Alexander:
Our economic policy objective is to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility's forecasts published at Budget take full account of the policy measures announced in both the
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spending review and Budget 2011. The OBR forecasts the economy to grow throughout 2011 and in every year of the forecast. It will publish a fully updated forecast in the autumn.
Economic Policy
19. Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the International Monetary Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on UK economic policy. [70013]
Mr Hoban: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and OECD hold frank bilateral discussions with each of their member countries on a regular basis. Most recently, IMF staff visited London in late May and early June and met various institutions, including HM Treasury, as part of their economic surveillance function. The IMF published their staff report for this consultation on 1 August 2011. The IMF concluded that:
“Strong fiscal consolidation is underway and remains essential to achieve a more sustainable budgetary position, thus reducing fiscal risks.”
Public Sector Pay
20. Gavin Shuker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of public sector workers who will receive a salary increase of £250 in 2011-12. [70014]
Danny Alexander: At least £250 will be paid to all those earning £21,000 or less in work forces under ministerial control—including the NHS, teachers, the armed forces, prisons and the civil service.
The pay decisions for other work forces do not fall under ministerial control, including the devolved Administrations, local authorities and public corporations. We do not have information about the number of workers receiving the £250 in these sectors. However, Government expect these employers to exercise similar restraint and regard for the fairness agenda.
Domestic Energy
21. Nic Dakin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects on the economy of recent trends in domestic energy prices. [70015]
Justine Greening: The Government consider a range of factors when assessing prospects for the economy. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for producing independent economic and fiscal forecasts. It will publish a fully updated forecast in the autumn.
23. Anas Sarwar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects on the economy of recent trends in domestic energy prices. [70017]
Justine Greening: The Government consider a range of factors when assessing prospects for the economy. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for producing independent economic and fiscal forecasts. It will publish a fully updated forecast in the autumn.
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VAT
22. Pamela Nash: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the potential effects on consumer confidence of the change in the basic rate of VAT. [70016]
Mr Gauke: Sustainable public finances will support confidence in the medium-term.
Decisive action taken by the Government in the spending review and June Budget, including the increase in VAT, will put the public finances and spending on a sustainable footing.
Tax Avoidance
24. Dr Huppert: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce tax avoidance by large organisations and wealthy individuals. [70018]
Mr Gauke: The Government are determined to reduce tax avoidance, including by large organisations and wealthy individuals, to protect the Exchequer and maintain fairness for the taxpayer. Their strategic approach, supported by HMRC's new anti-avoidance strategy, was set out in the Budget document 'Tackling Tax Avoidance'. The Government's commitment to tackling avoidance has been underlined by their reinvestment of £917 million in HMRC which will enable it to better tackle tax avoidance and evasion.
Cheques
Bob Russell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will take steps to establish which Government departments and agencies do not accept payment by cheque; and if he will make a statement; [68597]
(2) what advice his Department has provided to (a) Government Departments, (b) local authorities and (c) other public bodies and organisations on the acceptance of cheques as a means of payment; and if he will make a statement. [68598]
Justine Greening: The Treasury provide guidance on banking issues in Annex 5.7 of Managing Public Money (MPM).MPM sets out principles for dealing with resources used in the public sector including use of cheques to process payment and receipts. Departments and their agencies are best placed to decide on the methods of payment that they are willing to accept.
Coastal Communities Fund
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether the Big Lottery's Big Fund will be able to delegate decision-making on the allocation of the Coastal Communities Fund to local authorities or statutory development agencies in Scotland for applications within their areas; [69664]
(2) who will be consulted in Scotland on the criteria for allocation of the Coastal Communities Fund; and what timetable has been set for any such consultation. [69668]
Danny Alexander:
The Government will work closely with the Big Lottery Fund and the devolved Administrations on the details of how the Coastal
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Communities Fund will operate, including how decisions will be made and how best to take the fund forward with local stakeholders.
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the priorities and criteria for the use of the Coastal Communities Fund in Scotland will be uniform across Scotland or will allow for variation between different geographical areas. [69665]
Danny Alexander: The Government have announced that there will be separate arrangements for the Highlands and Islands and the rest of Scotland. Further details will be announced in due course.
Corporation Tax
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Government will be represented at The Working Party on Tax Questions—Direct Taxation meeting to be held in Brussels on 6 September 2011 to examine the proposal for a common consolidated corporate tax base; and what his policy is on (a) that proposal and (b) the work of the working party. [69252]
Mr Gauke: Government officials attend the meetings of the Working Party on Tax Questions—Direct Taxation. The Government believe is it important to attend such working parties to ensure British interests are represented. We will not agree to any proposal that would jeopardize our ability to shape our own tax policy and stop us from achieving our objective of creating the most competitive corporate tax regime in the G20.
Corporation Tax
Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of companies owing unpaid corporation taxes of (a) less than £10,000, (b) between £10,001 and £25,000, (c) between £25,001 and £50,000, (d) between £50,001 and £100,000 and (e) more than £100,000 in each region in the last five years; and how much was owed in each such category in each such year. [67780]
Mr Gauke: The information is not available and could be researched only at disproportionate cost.
Credit Unions
Jonathan Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to support the promotion of credit unions to disadvantaged and vulnerable people; and if he will make a statement. [69751]
Mr Hoban: The Government have committed to foster diversity, promote mutuals and create a more competitive banking industry, as set out in the coalition's programme for Government.
On 3 March the Department for Work and Pensions announced a £73 million Modernisation Fund to help credit unions expand their services. This is subject to a feasibility study which closes in September. An update can be found at:
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/other-specialists/the-growth-fund/latest-news/
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On 12 April the Treasury made the Mutual Societies (Electronic Communications) Order 2011. This allows credit unions and other mutuals to communicate with their members electronically.
Further, on 19 July the draft Legislative Reform (Industrial and Provident Societies and Credit Unions) Order 2011 was laid in Parliament for its final period of scrutiny. It will present many opportunities for credit unions to develop their services, attract investment and expand their membership further.
Publicity
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on (a) television, (b) radio and (c) newspaper advertising in (i) real and (ii) nominal terms between (A) November 1999 and June 2001, (B) May 2002 and June 2007 and (C) June 2007 and January 2008; and what the total cost to the public purse was. [68380]
Justine Greening: The Treasury's accounting system does not differentiate between types of advertising media and prior to 2005-06 did not separately identify advertising spending and accordingly the information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Spending on advertising between March 2005 and June 2007 was £483,000 and between June 2007 and January 2008 was £140,000. Spending in real terms can be calculated using the GDP deflator series available from:
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk
Departmental Billing
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many late payments his Department has made to contractors between (a) November 1999 and June 2001, (b) May 2002 and June 2007 and (c) June 2007 and January 2008; and what the cost to the public purse was of any (i) penalty charges or (ii) interest charges incurred in those periods. [68396]
Justine Greening: The Department has not incurred any such penalty charges and interest charges for late payments costs since 2006.
Correspondence
Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many letters his Department received from hon. Members in June 2011. [68789]
Justine Greening: The Treasury received 1,685 letters from Members of the Commons or the Lords during June this year.
11 Downing Street: Operating Costs
Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the running costs were of No. 11 Downing Street in 2010-11. [67843]
Justine Greening: By long-standing arrangement, the Treasury pays a contribution to the Cabinet Office for the rent and service charge of the space used by HM Treasury and by the Chancellor of the Exchequer within the Downing Street estate. For 2010-11, this contribution totalled £348,891.
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Rail Travel
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to the public purse was for (a) first class and (b) all train travel by (i) Ministers, (ii) staff and (iii) special advisers in his Department between (A) November 1999 and June 2001, (B) May 2002 and June 2007 and (C) June 2007 and January 2008. [68344]
Justine Greening: Information relating to train travel spend for the periods November 1999 to June 2001 and May 2002 to June 2007 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Between June 2007 and January 2008 the Department spent £308,736 on first class train travel and £132,048 on standard class train travel.
Stationery
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to the public purse was of stationery purchased by his Department between (a) November 1999 and June 2001, (b) May 2002 and June 2007 and (c) June 2007 and January 2008. [68392]
Justine Greening: Information on spending prior to 2002 is no longer available due to the introduction of a new accounting system in that year. Spending on stationery between May 2002 and June 2007 was £1,446,000 and between June 2007 and January 2008 was £135,000.
Official Overseas Visits
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many overseas visits were made by (a) Ministers, (b) staff and (c) special advisers in his Department between (i) November 1999 and June 2001 and (ii) May 2002 and June 2007 and (iii) June 2007 and January 2008; and what the cost to the public purse was of each such visit. [68362]
Justine Greening: Information on the number and cost of individual overseas visits is not held centrally and could not be provided within the disproportionate costs threshold.
Economic and Monetary Union: Payments
Mr Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on expansion of the Single European Payment Area. [69305]
Mr Hoban: The Single Euro Payments Area will make electronic payments in Euros across the EEA as easy as domestic payments within one country are now. The Government supports the Single European Payment Area as long as it delivers real gains for consumers, businesses and the City; and provided it promotes competition between payment service providers and more innovation in the market.
Economic Situation: European Union
Tom Blenkinsop:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the risk of a downgrading of the credit rating of bonds issued by the (a) private and (b) public sector in (i) Belgium, (ii) Bulgaria, (iii) Cyprus, (iv) the Czech Republic, (v) Denmark, (vi) Estonia, (vii) Finland, (viii) France, (ix)
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Germany, (x) Greece, (xi) Hungary, (xii) Ireland, (xiii) Italy, (xiv) Latvia, (xv) Lithuania, (xvi) Luxembourg, (xvii) Malta, (xviii) the Netherlands, (xix) Poland, (xx) Portugal, (xxi) Romania, (xxii) Slovakia, (xxiii) Slovenia, (xxiv) Spain and (xxv) Sweden. [69481]
Mr Hoban: The Treasury routinely considers economic and financial risks as part of the normal process of policy development.
Energy: Prices
Stella Creasy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects on the economy of recent trends in domestic energy prices. [70004]
Justine Greening: The Government consider a range of factors when assessing prospects for the economy. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for producing independent economic and fiscal forecasts. It will publish a fully updated forecast in the autumn.
Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation
Karen Lumley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of Equitable Life policyholders will have had their compensation claims processed by the end of September 2011. [69374]
Mr Hoban: Payments began on 30 June, and hundreds of payments have been made to date. The Scheme intends to make around £500 million worth of payments to eligible policyholders by April next year, which is a significant logistical exercise. To ensure that the required systems are fully tested and robust, the Scheme's, implementation plan is to make a low volume of payments initially. Payment volumes will continue to be ramped up over the coming months as the Scheme's complex payment processes are refined further.
EU Budget
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what his policy is on the outcome of the Council of Ministers on 25 July 2011 on the EU budget for 2012; and when he expects (a) the negotiations over the EU budget for 2012 to be concluded and (b) the budget to be approved; [69247]
(2) what representations he made at the Council of Ministers meeting on 25 July 2011 on the EU budget for 2012; and if he will make a statement; [69248]
(3) for what reasons the EU Council of Ministers agreed on 25 July 2011 to increase the amount of expenditure on administration in the EU between 2011 and 2012; [69251]
(4) with reference to page 23 of the explanatory memorandum to the draft budget of the European Union for the financial year 2012: Council position of 25 July 2011, for what reasons the EU Council of Ministers agreed to increase the amount of expenditure on the preservation and management of natural resources to 57,161,869,007 euro. [69765]
Justine Greening:
On 25 July, Council agreed its position on the draft 2012 EU budget, under qualified majority voting and by written procedure. The Government have
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not supported this position, because they believe that further savings can and should have been made. The Government seek to deliver real budgetary restraint at EU level and will continue to work with others to get the very best deal possible for UK taxpayer in future negotiations on the 2012 EU budget.
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons the explanatory memorandum to the draft budget of the European Union for the financial year 2012: Council position of 25 July 2011 (13110/11) estimates a change in the net amount of revenue the EU will receive from value added tax-based own resource at the uniform rate between 2011 and 2012; and how much of the change in revenue will originate in the UK in (a) 2011 and (b) 2012. [69249]
Justine Greening: VAT-based contributions to the EU budget are agreed between the member states and the European Commission but, like forecasts of national tax receipts, are subject to change. The changes in the forecast for 2011 are therefore based on updated estimates for the UK and other member states.
The updated VAT-based revenues for 2011 and the initial bases for 2012 are as set out in Amending Budget No. 4/2011 and the 2012 draft Budget respectively:
2011: €14,125,977,050, of which the UK share is €2,525,317,500
2012: €14,498,917,425, of which the UK share is estimated to be €2,501,556,900.
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons the explanatory memorandum to the draft budget of the European Union for the financial year 2012: Council position of 25 July 2011 (13110/11) estimates a change in net amount of revenue the EU will receive from custom duties and sugar levies between 2011 and 2012; and how much of the change in revenue will originate in the UK in (a) 2011 and (b) 2012. [69250]
Justine Greening: The levels of revenue from the different own resources streams for the EU Budget change from one year to the next as the amounts from each resource are not set and estimates will change.
Amending Budget No. 4 to the EU Budget in 2011 estimates that revenue from Traditional Own Resources (TOR) (customs duties and sugar levies) in 2011 will be €17,867 million, of which the UK share is estimated to be €2,987.8 million. The draft 2012 EU Budget estimates that revenue from this source will be €19,294.6 million, with the UK share estimated to be €3,001.9 million.
Estimates for TOR in any EU Budget are purely indicative as member states pay across what they collect, less 25% which they retain byway of collection costs.
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to page 23 of the explanatory memorandum to the draft budget of the European Union for the financial year 2012: Council position of 25 July 2011, for what reasons the EU Council of Ministers agreed to increase the amount of expenditure on sustainable growth to 55,269,657,370 euro. [69766]
Justine Greening:
The EU Council agreed its position on the EU budget for 2012 on 25 July. The Government have not supported the Council's position of a 2.02%
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increase in payments on 2011 levels, and were consistently praised for further savings across all heading areas of the budget which can and should have been made at this stage.
Heading 1 of the EU budget (sustainable growth) is made up of two sub-headings: heading 1 a (competitiveness for growth and employment) and heading 1 b (cohesion for growth and employment).
For heading 1 overall, Council agreed, compared to 2011 levels, to a 3.7% increase in payments to EUR 55.27bn, cuts of EUR 2.43 billion in payments compared to the commissions' draft budget.
Financial Services: Regulation
Jonathan Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward proposals to provide the Financial Conduct Authority with the powers to require independent financial advisers to issue more detailed personalised disclosures of costs and charges presented in an easily understandable format; and if he will make a statement. [69729]
Mr Hoban: Subject to European law, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) already has the power under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 to make rules regarding the disclosure of costs and charges to consumers by financial advisers. The Financial Conduct Authority will have the same ability.
The FSA currently requires financial advisers to make disclosures about their status, remuneration and any charges taken from the products they sell. The way that product charges are explained is closely prescribed and, in some cases, these requirements are also harmonised at the EU level.
The FSA is reforming the retail investment market through the Retail Distribution Review (RDR). From the end of 2012, retail financial advisers will need to set their own advice charges which must be discussed and agreed with their clients beforehand. The cost of advice will be separated from any charges taken from the retail investment products sold as a result of that advice, which will increase transparency for the consumer.
Income Tax: Females
Amber Rudd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the proportion of persons adversely affected by the removal of the 10 pence tax rate in 2007 who were women. [67970]
Mr Gauke: 58% of the individuals whose 2008-09 income tax liabilities were increased by these changes were female.
This estimate is based on the 2007-08 Survey of Personal Incomes, projected using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's March 2011 economic and fiscal outlook.
Income Tax: Scotland
Mr Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the proportion of persons affected by the removal of the 10 pence tax rate in 2007 who were resident in Scotland. [68420]
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Mr Gauke: An estimated 9% of the individuals whose 2008-09 income tax liabilities were increased by these changes were resident in Scotland.
This estimate is based on the 2007-08 Survey of Personal incomes, projected using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's March 2011 economic and fiscal outlook.
Individual Savings Accounts: Environment Protection
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the merits of green individual saving accounts. [69316]
Mr Hoban: The Government are undertaking analysis into how investment in green industries can be increased. The ISA market is competitive and a number of providers have chosen to offer green, environmental or ethical ISAs.
The Government are currently considering how best to encourage additional investment in green infrastructure through the Green Investment Bank, and proposals on this were announced in Budget 2011 and further details in May 2011.
Loans: Republic of Ireland
Mr Knight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason he reduced the rate of interest on the loan to the Republic of Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [69849]
Mr Hoban: The euro area summit on 21 July agreed to lower the interest rate on euro area loans provided by the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to Ireland. The Government welcomed this reduction in EFSF loan interest rates. This allows the UK to reduce the interest rate on our bilateral loan to Ireland, while ensuring all the benefit goes to Ireland and not to higher interest rates paid to euro area governments. The amount by which the interest rate will be reduced is under consideration. The Government will still be more than covering the cost of their borrowing. The loan can be drawn after the approval of the third quarterly review of Ireland's Memorandum of Understanding with the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission.
Local Government Finance
Caroline Flint: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the likely effect of increasing the rate of borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board on levels of borrowing by local authorities during the comprehensive spending review period. [69349]
Danny Alexander: The Office for Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) published a costing of the impact on capital expenditure financed by borrowing of the increase in Public Works Loan Board interest rates. This covered the spending review period and was published alongside spending review 2010 on 20 October 2011. This was subsequently revised at the OBR's Economic and Fiscal Outlook publication in November 2010 at Table A1, which can be found at:
http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-november-2010/
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Members: Correspondence
Graham Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Financial Secretary to the Treasury plans to respond to the letters from the hon. Member for Weaver Vale of 23 February and 2 June 2011 on behalf of his constituent, Mr Marc Sutton. [69484]
Mr Hoban: I wrote to all hon. Members on 30 March to set out the Government's overall position on the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) levies, which was the subject of your constituent's correspondence. This letter was the Treasury's response to outstanding correspondence that hon. Members had raised. I replied on 10 June in response to the hon. Member for Weaver Vale’s further letter of 2 June.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he intends to answer the letter sent to him by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 30 June 2011 with regard to Ms E Matysiak. [69814]
Justine Greening: HMRC replied to the right hon. Member on 19 August 2011.