Company Accounts

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will take steps to adjust the filing penalties in Section 453 of the Companies Act 2006 to take account of the size of the company. [92218]

Mr Davey: The level of fine imposed for the late filing of accounts depends on how late the accounts are submitted to the Registrar.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 364W

The level of fines was carefully reviewed by Parliament during the passage of the Companies Act 2006, and it decided to have two penalty scales, one for public companies, who must file within six months, and one for private companies, who must file within nine months of their year end.

As part of the Government's Red Tape Challenge programme all regulations relating to company law are open to review by the public including those relating to late filing penalties.

Copyright: Internet

Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of proposed US legislation, the (a) Stop Online Piracy Act and (b) Protect IP Act on British businesses. [91611]

Mr Vaizey: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport.

The Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), has made no assessment or received representations on the effect on the UK of measures contained in the US Stop Piracy Online Act.

Apprentices

Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department allocated to sponsor apprenticeships in his Department in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12; and how much such funding he plans to allocate in 2012-13. [89150]

Mr Hayes: The core Department for Business, Innovation and Skills allocated the following funding to sponsor apprenticeship in the Department in:

(a) 2010-11—£20,000

(b) 2011-12—£50,000

and plans to allocate between £10,000 and £15,000 in 2012-13.

Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprentices were employed by his Department between (a) April 2010 and March 2011 and (b) April and December 2011; and how many apprenticeships he plans that his Department will sponsor between (i) January and March 2012 and (ii) April and March 2013. [89205]

Mr Hayes: The core Department for Business, Innovation and Skills employed 30 apprentices between April 2010 and March 2011 and 14 apprentices between April and December 2011. The Department has no plans to sponsor additional apprentices between January and March 2012. The Department currently anticipates sponsoring between six and 10 apprentices between April 2012 and March 2013.

Employment: Arbitration

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on a

26 Jan 2012 : Column 365W

rapid resolution scheme for employment disputes; and if he will make a statement. [91861]

Mr Davey: Officials in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills are working closely with Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service and Ministry of Justice colleagues to consider whether and how any rapid resolution scheme might work. We will consult with key stakeholders as we develop options in more detail and will undertake a full public consultation on the detail once this work is complete.

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress he has made on developing a simplified form of compromise agreements following the Government's response to the resolving workplace disputes consultation. [91862]

Mr Davey: Officials in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills are considering how we can develop a standard text, together with the appropriate guidance, that will be available to parties to use should they wish to settle an employment dispute without proceeding to a Tribunal. We will make an announcement in due course.

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects to receive the report of Justice Underhill on the review of rules and procedures for employment tribunals. [91863]

Mr Davey: I have invited Mr Justice Underhill to present BIS Ministers with recommendations for revised rules of procedure for employment tribunals by the end of April 2012.

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the timetable is for the consultation on protected conversations. [91864]

Mr Davey: We expect to launch a consultation on protected conversations later this year.

Green Investment Bank

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what timetable he has set for consideration of proposals for the site of the Green Investment Bank; and whether he plans to publish a shortlist before the site is chosen. [91818]

Mr Prisk: More than 20 locations across the UK have indicated that they would be interested in hosting the headquarters of the Green Investment Bank (GIB).

Interested locations have been asked to self-assess against a common set of criteria, to demonstrate whether they would be an effective base for the GIB. The deadline for the submission of self assessments is 30 January. All self assessments received will be reviewed by the Department. The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), will then publish his decision, with accompanying reasons, in February. All submissions received will also be published.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 366W

Higher Education

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the speech to the Policy Exchange of 4 January 2012 by the Minister of State for Universities and Science, which UK universities are in the top 100 in the world. [91289]

Mr Willetts: The UK universities in the top 100 of the rankings referred to in the Policy Exchange speech are as follows:

The World University Rankings 2011-12 (12 universities)

Oxford (4), Cambridge (6), Imperial College (8), UCL (17), Edinburgh (36), LSE (47), Manchester (48), King's College (56), Bristol (66), Durham (83), St Andrews (85), Sussex (99)

QS World University Rankings 2011-12 (19 universities)

Cambridge (1), Oxford (5), Imperial College (6), UCL (7), Edinburgh (20), King's College (27), Manchester (29), Bristol (30), Warwick (50), Glasgow (59), LSE (64), Birmingham (67), Sheffield (72), Nottingham (74), Southampton (75), Leeds (93), Durham (95), York (96), St Andrews (97)

ARWU 2011 (10 universities)

Cambridge (5), Oxford (10), UCL (20), Imperial College (24), Manchester (38), Edinburgh (53), King's College (68), Bristol (70), Nottingham (85), Sheffield (97)

Higher Education: Admissions

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in each parliamentary constituency applied to study at Oxford and Cambridge universities in 2011. [88821]

Mr Willetts: The information is shown in a table provided by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) which will be placed in the Library of the House.

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications to and offers by each (a) Russell Group and (b) 1994 Group university were made in the 2010-11 admissions cycle to home students in each local education authority (LEA) area; and how many and what proportion of such applicants and other recipients in each LEA were educated at (i) maintained and (ii) independent schools. [88928]

Mr Willetts: The information is not available centrally. The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), hold the information but they have advised that they cannot release it because the publication of such detailed information for individual institutions would be potentially disclosive of individuals.

Manufacturing Industries

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on support for the manufacturing sector; and if he will make a statement. [91342]

Mr Prisk: We fully recognise the importance of manufacturing, its vital contribution to the growth of a more sustainable UK economy and its key role in rebalancing the economy. Working with business, we are taking steps to strengthen UK manufacturing's

26 Jan 2012 : Column 367W

capability, ensuring a better business environment that will address barriers to growth, encourage innovation, exports and business investment, build UK supply chains and improve skills. The Government have put in place a range of initiatives to support manufacturing growth, including the Manufacturing Advisory Service, the Regional Growth Fund, Higher Level Apprenticeships and Catapult Centres.

As part of the Autumn Statement of 29 November 2011, Official Report, columns 799-810, we announced a package worth £250 million that will reduce the impact of energy and climate change policies on the cost of electricity for those energy intensive industries, whose international competitiveness is most affected by these policies. In addition, on 6 December we launched a £125 million challenge fund to boost UK advanced manufacturing supply chains.

We are making good progress in implementing the actions announced as part of the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Review: we have already met just under 50% of the reforms announced in March and reached significant milestones on the rest. However we want to continue engaging with industry to adapt and develop our policies further to meet changing circumstances and needs. Therefore we are holding a Manufacturing Summit at the Bristol and Bath Science Park in February to discuss and agree with industry what more should be done to help us grow manufacturing in the UK.

Patents

Chris Skidmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many patents were (a) applied for and (b) approved in each region in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [91556]

Mr Davey: The following two tables give the number of patents (a) applied for and (b)granted in each UK region for the calendar years 2006-10. The data are available in separate publications from:

http://www.ipo.gov.uk/ourpublications-review.htm

(a) Number of UK national patent applications filed by region 2006 to 2010
Region 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

East Midlands

768

778

747

738

712

East of England

2,082

2,063

1,992

1,844

1,984

London

3,075

3,103

2,883

2,752

2,584

North West

1,537

1,425

1,447

1,369

1,246

Northern Ireland

238

215

253

213

240

North East

357

355

356

382

331

Scotland

1,131

1,145

1,100

1,074

1,001

South East

3,106

2,962

2,892

2,777

2,810

South West

1,764

1,719

1,582

1,644

1,639

Wales

652

765

705

682

550

West Midlands

1,219

1,188

1,041

1,049

1,057

Yorkshire

1,301

1,232

1,280

1,246

1,144

26 Jan 2012 : Column 368W

Postcode not given/incomplete address

254

425

245

215

192

Total

17,484

17375

16,523

15,985

15,490

(b) Number of UK national patents granted by region 2006 to 2010
Region 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

East Midlands

128

96

109

114

111

East of England

371

284

272

302

288

London

524

316

361

292

382

North West

254

187

167

192

201

Northern Ireland

13

11

10

11

7

North East

82

33

32

37

41

Scotland

138

130

117

127

169

South East

607

428

411

421

472

South West

344

207

212

209

244

Wales

88

62

60

67

66

West Midlands

234

149

159

167

163

Yorkshire

150

125

132

146

141

Postcode not given/incomplete address

45

30

28

33

38

Total

2,978

2,058

2,070

2,118

2,323

Postal Services

Michael Ellis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made on making Government services available at post offices. [90903]

Mr Davey: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement entitled “Post Office Network”, published on 24 January 2012, Official Report, column 8WS.

Unfair Dismissal: Compensation

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the timetable is for his Department's consultation on compensated no-fault dismissals for small businesses. [90980]

Mr Davey: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), announced in November that Government would seek evidence on the idea of introducing compensated no-fault dismissal for micro firms (i.e. firms which employ fewer than 10 staff). My officials are currently seeking views on progressing this and we will publish a formal call for evidence in due course. Decisions on whether to consult further will not be taken until the ensuing evidence has been fully assessed.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 369W

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Animal Health and Welfare Board for England

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the meeting note of 8 November 2011, for the Animal Health and Welfare Board (AWHB), whether the AWHB's plans to co-opt additional members are standard practice for recruitment procedure; and if she will assess the transparency and fairness of this method of recruitment for public bodies. [90579]

Mr Paice: The board's terms of reference set out that the appointment of the Chair and other non-executive members will be conducted in an open and transparent manner.

The board is applying a similar process for appointing co-opted non-executive members to that for appointing the original non-executive members. The process is rigorous and follows the key principles set out in the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments' (OCPA) Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies.

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Mr Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many applications Natural England is considering for the designation of an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty; and for which areas such applications have been made. [91383]

Richard Benyon: It is ordinarily for Natural England (NE) to make an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designation which, in the light of public consultation and, where appropriate, following a public inquiry, must be confirmed by the Secretary of State before they come into operation.

I understand that a number of suggestions (there is no mechanism for “applications” as such) have been made to NE for new AONBs, or extensions of existing ones. The following table lists the suggestions NE has received.

Case name

Blackdown Hills AONB (extension)

Breckland (new AONB)

Cannock Chase AONB (extension)

Charnwood (new AONB)

Chilterns AONB 1 (retraction)

Chilterns AONB 2 (extension)

Chilterns AONB 3 (extension)

Churnet Valley (new AONB)

Cornwall AONB (extension)

Cotswolds AONB (extension)

Cotswolds AONB 2 (extension)

Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs AONB (extension)

Dedham Vale AONB (extension)

Dorset AONB (extension)

Dorset AONB 2 (extension)

East Devon AONB (extension)

Forest of Dean (new AONB)

Herefordshire Black Mountains (new AONB)

26 Jan 2012 : Column 370W

Lincolnshire (new AONB)

Lincolnshire Wolds AONB (extension)

Malvern Hills AONB (extension)

Mendip Hills AONB (extension)

New Devon AONB (extension)

Norfolk Coast AONB (extension)

Norfolk Coast AONB 2 (extension)

North Devon AONB (extension)

North Kent Downs AONB (extension)

North Kent Downs AONB 2 (extension)

North Kent Downs AONB 3 (extension)

North Wessex Downs AONB (extension)

Northumberland Coast AONB (extension)

Otmoor (new AONB)

Rutland (new AONB)

Solway Coast AONB (extension)

Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB (extension)

Surrey Hills AONB (extension)

Kent Greensands (new AONB)

Yorkshire Wolds (new AONB).

Christmas

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much her Department spent on (a) Christmas trees and (b) other Christmas decorations in 2011; and if she will make a statement. [91104]

Richard Benyon: In 2011, £2,011 was spent on Christmas trees (including decorations) for buildings occupied by core-DEFRA.

Common Land

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the total amount of common land in England (a) in hectares and (b) as a proportion of the total land mass; and if she will make a statement. [91355]

Richard Benyon: There are 399,040 hectares of common land in England, which equates to approximately three percent of the total land area. This figure includes the New Forest, Epping Forest and certain other commons exempted from registration under the Commons Registration Act 1965. These exempted areas account for 25,470 hectares of common land.

Expenditure: Drinks

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much her Department has spent on (a) wine, (b) other alcoholic refreshments and (c) bottled water since May 2010. [91635]

Richard Benyon: The Department does not keep a central record which will identify this information and cannot therefore provide an accurate figure without incurring disproportionate costs.

All expenditure is incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 371W

Departmental Manpower

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the number and proportion of full-time equivalent staff in her Department engaged in delivering (a) front line and (b) corporate or back office services; and if she will make a statement. [91103]

Richard Benyon: Core-DEFRA employs a variety of staff working in a wide range of areas, including policy development, analysis, research and support functions. We have not carried out a detailed analysis according to the categories in the question.

EU Law

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many of the regulations her Department brought into force through (a) primary legislation, (b) secondary legislation and (c) other means originated from proposals by the European Commission in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2011. [88969]

Richard Benyon: The number of regulations brought into force by the DEFRA through (a) primary legislation, (b) secondary legislation and (c) other means which either fully or in part originated from proposals by the European Commission in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2011 is shown in the following table.

  2010 2011

(a) Primary legislation

0

0

(b) Secondary legislation

45

38

(c) Other means

0

0

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which EU (a) directives, (b) regulations and (c) other legislation affecting her Department require transposition into UK law; and what estimate she has made of the cost to (i) the public purse and (ii) the private sector of such measures. [89691]

Richard Benyon: EU directives affecting DEFRA and requiring transposition into UK law are as follows:

2009/128/EC: Establishing a framework for Community action to achieve the sustainable use of pesticides

2010/60/EU: Providing for certain derogations for marketing of fodder plant seed mixtures intended for use in the preservation of the natural environment

2009/126/EC: On Stage II petrol vapour recovery during refuelling of motor vehicles at service stations

2010/79/EC: On the adaptation to technical progress of Annex III to Directive 22004/42/EC on the limitation of emissions of volatile organic compounds

2010/75/EC: On industrial emission (integrated pollution prevention and control)

2011/97/EC: As regards specific waste criteria for the storage of metallic mercury considered as waste.

For these directives, DEFRA will need to develop policy options for implementation and then consult on them before costs can be fully determined. Once a

26 Jan 2012 : Column 372W

decision on the policy option is made, final impact assessments detailing both costs and benefits will be made public and placed in the Government's online impact assessment library:

http://www.ialibrary.bis.gov.uk/

EU regulations are legally binding and directly applicable in all member states and therefore do not require transposition into domestic law.

DEFRA recently conducted a review of all of its existing legislation, including that which is derived from the EU, and has published an initial report on the costs and benefits of its regulatory stock:

http://www.defra.gov.uk/publications/2011/08/16/pb13623-defra-regulatory-stock

We will be doing further work to refine and update the document.

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) whether her Department holds information on the EU regulations in its policy areas of responsibility which have not been implemented in (a) France and (b) Germany; on which dates those regulations became EU law; and if she will make a statement; [90695]

(2) which EU regulations her Department has not implemented; on what date the regulations became EU law; and if she will make a statement. [90710]

Richard Benyon: Information on the implementation of EU legislation by all EU member states is compiled by the European Commission, as part of its role as guardian of the EU Treaties. The Commission's most recent annual report on national implementation of EU law is publicly available at:

http://ec.europa.eu/eu_law/infringements/infringements_annual_report_28_en.htm

Fisheries: ICT

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on whether there should be a global requirement for vessel monitoring system satellite tracking devices to be fitted to all fishing vessels. [91668]

Richard Benyon: Vessel monitoring systems provide a reliable means of verifying the accuracy of reports submitted by fishermen of their fishing operations and make a significant contribution towards the prevention of illegal fishing activity. I have supported EU control measures that have extended the requirement for all EU fishing vessels over 12 metres to have working satellite tracking devices on board wherever in the world they operate. The United Kingdom has also supported the adoption and operation of such measures by regional fisheries management organisations and third countries as a valuable means of monitoring fishing activity.

The value of using satellite based technology on smaller, inshore vessels is less clear and presents different technical challenges. The Marine Management Organisation has therefore been engaged in trials of alternative, non-satellite based technology for such vessels.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 373W

Furs: Origin Labelling

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions she has had with her EU counterparts on the introduction of country of origin labelling so that consumers can make fully-informed choices on the purchase of products made from fur. [90590]

Mr Davey: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Ministers have had no discussions with EU counterparts on the introduction of country of origin labelling on products made from fur.

Health

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what definition her Department uses of well-being in society. [90807]

Richard Benyon: Well-being is central to the Government's vision for mainstreaming Sustainable Development in Government that was published in February 2011.

The Office for National Statistics programme on measuring national well-being recently initiated a debate on national well-being and how it should be measured. The findings from the debate, which are now being used to consult on proposed domains and headline indicators of national well-being, are available on the ONS website.

Hunting: Sports

Mr Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government classifies hunting with hounds as a field sport. [91661]

Mr Paice: The Government have no responsibility for deciding whether or not particular activities are classified as field sports.

Otters

Mr Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate her Department has made of the (a) size and (b) location of the wild otter population in England in the last 20 years; and if she will make a statement. [91167]

Richard Benyon: It is currently not possible to estimate otter abundance from the quantity and distribution of otter signs and sightings. Research investigating the possibility of assessing numbers of otters from DNA or chemical analysis of spraint (otter faeces) is ongoing.

Three national otter surveys have been carried out in England in the last 20 years—in 1991-94, 2000-02 and 2009-10. Direct comparison of the 2,940 sites used in all three of these surveys reveals that the number of sites showing signs of otters has increased from 23.4% in 1991-94, to 36.3% in 2000-02, and again to 58.8% in 2009-10. Since the publication of the last report otter signs in Kent have confirmed that the species is now present throughout England.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 374W

Reed Beds

Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many hectares of reedbed in National Nature Reserves are managed on a sustainable basis to produce reed for thatching and panel fencing; [91274]

(2) how many hectares of reedbed in National Nature Reserves are managed by long-term rotational cutting and burning. [91276]

Richard Benyon: DEFRA and its agencies do not hold information centrally for all National Nature Reserves (NNRs). For those NNRs in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk, reserve managers have estimated that approximately 78 hectares of reed bed are cut commercially with the reeds used for thatching, reed screens and specialist paper making. They also estimate approximately 115 hectares of these NNRs are managed by long term rotational cutting.

Soil: Conservation

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received from the farming industry on soil protection regulations; and if she will make a statement. [91529]

Richard Benyon: In June 2010, the Government commissioned Richard Macdonald to conduct a review of farming regulation, partly in response to representation from the industry on this issue. The review, published in May 2011, was undertaken with extensive consultation with industry and other interested parties and included a number of recommendations relating to the Soil Protection Review 2010. In its interim response, published in November 2011, the Government set out their intentions to work with industry to review the Soil Protection Review with the aim of putting in place revised arrangements when the current arrangements end in 2013. A full response to the taskforce recommendations will be published shortly.

Third Sector

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding her Department provided to (a) The Art Room, (b) the National Portrait Gallery, (c) Mountain Rescue England, (d) the English Schools Swimming Association, (e) the Scout Association and (f) Missing Links UK in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12; and if she will make a statement. [90749]

Richard Benyon: In the financial years 2010-11 and 2011-12 to date, core-DEFRA has not funded any of the organisations listed.

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department is taking to measure progress on the implementation of policies supporting the Big Society initiative; and if she will make a statement. [91394]

26 Jan 2012 : Column 375W

Richard Benyon: DEFRA's business plan sets out clear priorities for the Department including what we are putting in place to support the growth of Big Society. We continue to report publicly on progress against these priorities at:

http://transparency.number10.gov.uk/transparency/srp/

Within DEFRA this includes reporting progress on initiatives such as the Big Tree Plant and the new Waterways Charity Project.

Trees: Planning Permission

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what plans she has to use the revised National Planning Policy Framework to promote tree planting; [91666]

(2) whether it is her policy to seek increased protection for ancient woods and trees in the final version of the National Planning Policy Framework. [91667]

Mr Paice: The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is still considering consultation responses and these, and other issues, will be taken into account as the National Planning Policy Framework is finalised. I understand that DCLG will publish the final version of the National Planning Policy Framework by the end of March this year.

The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden (Mrs Spelman), has asked the Independent Panel on Forestry for advice on ancient woodlands and on an appropriate level of woodland cover in England. The Government look forward to the submission of the panel's final report this spring.

Waste Disposal

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what assessment she has made of the Office of Fair Trading's market study on organic waste; [91515]

(2) whether her Department plans to respond to the Office of Fair Trading's market study on market waste. [91516]

Richard Benyon: DEFRA is carefully considering the Office of Fair Trading's market study on organic waste and is currently discussing its recommendations with OFWAT. We will take into account the report's findings as part of ongoing work to clarify the relevant environmental and economic regulatory frameworks that apply to the organic waste sector, and in developing robust quality standards for the end use of organic wastes.

26 Jan 2012 : Column 376W

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on his Department's fund for supporting weekly waste collection. [91562]

Richard Benyon: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs meets regularly to discuss matters of Government policy with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government including matters on waste policy including weekly waste collection.

Waste Disposal: Food

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice her Department gives local authorities on the treatment and disposal of food waste. [91563]

Richard Benyon: The Government encourage local authorities to manage their food waste sustainably and, through the waste and resources action programme, provides technical support on treatment options. However, decisions on the treatment and disposal of food waste are for local authorities to make, taking into account local circumstances including local logistics, the characteristics of the area, and the service that residents want.

Written Questions

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many ordinary written questions tabled to her Department by hon. Members since May 2010 have not received a reply within (a) one and (b) two months; and what the subject matter was of each such question. [91016]

Richard Benyon: Between May 2010 and 20 December 2011 core-DEFRA received 3,342 parliamentary questions for ordinary written answer, of which (a) 161 had not received a reply with one month and (b) a further 30 had not received a reply within two months.

A breakdown by subject is shown in the following table:

Subject (a) Reply received after one month (b) Reply received after two months

Finance and Procurement

53

10

HR and Staff issues

22

8

Animal Health and Welfare

21

2

Rural, Farming and Wildlife Issues

30

6

Other

35

4

Total

161

30