Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps Essex Probation Trust has (a) taken and (b) plans to take in each of the next two years to reduce reoffending; and if he will make a statement. [124201]
Jeremy Wright: Essex Probation Trust has this year established an Integrated Offender Management project, which involves the trust working together with Essex police to deliver responses to reduce re-offending among a group of persistent offenders.
“The Bridge” project, in which the trust is a key partner, aims to break the re-offending habits of offenders facing short-term imprisonment. It works with offenders who are difficult to engage with and have a history of poor compliance with community sentences.
The trust is also involved in the Essex Whole-Place Community Budget Pilot, launched earlier this year, which aims to reduce re-offending through preventive work with offenders and their families.
Departmental Staff
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the names are of staff of his Department and the bodies for which he is responsible in paybands SCS1, SCS2 and SCS3 who have left his Department and taken up employment with G4S, Serco, Sodexo or Mitie since May 2010. [124627]
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Jeremy Wright: I can confirm that applications under the Business Appointment Rules (BAR) process were authorised for the following: one payband SCS3 to take up employment as an independent consultant for G4S; one payband SCS2 to take up employment to work for Sodexo; one payband SCS2 to take up employment to work for G4S and one payband SCS1 to take up employment with G4S since May 2010.
Where appropriate, restrictions were placed on the activities individuals could undertake in their new employment. For example, as a general principle, there is a two year ban on civil servants at SCS3 and above lobbying Government (including Ministers, special advisers and officials) on behalf of their new employer after leaving the civil service.
Since April 2012 there have been no applications from individuals in paybands SCS1, SCS2 and SCS3 to work for any of these companies.
I can release the details of the payband SCS3 because his name has previously been released—he is Philip Wheatley, previously Director General of the National Offender Management Service.
Under the Data Protection Act, it is not appropriate for me to disclose the names of the other individuals I refer to in my answer.
Defence
Armed Forces
Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent estimate he has made of the total deployable collective protection capacity of the armed forces with regard to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. [123154]
Mr Robathan: The chemical biological radiological nuclear (CBRN) protection capability of the armed forces is regularly assessed and the results of these assessments are classified. The priority for Defence is the CBRN protection of the individual and this is achieved through specialised CBRN personal protective equipment. Specific platforms within Defence have inbuilt elements of collective protection.
Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what mobile decontamination facilities the armed forces could provide in the event of a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear incident; [123161]
(2) what support the armed forces provide for deployable mobile decontamination to the civil power in cases of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear incidents; and what capacity for such decontamination there is. [123820]
Mr Robathan: Defence maintains specialist and generalist mobile decontamination capabilities, and individual personnel deploy with personal decontamination capability. All Defence decontamination capability is optimised for military operations.
The emergency services are the recognised primary responders in the event of a chemical biological radiological nuclear (CBRN) event in the UK. If requested, Defence could deploy its CBRN decontamination capability to assist the civil powers under military aid to the civil authority (MACA) arrangements.
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Armed Forces: Business Appointments
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the specific remit is of the investigation to look into accusations of senior military personnel breaking the guidelines of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments; [123280]
(2) when the investigation into accusations of former senior military personnel breaking rules set by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments will (a) start, (b) finish and (c) be published; [123288]
(3) how many of his Department's staff will work on the investigation into accusations of former senior military personnel breaking Advisory Committee on Business Appointments rules; [123289]
(4) who will be responsible for producing the findings of the investigation into accusations of former senior military personnel breaking Advisory Council on Business Appointments rules. [123291]
Mr Philip Hammond: Ministry of Defence officials are reviewing the access that six retired officers specifically named in a Sunday Times article had to the Department after they left the armed forces and whether any rules on business appointments have been broken.
The results will be considered by the permanent secretary and myself in due course and any concerns reported to Advisory Committee on Business Appointments.
Army: Recruitment
Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the 10 infantry battalions which have the most soldiers recruited on the most recent date for which figures are available. [123817]
Mr Robathan: The Army keeps recruitment levels of all Infantry battalions under constant review as part of the process of informing the allocation of recruits to units.
Manning levels change over time in response to a number of factors, including inflow, outflow and operational requirements.
BAE Systems
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to provide support for Clyde shipyard employees who may be adversely affected by uncertainty surrounding the future of BAE Systems. [124023]
Mr Dunne: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) expects the Terms of Business Agreement between the MOD and BAE Systems Maritime-Naval Ships (BAES MNS) to provide a strong foundation for the company to compete for non-MOD work, both in the UK and throughout the world. It will be for BAES MNS, however, to retain the capacity it deems necessary in order to meet the demands made of it and to transform the sector as it deems appropriate.
Questions regarding the future of the different shipbuilding yards and the support provided to employees are therefore a matter for the company involved.
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Libya: Military Intervention
Mr Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate his Department has made of the average cost of a single sortie by a Tornado to Libyan airspace during Operation Ellamy. [123585]
Mr Robathan: Sorties to Libyan airspace during Operation ELLAMY were mounted from RAF Marham and Gioia Del Colle airbase in Italy. The average cost of a single 5½ hour sortie by a Tornado GR4 to Libyan airspace was as follows:
Marginal cost: £27,000
This figure includes launches from both locations and is based on capitation rates and rounded to the nearest thousand pounds.
NSA Menwith Hill
Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether members of the Intelligence and Security Committee have complete access to all areas of the operations area of NSA Menwith Hill; and when (a) he and (b) any other Minister last visited NSA Menwith Hill. [124111]
Mr Robathan: The Intelligence and Security Committee does not comment on the details of its work programme. Where appropriate it publishes information on visits it has undertaken in its Annual Reports.
The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), has not visited RAF Menwith Hill to date.
The last ministerial visit to the Base was in August 2011 by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.
Unmanned Air Vehicles
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many crashes there have been with the Elbit Systems Hermes 450 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in (a) the UK and (b) Afghanistan; [123602]
(2) what recent assessment he has made of the training provided to those who fly the Elbit Systems Hermes 450 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. [123603]
Mr Robathan: The Hermes 450 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle is not flown in the UK nor have there been any crashes in the UK.
Since 2007 there have been 11 Hermes 450 crashes in Afghanistan.
An end-to-end review for army unmanned aerial systems training has recently been conducted which reported at the end of September 2012. As a result, several changes have already been made to unmanned aerial systems training to increase airmanship standards in a number of areas, with further improvements to follow.
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Warships
Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost of operating a (a) Type 23, (b) Type 42 and (c) Type 45 vessel was in the last year for which figures are available; and what the estimated annual cost of operating a Type 26 vessel is. [122908]
Mr Dunne: The operating costs for the Type 23 class of frigates and the Type 42 and Type 45 classes of destroyer are shown in the following table. The figures are based on the cost of fuel, manpower and support costs including maintenance, repair and equipment spares.
| Platform/Class | Number of ships in service throughout financial year (FY) 2011-12 | Total operating cost for FY 2011-12 for the Class (£ Million) |
| (1) On 1 April 2011, four of an original class of 16 Type 42 destroyers (HM Ships Liverpool, York, Gloucester and Edinburgh) remained in service. This number reduced to three when HMS Gloucester was de-commissioned on 30 June 2011. Accordingly, the total operating cost of the ship only includes the cost of the fuel and manpower for the three ships that remained in service for the whole of FY 2011-12. (2) On 1 April 2011, the first two Type 45 destroyers (HM Ships Daring and Dauntless) were in service. The third vessel in the class, HMS Diamond, was commissioned on 12 July 2011. Accordingly, the total operating cost of the ship only includes the cost of the fuel and manpower for the two ships that were in service for the whole of FY2011-12. | ||
The Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme is currently in its assessment phase. It will not be possible to provide an estimate of the annual operating cost of the class until this phase has completed and the main investment decision has been taken. This decision is currently scheduled for the middle of the decade.
Health
Ambulance Services: East of England
Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last met the chief executive of the East of England Ambulance Service to discuss ambulance cover across the east of England region. [124225]
Anna Soubry: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has not met with the chief executive of the East of England Ambulance Service, Mr Hayden Newton, to discuss ambulance cover across the east of England.
Arthritis
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources his Department has allocated to support clinical commissioning for rheumatoid arthritis in (a) England and (b) Worcestershire. [124105]
Dr Poulter:
National health service resources are currently allocated to primary care trusts (PCTs) on the basis of a national weighted capitation formula which is used to determine each PCTs target share of available resources, to enable them to commission services to
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meet the healthcare needs of their local populations. Funding to support clinical commissioning for rheumatoid arthritis is included in current PCT resource allocations.
Total revenue investment in the NHS in 2012-13 grew to £105.2 billion. £91.6 billion went directly to PCTs for frontline services in 2012-13—an increase of more than £2.5 billion in cash from last year, a 2.8%, increase in total revenue allocations.
Worcestershire PCT received a total revenue allocation in 2012-13 of £888.3 million, an increase of £24.3 million or 2.8%. This included a recurrent revenue allocation of £848.4 million and a non-recurrent allocation of £40 million for primary dental care, pharmaceutical services, general ophthalmic services and support for joint working between health and social care.
Once allocated it is for PCTs to commission the health care services they need to meet the needs of their local populations taking account of national and local priorities.
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of variations in the care of people with (a) rheumatoid arthritis and (b) other musculoskeletal conditions in (i) England and (ii) Worcestershire. [124106]
Norman Lamb: We have made no such assessment. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published a clinical guideline on the management of rheumatoid arthritis in 2009 and has also published clinical guidelines relating to other musculoskeletal conditions such as osteoarthritis. NICE clinical guidelines are based on a thorough assessment of the available evidence and we expect the national health service to take them fully into account in its decision making.
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what payment by results mechanisms his Department is assessing to improve the quality of care for people with rheumatoid arthritis. [124107]
Dr Poulter: The Department proposes to introduce a new Payment by Results ‘best practice tariff’ in 2013-14 for patients referred to an out-patient clinic with suspected early inflammatory arthritis. The aim of the proposed tariff is to improve clinical outcomes and reduce short-term morbidity and long-term disability.
Final plans for Payment by Results in 2013-14 will be announced in December 2012.
Catering
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on refreshments since January 2012. [123371]
Dr Poulter: The Department has spent £331,643.61 (including VAT) on refreshments for meetings since January 2012. The average monthly spend has reduced from £60,157.62 in financial year 2008-09 to £36,849.28 in 2012 (January-September).
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Diabetes
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the publication of the Government's Proactive Communications Plan in September 2012, what proportion of the £285 million spending on health marketing for 2012-13 will be used to inform and engage the public of (a) the increase in diabetes prevalence, (b) the risk factors and potential complications of diabetes and (c) what steps members of the public can take to assess their risk of contracting diabetes. [124174]
Anna Soubry: Type 2 diabetes, and its consequences, is featured in other campaigns such as Change4Life and there is a considerable amount of information on diabetes available on NHS Choices. It is not possible to calculate the monetary value of these contributions.
There are no plans for a separate diabetes campaign.
Heart Diseases
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the peak age range was for finished admission episodes for coronary artery bypass graft surgery in England in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [124109]
Anna Soubry: Set out in the following table is a count of finished admission episodes(1) with a main operative procedure(2) of coronary artery bypass graft(3) by five year age bands 2009-10 and 2010-11(4).
| Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector | ||
| Age band | 2009-10 | 2010-11 |
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| (1) Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. (2) Main procedure The first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode, usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (e.g. time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. (3) OPCS 4 Codes for Coronary artery bypass graft K40 - Saphenous vein graft replacement of coronary artery K41 - Other autograft replacement of coronary artery K42 - Allograft replacement of coronary artery K43 - Prosthetic replacement of coronary artery K44 - Other replacement of coronary artery (4) Assessing growth through time (Inpatients) Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre |
Hip Replacements
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the peak age range was for finished admission episodes for hip replacement procedures in England in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [124108]
Anna Soubry: The information requested is available in the following table.
| Finished admission episodes(1) with a main operative procedure(2) of hip replacement(3) by five-year age bands 2009-10 and 2010-11(4). Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector | ||
| Five year age groups | 2009-10 | 2010-11 |
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| (1) Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. (2) Main procedure The first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode, usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (eg time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. (3 )OPCS 4 Codes for Hip replacement W37, W38, W39, W46, W47, W48, W93, W94 and W95. (4) Assessing growth through time (in-patients) Hospital Episode Statistics figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre. |
Knee Replacements
David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were fitted with microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knees by the NHS in (a) England and (b) each primary care trust in each of the last five years. [124098]
Norman Lamb: The information requested on how many patients were fitted with microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knees by the national health service in England and each primary care trust in each of the last five years is not held centrally.
Annual Leave
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many days' leave each Minister in his Department has taken from official duties in the last 12 months. [123367]
Dr Poulter: Ministers remain Ministers at all times. The Ministerial Code sets out the arrangements for ministerial cover.
Medical Treatments Abroad
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money his Department spent paying for NHS patients to have treatments abroad in each of the last three years. [124272]
Anna Soubry: There are three principal ways for patients to access elective treatment abroad funded by the national health service:
an E112, replaced by the S2 in May 2010, which allows one European Economic Area Country (EEA) to send a patient to another EEA country for treatment;
utilising the provisions of Article 56 of the European Treaty to access treatment in another European country and be retrospectively reimbursed by a primary care trust; and
an Individual Funding Request made by a patient to their primary care trust.
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In addition, NHS patients receive clinically necessary treatment while on a temporary visit to another EEA country using the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC).
Of these categories, the Department only holds figures for expenditure relating to E112s and S2s issued, and EHIC. This is shown in the following table:
| E112/S2 and EHIC claims | £ |
Neuroblastoma
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much money his Department spent raising awareness of neuroblastoma in each of the last three years; [124271]
(2) if he will estimate the long-term cost to the NHS of funding the three-drug treatment for people with neuroblastoma if it were available on the NHS. [124273]
Anna Soubry: The Department has allocated no funding to raise awareness of neuroblastoma in the last three years. On 12 January 2011, we published “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”, which sets out how the Government had committed over £450 million over the following four years to support earlier diagnosis of cancer. This money is being used to raise awareness of the symptoms of cancer; fund increased general practitioner access to diagnostic tests; and pay for more testing and treatment in secondary care.
The Strategy also set out our commitment to work with a number of rarer cancer-focused charities to assess what more can be done to encourage appropriate referrals to secondary care and to diagnose rarer cancers earlier. Further work has been undertaken with a number of these charities, including those concerned with children's cancers, with the aim of identifying some of the barriers to early diagnosis and to discuss potential solutions. As a result, we are hoping to pilot a more general symptom awareness campaign in January 2012 that will be relevant to a range of cancers, including those that affect children.
The total funding for awareness activity in 2012-13 is £11.75 million. This includes funding for additional awareness activity that will support regional pilots of our previously tested local campaigns on blood in urine and on breast cancer symptoms in women over 70 and test local campaign activity for ovarian cancer. This money also paid for the national “Be Clear on Cancer” bowel cancer reminder campaign that ran from 28 August 2012 for four weeks.
The three-drug treatment for neuroblastoma to which we believe the question refers is offered in the United States of America part of clinical trial involving monoclonal antibody therapy delivered with two cytokines. While there is agreement among neuroblastoma specialists that children should be offered monoclonal antibody treatment, the question of whether the antibodies should be given with cytokines, which increase the toxicity of the treatment, is the subject of research trials undertaken here and in Europe. Doctors in this country continue to collaborate with European and American colleagues to learn more about the use of immunotherapy in the
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treatment of neuroblastoma. In the United Kingdom, the trials of monoclonal antibody therapy delivered with cytokines are led by Dr Penelope Brock from Great Ormond Street Hospital as part of the UK Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group. The National Institute for Health Research Cancer Research Network is providing the national health service support for these trials.
Whether this treatment should become the widely accepted treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma patients will be subject to peer review following completion of the trial, the evaluation of trial data by both the Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, and licensing of the treatment. This process would have to be completed before the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence could consider appraising the use of monoclonal antibody treatment for the treatment of neuroblastoma.
More generally, decisions regarding the treatment a patient receives are made on a case by case basis, taking into account the individual clinical circumstances of that patient. The Department does not estimate costs for the delivery of particular treatment regimes.
Prostate Cancer
Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to provide services for people diagnosed with prostate cancer. [124462]
Anna Soubry: In 2008, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published the clinical guideline “Prostate cancer: diagnosis and treatment”. This sets out recommendations on the tests, treatment, care and support that men who have suspected or diagnosed prostate cancer should be offered. This guidance will continue to be a feature of all commissioned prostate cancer services.
To ensure that these recommendations continue to reflect the latest available evidence, NICE is currently updating this guideline. NICE is also developing a prostate cancer Quality Standard alongside the update of the clinical guideline. Quality Standards are a concise set of statements designed to drive and measure priority quality improvements within a particular area of care. They are derived from the best available evidence such as NICE guidance and other evidence sources accredited by NICE.
Surgery: Age Groups
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been denied surgery for (a) cancer, (b) hernia repairs and (c) joint replacements on age grounds in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012 to date, by age group and region. [124258]
Norman Lamb: The Department does not centrally collect this information.
The Government introduced a ban on unjustifiable age discrimination from 1 October 2012. The ban is being implemented within the national health service with no exceptions. Decisions on referrals for surgery should be based on a thorough assessment of the individual's needs and circumstances. Chronological age must not be used as a substitute for an individual assessment of a person's needs.
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Thalidomide
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether thalidomide is still prescribed for any conditions; [124091]
(2) what information his Department holds on how many babies were born worldwide with thalidomide disabilities; [124092]
(3) what assessment he has made of the value of his Department's funding for the health needs of people with thalidomide disabilities; what plans he has to extend such funding beyond three years; and if he will make a statement. [124093]
Norman Lamb: Thalidomide is listed in the British National Formulary as a possible treatment for leprosy and untreated multiple myeloma. Information on its use in primary and secondary care, in the most recent available calendar year, is shown in the tables.
| Primary care: Thalidomide prescription items written in the United Kingdom and dispensed in the community in England—2011 | |
| Number | |
| Source: Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) system | |
| Secondary care: Thalidomide used in hospitals in England—2011 | |
| Number | |
| (1) Thalidomide is available in packs of 50 milligrams containing 28 capsules. The figure for the number of packs is therefore not a direct measure of the physical quantity used, the number of times the medicine was used nor the number of patients treated. Source: IMS HEALTH: Hospital Pharmacy Audit | |
The Department has no official information on the numbers affected by Thalidomide worldwide, but the Thalidomide Trust estimates between 22,500 to 25,000 children in 46 countries were born with deformities, such as phocomelia, as a consequence of the drug. The former Minister of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton and Cheam (Paul Burstow), met with the hon. Member for Elmet and Rothwell (Alec Shelbrooke), chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group, along with members of the Thalidomide Trust and the National Advisory Council, in June. At that meeting, he committed to providing a decision on future funding in the autumn of this year. I have since repeated that commitment.
Tobacco: Packaging
David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to announce his decision on standardised packaging of tobacco; and whether he plans to publish his Department's response to the consultation on standardised packaging of tobacco products. [124276]
Anna Soubry: The Department is currently analysing the very large number of responses received to the “Consultation on standardised packaging of tobacco products” and will publish a report of the consultation in due course.
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Any decisions to take further policy action on tobacco packaging will only be taken after consideration has been given to the consultation responses, evidence and other relevant information.
Training
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 October 2012, Official Report, column 175W, on training, what the cost was of the training; and which company provided the training. [124313]
Dr Poulter: The training was provided by Millbank Media at a cost of £500.
Communities and Local Government
Domestic Waste: Disposal
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities submitted a final bid to his Department's Weekly Collection Support Scheme by the deadline of 17 August 2012. [124046]
Brandon Lewis [holding answer 19 October 2012]: The Weekly Collections Support scheme fund is over subscribed and all £250 million will be fully allocated so millions of families will receive a weekly residual waste collection and recycling. The Department for Communities and Local Government is currently assessing the final bids we received requesting funding from the Weekly Collection Support scheme and Ministers will make a statement in due course.
Electric Cables
Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the volume of counterfeit or falsely marked electrical cabling imported into the UK in each of the last five years. [121602]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
Officials from BIS and its predecessor department have been discussing the issue of unsafe cables with UK manufacturers since 2009. I refer the hon. Member to parliamentary question 121603 that I am answering today. Therefore, I have made no estimates regarding the volume of counterfeit or falsely marked electrical cabling imported into the UK.
Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress his Department has made in preventing the import and installation of counterfeit or falsely marked electrical cabling. [121603]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
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Officials from BIS and its predecessor department have been discussing the issue of unsafe cables with UK manufacturers since 2009. BIS funded the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to undertake a market surveillance exercise in 2010 to assess the incidence of unsafe cables on the market. While HSE found a significant lack of awareness in business of administrative requirements of the relevant safety legislation they concluded that generally products were safe. As a result, HSE has been advising wholesalers and distributors about the legislative requirements, and follow-up visits have found a significant improvement in compliance with administrative procedures, including obtaining evidence of conformity with the technical requirements of the safety legislation.
English Defence League: Rotherham
Mr MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if he will estimate the economic effect on (a) shopkeepers in Rotherham, (b) Rotherham metropolitan borough council and (c) the wider Rotherham community as a result of the English Defence League march and rally in Rotherham on 13 October 2012; [124399]
(2) what assessment he has made of the effect on community cohesion of marches and rallies organised by the English Defence League in towns where British Muslim citizens live. [124401]
Mr Foster: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect data or make estimates or assessments on the economic effects or the effects on community cohesion of marches and rallies. Managing protest activity is the responsibility of local partners and we trust them to put in place suitable measures to minimise the impact on their communities.
To help local partners do this we have recently provided £200,000 to Luton borough council and Blackburn with Darwen borough council for them to jointly establish and lead a national Special Interest Group on the far right to tackle and challenge extremism. This will help local areas share their best ideas and come up with innovative solutions—including those that will help minimise the economic effects and the effects on community cohesion of marches and rallies.
Family Intervention Projects
Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many families were helped by family intervention projects partly or fully funded by the Government over the last five years. [124442]
Brandon Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 17 October 2012, Official Report, column 302W.
Foster Care: Barnsley
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information his Department holds on the average cost to Barnsley metropolitan council per foster child sent to a home outside the borough as a result of a lack of foster parents in each of the last five years. [122431]
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Mr Timpson: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Education.
The Department does not collect the information on these specific costs. On the basis of local authority returns on spending, we know that in the financial year 2010-11 Barnsley local authority spent £5.305 million on fostering services. The authority had 165 children in foster care at 31 March 2011, of whom 35 were placed outside of the local authority's boundaries. The cost of placing these children outside the local authority boundary is not centrally collected.
Mayors: Powers
Mrs Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his policy is on the powers available to elected mayors in respect of overturning a local authority decision on budgets and policy frameworks. [124233]
Brandon Lewis [holding answer 22 October 2012]: Mayors should have all the powers they need to exercise their executive responsibilities to fulfil the mandate their electorate has given them. Accordingly, within the totality of the budget and any broad strategic plan adopted by the council, mayors must be free to exercise their executive functions as they see fit and on which they are accountable to their electorate.
Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation
Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to lay the final accounts of the Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation; and if he will make a statement. [124095]
Brandon Lewis: Work is ongoing to finalise the accounts of the Thurrock Development Corporation, which will be laid in Parliament as soon as possible.
Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff were employed by the Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation on 15 October 2012. [124096]
Brandon Lewis: On 15 October 2012 the Thurrock Development Corporation employed six staff and two board members.
Energy and Climate Change
Energy Company Obligation
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of how different building types will be able to take advantage of energy company obligation measures. [124479]
Gregory Barker:
All domestic building types will be eligible for support under the energy company obligation (ECO) affordable warmth and carbon saving communities obligations, subject to the other eligibility criteria of the scheme. The ECO carbon saving obligation will be
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available for energy efficiency measures in harder to treat domestic properties, such as those that require solid wall or hard-to-treat cavity insulation.
Ultimately it will be for the obligated energy suppliers to target households to meet their share of the ECO in the most cost-effective way, in light of the distribution of technical potential for delivery of ECO eligible measures across the housing stock as a whole.
Home Department
Anti-Semitism
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of anti-Semitic attacks during Jewish high holy days in (a) 2011 and (b) 2012 to date; and if she will make a statement. [R] [124194]
Mr Foster: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.
Individual police forces collate and analyse intelligence on the number of anti-Semitic attacks in order to inform local operational decisions and to provide adequate protection at times of demand. In addition, the Association of Chief Police Officers analyses this intelligence, to inform forces of any emerging challenges. Data on attacks on Jewish high holy days is not separately identified.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to protect the Jewish community from anti-Semitic attacks; and if she will make a statement. [R] [124195]
Mr Foster: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.
Hate crime, including that targeting a person's religion, is an issue the Government take very seriously. We work with the Association of Chief Police Officers and other partners to encourage the reporting of all hate crime and improve the response of the police and other criminal justice agencies to ensure better protection for victims.
The Cross-Government Working Group on anti-Semitism and the police regularly meet representatives of the Jewish community to discuss actions to protect the Jewish community against anti-Semitic attacks. The anti-Semitism Working Group and the Cross-Government Hate Crime Strategy Board have a number of actions in train to tackle anti-Semitism, which are reassessed on a regular basis. These include funding the security needs of Jewish faith schools within the state school sector, challenging anti-Semitism in online media, improving the recording of all hate crime, including anti-Semitic hate crimes, and improving the training of hate crime prosecutors.
Offences against Children
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of her Department's budget was allocated to tackling child abuse in each of the last five years; and what proportion of her Department's budget she intends so to allocate in each financial year up to 2015-16. [122605]
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Mr Jeremy Browne: The police have a statutory duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004. Child protection and child abuse investigation is part of core front line policing and forms a critical part of police public protection responsibilities.
The allocation of funding for public protection arrangements is a matter for the relevant chief officer.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to answer Question 122422, on ballot papers for the Police and Crime Commissioners elections in Wales. [124573]
Damian Green: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 23 October 2012, Official Report, column 764W.
Transport
Bus Services
Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether (a) his predecessor, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have held meetings with bus operators where the subject of excluding Quality Contracts from the Better Bus Areas incentive was discussed. [124448]
Norman Baker: The Better Bus Area working group, which includes representatives from both bus operators and local authorities, has discussed the subject of excluding or otherwise Quality Contracts from the Better Bus Areas incentive. Neither the current Secretary of State, nor his predecessor, has held meetings with bus operators where the subject of excluding Quality Contracts from the Better Bus Areas incentive was discussed.
Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the implications of excluding Quality Contract applications from eligibility for Better Bus Area funding. [124449]
Norman Baker: At present no local authority has introduced a Quality Contract Scheme (QCS) within their local area. As stated in the published consultation our intention is that:
“Bus Service Operator Grant (BSOG) for bus services in any area where a Quality Contract Scheme is made—and where all services are tendered—will be devolved.”
It is not our intention that any tendered services should attract Better Bus Area funding.
However, as stated in our consultation:
"A local transport authority with plans for a QCS would not be automatically ineligible to bid for Better Bus Area status. However, strong partnership between the authority and bus operators will be an essential criterion when assessing bids for Better Bus Area status and this criterion would not be relaxed for authorities with plans for a QCS. Any authority both developing a QCS and seeking BBA status would need to demonstrate the same standard of partnership working and support from local bus operators for the BBA bid as any other bidding authority. They would also need to spell out how their plans would be taken forward both with and without a QCS in place."
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That all notwithstanding, I will consider how best to take forward the BSOG reform proposals in light of the responses to our consultation, which ends on 12th November. No decisions have been taken.
Bus Services: EU Law
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 May 2012, Official Report, column 276W, on bus services, when he expects to consult on enforcement of and exemptions to EU Regulation 181/2011. [124567]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport launched a consultation exercise on how to apply EU Regulation 181/2011 in Great Britain on 18th July 2012, seeking views on the use of available exemptions, enforcement arrangements and designating terminals where guaranteed assistance is provided to disabled passengers.
The consultation closed on 11th October 2012.
Directly Operated Railways
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has (a) sought and (b) received advice from his officials of the necessity to expand the capacity of Directly Operated Railways. [124396]
Mr Simon Burns: Directly Operated Railways' principal activity is the management and support of train companies that are returned to temporary public ownership under the obligation to act as operator of the Last Resort. The Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), has sought and received advice on the capacity that may be required to meet this requirement in respect of the West Coast Main Line.
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff have been employed each year by Directly Operated Railways since its inception. [124397]
Mr Simon Burns: The number of Directly Operated Railways staff, also expressed as their full-time equivalent, as at 31 March in each of the financial years ended on that date as follows:
| March 2010 | March 2011 | March 2012 | |
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he anticipates that the number of staff employed by Directly Operated Railways will increase over the next three years. [124398]
Mr Simon Burns: The role of Directly Operated Railways (DOR) is to oversee the management and development of any Rail Franchise over which the Secretary of State has exercised their powers under section 30 of the Railways Act. At present the East Coast Franchise is operating under these powers and DOR has an appropriate organisation to fulfil these obligations.
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While there are no planned changes currently, if the Secretary of State changes the role of DOR this will result in organisational changes to reflect the revised role.
Durham Tees Valley Airport
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has made to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on Durham Tees Valley airport's bid to the Regional Growth Fund. [124585]
Mr Simon Burns: The former and current Secretary of State for Transport made no representations to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills in respect of Durham Tees Valley airport's bid to the Regional Growth Fund.
Heathrow Airport: Air Pollution
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will (a) make an assessment of the potential effect on air quality of a third runway at Heathrow and (b) submit that assessment to the Independent Commission on Aviation chaired by Sir Howard Davies. [124609]
Mr Simon Burns: The Airports Commission has been asked to consider all relevant factors in producing its recommendations, including the impacts of any options upon air quality. The Government will set out its overall objective for the air quality impacts of aviation via the final Aviation Policy Framework, which it will publish by March 2013. The Commission will be able to take this into account in its work.
High Speed 2 Railway Line
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what budget his Department has allocated for High Speed 2 for (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015. [124338]
Mr Simon Burns: The budget allocated by the Department to High Speed Two Ltd for the years specified is set out in the following table.
| £ million | |
This budget includes work on the hybrid Bill for the London to Birmingham phase, as well as preparatory work on the second section of the high speed rail network.
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when (a) he and (b) his predecessor last met BAA to discuss the connection of High Speed 2 to Heathrow airport. [124392]
Mr Simon Burns:
Neither the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), nor his predecessor, have had discussions with BAA concerning the connection of
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High Speed 2 to Heathrow airport. However, officials from HS2 Ltd last met with BAA in June, and meetings were held periodically before then.
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what allowance his Department has made for subsidising the operating costs of proposed High Speed 2 services to Heathrow airport via the spur. [124393]
Mr Simon Burns: My Department has calculated the operating costs of the High Speed 2 services as a whole, as detailed in the Economic Case: Value for Money Statement, which is available from the DFT website.
The modelling undertaken for the economic case suggests that, even when the impacts on the existing network are accounted for, HS2 services would be operationally profitable over the appraisal period.
Large Goods Vehicles: Rural Areas
Laura Sandys: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department holds on (a) how many villages in the UK have restrictions on heavy goods vehicles travelling through them and (b) how many times a county council has imposed such a restriction. [124616]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport does not hold information on the number of villages that have restrictions on heavy goods vehicles travelling through them or on the number of times that councils have implemented such restrictions. It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities to decide whether or not to implement such restrictions on their roads.
Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the introduction of the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012. [122264]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport will issue internal guidance on the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 before its provisions come into effect next year, and ensure that consideration of its provisions is addressed in business cases for the commissioning of public services.
Public Transport: Rivers
Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what strategy his Department has in place to help cities develop water taxi services. [124472]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport does not have a specific strategy in place to help cities develop water taxi services. Local transport authorities are responsible, through their Local Transport Plans, for identifying the transport challenges their areas face and for the implementation of appropriate solutions to address these. This includes water taxi services.
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Railways
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what innovations which have benefited passengers have been provided by (a) InterCity West Coast, (b) Great Western, (c) Essex Thameside and (d) Thameslink in each of the last five years. [124366]
Mr Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Transport contracts with train operators through franchise agreements to provide rail services including improvements for passengers. This is the minimum level of service a train operator must provide, but it is free to implement innovations over and above those contracted commitments. The public register of franchise agreements can be found on the Department for Transport's website and this contains a list of the committed obligations in each agreement. Any further initiative developed by the operator will not be held by the Department. The Department does not hold a record of all innovations that train operators have developed and implemented.
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the at-risk investment made by (a) InterCity West Coast, (b) Great Western, (c) Essex Thameside and (d) Thameslink franchises in each of the last five years; and what improvements such investment was intended to support. [124367]
Mr Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Transport contracts with train operators through franchise agreements to provide rail services including committed obligations. This is the minimum level of investment a train operator must provide in delivering the rail service and as this commitment to invest in the railway forms part of the contract, no such investment is at risk. The public register of franchise agreements can be found on the Department for Transport's website and this contains a list of the committed obligations in each agreement. Train operators are free to make investments over and above those that they are contracted to deliver. Any further initiative developed by the operator will not be held by the Department.
Railways: Franchises
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the loss of investment arising from delays in the franchising of the (a) InterCity West Coast, (b) Great Western, (c) Essex Thameside and (d) Thameslink franchises. [124368]
Mr Simon Burns: No estimate has been made of any loss of investment arising from the suspension of the franchising programme. A number of major investments in infrastructure and fleet are being made by the Department and will proceed as scheduled.
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimates his officials have provided in respect of the end date of the (a) InterCity West Coast, (b) Great Western, (c) Essex Thameside, (d) Thameslink, (e) Integrated Kent, (f) South Central, (g) InterCity East Coast, (h) Greater Anglia, (i) TransPennine Express, (j) East Midlands, (k) West Midlands, (l) Cross Country, (m) South West and (n) Chiltern franchises; and whether any such estimates have been increased. [124369]
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Mr Simon Burns: The Department is currently assessing the impact of the suspension of the programme for rail franchises, including those listed, and the implications for the time scales for awarding of contracts. This will ensure continuity of services while establishing the right approach in terms of affordability and value for money. Once this has been finalised and agreed we will provide an update to the House.
Future franchise competitions will incorporate the findings of the Brown Review which will report by the end of December. The terms of reference for the Review have been laid in the Library of the House.
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his officials or consultants have provided him with any estimate of the cost to the taxpayer of delaying the (a) East Coast, (b) Great Western, (c) Essex Thameside and (d) Thameslink franchises. [124370]
Mr Simon Burns: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not been provided with an estimate of the cost to the taxpayer of delaying the East Coast, Great Western, Essex Thameside and Thameslink franchises. Future arrangements for these franchises will be made once the outcome of the two independent reviews, being undertaken by Sam Laidlaw and Richard Brown, are known.
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department is making any preparations for Directly Operated Railways to assume control of the (a) Great Western, (b) Essex Thameside and (c) Thameslink franchises when they expire. [124394]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department is currently not making preparations for Directly Operated Railways to assume control of the Great Western, Essex Thameside and Thameslink franchises. Future arrangements for these franchises will be made once the outcome of the independent reviews, being undertaken by Sam Laidlaw and Richard Brown, are known.
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what declarations of potential conflicts of interest have been declared by individuals or organisations involved in (a) the Laidlaw review of the West Coast Mainline and (b) the Brown review into franchising; and what his Department's response to those declarations was. [124395]
Mr Simon Burns: There have been no declarations of potential conflicts of interest by individuals or organisations involved in the Laidlaw Inquiry.
Decisions about who to involve in the Laidlaw Inquiry or the Brown Review are for Sam Laidlaw and Richard Brown respectively. Final decisions regarding input into the Brown Review have not yet been made.
I will ensure the House is updated in the event that any conflicts of interest are declared by individuals or organisations involved in the Brown Review.
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Thameslink Railway Line: Rolling Stock
Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects financial close to be reached for the Thameslink rolling stock contract. [124504]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department is expecting to reach financial close early in the new year.
West Coast Railway Line
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish the peak time loadings for the West Coast Mainline since 2010. [124337]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department for Transport receives information from train operating companies showing average passenger numbers on each service on arrival and departure from stations in a number of cities. This includes some stations on the West Coast Mainline. This information is commercially confidential.
The Department does, however, publish aggregate statistics showing peak passenger numbers, capacity provision and crowding in a number of major cities in England and Wales. These figures can be found in the publication 'Rail passenger numbers and crowding on weekdays in major cities in England and Wales: 2011', which can be found on the DFT website at the following link:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/statistics/releases/rail-passenger-numbers-and-crowding-on-weekdays-2011
West Coast Railway Line: Franchises
Mr Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the estimated £40 million cost to the public purse of halting the procurement for the West Coast Main Line franchise includes consultancy fees paid to date. [124781]
Mr Simon Burns: The estimated £40 million cost incurred by bidders involved in the cancelled InterCity West Coast franchise competition does not include the costs incurred by the Department for consultancy services in support of this work.
Treasury
Gift Aid: Private Education
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many independent schools have received Gift Aid payments in each of the last three years; [124576]
(2) how many independent schools in (a) England and (b) the UK have registered for Gift Aid. [124578]
Sajid Javid: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not separately identify Gift Aid claims by reference to the types of organisations that make the claims.
HMRC records do not separately identify Gift Aid claims by separate countries of the UK.
Amounts of tax repaid to charities in the UK on donations under Gift Aid are published in Table 10.3 on the HMRC website at
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www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/charities/menu.htm
In 2011-12 a total of £1,057 million (provisional figure) was repaid to UK charities under Gift Aid.
Income Tax: Self-assessment
Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many non-UK EU nationals have completed self-assessment tax returns to HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last five years; and how many non-UK EU nationals are self-employed for tax purposes. [123451]
Mr Gauke: The information requested is available only at disproportionate cost.
Personal Savings: Older People
Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to encourage cash savings amongst over 50 year olds. [124593]
Sajid Javid: The Government's savings strategy is based on the principles of freedom, fairness and responsibility, and aims to meet the needs of consumers while remaining effective and affordable.
The Government have taken steps to support and encourage savers of all ages. These include:
1. Providing extensive tax relief on saving in ISAs, worth around £2 billion in 2011-12. ISAs are a popular savings product, held by almost 24 million people. To ensure the amount that people can save annually tax-free is not eroded by inflation, the Government indexed the amount that can be paid into ISAs each year.
Transparency and competition in the ISA market has also improved. Financial Services Authority (FSA) guidance now states that providers should include interest rates on savings account statements, and provide notice to consumers when an introductory or promotional rate of interest ends, or if there is a material change in the interest rate that will disadvantage the consumer. Following an Office of Fair Trading (OFT) review into cash ISA transfer times, the cash ISA industry has amended its guidelines to reduce the maximum transfer time from 23 to 15 working days, and this has been reinforced by similar changes to the ISA regulations.
2. Simple financial products will enable people to take responsibility for their finances and make better choices by helping them compare products and understand product features. The Government appointed Carol Sergeant to chair a steering group tasked with developing an initial suite of products. The group published an interim report for consultation in August 2012. The group considered the suitability of a range of deposit savings products to be accorded simple product status, focusing on two: an easy access account and a 30 day notice account. Carol Sergeant will continue to lead discussions with her steering group over the coming months and publish a final report in February 2013.
3. Financial access is important to give households the capability for better financial planning. To improve responsibility for personal savings the Government introduced the Money Advice Service, which among other services provides a free financial ‘healthcheck’.
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Revenue and Customs: ICT
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the commitment in page 30 of the coalition agreement to introduce transferable tax allowance for married couples, whether HM Revenue and Customs has begun to make the requisite information technology changes to give effect to this change. [124630]
Mr Gauke: The Government's commitment to bringing forward a proposal to recognise marriage through the tax and benefit system remains firm. We want to show we value commitment and will consider a range of options and bring proposals forward at the appropriate time.
Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services
Toby Perkins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what methods HM Revenue and Customs use to measure how long telephone callers are left on hold before being spoken to; and what plans he has to review these systems to improve their accuracy. [122674]
Mr Gauke: HMRC are able to accurately measure the length of time customers spend in a queue before speaking to an adviser. HMRC contact centres handle around 60 million calls per annum using a sophisticated telephone platform and technology that is standard across large contact centre operations and is designed to be robust and flexible when dealing with large, numbers of incoming telephone calls.
HMRC are committed to improving service levels for customers. On 10 August 2012, Lin Homer, HMRC's Chief Executive, announced up to an extra 1,000 staff for contact centres with the aim of answering 90% of the call attempts made, two years earlier than planned. This improvement in service levels will also reduce call waiting times.
Welfare Tax Credits
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the largest request for repayment of tax credits by HM Revenue and Customs was in each of the last five years. [124481]
Mr Gauke: The information is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Working Tax Credit: Wrexham
Ian Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of families in Wrexham constituency who will cease to receive working tax credit following changes made in the 2012 Budget. [124513]
Mr Gauke: The only change to tax credits made in Budget 2012 was to lower the working hours requirement for working tax credit, including the child care element, for couples with children where at least one partner is entitled to carer's allowance. This is likely to slightly increase the number of families that will be eligible for working tax credit. Constituency level breakdowns are not available.
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Northern Ireland
Corporation Tax
9. Mrs Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what her policy is on the devolution of corporation tax to Northern Ireland. [123810]
Mrs Villiers: The case for devolving corporation tax powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly has been put clearly to me by both Northern Ireland Ministers and business groups.
The ministerial working group which has been considering these matters met on Thursday. We will now produce a report to inform decisions and set out the conclusions of our work.
Welfare Reforms
10. Mr McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment she has made of the effect of the Government’s welfare reforms in Northern Ireland. [123811]
Mike Penning: The welfare reforms will bring many benefits to Northern Ireland. These include a simpler system that always rewards work, protection for the most vulnerable in society and a benefit system that is fairer to both the claimant and the taxpayer.
We will continue to work with the Executive about the best way of implementing the reforms in Northern Ireland’s particular circumstances.
Peace Walls
11. Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions she has had with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive on starting a process to dismantle peace walls in Belfast. [123812]
Mike Penning: Peace walls remain the responsibility of the Minister of Justice in Northern Ireland. We have had introductory discussions on a range of matters of mutual interest. This Government fully support his Department’s efforts to find alternative approaches to managing tensions at interfaces and addressing this legacy of division and segregation.
Public Disorder: Vehicles and Equipment
12. Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on providing additional funding to repair police, army and emergency service vehicles and equipment damaged during the recent public disorder in Northern Ireland. [123813]
Mike Penning: Issues relating to public order are devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly and are the responsibility of David Ford, the Minister of Justice in Northern Ireland. I have had no direct discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on this issue.
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This Government remain committed to ensuring that the PSNI is adequately resourced to meet the current level of threat and the provision of an additional £200 million security funding is a clear demonstration of our commitment.
Inward Investment
13. Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions she has had with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive on attracting inward investment. [123815]
Mrs Villiers: Responsibility for inward investment is largely a devolved matter. However, I have assured both the First and deputy First Ministers and the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, that the Government wants to work closely with the Executive to rebalance the Northern Ireland economy and help secure inward investment for Northern Ireland.
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps her Department plans to take to increase the amount of inward investment into Northern Ireland. [123808]
Mike Penning: Responsibility for inward investment is largely a devolved matter, but I have assured both the First and deputy First Ministers and the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment that the Government wants to work closely with the Executive to rebalance the Northern Ireland economy and help secure inward investment to Northern Ireland.
Human Trafficking
Mr Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what arrangements she has put in place for the views of the Northern Ireland Executive on human trafficking to be considered by her Department. [124226]
Mrs Villiers: Matters relating to human trafficking in Northern Ireland are devolved. The Northern Ireland Justice Minister, David Ford MLA, leads on this issue there. I understand that Mr Ford sits on the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group for Human Trafficking chaired by the Minister for Immigration, my hon. Friend the Member for Forest of Dean (Mr Harper). I understand the Minister of Justice recently announced the establishment of an Engagement Group to enable an exchange on this issue between his Department, relevant agencies and the NGO sector.
Politics and Government
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans she has to reform the political institutions at Stormont. [123814]
Mike Penning: A consultation on measures to improve the operation of the Northern Ireland Assembly closed yesterday. The consultation sought views on potential changes, including the development of a Government and Opposition and a reduction in the number of MLAs. We have been clear that any major reform would require widespread cross-community support.
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Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Arms Trade: Treaties
Dame Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if the Government will seek to strengthen the Arms Trade Treaty by including a requirement for a framework for the public reporting of activities covered by the Treaty; [124450]
(2) whether the Government will be seeking the removal of the defence co-operation clause from the current draft of the International Arms Trade Treaty; [124451]
(3) what steps his Department is taking to ensure that strict controls on the sale of ammunition and weapons parts and components are added to the current draft International Arms Trade Treaty. [124452]
Alistair Burt: The UK is committed to securing a robust and effective Arms Trade Treaty that enjoys the support of the widest possible range of states, and to continuing its leading role in the UN process. The UK is co-authoring a UN Resolution that will set the timing and modalities for a further conference to finalise work on the Treaty in March 2013.
Discussions are continuing and it is therefore not appropriate for me to elaborate on the UK's negotiating positions ahead of a possible conference next year. We will continue to work with the international community, civil society and the UK defence industry to secure the highest possible standards in a Treaty with the broadest support of the UN Membership.
Indonesia
Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government have provided assistance to the Indonesian government in its drafting of a new law on social organisations in Indonesia; what information his Department holds on whether the EU has provided any such assistance; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the new law on the development of civil society and on business transparency in Indonesia. [124083]
Mr Swire: No assistance has been provided to the Indonesian Government in its drafting of a new law on social organisations in Indonesia, nor, to the best of our knowledge, has the EU. We are actively following the progress of the Draft Bill on Civil Society Organisations (revision of Law 8/1985), that covers the development of civil society and on business transparency in Indonesia. We will continue to analyse this law as it moves through the drafting process.
Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the monetary value is of outstanding debt underwritten by the Government in relation to the purchase of military equipment by Indonesia. [124228]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The current total balance outstanding to UK Export Finance for Indonesian debt rescheduled through the Paris Club is £388 million. The debt was rescheduled
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into a number of agreements which also includes non-military debt. It is not possible to disaggregate the debt between military and non-military exports.
Mali
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the report dated 9 October 2012 by the UN Assistant General Secretary for Human Rights on Mali; and what recent discussions he has had with human rights and development organisations working in or monitoring the situation in Mali about ongoing abuses in the northern part of the country. [124572]
Mark Simmonds: The British Government agree with the assessment of the current human rights situation in Mali made by the UN Assistant General Secretary for Human Rights on Mali, and share his concerns that abuses perpetrated by rebel Islamist groups are becoming more systemic.
I have had a number of meetings to discuss Mali with human rights and developmental organisations, including Hervé Ladsous, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, and Barbara Stocking, Chief Executive Officer of Oxfam GB, to help return Mali to peaceful democracy via four main strands of work: security, which was a pre-cursor to the other strands; a long-term political solution; humanitarian support; and longer-term economic development. We will continue to work closely with our international partners, including human rights and development organisations, to achieve this goal.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian and security consequences of an escalation of the conflict in Mali; what consideration he is giving to alternatives to military intervention for securing a durable peace in Mali; and if he will make a statement. [124586]
Mark Simmonds: The British Government are concerned about the security situation in Mali and has called for a political solution to the crisis which respects and preserves the territorial integrity of Mali. Without urgent action against the growing threat from rebel Islamist groups, there is a real threat of further attacks in Africa and, possibly, beyond. The UN, in consultation with the Government of Mali, the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States, is leading on the development of a contingency plan for Mali in light of recent developments. The UN estimates that in the worst-case, the humanitarian situation could lead to the internal displacement of 180,000 people and over 450,000 refugees to surrounding countries.
The British Government supported making humanitarian contingency planning a high priority for the UN. We are also committed to working through the EU and its institutions to ensure that EU support in the region is co-ordinated, coherent and effective.
We look forward to the UN Secretary General's report on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 2071, which is due within 45 days of 12 October. We will then consider, in collaboration with other international partners, what further action is necessary.
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Middle East
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the findings of the Council for Arab-British Understanding's report entitled Palestinian detainees: no security in injustice published in September 2012; and if he will make a statement. [R] [124641]
Alistair Burt: I am aware of the Council for Arab-British Understanding's report on Palestinian detainees. Israel's extensive use of administrative detention has been raised on a number of occasions with Israel's ambassador to the UK and the Israeli Government, including with the Israeli Foreign Minister, Vice Prime Minister and National Security Adviser. We also funded and facilitated an independent report into the issue of child detainees by leading British lawyers:
http://www.childreninmilitarycustody.org/report/
We are urging the Israeli Government to take forward the recommendations from this report, including an end to shackling and night-time arrest of children, and the introduction of audio-visual recording of interrogations. The UK's ambassador to Israel has discussed the children in military custody report's findings with the Israeli Attorney General and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and we are continuing this dialogue. I have also written to the Israeli ambassador on the subject and have met Baroness Scotland, as one of the authors, to discuss follow up to this report.
Rwanda
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with the Department of the EU Commissioner on external affairs concerning restoration of aid payments to Rwanda in September 2012. [124069]
Mark Simmonds: Since the decision was taken in September to disburse half of the UK's delayed general budget support payment to Rwanda and to redirect the remaining amount to education and food security programmes, officials have had regular discussions with the EU Commission on a range of policy issues related to the situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, including aid to Rwanda. These issues have been discussed in EU working groups and management committees as well as with the Commission in country.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from his EU counterparts on the restoration of aid payments to Rwanda in September 2012. [124070]
Mark Simmonds:
Since the decision was taken in September to disburse half of the UK’s delayed general budget support payment to Rwanda and to re-direct the remaining amount to education and food security programmes, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has received no representations from EU counterparts. Officials have had regular discussions with EU partners on a range of policy issues related to the situation in eastern Democratic
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Republic of Congo, including aid to Rwanda. These issues have been discussed in bilateral meetings as well as EU working groups and management committees.
Culture, Media and Sport
Broadband Delivery UK
Chi Onwurah:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to the
24 Oct 2012 : Column 906W
answer of 18 October 2012,
Official Report
, column 390W, on Broadband Delivery UK, how many full-time equivalent staff
(a)
joined and
(b)
left Broadband Delivery UK in each of the quarters for which figures were given. [124568]
Mr Vaizey: The following table shows such data as we hold on leavers and joiners to Broadband Delivery UK. As well as external joiners and leavers (including specialist contractors), the figures include internal moves between Broadband and other teams within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
| 2011 | 2012 | ||||||
| Quarter | Pre-April | April to June | July to September | October to December | January to March | April to June | July to September |
Broadcasting Reception
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 15 October 2012, Official Report, column 21W, on broadcasting reception, (1) whether the UK planning model was accessed through Digital UK's postcode database when it was used by her Department to support the planning and implementation of the digital TV switchover; [124632]
(2) what the size of the model is. [124633]
Mr Vaizey: This is a matter for Ofcom, the independent broadcasting regulator. Accordingly, my officials spoke to Ofcom, who advised that the UK planning model is defined by the Joint Planning Project (JPP) (chaired by Ofcom) with input from each of the core JPP members (the BBC, Arqiva and Ofcom). The implementation of the model (ie how it is used to calculate coverage predictions etc.) is owned by the organisations who developed the software, the BBC and Arqiva, who each have their own version.
GCSE: Pendle
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what proportion of students at state schools in Pendle constituency achieved five or more GCSEs at grades (a) A* to C and (b) A* to E in each year from 1997-98. [123184]
Elizabeth Truss: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Education.
Information on the percentage of pupils in maintained schools in Pendle constituency achieving five or more GCSEs (including equivalents) at grades (a) A*-C and (b) A*-G for 1996/97 and from 2004/05 to 2010/11 is provided in the following table. Figures for the years 1997/98 to 2003/04 can be provided only at a disproportionate cost. Figures for pupils achieving five or more A* to E grades are not routinely produced and would be available only at a disproportionate cost.
| Number and percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4(1) achieving five or more GCSEs (including equivalents) at grades (a) A*-C and (b) A*-G years 1996/97 and 2004/05 to 2010/11(2): Coverage: Pendle parliamentary constituency, maintained schools (including academies and CTCs) | ||||
| Number of end of KS4 pupils gaining 5+ GCSEs at grades A*-C or equivalent | Percentage gaining 5+ GCSEs at grades A*-C or equivalent(1) | Number of end of KS4 pupils gaining 5+ GCSEs at grades A*-G or equivalent | Percentage gaining 5+ GCSEs at grades A*-G or equivalent(1) | |
| (1) Percentages of pupils for 2004/05 to 2010/11 are based on pupils at the end of key stage 4 in each academic year. For 1996/97 the percentage is based on pupils aged 15. (2) Figures for 1996/97 and 2004/05 to 2010/11 are based on final data. Source: National Pupil Database | ||||
Members: Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when she plans to answer the letter sent to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 3 September 2012 with regard to Mr A Rowaichi and forwarded to her on 10 September 2012. [124544]
Hugh Robertson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State responded to the letter of September 2012 from the right hon. Member on 22 October 2012. The response was sent in hard copy to his parliamentary office.
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Non-departmental Public Bodies
Dan Jarvis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport which of the advisory non-departmental public bodies (NDPB) sponsored by her Department (a) hold public meetings, (b) conduct public consultation exercises, (c) conduct consultation
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exercises with outside commercial interests,
(d)
publish a register of members' interests,
(e)
publish agendas for meetings and
(f)
publish the minutes of meetings; and whether each NDPB is under a statutory requirement to do so in each such case. [122518]
Hugh Robertson: The information requested is set out in the following table:
The advisory NDPBs listed above are not under a statutory requirement to carry out points (a) to (f).
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Air Pollution: EU Law
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on the review of the EU Air Quality Directive; and if he will make a statement. [124305]
Richard Benyon: The UK welcomes the European Commission's Review of EU air quality policy, which is due to conclude in autumn 2013. Air quality has improved significantly over recent decades, but more needs to be done to reduce the damage air pollution causes to human health and ecosystems.
The Review is an opportunity to look again at the framework in light of the current air quality challenges, and ensure it is coherent with our wider objectives, including better regulation, climate change and economic growth.
A key priority for the UK will be to ensure that future EU vehicle emission standards are more effective than their predecessors in delivering the expected emission reductions for oxides of nitrogen. The Review, and any subsequent proposals for revisions to the legal framework, will need to reflect available and emerging evidence on real world performance of diesel road vehicles.