Children: Methadone
Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children who were the subject of serious case reviews died from ingesting methadone in each of the last three years. [139182]
Mr Timpson: Since 10 June 2010 Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) have published a total of 37 overview reports of serious case reviews (SCRs). These relate to SCRs both initiated and published since 10 June 2010. These include one death of a child from ingesting methadone, Bristol Child K, which was published 4 September 2012.
In addition the Department is aware of approximately 120 executive summaries of SCRs which have been published by LSCBs since 10 June 2010. The Department does not hold data on which of these cases related to methadone ingestion.
Children's Centres
Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how may (a) children's centres and (b) Sure Start centres have closed in (i) Hounslow, (ii) London, (iii) each region of the UK and (iv) total in each of the last three years. [139360]
Elizabeth Truss [holding answer 25 January 2013]:Information supplied by local authorities about Sure Start Children's Centres, as at 31 December 2012, shows the following information:
| Closures for (i) Hounslow, (ii) London, (iii) each other English region | ||
| Number of closures recorded by local authorities since April 2010 | ||
| (iv) Total in each of the last three years | |||
| Financial years April-March | |||
| 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | |
Correspondence
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will place in the Library a copy of any written or email communication between Ministers, special advisers or officials in his Department and Henry Dimbleby or John Vincent. [120037]
Elizabeth Truss: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education, agreed the terms of reference with the independent reviewers of school food, Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent. These were published on 4 July 2012 and are available at
http://www.education.gov.uk/schoolfoodplan
We will also lay a copy of these in the House Libraries and the findings of the review will be published later this year. Copies of the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Early Intervention Grant
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) how much his Department plans to allocate to the Early Intervention Grant in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15; [135519]
(2) with reference to table 3: Transfers Affecting Formula Grant: 2012-13 and 2013-14 of the documents supporting the consultation on local government finance allocations published on 19 December 2012, for what reasons the value of the early intervention grant is less than that stated in the business rates retention technical consultation published in July 2012; [135884]
(3) for what reasons his Department has adjusted the value of the early intervention grant in 2012-13 to £1,919.4 million; [135885]
(4) pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2012, Official Report, column 559W, on early intervention funding, how much his Department plans to hold back in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15. [135836]
Elizabeth Truss [holding answers 7 and 9 January 2013]: The Early Intervention Grant (EIG)—along with a number of other central Government grants—will from 2013-14 become part of the new local government funding scheme (the Business Rates Retention scheme). The EIG allocation for local authorities will be visible within Business Rates Retention funding in 2013-14 and 2014-15.
The Department for Communities and Local Government published a number of documents as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement on 19 December 2012. As part of this, the value of the Early Intervention Grant (EIG) in 2012-13 was notionally adjusted to enable a like for like comparison with 2013-14 and 2014-15, when funding for two-year-old early education and the funding centrally retained to support early intervention will not form part of the EIG. These were included in the EIG in 2012-13. The total amount of grant local authorities will receive in 2012-13 will not be affected by the 19 December announcement.
As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education, has previously explained, the overall funding for early intervention is increasing, from £2.2 billion in 2011-12 to £2.5 billion in 2014-15. The transfer of funding for early education for two-year-olds from lower income households from the EIG to the Dedicated Schools Grant reduced the size of the EIG from 2012-13 to 2013-14. However, this funding is still allocated to local authorities. In 2013-14 the total EIG itself will be £1,708,918,200, and in 2014-15 it will be £1,600,026,400. The value of the early intervention grant has been reduced in 2013-14 by 1% as a result of the 1% reduction to Departments' resource budgets announced at the autumn statement, and by 2% in 2014-15 as a result of the 2% reduction in the Department's resource budgets in that year.
It is not possible for the Department to comment upon the answer of 17 December 2012, Official Report, column 559W, as this does not relate to departmental policies. However, pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2012, Official Report, column 580W, on early intervention
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funding, I can confirm that as previously announced £150 million will be retained in 2013-14 and 2014-15 to support early intervention.
The Government have now announced that this will be returned to local authorities in 2013-14 in the form of a one-off Adoption Reform Grant. This funding will provide financial support for adoption to improve the recruitment and approval of adopters, provide better support for them, and tackle the backlog of over 4,600 children waiting to be adopted. A written ministerial statement from the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Mr Timpson), on 24 January 2012, Official Report, columns 20-22WS, announced this package of funding for the adoption system.
Freedom of Information
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many people are employed by his Department to monitor and respond to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000; what level of training each such member of staff has received; and if he will make a statement. [139567]
Elizabeth Truss [holding answer 25 January 2013]:Responding to requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) is part of the day-to-day work of all officials within the Department. All staff are required to complete annual mandatory “Protecting Information training”, and be accredited to Level 1. They are supported by a team of 4.8 (full-time equivalent) staff providing advice, training, support and monitoring on all aspects of FOIA related work, including request casework and policy. Online guidance on the operation of the FOIA is also available to all staff.
GCE AS-Level
Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the statement made by the Under-Secretary of State for Education of 23 January 2013, Official Report, columns 315-26, on A-level Reform, if he will publish details of the advice that has been provided to his Department on the reform of AS level qualifications from (a) The Russell Group, (b) Universities UK and (c) 1994 Group. [139839]
Elizabeth Truss [holding answer 28 January 2013]: My right hon Friend the Secretary of State for Education, officials in the Department, and I have spoken to a range of university representatives, including the Russell Group, Universities UK and 1994 Group to discuss A level reform. These groups, and Higher Education Institutions affiliated to them, may also have responded to Ofqual's public consultation on proposed changes to A levels.
Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the Statement made by the Under-Secretary of State for Education of 23 January 2013, Official Report, columns 315-26, on A-level reform, whether his reforms of AS levels constitute a ministerial instruction to Ofqual. [139845]
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Elizabeth Truss [holding answer 28 January 2013]:My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education, wrote to the Chief Regulator on 22 January 2013 asking Ofqual to have regard to his policy of reforming AS levels. Section 129(6) of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 provides that in performing its functions Ofqual must have regard to such aspects of government policy as the Secretary of State may direct. Under the provisions of the Act, this letter constitutes a direction to Ofqual.
GCSE
Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children on free school meals have been in the bottom quintile of achievement of five A*-C GCSEs including English and mathematics in each local authority in England in each of the last five years. [139380]
Elizabeth Truss: Information on the proportion of children on free school meals in the bottom quintile of achievement of five A*-C GCSEs including English and mathematics cannot be produced.
Within the set of pupils achieving 5 or more GCSEs at grade A* to C (or equivalent) including English and mathematics GCSEs (or iGCSEs), no established methodology exists to enable ranking of pupils by performance, therefore pupils cannot be separated into quintiles of achievement.
Information on the percentage of children eligible for free school meals achieving 5 or more GCSEs at grade A* to C (or equivalent) including English and mathematics GCSEs (or iGCSEs) in each local authority for 2006/07 to 2011/12 is available in table 5 of the Statistical First Release (SFR) 'GCSE and equivalent attainment by pupil characteristics in England, 2011/12'. You can find the SFR at the following link:
http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics/statistics/allstatistics/a00219200/gce-and-equivalent-attainment-
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of looked-after children achieved five A* to C grades at GCSE level in each year since 2010 in each local authority area. [139905]
Mr Timpson: Table LA3 in the Statistical First Release 'Outcomes for Children Looked After by Local Authorities in England, as at March 2012' shows the percentage of children in each local authority who have been looked after continuously for at least 12 months and achieved five A* to C GCSEs and equivalents in the last five years. This Statistical First Release can be found on the Department's website via the following link:
http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics/statistics/a00217266/outcomes-children-looked-after-las-england-march-2012
Mathematics: Education
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to encourage the study of mathematics post-16; and if he will make a statement. [139590]
Elizabeth Truss: We are committed to encouraging the study of mathematics post-16. In June 2011 my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education, set out a goal, that the vast majority of students would study mathematics to the age of 18 within a decade.
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We have already announced that from September 2014 all students without a grade C or above in GCSE mathematics at age 16 will be required to continue to study towards a level 2 mathematics qualification.
We are funding the Further Mathematics Support Programme to improve take-up of Further Mathematics A-level and are funding Cambridge University and Imperial College to strengthen A-level mathematics curricula and teaching. In addition we are supporting Maths in Education and Industry (MEI) to develop a new mathematical problem solving curriculum and working with the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education on recommendations for new mathematics qualifications.
Pre-school Education: Finance
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much was allocated to each local authority for free entitlement to nursery education in each of the last five years; and how much such funding was spent on that entitlement in each local authority area in each such year. [139246]
Elizabeth Truss: Local authorities are funded for the free entitlement to early education for three and four-year-olds through the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), which supports the majority of education provision for children aged three to 16. The Department calculates a total amount of DSG for each local authority and distributes it to them—but does not separately identify an amount of funding for early education for three and four-year-olds. All decisions about the amount of DSG to be spent on early education are made by local authorities, in consultation with their Schools Forum.
Local authorities report on their financial expenditure through section 251 returns. These returns are published on the Department's website. Section 251 returns for the previous five year are available at:
http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/adminandfinance/financialmanagement/schoolsrevenuefunding/section251/archive
Additionally, the Department has recently published a foundation years benchmarking tool containing information about early years services in each local authority—including data on funding for free early education. This provides more detail on local authority planned spending, including a break down of planned spending to a per pupil level. The benchmarking tool can be accessed from the Department's website
http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/earlylearningandchildcare/delivery/b00211546/foundation-years-benchmarking-tool
From 2013-14 funding to extend early education places for two-year-olds from lower income households will be included in the Dedicated Schools Grant. The Government announced additional funding allocations to local authorities on 27 November 2012. Details can be accessed on the Department's website:
http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/earlylearningandchildcare/delivery/Free%20Entitlement%20to%20Early%20Education/b0070114/eefortwoyearolds/la-funding-allocations
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Schools: Food
Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2012, Official Report, column 101W, on schools: food, what work the external consultants will undertake on behalf of the School Food Plan. [139506]
Elizabeth Truss: The independent reviewers carrying out the School Food Plan have engaged external consultants—OC&C Strategy Consultants—to support their work. These consultants have undertaken a range of work to inform the reviewers' recommendations. They have focused particularly on data analysis and options development, alongside the Department for Education team supporting the reviewers.
Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2012, Official Report, column 101W, on schools: food, which external consultants are supporting the School Food Plan; how much they are being paid; and which organisations or individuals have contributed to the cost of employing them. [139507]
Elizabeth Truss: The independent reviewers carrying out the School Food Plan engaged OC&C Strategy Consultants to support their work. The Department has not contracted with, and is not paying for, these consultants and therefore cannot provide further information on this.
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Schools: Public Footpaths
Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department has made an assessment of the risk to children posed by public footpaths crossing school playing fields or running adjacent to them. [139880]
Mr Laws: No such assessment has been made. Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the employer in a school has an overall responsibility to take reasonable steps to ensure that staff and pupils are not exposed to risks to their health and safety. These steps include assessing all potential risks and what measures should be considered to counter those risks.
Senior Civil Servants
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c) left the Department for alternative employment, (d) been dismissed, (e) taken long-term sick leave and (f) taken administrative leave since May 2010. [139211]
Elizabeth Truss: Figures for the Department are as follows:
| SCS band 3(1) | SCS band 2 | SCS Band 1 | ||||
| Number | (2)% | Number | (2)% | Number | (2)% | |
| (1 )This figure included the Permanent Secretary. (2 )The % figure is based on the number of staff at May 2010. (3 )This figure is for staff that have transferred to other Government Departments or reached the end of a loan period. Staff that have left to take up private employment are included under 'resigned'. (4 )We don't recognise the term administrative leave. We have provided figures that include periods of maternity, paternity, and other special leave. | ||||||
Special Educational Needs
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many hon. Members have (a) submitted parliamentary questions and (b) written to him on the local offer in the forthcoming Children and Families Bill. [137555]
Mr Timpson: I understand that six hon. Members have asked questions specifically about the local offer. In addition records in my Department indicate that as at 16 January 2013, 270 hon. Members had written on matters relating to the local offer since draft legislation on SEN reform was published in September.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture
Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will consider changing his Department's name to reflect the influence of agriculture in its work. [139357]
Richard Benyon: There is no plan to change the Department's name.
Agriculture: Subsidies
Mr Tom Harris:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has made to (a) his European counterparts and (b) the European Commission regarding farms
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which raise bulls for bull fighting receiving indirect payments through the Single Payment scheme under the common agricultural policy. [139561]
Mr Heath: No such representations have been made recently. Although it is theoretically possible that some farms raising bulls for bullfighting do receive payments under the Single Payment scheme, these payments are directly related to the amount of land owned and not to the type of farming. Therefore, the issue is difficult to address.
Bees: Insecticides
Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made on the effects of the use of pesticides on the bee population; and if he will make a statement. [138840]
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will reconsider the Government's policy on the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in light of the European Food Safety Authority's ruling them an unacceptable danger to bees. [138938]
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the dangers posed to bees by the neonicotinoid insecticides clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. [138934]
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will issue new guidance to farmers following the assessment of the European Food Safety Authority on the risks posed by neonicotinoid insecticides on the survival and development of bee colonies. [138961]
Richard Benyon: Pesticides are tightly regulated in the UK in accordance with EU pesticides legislation and neonicotinoid insecticide products authorised for use in the UK meet the current standards set by the regulatory system. Legal restrictions are in place to limit the exposure of bees to these products. A code of practice is in place for professional pesticide users, such as farmers, on how and when pesticides are used so as to minimise the impact on bees. All pesticide users must comply with all the conditions of a product's authorisation which will include limitations on the use to a specific situation(s)/crop(s) along with application rates and timings, and where appropriate, the inclusion of specific risk mitigation measures on product labels to protect bees.
The Government have taken research on effects on bees seriously and we have not assumed that the existing controls are sufficient. We have carried out our own research into the impact of neonicotinoids on bees and are waiting for the results of work including a field study on bumble bees. This research will be reviewed by the independent Advisory Committee on Pesticides and their advice on the evidence will be considered by the Government. If it is concluded that restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids are necessary, they will be brought in.
UK experts are also participating in work in Europe to develop the risk assessment process for bees and to update the evaluations of neonicotinoids. Alongside
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our current work we are carefully considering the recent reports published by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) which review the risk assessments for three neonicotinoids (clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam) following a mandate from the European Commission. The reports consider the risks to bees from these insecticides and conclude that more data is needed to update the current risk assessments. As the EFSA makes clear in the reports, the assessments were carried out using existing regulatory data against new requirements which have yet to be agreed, and which reflect developments in regulatory science. Our initial view is therefore that the conclusions are to be expected (although we have raised concerns with the EFSA that these conclusions are not accurately represented in their accompanying Press Release). The EFSA reports will be considered by the European Commission who will decide whether to make a proposal for further regulation.
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what restrictions, warnings and safeguards exist on the sale and use of imidacloprid in this country. [138959]
Richard Benyon: Pesticide products containing imidacloprid meet the current standards set by the regulatory system and legal restrictions are in place to limit the exposure of bees to these products. The conditions of authorisation of imidacloprid products in the UK, as for all pesticide products, include limitations on the use to a specific situation(s)/crop(s) along with application rates and timings. These conditions, and advice on meeting them, are always on the product label. The authorisations for imidacloprid products also recognise the potential risk to bees by requiring product labels to include specific risk mitigation measures needed to protect bees according to the product use.
By law, professional pesticide users must be certificated and take all reasonable precautions when using pesticides to protect people and the environment. Pesticides must only be applied to the “land, crop, structure, material or other area being treated”. A code of practice for all professional pesticide users also provides guidance on minimising the exposure of bees.
Mr Spencer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the recent report published by the Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture on the socio-economic benefits of neonicotinoid pesticides. [140023]
Mr Heath:
DEFRA and the Health and Safety Executive's Chemicals Regulation Directorate (as the pesticides regulatory authority) are working to understand better the wider environmental and agronomic implications of possible restrictions on neonicotinoid insecticides. This includes consideration of the implications of alternative pesticides or pest control measures being used. We are considering the report of the Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture on the value of neonicotinoid seed treatment in the European Union in this context. The report provides a broad perspective on the current role of neonicotinoids.
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Bovine Tuberculosis
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has any plans to begin a badger cull in the original cull pilot areas of Gloucestershire and North East Somerset. [137326]
Mr Heath: Badger culling will be piloted in two areas this summer. We are working with the farming industry to ensure the pilots can be implemented effectively in 2013, in the best possible conditions, with the right resources.
Natural England issued West Somerset and Gloucestershire with licences for two badger cull pilots in 2012 and these licences remain valid.
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the compatibility of Natural England's advice to people carrying out the badger cull to avoid shooting near footpaths for public safety reasons with the mandatory requirement for them to access at least 70 per cent of the total land area. [137402]
Mr Heath: The Best Practice Guidance for the Badger Control Policy states that “care must be taken, in selecting sites for shooting to avoid shooting if there is any risk of accidental injury to humans e.g. near rights of ways.” This is in line with the Standardised Operating Procedures from the Randomised Badger Culling Trial (RBCT), on which evidence the policy is based. In the RBCT, cage traps were not located on or near footpaths but this did not exclude this land from the total land area accessible for shooting.
Dangerous Dogs
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to make an announcement on tackling irresponsible dog ownership. [139113]
Mr Heath: The Government will be making an announcement on a way forward on this issue shortly.
Farms: Floods
Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the effect that (a) removal of hedges to create larger fields, (b) converting from pasture to arable farming and (c) other changes in farming practice have on the rate of run-off from fields during periods of heavy rain and the extent to which this increases the severity of flooding. [139879]
Richard Benyon:
DEFRA has not made an assessment of those specific changes. However, research has been commissioned into the effects of wider rural land management change on flood risk. This concludes that while such changes may have local effects on flooding, there is no evidence of catchment scale impacts and any such effects are very difficult to measure and will vary from place to place. The following reports provide more details and can be found on the DEFRA website. The reports are: "Analysis of historical datasets to look for
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impacts of land use and management change on flood generation" and "Review of impacts of rural land use and management on flood generation: short term improvement in modelling and research plan".
Food: Safety
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what resources are available to (a) his Department and (b) other Government Departments to ensure a resilient network of public sector inspectors and specialist laboratories is in place to ensure compliance with food health and food labelling legislation; and if he will make a statement. [138671]
Mr Heath: The UK food control arrangements are set out in the UK Multi-Annual National Control Plan published on the Food Standards Agency website.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) monitors local authority official control activity levels through an annual return, available at:
http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/board/fsa121106.pdf
2011-12 returns from the 434 UK local authorities monitoring food hygiene and safety controls in these establishments indicate there were 2,709 full-time equivalent (FTE) professional staff engaged in this work—1,869 staff involved in food hygiene controls, and 840 in food standards controls such as composition and labelling.
LA annual returns to the FSA confirmed that they took 78,653 food samples, which underwent 92,181 analyses by Official Control Laboratories in 2011-12. These included:
18,219 compositional samples
11,879 samples of food for labelling and presentation
55,546 microbiological samples.
In the UK, official feed and food laboratories include Public and Agricultural Analyst Laboratories and other microbiological laboratories, which undertake work for local authorities (food examiners). The FSA is responsible for designating the majority of official feed and food control laboratories in the UK as required by Regulation (EC) 882/2004. The Food Standards Agency does not own or operate any of these laboratories.
Fracking
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the toxicity level of chemicals used or proposed for use in Cuadrilla Resources hydraulic fracturing operations. [138674]
Richard Benyon: An assessment of the toxicity of those substances that have been used for the hydraulic fracturing for shale gas has been undertaken in accordance with the requirements of the Groundwater Daughter Directive, This was done via a UK-wide group involving the UK environment agencies and the Environmental Protection Agency of the Republic of Ireland, known as JAGDAG (Joint Agencies Groundwater Directive Advisory Group). The group oversees interim assessments and gains peer review of the assessments within the UK agencies before formal determinations are consulted upon and adopted, with amendments where necessary.
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All the chemicals that companies planning fracking operations propose for use will be reviewed for classification into hazardous or non-hazardous. The Environment Agency has reviewed the chemicals proposed by Cuadrilla for the Lancashire exploration (gluteraldehyde and polyacrylamide) and is satisfied that they can be classified as non-hazardous under the Groundwater Daughter Directive. Chemicals which have been suggested for use for hydraulic fracturing for coal bed methane exploration will also be subject to the same review should they be formally proposed for use.
Grants
Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what grant-giving programmes are operated by (a) his Department and (b) the bodies for which he is responsible; and which such programmes award grants in Scotland. [129153]
Richard Benyon: The grant programmes run by core DEFRA, its Executive Agencies and executive non-departmental public bodies are set out as follows. These include grants awarded competitively and those that were a direct award.
Under the EU Promotion (of Agricultural Products) Scheme, trade bodies from all parts of the UK including Scotland are eligible to apply for co-funding from the internal market promotion scheme. The Rural Payments Agency handles the administration of this European commission scheme. This scheme and the Fisheries Challenge Fund administered by the Marine Management Organisation are the only ones as follows which award grants in Scotland.
Most of the remaining grants listed as follows cover areas which are devolved functions and so any similar work in Scotland would be administered directly by the Scottish Government. Other grants listed are for work carried out under DEFRA's international commitments.
Competitive Grant Awards
Cities Climate Adaptation
Darwin Initiative
Household waste reduction reward and recognition scheme (Phase 2)
Air Quality Grant Scheme
Rural Growth Network Scheme
Catchment Restoration Fund
Investor Carbon Disclosure Project 2012
Water Framework Directive Invasive Non-Native Species local Action Group Fund
Sustainable Development Case Studies from Olympic Games
The Severe Weather Impacts Monitoring System (SWIMS)
Flagship Species Fund
Action on Overheating in Homes Programme
Farm Crisis Network for the provision of business advice to farmers
Carbon Disclosure Project Water Supply Chain
National Contact Point Competitiveness and Innovation for Eco-Innovation
Competitive Grant Awards
Internal Market Promotion Scheme
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Direct Grant Awards
Rural Development Programme for England (except those run by Natural England or the Forestry Commission)
Single Payment Scheme
Competitive Grant Awards
Nature Improvement Areas
Access to Nature
National Trails
Special Scientific Interest Wildlife/Conservation Enhancement grants
Rural Development Programme for England:
Catchment Sensitive Farming
Paths for Communities
Direct Grant Awards
Coastal Protection Projects to Local Authorities
Flood Risk Projects to Local Authorities and Internal Drainage Boards
Property Resilience grants to Local Authorities
Grants to Local Authorities for the purposes of the Contaminated Land Capital Grants Scheme (Section 31 Local Government Act 2003)
Catchment Restoration Grants for the Water Framework Directive to Civil Society Groups (Section 70(1) Charities Act 2006)
Marine Management Organisation
Direct Grant Awards
European Fisheries Fund
Fisheries Challenge Fund
Competitive Grants
Programme Development Fund
Changing Landscapes Scheme
Parkland & Wood Pasture Scheme
Freewoods Scheme
Insecticides: Health Hazards
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential for harm to human health of the use of neonicotinoid insecticides. [138923]
Richard Benyon: Before any insecticide is authorised there is a thorough assessment of its potential effects on human health, based on a range of scientific tests. This assessment takes account of the different circumstances in which people may be exposed to pesticides—either by being in or near the treated area or by eating treated food. Safety for people is established by a suitably high margin between likely exposure and no effect doses in experimental animals. Products are not authorised if the exposure estimates are above the safe levels.
Neonicotinoid insecticides meet all the requirements for authorisation in terms of risks to human health.
The impacts of neonicotinoids on insects largely result from their strong binding to nicotinic receptors. The data strongly suggest that the binding of neonicotinoids to mammalian nicotinic receptors is much weaker than to insect receptors. In addition, scientific studies show
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that neonicotinoids are not as potent in vertebrates (including humans) as they are in insects. Although this does not mean there are no effects in mammals, there is a large margin between doses required to kill insects and doses of potential concern for people.
Livestock: Transport
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 8 January 2013, Official Report, column 207W, on livestock: transport, on which occasions the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency has (a) reported, (b) investigated and (c) prosecuted suspected breaches of welfare. [138251]
Mr Heath: The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) is not the authority responsible for investigating or prosecuting such incidents. AHVLA works with local authority Trading Standards Departments which will, if they deem it appropriate, carry out any investigations and take forward prosecutions. AHVLA has reported four incidents of suspected breaches of welfare by transporters going through the port of Ramsgate to local authorities since 2010 for investigation.
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will work with his EU counterparts to secure an EU-wide ban on the live transportation of animals for slaughter. [138547]
Mr Heath: The Government would prefer to see a trade in meat and germplasm rather than in live animals. However, we cannot ban what is a legitimate trade. In addition, from the exchange of views expressed at the Agriculture Council meeting on 18 June 2012, on the report made by the EU Commission on the impact of the legislation on the welfare of animals during transport (Council Regulation (EC) 1/2005) it is clear that there would be little or no support among other member states if the UK sought to introduce such a ban within the EU.
Members: Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to answer the letter sent to him by the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 31 October 2012 with regard to Ms E Woolry. [134197]
Mr Heath: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), replied to the right hon. Member's letter on 17 January 2013. I apologise for the delay.
Metropolitan Police
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding his Department allocated to the Metropolitan police in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; how much he plans to allocate in future years; and if he will make a statement. [139423]
Richard Benyon: DEFRA has not allocated any funds to the Metropolitan police in those years and has no current plans to do so in the future.
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Milk: Prices
Heather Wheeler: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average milk price paid to (a) British dairy farmers and (b) dairy farmers in other EU member states has been in each of the last five years; and what price is currently paid to those farmers. [138764]
Mr Heath: Annual average farmgate milk prices since 2007 can be found in the following table. The price shown for the EU is for all member states.
| UK pence per litre(1) | UK £ per 100kg | UK € per 100kg(2) | EU € per100 kg(3, 4) | |
| Sources: (1 )DEFRA (2 )OANDA historic exchange rates (3 )DG Agri (4 )For 2007 and 2008 EU figures are EU 15 and thereafter EU 27 | ||||
The most recent milk price figures available for both UK and the EU are for October 2012. This shows a UK average of 35.02 € per 100kg, which was above the EU27 average of 33.03 € per 100kg.
The most recent DEFRA milk price data shows the average UK price increased to a record level of 30.02 ppl for November 2012.
Schmallenberg Virus
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the effect on the economy of projections on the spread of Schmallenberg virus in the UK. [135030]
Mr Heath: DEFRA economists have predicted from epidemiological assessments that if 5% of sheep farms from the midlands south were found to be positive for Schmallenberg virus (SBV) affected malformed lambs with an in-flock prevalence of 10%, the costs to industry are estimated to be around £1 million. From infection that occurred in 2011, on-farm prevalence of malformations in lambing in spring 2012 has been 2-5%, and the regional prevalence of SBV across sheep farms in affected member states is estimated to be 6%.
There are currently no import or export bans for the UK. This is not a notifiable disease and as such trade bans are not appropriate. The Commission has issued a statement to reinforce this. However, several third country authorities have put additional requirements on exports of live ruminant and ruminant products, excluding milk products, which is having an impact on the export of germplasm.
At first there were some third country impacts, but these have mainly been resolved through bilateral agreements to provide some pre-export testing. However, the UK only has a limited export market for live cattle and sheep, so this is mainly impacting on the limited
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number of companies which export germplasm. We are continuing to work with the Commission and industry to support our exports.
Slaughterhouses
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many horse passports were submitted to UK abattoirs prior to slaughter in each of the last four years. [139527]
Anna Soubry: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department of Health.
The following table provides details of the number of horses with passports that were slaughtered in UK abattoirs in the last four years:
| Number of horses with passports that were slaughtered in UK abattoirs in the last four years | |
Trees
Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the abatement cost of mixed woodland planting; and what comparative assessment he has made of this cost and the estimated cost of carbon capture and storage for coal. [136703]
Mr Heath: Published values of the cost-effectiveness of woodland creation as an emissions abatement measure are typically in the range £0 to £100 per tonne CO2e. However, evaluating cost-effectiveness of woodland creation is highly complex and these values may therefore not be directly comparable with those for carbon capture and storage. For this reason, a contract has recently been let to develop a Marginal Abatement Cost Curve for woodland creation in the UK, fully consistent with Treasury guidance, to ensure that robust comparisons can be made in the future.
Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the forest planting rates were for the UK in each year from 1983 to 2012. [136710]
Mr Heath: The Forestry Commission produces statistics on a range of topics related to forestry including new planting and restocking after clear felling and these are published on its website at:
www.forestry.gov.uk/statistics
The UK figures for new planting and restocking from 1983 to 2012 are given in the following table:
| Thousand hectares | ||
| Year to 31 March | UK new planting | UK restocking |
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Trees: Diseases
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on transmission of tree diseases from other EU countries to the UK [138558]
Mr Heath: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), met EU Commissioner Borg on 17 January. They discussed various plant health issues including the UK Chalara control plan, the work of the independent Tree Health and Plant Biosecurity Task Force and the review of the EU Plant Health regime. The Secretary of State emphasised that he had made plant health one of the main departmental priorities alongside animal health.
Waste Management
John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on a zero waste economy. [135036]
Richard Benyon: The Government set out our policy in the 2011 Review of Waste Policy in England. It is to work towards an economy where material resources are fully valued, waste production is minimised and material resources are re-used, recycled or recovered wherever possible and only disposed of as a last resort.
A report on progress against the commitments in the Waste Review was published in March 2012.
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Justice
Alternatives to Prison
Sadiq Khan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many out of court disposals have been issued in
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(a)
England and Wales and
(b)
each police authority area in each year since 1997. [139640]
Jeremy Wright: The number of out of court disposal, administered in each police force area in England and Wales, in each year from 1997 to 2011 (latest data available), can be viewed in the following tables.
| Number of offenders given an out of court disposal(1), by police force area in England and Wales, 1997-2011(2,3) | ||||||||
| Police force area | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| Police force area | 2005(4) | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
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| n/a = Not available. (1) Includes cautions, Penalty Notices for Disorder (PNDs) for offenders aged 16 and over, and formal warnings for cannabis possession. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) The cautions statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When an offender has been cautioned for two or more offences at the same time the principal offence is the more serious offence. (4) Penalty Notices for Disorder and formal warnings for cannabis possession were introduced nationally in 2004. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice | |||||||