30 Jan 2013 : Column 787W
Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 30 January 2013
Home Department
Immigration: Married People
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date her Department's policy was changed so that applicants to enter, remain and settle in the UK on the basis of marriage and civil partnerships who were refused were referred to the right of appeal rather than being granted a review of their case. [140339]
Mr Harper: The UK Border Agency implemented its reconsiderations policy, and published it on its website, on 13 November 2012. The policy states the limited circumstances in which the UK Border Agency is prepared to reconsider casework decisions, including decisions on applications to enter, remain and settle in the UK on the basis of marriage and civil partnerships.
London Crime Reduction Board
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to attend meetings of the London Crime Reduction Board; and if she will make a statement. [139432]
James Brokenshire: Home Office Ministers have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues and others as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Procurement
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which private sector companies hold contracts with her Department; and what proportion of total procurement each such contract represents. [140301]
James Brokenshire [holding answer 29 January 2013]: The Home Department has contracts with the third party suppliers set out as follows in the financial year 2012-13:
Suppliers holding contracts with the Home Department in FY 2012-13:
B-N Group, Specialist Aircrew Ltd, PremiAir Aviation Services, Police Aviation Services SIB
192.com (ICD Publishing)
3M
3M Cogent Inc., UK
3MSP & S
ABP connect
Accor Services
Action Handeling
Acumen Consortium (Amtec)
30 Jan 2013 : Column 788W
Adare
Adecco
Adoption Counsellor (Gill Lee)
Advantage Technical Resourcing
Airwave
Airwave Solutions Ltd
Allen Lane
Allstar
Alpine Consulting
Alteria Consulting
Amanda Cowan Associates
Amey Business Services Ltd, Interserve
Amey Community Services
Angel (London) Ltd
Ann Marie Pugh Ltd (AMP)
Annabelle McMillan
Annes Gate Property
Appollo Cleaning Service Ltd
Arc Legal Assistance
Arnold Clark
Arqiva
Arqiva Ltd
ASE/Sogeti
ASE Consulting
Ashridge Consulting Ltd
Asperity
Atkins Limited
Atos
Atos Origin
Autoscan
Avanti, formerly Shell
Aviva
AXA ICAS
BAA (LHR)
Babcock Marine and Technology Ltd
Babcock Nuclear Services Ltd
Badenoch and Clark
Baker Tilley Tax and Accounting Ltd
Bang Communications Ltd
Banner
Banner Business Supplies
Barclaycard
Barts and London NHS Trust
Beaver Group
Biffa
Bramshill Sports and Social Club
Braun
Brightsolid
Brijot Imaging Systems Inc
British Standard Institution (BSI)
British Telecommunications Ltd
Broadcasting Support Services
Brook Street
Brook Street and Hays
Bruel and Kjaer UK Limited (106810)
BT
BT/DFTS
Bunzl
Buying Solutions
30 Jan 2013 : Column 789W
BYG
BYG Systems Ltd
Caada
Cable and Wireless
Cable and Wireless Worldwide
Cable and Wireless
Calder Conferences Ltd
Calders Conferences
Callcredit Limited
Camden Creative Ltd
Canon
Canon UK Ltd
Capita
Capita (Affinity)
Capita Business Service Ltd
Capita Group
Capita Hartshead Limited
Capita HR Solutions
Capita IT via SPRINTii Framework (SCC)
Capita Resourcing
Capita Secure Information Services, Ultra Electronics, Damovo UK Ltd
Careline
Carlson Wagonlit Travel
Cartus
Catch 22
CBJ Business Psychologists Ltd
CDS
Certes Computing
CESG
Chelton
Chubb Systems Ltd
City Cabs
Clearsprings (Management) Ltd
CNLR Ltd
Cobham
Cobham Tactical Communications and Surveillance Ltd
Computacenter
ComputerShare Voucher Services
Comscore
Concateno
Concerto Consulting
Corprotex
Corven
Courts Advertising
Cranfield University
Crescent Machinery
Cripps Harries Hall
Crown Relocations
CSC
CSC Computer Sciences limited
Culligan International
Cyclescheme ltd
Darbey Valeting
DE LA RUE
Deloitte LLP
Denly Praill Editorial and Design
Detica
Development Partnership
30 Jan 2013 : Column 790W
DHL
Digital Outreach Ltd
Drivers Jonas Deloitte
Drysdenfairfax solicitors
DTZ Debenham Tie Leung
DTZ Ltd
Eamus Cork Solutions
ECC
ECCTIS Ltd (T/A UK Naric)
Eden Springs
Edenred
EDF Energy
Elan Computing
Enacta Ltd
Enterprise
Enterprise LTD
Equifax
Equifax Ltd
Ernst and Young
Eversheds
Evolve Business Consultancy
Excel Recruitment LTD
Experian
Experian Ltd
Experis
Expotel Hotel Reservations Ltd
Factiva
Faraday Tracing Bureau Ltd
FCO Services
Fideliti ltd
Field Fisher Waterhouse and Mills and Reeves
Filebase
Final Draft Publishing
Finsoft Financial Systems
First Forensics
Focus Europe
Frameworks (Ltd)/Glasgows/NYS CORPORATE LTD/BSI Olive 360/Ontrac 360/The Live Group/M-is/Roundex/RPM/Warrens Displays/TRO Group/Crystal Interactive/Event Technologies/TwoFourGroup
FSS(Scenesafe)
Fujitsu
G4S
Gartner
Gas Data
Gas Measurement Instruments
Gatenby Sanderson
Gatensby Sanderson
Gatwick Airports Ltd
GE Security
GEO
G-Learning
Greenworks Solutions Ltd
Grey Matters
Group 4
Group 4 TEC
GVA Grimley
Halfords
Hays Specialist Recruitment
Hays Specialist Recruitment LTD
30 Jan 2013 : Column 791W
Hayward Aviation Ltd
Healix
Hewlett Packard Ltd
HML
Hogg Robinson
Hogg Robinson (Travel) Limited
Hutchinson Ports
IBM
IBM UK Limited
ICO
Imperial College London
iMPOWER
Inchcape
Independent Trustee Services Limited
Infor Global Solutions
Information Processing Limited
Institute Of Licensing
Interactive Intelligence (ININ)
Interserve Facilities Management
Interspiro
IPL (information processing limited)
Iron Mountain
John Bosnall
Jomast Ltd
K International
KCOM Group LPC
Kelly Services
Kent Top Travel
Key Forensic Services
Knight Frank
Knowledge Advisors
Kodak
KPMG
KPMG LLP
Krauss Maffei Wegmann (107339)
L and A Consultants
LA International
LA International Computer Consultants Ltd
Latimer
Laura Richards, Gaynor Mears, Frank Mullane, STADV, AVA, CAADA
Lex
LGC Standards/Key Forensics
Liberata UK
Linda Zealey
Logica
Logica plc
Logica UK Limited
London-Risk
MAA Plc
Magnetic IT Ltd
Mapeley ABI Provider Ltd
Martin Allnutt
Mendas
Men's Warehouse t/a Dimenions
Mercer Limited
Methods Consulting
Methods Consulting Ltd
Metropolitan Support Trust
30 Jan 2013 : Column 792W
Michael Charles Featherstone Dilke
Michael Page International
Microcopy Systems
Mitie
MM Teleperformance (Contact Centre)
Monarch
Morgan Hunt
Morpho Detection UK Ltd
Mortality Manifest Ltd
Motorola
MSB International
National Health Service Information Centre
National Windscreens (Replacements) Ltd.
Nationwide Transport Breakdown
Navigator Research, Planning, Communication Ltd
NCC
NES IT
NET Éclair
North West Consortium
Northgate Information Solutions UK Limited
Northrop Grumman
Novus Environmental
Novus T/A Vetspeed
Nuctech
Nutall Packing Ltd
Nuvia
NYS Corporate Ltd
OCS
October Sun
Odgers Berndston
OfCom
Office Depot
OPM
OPS Ltd
Oracle
Orchid Cellmark
P&O Ferries
Parcel Force
Parity Group Plc
Paul Roscorla and Associates
Penna
Peter Brook
Photo Me
Pitney Bowes
Plassdata
Point to Point
Pomme Rose Ltd
Post Office Cash Collection
Post Office Limited
Premier Partnership
Price Water House Copper
Price Western Leather
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Princes Dock Development Co. Ltd
Priority Properties North West Ltd
ProcServe Ltd
Projectlink Motivation Ltd
Pro-Tect Systems Limited
Prudential Distribution Limited
30 Jan 2013 : Column 793W
Qbase
Qinetiq
Quotium
Rachel Frost Ltd
Radian6
Radisson Blu Hotel East Midlands Airport
Railex
Randstad (Walker Cox)
Rapiscan
Raytheon
REDFERN
Redhouse Lane
Red-M Wireless Ltd.
Reed Employment
Reed Specialist Recruitment
Reliance
Remploy Limited
Remploy Ltd (106751)
Road Safety Support Ltd (RSS)
Rock Kitchen Harris
Roffey Park
Roke Manor
RolePlayers
Royal Mail
Royal Mint
RPMI Limited
RSM Tenon
RSM Tenon - Risk Management
Rufus Leonard
SAIC
Sand Resources
SAP UK Ltd
Sapphire
Saville Consulting UK Ltd
Savox
Saxton Bampfylde Ltd
SCC
SCC/Recipero
Scott Associates
SCS Limited (105852)
Securicare International
Sequeli Ltd
Serco
Serco Ltd
SFW
Siemens
Siemens Enterprise Communications Ltd
Sigma
Skills for Justice Awards
Smiths Detection
Smiths Detection International UK
Sodexo Motivation Solutions UK Ltd
Sodexo Property Services
Softcat Ltd
Software Europe
Specialist Computer Centres
Specialist Computer Centre
Specsavers
Spring Group
30 Jan 2013 : Column 794W
SSG
Steria
Steria Limited
Strapex
Streamline
Sudus Management Consultancy
SWETS
Synectics
T&S International
Tactical Safety Responses Ltd
Tenboss
Thales
Thamesdown Recycling
Thatcham Automotive Acadamey
The Big Word
The Channel Tunnel Group
Thermo Electron Corp
TNS BMRB
TNT
Todd Research
Touchstone Group
Tracesmart Limited
Tribal Consulting
Tribal Ltd
Trish Longdon Associates
Triumph Furniture
Trodat
Trustmarque
Trustmarque Solutions
UKCT
Ultratec Ltd
United Property Management Ltd
Universal Security Services
University of Sheffield
Vector Command Limited
Vega Consulting Ltd
Venn Group
Veredus
VF Worldwide Holdings Limited
Vistar
Vodafone
Vordel XML
WA Products
Wagtail
Warwick University Business School
Wates Interiors Ltd
Williams Lea
Wilsons
Working Health
Worldplay
Wragge and Co LLP
Wyboston Lakes
Wyse Solutions
Xafinity Paymaster
Xerox Finance
Xicon
XMA
Y People
30 Jan 2013 : Column 795W
To provide the proportion of total procurement each such contract represents could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Publications
Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 17 January 2013, Official Report, column 887W, on publication, if she will place a copy of the staff magazines for (a) her Department, (b) the Identity and Passport Service, (c) the Disclosure and Barring Service and (d) the UK Border Agency and the Border Force in the Library. [139834]
James Brokenshire: I have today placed the latest versions of the requested staff magazines in the Library of the House.
Treasury
Capital Allowances
Simon Hart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will include new build agricultural barns and other structures in the list of annual investment allowance qualifying expenditure. [139789]
Mr Gauke: In the autumn statement the Government announced a temporary ten-fold increase in the annual investment allowance (AIA) to £250,000 from 1 January 2013 to support investment in plant and machinery by small and medium-sized businesses. The announcement made no changes to the list of qualifying expenditure. The Government keeps all tax policy under review.
Carbon Sequestration
Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the Government's commitment to make £1 billion available in capital funding for the UK carbon capture and storage commercialisation competition; and for what reasons that funding is not referred to in his Department's 2012 infrastructure and construction pipeline data. [139654]
Sajid Javid: Government have allocated £1 billion of capital funding to support the commercialisation of carbon capture and storage (CCS). The CCS programme is mentioned in the infrastructure and construction pipeline data without an ascribed value, given the ongoing competition. A competition is running to determine the best way to support CCS commercialisation. We will provide details of the outcome of the competition, including on how any resources provided through contracts for difference will be available, in due course.
Exports
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average economic export output was in (a) each region and (b) South Yorkshire in each of the last five years. [140378]
30 Jan 2013 : Column 796W
Sajid Javid: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) publishes estimates of regional trade statistics on a quarterly basis. On 6 December 2012 they published estimates for 2012 Q3. The following table shows the total value of exports of goods attributable to the countries and regions of the UK for 2007 to 2011.
| Value of goods exports at a national and regional level | |||||
| Value of exports (£ billion) | |||||
| Country/region | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
Income Tax
Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the level of income tax paid by (a) women in employment and (b) men in employment in the most recent period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [140240]
Mr Gauke: In the tax year 2010-11, the latest year for which outturn data are available, there were 24.0 million taxpayers who received the majority of their taxable income from employment or self-employment. Their total income tax liabilities are as follows:
(a) Women: £36.8 billion
(b) Men: £92.0 billion.
These estimates are based on the 2010-11 Survey of Personal Incomes.
Limited Liability
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) concluded and (b) current money laundering enquiries concerning limited liability partnerships where the members of those partnerships are (a) all UK resident and (ii) included overseas persons were conducted by his Department in (A) 2010-11, (B) 2011-12 and (C) 2012-13 to date. [140364]
Mr Gauke:
HM Revenue and Customs does not hold the information in the format requested. HMRC's management information does not include data on the
30 Jan 2013 : Column 797W
location of individuals linked to limited liability partnership, and to gather this information would incur disproportionate cost.
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many exchange of information requests concerning limited liability partnerships or their members were made by HM Revenue and Customs to each country or territory to which such requests have been made in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13 to date. [140365]
Mr Gauke: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 29 January 2012, Official Report, column 732W.
The total figures for requests sent to all states about limited liability partnerships, for each of the years questioned are as follows:
2010-11: three
2011-12: two
2012 to 24 January 2013: five.
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many fines were imposed on or other sanctions taken against trust and company service providers in respect of their work connected with limited liability partnerships in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13 to date. [140438]
Mr Gauke: As a supervisor under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007, HM Revenue and Customs imposes penalties on supervised businesses for breaches of those regulations.
HMRC records penalties by reference to the regulatory breaches committed by a supervised business rather than the type of work undertaken by the business, and does not have the information requested.
Personal Income: Dudley
Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of single-earner families in Dudley will see a net loss in income by 2015-16 as a result of measures in the Autumn Statement 2012; and what the average loss in income will be. [139670]
Mr Gauke: The model which HM Treasury uses to assess the impact of policy decisions relies on survey data which does not contain sufficient information to provide a breakdown of impacts by town or parliamentary constituency. Therefore, this question cannot be answered with the information currently available.
Plants
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since his appointment. [139951]
Sajid Javid:
The current annual cost for the provision and maintenance of indoor plants within the PFI contract for the building is £6,682 plus VAT. Additionally, individual teams have contracted for the provision of indoor plants at a cost of £4,364 since May 2010 to March 2012 when these additional payments have ceased. Comparative figures for this spend from June 2008 to April 2010 was £8,639. The contract covering the provision and maintenance of the outdoor plants and trees is part of a
30 Jan 2013 : Column 798W
wider maintenance contract covering both the Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs parts of the building and is not separately identifiable.
Recruitment
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since May 2010. [139983]
Sajid Javid: Figures for recruitment advertising for job vacancies are available as follows:
| Spend (£) | |
Figures reduced significantly in May 2010 following the Government's introduction of the civil service recruitment freeze. Spend in the second half of 2010-11 and in subsequent years, represents advertising for business critical roles where the relevant expertise was not already available internally or within the civil service. All vacancies are subject to ministerial approval
Tax Avoidance
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will introduce a requirement in Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes regulations to require firms and individuals to specifically declare any use of tax schemes that affect developing countries. [139793]
Mr Gauke: The Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (DOTAS) is highly specific to the UK in that the requirement to disclose is restricted to arrangements defined in UK legislation, and cannot be applied to other countries’ taxes. If a UK company is operating in another country and tries to avoid UK tax on the profits then DOTAS can apply provided the DOTAS 'hallmarks' are satisfied. The UK has held discussions with a number of countries who are looking to introduce their own disclosure rules to share our experience of DOTAS.
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Development about assisting tax authorities in developing countries to recover tax owed by multi-national companies operating in Britain. [139794]
Mr Gauke: Treasury Ministers meet regularly with the Secretary of State for International Development to discuss a range of topics.
The key issue is ensuring that developing countries have the assistance required to develop their own rules to protect their tax base and that they can collect the tax that they are owed. The Government works through a variety of channels including the Department for International Development (DFID), HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and others to deliver high-quality capacity building to help them do this.
30 Jan 2013 : Column 799W
Tax Evasion and Fraud
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to work with other EU member states to combat tax evasion and fraud. [140017]
Mr Gauke: The Government are fully committed to clamping down on those who evade paying their tax or seek to avoid paying their fair share of tax. The Government are in regular discussions with other member states on these issues as well as with other international partners. The Government have also welcomed the Commission's further consideration of possible actions at the EU level in its recently published action plan on tackling tax avoidance and evasion.
The Government are currently considering the proposals in the Commission's action plan in further detail, including the priority which should be given to the various proposals while taking fully into account the balance of competences in this area and the subsidiarity principle.
Tax Yields
John McDonnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average level of tax yield, after staff costs, achieved by an officer of HM Revenue and Customs in the role of tax inspector is. [140176]
Mr Gauke: HMRC was created by the merger of Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise in 2005 and “tax inspectors” is no longer a role within the merged organisation. In 2011-12 there were circa 17,000 tax professionals in HMRC who carried out a range of duties—from answering queries from customers to tackling non compliance with taxation obligations, and of the £474.2 billion collected £16.7 billion was due to compliance activities, an increase of £2.8 billion over the previous year, HMRC annual report and accounts 2011-12:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/about/annual-report-accounts-1112.pdf
Taxation
George Galloway:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of how much a
30 Jan 2013 : Column 800W
one-off 20% tax on the wealthiest 10 per cent of the population would generate for the Exchequer. [139821]
Mr Gauke: The Chancellor has made clear that the Government will not introduce a wealth tax. As such no estimate has been made.
However, we are committed to a fair tax system in which those with the most contribute the most, and have already announced a range of measures to increase the tax contribution of the wealthy, most recently at the autumn statement of 5 December 2012, Official Report, columns 871-882.
Welfare Tax Credits
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the measure set out at page 56, line 19 of the 2012 autumn statement to increase working age discretionary benefits and tax credits by 1 per cent for three years from 2013-14, (1) what the average cash loss in 2017-18 will be for in-work families affected by that measure; [140066]
(2) how many in-work families in 2017-18 will be affected by that measure. [140067]
Sajid Javid: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 28 January 2013, Official Report, column 627W.
Defence
Armed Forces: Females
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of serving (a) officers and (b) non-officers in each of the services are female. [140389]
Mr Francois: The latest available figures for the proportion of serving female officers and other ranks, as at 1 December 2012, are provided in the following table:
| Number serving in armed forces | Naval service | Army | RAF | |||||
| Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | |
Numbers have been rounded to prevent systematic bias.
Armed Forces: Local Government
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the oral answer by the Minister of State in his Department on 14 January 2013, Official Report, columns 593-4, (1) how many councils have appointed an individual with responsibility for issues related to service people; [140013]
(2) what the evidential basis is for the Minister's statement that most councils are already implementing the proposal to appoint armed forces champions; and if he will publish any such evidence. [140019]
Mr Francois:
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is not prescriptive about the implementation of Community Covenants, as the Community Covenant partnership boards are the experts at a local level and are best placed to know the needs of their local service community. Local authorities are not obliged to notify the MOD
30 Jan 2013 : Column 801W
when they appoint an armed forces champion. As such the MOD does not keep a record of where armed forces champions exist.
However, under the Community Covenant, partnership boards regularly inform us of their progress and we are in contact with many in the course of daily business. Discussions with those who have signed Community Covenants suggest that many local authorities have appointed armed forces champions. For instance, from discussions with our contacts in Wales and Scotland, we are aware that all Community Covenant partnership areas have an armed forces champion, although titles and roles vary. Frequently, those who have not appointed someone under the title armed forces champion, have identified someone with comparable responsibilities.
Armed Forces: Pensions
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the immediate pensions point is for each rank in the (a) Army, (b) Royal Air Force and (c) Royal Navy. [139888]
Mr Francois: The immediate pension points (IPP) for all service personnel under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme 1975 are the same for all three services. In the case of officers there are two alternatives, the first is an IPP based on 16 years service from the 21st birthday and the second is 22 years from the 18th birthday. The IPP for enlisted personnel is based upon 22 years service from their 18(th) birthday.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has given consideration to adopting a tapered pension model under which armed forces personnel would receive a pension based on time served in the armed forces. [139892]
Mr Francois: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 182, to the hon. Member for Chippenham (Duncan Hames).
Armed Forces: Redundancy
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he sought legal advice as to whether the immediate pensions point could be considered a factor in decisions over redundancy in the armed forces. [139883]
Mr Francois: The immediate pension point was not considered as a criterion for selection for redundancy. As a matter of protocol the Department's internal lawyers were consulted, but this was in relation to all redundancy selection criteria.
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the immediate pensions point was not considered a factor in decisions over redundancy in the armed forces. [139884]
Mr Francois:
The redundancy fields were designed in order to meet the future structural needs of the armed forces. Individuals are selected from within those fields on the basis of specific criteria of performance, potential and future employability. To exempt individuals for
30 Jan 2013 : Column 802W
redundancy solely in order to enable them to reach their immediate pension point, subsequently selecting other individuals in their stead, would undermine that principle and is not considered fair.
Australia
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he had with his Australian counterpart regarding co-operation over mutual design work for the Type 26 Global Combat Ship. [139900]
Mr Dunne: During his recent visit to Australia, the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), held a series of highly productive discussions with his Australian counterpart. A number of areas of potential cooperation were discussed, including that of future frigate programmes. Defence officials are examining the feasibility of specific areas of co-operation, including on the Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme.
Conditions of Employment
Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people are employed on zero-hour contracts in his Department. [140252]
Mr Francois: Zero-hours contracts are a relatively new type of contract under which an employer does not guarantee the employee a fixed number of hours per week. Rather, the employee is expected to be on-call and receive compensation only for hours worked. The Ministry of Defence currently employs no one on this type of contract.
Directors
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what declarations of interest must be made by his Department's non-executive directors; with what frequency any such declarations are required to be made; and if he will make that information publicly available. [140074]
Mr Francois: It is essential that there is no conflict of interest between the non-executive director (NED) business activities and their NED role. We therefore require NEDs' to declare any personal or business interest which may influence, or may be perceived to influence, their judgment in performing their functions and obligations. These interests include: personal direct and indirect pecuniary interests and any such interests of close family members and or of people living in the same household as the NED or their close family members.
Details of directorships and other significant interests held by NEDs' of the Defence Board are disclosed in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Register of Interest. This is updated quarterly and is available for public inspection; further details are published in the MOD annual report and accounts. See page 79 onwards of the 2011-12 edition at
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mod-annual-report-and-accounts-2011-12
30 Jan 2013 : Column 803W
European Fighter Aircraft
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Typhoon aircraft of each tranche have had (a) primary, (b) minor and (c) major maintenance completed under the Typhoon availability service contract to date. [139501]
Mr Dunne: Typhoon aircraft are subject to scheduled maintenance: after 400 flying hours Primary maintenance; 800 flying hours Minor maintenance; 1,200 flying hours Primary Plus maintenance; and 1,600 flying hours Major maintenance. The following table shows the number of aircraft that have completed each maintenance period under the Typhoon availability service contract to 24 January 2013:
| Primary | Minor | Primary (Plus) | Major | Total | |
Piracy
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many weapons have been confiscated from pirates operating off the Somalia coast by UK armed forces personnel in the last 12 months; [138318]
(2) how many vessels suspected of use in piracy have been sunk by the Royal Navy in each of the last five years. [138416]
Mr Robathan: 17 vessels suspected of use in piracy have been recorded as sunk by the Royal Navy in the last five years:
| Number | |
In 2012, 17 weapons (two Makarov pistols, 11 AK variant assault rifles, one RPG-7 launcher, two grenades and one basic explosive device), as well as ammunition, were seized from suspected pirates.
Plants
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since his appointment. [139940]
Mr Francois: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The Ministry of Defence is a significant landowner and the management of the defence estate's plants and trees, including the planting of new plants and trees, is a part of its normal activities.
30 Jan 2013 : Column 804W
All expenditure must comply with the principles of propriety set out in Managing Public Money and in the Treasury's handbook on regularity, propriety and value for money.
RAF Menwith Hill
Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to visit NSA Menwith Hill in 2013. [139660]
Mr Philip Hammond: For security reasons, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely publicise any of my visits in advance.
Redundancy
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many officials in his Department have been made redundant, by unit within the Department, since May 2010. [139893]
Mr Francois: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has used a variety of manning levers to achieve the necessary reduction of staff in the civilian work force, one of which is redundancy. Some 18,000 civilian personnel have left the MOD as a result of the use of these levers. Of those, the number of officials made redundant by unit within the MOD since May 2010, is shown in the following table:
| Unit (Top Level Budget) | Total |
The number of civilian personnel who have left the Department through the Voluntary Early Release Scheme is 9,188 since May 2010.
Utilities
Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on (a) water, (b) gas and (c) electricity in each of the last five years. [140090]
Mr Francois: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) overall expenditure on water and sewerage, gas for fuel, and electricity is shown in the following table:
| £ million | |||
| Financial year | Water and sewerage | Gas | Electricity |
30 Jan 2013 : Column 805W
Water and sewerage costs are combined; providing a breakdown would incur disproportionate cost. The figures do not include expenditure by our trading funds as they lie outside the MOD accounting boundary.
Expenditure for Project Aquatrine has been included in the water and sewerage figures.
Warships
Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether there will be any production gaps between (a) the completion of the main build work on the Astute-class submarines and the beginning of the main build work on the Trident successor submarines and (b) the completion of the main build work on the Future aircraft carriers and the beginning of the main build work on the Type 26 frigates; what plans he has to prevent the loss of skills and specialist workers during any such gaps; and if he will make a statement. [136182]
Mr Dunne [holding answer 14 January 2013]: The Ministry of Defence's (MOD) intention is to deliver the Astute and Successor submarine programmes in a manner that ensures the long-term sustainability of the UK submarine industry. The MOD is working with its three principal industrial partners within the Submarine Enterprise (BAE Systems Maritime—Submarines, Babcock Marine and Rolls-Royce) to develop an efficient, coherent and sustainable submarine programme, which will provide a seamless transition between the Astute and Successor submarine programmes.
How best to transition from the peak workload resulting from the Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) Aircraft Carrier build programme to the more sustainable drumbeat of the Type 26 Global Combat Ship (T26 GCS) build programme is challenging. The MOD is engaged in detailed discussions with BAE Systems Maritime—Naval Ships, the MOD's industrial partner for designated complex warship design, build and elements of support work under the terms of business agreement signed in 2009, to address any potential workload gap between the drawdown of the QEC programme and the start of build work on the planned T26 GCS once the design has been matured and the Main Gate approved. These discussions are exploring a number of options about how best to deliver the future shipbuilding programme at the lowest cost to the defence enterprise, and in a way that sustains key skills.
Transport
A14: Accidents
Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average reduction was in the number of people killed or seriously injured in the 12 months after average speed cameras were sited on the A14 between Girton and Fen Ditton; and whether he has calculated any nominal monetary value which could be attributed to any such reductions. [140093]
Stephen Hammond:
In the 12 months before the safety camera scheme was installed, there were one fatal, one serious and nine slight personal injury collisions
30 Jan 2013 : Column 806W
confirmed on the A14 between Girton and Fen Ditton. For the 12 months following completion of the scheme, there have been one serious and four slight personal injury collisions confirmed.
The benefits of a scheme are normally evaluated over a three-year period and it is too early to state that the reductions in the number of accidents on this section of the A14 have been wholly due to the safety camera scheme. However, using the Department for Transport's Transport Analysis Guidance on appraising transport interventions, the reduction in casualties currently represent an estimated nominal monetary value of £1.99 million saved.
Aviation: Yemen
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Yemen on the resumption of direct flights between the UK and Yemen. [140386]
Mr Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), has not discussed this matter with his Yemeni counterpart.
Directors
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what declarations of interest must be made by his Department's non-executive directors; with what frequency any such declarations are required to be made; and if he will make that information publicly available. [140084]
Norman Baker: In line with the Corporate Governance Code, the Non-Executive Board members of the Department for Transport are required to declare any personal or business interests that may influence, or appear to influence, their judgment in performing their functions and obligations to the Department.
These interests include (without limitation), personal direct and indirect pecuniary interests and any such interests of close family members and/or of people living in the same household as the Non-Executive or their close family members.
This information is registered at commencement of contract, and updated annually thereafter.
However, I will keep the matter of publication under review.
Driving Tests
Mrs McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the oral answer of 17 January 2013, Official Report, column 1016, (1) what estimate he has made of savings to the public purse accruing from reducing the language options for driving theory tests; [139999]
(2) whether he has any plans to withdraw the free-of-charge service provided by British Sign Language interpreters to deaf people and those hard of hearing, for the driving theory test; [140000]
(3) with whom his Department is consulting on whether to reduce the number of languages in which the theory driving test is offered; [140001]
30 Jan 2013 : Column 807W
(4) in the event that he decides to reduce the number of languages available for individuals wanting to take their driving theory test, whether it is his intention to extend the provision of translator services; [140002]
(5) what estimate he has made of the potential change in the number of foreign nationals driving in the UK illegally after the expiry of the 12 months grace period in the event that the number of languages the theory test can be taken in is reduced. [140003]
Stephen Hammond: The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) plans to consult on reducing the language support available to driving test candidates shortly.
At present, DSA provide voiceovers for the theory test in 19 languages, in addition to English and Welsh. Interpreters are also allowed to attend with candidates at theory and practical tests. The consultation will seek views on a range of options, including withdrawing the voiceovers (except for the English and Welsh voiceovers) and ceasing to permit the use of interpreters.
There are four reasons for proposing a change—social cohesion, road safety, fraud and the potential for savings.
There would be no change in arrangements for special needs candidates taking the test, including the service provided by British Sign Language interpreters.
The consultation, and the associated impact assessment, is intended to be published shortly.
Plants
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since his appointment. [139950]
Norman Baker: The requested information is provided below:
| Organisational Unit | Spend | Notes |
| Notes 1 Above relates to maintenance only of plants located in communal areas. No further plants will be purchased and plants that perish will not be replaced. | ||
This reflects the continuing steps we have taken to limit what we regard as the excessive expenditure on these items that we inherited from the previous Administration. For example spend just on pot plants in 2009-10 amounted to £70,000.
The information requested is not separately recorded at the Vehicle Operator Services Agency (VOSA). VOSA believe nil costs have been incurred in this area but cannot confirm without incurring disproportionate cost.
The Department has contracts for the provision of grounds maintenance services for parts of its estate. This includes multiple services, including in some cases, outdoor plants and trees. However spend in this area is not separately recorded and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
30 Jan 2013 : Column 808W
Railway Stations
Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the proposed fund for reopening of stations closed as a result of proposals in the Beeching Reports of 1963 and 1965 is to be available for sites in England only. [140700]
Mr Simon Burns: The recent announcement of a £20 million New Station Fund to support the development of proposals for brand new stations promoted by third parties is available in both England and Wales.
Recruitment
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since May 2010. [139982]
Norman Baker: The Department and its Executive Agencies has spent £612,865 on advertising job vacancies since May 2010.
Training
Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many away days his Department has held since 2010; and what the cost was of each such event. [139962]
Norman Baker: The Department of Transport and its six executive agencies does not hold a central record for away days. It would not be possible to obtain this information without incurring disproportionate costs.
Training events, away days and the like, are not held in chargeable venues unless there is no alternative and there is a clear and quantifiable work related outcome. Consideration is also given as to whether the intended aims of training and development can be delivered by different means such as workplace meetings or electronically. All generic training is delivered through Civil Service Learning in accordance with Cabinet Office Learning and Development controls
The Department believes it is important to invest in learning and development, and is committed to ensuring that it has the right people with the right skills to deliver our challenging objectives of creating growth and cutting carbon.
Transport: EU Action
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many bids his Department made for funding from the Trans-European Transport Network through (a) the TEN-T programme and (b) Structural and Cohesion Funds in the period from 2007 to 2013 to date; how much funding has been received from successful bids to these programmes, by project; for which projects applications were made for funding but were unsuccessful; and what the overall EU budget was for such funding during that period. [140161]
Mr Simon Burns:
The TEN-T programme has a budget of €8 billion for the period 2007-13. The Department for Transport has responsibility for UK involvement in the programme and has submitted 41 bids for funding of which 21 were successful. Allocations of €156 million
30 Jan 2013 : Column 809W
have been earmarked for these projects. Details of the bids are included in the following table. The Department is currently working to develop applications for the final bidding round which was launched in November 2012.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills leads on UK involvement in the Structural and Cohesion funds programme. For the 2007-13 programme period UK authorities have allocated £405 million of European regional development fund (ERDF) for transport projects. BIS does not keep records of individual projects or project applications for any programme, as this is the responsibility of the managing authorities.
30 Jan 2013 : Column 810W
The responsibility for day to day management of the funds is delegated to the devolved Administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and to the relevant Government Department in England, who are the managing authorities. They are as follows:
Department for Communities and Local Government for ERDF programmes in England;
Department of Finance and Personnel for all Northern Ireland programmes;
Scottish Government for all programmes in Scotland;
Welsh European Funding Office for all programmes in Wales
| 2008 | ||
| Project promoter/UK participant | Project | EU funding (€ million) |
30 Jan 2013 : Column 811W
30 Jan 2013 : Column 812W
Attorney-General
Rape
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Attorney-General how many people charged with rape were found innocent in each of the last three years. [140222]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of case outcomes of defendants prosecuted for offences of rape by way of a monitoring flag, applied to the case record. The total number of all rape prosecutions for the last three years are as follows:
| 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |
The following table sets out the number of rape prosecutions which resulted in a trial, including the number of contested prosecutions that did not result in a conviction.
| 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |
The criminal courts make no finding of “innocence” but require that the prosecution prove an offence “beyond a reasonable doubt”. If they are not successful in doing this the defendant is found “not guilty” and acquitted of the offence.
The CPS defines rape as any offence from the following list:
Section 1 Sexual Offences Act 1956;
Section 5 Sexual Offences Act 1956;
Section 1 Sexual Offences Act 2003;
Section 5 Sexual Offences Act 2003;
Section 30(3) Sexual Offences Act 2003;
An attempt to commit any of the above offences under the Criminal Attempts Act 1981;
Incitement or conspiracy to commit any of the above offences.
It is not possible to disaggregate figures to show separately the volume and outcome of proceedings for each individual offence on this list. A single defendant may be charged with more than one offence.
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Attorney-General what estimate he has made of the proportion of rape allegations that were unsuccessfully prosecuted, where the allegation was malicious in nature in the latest period for which figures are available. [140223]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of case outcomes of defendants prosecuted for offences of rape by way of a monitoring flag, applied to the case record on the Case Management System (CMS). Out of 3,864 defendants prosecuted for cases flagged as rape in 2011-12 1,450 were unsuccessful.
The CPS defines rape as any offence from the following list:
Section 1 Sexual Offences Act 1956;
Section 5 Sexual Offences Act 1956;
Section 1 Sexual Offences Act 2003;
Section 5 Sexual Offences Act 2003;
Section 30(3) Sexual Offences Act 2003;
An attempt to commit any of the above offences under the Criminal Attempts Act 1981;
Incitement or conspiracy to commit any of the above offences.
It is not possible to disaggregate figures to show separately the volume and outcome of proceedings for each individual offence on this list. A single defendant may be charged with more than one offence.
It is not possible to ascertain how many allegations of rape were malicious, without examining individual case files which would incur a disproportionate cost. Therefore, no estimate of the proportion of rape allegations that were unsuccessfully prosecuted because the allegation was malicious in nature can be made.
30 Jan 2013 : Column 813W
Education
Child Protection
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department has received any representations from other countries on the actions of the child protection system; and what concerns have been expressed in each case. [140225]
Mr Timpson: The Department for Education has received formal representations on this issue from the Slovak Republic. We are also aware of concerns that have been expressed to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Ministry of Justice from a number of other countries including the Czech Republic, Latvia, Nigeria and Turkey. The concerns have centred on decision making by local authorities and the processes of the family courts in relation to children with connections to other countries who are subject to care proceedings, regardless of whether the children are British or foreign nationals.