| As at 31 October 2012 | ||||||||
| Full-time equivalent | ||||||||
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| Notes: 1. Full-time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. 2. The NHS Information Centre has advised that they do not hold any data on nurses employed by West Sussex PCT. 3. Community matrons, health visitors and district nurses work exclusively in the community services area of work. This area of work also includes nurse consultants, modern matrons, nurse managers, RSCNs, other 1st level nurses and other 2nd level nurses who are not separately identified in this table. 4. Data Quality: The Health and Social Care Information Centre seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality where changes impact on figures already published. This is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses. Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre Non-Medical Workforce Census. | ||||||||
| Table 2: Total number of health visitors in post | |||||||
| Full-time equivalent | |||||||
| 2012 | |||||||
| April | May | June | July | August | September | October | |
| Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre, Provisional NHS Hospital and Community Health Service (HCHS) monthly workforce statistics. | |||||||
Ovarian Cancer
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps he is taking to reduce regional disparity in ovarian cancer care; [141965]
(2) what steps he is taking to improve the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer. [141966]
Anna Soubry: To support earlier diagnosis of cancer, including ovarian cancer, we have committed over £450 million in funding up to 2014-15. The early diagnosis money is being used to raise awareness of the symptoms of cancer, enable better general practitioner (GP) access to diagnostic tests, and pay for more testing and treatment in secondary care.
We are enabling better GP access to non-obstetric ultrasound to support the diagnosis of ovarian cancer. To support GPs we have published best practice referral guidelines for GPs on how to access this test. Data on the use of diagnostic imaging tests is available via the Diagnostic Imaging Dataset, launched by the Department and the Health and Social Care Information Centre in May 2012. This allows providers to monitor and benchmark levels of diagnostic test usage and includes estimates of GP usage of direct access to non-obstetric ultrasound. Subject to testing, it is expected that these data will shortly be made available at GP practice level.
On 14 January 2013, we launched a pilot ovarian cancer awareness campaign that will run across six cancer networks for nine weeks. The campaign aims to encourage women in the pilot areas who have one of the key symptoms of ovarian cancer—particularly persistent bloating—to see their doctor. The findings of the pilots will be used to inform a decision on whether to test the campaign on a larger scale.
We know that there are regional variations in the treatment, care and support provided to cancer patients in England. To support the national health service to tackle this, we are providing data to providers and commissioners that allow them to benchmark their services and outcomes against one another and to identify where improvements need to be made. Through the National Cancer Intelligence Network, we have already made available data collections on survival rates and surgical resection rates across a range of cancers, including ovarian cancer.
We have also made both national and trust level reports of the Cancer Patient Experience Survey 2011-12 widely available to inform and drive local service improvement. The reports provide a breakdown of the experience of cancer patients across a number of stages in the cancer care pathway and include analysis of improvement levels since the 2010 survey. The trust level reports provide benchmarked data nationally and between teams so that priority improvement areas can be identified.
The National Cancer Action Team worked with Cancer Networks to use the results of the 2010 survey to drive service improvements and has continued this work using the results of the 2011-12 survey, which was published on 17 August 2012. We are also encouraging stakeholders in the third sector to use the survey results to identify and share best practice in patient care and services to support service improvement activity.
All the quantitative data will be sent to the National Data Archive at Essex University and will be made freely available to researchers wishing to undertake further analyses.
Patients: Compensation
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of no-fault compensation schemes for patients who have suffered accidental medical injuries without any clinical negligence. [142246]
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Dr Poulter: The Department has not recently assessed ‘no fault’ compensation schemes for patients suffering accidental clinical injuries. However, I have asked officials to provide me with advice on the Scottish Government's consideration of introducing a ‘no fault’ scheme in Scotland.
Rare Diseases
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department plans to publish the UK Plan for Rare Diseases. [141988]
Anna Soubry: In 2012, the Department, in partnership with the other United Kingdom health departments, launched a consultation on the United Kingdom Plan for Rare Diseases. The consultation responses were published in November and will be used to inform the development of the plan. The full plan will be finalised by the end of 2013.
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he plans to publish the rare disease plan; [142676]
(2) what place severe combined immunodeficiency and other primary immunodeficiencies will have in his Department’s rare disease plan; [142677]
(3) when the chief medical officer will next report on progress made in the field of rare diseases. [142678]
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to raise awareness of severe combined immunodeficiency. [142708]
Dr Poulter: In 2012, the Department, in partnership with the other United Kingdom health departments, launched a consultation on the UK Plan for Rare Diseases. The consultation responses were published last November and will be used to inform the development of the plan. The plan is expected to be finalised by the end of 2013.
The UK Plan for Rare Diseases will be a high-level document and will be aimed at improving diagnosis, treatment and care management for all patients with a rare disease, including those with severe combined immunodeficiency and other primary immunodeficiencies.
Along with other evidence, the plan will take into account findings and recommendations on rare diseases from the previous chief medical officer’s 2009 report. The incumbent chief medical officer is monitoring developments on the UK plan with interest.
As part of its work on the plan, the Department is working closely with patient groups such as Rare Disease UK to ensure appropriate awareness of severe combined immunodeficiency.
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has considered introducing a screening programme for patients with (a) severe combined imunodeficiency and (b) other rare diseases. [142679]
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received from the National Screening Committee on the introduction of severe combined immunodeficiency screening for newborn babies. [142709]
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Dr Poulter: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) advises Ministers and the national health service in all four countries about all aspects of screening policy and supports implementation. Using research evidence, pilot programmes and economic evaluation, it assesses the evidence for programmes against a set of internationally recognised criteria.
The UK NSC is currently reviewing the evidence for newborn screening for severe combined immunodeficiency against its criteria. A public consultation on the screening review has just closed and Ministers expect to receive a recommendation from the UK NSC shortly.
As part of the NHS Newborn Bloodspot Screening Programme in England all newborn babies are offered screening for phenylketonuria, congenital hypothyroidism, sickle cell anaemia, cystic fibrosis and medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency.
On 8 April 2012 the Department announced that an evaluation to investigate extending the NHS Newborn Bloodspot Screening Programme to include the conditions maple syrup urine disease, homocytinuria, glutaric acidaemia type 1, isovaleric acidaemia and long chain fatty acidaemia would begin in July 2012. Screening is offered to the populations served by the screening laboratories in Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, London (Guy's and St Thomas' and Great Ormond Street). The evaluation will provide evidence that will enable the UK NSC to carry out a thorough review of screening for the above conditions against its internationally recognised criteria.
Where stakeholder organisations or individuals feel that there is enough evidence published in peer reviewed journals to consider screening for other rare conditions they can submit a policy proposal to the UK NSC. Further information is available on the UK NSC's website at:
www.screening.nhs.uk/policyreview
Smoking: Diseases
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on the treatment of smoking-related diseases in 2011. [142437]
Anna Soubry: The Department does not maintain an annual record of the cost to the national health service of treating people with smoking-related diseases.
However, the estimated cost to the NHS of treating smoking-related illnesses in 2006-07 was £2.7 billion. Further information about NHS costs relating to smoking is set out in paragraph 2.10 of “Healthy Lives, Healthy People: A Tobacco Control Plan for England”, published in March 2011.
The cost of tobacco use are much greater than just the cost to the NHS. In 2010, the report “Cough up: balancing tobacco income and costs in society”, Policy Exchange, London, estimated that the wider cost to society of tobacco use is almost £14 billion per annum.
A copy of the Tobacco Control Plan and the Policy Exchange’s report have already been placed in the Library.
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University Hospital Lewisham
Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been set aside by his Department to reconfigure the estate at University Hospital Lewisham in order to make it into an elective care centre. [142619]
Anna Soubry: The Secretary of State for Health has accepted the Trust Special Administrator's broad recommendations, including the three-year implementation plan set out in his final report.
The report identifies £55.9 million of capital expenditure required to develop University Hospital Lewisham into an elective centre. Final decisions on funding will be worked through as part of the implementation planning process, in collaboration with the Department to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.
Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what conversations his Department has had with Lewisham Clinical Commissioning Group and other commissioners in south east London on the proposed funding model for a midwife-led birthing unit at University Hospital Lewisham since his statement to the House on 31 January 2013. [142622]
Anna Soubry: The Department will be involved in the implementation of the Secretary of State's decision on the future of South London Healthcare NHS Trust and service provision in south east London.
We anticipate that the Department, the NHS Trust Development Authority and the NHS Commissioning Board will have conversations with local national health service providers, clinical commissioning groups and other key partners in the coming weeks and months.
NHS: Disclosure of Information
John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) pursuant to the answer of 1 February 2013, Official Report, column 993W, on NHS: disclosure of information, whether the extra contractual compromise agreements included in the severance agreement between University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust and its former Chief Executive, Mr Tony Halsall, were discussed with and endorsed by (a) HM Treasury and (b) Monitor; [142027]
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(2) pursuant to the answer of 1 February 2013, Official Report, column 994W, on NHS: disclosure of information, what assessment he has made of the extra contractual compromise agreement included in the severance agreement between University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust and its former Chief Executive Mr Tony Halsall; whether this complies with the NHS Manual for Accounts; and if he will make a statement. [142028]
Dr Poulter: The Department does not review business cases from foundation trusts proposing extra contractual severance payments, whether proposed under a compromise agreement or not. Foundation trusts are required to send such requests to Monitor for consideration before any such case is sent to Her Majesty's Treasury for approval.
All national health service bodies, including foundation trusts, must comply with the Treasury guidance Managing Public Money. Annex 4.13 of the guidance sets out the Treasury's requirements of how special payments should be managed. Additional accounting guidance has been developed, based on the principles of Managing Public Money—the NHS Manual for Accounts for NHS trusts, ambulance trusts, strategic health authorities and primary care trusts, and the NHS Foundation Trust Annual Reporting Manual for foundation trusts.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Apprentices
Mr Robin Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what the sectoral breakdown of apprenticeships is in (a) Worcester, (b) Worcestershire and (c) the UK; [141842]
(2) how many retail apprentices in (a) Worcester, (b) Worcestershire and (c) the UK completed their apprenticeship programme in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12. [141843]
Matthew Hancock: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship programme starts and achievements in Worcester parliamentary constituency, Worcestershire local education authority and England by sector subject area (including 'Retail and Commercial Enterprise') for the 2010/11 and 2011/12 academic years.
| Table 1: Apprenticeship programme starts and achievements by geography and sector subject area, 2010/11 to 2011/12 | |||||
| 2010/11 | 2011/12 | ||||
| Sector subject area | Starts | Achievements | Starts | Achievements | |
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| Notes: 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10 apart from England totals which are rounded to the nearest 100. ‘—’ indicates a value of less than 10. 2. Geographic breakdowns are based upon the home postcode of the learner. 3. Figures are based on the geographic boundaries as of May 2010. 4. Figures for 2011/12 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years as a Single Individualised Learner Record (ILR) data collection system has been introduced. Small technical changes have been made in the way learners from more than one provision type are counted, leading to a removal of duplicate learners and a reduction in overall learner numbers of approximately 2%. More information on the Single ILR Is available at: http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/C05DCDD5-67EE-4AD0-88B9_BEBC8F7F3300/0/SILR_Effects_Sft_learners_June12.pdf Source: Individualised Learner Record | |||||
Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what funding his Department is providing to help young people with special educational needs to enter apprenticeships; [142681]
(2) how many apprenticeships for young people have been created in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales and (c) England in each year since 2010. [142807]
Matthew Hancock: Information on the number of apprenticeship starts by age in England is published in Table 4.1 of a quarterly Statistical First Release (SFR):
http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/8FC5AC0D-292D-43D3-9B70-FA970CF3E478/0/SFR_Tables_ January2013.xls
http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current/
The Department does not collect further education information relating to the devolved Administrations.
Under the apprenticeships officer in the Education Act, the Government is committed to prioritising funding for young people from specified groups who secure an apprenticeship place. Disabled apprentices may qualify for Access to Work funds and training providers can access additional learning support to help with equipment or other resources.
Bank Cards: Surcharges
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) when legislative guidance that will accompany the ban on excessive surcharges on the use of credit and debit cards will be published; [142331]
(2) if he will introduce detailed legislative guidance to ensure that surcharges on the use of credit and debit cards are fully cost-reflective. [142332]
Jo Swinson: The Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012, which prohibit traders, in respect of a given means of payment such as a debit or credit card, from charging consumers fees that exceed the cost borne by the trader for the use of that means, were made on 18 December 2012 and come into force on 6 April 2013. We are now working to produce guidance and will issue it as soon as possible.
British Standards Institution
Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what public funding has been made available to the British Standards Institute in each of the last 10 years. [141840]
Mr Willetts: The British Standards Institution (BSI) is the UK National Standards Body (NSB)—developing and promoting British standards and representing the UK on European and International standards bodies.
Between 2003/04 and 2012/13 total grants of just over £57 million were made available to the British Standards Institution by BIS. This is in respect of BSI's activities determined by BIS. These include standards development, support for participation in standardisation and the Consumer Travel Expenses Fund.
The allocation for each year was:
| Allocation (£) | |
Copyright
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward legislative proposals to reform copyright exceptions to clarify definitions of research or private study. [141853]
Jo Swinson: The Government will bring forward legislative proposals to reform copyright exceptions. These plans do not include altering the meaning of research and private study as it applies to the current copyright exception.
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what steps he has taken following the Regulatory Policy Committee's response to the impact assessment of the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 in respect of the Committee's advice on further evidence gathering on the monetising of the potential effects of such a repeal; [142686]
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(2) what response he has made to the recommendations from the Regulatory Policy Committee on further evidence gathering with respect to the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. [142687]
Jo Swinson: In response to the Regulatory Policy Committee's opinion on the Government's Economic Impact Assessment, the Government committed to consulting on transitional provisions that would seek evidence on how and when to implement the change if the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 was approved by Parliament.
This could include evidence on the monetisation of the potential effects of the repeal.
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of evidence from the Herchel Smith Professor of Intellectual Property at the University of Cambridge on the potential effects on education, cultural establishments and business of the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. [142688]
Jo Swinson: No such assessment has been made.
The Government continue to have discussions with concerned parties on the potential effects of the repeal.
Electronic Commerce
Stephen Mosley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what representations the Government have received from the IT industry in the framing of its policy on e-commerce on (a) allowing small businesses to connect to a wider market place and (b) other matters; [142054]
(2) what steps the Government have taken to assist small businesses in adopting (a) websites, (b) secure payment processes, (c) anti-fraud measures and (d) other e-commerce tools for the purpose of assuring connectivity to a wider market place. [142056]
Michael Fallon: The Department is currently in dialogue with the IT industry as part of preparing the industrial strategy for the Information Economy which is expected to cover a variety of issues including e-commerce. The Department, in conjunction with UKTI, DCMS, Go On UK and corporate organisations is developing a public/private sector collaborative programme that will raise awareness among small businesses of the importance of the internet to business growth and furnish them with capabilities to exploit the internet and associated technologies, including addressing issues such as digital marketing, transacting on-line and cyber security. This will supplement the material already available on the
www.gov.uk
Energy: Industry
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will review the carbon emissions factor used to calculate compensation for energy-intensive industries. [142045]
Michael Fallon:
We recently held a consultation on our proposals for compensation for energy intensive
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industries which closed in December. As part of the consultation we received a number of comments on the carbon emissions factor. We are currently analysing responses and are exploring the issue further, with energy suppliers and other stakeholders.
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress he has made on developing a strategy for energy-intensive industries; and if he will make a statement. [142046]
Michael Fallon: We are currently considering a proposal from the Environmental Audit Committee for an energy intensive industry strategy. We are in discussion with DECC on how we might draw on current work, including sector specific low carbon roadmaps, to address this.
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has to facilitate long-term power supply agreements between energy-intensive industries and low-carbon generators. [142047]
Michael Fallon: We are currently considering the Environmental Audit Committee's Report which included a recommendation to facilitate long-term power supply agreements between energy intensive industries and low carbon generators. We aim to publish our response alongside our final guidance on energy intensive industries compensation in the spring.
EU Emissions Trading Scheme
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the amount of compensation that will be available to energy-intensive industries in other EU member states for indirect costs associated with Phase III of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS); and what comparative assessment he has made of the UK's proposed compensation for EU ETS indirect costs and that of other EU member states. [142237]
Michael Fallon: We are very aware of the importance of understanding the differential between the UK and other member states and are seeking to minimise the impact on the competitiveness of UK-based companies. We keep this under review and published last year an assessment of the difference in policy costs between the UK and various other countries. We understand that not all EU member states are intending to compensate their energy intensive industries for the indirect costs for the EU Emissions Trading System and those that will are still developing their proposals and have not published details.
Foreign Investment in UK
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many jobs in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England are dependent on foreign investment. [142326]
Michael Fallon: The number of jobs which UK Trade & Investment has recorded as being created or safeguarded with foreign direct investments over the last five years (1 April 2007 and 31 March 2012) is:
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| Jobs | |
Further Education: Scotland
Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students from Scotland began attending further education colleges in England in each of the last five years. [142267]
Matthew Hancock: Table 1 as follows shows government-funded further education and skills participation for learners living in Scotland but studying in general further education colleges in England. Data are shown for 2007/08 to 2011/12, the latest year for which final data are available.
| Table 1: Further education and skills participation of learners from Scotland in general further education colleges, 2007/08 to 2011/12 | |
| General FE college participation | Number |
| Notes: 1. These data include government funded participation in Apprenticeships, Workplace Learning, Community Learning and Education and Training provision at General Further Education Colleges including Tertiary only. 2. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Figures for 2008/09 are not directly comparable with earlier years due to a change in funding methodology. 4. Figures for 2011/12 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years as a Single Individualised Learner Record (ILR) data collection system has been introduced. Small technical changes have been made in the way learners from more than one provision type are counted, leading to a removal of duplicate learners and a reduction in overall learner numbers of approximately 2%. More information on the Single ILR is available at: http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/C05DCDD5-67EE-4AD0-88B9-BEBC8F7F3300/0/SILR_Effects_SFR_Learners_June12.pdf 5. Geographic information is based upon the home postcode of the learner. Source: Individualised Learner Record | |
Higher Education: Admissions
Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reasons UCAS figures for application rates, acceptance rates and entry rates by ethnicity are not published in the same manner as the figures for sex and age after each UCAS application deadline; and if he will instruct UCAS to publish such figures in future. [142283]
Mr Willetts: The Universities and Colleges Admission Service (UCAS) is an independent company not a government body. Decisions as to what data to publish, and when, are therefore matters for UCAS.
However, the Government is firmly committed to improving the information available about higher education through the key information set and other initiatives,
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and is in favour of transparency on who applies to and who attends higher education.
Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what estimate he has made of the number of student places which were unfilled out of those allocated in the margin in the 2012-13 academic year; [142379]
(2) what estimate he has made of the number of student places allocated to further education colleges which were unfilled of those allocated in the margin in the 2012-13 academic year. [142380]
Mr Willetts: The estimated number of unfilled places is shown in the following table:
| Award of places through the 2012-13 margin | Number of margin places not filled | |
| Note: Figures are shown to the nearest hundred. | ||
The number of margin places not filled totals around 7,000, out of 20,000 places awarded. Some institutions were expected to recruit less than their allocation to compensate for over-recruitment in previous years. We expect there to be more full-time undergraduate students in higher education this year than in any year before 2010.
Land Registry
Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reasons the decision was made to advertise the Land Registry chief executive's post despite there being an incumbent in that post; and if he will make a statement. [142668]
Michael Fallon: The Land Registry is embarking on a business strategy that presents significant new challenges for the organisation. It is therefore the right time to run a competition to identify the person best able to lead the organisation in implementing the agreed objectives.
Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what meetings (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have had with representatives of the Public and Commercial Services Union in the Land Registry in the last 12 months; and whether he plans to meet such representatives before he makes a decision on the Land Registry's business strategy and commercial model. [142669]
Michael Fallon: No departmental Ministers have met with representatives of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) Union in the Land Registry in the last 12 months. However, the Land Registry executive management team have been actively engaging with PCS Union representatives on the new business strategy and commercial model and will continue to do so.
Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his preferred commercial model is for the Land Registry. [142670]
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Michael Fallon: I have asked the Land Registry to consider alternative commercial models that would enable them to better deliver on their new Business Strategy. No decision has yet been made.
Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what (a) parliamentary and (b) public scrutiny there will be of the commercial model of the Land Registry. [142683]
Michael Fallon: If there were to be any proposal for a change in the status of the Land Registry, we would embark on a full and careful consultation.
Medicine: Research
Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department is providing to the life sciences sector. [141851]
Mr Willetts: On 10 December 2012, the Prime Minister announced the Strategy for UK Life Sciences One Year On report, highlighting the progress made in implementing the measures set out in the Life Sciences Strategy since its launch in December 2011. At the same time, we also announced the Government's intention to commit to the sequencing of 100,000 whole genomes over the next three to five years as part of continuing Government efforts to develop the UK as a global life sciences hub.
Links to reports can be located at:
http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/innovation/docs/s/12-1346-strategy-for-uk-life-sciences-one-year-on.pdf
http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/innovation/docs/s/11-1429-strategy-for-uk-life-sciences
Members: Correspondence
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he intends to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Ashfield dated 28 November 2012 and the follow-up letter dated 15 January 2013, Ref: ps/ROLL05001/05120214 relating to Rolls-Royce in Nottinghamshire. [142544]
Matthew Hancock: I replied on 29 January 2013.
Royal Mail
Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) whether his Department plans to publish the terms for the sale of Royal Mail; [142210]
(2) what criteria his Department plans to use for the sale of Royal Mail. [142211]
Michael Fallon: The Government's priority is to ensure the maintenance of the universal postal service which is provided by Royal Mail—the UK's designated universal service provider. The sale of shares in Royal Mail will give the company access to flexible private capital that is needed to ensure that it is successful and sustainable in the long term.
As with the sale of all publicly owned assets the Government will be seeking to ensure overall value for money from the sale. In addition, for Royal Mail we will seek to strengthen employee engagement through an
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employee share scheme of at least 10% of the company—this is a commitment that we chose to include in primary legislation.
Once decisions have been made on the timing and structure of a sale we will report the detail to Parliament (as required by Section 2 of the Postal Services Act 2011). This will include setting out the objectives for the sale.
School Leaving: Bassetlaw
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many school leavers there were in Bassetlaw constituency in each of the last 10 years; how many of those applied for undergraduate degree courses at universities; how many applications were made to each university; and how many of those applications were successful. [142361]
Mr Willetts: The information for this time period and this level of detail is not available centrally. Data on applications and acceptances are collected by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) but they do not routinely publish figures at this level of detail. UCAS is independent from Government.
Justice
Community Orders
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice under the Government's proposals for outsourcing of probation tasks, how decisions on (a) breach procedures and (b) recall to prison procedures of persons on community orders will be arrived at if the public sector is not responsible for direct supervision. [139674]
Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice has recently published the consultation paper ‘Transforming Rehabilitation—a revolution in the way we manage offenders’ which sets out proposals for driving down reoffending by extending rehabilitative provision, opening up service delivery and paying by results.
The consultation paper proposes that the public sector and contracted providers will work together to handle cases where offenders breach the requirements of their sentence or licence. Providers will report material breaches of community orders, suspended sentence requirements and licence conditions to the public sector, who will then advise the court or Secretary of State. We are considering the parameters and triggers for referral back to the public sector for breach and recall decisions as part of our consultation.
The consultation closes on 22 February 2013 and we will set out further details of how we will reform the way we manage offenders once we have considered responses.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice under the Government's proposals for outsourcing of probation tasks, what appeal procedures an offender would have recourse to if they were subject to breach proceedings of community orders by the Probation Service whilst being supervised by private contractors. [139676]
Jeremy Wright:
The Ministry of Justice has recently published the consultation paper ‘Transforming Rehabilitation—a revolution in the way we manage
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offenders’ which sets out proposals for driving down reoffending by extending rehabilitative provision, opening up service delivery and paying by results.
The consultation closes on 22 February 2013 and we will set out further details of how we will reform the way we manage offenders as part of our response.
Driving Offences: Mobile Phones
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many drivers have been penalised for using mobile phones whilst driving in each of the last five years. [142665]
Jeremy Wright: The number of offenders proceeded against at magistrates court and found guilty at all courts for using a mobile phone while driving, in England and Wales, from 2001 to 2011 is published in the Criminal Justice Statistics 2011, Motoring tables A8.1 toA8.3.
http://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/statistics/criminal-justice-stats/motoring-tables-1211.xls
Fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by police for using mobile phones while driving, in England and Wales, between 2006 and 2010 (latest available), can be found in table FPN02 through the Home Office Website:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/police-research/immigration-tabs-q4-2011/fixed-penalty-notice-1011-tabs?view=Binary
Government Procurement Card
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the mean average spend using a Government Procurement Card was per member of staff in (a) his Department and (b) each of its arm's length bodies in (i) 2011 and (ii) 2012; [141463]
(2) what guidance or instructions have been issued to staff in (a) his Department and (b) its arm's length bodies about the timing of the publication of data relating to spend over (i) £25,000 and (ii) £500 using the Government Procurement Card. [141503]
Jeremy Wright: Ministry of Justice (MOJ) Government Procurement Cards (GPC) are provided under a contract that covers MOJ HQ, National Offender Management Service, Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service and Office of the Public Guardian.
On average the Ministry of Justice spent £289.46 and £153.05 per member of staff in 2011 and 2012(1) respectively.
(1 )1 April-31 December 2012
There are some legacy contracts in place in arm’s length bodies which are not managed centrally. Gathering this information would be of disproportionate cost.
In response to the hon. Member’s query relating to transparency guidance that has been issued, I can confirm that the following guidance has been issued to Departments:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/government_ spend_guide_2012.pdf
(ii) Government Procurement Card spend of £500 and over
Publishing Transactional GPC Data Guidance
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This guidance is provided to support the publication of GPC data for transactions of £500 and above. The first set of data (for Quarter 1 2011/12) must be published on Departmental websites by 30 September.
GPC providers are responsible for producing data detailing all transactions of £500 and above for the period in question and sending this directly to Departments for review. The timetable for this is provided at "2. Timetable". If the first tranche of data has not been received, an approach to your card provider to request the data should be made as a matter of urgency.
Departments have the opportunity to review the data, make any necessary redactions and add additional context where required before publishing the data set on Departmental websites. A link to the published data must also be added to the data.gov.uk website.
The timetable for the publication of GPC data is as follows:
| Data: | Produced by card issuers: | Departments to publish by: |
Data is to be published in csv format.
The mandatory fields that must be included are:
The line number on the spreadsheet will double as the reference number for each transaction being published.
GPC providers have also included the transaction reference number in the data sets that have been produced for Departments. This reference should not be published as it could lead to identification of a specific card number. However, the original file that includes the transaction reference should be retained in case it is required to interrogate a particular transaction following publication.
If additional context needs to be added to particular transactions, this should be included in a comments field, so that the data set published is:
Departments must adhere to FOI legislation when deciding if redactions are required before the data is published, as well as any local procedures that are in
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place which may prohibit the publication of any of the data. Detailed guidance can be found at
http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/freedom-and-rights/freedom-of-information/index.htm
Where data is redacted because of internal departmental procedures / security considerations and not overarching FOI principles, Departments should request an exemption from publishing aspects of the data and provide reasons why they are unable to include such data from the appropriate authority within that Department.
5. Linking data to data.gov.uk
Data published on Departmental websites must also be linked to data.gov.uk
Instructions on how to do this can be found here:
http://data.gov.uk/blog/publish-your-data-on-datagovuk-a-simple-how-to-guide
Contact James Forrester at the Cabinet Office
james.forrester@cabinet-office.x.gsi.gov.uk
if you require further assistance when linking data to data.gov.uk
In addition to this guidance, Departments should note the Transparency Guidance that has been produced by HM Treasury
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/government_s pend280211.pdf
in terms of the procedures for publishing data. The relevant sections have been highlighted in the Transparency Guidance document provided with this document and are as follows:
Redactions (at 2.14)
Internal Review and sign-off of the data (at 2.22)
Hosting arrangements (at 2.24)
FOI Requests (at 2.27)
Industrial Disputes: Shrewsbury
Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in what ways national security would be infringed by the release of all Cabinet minutes, documents, discussion papers, civil service notes, reports and telephone records that relate to the prosecution and imprisonment of 24 workers who took part in the Shrewsbury building workers’ strikes of 1972. [140333]
Jeremy Wright: The majority of papers relating to the trials of the “Shrewsbury 24” are available at the National Archives. However, the Cabinet Office, for example, has retained a small number of papers supplied by or otherwise relating to the intelligence agencies. To provide details of the national security risks that might be posed by the release of this information would itself be detrimental to the purposes the exemption is designed to protect.
Although the Public Records Act 1958 usually requires the transfer of public records to TNA by the time they are 30 years old (this is currently being reduced to 20 years), it also permits the retention of records by transferring bodies in certain circumstances. Successive Lord Chancellors since 1967 have been satisfied that security and intelligence information falls within the categories information that may be retained, and have signed a ‘security and intelligence instrument’ to approve this approach. The ‘security and intelligence instrument’ was most recently renewed in December 2011 and applies until 31 December 2021. Before it was renewed, assurances
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were provided by Ministers in other Government Departments and those responsible for the records of other public records bodies that this protection is necessary.
It is for individual Government Departments holding particular papers falling within the scope of the ‘security and intelligence instrument’ to decide whether they wish to rely on it to retain them.
Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will review his decision to withhold material from the National Archives that relates to the prosecution and imprisonment of 24 workers who took part in the Shrewsbury building workers dispute in 1972. [140335]
Jeremy Wright: The majority of papers relating to the trials of the “Shrewsbury 24” are available at the National Archives. However, the Cabinet Office, for example, has retained a small number of papers supplied by or otherwise relating to the intelligence agencies.
Although the Public Records Act 1958 usually requires the transfer of public records to TNA by the time they are 30 years old (this is currently being reduced to 20 years), it also permits the retention of records by transferring bodies in certain circumstances. Successive Lord Chancellors have since 1967 been satisfied that security and intelligence information falls within the categories of information that may be retained, and have signed a ‘security and intelligence instrument’ to approve this approach. The ‘security and intelligence instrument’ was most recently renewed in December 2011 and applies until 31 December 2021. Before it was renewed, assurances were provided by Ministers in other Government Departments and those responsible for the records of other public records bodies that this protection is necessary.
In November 2012, in response to correspondence received from the Rt. Hon. David Hanson MP, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice satisfied himself that the papers retained by the Cabinet Office fall within the scope of the ‘security and intelligence instrument’. However, it is for individual bodies holding particular papers to decide whether they wish to rely on the ‘security and intelligence instrument’ to retain them.
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will publish each item of correspondence (a) he and (b) his Department has received from Sir Robert McAlpine Limited in relation to the case of the Shrewsbury 24; and if he will make a statement. [140686]
Jeremy Wright: Neither I nor the Ministry of Justice has received any correspondence from Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd in relation to the case of the “Shrewsbury 24”.
Although the Public Records Act 1958 usually requires the transfer of public records to The National Archives by the time they are 30 years old (this is currently being reduced to 20 years), it also permits the retention of records by transferring bodies in certain circumstances. Successive Lord Chancellors since 1967 have been satisfied that security and intelligence information falls within the categories information that may be retained, and have signed a “security and intelligence instrument” to approve this approach. The “security and intelligence instrument” was most recently renewed in December 2011 and applies until 31 December 2021. Before it was renewed, assurances were provided by Ministers in other
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Government Departments and those responsible for the records of other public records bodies that this protection is necessary.
It is for individual Government Departments holding particular papers falling within the scope of the “security and intelligence instrument” to decide whether they wish to rely on it to retain them.
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Home Secretary, (b) Attorney General and (c) Director of Public Prosecutions on the disclosure of information in relation to the case of the Shrewsbury 24; and if he will make a statement. [140688]
Jeremy Wright: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice has not had any discussions with the Home Secretary, Attorney-General, or Director of Public Prosecutions about the disclosure of information not already available at The National Archives relating to the case of the “Shrewsbury 24”.
Although the Public Records Act 1958 usually requires the transfer of public records to The National Archives by the time they are 30 years old (this is currently being reduced to 20 years), it also permits the retention of records by transferring bodies in certain circumstances. Successive Lord Chancellors since 1967 have been satisfied that security and intelligence information falls within the categories information that may be retained, and have signed a “security and intelligence instrument” to approve this approach. The “security and intelligence instrument” was most recently renewed in December 2011 and applies until 31 December 2021. Before it was renewed, assurances were provided by Ministers in other Government Departments and those responsible for the records of other public records bodies that this protection is necessary.
It is for individual Government Departments holding particular papers falling within the scope of the “security and intelligence instrument” to decide whether they wish to rely on it to retain them.
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) files and (b) other records relating to the case of the Shrewsbury 24 have been (i) retained by Government departments and (ii) transferred to the National Archives but have not yet been released. [140689]
Jeremy Wright: The Government do not hold a single list of files or records on this subject.
It is for individual Government Departments holding any relevant papers falling within the scope of the “security and intelligence instrument” to decide whether they wish to rely on it to retain them. The role of the Lord Chancellor is to sign the instrument on the basis of assessments from individual Departments, and as provided for in the Public Records Act 1958. Successive Lord Chancellors have signed such an instrument since the first was agreed in 1967.
The National Archives' catalogue shows that it holds a number of files directly related to the “Shrewsbury 24”, including J 182 pieces 9-51, PREM 16/947 and DPP 2/5185. Files J 182/9-51 and DPP 2/5185 are open to public access. PREM 16/947 is also open to public
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access with the exception of information from four documents which has been retained by the Cabinet Office.
It is possible that information relevant to this case may be in other records held by The National Archives but, because they do not primarily relate to the case, are not identified as such in The National Archives' catalogue. For this reason it is not possible to say precisely how many of those files have been transferred as closed.
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which documents and other papers he took into account in making his decision to withhold disclosure of information in relation to the case of the Shrewsbury 24; if he will review that decision; and if he will make a statement. [140690]
Jeremy Wright: The majority of papers relating to the trials of the “Shrewsbury 24” are available at The National Archives (TNA). However, the Cabinet Office, for example, has retained a small number of papers supplied by or otherwise relating to the intelligence agencies which would be absolutely exempt under section 23 of the Freedom of Information Act.
In November 2012, in response to correspondence received from the right hon. Member for Delyn (Mr Hanson), the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), viewed the papers retained by the Cabinet Office. He did so to satisfy himself that they fall within the scope of the “security and intelligence instrument” signed by the Lord Chancellor to permit the retention of security and intelligence material in accordance with the Public Records Act 1958 (PRA) beyond the point at which public records are normally transferred under that Act.
Although the PRA usually requires the transfer of public records to TNA by the time they are 30 years old (this is currently being reduced to 20 years), it also permits the retention of records by transferring bodies in certain circumstances. Successive Lord Chancellors have since 1967 been satisfied that security and intelligence information falls within the categories information that may be retained, and have signed a “security and intelligence instrument” to approve this approach. The “security and intelligence instrument” was most recently renewed in December 2011 and applies until 31 December 2021. Before it was renewed, assurances were provided by Ministers in other Government Departments and those responsible for the records of other public records bodies that this protection is necessary.
It is for individual Government Departments holding particular papers falling within the scope of the “security and intelligence instrument” to decide whether they wish to rely on it to retain them.
Legal Aid Scheme
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 1 February 2012, Official Report, column 702W, on legal aid: Asil Nadir, and the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Walsall South (Valerie Vaz) of 11 December 2012, Official Report, column 207W, on Abu Qatada, whether his Department will provide the total amount of legal aid his Department has spent to date in respect of Asil Nadir. [136613]
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Jeremy Wright: A total of £1,056,588.96 in legal aid funding has been provided by the Legal Services Commission (LSC) in relation to the trial of Asil Nadir. These costs are subject to change pending LSC approval of further payments to solicitors and barristers, as well as the costs appeals process.
Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 to be implemented in full. [141517]
Mrs Grant: The majority of the provisions in Part 2 of the Act, that is those relating to civil litigation funding and costs, will be implemented substantively on 1 April 2013 (some earlier commencement is required for substantive implementation on 1 April). These provisions will apply in all categories of civil litigation, except for claims for publication and privacy proceedings, diffuse mesothelioma claims and proceedings in respect of and relating to insolvency proceedings.
We currently plan to commence the provisions in sections 49 to 54 of Part 2, relating to divorce and dissolution proceedings, in April 2013 or shortly thereafter.
Finally, sections 61 (payments in respect of pro bono representation before the Supreme Court) and 62 (costs in criminal cases) came into force on 1 October 2012.
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Magistrates Courts: Sentencing
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the value of raising magistrates sentencing powers from a maximum of six months to a maximum of 12 months. [142245]
Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice is considering the potential impact of increasing magistrates custodial sentencing powers. We are also exploring other ways to make the best use of magistrates courts.
Prison Sentences
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders have received sentences of (a) up to three months, (b) up to six months, (c) up to nine months, (d) up to 12 months, (e) up to two years and (f) more than two years for (i) offences against the person, (ii) sexual offences against adults, (iii) sexual offences against minors, including use of child pornography, (iv) robbery, (v) burglary and (vi) public order offences in each of the last five years, by offence type and criminal code section. [141608]
Jeremy Wright: The number of offenders sentenced to immediate custody at all courts for the requested offences, by offence type and sentence length, in England and Wales, from 2007 to 2011 (latest available), can be viewed in the following table.
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70 Sexual activity etc. with a person with a mental disorder | |||||||||
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| "—" Nil. (1) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (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) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice. | |||||||||