UK Trade and Investment
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many UK businesses have been supported by UK Trade and Investment in each year since 2010. [146507]
Michael Fallon: The number of businesses assisted by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) to exploit overseas business opportunities, as published in the UKTI Annual Report and Accounts:
http://www.ukti.gov.uk/uktihome/aboutukti/ourperformance/officialreports/departmentalreportresourceaccounts.html
| Financial year | Target | Businesses assisted |
Figures for 2012/13 will be available shortly.
Weather: Northern Ireland
Dr Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reason there is no cold weather alert system in place in Northern Ireland. [146266]
Michael Fallon: The Met Office is contracted by the Department of Health to provide the cold weather alert service in England.
The Met Office could provide a similar service in Northern Ireland, but as a devolved matter this is for the responsible Department in the Northern Ireland Executive to decide.
Energy and Climate Change
Electricity
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) what steps he plans to take to make it easier for smaller energy organisations to sell their electricity in the market; [145529]
(2) what discussions he has had with small energy suppliers on (a) simplifying trading and (b) training specialised staff; [145530]
(3) what steps he plans to take to ensure that electricity suppliers and gas suppliers benefit from equal trading conditions. [145531]
Mr Hayes: DECC Ministers meet regularly with stakeholders to discuss a range of issues.
The UK's wholesale gas market displays high levels of participation from a range of market participants compared to other European markets. The Government, with Ofgem, are acting to encourage the development of a more diverse electricity market, helping small suppliers and generators to compete on a more equal footing with the larger organisations. Ofgem is taking forward proposals to address the low levels of liquidity in the wholesale electricity market and Government are seeking backstop powers to address low liquidity should Ofgem and industry efforts not deliver adequate improvements.
Independent renewable developers have raised concerns that the long-term contracts (Power Purchase Agreement or PPAs) needed to underwrite some investments have become harder to obtain. While we expect the PPA market will improve with the introduction of Contracts for Difference we are seeking powers to intervene in case the market does not provide routes to market that support independent investment, and are considering what further steps might be needed to ensure that all potential developers, including independent and smaller participants, can support the Government's objectives to decarbonise the electricity generation at least cost to consumers.
For smaller suppliers, we have increased the threshold at which suppliers are required to participate in Government environmental and social schemes from 50,000 customers to 250,000 customers.
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to ensure that small suppliers will be treated equally under the electricity market capacity mechanism. [145532]
Mr Hayes: The payment model being developed for the capacity market requires suppliers to fund the costs of the mechanism. We are in the process of determining the exact arrangements and a number of options are under consideration. Each option has the common feature that suppliers’ share of costs would be in proportionate to a measure of their customers' electrical demand. This will ensure equitable treatment of all suppliers. We intend to make final proposals on cost apportionment by May 2013.
5 Mar 2013 : Column 927W
Energy: Prices
Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent initiatives his Department has introduced to reduce the cost of consumer energy bills. [145567]
Mr Hayes: The Government are committed to helping energy consumers get their bills down by getting people paying the lowest possible tariffs, and to reducing the amount of energy that is wasted. We have introduced a number of measures recently to deliver this commitment, including:
Putting clauses in the Energy Bill to help ensure consumers are on the lowest tariff for them;
The Green Deal, launched in January 2013, will help British consumers stay warm for less by letting them pay for energy efficiency improvements through savings on their fuel bills, transforming homes over the coming decade and beyond;
The new Energy Company Obligation, working alongside Green Deal, will provide considerable support to make homes more energy efficient and reach some 230,000 low income and vulnerable households each year;
Providing direct support through the Warm Home Discount, which ensured over 1 million of the poorest pensioners automatically received a discount on their electricity bill of £130 before 31 December 2012;
Providing local authorities and third sector organisations the opportunity to bid for up to £30 million of funding, through the Cheaper Energy Together scheme, to reduce the extent of fuel poverty in their area, primarily through the provision of support for improvements to the thermal efficiency of dwellings. This included £5 million of support for the most innovative local authority or third sector collective switching schemes.
Wind Power
Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the expenditure of carbon during the (a) construction and (b) erection of wind turbines. [146247]
Gregory Barker: Wind power has one of the lowest carbon footprints, with the manufacturing and construction phases accounting for 98% of the total life cycle CO2 emissions. For onshore wind, the carbon footprint ranges between 8-20gCO2eq/kWh, taking into account not only emissions from generation of electricity but those incurred during the manufacture, construction and decommissioning phase:
http://www.parliament.uk/documents/post/postpn268.pdf
For offshore wind, two peer-reviewed studies have given footprints of between nine and 13 gCO2eq/kWh. By comparison, the average emissions from fossil fuelled power generation in the UK is around 850gCO2eq/kWh for coal, 590gCO2eq/kWh for oil and 370gCO2eq/kWh for gas:
http://www.parliament.uk/documents/post/postpn_383-carbon-footprint-electricity-generation.pdf
Written Questions
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether the procedure and sign-off process for responding to parliamentary questions in his Department includes review by special advisers. [146083]
5 Mar 2013 : Column 928W
Gregory Barker: Ministers are responsible and accountable for all answers to parliamentary questions.
Special advisers provide assistance and advice to Ministers on a range of issues in the Department of Energy and Climate Change, as outlined in the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Air Pollution
Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the principal sources of emissions of (a) PM10 larger particulates and (b) PM2.5 fine particulates are; what the qualities of those emissions were in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [146054]
Richard Benyon: There are a wide range of sources of emissions to air of both coarse particles (PM10) and fine particles (PM2.5). The principal sources are residential heating, tyre and brake wear from road transport vehicles, power generation, diesel road and off-road engines and industrial processes. Tables providing details of emissions over the last five years from those source categories estimated as contributing more than 1% of national emissions in 2011 have been placed in the Library of the House.
The UK has recently signed the revised Gothenburg Protocol to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe's Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution, which commits the UK to a 30% reduction in emissions of PM2.5 by 2020 (based on 2005 emissions).
Fisheries Regional Advisory Councils
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of whether the fishing industry advisory bodies he consults are representative; and if he will make a statement. [143823]
Richard Benyon: When seeking views on issues which could impact upon the UK fishing industry, DEFRA consults an extensive range of stakeholders including all segments of the catching sector, processors and retailers. I am satisfied that I listen to the broadest spectrum of fishing interests.
Food: Waste
Mr Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to reduce the levels of (a) domestic, (b) manufacturer and (c) retailer food waste. [145964]
Richard Benyon: We are helping consumers to reduce household food waste through the Waste and Resources Action Programme's “Love Food Hate Waste” campaign.
We are also working with manufacturers and retailers to reduce food and packaging waste through the voluntary Courtauld Commitment. The second phase came to an end in December. We are currently working with the other UK Administrations, the Waste and Resources Action programme and signatories to develop a third phase of the agreement.
5 Mar 2013 : Column 929W
Horsemeat
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what reassurances he has sought from the Irish Government that horsemeat from the Irish Republic is not making its way into the food chain in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. [143571]
Mr Heath: On 13 February the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs met Agriculture Ministers from Ireland, France, Romania, Luxembourg, Sweden and Poland to seek coordinated action across Europe for consumers so that they can have confidence in what they are buying.
He was pleased to report that agreement was reached on a number of key issues in order to ensure that the current unacceptable situation with horsemeat cannot happen again, this includes a programme of DNA testing of beef products across the EU covering domestic and imported products, with first results by 15 April. In addition, both domestic and imported horsemeat will be tested for bute. The Secretary of State made a statement following this meeting on 13 February providing more details.
Sand and Gravel
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many tonnes of sand and gravel have been extracted in the UK in each of the last five years. [145948]
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Nick Boles: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.
The Annual Minerals Raised Inquiry survey provides data on the sales of extracted minerals in Great Britain, and may be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-communities-and-local-government/series/minerals
Sales of sand and gravel for construction purposes in Great Britain for the last five years for which data is available is:
| Tonnes | |
Communities and Local Government
Buildings
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what occupation costs of each type are incurred for each property used by his Department. [143286]
Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government currently occupies 19 properties. These are listed in the following table:
| £ | |||||
| Property name(1) | Rent | Rates | Other(2) | Total | Net total (income from tenants deducted) |
| (1) Figures provided are for financial year 2012-13 (2) ‘Other’ costs includes service charge (where applicable), building maintenance and operating costs and utilities. | |||||
Over the last 18 months the Department has had considerable success in reducing the cost of its estate through consolidation and targeted building disposals. This has seen the Department surrender four leasehold office properties through a combination of lease breaks and lease expiries as well as an administrative transfer of a property to another Government Department. This has generated net savings of £6.5 million net per annum over that period. The Department has also successfully sublet surplus space across their leasehold office estate over the same period, reducing the overall property costs by approximately £6.44 million via additional tenant income.
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I also refer my hon. Friend to my answer to her of 25 February 2013, Official Report, column 71-72W, on the further steps my Department will be taking to vacate and dispose of unnecessary and surplus property, and the action we have taken to sub-let office space to other organisations.
Fire and Rescue Services
Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what (a) legislative, (b) policy and (c) regulatory changes were made in relation to the outsourcing of services by local fire and rescue authorities between May 1997 and April 2010; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy in this regard. [145295]
Brandon Lewis: The last Administration introduced the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 which amended the provisions of the Fire Services Act 1947. The 2004 Act provided local fire and rescue authorities with the ability to outsource a wide range of its services in the execution of its functions, and many fire and rescue authorities now use these outsourcing powers. Ministers told the House then:
‘the Bill is not about the wholesale privatisation of the fire and rescue service'
(“Fire and Rescue Services Bill Deb” Official Report, 24 February 2004, column 173).
In recent weeks, this canard has emerged from hibernation as it has been suggested that this Government is seeking to 'privatise' the fire service. I would like to state for the record that this is completely untrue.
We are actually working to support local mutuals and co-operatives, following a bid from Cleveland Fire and Rescue Authority to set up a local employee-led mutual. The Labour councillor who is the local authority's chairman has described the claims of privatisation as 'scaremongering' (Darlington and Stockton Times, 12 February 2013).
There has previously been support from across the political spectrum for co-operatives and mutuals in local government, and I note that the Communities and Local Government Select Committee recently called on the Government to do more to help support the development of mutuals and co-operatives in local government (“Mutual and co-operative approaches to delivering local services”, HC 112, December 2012).
More information on the false alarm of ‘privatisation' can be found on my Department's website at:
www.gov.uk/government/news/ministers-respond-to-false-alarm-of-fire-service-privatisation
Homelessness
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate he has made of the number of homeless people by region in each year for which data is available. [136224]
Mr Prisk: Current and historic statistics on homelessness are published on our website at:
www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness
5 Mar 2013 : Column 932W
As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by Government office region.
We do publish information by local authority, which can be found at that link.
Housing: Construction
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects the first guarantee under the Housing Guarantee Scheme to be in place; and when he expects the first homes built under this scheme to be (a) started and (b) completed. [144877]
Mr Prisk: The Government issued an invitation to tender for delivery partner(s) interested in raising capital and on-lending it for qualifying projects for the two housing guarantees schemes on 31 January 2013. The invitation to tender seeks to have our delivery partners) in place and open for business by the end of April 2013. Potential delivery partners have been asked to set out their proposed timetable to be operational. Further detail on exact timings will be available once the delivery partner(s) have been appointed.
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) private sector and (b) public sector new housing starts there were in quarter 4 of 2012 in (i) Peterborough City Council area and (ii) each local authority in England; and if he will make a statement. [145578]
Mr Prisk: Statistics on house building starts by tenure in each local authority are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annual) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link. Taken together, the housing association and local authority tenures comprise the social housing starts.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building
Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department plans to introduce legislation giving deemed planning consent for housing applications in local authority areas which have not adopted local plans or do not have a five-year land supply by 2015; and if he will make a statement. [145801]
Nick Boles: The National Planning Policy Framework, published in March 2012 introduced a presumption in favour of sustainable development, which reinforces the role of the statutory development plan for an area. The presumption indicates that proposals in line with those plans should expect to be swiftly approved and that where the development plan is absent, silent or relevant policies are out of date, permission should be granted unless any adverse impacts of doing so would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits, when assessed against the policies in the framework taken as a whole; or where specific policies in the framework indicate development should be restricted(1).
Where a local authority cannot identify a five-year supply of deliverable sites, the relevant policies for the supply of housing should not be considered up to date.
5 Mar 2013 : Column 933W
In such cases, the decision taker should apply the presumption while taking into account any other material planning considerations. The Government have no plans to legislate to give deemed consent where there is not an up-to-date plan in place or a five-year housing supply.
(1) For example, those policies relating to sites protected under the Birds and Habitats Directives (see paragraph 119) and/or designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest; land designated as Green Belt, Local Green Space, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Heritage Coast or within a National Park (or the Broads Authority); designated heritage assets; and locations at risk of flooding or coastal erosion.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many single self-build properties were submitted for planning consent in England in (a) 2011 and (b) January 2013. [145847]
Nick Boles: The number of single self-build properties that have been submitted for planning consent in England is not centrally available.
Housing: Taxation
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance he has given on local authorities charging non-refundable affordable housing levies on single self-build properties in advance of planning consent being granted. [145550]
Nick Boles: The Government's National Planning Policy Framework sets out requirements on the use of planning obligations. The legislation is contained within Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended).
Local planning authorities are able to seek a Section 106 planning obligation, which may or may not include a contribution in respect of affordable housing, if a proposed development is considered to be otherwise both unacceptable in planning terms and incapable of being mitigated by a planning condition.
Any such obligation must be fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development.
Planning obligations are subject to negotiation. A developer or landowner does not have to enter into a Section 106 obligation and any subsequent refusal of planning permission can be appealed to the Secretary of State.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authorities are requiring no refundable affordable housing levies in advance of planning consents being granted. [145551]
Nick Boles: The Government do not collect this information.
Any affordable housing requirement in a Section 106 planning obligation is sought and applied locally by the local planning authority.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the level of affordable housing levy charges on single self-build properties in 2013. [145552]
5 Mar 2013 : Column 934W
Nick Boles: I refer the hon. Member to my answers to him on 30 January 2013, Official Report, column 853W.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations he has received on the effect of the affordable housing levy in (a) Leicestershire, (b) Northamptonshire and (c) Nottinghamshire on self-build properties. [145553]
Nick Boles: We receive and consider correspondence on many aspects of planning policy and that includes those dealing with the affordable housing requirements in Section 106 obligations.
We are taking forward reforms in respect of Section 106 agreements, to help developers and landowners renegotiate economically unrealistic affordable housing requirements, and to deliver more housing and more affordable housing than would otherwise be the case.
As outlined in my answer of 30 January 2013, Official Report, column 853W, the community infrastructure levy was a measure introduced under the last Administration. The Government already reformed the operation of the levy and continues to listen to issues raised by those charging and paying it.
We are currently reviewing what further steps can be taken to ensure that self-build and genuine small-scale development is not adversely affected by the introduction of the levy.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what is the highest affordable housing levy his Department has authorised local authorities to levy on single self-build properties of three bedrooms or less. [145664]
Nick Boles: The Government have no involvement in the application or amount of such charges. It is a matter for each local planning authority.
I also refer the hon. Member to my answers to him on 30 January 2013, Official Report, column 853W, and my answer to him today, PQ 145550 on Section 106 Planning obligations.
Mortgages: Government Assistance
John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes have been purchased under the New Buy scheme since its creation in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency, (b) Barrow in Furness, (c) South Lakeland and (d) Cumbria. [145756]
Mr Prisk: The Department does not produce data on how many homes have been purchased under the New Buy scheme since its creation in the Barrow and Furness constituency, Barrow in Furness, South Lakeland and Cumbria.
However, I can refer the hon. Member to the map of NewBuy sales, based on post code districts, in the official statistics published on 26 February.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/newbuy-guarantee-scheme-statistics-march-to-december-2012
The Home Builders Federation, one of the Government's key partners in the development and operation of NewBuy, announced on 24 January that 3,000 reservations have been made under the scheme.
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Property Rights
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what future plans he has on the right to light. [146003]
Nick Boles: “Rights to light” are important property rights and are separate from planning law.
The role of the independent Law Commission is to ensure that the law is as fair, modern, simple and as cost-effective as possible. The Commission has been reviewing the law on rights to light and is now consulting on its provisional proposals. Its goal is to update and improve confusing and fragmented land law and legal rulings which date back to 1832.
There is a positive role for constructive legal consolidation. For example, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 consolidated complex legislation on land boundaries that dated back to the 17(th) Century.
The Commission will make its recommendations to the Government in November, after analysing the consultation responses. We will then consider the Commission's recommendations carefully and decide whether to ask them to take their review any further. Ultimately, any revision of the law is a decision for Parliament.
Notwithstanding, the Government recognise how important natural light is to people and to local amenity and is absolutely committed to protecting householders’ rights.
Rented Housing
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people lived in rented accommodation in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire, (c) the East Midlands and (d) England and Wales in each of the last five years. [123691]
Mr Foster: The data source for this is the English Housing survey. Due to the nature of sample surveys, figures can only be provided where sample sizes are large enough to make reliable estimates.
In England the number of households living in rental accommodation (either social or private) was approximately:
| Number million | |
Figures are not available for Wales from this Department.
As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by Government office region. Notwithstanding, previously published figures can be found at:
www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/tenure-trends-and-cross-tenure-analysis
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Nottinghamshire and Ashfield constituency
Figures are not available at this geographical level.
Right to Buy Scheme: North East
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many tenants participated in the Right to Buy scheme for social housing since 2 April 2012 in (a) Newcastle upon Tyne Central constituency, (b) Newcastle upon Tyne and (c) the North East. [145703]
Mr Prisk [holding answer 1 March 2013]:Figures for local authority right to buy sales at local authority district level since April 2012 can be found in Live Table 691 on this page
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/right-to-buy-sales-in-england-2012-to-2013
There were 64 right to buy sales in Newcastle metropolitan district between 2012-13 Q1 and Q3. This is up from 28 sales in 2011-12. Figures are collected at local authority level and not available at parliamentary constituency level.
As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by Government office region.
Right to Buy Scheme: West Midlands
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes have been purchased under the right to buy scheme in (a) the west midlands and (b) Birmingham in each year since 2008. [135092]
Mr Prisk: There were 619 right to buy and other council house sales in Birmingham between 2008-09 and 2011-12.
As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by Government office region.
Notwithstanding, figures for local authority housing sales at local authority district level are published on our website at Live Table 648b:
www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-social-housing-sales
Social Rented Housing
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in each Government region, how many new lettings of (a) one bedroomed socially rented housing units and (b) two bedroomed socially rented housing units were made to existing tenants in the socially rented sector, by region, within the last 12 months. [124429]
Mr Prisk [holding answer 23 October 2012]: As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by Government office region.
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We do hold data by local authority, based on Continuous Recording of Lettings and Sales (CORE) figures; notwithstanding, some local authorities—including a number in London—do not provide us with their data.
I would be happy to provide the incomplete local information that we do hold if the hon. Member wishes to ask a supplementary question.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of households in the social housing sector in each local authority area that have (a) one unused bedroom, (b) two unused bedrooms and (c) three unused bedrooms. [144881]
Mr Prisk: Statistics on occupancy ratings are available from the English Housing Survey published by DCLG. Due to the sample size of this survey it is not possible to provide local authority level estimates. The latest occupancy rating estimates for England, published in the survey 2011-12 headline report, show that 1.11 million homes in the social rented sector were classed as ‘1 above standard’, and a further 386,000 were classed as ‘2 or more above standard’ according to a measure known as ‘the bedroom Standard’. These figures are a three year average for 2009-10 to 2011-12.
The English Housing Survey headline report also provides an estimate of overcrowding in the social rented sector, with 249,000 households (6.6%) falling into this category. This figure is also based on a three year average for 2009-10 to 2011-12.
Administrative data collected from local authorities indicate that there were 1.8 million households on social housing waiting lists in England in 2011-12.
Tackling unnecessary under-occupation in the social rented sector, and making better use of the finite social housing stock, will help reduce over-crowding and house more families in suitable accommodation.
Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average weekly rent is for a two bedroom property in the social sector in each (a) Broad Rental Market Area and (b) local authority. [145700]
Mr Prisk [holding answer 1 March 2013]:Average weekly rent data by local authority are available in the Department's Local Authority Housing Statistics. The data are available in Section H at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/local-authority-housing-statistics-data-returns-for-2011-to-2012
Translation Services
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in how many languages his Department produces its public documents. [135270]
Brandon Lewis: The default for my Department is that we do not now translate documents into foreign languages.
We may, from time to time, translate documents into Braille (to assist the blind) or Welsh if required by the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.
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Health
Abortion
Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) cases have been referred to the Crown Prosecution Service, (b) prosecutions have been commenced, (c) random inspections of licensed abortion centres have taken place and (d) other follow-up steps have been taken following the Chief Medical Officer's letter to abortion providers sent in February 2012. [145420]
Anna Soubry: A number of referrals to police forces have been made since allegations of sex-selective abortions and concerns about pre-signing of HSA1 abortion notification forms were raised in February 2012. These referrals have been made by departmental officials and, in some cases, directly from national health service trusts. Decisions on prosecutions are still awaited from the Crown Prosecution Service.
The following table provides details of inspections undertaken by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) between 1 April 2012 and 27 February 2013 of locations undertaking termination of pregnancy. The data collected by the CQC does not capture whether the inspections are unannounced but they have advised that, in the vast majority of cases, these inspections were unannounced.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health approves independent sector places to perform termination of pregnancy. All places were re-approved from 1 September 2012 using updated requirements contained in Interim Procedures for the Approval of Independent Sector Places for the Termination of Pregnancy (the Procedures). The updated version of the procedures sets out in greater detail the legal requirements around certification of abortions. As part of the re-approval process all places were required to describe the monitoring arrangements they had in place to ensure these requirements are being met. Later this year we will publicly consult on a further updated version of the procedures.
| Inspection type(1) | Number of inspections undertaken | Number of locations | |
| Inspection types: Scheduled: these are inspections that are part of our planned inspection programme. Responsive follow up: these are follow up inspections where the previous inspection found non-compliance. Compliance Review: these are reviews of the evidence and information that we have, which will involve a site visit (inspection) to make a judgement on whether a provider is compliant with the essential standards. It is called a review rather than inspection because it involves more than just evidence and information obtained on inspection. A review can be thematic, e.g looking at particular standards across a number of different providers or it can encompass any number of essential standards. Responsive—concerning info: these are inspections carried out in response to concerns that CQC receive/are aware of. Desk based follow up review: these are inspections where a site visit is not necessary to check compliance (e.g. documentation check). | |||
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Ambulance Services: East of England
Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish statistics on the proportion of ambulances or equivalent vehicles in the East of England which were with the caller within 19 minutes in each of the last 24 months. [145792]
Dr Poulter: Information about the proportion of Category A (immediately life-threatening) calls received by East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust that resulted in a fully equipped ambulance vehicle (car or ambulance) arriving at the scene of the incident within 19 minutes is shown in the following table.
| East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust: proportion of responses to Category A calls within 19 minutes in 2011-12 and 2012-13 | ||
| Percentage | ||
| Month: | 2011-12 | 2012-13 |
| (1) Year to date. Notes: 1. Monthly data collected only since April 2011, so data for last 24 months is not available. 2. December 2012 is the most recent published data. Source: Ambulance System Indicators—UNIFY2 | ||
Cancer
Mr Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how cancer networks will be integrated into the new commissioning system; [R] [145560]
(2) whether cancer networks will act as local branches of the strategic clinical networks for cancer; [R] [145561]
(3) what authority cancer networks will have. [R] [145562]
Dr Poulter: Strategic clinical networks will bring together all commissioners and providers in the new health system to plan pathways of care which deliver the best outcomes for patients. Commissioners will be able to use networks as a source of clinical advice and. support in driving their quality improvement programmes locally. Cancer is a priority condition for the first strategic clinical networks being established from 1 April 2013. Cancer strategic clinical networks will be supported and funded through network support teams hosted by the NHS Commissioning Board. The support teams will cover defined geographical areas and will also support networks for other priority conditions or patient groups.
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Strategic clinical networks are non-statutory bodies. They will, however, have clear terms of reference and an annual accountability agreement with the NHS Commissioning Board for the programmes of quality improvement they carry out.
Coronavirus
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what procedures his Department has in place to contain an outbreak of coronovirus. [145773]
Dr Poulter: Coronaviruses have been associated for many years with outbreaks and sporadic cases of the common cold during the winter and early spring every year. These viruses cause mild upper respiratory tract symptoms and rarely require hospitalisation.
Over the last 10 years other coronaviruses have emerged which may be associated with severe symptoms and death. The procedures for containing potential outbreaks of these viruses follow the pattern established to deal with any outbreak of serious respiratory infection.
The Health Protection Agency leads on the public health response through on-going surveillance which aims to rapidly detect and laboratory investigate possible cases. Once a confirmed case is identified strict isolation measures are implemented. Close contacts of confirmed cases are identified and followed up for the relevant period of time.
If contacts develop a respiratory illness in this period of interest, they are asked to self-isolate (if in the community) or are isolated (if in hospital). These procedures were followed in response to recent United Kingdom cases of novel coronavirus.
Dietary Supplements
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on how many men have been admitted to hospital because of the effects of (a) diet supplements, (b) muscle boosters and (c) fat burners such as DNP, by age group. [145540]
Dr Poulter: The information requested is not held centrally.
Doctors: Foreign Workers
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors working in the NHS gained their doctorate abroad. [145842]
Dr Poulter: The number of doctors working in the national health service who gained their doctorate abroad is not collected centrally.
The annual work force census published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) shows the number of doctors in England and the country of their primary medical qualification. A doctor's country of postgraduate medical qualification is not recorded and is not shown in the census.
The latest available census shows that as at 30 September 2011 the number of doctors in England who qualified outside the United Kingdom is 42,355 (full-time equivalent).
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The following table shows the number of doctors in England, by headcount and full- time equivalent, broken down to those who qualified within the UK, those who qualified within the remainder of the European economic area (EEA) and those who qualified outside the EEA.
The next annual census will be published on 21 March 2013 and provides data as at 30 September 2012.
| All doctors(1) working in England who qualified outside the UK, 2011 | ||
| Number(2) (headcount) and full-time equivalents | ||
| England at 30 September 2011 | HC | FTE |
| ‘—’ denotes zero (1) Excludes medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are GPs working part-time in hospitals. (2 )The new headcount methodology is not fully comparable with data for years prior to 2010 due to improvements that make it a more stringent count of absolute staff numbers. Further information on the headcount methodology is available in the census publication, Headcount totals are unlikely to equal the sum of components: http://www.ic.nhs.uk/searchcatalogue?productid=4876&topics=2%fWorkforce%2fStaff +numbers %2fMedical+and+dental+staff&sort=Relevance&size=10&page=1#top (3) Country of qualification is not known for these doctors. Country of qualification information is derived by linking census data to GMC information using the doctors GMC numbers; where this linkage cannot be fulfilled we state country of qualification as unknown. Notes: 1. Nationality is not available on the work force census. The figures here show doctors who received their primary medical qualification outside the UK, but this does not necessarily denote nationality 2. Medical Council. For staff in dental specialties, holding only a General Dental Council registration, the country of qualification is therefore not known. 3. GP data includes GP Providers, GP Others, GP Registrars and GP Retainers 4. Data Quality 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: HSCIC Medical and Dental Workforce Census and HSCIC GP Workforce Census | ||
Doctors: Tax Avoidance
Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of doctors paid through companies registered overseas. [146119]
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Dr Poulter: This information is not held centrally.
Drugs: Rehabilitation
Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of people living in each local authority are currently engaged in treatment for substance abuse. [145570]
Dr Poulter: Data on drug treatment are collected by person and by drug partnership, they are not collected by local authority area. Many drug partnership areas are the same as local authority areas, however there are some exceptions where they do not match local authority area.
A table providing data on the numbers of people in treatment in each drugs partnership area in England in 2011-12, the most recent year that we have data for, has been placed in the Library.
Data on the number of people in alcohol treatment are collected by local authority area and a table providing data on the numbers of people in treatment in each local authority area in England in 2011-12, the most recent year that we have data for, has been placed in the Library.
Electronic Cigarettes
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the safety of electronic cigarettes. [145541]
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has undertaken into the effectiveness of electronic cigarettes as a means of stopping smoking. [145640]
Norman Lamb: There are a number, of products on the market which claim to contain nicotine, such as electronic cigarettes, which are widely available but are not licensed medicines. Currently, any nicotine-containing product (NCP) which claims or implies that it can treat nicotine addiction is considered to be a medicinal product. This approach has allowed NCPs which do not make such claims to be used and sold without the safeguards built into the regulation of medicinal products.
In March 2011, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) published the outcome of a public consultation on whether to bring all NCPs within the medicines licensing regime. The response to the consultation highlighted the need for further information to inform a decision. Since this time, the MHRA co-ordinated a programme of research to advise on:
an investigation of the levels of nicotine which have a significant physiological effect through its pharmacological action;
the nature, quality and safety of unlicensed NCPs;
the actual use of unlicensed NCPs (excluding tobacco products) in the marketplace;
the efficacy of unlicensed NCPs in smoking cessation; and
modelling of the potential impact of bringing these products into medicines regulation on public health outcomes.
The MHRA is currently bringing to a conclusion this period of scientific and market research with a view to a final decision on the application of medicines regulation in spring 2013.
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Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the usefulness of electronic cigarettes in helping people to stop smoking; [145798]
(2) what steps his Department has taken to warn of the potential dangers of using electronic cigarettes and nicotine replacement treatments. [145803]
Norman Lamb: There are a number of products on the market which claim to contain nicotine, such as electronic cigarettes, which are widely available but are not licensed medicines. Currently, any nicotine-containing product (NCP) which claims or implies that it can treat nicotine addiction is considered to be a medicinal product. This approach has allowed NCPs which do not make such claims to be used and sold without the safeguards built into the regulation of medicinal products.
In March 2011, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) published the outcome of a public consultation on whether to bring all NCPs within the medicines licensing regime. The response to the consultation highlighted the need for further information to inform a decision and the MHRA has co-ordinated a programme of research to advise on a final decision on the application of medicines regulation in spring 2013.
Nicotine replacement therapies are licensed medicinal products that meet standards for quality, safety and efficacy. There is a well-established favourable benefit-to-risk balance for nicotine replacement therapies to relieve and/or prevent craving and withdrawal symptoms. It aids smokers wishing to cut down or quit, and as a safer alternative to smoking for smokers and those around them.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence draft guidance on tobacco harm reduction only recommends use of licensed nicotine replacement therapy as little is known about the effectiveness, quality and safety of unlicensed NCPs, including electronic cigarettes.
Epilepsy
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve the provision of epilipsy services in (a) Peterborough, (b) the East of England and (c) England; and if he will make a statement. [145498]
Norman Lamb: Making the national health service more responsive to the needs of people with long-term conditions, including those with epilepsy is a key Government priority and we have committed to this in the NHS Mandate, the NHS Constitution and the NHS Outcomes Framework.
The mandate, which sets out the Government's ambitions for the health service over the next two years, includes an objective for the NHS Commissioning Board (NHS CB) to make measurable progress towards making the NHS among the best in Europe at supporting people with ongoing health problems to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care
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they receive. It is for the NHS CB to decide how they will carry this out; the Government will hold them to account for the outcomes they achieve.
The NHS CB, in turn, will hold clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to account. While CCGs will have freedom to commission services tailored to the needs of their local populations, they will be accountable to the NHS CB through an annual performance assessment, which will include an assessment of how well the CCG has fulfilled its duty to act consistently with the mandate.
Local commissioners have the primary responsibility for determining what steps are needed to improve the health of people with epilepsy in Peterborough and the East of England. To support local commissioners, the Department asked the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to develop Quality Standards covering epilepsy in young people and children and epilepsy in adults. These standards were published on 28 February.
Clinical senates will have an advisory role in the new system, sharing their clinical expertise and knowledge of their geographical area with CCGs, health and wellbeing boards and the NHS CB so that they can make better informed decisions.
The Strategic Clinical Network for Mental Health, Dementia and Neurological Conditions, which is being established by the NHS CB, will offer advice to CCGs and the NHS CB with a particular focus on supporting change and helping to improve care pathways using evidence-based practice. In addition, the NHS CB is appointing a national clinical director for chronic disability and neurological conditions who will consider what other steps could be taken at national level to support high quality local commissioning.
Food Poisoning
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of food poisoning were notified to his Department in each of the last five years. [145491]
Dr Poulter: The Food Standards Agency has monitored changes in the number of laboratory-confirmed cases of infection of key foodborne pathogens such as Salmonella, Campylobacter, E.coli 0157 and Listeria monocytogenes since 2000 and norovirus since 2005.
The number of laboratory-confirmed cases of these infections in the United Kingdom each year between 2008 and 2012 are shown in the following table.
| 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |
| Note: Figures for 2012 are provisional. Source: Health Protection Agency, Health Protection Scotland, Public Health Agency for Northern Ireland | |||||
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Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many attendances at accident and emergency have resulted from people eating misidentified food picked in the wild; [145778]
(2) how many cases of mushroom poisoning have occurred in each of the last five years; and how many of each such cases have been fatal. [145779]
Dr Poulter: Information on attendances at accident and emergency (A&E) as a result of eating misidentified food is not held centrally. The Health and Social Care Information Centre are unable to identify these patients in hospital episode data as there is no specific diagnosis coding relating to people having eaten misidentified food.
The following table shows a count of finished admission episodes (FAEs)(1) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of mushroom poisoning(2) for 2007-08 to 2011-12(3). The Department does not hold data on the number of fatalities as the Office for National Statistics is the source of mortality data. However/for the time period in question, none of the FAEs ended as a result of the death of the patient.
| Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector | |
| FAEs | |
| (1) Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. (2) Number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis The number of episodes where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record. ICD-10 Code: T62.0 Ingested mushrooms (3) Assessing growth through time (in-patients) HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre | |
Food: Testing
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the strategy of the Food Standards Agency is for ensuring the adequacy of future arrangements for the testing of food samples. [145539]
Dr Poulter: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) works closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to draw up priorities each year for the FSA's £1.6 million national co-ordinated food sampling programme, carried out by local authorities. The priorities take into account consumer and public health protection, are risk and evidence based and intelligence-led. The priorities are published on the FSA's website.
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In addition, the FSA carries out its own programme of specific surveys. In recent years the FSA has prioritised the testing of foods that pose a risk to people's health and tackling problems in the food chain that can make people ill.
General Practitioners
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to issue guidance to clinical commissioning groups to assist in the identification of behaviour that could be deemed anti-competitive. [145510]
Dr Poulter: Monitor and the NHS Commissioning Board are committed to working together to produce a joint Choice and Competition Framework that will provide guidance to both commissioners and providers on matters relating to competition and integration. Monitor will be consulting on its guidance, in accordance with a requirement set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
Gosport War Memorial Hospital
Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the audit report conducted in October 2002 by Professor Richard Baker into the number of deaths at Gosport War Memorial Hospital will be published. [145981]
Dr Poulter: The Department will consider whether it is appropriate to release this report once the final inquest into the deaths at Gosport War Memorial hospital is complete.
Health Professions
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) formal and (b) informal Government and professional rules and regulations are in place to control the number of entrants into the medical profession. [145511]
Dr Poulter: The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) sets targets for total intakes of medical students by each medical school in England. These are based on the results of periodic reviews of the predicted required medical student numbers conducted by the Department and HEFCE. The last review took place in 2012 when it was decided to implement an overall 2% reduction in medical school intakes, to be introduced with the 2013 intake. Further reviews will take place on a regular basis.
Information Officers
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total cost was of running his Department's press office since 2010. [145502]
Dr Poulter: The total spend for running the Department's Media Centre is in the following table:
| Financial year | Actual spend (£) |
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| (1) Not yet available. | |
The total spend listed for each financial year includes staff and administration costs, along with all service charges, e.g. press cuttings contracts.
KPMG
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many contracts his Department has awarded to KPMG since 2010. [145642]
Dr Poulter: Since May 2010 up to and including 31 January 2013, 22 contracts were awarded to KPMG by the core Department of Health and Connecting for Health.
This compares to 60 equivalent contracts awarded to KPMG previously, between May 2008 to April 2010.
Medicine: Research
James Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much (a) his Department, (b) the Medical Research Council and (c) the National Institute for Health Research spent on research in each of the last five years; and what proportion of that money was spent on each (i) broad area of research and (ii) specific disease or condition. [146320]
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Dr Poulter: The Department's expenditure from central research and development revenue budgets from 2007-08 to 2011-12 is shown in the following table.
| £ million | |||||
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | |
The Policy Research Programme (PRP) is a national research-funding programme within the Department of Health's Research, and Development Directorate. It commissions high quality research-based evidence across the full policy remit of the Department. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) provides the framework through which the Department can position, maintain and manage the research, research staff and research infrastructure of the NHS in England as a national research facility.
From 2008-09, spend on research funded directly by the NIHR has been categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health categories. NIHR expenditure on research infrastructure and systems where spend cannot be attributed to health categories is excluded. The following table shows NIHR spend in health categories as a proportion of total categorised spend and as a proportion of total revenue expenditure.
| Percentage | ||||||||
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | |||||
| Health category | Categorised NIHR | Total NIHR revenue | Categorised NIHR | Total NIHR revenue | Categorised NIHR | Total NIHR revenue | Categorised NIHR | Total NIHR revenue |
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The Medical Research Council (MRC) is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. MRC expenditure by HRCS category is shown in the following table.
| £ million | |||||
| Financial year | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
Mental Patients
Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients admitted to NHS hospitals for mental health reasons were restrained by the police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and what the ethnicity was of those patients. [145911]
Norman Lamb: This information is not held centrally.
NHS: Redundancy
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been made redundant by the NHS since May 2010. [146403]
Dr Poulter: The number of people made redundant in the national health service since 1 May 2010 is estimated to be 14,650. This estimate is based on staff recorded on the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) Data Warehouse as having a reason for leaving as either voluntary or compulsory redundancy between 1 May 2010 and 30 September 2012. This is the latest data for which information is available.
The ESR Data Warehouse is a monthly snap shot of the live ESR system. This is the human resources and payroll system that covers all NHS employees other than those working in general practice, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, and some NHS staff who have transferred to local authorities, social enterprises.
Non-ionizing Radiation
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people, by age and gender, have been admitted to hospital because of skin damage caused by overexposure to UV rays in each of the last five years. [145492]
Dr Poulter: Data on hospital admissions are collected by the Health and Social Care Information Centre. A diagnosis classification system (ICD-10) is used within the data and depending on how specific a request is, it is not always possible to identify every condition using these codes. Information relating to skin damage is not held centrally.
North Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nursing staff were employed by the North Cheshire Hospitals Trust in each of the last five years. [146242]
Dr Poulter: The information requested is not centrally held in the format requested. Information on the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff at the Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WHHFT) is shown in the following table. The information provided is as at 30 September in each of the years from 2007 to 2011, which is the latest available data.
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| Year (as at 30 September) | FTE qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff at WHHFT |
| Notes: 1. Full-time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number and figures exclude bank staff. 2. IC 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: The Information Centre for heath and social care (IC), non-medical workforce census. | |