Prisoners: Older People
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reasons prisoners of retirement age receive a weekly payment of £3.25. [159625]
Jeremy Wright: Convicted prisoners are not entitled to claim any state benefits while they are in prison and this includes the state retirement pension. Prisoners above state retirement age are not normally required to work although they may choose to do so, and will be paid if they do.
Prisoners pay policy, including minimum pay rates is set out in Prison Service Order 4460 Prisoners Pay. A payment of £3.25 is made to prisoners above state retirement age who do not work. This helps them meet day to day expenses such as access to PIN phone credit and postage costs for letters in order to maintain family ties. They may also make purchases from the prison canteen and facilities list.
Education
Conditions of Employment
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many staff were retained on zero-hour contracts by (a) his Department and (b) the executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [160766]
Elizabeth Truss: The Department and its executive agencies did not employ any staff on zero-hour contracts in 2010-11, 2011-12 or 2012-13.
The Department does not hold this information about its non-departmental public bodies.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 793W
National Curriculum Tests
Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education under what curricular students ending Key Stage 2 in 2014 will be (a) taught and (b) assessed. [160780]
Elizabeth Truss: Pupils in Year 6 during the 2013/14 academic year will be taught and assessed against the current national curriculum in English, mathematics and science. Under proposals to disapply parts of the national curriculum in 2013/14, schools will be able to decide whether to continue with, or depart from, current programmes of study for the foundation subjects(1).
(1)( )Art and design, citizenship, computing, design and technology, history, geography, languages, music and PE.
School Meals
Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much is spent on daily school lunches for each student in the UK; and how much is brought in through purchasing each day. [160347]
Elizabeth Truss: The cost of school meals is met through a combination of money allocated from individual schools' budgets and payments made by parents purchasing meals for their children. The Department does not collect this information and therefore cannot provide an estimate on the total cost, or the amount brought in through purchasing.
The Department for Education's responsibility extends only to schools in England.
The Secretary of State for Education asked Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent, the co-founders of Leon restaurants, to lead an independent review of school food across England. They have been developing a School Food Plan which looks at good practice across the UK and abroad. The review will report soon.
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what guidance his Department provides to schools on school meals and the collection of payments from parents for such meals; [160716]
(2) what statutory responsibilities there are on schools for the provision of school meals. [160717]
Elizabeth Truss: The Education Act 2002 requires school governing bodies to provide school lunches for pupils where a meal is requested, and either the pupil is eligible for free school lunches, or it would not be unreasonable for lunches to be provided. Information and guidance is available on the Children's Food Trust website(1).
It is for individual schools to decide how to collect payments from parents.
The Secretary of State has asked Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent, the co-founders of Leon restaurants, to lead independent work to review school food across the country.
Further details on the school food review can be found on the Department for Education website(2).
(1)( )http://www.childrensfoodtrust.org.uk/
(2)( )http://www.education.gov.uk/schoolfoodplan
20 Jun 2013 : Column 794W
Schools: Lancashire
Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) how much funding was given to schools in Rossendale to spend on improving PE and sport in the latest period for which figures are available; [160546]
(2) how much funding was given to schools in Blackburn with Darwen to spend on improving PE and sport in the latest period for which figures are available. [160547]
Mr Timpson: As part of their core provision all state-funded schools receive funding to provide a broad and balanced curriculum which includes PE.
The Secretary of State has also allocated an additional £65 million in funding to state schools with at least 20 secondary aged pupils for the academic years 2011/12 and 2012/13 under the secondary teacher release scheme. This funding provides for the release of a specialist PE teacher one day each week to create more opportunities for competitive sport.
Under this scheme, schools in Blackburn with Darwen received a total of £98,800 in 2012/13. Schools in Rossendale and Darwen constituency received £15,200 in 2012/13.
On 16 March the Prime Minister announced a further £150 million per year in new, cross-Government funding for improving PE and sport in schools for academic years 2013/14 and 2014/15. This funding will be made available to all maintained schools with primary aged pupils and will be ring-fenced with schools required to spend it on improving their provision of PE and sport. The amount of funding allocated to each school will be determined by the number of primary-aged pupils.
Special Educational Needs
Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the total number of children is in each local authority area; how many such children are classified under (a) School Action and (b) School Action Plus; how many have Special Educational Needs (SEN) statements; and how many SEN tribunals were requested and how many SEN tribunals were actually commenced in the last year for which data are available. [160494]
Mr Timpson: We have interpreted the request for the total number of children in each local authority to mean the total number of pupils. A table setting out information on the number of pupils attending schools in each local authority as well as the number with statements of special educational needs (SEN), the number at School Action Plus and the number at School Action has been placed in the House Libraries. This information can also be found in the publication 'Special Educational Needs in England, January 2012' available on the government website.(1)
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) administers appeals to the First-tier Tribunal Special Educational Needs and Disability (FtT SEND). Statistics regarding the FtT SEND are reported against each academic year.
The following table shows the total number of appeals registered with HMCTS for the 2011-12 academic year
20 Jun 2013 : Column 795W
by local authorities in England. FtT SEND does not publish statistics on the numbers of actual hearings commenced.
(1) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/special-educational- needs-in-england-january-2012
| First-tier tribunal (special educational needs and disability) appeals registered per local authority, 1 September to 31 August | |
| Local authority | Appeals registered 2011-12 |
20 Jun 2013 : Column 796W
20 Jun 2013 : Column 797W
| '—' denotes small value suppressed to protect confidentiality. Source: HMCTS. | |
Teachers
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to achieve gender balance in teaching in primary and lower schools. [160640][Official Report, 26 June 2013, Vol. 565, c. 5-6MC.]
Mr Laws: The Government have made it clear that it would like to see the proportion of male trainees growing over time. The most recent Initial Teacher training (ITT) census in November 2012 showed a record number and percentage of male graduates entering ITT.
The proportion of qualified male teaching staff in nursery and primary (including lower) education increased from 16% to 19% between 2010 and 2011. Workforce figures for 2012 are not yet available.
In July 2012 the Teaching Agency (TA) launched the Primary Experience Programme, which allowed male graduates interested in primary teacher training to have 10 days’ work experience in a school. 1,000 places have been made available in schools across the country and the programme’s impact is currently being assessed by the National College for Teaching and Leadership.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 798W
The TA also regularly puts male graduates in touch with a range of inspirational male primary teachers, to get an insight into teachers' motivations, career choices, challenges and the rewards of day-to-day life in a classroom.
Energy and Climate Change
Billing
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the savings it could achieve by paying its suppliers early in return for rebates. [161053]
Gregory Barker: The Department aims to pay its suppliers quickly to assist small business and promote the economy. Suppliers are encouraged to be innovative in their thinking when preparing bids and to provide any suggestions and solutions that may provide a more cost efficient and value for money solution.
Contracts of the Department, state that payment shall normally be paid within 30 days. Although our target is to pay invoices within 30 days, typically invoices are paid within five days. The Department publishes these statistics, please see the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change/about/procurement#prompt-payments
The Department, gains value for money by competing work among a number of suppliers, using market forces to provide the best possible rates for its work.
Electricity: Scotland
Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions or correspondence he has had with (a) Ministers or officials in the Scottish Government, (b) Ofgem, (c) Scottish Hydro-Electric Transmission Ltd and (d) Comhairle nan Eilean Siar regarding the construction of the sub-sea interconnector between Gravir and Ullapool. [160667]
Michael Fallon: Details of meetings between Ministers and external organisations are published quarterly on the Departmental website at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change/series/ministers-meeting-with-external-organisations
Letters to Ministers concerning the transmission link to the Western Isles this year were received from David Gardner, Director of Transmission at Scottish Hydro Electricity Transmission plc on 22 January and Fergus Ewing, Scottish Government Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism on 5 March and 12 April. Replies to the first two letters were sent on 14 February and 12 March and the last was discussed at a meeting involving my officials on 29 April.
In addition my officials have been in regular contact with all these organisations about this transmission link, including at meetings of the Scottish Islands Renewables Group.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 799W
Energy: Meters
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how the introduction of smart meters in domestic properties will be funded. [160563]
Gregory Barker: Energy suppliers will continue to be responsible for purchasing and installing meters. Similarly, under current arrangements consumers pay for the cost of their metering and meter maintenance through their energy bills, and this will be the same for smart metering. Taking into account the range of costs and benefits arising from the roll-out of smart metering, we expect the average dual fuel household to realise an annual bill saving of around £24 by 2020.
Fuel Poverty: Greater Manchester
Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of households in (a) Greater Manchester and (b) Bolton classified as fuel poor. [160947]
Gregory Barker: In 2011, the proportion of households estimated to be in fuel poverty in Greater Manchester county was 16.6% and in Bolton local authority 16.3%.
These figures are based on the 10% measure of fuel poverty, i.e. households are deemed to be in fuel poverty if they need to spend more than 10% of their income on fuel in order to achieve an adequate level of warmth.
Geothermal Power
Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when the Deep Geothermal Review Study, which he has commissioned from Atkins Global, will be published. [160470]
Gregory Barker: DECC expects to receive and publish the report by the middle of summer.
Mining: Allowances
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the average annual payment has been to households in receipt of entitlements under the national concessionary fuel scheme in the last five years. [160336]
Michael Fallon: Under the terms of the DECC's obligations for the National Concessionary Fuel Agreements originally entered into by British Coal, beneficiaries can receive entitlements of solid fuel or cash in lieu and they can move from cash to fuel and vice versa as many times as they want. The majority of beneficiaries now receive their entitlement as cash in lieu.
The value of the cash in lieu entitlements is subject to annual increases linked to the RPI Heat and Light index (July rate) applied from October onwards each year.
The average annual payments of cash in lieu over the last five years are as follows:
20 Jun 2013 : Column 800W
| Cash average annual payment (£) | |
The value of the solid fuel entitlements provided under DECC's obligations is linked to a combination of inflators depending on the fuel products (December rates) also applied annually to contract prices from April onwards each year.
The average annual tonnage of solid fuel entitlements over the last five years are as follows:
| Fuel average annual tonnes | |
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in receipt of entitlements under the national concessionary fuel scheme received (a) solid fuel and (b) a cash allowance in each of the last 10 years. [160338]
Michael Fallon: The following table shows the number of households in receipt of concessionary fuel entitlements under DECC's obligations for the National Concessionary Fuel Scheme over the last 10 years, broken down into cash in lieu and solid fuel beneficiaries.
Please note that beneficiaries in nursing home care have also been included as part of the total numbers.
| Fuel | Cash | Total | |
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in (a) the UK and (b) each parliamentary constituency have received entitlements under the national concessionary fuel scheme in each of the last 10 years. [160339]
Michael Fallon: The following table shows the total number of households in receipt of concessionary fuel under DECC's obligations for the National Concessionary Fuel Scheme, broken down into cash in lieu and fuel beneficiaries.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 801W
| As at 1 April: | Fuel | Cash | Total |
We do not have information by parliamentary constituency as the entitlement management database used by the Department's contractor does not hold beneficiary information by constituency as it is not required for operational delivery of the scheme.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the number of households in receipt of entitlements under the national concessionary fuel scheme in each of the next five years. [160340]
Michael Fallon: The table shows the number of households in receipt of concessionary fuel entitlements for which DECC is responsible under the obligations arising from the 1994 Coal Industry Act over the last five years, broken down into cash in lieu and solid fuel beneficiaries.
Please note that beneficiaries in Nursing Home care have also been included as part of the total numbers.
| Fuel | Cash | Total | |
Nuclear Power
Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many individuals who have worked on the Government's nuclear policy have been made redundant since 2010. [160793]
Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was created in October 2008.
DECC is one of the smallest Departments in Whitehall (less than 1,700 staff) and has not made any of its civil servants redundant since its inception.
Renewable Energy
Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what government subsidies were for (a) onshore wind and (b) solar panels in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012. [159403]
20 Jun 2013 : Column 802W
Michael Fallon: Renewable electricity generation from large-scale onshore wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) plants is supported through the Renewables Obligation, while support for small-scale generation is available through the Feed-in Tariff scheme. The support levels for each scheme are shown in the tables and links, and are given for financial years.
| Renewables Obligation | |||
| Number of Renewable Obligation Certificates per Megawatt Hour of renewable generation | |||
| Technology | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 |
The original tariffs available for onshore wind and solar PV during 2010-11 are set out in the following table:
| Technology | Scale | Tariff (p/kWh) Year 1: 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 |
In 2011-12 and 2012-13 there were a number of changes to tariffs, details of which are published on Ofgem's webpage:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/Environment/fits/ad/Pages/ad.aspx
More recent tariffs (from 1 August 2012) are also published by Ofgem:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/Environment/fits/tariff-tables/Pages/index.aspx
Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the cost per unit of energy for the total of solar panels and wind turbines in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012. [159404]
Michael Fallon: The costs of generation for solar PV and wind turbines for 2009-10 to 2012-13 were estimated when banding was introduced to the renewables obligation in 2009. The costs for offshore wind turbines were reviewed again in 2010 when the level of support was increased to 2ROCs/MWh. Cost assumptions for all technologies were updated during the recent banding review for the period 2013-17 and can be accessed here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/renewables-obligation-banding-review
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/solar-pv-banded-support-levels
20 Jun 2013 : Column 803W
In 2012, the cost assumptions for solar PV were updated and can be accessed here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/feed-in-tariffs-first-phase-of-a-comprehensive-review
The wind turbine cost assumptions were updated and can be accessed here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/tariffs-for-non-pv-technologies-comprehensive-review-phase-2b
Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he will next review the Government's policy on subsidising wind turbines and solar panels. [159409]
Michael Fallon: Support for large-scale wind and solar PV generating stations was reviewed as part of the comprehensive banding review of the renewables obligation (RO). This review set support rates for 2013-17. The latest UK onshore wind costs were further examined during the call for evidence on onshore wind. The results of the call for evidence were published on 6 June(1) and confirmed that support for onshore wind would be maintained at the levels set through the banding review. The Secretary of State has the power to review RO support levels if one or more of the statutory conditions are met, for example, if there is evidence of a significant change in costs. However, we have no plans to review RO support rates again before the scheme closes to new accreditations on 1 April 2017.
Government have recently reformed the Feed-in Tariff (FITs) scheme, which subsidies both wind and solar generation. We are continually monitoring deployment under the scheme and have no plans to review the current tariffs.
(1) https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/onshore-wind-call- for-evidence
Culture, Media and Sport
Betting Shops
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the clustering of betting shops. [160607]
Hugh Robertson: I regularly discuss a range of matters of shared departmental interests, including gambling, with colleagues in the Department for Communities and Local Government. Local authorities have a range of planning and licensing powers available to deal with problems related to betting shops, including clustering, such as an Article 4 direction.
Broadband: Rural Areas
David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress she has made on delivering broadband to rural areas. [160616]
Maria Miller: The first street cabinets have now gone live for the rural broadband projects in North Yorkshire, Wales, Surrey and Lancashire, giving superfast broadband coverage to approximately 37,000 premises in these areas, with many more to come.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 804W
I was also impressed by the efforts of community projects on my recent visit to Lancashire to see the Broadband for the Rural North (B4RN) project and would like to thank both my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood (Eric Ollerenshaw) for inviting me and Barry Ford from B4RN for taking time to explain the project.
Arts
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent meetings she has had with local enterprise partnerships to discuss the arts and the creative industries. [159631]
Mr Vaizey [holding answer 17 June 2013]: All external meetings, including those with LEPs, are published on the departmental website in accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines:
http://www.transparency.culture.gov.uk/category/other/meetings/
Conditions of Employment: English Language
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what rules exist concerning the speaking of English in the workplace. [159099]
Mrs Grant [holding answer 10 June 2013]: There is no legislation specifically concerning the use of English, or any other language, in the workplace.
In appropriate circumstances an employer may be able to require that a specific language is spoken, or is capable of being understood, in a particular working environment. However, in order to avoid the risk of this constituting indirect discrimination, any such requirement must be a proportionate way of achieving a legitimate aim.
Direct Selling
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to protect the public from unsolicited telephone calls. [159967]
Mr Vaizey: Protection is provided through the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003, which prohibits unsolicited marketing telephone calls to numbers that are registered with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS), the PECR also covers situations where a caller is advised that further calls should not be made. The TPS is a free service and more than 19 million numbers are currently registered with them. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) considers complaints about breaches of the PECR and can issue a fine of up to £500,000 for the most serious breaches.
I am pressing for more action to be taken in this area, with the ICO, Office of Communications (Ofcom) and TPS working together to make improvements. The ICO has increased the resources devoted to enforcement of the PECR and on 18 March 2013, served its first monetary penalty under PECR of £90,000, to a company that was making unsolicited marketing calls. On 18 June, ICO issued monetary penalties totalling £225,000 to two companies and a further 10 investigations are ongoing:
http://www.ico.org.uk/enforcement/action/calls
20 Jun 2013 : Column 805W
Also, Ofcom has improved information available to consumers online at:
http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/telecoms/privacy
which provides clearer advice on how to avoid unsolicited calls, texts and e-mails and a new Consumer Guide, signposts the correct place to make a complaint:
http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/2012/10/tackling-nuisance-calls-and-messages
In addition, on 17 April I held a Roundtable meeting with representatives from consumer groups, service providers and MPs, which considered ideas and further possible improvements. A further meeting is expected to take place before recess.
I welcome the robust enforcement action from the ICO and expect them to continue with similar tough measures against other companies as well.
Internet: Harassment
Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to meet Facebook to discuss internet trolling. [158800]
Mr Vaizey: I recently held a meeting with major internet service providers, mobile operators, search engines and social media companies, including Facebook, to examine what more can be done to reduce the risk of internet harms.
Internet: Offences Against Children
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with her ministerial colleagues about reducing the prevalence of child abuse images on the internet. [159103]
Mr Vaizey [holding answer 10 June 2013]: Working in partnership with law enforcement agencies, industry and charities, Government are taking significant steps to block access to illegal child sexual abuse content on the internet, to remove such material, and to take action against those responsible for it.
I recently held a summit with major internet service providers, mobile operators, search engines and social media companies to discuss what more could be done to minimise internet harms, such as access to illegal child abuse images. I had conversations with ministerial colleagues in advance of that summit, colleagues were present at the meeting and I will be discussing the outcomes of that meeting with ministerial colleagues.
Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester
Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received from the Science Museum Group regarding the future of the Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester); whether Ministers in her Department have visited the Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester) since May 2010; and what steps she is taking to safeguard the future of the Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester). [159854]
20 Jun 2013 : Column 806W
Mr Vaizey: The Secretary of State has not received any representations from the Science Museum Group regarding the future of the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester. A list of ministerial meetings since May 2010 is available on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Transparency website, which can be found at this web address:
www.transparency.culture.gov.uk
The operation of the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester is a matter for the Science Museum Group. In the current spending period, cuts in resource funding for DCMS-sponsored museums have been limited to 15% in real terms, to protect frontline services and to ensure free admission to the permanent collections.
Opening of Parliament
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will take steps to ensure that Union flags are flown in Parliament Square on future state openings of Parliament. [157051]
Hugh Robertson: Ceremonial arrangements for the state opening of Parliament are a matter for the Palace of Westminster and the Earl Marshal, who in turn could make such a recommendation to this Department.
Press: Regulation
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) whether any changes have been (a) proposed and (b) agreed to the cross-party Royal Charter on Self-Regulation of the Press following her discussions with the Scottish Executive; and when she expects those discussions to conclude; [160509]
(2) what discussions she and officials or Ministers of her Department have had with representatives of the Press Board of Finance (PressBof) regarding the (a) content of and (b) timing of the submission of PressBof's Royal Charter on press regulation to the Privy Council; [160508]
(3) with reference to the Application for Emergency Debate, 18 March 2013, Official Report, column 630, on the Royal Charter on Press Conduct, if she will publish any amendments to the proposed Royal Charter which have been (a) proposed and (b) agreed to following her discussions with the Scottish Executive. [160535]
Mr Vaizey: I welcome the Scottish Parliament's recent vote in favour of supporting the cross party Royal Charter agreed on 18 March by the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. DCMS officials are currently working with those from the Scottish Government on the technical amendments necessary to ensure the cross-party Charter is operable in Scotland, reflecting in particular Scotland's devolved responsibilities and Scots law. These discussions are yet to conclude.
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 3 June 2013, Official Report, column 803W, on press: regulation, for what reasons she did not submit the Royal Charter on self-regulation in the press to the Privy Council (a) following the debate in the House on 18 March 2013 and (b) before 30 April 2013. [160537]
20 Jun 2013 : Column 807W
Mr Vaizey: Prior to 30 April, the Government were supporting the progression through Parliament of other elements of the cross-party agreement of 18 March, via both the Crime and Courts Bill and the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill.
Science Museum Group
Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the effect of reductions in the budget of the (a) Science Museum Group and (b) Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester) on visitor numbers; and whether she has any plans to introduce visitor charges at those museums. [159859]
Mr Vaizey: The operation of the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester is a matter for the Science Museum Group. In the current spending period, cuts in resource funding for DCMS-sponsored museums have been limited to 15% in real terms, to protect frontline services and to ensure free admission to the permanent collections. The Government are not considering the reintroduction of entrance fees, and in line with the coalition manifesto, there are no plans to review the policy of free admission to national museums and galleries.
Sign Language
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to ensure the services it offers are accessible to British Sign Language users. [157926]
Maria Miller: We recognise the importance of removing the barriers deaf and hearing impaired people face, where they might otherwise be at a substantial disadvantage, compared to the way others access a particular service.
DCMS, which includes the Government Equalities Officer is encouraging organisations to explore how they can meet the needs of BSL customers through developing a mix of accessible contact strategies for their disabled and older customers via email, SMS, instant messenger, text relay and Video Relay Services (VRS). These initiatives will assist many people who are deaf and hearing impaired.
US White House
Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the Government plan to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the burning of the White House, Washington DC, US by the British army on 24 August 1814; and if she will make a statement. [160206]
Mr Vaizey: The Government have no plans to commemorate this.
Women and Equalities
Women and Protected Groups: Funding
6. Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what recent discussions she has had with her ministerial colleagues ahead of the spending review to ensure that funding for women and protected groups is not subject to disproportionate reductions. [160637]
20 Jun 2013 : Column 808W
Maria Miller: I have regular discussions with my ministerial colleagues and all Departments consider equality in policy making as a matter of course. The Treasury works to ensure that Departments fully understand how to analyse equalities when preparing their spending review plans in order to avoid disproportionate impacts on groups with protected characteristics.
Single-tier Pension: Women
7. Nia Griffith: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what assessment she has made of the likely effect of the planned single tier pension on women. [160638]
Steve Webb: The Government expect that around 700,000 women will benefit from the single-tier valuation in the first 10 years, receiving on average £9 a week more in state pension.
The single-tier pension brings forward by over a decade the point at which women have equivalent state pension outcomes to men.
Senior Public Sector Positions: Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic People
8. Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps she is taking to increase the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic people in senior positions in the public sector. [160639]
Mrs Grant: This Government are committed to increasing the diversity of the senior civil service, including ethnic minority representation at these levels. Current programmes which support diversity in the senior civil service or the grades that flow into it include the recently launched Positive Action Pathway, the “Growing Talent” programme and the “Summer Diversity Internship Programme”. In the senior civil service, 4% are from a BME background, up from 2.4% in 2003.
In the public sector more generally, the positive action provisions within the Equality Act 2010 are designed to be used by public bodies to increase the numbers of black and minority ethnic employees in areas where the numbers are disproportionately low.
Gender Recognition
Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps the Government Equalities Office is taking to create and facilitate supportive and safe environments for non-gendered people and their families. [157341]
Mrs Grant [holding answer 3 June 2013]: Transgender people, including those who identify as non-gendered, and their families have the right to live free from attack or abuse and we have already legislated to increase the length of sentences for those convicted of hate crime directed at transgender people. This Government are strongly committed to advancing equality for transgender people. In December 2011, we published the world's first ever action plan to advance transgender equality in all areas of public policy, including in schools, workplace and health care. We continue to deliver our commitments in the action plan.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 809W
Sign Language
Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps the Government Equalities Office is taking to ensure the services it offers are accessible to British Sign Language users. [157932]
Maria Miller: We recognise the importance of removing the barriers deaf and hearing impaired people face, where they might otherwise be at a substantial disadvantage, compared to the way others access a particular service.
20 Jun 2013 : Column 810W
DCMS, which includes the Government Equalities Office, is encouraging organisations to explore how they can meet the needs of BSL customers, through developing a mix of accessible contact strategies for their disabled and older customers via e-mail, SMS, instant messenger, text relay and video relay services (VRS). These initiatives will assist many people who are deaf and hearing impaired.