Sudan and South Sudan
Mr Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the implementation of UN Resolution 1591 with regards to Sudan and South Sudan. [161341]
Mark Simmonds:
It is deeply concerning that eight years after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1591, there is still ongoing conflict in Darfur, and that the security situation has worsened since the start of 2013. A factor in this insecurity is the continuing supply of weapons to all parties to the conflict in Darfur in contravention of the arms embargo in UNSCR 1591. Alongside UNAMID, the Panel of Experts established by UNSCR 1591 remains a key monitoring mechanism, providing the Security Council with regular briefings and reports on the situation in Darfur. The UK continues to value and support the work of the Panel of Experts. Four individuals have been sanctioned on the recommendation of the Panel, though the Sudanese Authorities have failed to fully enforce the travel ban
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and asset freeze implied by that sanctioning. The EU have implemented a wider arms embargo on the whole of Sudan and South Sudan.
Termination of Employment
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions (a) a compromise agreement, (b) a confidentiality clause and (c) judicial mediation was used when an employee of (i) his Department and (ii) the public bodies for which he is responsible left their employment in (A) 2010-11, (B) 2011-12 and (C) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [160907]
Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the public bodies for which it is responsible have settled fewer than five cases using (a) compromise agreements, (b) confidentiality clauses or (c) judicial mediation in each year since 2010 for UK-based FCO staff working in both the UK and at our overseas posts. To avoid the possibility of revealing the identities of individual staff the FCO does not disclose more detailed information when overall numbers amount to fewer than five. This is in line with Cabinet Office guidance.
Turkey
Mr Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funding the Government have allocated to BBC Turkish Services since 6 May 2010; and if he will make a statement. [161414]
Mr Lidington: The BBC World Service currently receives Grant-in-Aid Funding from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
The BBC World Service is editorially and operationally independent and takes its own funding decisions for its Turkish and other services.
The UK Government do not provide any other funding to the BBC which is funded through the Licence Fee and a dividend from BBC Worldwide. The BBC World Service will continue to be funded by the Grant-in-Aid until the end of March 2014 when the World Service transfers to Licence Fee funding.
Health
Accident and Emergency Departments
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospitals only allow admissions through accident and emergency; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of such a policy on the stress levels of (a) staff and (b) patients. [161413]
Anna Soubry: Information on the number of hospitals that only allow admissions through accident and emergency (A and E) are not centrally held. Protocols regarding admission to hospital are an operational matter for local national health service trusts, working in collaboration with their commissioners.
No assessment has therefore been made on the effect of such policy on the stress levels of staff or patients.
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Staff wellbeing in general is monitored through the annual staff survey and patient satisfaction with services is monitored through NHS Friends and Family Test where patients are asked whether they would recommend hospital wards and A and E departments to their friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment.
Ambulance Services
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on proposals to make police and crime commissioners responsible for ambulance service provision. [161744]
Anna Soubry: There have been no discussions with the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), on proposals to make police and crime commissioners responsible for ambulance service provision.
The Department has been in discussions with the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Home Office about promoting greater collaboration between emergency services, where appropriate.
Closer co-operation between the emergency services is clearly desirable and should be encouraged and incentivised, within the bounds of what is reasonably practicable and affordable. However, any more wide-ranging measures designed to bring the ambulance services and other emergency services together, operationally and/or legally, would have to have a sound evidence base in terms of clear benefits, not only in monetary terms, but also in terms of clinical outcomes for patients.
Autism: Luton
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many autistic children whose families reside in Luton access care outside of the borough. [161263]
Norman Lamb: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Cancer
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress cancer strategic clinical networks have made in developing their terms of reference; and if he will place in the Library copies of such terms of reference. [161461]
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the role of cancer strategic clinical networks in promoting equality and reducing inequalities in cancer care; and if he will make a statement. [161458]
Anna Soubry: Information on terms of reference is not held centrally. As set out in the “Single Operating Framework for Strategic Clinical Networks”, published in November 2012, the terms of reference for individual Strategic Clinical Networks (SCNs), including cancer networks, are agreed locally between health communities and their SCNs and in line with the overarching expectations and priorities of NHS England.
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NHS England has developed fixed points for measuring success that have formed the foundation on which SCNs have been designed and should guide their development and operation. This includes a statutory duty to promote equality and reduce inequalities.
While SCNs will fundamentally support the achievement of outcome ambitions and the delivery of the NHS Outcomes Framework, they should also ensure that their activities have regard for the NHS constitution and that they promote equality.
A copy of the “Single Operating Framework for Strategic Clinical Networks” has already been placed in the Library.
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps (a) his Department and (b) NHS England plan to take to deliver improvements in the relational aspects of cancer care. [161462]
Anna Soubry: Over the past two years, the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative (NCSI), a partnership between the Department and Macmillan Cancer Support, has worked with NHS Improvement to pilot transformed pathways of care for adults and for children and young people with cancer.
Lessons learned from the pilots informed the NCSI report “Living with and beyond cancer; Taking Action to Improve Outcomes”, published in March 2013, which recommends an integrated package of care that includes: holistic needs assessment and care planning; treatment summaries; access to health and well-being clinics; and schemes that support people to undertake physical activity and healthy weight management.
Survivorship care is now the responsibility of NHS England. The recommendation in the report will support NHS England and local national health service teams to drive improved cancer survivorship outcomes and will help deliver our ambition to enhance the quality of life for all people with long-term conditions. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library.
Care Quality Commission
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) one-off payments and (b) pension entitlements Care Quality Commission board members who stepped down or were removed from their posts in 2012 received. [161738]
Norman Lamb: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England.
The CQC has provided the following information:
In the period 1 January to 31 December 2012, one non-executive director, Martin Marshall, left the board when his period of appointment expired at the end of December. He received no kind of one-off payment and none of the non-executive members of the board is provided with a pension in relation to their role as CQC board members.
In the period 1 January to 31 December 2012, one member of the executive team left in February 2012, chief executive Cynthia Bower. She resigned from her post voluntarily and therefore was not in receipt of any compensation for loss of office (redundancy or ex-gratia). She was entitled to a pension under the NHS pension scheme and is now in receipt of her benefits.
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Children's Centres
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance his Department provides to clinical commissioning groups on the provision of services through children's centres in their area; [161335]
(2) what amount his Department and its agencies spent on providing services through children's centres in each of the last five financial years. [161337]
Norman Lamb: The Department has not issued guidance to clinical commissioning groups on the provision of services through children's centres. NHS England has published a resource pack to support clinical groups who commission maternity services, which acknowledges that in some areas midwives working in the community are based in children's centres.
The Department for Education published Sure Start children's centres revised statutory guidance in April 2013, which is for local authorities, commissioners of local health services and Jobcentre Plus on their duties relating to children's centres under the Childcare Act 2006 which is available at:
http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/s/childrens%20centre%20stat%20guidance%20april%202013.pdf
The Department has not provided funding specifically for the provision of services through children's centres. Information is not collected centrally on local national health service expenditure for the provision of services through children's centres.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to encourage research on medically unexplained symptoms as part of wider research on ME and chronic fatigue syndrome. [161418]
Norman Lamb: The Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME). These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the scientific quality of the proposals made.
The Medical Research Council (MRC), which is an independent body funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, has identified research into CFS/ME as a research priority and the Council has implemented a number of initiatives to stimulate high quality research in this area. The MRC's current priorities for this area are outlined in a highlight notice, which can be found on its website at:
www.mrc.ac.uk/Fundingopportunities/Highlightnotices/CFSME/MRC001747
Applications for research into all aspects of CFS/ME are welcomed by the MRC; this would include research on medically unexplained symptoms.
The MRC is independent in its choice of which research to support and the selection of projects for funding is determined through peer review.
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Disability: Bedfordshire
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve health care for the disabled in Mid Bedfordshire constituency. [161632]
Norman Lamb: The provision of health care services locally is a matter for the relevant local organisations.
The Mandate to the national health service expects NHS England to ensure that clinical commissioning groups work with local authorities to ensure that vulnerable people, particularly those with learning disabilities and autism, receive safe, appropriate, high quality care.
The Equality Act 2010 requires NHS bodies, and those carrying out public functions on their behalf, to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people, which may include providing more appropriate services. This statutory duty aims to ensure that a disabled person can use a service as close as reasonably possible to the standard usually offered to non-disabled people. NHS bodies must think in advance and on an on-going basis about what disabled people with a range of impairments that use their services might reasonably need.
The Department is currently in discussions with its partners about publishing further guidance on making reasonable adjustments in healthcare settings.
“The NHS Outcomes Framework 2013-14” sets out the outcomes and corresponding indicators that will be used to hold NHS England to account for the outcomes it delivers through commissioning health services. Reducing premature death in people with serious mental illness and people with a learning disability are identified as improvement areas.
The Operating Framework specifically talks about a focus on the physical healthcare of people affected by mental illness for the coming year and also that the NHS should ensure momentum is maintained in improving care and outcomes for people with learning disabilities.
Fruit Juices
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on the effect of freshly squeezed citrus fruit juice on tooth enamel and consequent effects on public health. [161287]
Anna Soubry: Evidence indicates that fresh fruit, and in particular citrus fruit, have erosive potential and particularly when consumed with high frequency.
The Department published the second edition of ‘Delivering better oral health—an evidence-based toolkit for prevention’ in 2009 which can be found here:
www.oralhealthplatform.eu/sites/default/files/field/document/NHS_Delivering%20Better%20Oral%20health.pdf
This report contains a section on erosion and relevant supporting references. Dietary associations with erosion are present but weak, as the evidence is predominantly based on laboratory studies which do not fully explain causal relationships and co-factors in the erosive process.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice his Department gives to the public about the effects of citrus fruit juice on oral hygiene. [161331]
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Anna Soubry: The Department's second edition of “Delivering better oral health—an evidence-based toolkit for prevention” (2009) includes the advice
“Avoid frequent intake of acidic foods or drinks—keep them to mealtimes”
“Do not brush immediately after eating or drinking acidic foods or drinks”.
The toolkit can be viewed here:
www.oralhealthplatform.eu/sites/default/files/field/document/NHS_Delivering%20Better%20Oral%20health.pdf
Health Services: Staffordshire
Mr Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS staff in Staffordshire were paid over (a) £50,000, (b) £65,738 and (c) £100,000 in the last year for which figures are available. [161277]
Anna Soubry: The numbers of national health service staff in Staffordshire who, in 2012-13, were paid over (a) £50,000, (b) £65,738 and (c) £100,000 are estimated to be (a) 1,480, (b) 990 and (c) 490 respectively and include both frontline staff and management.
These estimates are inclusive (i.e. count (b) is included in count (a)) and based on unvalidated data as recorded in the electronic staff record (ESR) data warehouse which is a monthly snap shot of the live ESR data.
HIV Infection
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people per 100,000 with HIV who are (a) gay and (b) not gay. [161283]
Anna Soubry: In 2011, an estimated 4,700 per 100,000 men who have sex with men (MSM) were living with an HIV infection in the United Kingdom. In the same year, 150 per 100,000 of the general population were estimated to be living with HIV.
In numbers, an estimated 96,000 people were estimated to be living with HIV in 2011 in the UK. Of these, 42% (40,100) were estimated to be MSM.
Human Papillomavirus
Mr Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 20 March 2013, Official Report, columns 714-15W, on Human Papillomavirus, if he will make it his policy to ensure that parents of children about the receive the HPV vaccination are given a copy of the vaccine manufacturer's own patient information leaflet prior to signing a consent form for vaccination. [161339]
Anna Soubry: The vaccine manufacturer's patient information leaflet (PIL) is not routinely given to girls and their parents or carers. As set out in my answer of 20 March 2013, Official Report, columns 714-15W, an information leaflet about HPV vaccination should be issued prior to consent being sought. This contains summary information about possible side effects. The leaflet advises girls and their parents or carers to read the PIL if more detailed information is needed about side effects.
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We are content that these arrangements, clearly set out in “Immunisation against infectious disease”, ensure that appropriate information, sufficient to enable informed decisions to be made, is provided, whist also enabling girls and their parents or carers to obtain further information if required.
Sleep Apnoea
Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements his Department has made to ensure that the work of its obstructive sleep apnoea working group, established in July 2012, is being continued following the recent NHS reforms. [161266]
Anna Soubry: Responsibility for determining the overall national approach to improve clinical outcomes from health care services now lies with NHS England.
Local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for commissioning services for patients with obstructive sleep apnoea. Management of the condition is governed by clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and NHS England would expect CCGs to ensure that services are available to patients in line with these national guidelines and the needs of their local populations.
We understand from NHS England that it currently has no plans to continue the work of the obstructive sleep apnoea working group in its previous form. The National Clinical Director for Respiratory Disease Professor Mike Morgan will continue to consider whether any additional specific initiatives or commissioning protocols are needed to promote best practice and treatment for people with obstructive sleep apnoea and to provide advice on this.
Social Enterprises
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many of his Department's suppliers are social enterprises. [161326]
Norman Lamb: The Department does not hold information on how many of its suppliers are social enterprises.
The category of suppliers captured in the Department's Business Management System includes voluntary and community sector supplier information but does not separately distinguish supplier types specifically relating to social enterprises alone.
Suicide
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department makes available to tackle suicides; and what discussions he has had with devolved assemblies on implementing a UK-wide strategy to reduce suicides. [161835]
Norman Lamb: The suicide prevention strategy, which was published on 10 September 2012, can help us to sustain and reduce further the relatively low rates of suicide in England and to respond positively to the challenges we face over the coming years. The strategy recognises that research is essential to suicide prevention and the Department's policy research programme will fund up to £1.5 million for new suicide prevention research to contribute to delivery of the strategy.
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The Government are working with the devolved Administrations to share evidence on suicide prevention and effective interventions. A five nations official level joint working forum facilitates the sharing of best practice between the nations and enhances co-operation on mutually beneficial areas of work.
International Development
Developing Countries: Health Services
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether health will be a priority within the post-2015 development framework. [161349]
Mr Duncan: The post-2015 framework will need to build on the successes and momentum created around health by the millennium development goals (MDGs). The UK is working hard with others to ensure that unfinished health issues from the MDGs are addressed in the new framework, and that we raise our ambition to include emerging health challenges.
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's policy is on the creation of a standalone development goal for universal health coverage. [161352]
Mr Duncan: The UK Government welcome the report of the high-level panel of eminent persons on the post-2015 development agenda and particularly the emphasis it places on the importance of health and well-being.
We think a future health goal in a development agenda should be based on health outcomes and results, rather than processes. Universal health coverage is central to achieving health outcomes and so needs to be part of a future development agenda, but is not a goal in itself.
EU Budget
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps the UK has taken to champion a strong EU budget and to hold other countries accountable for their aid promises. [161450]
Mr Duncan: The UK's top priority for the next EU budget framework was budgetary restraint and the European Council agreed at its meeting in February 2012 that the overall budget framework for 2014-20 should be lower than for the current period, 2007-13. Nevertheless, the level of spending on the EU's external actions was protected and, thanks to pressure from the UK and our allies, the Council has agreed that EU development support should focus on the poorest countries. The UK and other member states are now pressing to ensure the European Parliament will endorse this very good deal.
The UK Government regularly lobby other donors to meet their aid commitments, and was instrumental in establishing high-level and transparent development accountability mechanisms in both the EU and G8. This year's G8 accountability report—compiled under the UK presidency—clearly and publicly rates the progress
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made by G8 states on their development commitments. The UK also helped secure the re-affirmation of collective and individual development commitments at the EU Development Foreign Affairs Council in May 2013.
India
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support her Department provides to India to achieve universal health coverage. [161351]
Mr Duncan: In 2010, DFID provided expert advice to inform the ‘High Level Expert Group Report on Universal Health Coverage for India'. Following that report, the Government of India's 12th five year plan proposes to ensure universal access to a defined package of health services, which would be publicly funded, and delivered through a mixture of public and private providers.
Between now and 2015, DFID will conclude its financial grant support for delivery of health services in three of India's poorest states. As we graduate to a new development relationship with India, DFID expects to continue providing technical support to Indian partners, including through mobilising partnerships with the UK health service.
Working Conditions: Children
Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of children worldwide who are employed in hazardous work conditions; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce that number. [161320]
Mr Duncan: The International Labour Organisation's most recent estimate is that there are 115 million children, aged 5-17, who are working in hazardous conditions globally.
UK development assistance has an important role both in helping combat child labour in hazardous condition in developing countries and in addressing the conditions that give rise to this. An example of this is DFID's Governance and Human Rights programme in Bangladesh, which assists the removal of children engaged in harmful work or exploitative conditions by providing alternative employment opportunities, providing support and employment opportunities to their families, and providing education after working hours for those children who continue to be employed.
The UK Government continue to believe that one of the most effective ways of reducing child labour is to get more children into school, and will be supporting 11 million children to attend school by 2015.
Justice
Anti-Slavery Day
Mr Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to mark anti-slavery day on 18 October 2013; and if he will make a statement. [160837]
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Mrs Grant: The Government are committed to marking anti-slavery day and using this opportunity to raise awareness of human trafficking. Plans are still being considered and will be announced in due course.
Capita Translation and Interpreting
Jonathan Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the quality of service provided by Capita Translation and Interpreting; and if he will make a statement. [160754]
Mrs Grant: Performance review meetings are held regularly with Capita TI, and detailed management information on performance is obtained on a weekly basis. Statistics published in March 2013 show that between 30 January 2012 and 31 January 2013, only 0.2% of all bookings completed by Capita TI received complaints about interpreter quality. We remain committed to working closely with Capita TI to drive continuous improvement.
Claims Management Services
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the estimated cost to businesses is of (a) invalid and (b) fraudulent payment protection insurance claims by claims management companies. [157443]
Mrs Grant: The Department's Claims Management Regulation Unit has not made an estimate of such cost to businesses. The CMR Unit is however well aware of this issue and a specialist PPI compliance team is targeting poor practices used by those claims management companies that submit poorly prepared or spurious PPI claims.
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to regulate claims management companies. [157447]
Mrs Grant: Firm measures are being taken to improve compliance and to strengthen enforcement action against claims management companies (CMCs) who breach the conduct rules. We work with relevant regulators, complaints handlers and industry bodies to identify problems early, with a focus on tackling the poor practices employed by some CMCs operating in the mis-sold payment protection insurance claims sector and on enforcing the ban on referral fees in the personal injury claims sector.
Criminal Injuries Compensation
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Hardship Fund have been (a) received and (b) accepted since the new scheme was established. [160474]
Mrs Grant: Since its establishment on 27 November 2012, 10 applications have been received under the Hardship Fund administered by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. Of these seven have been successful.
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Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been paid out by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Hardship Fund since the new scheme was established. [160476]
Mrs Grant: Some £1,692.47 has been paid out under the Hardship Fund administered by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.
The payment is capped at the equivalent of four weeks statutory sick pay, which means the maximum for an individual payment would be £306.61.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme have been rejected due to the injuries not being within the scope of the new scheme since that scheme was established. [160486]
Mrs Grant: Some 1,543 claims under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 (the Scheme) have been refused at first decision as the injury claimed for was not set out in the Scheme's Tariff of Injuries.
The Government introduced a Hardship Fund in November 2012 to provide temporary relief from financial hardship for very low paid workers who are temporarily unable to work as a direct result of being a victim of a crime of violence in England and Wales and whose injuries are not sufficiently serious to fall within the tariff of injuries in the Scheme.
The Government are committed to ensuring that victims are supported. The changes we have made to the Scheme make it easier for victims, and bereaved relatives, of traumatising crime to receive compensation.
Human Trafficking
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what awareness raising campaigns on human trafficking his Department has held for legal professionals. [161141]
Mrs Grant: The Crown Prosecution Service has undertaken a number of activities to raise awareness among criminal legal practitioners about steps they should take to identity potential trafficked victims in the criminal justice process. They have provided presentations to the Law Society, Bar, Judiciary and Immigration judges to raise awareness among practitioners on the incidence of trafficked victims compelled to commit criminal offences.
Building on this work, The Ministry of Justice is currently considering a number of other ways to raise awareness of human trafficking among the legal profession so that they are able to identify potential victims and ensure they get the support they need and deserve.
Leasehold Valuation Tribunal
Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many claims in the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal where one of the parties was a registered social landlord were issued in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many such claims were successful. [160814]
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Mrs Grant: The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal does not record the numbers of any particular category or type of party to the proceedings and so cannot provide data on the number of cases involving a registered social landlord. It is also not possible therefore to provide figures detailing the number or outcome of cases involving a registered social landlord.
LVT decisions, which detail the parties, are published on the Justice website and can be found at:
www.residential-property.judiciary.gov.uk/search/decision_search.jsp
Legal Aid Scheme
Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on what basis he plans to determine the number of contracts for criminal legal aid work for each procurement area under the proposals set out in his Department's consultation on transforming legal aid. [156962]
Jeremy Wright: The Government have consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the ‘Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system’ consultation which closed on 4 June 2013. This included proposed model of competitive tendering for criminal legal aid services. We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including the £1 billion of taxpayers’ money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer.
The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) currently contracts with over 1,600 separate organisations to deliver services under the 2010 Standard Crime Contract.
The proposed model would ensure that providers have exclusive access to a share of the work available (and control of the case from beginning to end). By awarding longer and larger contracts with greater certainty of volumes, providers would have increased opportunities to grow their businesses and invest in the restructuring required to achieve economies of scale and scope and provide a more efficient service at a price that offers a saving to the public but is also sustainable. This model would result in a reduction in the number of contracts available but gives providers the freedom to develop the most efficient approach in delivering the service (e.g. the extent to which they use agents). This approach would also deliver a reduction in administrative costs to the LAA.
In determining the optimum number of contracts in each procurement area we consider that the following are the key factors:
Sufficient supply to deal with potential conflicts of interest
Sufficient case volume to allow fixed fee schemes to work
Market agility
Sustainable procurement
Based on our assessment of the factors listed above, the LAA data for the period October 2010 to September 2011 would suggest approximately 400 contracts with providers across England and Wales. This would mean current providers would need to grow their business on average by around 250% (or join with other providers to create sufficient resource to deliver the expected caseload).
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This approach would entail a significant reduction in the number of contracts in each procurement area. A detailed breakdown of the illustrative number of contracts based on the LAA administrative data on legal aid claims in the period October 2010 to September 2011 in each procurement area is set out in the consultation paper. Subject to the outcome of this consultation, we would revise the number of contracts in line with the most current data available prior to any procurement process commencing.
Legal Profession: Standards
Mr Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with the Bar Standards Board on its Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates. [R] [158032]
Mrs Grant: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), has not discussed the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates with the Bar Standards Board.
Public Expenditure
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the equality impact of his Department's spending reductions since 2010; whether this assessment has been used to inform his planning ahead of the 2013 Comprehensive Spending Review and with what result; what plans he has to publish the equality impact assessments undertaken by his Department as a result of the upcoming Comprehensive Spending Review; and if he will make a statement. [161182]
Mrs Grant: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has taken equality into account in its work on the spending review since 2010 in accordance with its statutory equality duties. As part of our spending round 2013 negotiations with Her Majesty's Treasury (HMT) we undertook an equality analysis of the spending plans that formed part of our spending round 2013 submission to HMT. The MOJ will continue to undertake equality analysis on the detailed proposals for delivering its spending round 2013 agreement, with publication being considered on a case by case basis.
Salvation Army
Mrs Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2013, Official Report, column 370W, on Salvation Army, of the actual funding allocated to the Salvation Army in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13 how much was (i) spent by the Salvation Army on running the 24 hour helpline and other administration connected with the contract and (ii) paid to shelters caring for victims which are run independently of the Salvation Army; what the names are of NGO subcontractor shelters; and to whom the Salvation Army makes payments. [160598]
Mrs Grant:
The Government contract with the Salvation Army to deliver support services to adult victims of human trafficking ensures a vital service is provided
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victims of this terrible crime. The contract commenced on 1 July 2011, this means that the financial information is accounted for and presented to the Ministry of Justice on a contract year basis (1 July-30 June).
For the first year of the contract, 1 July 2011- 30 June 2012, 90% of the contract-spend was on direct delivery costs, with 10% being spent on administration costs, including those relating to the start up of the contract.
For the second year of contract, management reports are available for the period 1 July 2012 to 30 March 2013. Over this period 95% of the contract-spend was on direct delivery costs, with 5% being spent on administration costs. These proportions will be finalised at the end of the contractual year when the reporting accounts are finalised.
Total spend on the contract includes funding in addition to government funding. It includes income the Salvation Army has generated through fundraising activities.
Administration costs include the necessary overheads to oversee and co-ordinate the provision of support provided to adult victims of human trafficking. It includes the associated costs of running the 24 hour helpline.
Direct delivery costs are the expenditure on services which were directly delivered to victims via the Salvation Army's wide and diverse supply chain of sub-contractors who support victims in the most appropriate environment and tailor support according to need. This has included the provision of safe and secure accommodation, providing access to legal advice and preparing individuals for work through arranging access to training courses and mentoring.
The Salvation Army have formally contracted the services of 12 NGOs who collectively provide access to 19 safe houses. One of these is a the Salvation Army shelter—the Jarrett Community. The other NGOs are:
Ashiana
BAWSO
BCHA
City Hearts
Hestia
The Medaille Trust
Midland Heart
Migrant Helpline Ltd UK
Sandwell Women's Aid
Unseen UK
Riverside
Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many victims of human trafficking have been assisted by his Department after they left the subcontractor shelters in which they were placed by the Salvation Army to date; [160976]
(2) how much is paid per night to shelters in the UK to accommodate victims referred to them by the Salvation Army Victim Support scheme; what the average length of stay is which is funded; and what funding is available after the reflection period has ended; [160977]
(3) how much funding was (a) made available and (b) paid out to the Salvation Army Victim Support scheme in (i) 2011-12 and (ii) 2012-13; how much will be made available in 2013-14; and if he will make a statement. [160978]
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Mrs Grant: This Government are committed to helping victims of human trafficking. Since 1 July 2011 The Salvation Army has been contracted to oversee and co-ordinate the provision of support to adult victims of trafficking who have been referred through the National Referral Mechanism. It is contracted to provide support services for a minimum of 45 days or until a victim receives a ‘Conclusive Grounds’ decision. In May 2013, the average length of stay in The Salvation Army service was 102 days. Once moved victims continue to receive support from mainstream support services, such local authority housing, and can apply for benefits.
The Salvation Army provides tailored support to victims which takes into account their individual needs. This means that the cost of accommodating and supporting a victim in a shelter will vary according to their specific requirements.
The following table details the funding provided to The Salvation Army.
| £ million | |
For 2013-14, the Government have made £3 million available to The Salvation Army to run the contract. Since July 2011, there has been a significant increase in the number of referrals to The Salvation Army for support and accommodation. The Ministry of Justice and Home Office will therefore keep this funding allocation under regular review.
Social Enterprises
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of his Department's suppliers are social enterprises. [160662]
Mrs Grant: There are 20,723 organisations working with the Ministry of Justice and determining which of these is a social enterprise could be done only at a disproportionate cost.
Work Capability Assessment: Wales
Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many of those living in each constituency in Wales who appealed against decisions on benefits entitlement made following work capability assessments had their appeals heard during the financial year 2012-13; [161126]
(2) how many claimants living in each parliamentary constituency in Wales had their appeals heard during the financial year 2012-13 against decisions on benefits entitlement made following work capability assessments. [161264]
Mrs Grant: The First Tier Tribunal—Social Security and Child Support (SSCS), administered by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) hears appeals against Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) decisions on entitlement to employment and support allowance (ESA) (decisions in which the work capability assessment (WCA) is a key factor).
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Appeals made to the SSCS are not recorded on a constituency basis, but by the office which deals with the case. This is usually the hearing venue nearest to the appellant's home address. Consequently the information has been provided by SSCS hearing venues in Wales.
The following table shows the number of cases disposed of by the Tribunal in hearing venues in Wales in which the WCA was factor in 2012-13, which includes those disposed of without the need for a hearing: for example those withdrawn, superseded or struck out.
| Number of cases disposed of in Wales where the WCA was a factor 2012-13 | |
| SSCS Venue | Total number of cases disposed of |
The number of appeals received by the SSCS tribunal nationally has risen significantly: from 339,200 in 2009-10 to 507,100 in 2012-13 (an increase of 49%). In addition to local initiatives, such as identifying additional hearing venues across HMCTS estate, and increasing the use of Saturday sessions, HMCTS continues to respond strongly at a national level to continue to increase the capacity of the SSCS tribunal and reduce waiting times. Measures in place include ongoing recruitment of additional judges and medically qualified members and the review and continuous improvement of administrative processes both internally and between HMCTS and DWP. All of this is having a positive effect. The total number of disposals has increased significantly from 279,000 in 2009-10 to 465,500 in 2012-13 (an increase of 66%).
The average waiting time has fallen nationally from 23 weeks in 2011-12 to 18 weeks in 2012-13: in Wales this has fallen from 21 weeks in 2011-12 to 13 weeks in 2012-13.
Prime Minister
Russia
Paul Flynn: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he had with President Putin of Russia on nuclear weapons and nuclear disarmament at the bilateral meeting on 16 June 2013. [161650]
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The Prime Minister: I did not discuss this specific issue with President Putin on this occasion.
The UK Government regularly raise issues of strategic security in bilateral meetings such as the joint UK-Russia Foreign and Defence ministerial meeting in March, in partnership with our allies such as at the NATO-Russia Foreign ministerial last December, and at official level in multilateral meetings such as the conference of the five nuclear non-proliferation treaty nuclear weapon states in April in Geneva.
I also refer the hon. Member to the G8 Communiqué that sets out the G8’s agreed position on nuclear proliferation issues. Copies are available in the Library of the House.
Treasury
Child Tax Credit
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many workless lone parent and couple households with (a) six, (b) seven, (c) eight, (d) nine and (e) 10 children claim child tax credit. [161491]
Sajid Javid: The following table shows the number of families benefiting from child tax credit who are working fewer than the number of hours required to claim working tax credit. This is usually a combined 24 hours a week for a couple with children (with one parent working at least 16 hours), or 16 hours a week for a lone parent. The figures are based on finalised tax credit awards from the 2011-12 financial year, which are the latest available.
| Number of children | Lone parents | Couples | All families |
| (1) fewer than 50 cases Notes: 1. All numbers are in thousands and rounded to the nearest 0.7 thousand. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding | |||
The Government are committed to making work pay, and are rewarding work by:
raising the personal allowance to £9,440 and announcing a further increase to £10,000 from April 2014. The combined effect of all personal allowance increases announced by this Government will be to remove 2.7 million low income individuals, under 65, out of income tax altogether from April 2014;
developing a new Tax-Free Childcare scheme to expand support for affordable childcare to 2.5 million families; and
introducing universal credit to make the benefits of work clearer and simpler, with the aim of offering a smooth transition into work and encouraging progression in work.
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Personal Income
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the change in the median household real income before housing costs since May 2010. [161505]
Sajid Javid: The households below average income (HBAI) report published by the Department for Work and Pensions provides estimates of median household incomes before housing costs up to 2011-12. The National Accounts measure of total real household disposable income published by the Office for National Statistics reports a rise of 2.0% between 2010Q1 and 2012Q4.
Welfare Tax Credits
Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what the annual total paid out in tax credits is; [161204]
(2) what estimate he has made of the cost of raising personal allowance in line with the minimum wage; and what the saving in tax credits payments would be as a result; [161206]
(3) how many adults in full-time employment are in receipt of tax credits; [161207]
(4) how much has been paid inaccurately in tax credits in each of the last three years. [161416]
Sajid Javid: The total amount of Tax Credits (Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit) paid by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in 2012-13 and in previous years can be found on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/receipts/receipts-stats.xls
In 2012-13 HMRC made Tax Credit payments amounting to £29.9 billion.
The Government have not made an estimate of the effect of increasing the Personal Allowance in line with the National Minimum Wage.
The Exchequer costs of increasing the personal allowance and age-related personal allowances by £100 are provided in Table 1.6, “Direct effects of illustrative tax changes”, available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/expenditures/table1-6.xls
Tax Credit awards are paid based on gross income therefore changes to the level of the personal allowance have no impact on Tax Credit payments.
There is no standard definition of ‘full-time’ employment in the context of Tax Credits. Therefore, ‘full-time' is assumed to be those working 30 hours per week or more.
Based on provisional information on families receiving Tax Credits as at April 2013 the number of adults working 30 hours per week or more and in a family unit in receipt of Tax Credits is 2.5 million.
The latest published finalised Tax Credits Error and Fraud statistics for 2011-12, are available on the HM Revenue and Custom's website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/fin-error-stats/cwtcredits-error.pdf
These published statistics contain a breakdown of the level of Error and Fraud in the 2011-12 tax year. This document also includes information on the level of Error and Fraud in previous years (Annex A Table A2).
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For ease, the level and percentage of expenditure of error and favouring the claimant or HMRC has been provided here.
| Table 1: Tax Credits Error and Fraud | ||||
| E&F favouring the claimant | E&F favouring HMRC | |||
| Outturn (%) | Outturn (£ billion) | Outturn (%) | Outturn (£ billion) | |
Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the annual cost is of administering the tax credit system; and how many civil servants are employed in its administration. [161205]
Sajid Javid: The annual cost of administering the tax credit system; and number of civil servants employed in administering the process in 2009-13 is presented in Table 1 as follows.
| Table 1 | |||
| Business area | Period | Staff numbers(FTE) | Total gross expenditure (£) |
Work and Pensions
Children’s Centres
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance his Department provides to local Jobcentre Plus offices on delivering welfare advice and employment-focused programmes through children's centres in their area. [161333]
Mr Hoban: DWP recognises the value of delivering community based support and provides comprehensive guidance about the extension of Jobcentre Plus services to community settings. This could include Children's Centres. This outreach/co-location guidance covers both the practical challenges of delivering Jobcentre Plus services in a non DWP premises (for example provision of information technology and health and safety considerations) along with examples of previous good practice.
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what amount his Department and its agencies spent on providing services through children's centres in each of the last five financial years. [161336]
Mr Hoban: DWP do not collate the costs spent on delivering Jobcentre Plus services in outreach locations including in children's centres.
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Employment Schemes: Disability
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of entrants to the Work Choice programme found work lasting longer than six months in (a) 2011 and (b) 2012. [161734]
Esther McVey: The latest published Work Choice statistics show:
In 2011 there were 3,060 unsupported job outcomes sustained for at least six months
In 2012 there were 2,070 unsupported job outcomes sustained for at least six months. Data is currently only available on unsupported sustained job outcomes to the end of September 2012, this is not therefore a figure for the whole of 2012.
These figures exclude Remploy and only count job outcomes for which providers receive a payment.
We do not publish cohorted information on the proportion of entrants finding sustained work of over six months.
The latest Work Choice statistics to the end of March 2013 can be found via the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/203397/wc_may13.pdf
Future Jobs Fund: Clwyd
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many young people in Vale of Clwyd constituency returned to work under the Future Jobs Fund in each month of that fund's operation. [161969]
Mr Hoban: The Department does not hold information on the number of young people returning to work in any parliamentary constituency under the Future Jobs Fund in each month of that Fund's operation.
Misuse of Drugs Ministerial Group
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times Ministers of his Department have attended the inter-ministerial group on drugs since May 2010. [161579]
Mr Hoban: I refer the hon. Lady to the reply given by the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Old Bexley and Sidcup (James Brokenshire), on 9 July 2012, Official Report, column 83W. I can confirm that the Inter-Ministerial Group on Drugs met on the following occasions:
12 November 2012
10 January 2013
30 April 2013
As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to publish details, including agenda items, of such meetings.
New Enterprise Allowance: Barnsley
Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many people in (a) Barnsley East constituency and (b) Barnsley local authority have had access to financial support from the new enterprise allowance to date; [161558]
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(2) how many people in (a) Barnsley East constituency and (b) Barnsley local authority area have had access to mentoring through the new enterprise allowance to date. [161559]
Mr Hoban: The information is available and can be accessed at:
http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/adhoc_analysis/2013/nea_by_la_jcp_district_parl_c.xls
New Enterprise Allowance: Staffordshire
Mr Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Cannock Chase constituency and (b) Staffordshire are in receipt of the new enterprise allowance. [161923]
Mr Hoban: The number of starts to the New Enterprise Allowance by parliamentary constituency can be accessed at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/196645/nea_by_la_jcp_district_parl_c.xls.xls
Universal Credit
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of increasing the first and subsequent child elements of universal credit by (a) five per cent, (b) 10 per cent and (c) 15 per cent. [161741]
Mr Hoban: Increasing the child elements of universal credit by (a) 5% would cost around £1.0 billion per year in steady state (once universal credit is fully introduced); (b) 10% would cost around £2.0 billion per year in steady state; and, (c) 15% would cost around £3.1 billion per year in steady state.
This analysis is consistent with the impact assessment published in December 2012. All figures are expressed in 2013-14 prices and have been rounded to the nearest £0.1 billion.
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of increasing the higher and lower rate disabled child elements of universal credit by (a) five per cent, (b) 10 per cent and (c) 15 per cent. [161742]
Mr Hoban: Increasing the disabled child elements of universal credit by (a) 5% would cost less than £50 million per year in steady state (once universal credit is fully introduced); (b) 10% would cost less than £50 million per year in steady state; and, (c) 15% would cost around £100 million per year (rounded to the nearest £100 million to reflect sample data limitations) in steady state.
This analysis is consistent with the impact assessment published in December 2012. All figures are expressed in 2013-14 prices.
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of increasing the current universal credit earnings disregard for lone parents by (a) 10 per cent, (b) 20 per cent and (c) 30 per cent. [161743]
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Mr Hoban: Increasing the level of universal credit work allowances for all lone parents by (a) 10% would cost around £350 million per year in steady state in 2014-15 prices; by (b) 20% would cost around £700 million per year in steady state in 2014-15 prices; by (c) 30% would cost around £1,050 million per year in steady state in 2014-15 prices.
The figures above do not take account of the potential dynamic effects from these changes.
Universal Credit: Luton
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of how many households in Luton will fall into the poverty bracket following the implementation of universal credit. [161265]
Mr Hoban: The information requested is not available as sample sizes are too small to yield reliable results.
Work Capability Assessment: Appeals
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will issue guidance to decision makers about the requirement to consider all relevant evidence in work capability assessments and to provide a copy of that evidence to tribunals. [161453]
Mr Hoban: The current guidance to decision makers emphasises the requirement to give due consideration to all of the evidence presented. It also instructs that all information made available to the decision maker is included in the appeals response to the Tribunal. This is also copied to the appellant and their representative, if they have appointed one. This guidance is underpinned by formal training for decision makers and the Quality Assessment Framework, which also detail this requirement.
Work Programme
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of unemployed people gained access to work under the Work Programme in each month of its existence. [161539]
Mr Hoban: The information requested is not available.
Statistics on how many people gained a job outcome under the Work Programme in each month from 1 June 2011 to 31 July 2012 can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions/series/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool#benefit-caseloads
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of employment and support allowance with a 12-month prognosis participating in the Work programme secured a sustained job outcome. [161740]
Mr Hoban: During the period for which Work programme statistical information is available (1 June 2011 to 31 July 2012) 60 recipients of employment and support allowance secured a sustained job outcome. To identify how many of these had a 12 month prognosis would incur in disproportionate cost.
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Statistics covering Work programme referrals, attachments and job outcomes to March 2013 will be published on 27 June 2013.
Work Programme: Kingston Upon Hull
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Hull found work lasting more than six months through the Work programme since it inception; how many such people were aged under 24; and how many such people had a disability. [161596]
Mr Hoban: Work Programme statistical information is available for the period 1 June 2011 to 31 July 2012. In Kingston upon Hull in that period:
23,530 people found work lasting for more than six months;
7,080 of the people who found work were aged 18 to 24;
10 of the people who found work were registered disabled.
Statistics covering Work programme referrals, attachments and job outcomes to March 2013 will be published on 27 June 2013.
Education
Care Proceedings
Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will consider making provision for an extension to the proposed 26-week care proceedings limit in very complex cases. [161500]
Mr Timpson: The Children and Families Bill allows for the possibility of extending the time limit in a particular care or supervision case beyond the new 26 week time limit, should this be necessary to resolve proceedings justly. It will be possible for extensions to be granted for periods of up to eight weeks at a time (with no limit on the number of extensions) from the end of the 26-week period or the end of the extension—whichever is the later.
GCSE: Wales
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he has had with his Welsh counterpart regarding the status of GCSEs in Wales and the introduction of I-levels in England. [161568]
Elizabeth Truss: The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), met the Minister for Education and Skills for Wales and the Minister for Education for Northern Ireland on 13 May 2013 to discuss the reform of GCSEs and A-levels in their respective jurisdictions.
Ofqual and the Welsh regulator are responsible for matters relating to the standards of qualifications in England and Wales respectively, and the extent to which they are comparable. I understand that Ofqual has regular discussions with the Welsh regulator.
We are reforming GCSEs in England from 2015 to ensure that young people have access to qualifications that set expectations that match and exceed those in the highest performing countries.
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Pupil Referral Units
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many pupils in schools in England were referred to a pupil referral unit in 2011-12. [161637]
Elizabeth Truss: The latest data on pupils attending pupil referral units are given in the following table.
| Pupil referral units in England: number of pupils(1) January 2011 to January 2013 | ||
| As at January each year | Total number of pupils as at January attending pupil referral units(2) | Total number of pupils attending a pupil referral unit, but also registered elsewhere eg at a school |
| (1) From Tables 1b and 2a of the 'Schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2013' Statistical First Release at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2013 (2) Includes pupils who are sole or dual main registrations and pupils registered in pupil referral units, but attending further education colleges or other providers. | ||
To determine the number of pupils referred to a pupil referral unit in 2011-12 would incur disproportionate cost.
Pupils: Disadvantaged
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the pupil premium; and what methodology was used for that assessment. [161619]
Mr Laws: In July the Department for Education will publish the findings of an independent evaluation of the pupil premium. The evaluation was commissioned in June 2012 and has been conducted by a consortium led by TNS-BMRB. The report will provide evidence on how schools have used the pupil premium and will give details of the research methodology.
On publication, a copy of the report will be placed in the House Library.
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent assessment he has made of correlations between educational attainment levels and (a) location within a rural community, (b) access to extra-curricular activities and (c) other lifestyle factors. [161621]
Mr Laws: Information on pupil attainment by the degree of rurality of pupil residence is published each year in the Department's statistical first releases (SFR).
Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) attainment of pupils by the degree of rurality of pupil residence is available in table A2 of the ‘EYFSP attainment by pupil characteristics in England: academic year 2011 to 2012’ SFR, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/eyfsp-attainment-by-pupil-characteristics-in-england-academic-year-2011-to-2012
Table A2 can be found within the ‘Pupil residency tables: SFR30/2012’ link.
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Key stage 1 pupil attainment by the degree of rurality of pupil residence is available in table A2 of the ‘Phonics screening check and national curriculum assessments at key stage 1 in England: 2012 SFR’, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/phonics-screening-check-and-national-curriculum-assessments-at-key-stage-1-in-england-2012
Table A2 can be found within the ‘KS1—local authority and pupil residency based tables: SFR21/2012’ link.
Key stage 2 attainment of pupils by the degree of rurality of pupil residence is available in table A2 of the ‘National curriculum assessments at key stage 2 in England: academic year 2011 to 2012’ SFR, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-assessments-at-key-stage-2-in-england-academic-year-2011-to-2012
Table A2 can be found within the ‘Pupil residency and school location based tables: SFR33/2012’ link.
Key stage 4 attainment of pupils by the degree of rurality of pupil residence is available in table A2 of the ‘GCSE and equivalent attainment by pupil characteristics in England: 2011 to 2012’ SFR, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gcse-and-equivalent-attainment-by-pupil-characteristics-in-england
Table A2 can be found within the ‘Pupil residency and school location based tables: SFR04/2013’ link.
Information on attainment by access to extra-curricular activities is not held by the Department.
The publication ‘DCSF: Youth Cohort Study and Longitudinal Study of Young People in England: The Activities and Experiences of 16 Year Olds: England 2007’ gives information on the correlation between attainment and factors such as: risky behaviours; parental occupation; parental qualifications;-truanting, frequency of family evening meals; parental knowledge of child location in the evening; and frequency of curfew setting. This publication can be found at the following link:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110206154043/http:/education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SBU/b000795/index.shtml
Tables 3.2.2, 4.1.1, 4.1.2, 5.2.1, 5.2.2, 5.2.3 and chart-4.2.2 hold the relevant data within this publication. A summary of the statistics can be found within the PDF link on the webpage. These tables can be found within the ‘Additional information’ Excel link labelled as ‘All tables and charts as they appear in the Bulletin’. The 2008 update to this publication includes information on the correlation between attainment and factors such as: the likelihood of voting in the next general election; disability; exclusion from school; truancy in Year 11; and parental occupation. This can be found within the ‘DCSF: Youth Cohort Study and Longitudinal Study of Young People in England: The Activities and Experiences of 17 year olds: England 2008’ publication, which can be found at the following link:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110206154043/http:/education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SBU/b000850/index.shtml
Tables 4.1.1, 4.2.1 and chart 2.2.7 hold the relevant data within this publication. A summary of the statistics
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can be found within the PDF link on the webpage. These tables can be found within the ‘Additional information’ Excel link.
The 2009 update to this publication includes information on the correlation between attainment and factors such as: parental occupation; parental education; disability; exclusion from school; and living arrangements in Year 11. It can be found within the ‘DfE: Youth Cohort Study and Longitudinal Study of Young People in England: The Activities and Experiences of 18 year olds: England 2009’ publication. This can be found at the following link:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110206154043/http:/education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SBU/b000937/index.shtml
Tables 2.2.1 and 2.2.2 hold relevant data within this publication. A summary of the statistics can be found within the PDF link on the webpage. These tables can be found within the ‘Additional information' Excel link labelled as ‘(All tables and charts contained within Bulletin in excel format)’.
The 2010 update to this publication includes information on the correlation between attainment and lifestyle factors such as: parental occupation; disability, exclusion from school; and whether pupils had their own child. It can be found within the ‘Youth cohort study and longitudinal study of young people in England: the activities and experiences of 19-year-olds—2010’ publication, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/youth-cohort-study-and-longitudinal-study-of-young-people-in-england-the-activities-and-experiences-of-19-year-olds-2010
Tables 1.2.1,1.2.2 and A.1.1 hold relevant data reported within this publication. A summary of the statistics can be found within the ‘Main text: B01/201V link on the webpage. These tables can be found within the ‘Main tables: B01/2011’ link.
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of reasons for differences in attainment levels between schools in rural communities and schools in large cities. [161622]
Mr Laws: “Educational Attainment in Rural Areas”, a report published in 2009 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), examined the apparent difference in performance between urban and rural pupils(1). In line with evidence from the annual Statistical First Releases of the Department for Education, this report found that rural pupils had slightly higher attainment at key stage 3. Once socio-economic background was taken into account, there was virtually no difference in attainment.
However, the research did find that some groups, such as pupils whose mothers have lower levels of qualifications, are making less progress in rural than urban areas. This problem is also highlighted by the recent Ofsted report “Unseen Children: access and achievement 20 years on”, which has found that there may be regional differences in terms of outcomes, particularly for pupils from low income backgrounds(2).
The Government are considering Ofsted's recommendations and will respond in due course. Closing the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers is at the heart of the Government's reforms. That is why we introduced the pupil premium, worth £2.5 billion per
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year by 2015, to target additional funding for disadvantaged pupils. Every child eligible for the pupil premium attracts the same £900 additional funding, no matter where they live in the country.
(1) https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment data/file/189847/DEFRA-2009-12-02.pdf.pdf
(2)http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/a-and-a/Unseen%20children%20-%20access%20and%20achievement%2020%20years%20on.pdf
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to improve attainment levels of children entitled to free school meals. [161623]
Mr Laws: The Government believe that it is unacceptable for children's achievement at school and success in life to be constrained by economic disadvantage. This is why in April 2011 we introduced the pupil premium: additional funding for schools to raise the attainment of pupils who have been registered for free school meals at any point in the past six years and for children in care who have been looked after by a local authority continuously for more than six months. The grant is worth £900 per pupil for 2013-14, and the total pupil premium will amount to £2.5 billion in 2014-15.
Since the pupil premium was introduced, the attainment of disadvantaged pupils has improved. Results for 2012, the first year to reflect the impact of a full year of pupil premium, showed a larger than expected narrowing of attainment gaps nationally for both key stage 2 and key stage 4.
The Education Endowment Foundation also administers £125 million on behalf of the Department to fund research into innovative approaches to raising attainment.
School Meals
Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to publish the School Food Plan. [161203]
Elizabeth Truss: The independent reviewers, Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent, are continuing their work on the School Food Plan. It is expected that the Plan will be published soon.
Schools: Cumbria
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether any officials of his Department have visited schools in (a) Cumbria, (b) West Cumbria and (c) Copeland constituency. [161626]
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Elizabeth Truss: Comprehensive information on officials’ visits is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department can confirm there have been at least three visits to schools in Cumbria, including schools in the Copeland constituency, over the past 12 months.
Schools: Holidays
Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013, what provision has been made for parents whose contracts of employment state that they cannot take time off during school holiday periods to be granted leave of absence to take their children on holiday during term time. [161733]
Elizabeth Truss: The Government have not made any special arrangements for parents who cannot take time off work during school holidays. Head teachers still have the discretion to grant leave of absence during term time but only in exceptional circumstances.
Social Enterprises
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many of his Department's suppliers are social enterprises. [161322]
Elizabeth Truss: The Department is unable to answer the question as information on the status of suppliers is not held on the Department's finance system and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Truancy
Mr Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many days were missed due to unauthorised absence from schools in (a) Cannock Chase constituency and (b) Staffordshire in each of the last five years. [161258]
Elizabeth Truss: Information on unauthorised absence from 2007/08 to 2011/12 is shown in the tables.
The latest data on absence, for the school year, are published in the ‘Pupil Absence in Schools in England, Including Pupil Characteristics: 2011/12' Statistical First Release.(1)
(1) Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-absence-in-schools-in-england-including-pupil-characteristics
| State-funded primary, state-funded secondary and special schools(1,)()(2,)()(3,)()(4): the number of days missed through unauthorised absence and unauthorised absence rates, England, Staffordshire local authority and Cannock Chase constituency, 2007/08 to 2011/12 | ||||||||
| England | ||||||||
| State-funded primary schools(1, )(2) | State-funded secondary schools(1,)()(3) | Special schools(4) | All schools(1,)()(2,)()(3,)()(4) | |||||
| Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | |
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| Staffordshire local authority | ||||||||
| State-funded primary schools(1,)()(2) | State-funded secondary schools(1,)()(3) | Special schools(4) | All schools(1,)()(2,)()(3,)()(4) | |||||
| Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | |
| Cannock Chase constituency | ||||||||
| State-funded primary schools(1,)()(2) | State-funded secondary schools(1,)()(3) | Special schools(4) | All schools(1, )(2,)()(3,)()(4) | |||||
| Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | Days missed due to unauthorised absence(5) | Unauthorised absence rate(6) | |
| (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes primary academies. (3) Includes city technology colleges and secondary academies. (4) Includes maintained special schools, non-maintained special schools and special academies. Excludes general hospital schools. (5) Morning and afternoon registration sessions missed divided by two to give days missed. (6) The number of sessions missed due to unauthorised absence expressed as a percentage of the total number of possible sessions. Note: Number of days missed has been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census | ||||||||
Culture, Media and Sport
Arts: Work Experience
Jim Sheridan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the number of unpaid interns working in the creative industries in (a) Paisley and Renfrewshire North constituency, (b) Glasgow city, (c) Scotland, (d) London and (e) the UK. [161725]
Mr Vaizey: We have made no such estimate of the number of unpaid interns working in the creative industries across the UK. We want internship opportunities to be made available to talented young people from all backgrounds and encourage businesses to offer internships openly and transparently and to provide the appropriate financial support to ensure fair access. Maximising the overall number of opportunities is the best way to help young people get into work and realise their ambitions.
Jim Sheridan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to encourage businesses in the creative industries to pay all interns. [161759]
Mr Vaizey: As set out in our Social Mobility Strategy, we encourage businesses to offer internships openly and transparently and to provide the appropriate financial support to ensure fair access. This could either be payment of at least the appropriate national minimum wage rate, or reasonable out-of-pocket expenses where this is in compliance with national minimum wage law.
There is no definition of an internship in minimum wage legislation. The key issue is whether or not interns are workers as defined by minimum wage legislation. If they are, then they are eligible for the minimum wage unless a specific exemption applies. Volunteers are not workers and are not eligible for the minimum wage. Voluntary workers are workers, however, they are exempt from the national minimum wage (NMW) entitlement provided certain conditions are met.
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The NMW worker checklist defines a worker under NMW legislation. This is available online by searching ‘worker checklist' on
www.gov.uk
If all items on the checklist apply, you are a ‘worker' who is entitled to the relevant NMW.
Paying the national minimum wage is the law and not a choice, and the rules apply to all employers equally. When an intern makes a complaint to the Pay and Work Rights Helpline about their pay conditions, that case is-prioritised by HMRC to ensure their employer is complying with the law. Where that is not the case, HMRC will not hesitate to take action.
BBC Trust
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what meetings she has had with the Chairman of the BBC Trust since her appointment. [159857]
Mr Vaizey [holding answer 17 June 2013]:The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller)’s, external meetings are published quarterly on the departmental website:
http://www.transparency.culture.gov.uk/category/other/meetings/
Capita
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much her Department currently spends on contracts with Capita; and how much was spent in each year since 2008. [158461]
Mr Vaizey: Please see the following table re Capita companies.
| £ | |||||
| Capita Company | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |