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Written Answers to Questions
Thursday 27 June 2013
Transport
A14
Q10. Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress is being made on the widening of the A14 around Kettering. [161773]
Stephen Hammond: A design and build contract was awarded to Bam Nuttall/Morgan Sindall JV on 20 June 2013.
Their tendered programme indicates a start of works in late 2013 with works completed by spring 2015.
During the initial phase of the contract the contractor will complete the detailed design before works can start later in the year.
Bus Services
Q13. Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to protect local bus services. [161776]
Norman Baker: I am very conscious of the vital role that buses play in supporting local communities. They are the backbone of our public transport system and crucial to a healthy, growing economy. This is recognised by the fact that we were able to protect existing levels of Government support for buses as part of the spending decisions announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer yesterday.
Tractor Driving Licences
Q14. Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the licence system for tractor driving. [161778]
Stephen Hammond: There have been no assessments made of the licence system for tractor driving.
Public Transport: Disabled Access
Q16. Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to improve disabled access to public transport. [161781]
Norman Baker: The Department for Transport published an Accessibility Action Plan in December 2012 which contains a number of commitments to ensure that transport is accessible and safe for everyone to use. This sets out how the Department will build on the accessibility legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
I have also recently announced that the Department intends to retain the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee.
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Railway Stations
Q17. Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress he is making on his plans to fund new railway stations. [161782]
Mr Simon Burns: Funding from the new stations fund has been awarded to four stations in England and Wales (Ilkeston, Pye Corner, Lea Bridge and Newcourt), plus a further station at Kenilworth which the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), is minded to fund subject to its integration into the programme of wider improvement works in the area.
In addition, local authorities can also fund new stations using funding from other sources as a contribution.
A1
Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to upgrade the A1 North of Tyne and Wear. [161348]
Stephen Hammond: I refer the right hon. Member to the oral statement made by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the right hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander), to the House today in relation to Government's future capital expenditure for roads.
Motorways: Driving Offences
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of accidents that will potentially be prevented as a result of the introduction of new penalty notices for misuse of the middle lane of motorways. [161634]
Stephen Hammond: Careless driving takes a number of different forms including misuse of the middle lane of motorways. Data collected by the police on the contributory factors to road accidents show that in 2011, 272 deaths had ‘careless, reckless or in a hurry' recorded as a contributory factor. This may be an underestimate as there are other contributory factors (e.g. failing to look properly) that could be included as careless driving.
Motorways: Speed Limits
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the environmental effect of increasing the speed limit on motorways to 80 mph. [161573]
Stephen Hammond: Work on the environmental impact has not been completed and we would consult on the potential impacts before any decision was taken as to whether to proceed with trials.
At a time when Government have been clear about the need to manage a step change in investment for our road network, trials of 80 mph on the network are not a high priority.
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Network Rail
George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what Network Rail's current debt is; [162233]
(2) what the annual change in Network Rail's debt level has been over the last three years. [162234]
Mr Simon Burns: The level of Network Rail's debt is reported annually by the company in their annual report and accounts which are available on their website at
www.networkrail.co.uk
The relevant figures as reported in those accounts are as follows:
| Year ending | Debt (£ million) |
Railways: Shropshire
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will hold discussions with Network Rail on restoring a direct rail link from Shropshire to London. [161777]
Mr McLoughlin: I announced to the House on 6 December 2012, Official Report, columns 1018-19, that I would welcome direct rail services to Blackpool and Shrewsbury from London. Virgin Trains has made an application to Network Rail seeking paths to run those services.
Network Rail has assessed Virgins Trains' application for additional Track Access rights on the West Coast mainline and rejected the application for the additional services on the basis that it would be detrimental to performance.
This matter is now being considered by the independent Office of Rail Regulation (ORR), which is responsible for Track Access applications.
Speed Limits: Driving Offences
Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many speed awareness courses were undertaken in each (a) region and (b) constituent part of the UK in each of the last three years; and what the cost of undertaking such a course was in each such area in each such year. [161338]
Stephen Hammond: The Department does not hold this information. This information would be held by individual police forces and the National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme.
Swindon-Kemble Railway Line
Neil Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of progress on the redoubling of the Kemble-Swindon railway. [161804]
Mr Simon Burns: The project is on schedule and ready for completion in 2014.
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Thameslink Railway Line
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent progress he has made in drawing up a management-style contract for the next Thameslink franchise. [162010]
Mr Simon Burns: The management-style contract for the next Thameslink franchise is currently being developed in close consultation with the pre-qualified bidders. The invitation to tender is due to be issued in September 2013.
House of Commons Commission
Telephone Switchboard
7. Simon Hughes: To ask the hon. Member for Aberdeen North, representing the House of Commons Commission, what assessment he has made of the performance of the parliamentary telephone switchboard. [161800]
John Thurso: The switchboard is an outsourced service. Capita is the current service provider. Formal monthly service reviews take place between the House and Capita.
Capita has met its call handling target of answering 90% of calls in 10 seconds. The average answer time was 4.5 seconds. Since the relocation of the service to Southampton, some feedback has been received about misdirected calls and the speed with which requests for diverts are applied. The House is working with Capita to resolve these issues.
Parliamentary Tours
Jessica Morden: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent discussions the Commission has had on the availability of tours for constituents of the parliamentary estate. [161793]
John Thurso: The Commission's most recent discussion about the provision of tours was in June 2012 in the context of the Administration Committee's report on visitor access and facilities. The report and the Commission's response were debated in Westminster Hall on 4 September 2012.
Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority Committee
Legal Costs
Sadiq Khan: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, how much the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has spent on external legal advice (a) between 7 May 2010 and 4 September 2012 and (b) since 4 September 2012. [158705]
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Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Andrew McDonald, 24 June 2013:
As Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for figures relating to legal advice sought by IPSA.
The information requested is provided below. It is not possible to separate the costs of legal advice from the costs of other services provided by lawyers. Therefore the figures produced below cover expenditure on all services provided by lawyers for the relevant periods.
| External Legal Services | |
| Expenditure (£) | |
Sadiq Khan: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, how much the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has spent on external legal advice from Queen's Counsel (a) between 7 May 2010 and 4 September 2012 and (b) since 4 September 2012. [158708]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Andrew McDonald, 25 June 2013:
As Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for figures relating to legal advice sought by IPSA.
It is not possible to provide the information requested, as expenditure on Queen's Counsel is not recorded separately from other legal services.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what the highest day rate paid for external legal advice by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority since 7 May 2010 has been. [158711]
Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Andrew McDonald, 25 June 2013:
As Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for figures relating to legal advice sought by IPSA.
It is not possible to provide the information requested as to do so would, in conjunction with other information in the public domain, breach commercial confidentiality.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what the 20 highest amounts paid for external legal advice by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012 were; to whom such payments were made; and for what reasons the legal advice was sought. [158714]
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Mr Charles Walker: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority. I have asked IPSA to reply.
Letter from Andrew McDonald, dated 25 June 2013:
As Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for information relating to legal advice sought by IPSA.
The figures requested are provided in the table below. It is not possible to separate the costs of legal advice from the costs of other services provided by lawyers. Therefore the figures produced below cover expenditure on all legal services for the relevant periods.
These figures are shown divided by calendar year and by the value of invoice paid. The invoices do not separately identify costs attributable to specific matters and are aggregated with other costs over varying time periods and so are not directly comparable. Where there were fewer than 20 invoices paid in each year, the values of all invoices paid are shown.
| Number | |
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Leader of the House
Grand Committees
Mr Dodds: To ask the Leader of the House (1) in what locations the (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scottish and (c) Welsh Grand Committees have met in each session of this Parliament; [161864]
(2) how many meetings there have been of the (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scottish and (c) Welsh Grand Committees in each session of this Parliament. [161865]
Mr Lansley: The information is as follows:
(a) There were two sittings of the Northern Ireland Grand Committee in session 2010-12, both at Westminster. The Committee did not sit in session 2012-13, and there have been no sittings so far this session.
(b) There have been no sittings of the Scottish Grand Committee so far in this Parliament.
(c) There were 11 sittings of the Welsh Grand Committee in session 2010-12. Ten were held at Westminster; one in Wrexham. There were four sittings of the Welsh Grand Committee in session 2012-13, all at Westminster. There have been two sittings of the Welsh Grand Committee so far in the current session, both at Westminster.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Hunting Act 2004
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations he has received regarding potential amendments to the Hunting Act 2004 in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [161463]
Richard Benyon: In the last 12 months DEFRA has received a variety of representations both for and against a repeal of the Hunting Act 2004 from Members of Parliament and the public. This includes 114 pieces of correspondence from Members of Parliament and the public, according to DEFRA's correspondence database.
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Social Enterprises
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many of his Department's suppliers are social enterprises. [160661]
Richard Benyon: Core DEFRA suppliers are not required to provide this information. DEFRA does have some data on which suppliers are social enterprises, a charity or a voluntary sector organisation. This is too incomplete to provide a reliable response.
Cabinet Office
Big Society Network
Mr Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) when his Department first informed the Big Lottery Fund that the Big Society Network Foundation's Get In campaign had been put on hold and its funding had been ended; and if he will make a statement; [161858]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2013, Official Report, column 739W, on the Big Society Network, if he will publish the objectives of the Society Network Foundation's Get In campaign; and what progress had been made against each objective before his Department took the decision to end support for it; and if he will make a statement. [161859]
Mr Hurd: Cabinet Office did not inform Big Lottery Fund of its decision to end funding for the Society Network Foundation's Get In Campaign because it is not normal practice to inform external organisations of a decision made regarding a grant recipient.
The Cabinet Office has supplied a copy of the BSN and Sports Leader's UK quarter 1 monitoring report for the Get In campaign to the House of Common's Library; this sets out objectives for the Get In campaign and progress against these.
Mr Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2013, Official Report, column 517W, on the third sector, how the £350,000 allocated to the Big Society Network to support his Department in allocating the Big Society Awards was spent; and if he will make a statement. [161860]
Mr Hurd: This grant payment was allocated to the Big Society Network (BSN) to support the delivery of aspects of the Big Society Awards process and to promote and support the Big Society agenda. As stated in my answer of 17 June 2013, Official Report, column 517W, this included the design and development of the website:
www.bigsocietyawards.org
to raise the profile of the awards and to increase the number of awards announced, as well as to promote social action more widely and to support and accelerate social entrepreneurs and social innovators.
Further details of BSN's work are on their website:
http://www.thebigsociety.co.uk/
Death
Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many deaths there were in each constituency in each month between October 2012 and March 2013. [161832]
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Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Glen Watson, dated June 2013:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many deaths there were in each constituency in each month between October 2012 and March 2013. (161832)
The numbers of deaths for parliamentary constituencies are not routinely published, but 2012 data will be available on request after 10 July 2013. Equivalent 2013 data will be available in Summer 2014.
Provisional figures showing the number of deaths registered each month by local authority district are published on the ONS website. The latest figures available are for May 2013:
www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/vsob2/monthly-figures-on-deaths-registered-by-area-of-usual-residence--england-and-wales/index.html
Mobile Phones: Cybercrime
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent representations he has received on the cyber security of mobile telephones. [162031]
Miss Chloe Smith: Regular discussions take place between Ministers and officials across government as appropriate to address information security and assurance requirements and policies for government. In line with the practice of previous Administrations, details of such meetings are not normally disclosed. In addition, officials are in regular contact and have working-level relationships with the telecommunications industry.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 January 2013, Official Report, column 693W.
Unemployment
John Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the current level of unemployment is in (a) each parliamentary constituency in Glasgow, (b) each city in Scotland and (c) each city in the rest of the UK. [162272]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the current level of unemployment is in (a) each parliamentary constituency in Glasgow, (b) each city in Scotland and (c) each city in the rest of the UK (162272).
The Office for National Statistics does not produce unemployment statistics for cities. As an alternative we have provided the unemployment level and rate for local authorities in Scotland and the rest of the UK using model based estimates of unemployment, which are only available for local authorities, for January to December 2012, the latest available period.
ONS compiles labour market statistics for other local geographies from the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions. Whilst the APS does collect data on unemployment, no reliable estimates can be produced for parliamentary constituencies in Glasgow.
As an alternative I have provided the number and percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who were claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in May 2013, the latest available period, for parliamentary
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constituencies in Glasgow. I've have also provided this information for local authorities in Scotland and the rest of the UK for comparison purposes. A copy of the tables has been placed in the Library of the House.
National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
Communities and Local Government
Buildings: Energy
Mr Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether any infraction or derogation proceedings in respect of the UK's implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive regulations have been commenced by the European Commission; and whether he is aware that any such proceedings are likely to be initiated. [160601]
Mr Foster [holding answer 25 June 2013]: My Department is not currently involved in any formal infraction litigation proceedings in respect of the UK's implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.
We have recently received a letter seeking clarification on a technical issue of holiday lets in England and Wales, and we are currently in discussions with the Commission on this issue, and hope to resolve it in a satisfactory manner.
Fire Extinguishers
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what categories of buildings have fire sprinklers installed as a mandatory requirement. [160729]
Mr Foster: The provisions of Approved Document B set out which categories of buildings should be fitted with sprinkler systems to satisfy the requirements of building regulations in England. These are:
Blocks of flats, office buildings, shops and commercial buildings, assembly and recreation buildings, and storage buildings—where they exceed 30 metres in height.
Shops—where any one storey exceeds 2,000 square metres in area.
Commercial buildings, assembly and recreation buildings—where they have more than one storey and any one storey exceeds 2,000 square metres in area.
Industrial buildings—where any one storey exceeds 7,000 square metres in area. Or where they exceed 18 metres in height, and any one storey exceeds 2,000 square metres in area.
Storage buildings—with only one storey, where that storey exceeds 20,000 square metres in area (or 18 metres in height). Or where they have more than one storey and any one storey exceeds 20,000 cubic metres in volume or where they exceed 18 metres in height, and any one storey exceeds 4,000 square metres in area.
There are also provisions for the installation of sprinklers in other buildings, such as certain types of dwelling houses and care homes, which allow greater flexibility in design.
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Floods: Finance
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding has been (a) claimed by and (b) paid out to each local authority under the Bellwin scheme as a result of flooding in each year since 2007-08. [161940]
Brandon Lewis:
Bellwin provides emergency financial assistance to local authorities to help them meet uninsurable
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costs they incur when responding to a major emergency in their area. The level of funding over time is causally linked to the scale of the flooding. It operates by local authorities retrospectively claiming spending back.
The following table sets out amounts claimed by local authorities and paid by DCLG under the Bellwin scheme for flood related incidents in financial years 2007-08 to date. Payments for the remaining 2012-13 Bellwin claims will be made in July 2013.
| Bellwin flood related payments 2007-08 to 2012-13 | |||
| £ | |||
| Bellwin claimed | Outside scope of scheme | Bellwin grant paid | |
| Note: Payments may not necessarily be in the same financial year as the incidents occurred. The amount claimed is net of threshold and grant rate. | |||
Landlords: Licensing
Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will consider making failure to meet the Housing Health and Safety Rating System a criterion for allowing selective licensing of landlords. [161050]
Mr Prisk [holding answer 24 June 2013]: The Housing Act 2004 permits local authorities, subject to carrying out a consultation, to license all private landlords in a designated area that is suffering from low housing demand and/or antisocial behaviour. The purpose of selective licensing is to address the adverse, cumulative impact that poor management by some landlords and/or antisocial behaviour by some tenants can have in the community. Selective licensing is only concerned with the management of privately rented dwellings, not the condition of the property.
Notwithstanding that, the 2004 Act also introduced the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, which is designed to assess the presence and severity of a range of hazards in the home, such as excess cold, fire and electrical hazards. This allows action to be taken by councils against individual properties which are substandard or dangerous.
Local Government Services: Per Capita Costs
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what estimate he has made of the effect of population density on the cost of delivering local government services; [161170]
(2) which specific services in the environmental, cultural and protective services block have given rise to additional funding because of the effect of population density in the last five years. [161171]
Brandon Lewis: Population density and sparsity feature within a number of the Relative Needs Formulae used in settlement calculations. Detail of the methodology used for Relative Needs Formulae is available in the formula funding document presented as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement for 2013-14 and is available at:
www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1314/calcffs.pdf
The formula for the environmental, cultural and protective services block covers the calculation of a number of services. Formula grant and Revenue Support Grant are unhypothecated block grants and it is therefore not possible to set out how much funding is provided for any particular service.
Misuse of Drugs Ministerial Group
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many times Ministers of his Department have attended the inter-ministerial group on drugs since May 2010. [161576]
Brandon Lewis: In line with the convention under previous Administrations, it is not usual practice to disclose details of Cabinet committee and other inter-ministerial discussions.
I also refer the hon. Member to the answer given today by the Minister of State, Home Department, the hon. Member for Taunton Deane (Mr Browne) to PQ 161582.
Working Neighbourhoods Fund
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent through the Working Neighbourhoods Fund in each of the principal seaside towns in each year of the fund's existence. [161397]
Brandon Lewis: The Working Neighbourhoods Fund ran from 2008-09 to 2010-11. The grant was paid to local authorities, and not to town or parish councils; thus there are no figures available for seaside towns.
A table showing the allocations for all local authorities has been placed in the Library of the House.
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The fund was a time-limited, three-year programme that ended as originally scheduled in March 2011. More information can be found in a deposited paper from February 2011, available in the Library and online at:
http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2011-0295/DEP2011-0295.tif
World War II: Genocide
Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what financial support the Government has given to holocaust memorial groups in each year since 1997. [161256]
Mr Foster: The UK Holocaust Memorial Day was first held in January 2001 and has since been held on 27 January every year. Until 2005, responsibility for delivering Holocaust Memorial Day lay with the Home Office. Since 2005 Holocaust Memorial Day and related activities have been delivered by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, an independent charity set up by the Government to deliver the annual Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration. The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust is the only Holocaust memorial group the Government fund.
The approximate spend for 2002-04 was £280,000. Financial support for the Holocaust Memorial Trust is detailed as follows:
| £ | |
Treasury
Pay
Mr Watson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff in the private office of the Economic Secretary to the Treasury received a performance-related bonus in the last two financial years. [162013]
Sajid Javid: Fewer than five staff have received performance bonuses in the last two financial years. We do not give numbers where they are fewer than five as this could risk identifying individuals.
PAYE
Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for how long he plans to permit businesses with fewer than 50 employees to submit PAYE information monthly rather than in real time; and if he will make a statement. [161936]
Mr Gauke:
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) recognise that some small employers who pay employees weekly, or more frequently, but currently only process their payroll monthly may need longer to adapt to
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reporting PAYE information in real time. HMRC have therefore agreed a transitional relaxation for RTI reporting requirements for smaller employers.
This relaxation means that employers with fewer than 50 employees, who find it difficult to report every payment to employees at the time of payment, may send information to HMRC by the date of their regular payroll run, but no later than the end of the tax month in which the payments are made. This extra time will enable these businesses to adapt their processes so that they can comply with the new legislation.
HMRC has recently announced that it is planning to maintain this temporary relaxation for those employers to April 2014. This will avoid employers having to change their processes during the year.
Tax Allowances: Cultural Heritage
Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many visitors visited tax-exempt heritage assets in each of the last 10 years; [161639]
(2) whether he records the number of visits by the public to each tax-exempt heritage asset. [161644]
Mr Gauke: Information about visitor numbers to tax-exempt heritage assets is not available.
HMRC does not record the number of visits by the public to each tax exempt heritage asset.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the terms of the tax-exempt heritage assets regime were last reviewed. [161642]
Mr Gauke: The Government keeps all tax policies, reliefs and exemptions under review. Major changes were made to the provisions in 1998 to extend public access. Since then minor changes have been made in 2006 and 2008.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the owners of tax-exempt heritage assets are required to loan them to national or local galleries and museums. [161643]
Mr Gauke: There is no specific requirement for owners of tax-exempt heritage assets to loan them to galleries and museums. However, depending on the nature of the asset and the terms of the undertakings they agree to, owners may choose to have them on display in galleries or museums to fulfil the public access requirement and meet the conditions to qualify for the tax exemption.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the tax-exempt heritage assets as a contribution to public enjoyment of heritage assets. [161645]
Mr Gauke: The tax exemption scheme for heritage assets preserves and protects over 70,000 national heritage items and collections, which may have otherwise been sold or taken out of the UK, for the benefit of the public. It also ensures that the public have access to heritage assets in private ownership which they would otherwise not see.
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Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the annual cost of offering the tax exemption for heritage assets. [161863]
Mr Gauke: An estimate of the annual cost of offering the inheritance tax exemption for heritage assets for 2011-12 and 2012-13 is published in the HM Revenue and Customs Minor Tax Expenditures and structural reliefs table, available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/expenditures/table-b1.pdf
The estate duty exemption for heritage assets is estimated to currently have a negligible cost for the Exchequer (ie less than £3 million per year).
The Exchequer cost of the capital gains tax exemption for heritage assets is not known.
Taxation: Business
Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to ensure that large UK companies pay correct amounts of tax. [161900]
Mr Gauke: The Government are fully committed to supporting the international efforts to address Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) by multinational enterprises, through the OECD and G20.
At the recent summit in Lough Erne, the G8 leaders welcomed the OECD work on addressing BEPS and emphasised the importance of the OECD developing an ambitious and comprehensive action plan for presentation to the G20 in July.
Work Experience
Stella Creasy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much was secured in unpaid wages for people identifying as interns, volunteers or work experience in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12; [162028]
(2) how many cases HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has investigated for the non-payment of the national minimum wage in relation to people identifying as interns, volunteers or work experience workers in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013; and how many instances of non-compliance HMRC has discovered through such investigations in each such year; [162029]
(3) how many complaints HM Revenue and Customs has received regarding non-payment of the national minimum wage from people identifying as interns, volunteers or work experience workers in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013. [162030]
Mr Gauke: HMRC does not have figures relating to the period before August 2011 as it did not specifically collect information on whether workers making complaints about non-payment of the minimum wage were interns, volunteers or work experience workers before then. Of the complaints received between August 2011 and the end of that financial year, three cases were completed but no arrears were identified in those cases.
The number of investigations completed and the number of non-compliant employers identified by HMRC, in these for the years requested, is in the following table:
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| Calendar year | Number of completed investigations | Number of cases of non-compliance |
| (1 )Unavailable | ||
The number of complaints received from the workers described in each of the years requested is in the following table:
| Calendar year | Number of worker complaints |
| (1) Unavailable | |
Health
Accident and Emergency Departments: Greater London
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the University College Hospital, Royal Free, The Whittington, Barnet General, North Middlesex and Chase Farm on the future plans for accident and emergency and hospital care; and if he will make a statement. [161705]
Anna Soubry: Health Ministers have not held recent discussions with any of the named trusts. Planning for the future provision of accident and emergency and other hospital care is a matter for the trusts themselves, working closely with local commissioners of health care services.
Alcoholic Drinks and Drugs: Rehabilitation
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that health and wellbeing strategies addressing alcohol and drugs treatment are being developed by local authorities. [161944]
Norman Lamb: The Health and Social Care Act 2012 places a duty on local authorities and each of its partner clinical commissioning group to undertake Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNAs), and prepare Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategies (JHWSs) through health and wellbeing boards.
JSNAs and JHWSs are local strategic planning processes; we therefore do not monitor them centrally in the Department. JSNAs are the means by which the current and future health and well-being needs of the local population, will be determined through health and wellbeing boards. This will then be used to develop locally agreed priorities in JHWSs, which will underpin local commissioning plans. In this way, health and wellbeing boards will plan local services on the basis of identified needs. JSNAs will therefore need to cover the health and care needs of the whole local population and may well include drug and alcohol treatment. However, it would not be appropriate for the Department to highlight any care group or area of need over another as this would risk undermining the purpose of JSNAs and
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JHWSs being objective, comprehensive and, most importantly, locally-owned processes of developing evidence based priorities for commissioning.
Ambulance Services: Corby
Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make an assessment of the consequences of closing Corby ambulance station on the ability of the ambulance trust to meet the eight and 19 minute targets. [161552]
Anna Soubry: The East Midlands Ambulance Service National Health Service Trust consulted on the Being the Best proposals between September and December 2012.
Lincolnshire county council referred those proposals to the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), on 25 March 2013, who subsequently requested initial advice from the Independent Reconfiguration Panel.
That advice is due to be submitted to the Secretary of State no later than 28 June 2013.
Bounty Services
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of recent reports that Bounty paid NHS trusts to allow salespeople access to maternity wards. [161947]
Anna Soubry: It is for individual trusts to make decisions about representatives from Bounty or any other organisation being allowed on maternity wards.
The Under-Secretary of State for Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Dr Poulter), has written to all national health service trusts, NHS foundation trusts and heads of midwifery asking them to review their practices for allowing representatives from private companies on maternity wards and to assure themselves that they are maintaining women's dignity and respect shortly after the birth of a baby when they can be tired and vulnerable.
Diabetes: Children
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which bodies in the NHS have responsibility for funding the replacement of out-of-warranty insulin pumps for paediatric patients with diabetes. [162009]
Anna Soubry: NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialist endocrinology and diabetes services for children and young people as part of its specialised services. This service includes the provision of insulin pumps and replacement pumps where clinically appropriate.
Health Services: Greater London
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Mayor of London on his views on London's future health needs. [161704]
Anna Soubry:
The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey
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(Mr Hunt), met the Mayor of London on 27 March 2013. Their discussion covered a number of health issues relating to London.
Heart Diseases
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce deaths from heart disease; and if he will make funding available to Northern Ireland to improve cardiovascular outcomes. [161842]
Anna Soubry: Health is a devolved matter, and funding to improve cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Reducing mortality and improving outcomes for people with heart disease and other CVDs in England is a key priority for this Government. The indicator ‘Under 75 mortality fate from all cardiovascular diseases' is included in both the Public Health and NHS Outcome Frameworks and the Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set. NHS England works to improve the quality of NHS services and is held to account through the Mandate.
In March 2013 we published the ‘CVD Outcomes Strategy’. The strategy sets out key actions for commissioners and providers to improve outcomes in CVD.
Hospitals
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision is made available to accommodate families that choose to stay beside an ill family member whilst in extended care in hospital. [161631]
Anna Soubry: The provision made to accommodate families that choose to stay beside an ill family member while in extended care in hospital is a matter for the providing health care organisation to determine.
The Department publishes guidance on the design of hospitals in support of the regard national health service organisations have to have to the NHS Constitution's pledge of providing services from a:
‘clean and safe environment that is fit for purpose, based on national best practice.'
The design guidance for in-patient care recognises that ‘relatives and visitors are encouraged to be more involved in patient care and support' (‘Health Building Note 04-01: Adult in-patient facilities, Department of Health, 2009’) and ‘Health Building Note 00-03: Clinical and clinical support spaces’ (Department of Health, 2013) gives spatial guidance on ‘receiving visitors’ at the bedside and ‘space for a relative's overnight stay bed'.
Guidance for the design of more specialised in-patient departments—such as children and young people and intensive care facilities—similarly addresses accommodating the needs of visitor and relatives.
Copies of the guidance have been placed in the Library and are available at:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/adult-in-patient-facilities
www.gov.uk/government/publications/design-and-layout-of-generic-clinical-and-clinical-support-spaces
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Hospitals: Parking
Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the number of NHS trusts that hold contracts with car parking management companies for hospital car parks. [161941]
Anna Soubry: The information requested is not collected centrally by the Department.
National health service organisations are responsible locally for decisions on the management of car parking, including whether it is provided in-house or outsourced.
Hospitals: Trafford
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2013, Official Report, column 160W, on hospitals: Trafford, if he will place the initial advice which he has received from the Independent Reconfiguration Panel in the Library. [162037]
Anna Soubry: The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), is currently considering the initial advice from the Independent Reconfiguration Panel concerning a New Health Deal for Trafford, and will make his decision in due course.
Independent Midwives UK
Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to address the concerns raised by representatives of Independent Midwives UK in their meeting with his Department in May 2013. [162016]
Anna Soubry: Independent Midwives UK (IM UK) met the Under-Secretary of State for Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Dr Poulter), to discuss their concerns about implementation of the European Directive on Patients' Rights in Cross Border Healthcare which requires all. health professionals to have indemnity or insurance in order to practise. In particular they were concerned that it is difficult for independent midwives who are practising in a self-employed capacity to obtain appropriate cover.
As part of the public consultation on this matter, people were asked to identify barriers to obtaining insurance and officials are now analysing the responses to the consultation. Departmental officials and NHS England are meeting with IM UK in early July to discuss what commissioning arrangements could be used by IM UK members to support their practice. We are in continuing dialogue with IM UK to understand the barriers to their on-going practice with particular attention to alternative operating models to enable them to find the best solution.
Jackie Holt
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) on what date and by whom the decision was taken to request the secondment of Jackie Holt from University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust to Warrington and Halton NHS Trust; and what consultation on this decision was undertaken with (a) Monitor, (b) the Care Quality Commission, (c) the relevant local area team, (d) NHS England and (e) his Department; and what involvement each such body had in this decision; [162011]
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(2) for what reason it was proposed to second Jackie Holt from University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust to Warrington and Halton NHS Trust; and if he will make a statement. [162012]
Anna Soubry: The decision to second an employee to another organisation is a local employment matter and is taken by the employer concerned. Sourcing and approving any particular secondment are operational matters for the trusts involved.
University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay is a Foundation Trust and as such the Department has no involvement in employment decisions of this nature.
We are advised no consultations were held with Monitor, NHS England or the Care Quality Commission on the decision to request a secondment to the Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
We have written to John Cowdall, chair of the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust informing him of the hon. Member's inquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.
Ketamine
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department had made of the number of ketamine-related hospital admissions in each of the last five years in (a) Birmingham, (b) the West Midlands and (c) the UK. [161945]
Anna Soubry: Data on ketamine-related hospital admissions are not collected centrally. This is because the International Classification of Diseases, used to collect data on hospital admissions, does not separately identify drug poisoning by ketamine.
Mental Health Services
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to require mental health services to collect data on children whose parents or carers have mental health difficulties. [161946]
Norman Lamb: The Department is considering how best to meet the recommendations of the recent report by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission which recommended collecting information on children whose parents or carers have mental health difficulties.
Misuse of Drugs Ministerial Group
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times Ministers of his Department have attended the inter-ministerial group on drugs since May 2010. [161580]
Anna Soubry: The Department's Ministers regularly attend the Inter-Ministerial Group on Drugs. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to publish details of such meetings.
NHS: Drugs
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by NHS trusts in London on (a) anti-retroviral HIV drugs and (b) anti-cancer drugs in each of the last five years. [161942]
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Norman Lamb: Expenditure by national health service trusts in London, as defined by the former London strategic health authority (SHA), is provided for both anti-retroviral HIV medicines and anti-cancer medicines.
London generally has a larger proportion of its medicines costs going through hospitals than other SHAs as patients from areas surrounding London are likely to travel to London hospitals for some treatments.
| £000 | |||
| Drug type | Year | Primary care cost(1) | Secondary care cost(2) |
| (1) Net ingredient cost. (2) Cost of medicines at NHS list price and not necessarily the price paid. (3) As classified within British National Formulary (BNF) section 5.3.1 ‘HIV infection’. (4) Information for 2008 primary care costs is only available for May-December 2008. (5) As classified within BNF section 8.1 ‘Cytotoxic drugs’, paragraph 8.2.3 ‘Anti-lymphocyte monoclonal antibodies’, paragraph 8.2.4 ‘Other immunomodulating drugs’ (Aldesleukin, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (B.C.G.), Lenalidomide and Thalidomide (Immunomodulating) only), section 8.3 ‘Sex hormones and hormone antagonists in malignant disease’. (6) The main reason for the lower cost is the large reduction in the cost per item price for three drugs, as lower-cost generic formulations became available (Anastrozole, Exemestane and Letrozole). These are mainly used in primary care; therefore there was not the comparable reduction in secondary care costs. Sources: 1. Prescribing Analysis and CosT tool (PACT) system. The Health and Social Care Information Centre, Prescribing and Primary Care Services. 2. IMS data. Hospital Pharmacy Audit. Some supplies through homecare providers may not be captured, therefore cost estimates may be under-stated. | |||
NHS: Equality
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that the provision of medical care is equal for those with physical and mental disabilities. [161572]
Norman Lamb: The Mandate to the national health service expects NHS England to ensure that mental health and physical health are given equal priority. By March 2015, we expect the NHS to demonstrate measurable progress towards achieving true parity of esteem, where everyone who needs it has timely access to evidence-based services.
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 NHS Operating Framework for 2013-14 specifically talks about a focus on the physical health care of people
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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.
The Mandate to the NHS expects NHS England to ensure that clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) 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 health care settings.
NHS: Negligence
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of local authorities dealing with instances of medical negligence against disabled people. [161600]
Anna Soubry: No assessment has been made of the effectiveness of local authorities in dealing with instances of medical negligence against disabled people.
NHS: Procurement
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what contracts for outsourced NHS (a) patient, (b) administrative, (c) IT and (d) other services have been ended early in the last five years; whether he makes a routine assessment of the (i) adequacy and (ii) transparency of foundation trust procurement where contracts to outsource services are prematurely ended; and if he will make a statement. [161515]
Anna Soubry: Information on the management and termination of contracts at individual national health service trusts and NHS foundation trusts is not held centrally. The Department does not generally hold information centrally about NHS contracts because it is local NHS bodies themselves which are the procuring authorities and are accountable and responsible for decisions concerning the performance of the contract and the contractor.
NHS foundation trusts are accountable to Monitor for complying with their duty to exercise functions effectively, efficiently and economically.
Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the number of job losses proposed as part of the Whittington NHS Trust policy of applying for Foundation Trust status. [161703]
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Anna Soubry: The NHS Trust Development Authority has advised the Department that there are no plans for significant overall reduction in Whittington Health NHS Trust's work force.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date he expects the Whittington Health Trust to achieve Foundation Trust status. [161706]
Anna Soubry: The NHS Trust Development Authority has advised the Department that achieving foundation trust status will come as a result of Whittington Health NHS Trust demonstrating that it is able to deliver high quality, sustainable services for its patients.
Energy and Climate Change
Climate Change
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps the Government are taking to help negotiate a new international agreement on climate change by 2015; and if he will make a statement. [162052]
Gregory Barker: The Government are strongly committed to securing by 2015, an ambitious legally, binding global climate change agreement covering all countries, to come into force from 2020. In order to achieve this we will continue to work with our partners in the European Union, and across the world, through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and other relevant multilateral fora.
This year, we have already made good progress in recent negotiations in Bonn, where all countries held positive discussions about the nature of emissions reductions commitments for all and what other elements will form the scope, structure and design of the new agreement in 2015.These discussions will continue at the next Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC in Warsaw, in November this year.
Energy
Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2013, Official Report, column 1246W, on energy, whether the threshold at which energy suppliers are required to participate in social and environmental programmes will be reviewed in 2013-14. [161971]
Michael Fallon: The Government continue to monitor the impact of the customer number threshold at which suppliers are required to participate in social and environmental programmes. We have no specific plans to change it, but continue to welcome all views and evidence.
Green Deal Scheme
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2013, Official Report, column 460W, on the Green Deal scheme, what estimate he has made of how many Green Deal advisers and installer operatives will have completed their training by the end of 2013. [162007]
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Gregory Barker: 795 Green Deal advisers have now completed their training with support from DECC funding. A maximum of 47 advisers are due to complete their training by 31 July 2013. All 751 installer operatives are due to have completed their training by the end of 2013.
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 29 February 2013, Official Report, column 308W, on the Green Deal scheme, what discussions his Department has had with officials at the Department for Communities and Local Government on preparations in the private rental sector for the 2018 deadline. [162008]
Gregory Barker: There are ongoing discussions with the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to prepare the private rental sector for the 2018 deadline. Working groups are being held between February and summer 2013 to discuss the introduction of the regulations in 2018. Working group members include DCLG and a range of other key industry stakeholders.
Sizewell B Power Station
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what reports he has received from the Office for Nuclear Regulation on its special risk assessment of the pressure vessel of the Sizewell B pressurised water reactor conducted following the serious flaws found in two Belgian PWR pressure vessels at Doel 3 and Thiange 2. [161649]
Michael Fallon: In light of the discovery of defects at Doel 3 power station in Belgium, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) provided a brief, in August 2012, alerting the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to the situation and outlining that further investigation was needed.
Subsequently, in April 2013, a full assessment report reviewing the manufacturing records and existing safety case at Sizewell B was published on the ONR website. The ONR judge that the validity of the reactor pressure vessel safety case for Sizewell B is not affected by the recent observation of flaws at Doel 3 and Tihange 2 in Belgium.
The ONR's position on Sizewell B is given in the assessment report published on the ONR's website.
Social Enterprises
Chris White: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many of his Department's suppliers are social enterprises. [161324]
Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not hold this information in its accounting systems, and to obtain this information would incur disproportionate costs.
World War II: Medals
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2013, Official Report, column 415W, according to what criteria applicants for the Bevin Boys Veterans Badge were assessed. [162038]
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Michael Fallon: Unlike those called up to serve in the armed forces, who were paid by the Crown, the Bevan Boys were employed by the individual mining companies and as such there is no central record of their service. Therefore, in order to meet the criteria for the Bevan Boys Badge individuals are asked to complete an application form and confirm that they were called up or volunteered under the scheme between 1943 and 1948 and were aged between 18 and 25 years of age at that time. In the majority of cases they would have undertaken a period of training at a number of specified training pits and information about that is therefore also sought.
Attorney-General
Alternatives to Prosecution
Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many out-of-court disposals were recommended by the Crown Prosecution Service for offences of (a) child abuse, (b) crimes against an older person, (c) forced marriage, (d) homophobic and transphobic hate crimes, (e) honour crimes, (f) racist hate crime and (g) religious hate crime in (i) 2012-13 and (ii) each of the previous five years. [159759]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) records the number of cases referred for pre-charge advice and where a decision was made to issue either a simple caution, conditional caution, reprimand or final warning.
The CPS identifies cases involving the offences in question by way of a monitoring ‘flag'. The figures in the following table show the decisions made at the pre-charge stage where a flag was applied. The data do not capture whether the decision to issue a caution or other out of court disposal was related to the flagged offence or allegation or other criminality evident on the file following a decision that there should be no further action in respect of the substantive offence. The case would remain flagged even after such a decision.
| Child abuse flagged | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
| Crimes against an older person | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
| (1) Not recorded prior to 2008-09. | ||
| Forced marriage | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
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| Homophobic/Transphobic | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
| Honour crime | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
| Racist hate crime | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
| Religious hate crime | ||
| Out of court disposals | All pre charge decisions | |
Animal Welfare: Prosecutions
Karl McCartney: To ask the Attorney-General how many prosecutions for offences of cruelty to animals were brought by (a) the Crown Prosecution Service and (b) the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in the five years prior to the amendment of paragraph 96 of the Adult Court Bench Book in November/December 2010 and in each year since. [161571]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) records identify the number of offences in which a prosecution commenced and reached a first hearing in magistrates courts, rather than the number of defendants prosecuted, as individual defendants may have been charged with more than one offence. The number of offences of cruelty to animals prosecuted by the CPS since 2006 is provided in a table which has been deposited in the Library of the House.
The CPS does not record details of private prosecutions that are not referred to it.
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Fraud: Prosecutions
David Simpson: To ask the Attorney-General how many corporate prosecutions the Serious Fraud Office undertook in (a) 2012-13 and (b) each of the five preceding years. [161922]
The Solicitor-General: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Islington South and Finsbury (Emily Thornberry), on 18 June 2013, Official Report, columns 602-03W.
Offences Against Children: Internet
David Simpson: To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions the Crown Prosecution Service has recommended out-of-court disposal for cases of the downloading and viewing of indecent images of children in each of the last five years. [161920]
The Solicitor-General: No central record is maintained of the number of out-of-court disposals recommended in cases involving indecent images of children. This information could be obtained only by examining files, which would incur a disproportionate cost.
Police: Wales
Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General (1) if he will instruct the Director of Public Prosecutions to publish in full the report by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate into the collapse of prosecutions of alleged police corruption surrounding the investigation into the murder of Lynette White in 1988; [161986]
(2) whether the report by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate into the collapse of prosecutions of alleged police corruption surrounding the investigation into the murder of Lynette White in 1988 is critical of the Director of Public Prosecutions; [161987]
(3) how many of the lawyers criticised in the report by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate into the collapse of prosecutions of alleged police corruption surrounding the investigation into the murder of Lynette White in 1988 are still employed by the Crown Prosecution Service; [161988]
(4) whether the Crown Prosecution Service intends to make public all names of lawyers criticised in the report by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate into the collapse of prosecutions of alleged police corruption surrounding the investigation into the murder of Lynette White in 1988. [161989]
The Solicitor-General: In January 2012, the DPP initiated a review of the circumstances which led to the discontinuance of the trial of eight former police officers accused of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in South Wales (R v. Mouncher and others). As part of that review, Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, an independent statutory body, was asked to consider the way in which the prosecution team conducted the disclosure exercise in this case. Simultaneously, South Wales Police referred their part in this matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
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The CPS has now received the HMCPSI report and has already made clear that it intends to publish it shortly. This would be alongside the report by the IPCC.
RSPCA
Karl McCartney: To ask the Attorney-General how many claims for trespass and wrongful detention of property have been brought against the RSPCA since 2010. [161615]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of prosecutions brought in criminal proceedings against a particular organisation. This information could be obtained by consulting individual files only at a disproportionate cost.
Defence
Afghanistan
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost of moving the headquarters of British forces from Lashkar Gah to Camp Bastion. [160993]
Mr Robathan: The rough order of magnitude for the move is estimated to be £1.9 million.
Defence: Expenditure
Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of gross domestic product he estimates will be spent on defence in (a) 2013-14, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2015-16. [161854]
Mr Philip Hammond: The UK will meet NATO's target of spending 2% of GDP on defence for the duration of this Parliament and, as announced at the spending round, in the financial year 2015-16.
Iraq
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make representations to the World Health Organisation for the immediate publication of its report into the health effects of the Iraq war. [161758]
Wales
Official Engagements
Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list his official engagements for (a) 21 June 2013, (b) 22 June 2013 and (c) 23 June 2013. [162179]
Mr David Jones: I had no official engagements on these dates.
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Home Department
Counter-terrorism
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding her Department has provided to the National Union of Students to implement the Prevent strategy. [161589]
Mr Willetts: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The National Union of Students received funding of £115,000 in 2012-13 and will receive £160,000 in 2013-14 to take a clear leadership role in delivering its responsibilities of supporting students' unions to:
Understand the risks posed by some external speakers and how to mitigate against these risks;
Understand their responsibilities in relation to the Prevent agenda and charities legislation;
Respond to tensions between different student faith groups;
Support student faith groups to negotiate for improved services and gain acknowledgement from their institutions of their specific needs (particularly in relation to changing equality legislation); and
Increase interaction, understanding and learning amongst students and staff about the role of religion and belief in students' lives.
This includes work to continue to roll out the Hate Speech Guidance (increase their capacity to manage the risks associated with external speakers) and develop the work that supports this including working to reduce discrimination and harassment; sharing best practice; and increasing knowledge and understanding of the needs of students of faith, as well as increasing inter- faith engagement.
Misuse of Drugs Ministerial Group
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the inter-ministerial group on drugs has met since May 2010; how many times more than four Ministers have been present; and how many times the agenda has included (a) drugs education, (b) drug prevention, (c) the role of Public Health England, (d) new psychoactive substances and (e) co-operation between criminal justice and health bodies. [161582]
Mr Jeremy Browne: Further to the answer given on 9 July 2012, Official Report, columns 82-83W, 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.
Culture, Media and Sport
Arts
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on arts in the regions; and if she will make a statement. [161850]
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Mr Vaizey: The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller), and Ministers hold regular meetings with Ministers from the Department for Communities and Local Government. It is for local authorities in concert with their communities to make the funding decisions that they feel are most appropriate for their area.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, (b) the British Council and (c) UK Trade and Investment on the arts and creative industries; and if she will make a statement. [162035]
Mr Vaizey: I have regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), the British Council and UK Trade and Investment.