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Health Education: Drugs
Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the time schools dedicate to teaching students about the risks associated with (a) illegal drugs, (b) prescription drugs and (c) legal highs; and if he will make a statement. [162926]
Elizabeth Truss: The Department does not estimate the amount of teaching time schools dedicate to teaching about illegal or prescription drugs, or legal highs.
All pupils should be educated about the dangers and effects of drugs, and drug education forms part of the national curriculum for science. This ensures that pupils are taught about the effects of drugs on behaviour, health and life processes. Provision in this area can be built on and extended through non-statutory personal, social and health education (PSHE), should schools choose to do so.
Understanding the risks associated with drugs is an important part of young people's education. To support this we launched the Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service (ADEPIS) on 13 April 2013, run by the charity Mentor UK, which provides high quality information and advice to practitioners, including teachers. The Department is also funding the Centre for Analysis of Youth Transitions (CAYT) up to March 2014. CAYT have set up an open-access data bank of quality assured impact studies on services and programmes that support the development of young people. The database will enable schools, commissioners and others to choose the best programmes with a strong evidence of impact.
Teachers: Qualifications
Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of teachers in each local authority area were classified as unqualified in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [162752]
Mr Laws: The following table provides a time series of the numbers of full-time equivalent teachers without qualified teacher status (QTS) working in publicly funded schools in England.
| Thousand | ||||||||
| January | November | |||||||
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |
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| Note: Figures are in thousands Source: School Workforce Statistical First Release | ||||||||
The changing balance between academies and maintained schools since 2010 reflects the increasing number of schools becoming academies.
The number of teachers without QTS includes: trainees working towards QTS; overseas trained teachers who had not exceeded the four years they were allowed to teach without having QTS; and instructors with a particular skill who were employed when a suitable qualified teacher was not available.
Since 1 September 2012, instructors can be employed permanently and there is no longer a requirement for school leaders to consider a qualified teacher first when they feel that an instructor would be better suited to the position.
Since 27 July 2012, mainstream and alternate provision academies can employ teaching staff without the automatic requirement for them to have QTS. The funding agreements for all new academies states that they can employ teaching staff whom they deem suitably qualified whether or not they have QTS. Existing academies can request that their funding agreements be changed to include the same freedom if they wish. Free schools already had the flexibility to employ suitably qualified professionals who do not already possess QTS.
The following table shows the percentage of teachers in service that did not have QTS, by local authority. The latest available information is from the November 2011 School Workforce Census (figures for January 2009 and November 2010 are presented for comparison purposes). Statistics for each local authority based on the November 2012 School Workforce Census will be published on 17 July.
| Proportion of the full-time equivalent number of teachers in service without qualified teacher status in publicly funded schools. | |||
| January 2009 | November 2010 | November 2011 | |
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| (1) Not applicable (2 )Not available Source: Form 618g and School Census, (January 2009) and School Workforce Census November 2010 and 2011 | |||
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Justice
Apprentices
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many apprentices are currently employed by his Department; and how many are aged (a) under 19, (b) 19 to 25, (c) 26 to 30, (d) 31 to 59 and (e) 60 and over. [161686]
Mrs Grant: The Ministry of Justice is committed to improving the quality of and access to apprenticeships.
From 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2013, the Department offered a total of 2,587 apprenticeship qualifications to the existing work force. The breakdown between years in shown in the table.
| Staff taking apprenticeship qualifications | |
Information on the age range is only available in a limited form for the staff taking apprenticeship qualifications in 2012-13. This is set out in the table.
| Age-range | Staff taking apprenticeship qualifications |
To provide the full information requested would require analysing the staff records for the members of staff concerned and would incur disproportionate costs to obtain.
In addition, my Department currently employs one externally recruited apprentice. For data protection reasons, I am not able to give any age information of this member of staff. As part of the new civil service fast-track apprenticeship scheme, the Department has identified 11 apprenticeship vacancies to be filled in September 2013.
Billing
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment his Department has made of the savings it could achieve by paying its suppliers early in return for rebates. [161056]
Mrs Grant: The Department has made no such assessments as it already pays all suppliers immediately once they have been approved. This is in line with the prompt payment guidance targets for all central Government Departments to aim to pay 80% of all undisputed invoices within five days.
Buildings
John Mann:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the total running costs were for each building used, owned or rented in central London by his
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Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies, except for prisons and buildings used primarily for judicial purposes, in each of the last three financial years. [154238]
Mrs Grant: The table shows the running costs (excluding depreciation) in each of the last three financial years for the Ministry of Justice's central London estate (SE1, SW1, W1, WC1 and WC2). The table excludes prisons, prison officers' quarters and buildings used primarily for judicial purposes.
| Running costs | |||
| £ million | |||
| Property/holding | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 |
| (1 )No longer used by MOJ. (2 )Predominantly tax rebates. Note: Territorial Offices (Wales Office and Scotland Office) are excluded. Data are taken from a variety of accounting systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the detail is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system. | |||
The Ministry of Justice is committed to reducing the cost of its administrative estate. By 2014-15 we will have reduced our total administrative property holdings from 185 to 94 including 16 to two in central London. From 2015-16 onwards these reductions will save the Department £47 million per year in resource costs.
Contempt of Court
Sir Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the provisions in the Crime and Courts Act 2013 abolishing scandalising the judiciary as a form of contempt of court will come into force. [162451]
Mrs Grant: Section 33 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 abolished scandalising the judiciary as a form of contempt of court and under section 61(6) was to come into force at the end of the period of two months beginning with the day on which the Act was passed. The Act received Royal Assent on 25 April 2013 and hence scandalising the judiciary was abolished on 25 June 2013.
Crime: Victims
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 24 June 2013, Official Report, column 25W, on victims' support schemes, how many persistently targeted victims have been identified by his Department in each of the last five years. [162360]
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Mrs Grant: The Ministry of Justice does not record or hold this information. In responding to last year's consultation ‘Getting It Right for Victims and Witnesses', we identified persistently targeted victims as being one of three groups of victims who can suffer the greatest impact of crime. We know that crime, even when seemingly less serious, can have a devastating impact on victims when committed again and again over a period of time, particularly where a person is deliberately targeted. That is why persistently targeted victims are one of three groups of victims eligible for enhanced services from criminal justice agencies and service providers.
Criminal Proceedings
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 24 April 2013, Official Report, columns 928-9W, on criminal proceedings, what the average mean number of days from offence to completion was (a) in each region and (b) in total for (i) magistrates and (ii) Crown courts in England and Wales in (A) 2011-12 and (B) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [161701]
Mrs Grant: In November last year, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), announced as one of his priorities a real drive for a criminal justice and court system that works effectively and puts victims first. Work is under way to increase both the effectiveness and efficiency of the criminal justice system. It will look at the whole of the system to drive performance and tackle some of the perennial weaknesses so it is quicker, less erratic and more efficient.
Table 1 presents the average (mean) number of days taken from offence to completion, broken down by region and court type for 2012-13. The time taken from offence to completion is affected by factors such as the complexity of the case and the time taken to report the crime following the incident.
| Table 1: Average number of days from offence to completion for all criminal cases completed in the magistrates courts and the Crown court, by region, England and Wales, 2012-13(1,2,3) | |||
| Average number of days from offence to completion | |||
| Region | Magistrates courts(4) | Crown Court(5) | All completed criminal cases |
| (1) Excludes breaches and cases with an offence to completion time greater than 10 years. (2) Statistics are sourced from the CREST linked court data and included around 95% of completed cases. (3) Only one offence is counted for each defendant in the case. If two or more cases complete on the same day, the case with the longest duration is included. (4) Included cases completed in the magistrates courts during the specified time period, where no further action is required by the magistrates courts, excluding committals. (5) Included all criminal cases which have received a verdict and concluded in the specified time period, in the Crown Court. Data source: Libra Management Information System Timeliness Analysis Report (TAR) and CREST linked court data, HM Courts and Tribunals Service Source: Criminal Courts Statistics, Justice Statistics Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice | |||
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I refer the hon. Member to the answer provided on 24 April 2013, Official Report, columns 928-29W, regarding information requested for 2011-12.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130424/text/130424w0001.htm
European Convention on Human Rights
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the Government plan to (a) sign and (b) ratify Protocol No. 15 amending the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. [162048]
Damian Green: The United Kingdom's Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe signed Protocol 15 on behalf of the UK when it was opened for signature on 24 June. In accordance with Part 2 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, I shall lay Protocol 15 before Parliament after the summer, with a view to completing its ratification this autumn.
High Speed 2 Railway Line
Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimates he has made of the additional costs to his Department as a result of the construction of High Speed 2. [159866]
Mrs Grant: The Department has made no estimates of the additional costs as a result of the construction of High Speed 2 as no additional costs are expected at this stage.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service
David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the expected budget for HM Courts and Tribunals Service is for the next three years. [161537]
Mrs Grant: The HM Courts and Tribunals Service gross budget for 2013-14 is £1,547.9 million with forecast income of £565 million, providing a net budget of £982.9 million.
Budgets after 2013-14 will be set in the context of the overall financial settlement for the Ministry of Justice, future workloads and saving plans.
Homicide
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he has taken to ensure that people bereaved by a homicide are not at risk of losing their job during the course of a trial. [161852]
Mrs Grant: The National Homicide Service funded by the Ministry of Justice, and launched in 2010, has specially trained staff who help families cope with the trauma of the murder or manslaughter of a loved one. This includes helping them inform employers about their situation and accessing legal advice. It then remains for employers to decide, taking into account someone's contract of employment and any relevant legal requirements, the position they take in respect of employees who find themselves needing to take time off work when bereaved by homicide.
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Immigrants: Detainees
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases of alleged unlawful immigration detention have been heard in courts in England and Wales in each of the last five years; and of those cases, how many were (a) found in favour of the plaintiff, (b) found in favour of the defendant, (c) withdrawn and (d) settled out of court. [156772]
Mrs Grant: Information relating to alleged unlawful immigration detention is not held on the Administrative Court Office database in a searchable statistical format. The case files over the five-year period (40,000 case files) would have to be viewed individually to provide the specific information requested and therefore the information cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in how many cases of alleged unlawful immigration detention that were heard in courts in England and Wales in each of the last five years the plaintiff was in receipt of civil legal aid. [156773]
Jeremy Wright: The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) does not hold the information requested. Cases of unlawful immigration detention cannot all be distinguished in the LAA's systems from those relating to wider unlawful detention.
Judges: Veterans
Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many judges have served in the armed forces. [161760]
Mrs Grant: I am unable to provide this information. While there are members of the judiciary who have served in the military, this information is not recorded, and Judicial Office are unable to provide any details.
Landlord and Tenant
Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications to prevent a landlord from recovering costs of litigation through future service charges were made to the courts under the provisions of section 20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many such applications were successful. [160813]
Mrs Grant: Applications made under section 20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 can be made to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal (LVT) jurisdiction where there are proceedings before the LVT or the Residential Property Tribunal. Such applications therefore form part of wider proceedings and the LVT does not identify and record separately the number of applications it receives under section 20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. It is also not possible to provide the outcomes for these types of case as the outcome of individual applications including those under section 20C are not analysed and recorded separately.
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The information is held on individual files and attempting to interrogate each file manually and collate the information requested would incur disproportionate cost.
LVT decisions are published online and can be found at:
www.residential-property.judiciary.gov.uk/search/decision_search.jsp
Where applications under section 20C of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 are made to the county court, rather than the LVT, they are submitted using the General Application Notice, which is not recorded against individual case types. It is not therefore possible to determine how many section 20C applications have been successfully made in any given year without a manual case count, which would incur disproportionate cost.
Legal Aid Scheme: Wales
Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many legal firms in the Dyfed-Powys area are permitted to take on legal aid cases. [156002]
Jeremy Wright: The Legal Aid Agency and its predecessor the Legal Services Commission (pre 1 April 2013) records information relating to firms by legal aid procurement area, which is broadly based on local authority boundaries. In the Criminal Justice Service area of Dyfed Powys there are currently 38 firms with an active civil or crime legal aid contract.
Albert Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was paid in criminal legal aid costs to solicitors' firms in (a) Ynys Môn and (b) North Wales in each of the last three years for which records are available. [158194]
Jeremy Wright: The Legal Aid Agency and its predecessor the Legal Services Commission (pre 1 April 2013) records costs relating to firms by legal aid procurement area, which is broadly based on local authority boundaries. We have provided this information as a reasonable proxy for constituency boundaries in relation to the Anglesey local authority and the North Wales region.
| Criminal legal aid costs | |||
| £ million | |||
| North Wales: | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
The costs include VAT and disbursements such as expenses, third party costs, and costs paid by Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Services (HMCTS) on crown court cases.
The information does not include costs paid by the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, House of Lords, and Senior Court Costs Office. Solicitor advocates are treated as Barristers and costs paid to them are not included as part of the firm.
Albert Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many firms received criminal legal aid payments in (a) Ynys Môn and (b) North Wales in each of the last three years for which records are available. [158195]
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Jeremy Wright: The Legal Aid Agency and its predecessor the Legal Services Commission (pre 1 April 2013) records costs relating to firms by legal aid procurement area, which is broadly based on local authority boundaries. We have provided this information as a reasonable proxy for constituency boundaries in relation to the Anglesey local authority and the North Wales region.
| Criminal legal aid firms | |||
| North Wales: | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
Please also note that solicitor advocates are treated as barristers and not included as part of the firm.
Press: Subscriptions
Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade publications in the last 12 months. [162655]
Mrs Grant: The Ministry of Justice's Library and Information Service purchases publications for the Judiciary, Courts, Tribunals, and for the Ministry of Justice and Royal Courts of Justice libraries. The Press Office also buys publications. (There is no central record of any subscriptions held by other business units.) The same account codes are used for the purchase of books as well as the types of publications requested and it would incur disproportionate costs to tease these out separately.
Prisoners: Death
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the cost of legal representation of the Government at inquests into all cases where the state is represented in deaths in custody in each of the last three years; and how much his Department spent on legal aid for families of the deceased in such cases during the same time period. [158864]
Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) does not hold details of the annual cost to the whole of Government of legal representation at inquests. Each Department makes their own arrangements.
The MOJ specifically incurs legal costs at inquests following the deaths of serving prisoners. The Treasury Solicitor's Department charges the MOJ for legal advice and representation at inquests. These charges came to £2.7 million in 2009-10; £2.1 million in 2010-11 and £2.1 million in 2011-12. The figures for 2012-13 are not yet published. It is not possible to attribute these charges to completed inquests.
Under the Access to Justice Act 1999, the Lord Chancellor has the power, on request from the Legal Services Commission, to grant exceptional legal aid funding in cases where civil legal aid was not generally available. For death in custody inquests, he delegated this power to the Legal Services Commission. The total amount spent on exceptional funding was £1.1 million in 2007-08; £1.5 million in 2008-09; and £1.6 million in 2009-10. While most of the applications for exceptional
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funding are for inquests, it is not possible to disaggregate the expenditure on inquests from the total amount spent on exceptional funding.
I regret that it is not possible to identify separately the amount spent on legal aid for families of the deceased at inquests.
Termination of Employment
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 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. [160911]
Mrs Grant: The information requested is not centrally held by the Ministry of Justice.
It would require a Ministry wide exercise to collect the information from the Department and its associated public bodies. This would incur disproportionate costs.
Church Commissioners
Church Closures
Rehman Chishti: To ask the honourable Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church Commissioners are taking to keep churches that are faced with closure open for worship and for the community. [163111]
Sir Tony Baldry: I refer my hon. friend to the answer I gave in writing on 24 June 2013.
I would also like to add to that answer—since 2007 the Church of England has opened an average of 10 new churches every year. There are also an increasing number of ‘fresh expressions’ churches being set up in other buildings and public spaces, such as pubs, skate parks, community centres, etc. which are not covered by the figures above.
Religious Buildings: Fees and Charges
Dr Offord: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent assessment the Church Commissioners have made of the cost to visitors of accessing religious buildings. [163105]
Sir Tony Baldry: Of the 42 Diocese in England (excluding Sodor and Man and Europe) only nine cathedrals charge an entry fee. Chester Cathedral has just abolished all entry charges. Unlike the national museums none of the Church of England’s cathedral or church buildings receive grant in aid from the Government.
All cathedrals which charge for entry give free access to those attending services (of which there are a number every day of the week) and to those who arrive on pilgrimage or wish to pray, some give free entry on Sundays and at other times, generally early in the morning or late in the afternoon, and others give free entry to local residents or church attenders in their Dioceses.
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Only two of the great parish churches charge entry fees or a modest charge to enter part of the church. They are St Bartholomew’s the Great in London Diocese and Holy Trinity Church, Stratford upon Avon in Coventry diocese, the resting place of William Shakespeare.
Both the churches and cathedrals resort to charging primarily to recover the cost of repairing the fabric of the building due to the large volume of tourist visitors they receive.
The English Cathedrals and Royal Peculiars that currently charge for entry as of June 2013 are:
Canterbury
Coventry
Ely
Exeter
Lincoln
Christ Church, Oxford (to enter college)
St George’s Chapel, Windsor (to enter castle)(1)
St Paul’s
Westminster Abbey(1)
Winchester
York Minster
(1) Royal Peculiar
Cabinet Office
Graduates: Unemployment
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of unemployed university graduates in (a) Barnsley, (b) Barnsley Central constituency, (c) South Yorkshire and (d) England. [163311]
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 July 2013:
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 estimate he has made of the number of unemployed university graduates in (a) Barnsley, (b) Barnsley Central constituency, (c) South Yorkshire and (d) England. (163311)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles unemployment statistics for local areas from the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions.
Whilst the APS does collect data on graduate unemployment, no reliable statistics can be produced for Barnsley Central constituency or Barnsley due to small sample sizes.
The latest APS estimates available for graduate unemployment are from interviews held during the period January to December 2012. Based on this survey, the number to the nearest thousand, of unemployed people whose highest qualification was degree level or higher in South Yorkshire was 50,000 and in England was 343,000.
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
Higher Education: South Yorkshire
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) Barnsley metropolitan borough council area and (c) South Yorkshire went to university in academic year (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13. [163312]
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Mr Willetts: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes data on students at UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The numbers of entrants to UK HEIs who were domiciled in Barnsley Central constituency, Barnsley local authority and South Yorkshire prior to their course have been provided in the table for the academic years 2010/11 and 2011/12.
Information for the 2012/13 academic year will become available from the Higher Education Statistics Agency in January 2014.
| Entrants(1) to UK HEIs domiciled in Barnsley Central constituency, Barnsley local authority and South Yorkshire(2) prior to their course. Academic years 2010/11 to 2011/12 | ||
| 2010/11 | 2011/12 | |
| (1) Covers all students in their first year of study. (2) A student's parliamentary constituency, local authority and area are derived from their home postcode. The boundaries were revised in the 2010 general election. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded to the nearest five. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Student Record. | ||
Press: Subscriptions
Mike Freer: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade publications in the last 12 months. [162645]
Mr Maude: The Cabinet Office spent £31,249 with our main supplier of newspapers and periodicals in the 2012-13 financial year. This is an increase on the previous year as a result of the inclusion, from April 2012, of services which had previously been part of Central Office of Information.
Because management units are free to make their own arrangements for the provision of newspapers, periodicals and trade publications no records are kept centrally of total costs.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
British Overseas Territories
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the extent of (a) Crown land and (b) private land in each of the 14 British Overseas Territories is by (i) area and (ii) percentage of total land area. [162958]
Mark Simmonds: Policy on land registration in each of the Overseas Territories is a matter of devolved responsibility for their government. We do not hold a central record of the information requested except for the British Indian Ocean Territory and the British Antarctic Territory. We have limited information in respect of Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) where the British Government were in direct control from 2009 to 2012.
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In the case of the British Indian Ocean Territory, all land is Crown land with none held privately, with a total area of 60 square kilometres being 100% of the total land area.
In the case of the British Antarctic Territory the entire terrestrial area is Crown land, more than 1.7 million square kilometres, but our territorial claim is held in abeyance by the Antarctic Treaty of 1959.
At the time of the elections in TCI in November 2012, approximately 68% of land was registered to the Crown. Some 3,000 acres of land has been returned to the Crown since 2009.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many marine protected areas have been designated in each of the 14 British Overseas Territories for biodiversity conservation purposes; and what the extent of each such area is. [162960]
Mark Simmonds: The designation of marine protected areas (MPAs) is a matter of devolved responsibility. We do not hold a central record of the information requested except for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI), British Antarctic Territory (BAT), British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) and the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs).
In 2012 the Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) declared a sustainable-use MPA of one million square kilometres in size (equivalent to four times the terrestrial area of the United Kingdom), including over 20,000 square kilometres of no-fishing zones.
Prior to ratifying the Antarctic Treaty, 1959, which places Antarctic sovereignty issues in abeyance, the UK had only declared a three-mile territorial sea around the British Antarctic Territory (BAT). However, in 2009, the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources agreed a marine protected area of 94,000 square kilometres on the Southern Shelf of the South Orkney Islands. In addition, a number of Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs), designated under the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, comprise marine areas around the BAT. Details of designated ASPAs can be found at:
http://www.ats.aq/e/ep_protected.htm
The British Indian Ocean Territory declared a no-take MPA in 2009 across its maritime zone of 640,000 square kilometres.
There are no MPAs around the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs).
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of land area is legally designated as a protected area for biodiversity conservation purposes in each of the 14 British Overseas Territories. [162961]
Mark Simmonds: Territory Governments are responsible for the protection and conservation of their natural environments. We do not hold a central record of the information requested, except for the uninhabited Overseas Territories of British Antarctic Territory (BAT), British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI), and the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs).
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The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty provides for the comprehensive protection of the Antarctic environment and designates Antarctica as a natural reserve, devoted to peace and science. Under the protocol, over 30 areas of the British Antarctic Territory have, to date, been designated as Antarctic Specially Protected Areas. A further four areas have been designated as larger-scale Antarctic Specially Managed Areas. The vast majority of these designations include reasons specifically relating to biodiversity conservation. A full list is available online at:
http://www.ats.aq/e/ep_protected.htm
The British Indian Ocean Territory's 55 islands have a total land area of only 60 sq km, within which Diego Garcia accounts for half the area. Of the other islands, none of which are larger than Hyde Park, seven are fully protected whilst the islands of Diego Garcia have part protection. In addition, the Eastern Islands in Peros Banhos are designated nature reserves.
Within the Sovereign Base Areas (which are administered by the Ministry of Defence), the proportion of land legally designated as protected areas for conservation purposes is: Special Protected Areas—0.52% (4,819 hectares); Ramsar (Convention on Wetlands of International Importance)—0.23% (2,171 hectares); and Special Areas of Conservation—3.10% (28,701 hectares).
In respect of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the Wildlife and Protected Areas Ordinance 2011 affords an extremely high level of protection to terrestrial habitats and flora and fauna throughout South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are developing plans for Specially Protected Areas, which can be designated under the Wildlife and Protected Areas Ordinance, and will undertake stakeholder consultation on those plans in due course.
Canada
Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what work the British High Commission in Ottawa is doing to support UK industry in the Canadian oil sands. [163330]
Alistair Burt: The British high commission in Ottawa, along with our network of posts in Canada, help to develop UK commercial opportunities in the Canadian oil and gas sector. This is done by helping to better educate the UK supply chain industry of the opportunities that exist in the sector, assisting UK companies in finding Canadian partners and overcoming any barriers to trade. We also highlight the strength of UK expertise to the Canadian oil and gas industry. Since 2008 12 UK companies have opened offices in Alberta, and are supplying goods and services to the oil sands industry including in recruitment, cabling, waste recovery, software, imaging and project management. We also maintain close and regular dialogue with major UK investors in the Canadian oil and gas sector, including BP, Shell and Amec.
Eritrea
Graham Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last discussed the persecution of Christians in Eritrea with (a) the
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government of Eritrea,
(b)
the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and
(c)
United Nations human rights bodies. [162874]
Mark Simmonds: We raise human rights issues, including the persecution of Christians, with the Government of Eritrea at every opportunity and work closely with our partners to coordinate on these issues.
In June 2013 our ambassador in Asmara raised the persecution of Christians with senior representatives of the Eritrean Government.
We work closely with the EU on Eritrea. In December last year, our ambassador alongside EU colleagues called on the Eritrean Government to release all prisoners held for their religious beliefs as part of the Article 8 dialogue.
In June 2013 we expressed our concern about freedom of expression and opinion in Eritrea at the UN Human Rights Council.
Serco
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department currently spends on contracts with Serco; and how much was spent in each year since 2008. [162936]
Mr Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not have any ongoing contracts with Serco Ltd. Spend analysis shows that there has been some minor spend, totalling £22,076 during the period April 2011 to June 2013 inclusive; this is displayed in Table 1. Spend prior to April 2011 could be analysed only at disproportionate cost.
| Table 1—FCO spend with Serco Ltd | |
| Spend (£) | |
Information for our overseas posts is not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many terrestrial protected areas have been legally designated in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands for nature conservation purposes; and what the extent of each such area is. [162949]
Mark Simmonds: The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are developing plans for Specially Protected Areas, which can be designated under the Wildlife and Protected Areas Ordinance. The Wildlife and Protected Areas Ordinance 2011 affords an extremely high level of protection to terrestrial habitats and flora and fauna throughout South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The Government will undertake a consultation on these plans in due course.
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Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the biodiversity conservation impact of the biosecurity policy breaches which occurred in 2013 in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. [162962]
Mark Simmonds: The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) were only recently made aware of the biosecurity policy breaches which occurred in March 2013 and are still in the process of establishing the full facts surrounding the situation. Nevertheless, they have advised the UK Government that the breaches were contained in a small area and detected within a few days of occurring, at which point appropriate mitigation action was taken, for example, incineration of prohibited items. An initial assessment by GSGSSI concluded that it is unlikely that either of these breaches will have resulted in any adverse impacts.
Turks and Caicos Islands
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the area of Crown land in the Turks and Caicos Islands was in each of the last 10 years. [162954]
Mark Simmonds: A definitive list of land parcels owned by the Crown in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) for each of the last 10 years is not available. Records maintained by previous TCI Governments (who had devolved responsibility for Crown Land) do not contain this information.
Since December 2009, as part of a wider land administration reform programme under the Interim Administration, work began to generate a definitive listing of land parcels owned by the Crown and registered at the TCI Land Registry. However, as the listing is live and regularly updated, historical versions are not kept. Moreover, areas of Crown land without registers of title, such as foreshore, are not included in the listing. Since the election in November 2012, this work continues under the TCI Government.
In November 2012 there were approximately 6,117 registered parcels of Crown land totalling 87,342 acres, approximately 68% of the registered land extent recorded on the listing. It should be noted that some parcels of Crown land could be subject to leasehold interests, and that a significant proportion of Crown land also falls within the Protected Areas Scheme of the National Parks Ordinance and its use is therefore restricted by that statute.
Women and Equalities
Serco
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much the Government Equalities Office currently spends on contracts with Serco; and how much was spent in each year since 2008. [162937]
Maria Miller: The Government Equalities Office has never held a contract with Serco.
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Communities and Local Government
Derelict Land
Dr Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the factors which affect the deliverability and viability of previously developed land for redevelopment. [162449]
Nick Boles: The Department has not commissioned or evaluated any work on the factors affecting the deliverability and viability of previously developed land.
Disciplinary Proceedings
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff were suspended from his Department and its associated public bodies on full pay in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and what costs were incurred as a result of such suspensions. [160408]
Brandon Lewis: The number of staff in the Department for Communities and Local Government who were suspended on full pay in financial years (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13, and the costs incurred as a result of the suspensions, is set out in the following table. I have also included figures for the current financial year.
| Financial year | Number of staff suspended on full pay | Cost incurred(1) (£) |
| (1 )Gross. | ||
We do not hold a central record of staff suspended from the Department's associated public bodies. To obtain this information would be possible only at a disproportionate cost.
Staff suspected of serious or gross misconduct can be suspended on full pay pending the investigation and conclusion of the case. This is rare but is done where there is a risk an individual might destroy or tamper with evidence, influence others, continue the suspected inappropriate behaviour or where they can no longer undertake their duties until the case is determined, for example where security clearance has been revoked.