Govia

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of annual payments (a) to Govia from the Government and (b) from Govia to the Government in respect of the London Midland franchise in 2013-14 and in each year of that extended contract. [165419]

Mr Simon Burns: Decisions on the annual payments between the Government and London Midland, owned by Govia, for the period of the Direct Award beginning September 2015 have not yet been finalised.

Information on the annual payments between the Government and Govia, in respect of this franchise, is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at:

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Figures available on the ORR website include up to 2011-12; the figures for 2012-13 are still being finalised before release. Future annual payments including those for each year of the Direct Award are commercially sensitive and therefore will be published in arrears on the ORR website.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of annual payments (a) to Govia from the Government and (b) from Govia to the Government in respect of the Southern franchise in 2013-14 and in each year of that extended contract. [165395]

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Mr Simon Burns: Services currently operated by Govia and covered by the Southern franchise are due to merge with Thameslink and Great Northern services in July 2015 to form the TSGN franchise. As such, there is no contract extension planned for the Southern franchise.

Information on the annual payments between the Government and Govia in respect of this franchise is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at:

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Figures available on the ORR website include up to 2011-12; the figures for 2012-13 are still being finalised before disclosure. Future annual payments for each year of the contract are commercially sensitive and therefore will be published in arrears on the ORR website.

Northern Rail

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of annual payments to (a) Abellio and (b) Serco from the Government and from (i) Abellio and (ii) Serco to the Government in respect of the Northern franchise in 2013-14 and in each year of that extended contract. [165402]

Mr Simon Burns: Decisions on the annual payments between the Government and Northern Rail, owned by Abellio/Serco, for the period of the Direct Award beginning April 2014 have not yet been finalised.

Information on the annual payments between the Government and Abellio/Serco, in respect of this franchise, is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at:

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Figures available on the ORR website include up to 2011-12; the figures for 2012-13 are still being finalised before disclosure. Future annual payments including those for each year of the Direct Award are commercially sensitive and therefore will be published in arrears on the ORR website.

Railways: Finance

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what payments First Great Western has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments First Great Western has received from the public purse in each such year; [165241]

(2) what payments East Coast has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments East Coast received from the public purse in each such year; [165242]

(3) what payments Chiltern has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments Chiltern has received from the public purse in each such year; [165243]

(4) what payments East Midlands Trains has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments East Midlands Trains has received from the public purse in each such year; [165244]

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(5) what payments c2c train operating company has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments c2c has received from the public purse in each such year. [165245]

Norman Baker: Information on the net annual payments between Government and Train Operating Companies is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Railways: Franchises

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what passenger representation there has been in his Department's negotiations to award extensions to existing rail franchises. [165508]

Mr Simon Burns: The Department has engaged, and will continue to do so, with Passenger Focus and London Travel Watch as well as any other local representatives to ensure that the passenger's views are taken into consideration when making the direct awards.

Roads: Shrewsbury

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what steps he is taking to assess the feasibility of completing the North West relief ring road around Shrewsbury; [165505]

(2) if he will visit Shrewsbury to assess the need for completion of the ring road around the town; [165521]

(3) what steps he is taking to work with Shropshire council on completing the ring road around Shrewsbury. [165522]

Norman Baker: It is for the local highway authority, in this case Shropshire Council, to assess the need for, and feasibility of, the completion of the ring road and to take forward any subsequent proposals.

South West Trains

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of annual payments (a) to Stagecoach from the Government and (b) from Stagecoach to the Government in respect of the South West franchise in 2013-14 and in each year of that contract. [165439]

Mr Simon Burns: Information on the annual payments between the Government and Stagecoach, in respect of this franchise, is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at:

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Figures available on the ORR website include up to 2011-12; the figures for 2012-13 are still being finalised before disclosure. Future annual payments for each year of the contract are commercially sensitive and therefore will be published in arrears on the ORR website.

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Southeastern

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of annual payments (a) to Southeastern from the Government and (b) from Southeastern to the Government in respect of the Integrated Kent franchise in 2013-14 and in each year of that contract. [165401]

Mr Simon Burns: Information on the annual payments between the Government and Southeastern, in respect of this franchise, is published annually by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) on their data portal. This is available on the ORR's website at:

http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk

Figures available on the ORR website include up to 2011-12; the figures for 2012-13 are still being finalised before release. Future annual payments for each year of the contract are commercially sensitive and therefore will be published in arrears on the ORR website.

Virgin Trains

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what payments Virgin Trains has made to the Exchequer in each financial year since April 2004; and what payments Virgin Trains has received from public funds in each such year. [164583]

Norman Baker [holding answer 11 July 2013]:Virgin Rail Group has been awarded two franchises by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) and The Department for Transport (DfT) since 1997. These are:

West Coast Main Line—Trading as West Coast Trains limited

Cross Country Route—Trading as Virgin Cross Country Limited (ended November 2007)

Payments to the SRA and DfT for each financial year since April 2004 are detailed below for each operated franchise.

Subsidies are payments by SRA and DfT to Virgin Group while premiums are payments by Virgin Group to SRA and DfT. The amounts quoted are inclusive of all payments and receipts.

Subsidies paid/(premiums) received:

This updates information provided to the hon. Member for the City of Durham (Roberta Blackman-Woods) on 6 June, Official Report, columns 1225-6W, UIN 158132.

Further information on franchise payments may be found on ORR National Trends Annual data publications:

http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.1863

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Written Questions

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many answers to Parliamentary Questions involving tables of statistics fewer than four pages in length were (a) printed in full and (b) provided via a weblink to a website in the last year. [165477]

Norman Baker: The requested information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance his Department follows in determining whether, when answers to Parliamentary Questions which include statistics, those statistics are (a) provided in full, (b) provided via a weblink to a website and (c) placed in the Library. [165496]

Norman Baker: The Office of the Leader of the House provides guidance to all Departments on the practice of answering parliamentary questions by reference to Government websites.

The full Guide is available on the Cabinet Office website at:

http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work

A copy of the guidance relating to referring to websites has already been placed in the Library and the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons intends to review the Guide to Parliamentary Work later this year.

Communities and Local Government

Catering

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will provide a list of all catering outlets available in his Department's buildings. [165527]

Brandon Lewis: Eland House in Victoria has one canteen and one coffee bar, for staff and visitors:

Temple Quay House in Bristol has one canteen.

DCLG has held a 'nil subsidy' policy for our canteens since May 2010 and the facilities are run at no cost to taxpayers.

We do not centrally hold information on our local offices which we share with other agencies, where the facilities management is run by other partners.

Empty Property: Second Homes

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty homes were redesignated as second homes in the last financial year. [R] [165714]

Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally.

The decision on whether a property is empty or a second home for council tax is for billing authorities. For the purpose of council tax, a property cannot simply be “re-designated”—there must be a substantive and material change to its occupation and/or furnishing.

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Specific definitions and tests are set out in law. It is a criminal offence to make a false declaration to a local authority.

Fire Services

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he has taken steps to ensure that retained fire stations are able to mobilise fire engines despite shortages of staff. [165272]

Brandon Lewis: It is for each fire and rescue authority to ensure the adequacy of its operational response to incidents. Each fire and rescue authority is required to produce an integrated risk management plan identifying and assessing the risks facing its communities, and to demonstrate how their resources will be used to mitigate these.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will make an assessment of the effects on levels of rent arrears reported by registered social landlords in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) each region of England in (i) April 2012, (ii) May 2012, (iii) June 2012, (iv) April 2013, (v) May 2013 and (vi) June 2013 of the changes made in housing benefit rules which took effect on 1 April 2013. [164565]

Mr Prisk: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, column 33W.

My Department is only responsible for social housing in England.

Local Government Finance

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effect on the level of local authority budgets of (a) food testing and (b) flood management; and if he will make a statement. [164280]

Brandon Lewis: Local authorities set their own budgets and it is not possible for my Department to assess their effect on particular activities.

Local authorities provide annual monitoring returns to the Food Standards Agency on food law enforcement activity, including details of food testing undertaken. These are published by the Food Standards Agency.

The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 places responsibilities on lead local flood authorities (county and unitary councils), and the Government are committed to funding local authorities for their flood and coastal erosion risk management.

Local Government Finance: Industrial Health and Safety

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department has provided to local authorities for the purpose of enforcing occupational safety and health in each of the last five years; how this amount was calculated; and how much of the funding provided was used by local authorities for this purpose. [164995]

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Brandon Lewis [holding answer 12 July 2013]: Occupational safety and health is one of the services funded through the Local Government Finance Settlement each year. Funding provided via the Settlement is unhypothecated. This means that authorities are free to spend it on any service. For this reason it is not possible to say how much funding has been provided for any particular service.

Local Government Finance: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much general revenue funding has been allocated to City of York council for services other than education in 2009-10 and in each year since then in (a) cash and (b) real terms. [163876]

Mr Prisk: Details of central Government revenue funding for all local authorities for this year are set out on our website at:

www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1314/settle.htm

Formula grant funding for all local authorities since 2009-10 can be found at:

www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/ssas.htm

Real terms allocations can be calculated by applying price indices available from the Office for National Statistics at:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/cpi/consumer-price-indices/may-2013/cpi-time-series-data.html

Mobile Phones

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which companies supply (a) mobile telephones and (b) mobile data services to his Department. [162682]

Brandon Lewis: Under the Government Mobile Solutions (11) Framework Agreement with Vodafone, the Department has access to its mobile data services and also uses some services from Everything Everywhere for its residual devices.

This Government have sought to consolidate contracts and suppliers to deliver better value for money and we intend to shift to Vodafone in due course.

We will also continue with limited use of Everything Everywhere for mobile telephony purposes; this is for resilience staff working in remote areas where a Vodafone signal is not available.

Non-domestic Rates

Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many applications his Department has (a) received and (b) approved from local authorities to collect an additional business rate levy on retail businesses with rateable values over £500,000. [165151]

Brandon Lewis: The Department has received no such applications.

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Non-domestic Rates: Surrey

Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many businesses in (a) Woking constituency and (b) Surrey have taken advantage of the doubling of small business rate relief since 2010. [165269]

Brandon Lewis: Details of the number of businesses in Woking and Surrey that were benefiting from the Small Business Rate Relief Scheme as at 31 December 2010 are shown in the following table:

Data as at 31 December 2012 were collected earlier this year and are currently being validated and will be published in the autumn. Data are collected at billing authority level; we do not collect data at constituency level.

Thanks to the temporary extension of small business rate relief until April 2014, we estimate that approximately half a million businesses in England are benefiting, with approximately a third of a million paying no rates at all. The Localism Act 2011 has also made it easier for eligible small firms to claim their small business rate relief.

Plastics: Recycling

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to encourage wider collection of recyclable plastics from households. [165657]

Brandon Lewis: In November 2012, the Department for Communities and Local Government announced successful bidders to its £250 million Weekly Collection Support Scheme. Funding is being allocated between 2012 and 2015. This scheme encourages weekly collections of residual waste and improvements to recycling services.

Local authorities could apply for funding to enhance recycling services for plastics or other materials. Successful bids included those from:

Cornwall council which is using its funding to introduce (i) a new kerbside collection of mixed plastics and (ii) the collection of

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bulky plastics such as pipework and garden furniture from its household waste recycling centres;

Dudley metropolitan borough council which is using its funding to introduce a borough-wide kerbside recycling service for plastic bottles; and

East Cambridgeshire district council which is using its funding to expand the range of household materials collected to include mixed plastics.

The Weekly Collection Support Scheme is also funding 40 local authorities to introduce or expand recycling reward schemes which give incentives for residents to recycle their waste. Many of these schemes will encourage wider collection of recyclable plastics from households.

The Department for Communities and Local Government will be working with local authorities, the waste industry and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to take forward the innovation being championed by the Weekly Collection Support Scheme where plastic recycling from households and other service improvements are concerned.

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to encourage the development of plastics recycling infrastructure in the UK. [165658]

Brandon Lewis: National planning policy for waste management from the Department for Communities and Local Government sets the framework for local authorities to decide through their local plans on the most appropriate strategy for managing waste in their area; and to ensure that there are sufficient waste management facilities of the right type, in the right place and at the right time to meet their waste needs. The policy approach drives waste management up the waste hierarchy so that more waste, through recycling, is used as a resource, rather than waste going to landfill.

In November 2012, the Department for Communities and Local Government also announced successful bidders to its £250 million Weekly Collection Support Scheme. Funding is being allocated between 2012 and 2015. This scheme encourages weekly collections of residual waste and improvements to recycling services.

The scheme offered support for local authorities that needed to bridge the gap in terms of up front investment for new recycling infrastructure. Local authorities could therefore apply for funding to develop infrastructure for recycling plastics. Successful bids included those from:

Bournemouth borough council which is using its funding to build and operate a strategic local waste management facility that will process the range of co-mingled recyclable materials (including plastics) collected by all partnering authorities;

The London borough of Hillingdon which is using its funding to build a bulking facility which will allow the range of dry recyclables collected each week to be increased further. Feedback from residents groups has indicated they wish to recycle more plastic;

Leicester city council which is using its funding to develop additional Household Waste Recycling Centre provision. This will offer residents the opportunity to recycle a wider range of materials (including plastics) as well as providing reuse facilities and opportunities for trade waste.

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Press: Subscriptions

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade publications in the last 12 months. [162646]

Brandon Lewis: My Department spent £61,605 (inc VAT where relevant) in 2012-13 on newspapers and magazines.

Previously DCLG spent £136,892 in 2008-09 and £113,308 in 2009-10 which was cut to £62,074 in 2011-12, including the consolidating of the seven different sets of newspapers for Ministers each day to just one.

In addition under the shared serviced arrangement, the proportion of journals purchased by us for the Department for Transport are reimbursed by them and currently this is around £2,900 per annum.

Public Expenditure

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what ideas from his Tree of Ideas scheme were (a) implemented and (b) not implemented. [165526]

Brandon Lewis: My Department does not have a ‘tree of ideas’ and has never had a ‘tree of ideas’. However, a new employee reward scheme which encourages staff to put forward cost saving ideas was recently launched.

Serco

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department currently spends on contracts with Serco; and how much was spent in each year since 2008. [162930]

Brandon Lewis: My Department currently has no contracts with Serco. The following table sets out the amounts spent by my Department previously on contracts with Serco.

On the wider efficiency and reform agenda, our third party spend for the core DCLG department with suppliers has reduced from £314 million in 2009-10 and £223 million in 2010-11 to £155 million in 2011-12 and down to £136 million in 2012-13. This represents a saving of 57% over that period.

Sky Lanterns: Cheshire

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many fires caused by Chinese lanterns have been recorded in (a) Warrington and (b) Cheshire in each of the last three years. [164689]

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Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally.

It is however estimated that fire and rescue authorities have typically attended in recent years around 200 incidents involving sky lanterns each year across the whole of England. Almost all of these have caused minimal damage.

Over the four years since the introduction of the new fire and rescue incident recording system in 2009, records show that, prior to the recent fire at Smethwick, only one such fire affected a building, none caused any casualties, and that they have accounted for 0.2% of all outdoor fire incidents.

Defence

Afghanistan

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what equipment his Department intends to donate to the Government of Afghanistan when British troops withdraw from that country. [165535]

Mr Robathan: As UK operations in Afghanistan draw down, operational commanders are identifying the equipment and materiel that is no longer required. Once identified as surplus, a decision is made on whether to redeploy, sell, gift or destroy the equipment. The gifting of equipment and materiel to the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) will generally be co-ordinated with ISAF. The underlying requirement is that all gifted equipment is sustainable in terms of cost of ownership, support and enduring training.

Thus far approval has been granted to gift various check points, ‘sangers’ (military turrets), logistic support bridges and some medical supplies.

All proposals for gifting equipment follow parliamentary, Treasury and National Audit Office rules and will be assessed against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. Any proposed gifting, packages to the ANSF over £250,000 will be laid before Parliament.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much his Department expects to pay in to the deployed military activity pool in each year to 2015-16; [164442]

(2) how much his Department has paid in to the deployed military activity pool in the last 12 months. [164444]

Mr Robathan [holding answer 10 July 2013]: In financial year (FY) 2012-13 MOD spent £7 million on operations to support the French-led intervention in Mali from funds that were allocated to the Deployed Military Activity Pool (DMAP). Our Main Supply Estimate for FY 2013-14 requested £25 million for the DMAP, to be matched by a further £25 million from HM Treasury. The contributions of each Department in future years have not been fixed, and may change from year to year in response to changes in operational requirements.

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Armed Forces: Pay

Mr Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the annual pay settlement for the armed forces was between 1997 and 2010. [164741]

Mr Dunne: The following table shows the annual pay settlement in each year from 1997 to 2010, as recommended by the two relevant independent review bodies. The Armed Forces Pay Review Body (AFPRB) recommends pay levels for Service personnel up to and including 1-Star officers. Pay settlements for 2-Star officers and above are recommended by the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB).

Consultants

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much (a) he and (b) officials in his Department spent on external assistance to prepare for (i) appearances before select committees and (ii) contact with the media in (A) 2011-12 and (B) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [164662]

Mr Philip Hammond: I have not engaged any external assistance to prepare for appearances before select committees, or media contacts. The information for officials is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Defence: Procurement

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to ensure that the three services have sufficient trained capability managers. [165136]

Mr Francois: Capability management is a well established process within Defence, and appointments in this area are highly sought after, with many incumbents having previous capability management experience, Those who are newly appointed to capability management posts are required to undertake mandatory specialised training courses soon after commencing their new position.

In order to ensure that capability management training remains fit for purpose, the Defence Academy is currently undertaking a training needs analysis.

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Food

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of all food procured for his Department was sourced from (a) British producers, (b) small and medium-sized enterprises and (c) producers which met British buying standards in the latest period for which figures are available. [164762]

Mr Dunne: For armed forces personnel serving on operations, overseas exercises and Her Majesty's ships there is a single food supply contract with Purple Foodservice Solutions Ltd (PFS). PFS lists approximately 1,150 different food-related items for the armed forces in the core range price list. Currently, they estimate that approximately 60% of lines listed, excluding fresh produce, are sourced from suppliers within the UK. The percentage of UK produced goods changes regularly as a result of seasonality, value for money incentives and changes of supplier.

Ministry of Defence (MOD) personnel in the UK and permanent bases overseas are primarily catered for through a number of catering, retail, leisure and other multi-activity contracts to deliver catering and other services. Information on the proportion of food procured from UK food producers under these arrangements is not held by the MOD.

The MOD is bound by European Union public procurement directives which demand fair and open competition for all food contracts involving the expenditure of public funds. The directives do not permit the MOD to specify only British products or to only source products from a particular region.

All food procured for MOD personnel must comply with MOD food quality standards. These standards comply with all UK and EU production standards, Farm Assurance or equivalent.

Reserve Forces: Dorset

Mr Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the statement of 3 July 2013, Official Report, column 923, on Reserve forces, what the effect of such changes will be in Dorset. [164561]

Mr Robathan: The restructuring of the Army Reserve will have an impact across the United Kingdom and documents setting out the detail, showing both the current and future location of units, have been placed in the Library of the House.

These documents confirm the following changes to Army Reserve Forces in Dorset:

The Royal Wessex Yeomanry, A (Dorset Yeomanry) Squadron—this squadron will re-role to become the Headquarters Squadron but will remain in Bovington. There is no change to the Regimental Headquarters which is also located in Bovington.

6th Battalion The Rifles, C Company—the Company Headquarters moves from Dorchester to Poole to combine with an existing detachment. A reduced presence will be maintained in Dorchester.

155 Transport Regiment, 233 Transport Squadron-this Squadron, which had been due to be located in Poole but was never raised, has been withdrawn from the Army’s Order of Battle as it is no longer required under the Army 2020 construct.

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Shipbuilding

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met BAE Systems to discuss skills levels in the UK shipbuilding sector. [165134]

Mr Philip Hammond: Defence Ministers meet regularly with BAE Systems to discuss a range of issues, including those relating to UK shipbuilding.

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the contribution to the wider economy of shipbuilding for the Royal Navy in each of the (a) last five years and (b) next five years. [165135]

Mr Dunne: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has not assessed the contribution its expenditure makes to the wider economy.

It is considered, however, that the MOD's expenditure in the maritime sector has a positive economic impact. As stated in UK Defence Statistics 2012, expenditure in the UK on shipbuilding and repair, including submarines, in the five years from 2006-07 to 2010-11 was some £8.7 billion (VAT exclusive at current prices). The Defence Equipment Plan, published in January 2013,states that we plan to spend some £17 billion on surface ships and £35.8 billion on submarines and our nuclear deterrent programmes over the next 10 years.

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent progress he has made on plans to build two new offshore patrol vessels; and if he will make a statement. [165363]

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) pursuant to the answer given to the hon. Member for New Forest East on 13 February 2013, Official Report, column 766W, on warships, what progress has been made between his Department and BAE on the Terms of Business Agreement; and what consideration he has given to the potential construction of two offshore patrol vessels in Portsmouth to tackle concerns about a potential skills gap developing in that workforce; [165140]

(2) what estimate he has made of the size of workforce and the skills mix required in that workforce

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to deliver the Type 26 frigate over the lifetime of the planned programme; [165133]

(3) what assessment he has made of the number of shipbuilding jobs in the defence sector required to deliver the vessels for the Royal Navy currently planned for (a) 2015, (b) 2020 and (c) 2025. [165137]

Mr Dunne: The Terms of Business Agreement (TOBA) entered into between the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and BAE Systems in 2009 requires the company to transform and rationalise its shipbuilding capacity in a manner that sustains specific key industrial capabilities. This includes the maintenance of skills in the areas of production, direct support staff and design/engineering.

The MOD is working closely with the company to explore how best to sustain its shipbuilding capability, to deliver the future shipbuilding programme for the Royal Navy. The discussions are ongoing; ultimately, however, decisions regarding the size and skills of the workforce needed to deliver the shipbuilding programme are a matter for BAE Systems.

With regard to the offshore patrol vessels (OPVs), I refer the hon. Members to my answer of 14 February 2013, Official Report, column 833W.

USA

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) British citizens and (b) former British citizens have been killed in airstrikes initiated by US armed forces in the last 10 years. [157013]

Mr Robathan [holding answer 3 June 2013]: We do not hold comprehensive information on this subject.

Culture, Media and Sport

Accountancy

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much her Department spent on contracts with (a) Deloitte, (b) PricewaterhouseCoopers, (c) KPMG and (d) Ernst and Young in each year since 2008. [164945]

Hugh Robertson: The amount spent with each of these firms is set out in the table.

The on-going expenditure with KPMG is for support to Broadband Delivery UK. Ernst & Young was predominantly paid for advisory work on the sale of the Tote, and the costs were recovered from the sale proceeds. Deloitte worked with the Finance Team in 2012-13 to deliver the first group financial statements.

Arts: Rural Areas

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to maintain access to the arts in rural communities. [154891]

Mr Vaizey [holding answer 14 May 2013]: Arts Council England is the independent organisation that distributes

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Government funding, and Lottery investment, in the arts. The Arts Council is an arm's length body of my Department and sets it strategy for promoting engagement with the arts independently of Government. However, I am pleased that the Arts Council has put in place internal mechanisms for determining its budget allocations across the regions, prioritising those areas with limited opportunity for engagement, irrespective of their classification as urban or rural; and that its Grants for the Arts programme has been reviewed to ensure that decisions take account of the need for provision in rural areas.

A number of Arts Council programmes make a significant contribution to maintaining and increasing access to the arts in rural communities: for example, the £37 million Creative People and Places programme targeting areas of low engagement, including rural areas; the £45 million Strategic Touring programme encouraging collaboration between theatre organisations to target places which rely on touring for much of their arts provision; and the Arts Council will invest £6.5 million between 2012 and 2015 in 17 National Portfolio Organisations which tour in rural areas.

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 3 June 2013, Official Report, column 801W, on broadband, whether the UK is on track to meet the EU 2020 broadband targets. [158602]

Mr Vaizey: Central and local Government has currently committed to invest £1.6 billion in the Government's broadband programme, which will see a transformation of broadband services in the UK. The latest Government announcement in the 'Investing in Britain's Future' to superfast broadband provision from current coverage plans so that 95% of UK premises will have access to superfast broadband by 2017 and to explore with industry how to expand coverage further, using more innovative fixed, wireless and mobile broadband solutions, to reach at least 99% of premises in the UK by 2018; and with pace of take up of superfast broadband currently at 50,000 connections per week the UK is making significant progress toward meeting the EU 2020 targets.

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the target coverage is for broadband for each (a) local authority, (b) nation of the UK and (c) contractor employed by BD:UK [164243]

Mr Vaizey: The Government wants to see a transformation of broadband services in the UK by 2015 and has a target of 90% of UK premises having superfast broadband available to them as a result of the current rural broadband programme. The programme has allocated funding for projects on the basis of this level of coverage being achieved in each local authority area. The Government also announced on 27 June 2013 that it was providing a further £250 million with the aim of increasing coverage of superfast broadband to 95% by 2017.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 24

15 July 2013 : Column 508W

June 2013,

Official Report

, column 114W, on broadband, what assistance her Department provides to urban areas to compensate for economically-viable broadband fibre optic cabinets. [165335]

Mr Vaizey: The Super Connected Cities Programme will not provide direct assistance to cities regarding fibre broadband cabinets. However, the Government is working with some of the cities participating in the programme, to undertake market testing of a scheme to distribute connections vouchers to SMEs to help them pay for the cost of connecting to high-speed and high quality broadband. These connections could be delivered by a range of different suppliers using either wired or wireless technologies. If successful, this scheme will be made available to all the cities in the programme.

Broadband Delivery UK

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Broadband Delivery UK requires in annual funding for it to carry out its responsibilities. [164752]

Mr Vaizey: Broadband Delivery UK's administration funding to carry out its responsibilities is £9.8 million in 2013-14 and £5.9 million in 2014-15. Any additional administration funding required following the further £250 million announced in the spending review to extend superfast broadband coverage to 95% of premises is yet to be agreed.

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding her Department is providing through Broadband Delivery UK to help meet her Department's objectives for change in broadband provision in the UK. [164753]

Mr Vaizey: To help meet the Department's objectives for a change in broadband provision in the UK, Broadband Delivery UK has been allocated funding of £530 million for the Rural Broadband Programme and £150 million for the Super Connected Cities Programme. It also has £150 million allocated for the Mobile Infrastructure Project. A further £250 million was announced in ‘Investing in Britain's Future’, published as part of the spending review in June 2013, in order to deliver superfast broadband coverage to 95% of premises in the UK by 2017.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what budget her Department set for the rollout of broadband in rural areas; what target dates were set for the rollout; how much the rollout has cost to date; what the estimated total cost of the rollout is; and what her latest estimate is of completion dates for the rollout. [164809]

Mr Vaizey: The Department has a budget of £530 million to support roll-out of broadband in rural areas, to provide 90% superfast broadband coverage by 2016 and universal access to standard broadband. This funding will be supported by further local and European funding to provide total public investment of about £1.2 billion. It is estimated that approximately a further £350 million of funding will be provided by the private sector. A further

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£250 million of Government funding was announced in ‘Investing in Britain's Future’, published as part of the Spending Review in June 2013, in order to deliver superfast broadband coverage to 95% of premises in the UK by 2017, provided it is matched with other local funding. The Department has transferred £9.7 million to date to support project rollout.

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking (a) to ensure that there is sufficient competition in the process of tendering contracts for the rollout of broadband in rural areas and (b) to ensure that the contracts let to BT are securing the best value for the public purse. [164810]

Mr Vaizey: BDUK has procured a framework agreement for the delivery of rural broadband projects, and local bodies are able to call-off this framework. The framework was procured after an extensive period of market engagement and consultation, and at the end of the competitive procurement process the suppliers BT and Fujitsu were appointed to the framework in June 2012. Local bodies could choose to run a procurement independent of the framework and some local bodies have chosen to run an independent procurement process. Most local bodies have taken advantage of the reduced time and cost benefits from using the framework. Any supplier who is successful in winning public-funded contracts for broadband deployment will be subject to state aid rules, which require that they provide effective wholesale access to their network to promote competition from other providers of superfast broadband.

BDUK has designed the call-off contracts to transfer the majority of risks associated with delivery and operation of broadband networks to the private sector. Local bodies' use of the gap fund model has reduced cost to the public sector. BDUK performs various assurance activities on supplier bids prior to contract signature, and has ensured that the contracts contain the necessary commercial mechanisms to protect value for the public sector.

Broadband: Sunderland

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent estimate she has made of the number of people in Sunderland who live in areas with low-speed broadband. [159611]

Mr Vaizey: Ofcom data from the Communications Infrastructure Report 2012 stated that 86% of customers in Sunderland did have access to broadband services with speeds above two megabits per second. See:

http://maps.ofcom.org.uk/broadband

Commercial provision of broadband services in Sunderland since the time of the Ofcom study may well have led to more premises being able to access services.

For those areas that the market will not deliver to unaided, the Durham, Gateshead, Sunderland and Tees Valley local broadband project, with £9.88 million of support from the Broadband Delivery UK rural programme, is designed to ensure that over 90% of premises can receive services on superfast infrastructure and that all premises have a basic broadband service of over 2 Mbit/s available.

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Consultants

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much (a) she and (b) officials in her Department spent on external assistance to prepare for (i) appearances before select committees and (ii) contact with the media in (A) 2011-12 and (B) 2012-13; and if she will make a statement. [164661]

Hugh Robertson: Neither myself nor my officials spent anything on external assistance when appearing before select committees or on contact with the media on behalf of DCMS, which includes the Government Equalities Office.

Equality

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent by her Department (a) in total and (b) on staff costs on promoting equality and diversity in each of the last three years for which figures are available; and how many people are employed by her Department for this purpose. [165449]

Hugh Robertson: DCMS is mindful of the need to promote equality and draw the best from a diverse work force. While there are individuals who have responsibility for promoting equality and diversity, this is in addition to their other duties. The Department is unable to break down the figures to show how much was spent on the equality and diversity aspect of their role. The Government Equalities Office works to take action on the Government's commitment to remove barriers to equality and help to build a fairer society, leading on issues relating to women, sexual orientation and transgender equalities. In this broader sense the whole of the staff of GEO and its programme spend is devoted to promoting equality and diversity.

Motor Sports

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the value of the motorsport industry and community rallies to tourism in the UK. [164339]

Hugh Robertson: I have made no assessment of the value of the motorsport industry and community rallies to tourism in the UK. However, I recognise the importance of events such as Wales Rally GB and the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which help support both local and wider UK visitor economies. The motor sport industry makes an important broader contribution to the UK economy, with an estimated annual turnover of £6 billion, £3.6 billion of which in exports, and employs 40,000 people working for 4,500 companies across the UK.

Public Libraries: Electronic Publishing

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what steps her Department is taking to encourage appropriate models for remote eBook lending in response to the recommendations of the Sieghart Review of eBook lending in libraries; [164737]

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(2) what steps her Department is taking to implement the recommendations of the Sieghart Review of eBook lending in libraries in respect of extending public lending rights to eBooks. [164738]

Mr Vaizey: The Government commissioned an independent review of e-lending in public libraries in England last year and the panel, led by William Sieghart, recommended that Public Lending Right (PLR) be extended to cover loans of audiobooks and e-books borrowed from library premises and also remotely. On 26 June 2013, HM Treasury announced that in response to William Sieghart's recommendation that PLR be extended by commencing the provisions of the Digital Economy Act 2010; the Government will consult on plans to extend the PLR scheme to cover onsite loans of e-books and audiobooks, with loans data to be collected from July 2014:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spending-round-2013-documents

As set out in the Government Response to William Sieghart's review:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/an-independent-review-of-e-lending-in-public-libraries-in-england

any amendment the Government would seek to pursue in future to extend the Public Lending Right (PLR) scheme to incorporate remote e-lending is subject to considering whether that would be compatible with the copyright directive and this matter is under consideration.

It is important to note that public libraries are able to lend e-books, both on library premises and remotely, without the PLR scheme being extended. Until such a time as the PLR scheme is extended, it will continue to be the responsibility of library authorities to reach appropriate agreements with non-print rights holders of those works, or with other parties on behalf of those rights holders, in order to license the lending of their non-print works.

Telephone Services

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether her Department receives any financial or non-financial benefit from its telephone providers for telephone lines that (a) her Department and (b) the agencies for which she is responsible operate, including but not limited to (i) a share of call revenue, (ii) a reduction in the Department's telephone bill or tariff and (iii) telephony services for free or at a reduced price. [157733]

Hugh Robertson: The Department does not receive any financial or non-financial benefit from its telephone provider for telephone lines. The Department does not hold this information for its agencies.

Attorney-General

Alternatives to Prosecution

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many Crown Prosecution Service decisions not to dispose of a case out of court were judicially reviewed in 2012 and in each of the five preceding years. [164163]

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The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of judicial reviews of decisions not to dispose of cases out of court. Obtaining this information would be possible only by examining individual case files at disproportionate cost.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many Crown Prosecution Service decisions not to prosecute were judicially reviewed in 2012 and in each of the five preceding years. [164164]

The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of judicial reviews of decisions not to prosecute. Obtaining this information would be possible only by examining individual case files at disproportionate cost.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General pursuant to the answer of 27 June 2013, Official Report, column 349W, on alternatives to prosecution, how many of the cautions issued for child abuse offences were for (a) parental assault where reasonable chastisement is not a defence, (b) sexual offences, (c) child homicides, (d) child cruelty, including neglect, (e) child prostitution, (f) harassment, (g) abandonment of a child, (h) forced marriage involving an under 18 year old, (i) child pornography, (j) trafficking, (k) familial abduction and (l) historical child abuse where the victim is now an adult. [164294]

The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) figures provided in the answer of 27 June 2013, Official Report, column 349W, state the number of cases referred to the CPS for pre-charge decisions (PCDs) where the victim was under 18 years of age and the CPS prosecutor advised an out of court disposal. The CPS does not maintain central records of pre-charge decision outcomes for the sub-categories of offending requested. Obtaining this information would be possible only by examining individual advice files at disproportionate cost.

Crown Prosecution Service

Philip Davies: To ask the Attorney-General what recent discussions he has had with representatives of judges and magistrates on the performance of the Crown Prosecution Service. [164886]

The Solicitor-General: The Attorney-General and I meet members of the judiciary regularly to discuss matters of mutual interest including the performance of the Crown Prosecution Service.

Food

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Attorney-General what proportion of all food procured for the Law Officers' Departments was sourced from (a) British producers, (b) small and medium-sized enterprises and (c) producers which met British buying standards in the latest period for which figures are available. [164757]

The Solicitor-General: The Serious Fraud Office and the Attorney-General's Office purchase refreshments for meetings on an occasional basis when appropriate. The source of the food procured is not recorded centrally.

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The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not source or procure any food directly. Catering services are provided at the CPS HQ site in London via a national facilities management contract. Local offices procure catering services for meetings and local events from a range of local independent and high street chain suppliers. The work required to verify and report the source of food products from the range of catering firms used would incur a disproportionate cost.

Baxter Storey supply catering services to both the Treasury Solicitor's Department and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.

(a) 98% of all fresh meat, vegetables and fish procured by Baxter Storey is sourced from British producers.

(b) 70% of food (all fresh food) procured by Baxter Storey comes from medium-sized enterprises. The remaining 30% is procured from two large dry goods suppliers.

(c) All suppliers used by Baxter Storey to provide catering services conform to British Standards. These include Freedom Food, Red Tractor, RSPCA Food Enterprise Initiatives and the Marine Stewardship Council.

Education

Consultants

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much (a) he and (b) officials in his Department spent on external assistance to prepare for (i) appearances before select committees and (ii) contact with the media in (A) 2011-12 and (B) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [164664]

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much has been spent by his Department on media training in each year since 2010. [165311]

Elizabeth Truss: No money has been spent on external assistance to prepare the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), for appearances before Select Committees or contact with the media.

Information on expenditure for either media or Select Committee training across the rest of the Department is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

The Department has curbed spending on all communication activity and brought the central costs of communication down from £54 million in 2009-10 to less than £1 million in 2012-13.

Education: Chester

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to sign the funding agreement for the University of Chester and Chester Cathedral's free school. [165319]

Mr Timpson: The Department received the funding agreement signed by the trust on 12 July 2013 and the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) will consider it shortly.

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Families: Disadvantaged

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what assessment his Department has made of the First Steps pilot scheme and its effectiveness in improving outcomes for families with multiple problems; [165240]

(2) what his plans are for the future funding of the First Steps scheme. [165290]

Mr Timpson: An independent evaluation by the Centre for Educational Development, Appraisal and Research (CEDAR) at the University of Warwick, concluded that ‘First Steps' pilot

“has been a successful and beneficial project leaving a legacy on which further work can be built”.

I have placed a copy of the full evaluation in the House Library.

The Department provided grant funding of £488,000 over two years (2011 to 2013) for the pilot, which was made as part of the Department for Education's investment in local services to support the Families with Multiple Problems programme. The funding allowed Addaction to pilot this new approach and collect evidence of its effectiveness to support future discussions with local commissioners. There are no plans to provide further funding as the pilot has now concluded and work on Families with Multiple Problems was transferred to the Department for Communities and Local Government's Troubled Families Team in December 2011.

Food

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of all food procured for his Department was sourced from (a) British producers, (b) small and medium-sized enterprises and (c) producers which met British buying standards in the latest period for which figures are available. [164763]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education's food is procured as follows: 73% is from British producers and over 40% is from small and medium-sized enterprises. These data do not include the National College for Teaching and Leadership. This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.

All producers in the supply chain meet the Government Buying Standard for Food and Catering.

Our catering supplier is also required to provide healthy eating options in our canteen, including fresh and seasonal produce.

Free Schools

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what measure of basic need his Department uses to calculate the number of free schools intending to open in areas of basic need; [165308]

(2) how many of the 308 free schools listed on his Department's website as open or planned to open in September 2013 and beyond are in areas of (a) surplus places and (b) basic need. [165307]

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Mr Timpson: The Department for Education calculates basic need using information about projected pupil numbers and school capacity provided by local authorities. We consider an area to have a basic need for school places where there is a projected surplus of places at the relevant phase of less than 5%. This is the same system for calculating basic need used by the last Government. We consider this to be the minimum surplus necessary in the school system to ensure pupils are not required to travel unreasonable distances in order to take the last remaining available place, allow parental choice to be exercised, and provide flexibility to allow for in-year population movement.

This Government are tackling the shortage of places we inherited through basic need funding allocated to local authorities. The recent report by the National Audit Office into school places found that the last Government cut the number of primary places by 200,000 during a period of population growth. Over the current spending review we are spending £5 billion on addressing the shortage of places through basic need funding—more than double the amount spent by the previous Government over an equivalent four-year period. By September, we expect 190,000 extra places will have been created, with many more to come. On top of this, the recent spending review announced additional funding for 500,000 extra places by 2020-21.

In assessing the need for free schools, we take into account the basic need for places, the demand from local parents for a new school, and the quality of existing schools in the area.

We only assess whether free schools are in an area of basic need in relation to mainstream free schools, i.e. excluding 16 to 19, alternative provision, and special free schools. Some 48 out of 71 open mainstream free schools are in areas of basic need. However, many of the remaining schools are in areas of deprivation or educational underperformance. Three quarters of open free schools are either in areas of basic need or in the 30% most deprived areas.

Some 108 out of 156 mainstream free schools working towards opening are in areas of basic need. Four in five mainstream free schools working towards opening are planned for areas of basic need, or in the 30% most deprived areas.

It is no good having surplus places if parents do not want their children to fill them. Free schools offer parents the choice of a better education where they are dissatisfied with existing local schools. Free schools have proved incredibly popular with parents; those open at the start of the academic year received an average of three applicants per place for this September.

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will publish the capital costs of the free schools where building costs have been finalised and contracts signed and (a) which opened in September 2011, (b) which opened in September 2012 and (c) plan to be opened in future. [165387]

Mr Timpson: The Department publishes the capital costs of the free schools where building costs have been finalised and contracts signed on the departmental website:

http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/typesofschools/freeschools/b00222175/open/capital-expenditure

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This information is updated on an ongoing basis.

Public Expenditure

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his Department's and its agencies' planned spending from departmental expenditure limit is in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15 under the headings (i) activities to support all functions, (ii) school infrastructure and funding of education, (iii) education standards, curriculum and qualifications, (iv) workforce training and development, (v) early years, (vi) children, young people and families and (vii) standards and testing agency; and what was spent under each such heading in 2012-13. [165528]

Mr Laws: The Department for Education is in the process of preparing its audited 2012-13 annual report and accounts, which will be published in December 2013.

Further information on 2013-14 plans is available in the Department's 2013-14 Main Estimate which was published in April this year⁽¹⁾. This document has been placed in the House Library.

Final decisions on budgets for 2014-15 have not yet been made. The Department is continuing to develop these plans.

⁽¹⁾https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/197738/dfe_mainsupplyestimates_201314.pdf

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his Department's programme costs will be in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15 under the headings (i) basic need schools capital grant, (ii) Building Schools for the Future capital grant, (iii) National Framework Academies capital grant, (iv) maintenance capital grants to local authorities, (v) primary capital grant, (vi) other capital grants, (vii) dedicated schools grant, (viii) area-based grant, (ix) Standards Fund, (x) school standard grant, (xi) Pupil Premium, (xii) early intervention grant, (xiii) Sure Start current grants to local authorities, (xiv) 16-18 apprenticeships, (xv) school sixth forms (local authority maintained), (xvi) school sixth forms (academies and free schools), (xvii) pre-16 participation (academies), (xviii) 16-19 further education, (xix) PFI special grant, (xx) other current grants, (xxi) other current expenditure and (xxii) research and development; and what programme costs were under each such heading in 2012-13. [165529]

Mr Laws: The Department's 2012-13 annual report and accounts will be published in December 2013 and will set out the figures requested then.

Figures for 2013-14 planned programme spend are not available in the format requested. However, alternative information on the Department's 2013-14 plans is available in the 2013-14 main estimate which was published in April this year⁽¹⁾. This document has been placed in the House Library.

Final decisions on budgets for 2014-15 have not yet been made. The Department is continuing to develop these plans.

⁽¹⁾https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/197738/dfe_mainsupplyestimates_201314.pdf

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School Day

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools offer hours from 8 am to 6 pm; and if he will make a statement. [165301]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department does not collect data on the opening hours of individual schools. It is for individual schools to decide on the length of their school day and whether to offer optional provision before and after school.

Schools: Birmingham

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many instances of pupils being taught in temporary accommodation in (a) primary, (b) secondary and (c) sixth form colleges were recorded in Birmingham in each of the last three years. [165089]

Mr Laws: The Department does not hold this information.

The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of school places (school capacity) in state funded primary and secondary schools (except special schools) via an annual survey. The capacity of a school includes any temporary classroom accommodation that is on a school site but we do not ask local authorities to provide a breakdown of these places in the annual survey.

Schools: Construction

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many new schools have been built in each (a) local education authority area and (b) parliamentary constituency in England since May 2010; and if he will make a statement. [165298]

Mr Laws: I will reply as soon as possible.

Schools: Repairs and Maintenance

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the repair and maintenance backlog cost for schools in (a) England and (b) each local education authority; and if he will make a statement. [165313]

Mr Laws: This information is not held by the Department as a result of the last Government's decision to stop collecting data on the condition of the school estate in 2005. We believe this decision was flawed, which is why the Department is now conducting a comprehensive survey of the condition of buildings across the entire school estate.

The survey programme is scheduled for completion in early autumn, and, following quality assurance of the data, it will be used to inform future maintenance allocations.

Schools: Sports

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what steps he is taking to increase uptake of sports in school hours; [164899]

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(2) what plans he has to increase participation in sports by children outside school hours. [165078]

Mr Timpson: Physical Education (PE) is, and will remain, compulsory at all four key stages of the national curriculum, and the revised programmes of study place a greater emphasis on competitive sport.

The Department is also supporting the cross-Government School Games Programme and applauds its impact on competitive sport in schools and encouraging more young people to participate in sport.

In March 2013 the Prime Minister announced additional ring-fenced funding of £150 million per year for academic years 2013/14 and 2014/15 to support provision of PE and sport in primary schools, including outside the normal school day.

In addition, the Government's Youth Sport Strategy, launched in January 2012, is providing £1 billion of funding over the five financial years of 2012-13 to 2016-17 to help to ensure that young people are regularly playing sport outside school.

During academic years 2011/12 and 2012/13 we supported competitive sport in schools with funding of £65 million for a PE Teacher Release Scheme which enabled secondary schools to release a PE teacher for one day a week to encourage take-up of competitive sport in local primary schools.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what proportion of school children aged 12 to 16 years take part in at least one planned sporting activity during school hours each week; [165082]

(2) what proportion of school children aged 5 to 11 years take part in at least one planned sporting activity during school hours each week; [165083]

(3) how many hours each week have been allocated for sports for children in the new curriculum. [164900]

Mr Timpson: Physical Education (PE) is, and will remain, compulsory at all four key stages of the national curriculum and every child should participate in PE lessons. The Department does not, however, collect data on pupils' participation in planned sporting activities. The Education Act 2002 specifically prohibits the Secretary of State for Education from prescribing the amount of time to be spent on any curriculum subject, including PE.

Teachers: Early Retirement

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of teachers have retired at or before 60 years of age in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [165312]

Mr Laws: The following table provides, as a proportion of the total number of teachers retiring^{(1,2 )}and receiving a teacher's pension each year, the percentage of teachers who did so who were aged 60 or younger. The information is for teachers whose last service was in a publicly funded school in England. Updated teacher retirement information including figures for 2011-12 will be published on 17 July 2013.

15 July 2013 : Column 519W

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Young Offender Institutions

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much was spent on education in (a) Feltham, (b) Ashfield, (c) Cookham Wood, (d) Downview, (e) Eastwood Park, (f) Hindley, (g) New Hall, (h) Parc, (i) Warren Hill, (j) Werrington and (k) Weatherby young offenders institutions in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013. [165533]

Mr Laws: The Education Funding Agency (EFA) provides funding for education in public sector under-18 young offender institutions (YOIs). The information requested is in the following table. The EFA is unable to provide information for Ashfield and Parc, as they are funded directly by the Youth Justice Board.

Young People

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how frequently he meets with (a) the UK Youth Parliament and (b) young people and students to consult on his Department's policy objectives and plans. [164551]

Mr Timpson: The Youth Voice programme, which is delivered by the British Youth Council, includes provision for the National Scrutiny Group, the Youth Select Committee, and the UK Youth Parliament. The Cabinet Office is assuming responsibility for the Youth Voice programme and grant as part of the machinery of government change announced on 3 July 2013.

The National Scrutiny Group and the Youth Select Committee scrutinise the work of all Government Departments. Recent meetings of the National Scrutiny Group have discussed curriculum and qualifications reform with key DFES officials, including myself and the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove).

On 2 July 2012 my hon. Friend the Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), in his capacity as the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Children and Families, met with the National Scrutiny Group. I myself met the National Scrutiny Group on 24 October 2012 and the Secretary of State met the group on the 25 February 2013. Youth policy was discussed on all three occasions.

On 2 July 2013, the National Scrutiny Group met with myself and my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd), the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Charities, Social Enterprise and Volunteering at the Cabinet Office, to discuss the Prime Minister's decision to transfer youth policy to the Cabinet Office.

Ministers and officials have had many meetings and discussions, in addition to the UK Youth Parliament, National Scrutiny Group and the Youth Select Committee about youth-related issues including children in care, care leavers, young carers, special educational needs, curriculum and qualification reform. These were with voluntary sector organisations such as the British Youth Council which represent young people, organisations which received grants in 2011 to 2013, those to whom we are making grants in 2013 to 2015, and all-party parliamentary groups. Information on meetings with young people and students is not held centrally and a comprehensive list could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

International Development

Burma

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding her Department has allocated in Burma to promote religious tolerance and multi-faith initiatives. [165246]

Mr Duncan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), on 5 Jun 2013, Official Report, column 1171W.

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to ensure that funding by her Department for education

15 July 2013 : Column 521W

in Burma which is being channelled through monastic schools is not being used to teach or encourage anti-Muslim hatred and prejudice. [165247]

Mr Duncan: DFID supports the Myanmar Education Consortium who has the key objective of increasing the number and proportion of children who complete a quality basic education, including within monastic schools.

Our non-governmental organisations partners have begun discussions with the management team of the Monastic Education Development Group, which is supported by the consortium, to develop processes and materials to integrate peace and conflict resolution into the teach training program, and further, monitor the situation in classrooms and refer concerns should they arise. Monastic schools do not teach religion but follow the prescribed government curriculum.

Conflict Pool

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding her Department allocated to the Conflict Pool in each year from 2010-11 to date; how much she estimates will be allocated in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15; and if she will make a statement. [164968]

Mr Duncan: The Conflict Pool is funded from a Treasury settlement on conflict resources which is separate from and additional to departmental budgets. The settlement is jointly managed by DFID, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence. The Conflict Pool budget for financial year 2013-14 is £229 million and the indicative budget for 2014-15 is £224 million. The Foreign Secretary's written ministerial statement on Conflict Resources of 13 June 2013 gives more details.

In financial year 2011-12 DFID committed an additional £12 million from its departmental budget to the Conflict Pool, to support the Government's response to the situation in Libya. In the current financial year, DFID has committed up to £25 million to the Conflict Pool as additional funding for Syria and Libya, and £1.5 million for Central Asia.

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment criteria her Department uses to assign projects to the Conflict Pool programme; and if she will make a statement. [164972]

Mr Duncan: The Conflict Pool operates on the principle that all policy and programming decisions are taken jointly by the three participating Departments: DFID, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Ministry of Defence (MOD).

Conflict Pool projects are assessed on their potential to prevent or resolve conflict or contribute to stabilisation. Conflict Pool country and regional programmes determine priorities on the basis of where the risks of fragility are highest, where the UK's interests are greatest and where the UK can make a difference, in line with the Building Stability Overseas Strategy (BSOS). Programme strategies are based on a “theory of change” which sets out expected results, specific outputs which can be directly attributed to the Conflict Pool, and the resources needed to deliver those outputs. Individual project proposals

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are assessed by joint DFID, FCO and MOD Programme Boards with regard to their fit with the joint programme strategies and value for money criteria. If approved, one of the three Departments leads on the implementation of the given project, in line with its own programme and project management procedures.

Palestinians

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the humanitarian effects of the occupation of the west bank of Palestine. [164800]

Mr Duncan: We are deeply concerned by the impact of the occupation on the lives of Palestinians in the west bank. Our assessment of the humanitarian situation is informed by a number of sources including the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs which produces regular and comprehensive reports of the situation on the ground. We also draw on analysis from international bodies such as the UN, the World Bank and the IMF. These sources clearly document poverty, displacement and constrained growth. For example, the UN recently reported that food insecurity levels among households in the west bank rose from 17% in 2011 to 19% in 2012 and that approximately one million people in 492 communities access or consume 60 litres of water per capita per day (l/c/d) or less, significantly below the World Health Organisation recommendation of 100 l/c/d.

Treasury

Air Passenger Duty

Henry Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much air passenger duty has been raised from passengers travelling by air from the UK to (a) Brazil, (b) Russia, (c) India, (d) China, (e) Australia and (f) South Africa, in each year since 2003; [164534]

(2) whether his Department has undertaken any analysis of the economic effect of air passenger duty since 2010; and if he will publish the results of any such analysis; [164535]

(3) whether his Department has undertaken any analysis of the economic and fiscal effect of air passenger duty utilising dynamic scoring methodologies; and if he will publish the results of any such analysis; [164536]

(4) what assessment his Department has made of the effect of air passenger duty on an airline's ability to (a) start new routes and (b) maintain marginal routes; [164539]

(5) which countries tax passengers travelling internationally by air at a higher level than UK air passenger duty; [164540]

(6) what assessment he has made of the effect of a reduction in air passenger duty on (a) business travel, (b) leisure travel, (c) trade and (d) economic activity; and if he will make a statement; [164568]

(7) whether the model used by his Department to model tax policies takes specific account of the characteristics of (a) air transport and (b) tourism sectors; [164570]

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(8) what assessment his Department has made of the effect of air passenger duty on the competitiveness of UK airlines and airports; [164569]

(9) what information his Department holds on the number of EU member states that tax international air travel; [164911]

(10) what estimate his Department has made of the impact on the UK economy of a reduction in air passenger duty by (a) five per cent, (b) 10 per cent, (c) 20 per cent, (d) 50 per cent and (e) 100 per cent. [164912]

Sajid Javid: Airlines, not passengers, are responsible for paying air passenger duty (APD) to HM Revenue and Customs. HMRC does not collect information on the contribution to APD revenues made from flights to or from specific airports or countries. The published statistics on APD, including information on historic revenues from the duty and passenger numbers by band, are available at:

https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/Pages/TaxAndDutyBulletins.aspx

The economic and fiscal effects of Government policies are routinely assessed by the Office for Budget Responsibility. Information can be found in the OBR's economic and fiscal outlook, at:

http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-march-2013/

The Chancellor of the Exchequer keeps all taxes under review and considers their effects on a range of sectors in the round. APD is a relatively efficient and non-regressive tax, which makes an important contribution to the public finances.

The Government are already supporting liberalising the UK aviation market to encourage foreign airlines to develop routes from our less congested airports and encouraging the operators of our busiest airports to consider how their scarce capacity might be utilised more effectively as set out in March's Aviation Policy Framework. Services to BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries have more than doubled in the last decade, and Heathrow currently has more flights in total to the BRIC countries than any of the other four main European hubs.

The European Commission's "Taxes in Europe" database contains information on aviation taxes levied in European Union member states. The database can be found here:

http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/gen_info/info_docs/tax_inventory/index_en.htm

Further information on aviation taxes levied internationally can be found online here:

http://www2.oecd.org/ecoinst/queries/

Rather than examining specific taxes in isolation when making international comparisons, the Government's focus is on improving the efficiency and competitiveness of the tax system as a whole in order to achieve its objective of having the most competitive tax system in the G20. The Government have already made significant progress in this area, as reflected in recent international comparisons. For example, the 2012 KPMG Annual Survey of Tax Competitiveness looked at the tax regimes of six key competitor economies—including Ireland and the US—and found that the UK was the most commonly cited as being in the top three. According to

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the most recently available data, the UK's total tax burden was ranked the seventh lowest in the EU21—lower than France, Germany and the Netherlands.

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will estimate the number of passengers at UK airports who were subject to air passenger duty and were from households with below average incomes in the latest period for which information is available; [164788]

(2) what comparative assessment he has made of the level of air passenger duty charged on the number of passengers carried in the UK and equivalent duty levied by (a) other member states of the EU and (b) governments outside the EU. [164792]

Sajid Javid: Airlines, not passengers, are responsible for paying air passenger duty (APD) to HM Revenue and Customs. Generally, operators pass the cost of their forecast APD liability on to passengers as part of the ticket price of a flight, although there is no obligation for them to do so.

Information on the number of passengers flying to and from UK airports is published by the Civil Aviation Authority, but is not broken down by household income. The available data is published online here:

http://www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=80&page type=88&pageid=3&sglid=3

The Office for National Statistics recently published data showing estimated taxes and benefits by household income decile for the period 2011-12. The data suggest that the effect of APD on households is not regressive. The dataset is titled ‘The Effects of Taxes and Benefits on Household Income, 2011/12' and can be found online here:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/datasets-and-tables/index.html

The European Commission's "Taxes in Europe" database contains information on aviation taxes levied in European Union member states. The database can be found here:

http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/gen_info/info_docs/tax_inventory/index_en.htm

Further information on aviation taxes levied by Government outside the EU can be found online here:

http://www2.oecd.org/ecoinst/queries/

Bank Cards: Fees and Charges

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the European Commission's Green Paper, Towards an integrated European market for card, internet and mobile payments and proposals to regulate interchange rates, published 11 January 2013, what estimate he has made of the likely additional costs for (a) consumers and (b) small businesses from holding and using credit and debit cards. [164916]

Sajid Javid: The European Commission is expected to publish its response to the Green Paper consultation Towards an Integrated European market for card, internet and mobile payments by summer 2013, together with a legislative proposal to regulate multilateral interchange fees on card payments. The proposal will be accompanied by an impact assessment.

The Government will make their own assessment of the legislative proposal once the proposal is published.

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British Overseas Territories

Ian Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the agreement at the G8, how many action plans from the Overseas Territories have been completed; and when they will be published. [165062]

Mr Gauke: On 15 June, the Overseas Territories committed to produce action plans on beneficial ownership, setting out the concrete steps they will take to ensure greater clarity about who really owns, controls, and benefits from companies and legal arrangements in their jurisdictions.

Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands have published their action plans. The Government will continue to work in partnership with the Overseas Territories as they produce these action plans as soon as possible, and by the end of the year at the latest.