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| 2011-12 | |||
| Line of business | Grand total | Voluntary redundancies | Compulsory redundancies |
| 2012-13 | |||
| Line of business | Grand total | Voluntary redundancies | Compulsory redundancies |
Tax Avoidance
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the accuracy of the tax gap estimates produced by (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) alternative sources; and if he will make a statement. [168537]
Mr Gauke: The tax gap estimates published in “Measuring Tax Gaps 2012” are produced by Government analysts working in HMRC in line with the values, principles and protocols set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. Details of the accuracy and the methodologies used to produce the estimates are published both in the main report and in the Methodological Annex:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/tax-gaps/mtg-2012.pdf
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/tax-gaps/mtg-annex2012.pdf
HMRC is aware of alternative estimates of the tax gap. Such estimates use different definitions of the tax gap and are therefore not directly comparable. HMRC's view of the main alternative method used to calculate the tax gap is set out in:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmtreasy/124/12405.htm
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what target HM Revenue and Customs has set for reducing the tax gap in each year of the 2013 Spending Round period as (a) an overall figure and (b) a proportion of tax liabilities. [168538]
Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs does not use the tax gap estimate for setting targets or performance measurement as it is not sufficiently accurate or timely for these purposes.
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HMRC has set targets for additional revenues raised through compliance activity as set out in Spending Round 2013:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/209036/spending-round-2013-complete.pdf
Tax Evasion
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress has been made by HM Revenue and Customs in initiating proceedings against those included in the 2012 and 2013 most wanted lists of tax fugitives; and if he will make a statement. [168536]
Mr Gauke: HM Revenues Customs (HMRC) launched their most wanted list in August 2012. during the current coalition Government. 20 photographs were issued to the British press together with a brief outline of each case.
Following a re-launch in August 2013, when the list was expanded to 30 individuals, Malcolm McGowan was arrested at a public swimming pool, by officers of the Guardia Civil acting on the outstanding Spanish Arrest warrant. HMRC successfully extradited McGowan by ferry from Spain on 5 September 2013 and he is now in prison.
HMRC continues to work towards bringing all current HMRC fugitives (including those featured in the Most Wanted Campaign) before the UK Courts. HMRC uses all available systems and resources to locate and trace individuals. This includes working closely with HMRC's Overseas Liaison Officers, Crown Prosecution Service, Serious Organised Crime Agency, Interpol and International Partners.
HMRC continues to receive information concerning Fugitives from the Most Wanted campaign, both from the UK and from overseas. This information is analysed with the aim of supporting further arrests and successful extraditions from both the European Union and elsewhere.
A breakdown on progress on the 32 cases featured in HMRC's Most Wanted Campaign is as follows:
Work and Pensions
Conditions of Employment
Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many 16 to 24 year olds in (a) Jarrow Constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK have been employed on zero-hours contracts in each of the past five years. [168201]
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Mr Hurd: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Glen Watson, dated September 2013:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions asking how many 16 to 24 year olds in (a) Jarrow Constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK have been employed on zero hours contracts in each of the past five years. (168201)
Currently, the only official source of estimates of people employed on zero-hours contracts is the Labour Force Survey (LFS). Unfortunately, the LFS does not currently allow for robust analysis by age group of zero-hours contracts and, due to sample size, estimates are not available for areas smaller than the UK.
On 22 August 2013 the Office for National Statistics announced plans for an additional regular estimate of the number of 'zero-hours' employment contracts in the UK workforce:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/mro/news-release/ons-announces-additional-estimate-of-zero-hours-contracts/zhc0813.html
Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for how many hours an employee on a zero-hours contract has to work to be counted as employed rather than unemployed in his Department's monthly employment statistics. [168202]
Mr Hurd: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Glen Watson, dated September 2013:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions asking how many hours an employee on a zero hours contract has to work to be counted as employed rather than unemployed in his Department's monthly employment statistics. (168202)
Estimates of people in employment on zero-hours contracts are available from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). To be classified as in employment a respondent has to report that they had either:
(i) done some paid work in the survey reference week; or
(ii) had been temporarily away from a job.
Once a respondent has been identified as being in employment, details about the type of job are collected by asking further questions.
Anybody on a zero hours contract who satisfied either of the conditions above would be classified as in employment and included in the monthly employment statistics. Anyone else on a zero hours contract, e.g. someone who did no work in the reference week and did not consider themselves to be temporarily absent, would not be classified as in employment. They would be classified as either unemployed or economically inactive, depending on their availability for work and their job search activity, which would be determined by subsequent questions. It is not possible to estimate how many people on zero hours contracts are not classified as in employment.
The classifications used in the LFS are consistent with the standards for international comparisons as set out by the United Nations International Labour Organisation (ILO).
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Employment
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average weekly number of job applications submitted by each jobseeker in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire, (c) the East Midlands and (d) England in each of the last 24 months. [169055]
Mr Hoban: No such estimate has been made as this information is not routinely gathered.
Employment and Support Allowance
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on assisting recipients of Employment and Support Allowance into work through the Work Programme since June 2011. [168116]
Mr Hoban: From June 2011 to March 2013 (the period of the latest Work Programme statistical release) £83 million has been paid to providers for claimants in the ESA payment groups (Payment Groups 5, 6 and 7).
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the employment and support allowance work-related activity group have a prognosis of unlikely to return to work in the longer term. [168577][Official Report, 22 November 2013, Vol. 570, c. 7-9MC.]
Mr Hoban: There is no such prognosis as being unable to return to work in the longer-term. However, the following table shows how many claimants have been allocated a prognosis of two years or more:
| Employment and support allowance (ESA) new claims—Outcomes of initial functional assessments by prognosis and month of result date, for the work related activity group, Great Britain | |
| Claimants with prognosis of two years or more | |
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| Notes: 1. Figures are shown rounded to the nearest 100. 2. '—' denotes nil or negligible. Scope: Initial functional assessment—the first assessment of the employment and support allowance claim. The outcome recorded is the final DWP decision-maker's decision or the recommendation made by the Atos Healthcare professional where the decision-maker's decision is not yet available. Source: Data in the table is derived from administrative data held by the DWP and assessment data provided by Atos Healthcare. | |
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people previously in receipt of incapacity benefit have been placed in the employment and support allowance work-related activity group without being seen by an assessor. [168578]
Mr Hoban: The information is as follows:
| Incapacity benefits reassessments—outcomes for paper based assessments, Great Britain (IB claimants referred for reassessment between September 2011 and November 2012) | |
| Month of referral for reassessment | WRAG outcomes |
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| Notes: 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Hence totals may not sum exactly. 2. A small number of cases where the data is inconsistent with the policy have been excluded from this table. 3. When someone claiming incapacity benefits is reassessed for ESA, they will only have to undergo a face-to-face work capability assessment (WCA) if there is insufficient evidence for a paper-based WCA to be carried out. Source: The figures are derived from administrative data held by the Department for Work and Pensions and assessment data provided by Atos Healthcare. | |
Housing Benefit: Greater London
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what level of transitional funding for housing allowance has been allocated to each London borough for the financial year (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13 to date; and what the intended level is in 2013-14. [168337]
Steve Webb: The following table provides details of the housing benefit transitional funding allocated to local authorities in London.
| £ | |||
| Local authority | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 |
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Housing Benefit: Private Rented Housing
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the current average level of housing allowance paid to claimants in the private rented sector in each London borough is; and what the equivalent payment was in each of the last three years. [168339]
Steve Webb: The information requested for the average amount of housing benefit paid to claimants in the private rented sector in each London borough can be found at:
https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm
Incapacity Benefit
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to publish figures on incapacity benefit reassessments and decisions by condition group. [168576]
Mr Hoban: The Department has no plans to publish figures on incapacity benefit reassessments results by condition group.
Jobseeker's Allowance
Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many foreign-born nationals claimed jobseeker's allowance in each of the last five years. [168297]
Mr Hoban: The information requested is not available.
However this Department has released estimates on working age benefit recipients which can be found in the publication for NINo allocations to adult overseas nationals entering the UK: registrations to March 2013 here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nino-allocations-to-adult-overseas-nationals-entering-the-uk-registrations-to-march-2013
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the full breakdown of sanctions issued against jobseeker's allowance claimants since 2010-11 is. [169136]
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Mr Hoban: Statistics on the full breakdown of sanctions issued against jobseeker's allowance (JSA) claimants since 2010-11 can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions/series/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool
Guidance for users is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/203439/tab-tool-guidance.pdf
The statistics on JSA sanctions applied from 22 October 2012 will be published in due course. A proposed publication date will be announced in advance via
https://www.gov.uk/
http://www.statsusernet.org.uk/Home/
in the “Welfare and Benefits” community.
Jobseeker's Allowance: Domestic Violence
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) whether he has made an assessment of the extent to which the jobseeker's allowance domestic violence easement is applied in jobcentres in practice; and if he will make a statement; [168584]
(2) whether he plans to implement the recommendations of his Department's research report entitled Domestic Violence: Implementation of JSA DV Easement and DDV Concession, published in June 2013; and if he will make a statement. [168832]
Mr Hoban: DWP directly supports domestic violence victims in a number of ways. The jobseeker’s allowance domestic violence (JSA DV) easement helps victims of actual or threatened domestic violence by allowing a break from jobseeking activity to enable claimants to stabilise their lives and those of their families.
The Domestic Violence Implementation of JSA DV Easement and DDV Concession—Small Scale Qualitative Research published on 20 June 2013—identified nationally that 338 claimants have taken up the four week easement and 115 claimants have taken up the full 13 week easement.
While this demonstrates that the easement is being applied in jobcentres in practice, the research was commissioned by the Department to highlight how we can further improve service delivery.
Work is already under way to implement the recommendations from the report which. includes action to improve the local level understanding of both policies and refreshing guidance and communications to ensure that all claimants who experience domestic violence are able to get the help and support that they need.
Ministers' Private Offices
Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how much his private ministerial office spent on sending Christmas cards in 2012; [168691]
(2) which newspapers, periodicals and trade profession publications his private ministerial office subscribes to on a (a) daily, (b) weekly, (c) monthly and (d) quarterly basis; [168710]
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(3) how many full-time equivalent staff of each civil service grade are currently employed in the private office of each Minister in his Department; and what the pay band of each such member of staff is. [168729]
Mr Hoban: The Secretary of State's private ministerial office spent no money on sending Christmas cards in 2012
The Secretary of State's private ministerial office does not subscribe to any newspapers, periodicals or trade profession publications.
Details of the staff employed on each ministerial team are shown as follows:
| Number | ||
New Enterprise Allowance
Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 31 August 2012, Official Report, column 87W, on New Enterprise Allowance, whether it remains the case that the scheme will not be extended beyond 2013. [168255]
Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost to the Exchequer of doubling the capacity of the New Enterprise Allowance Scheme. [168301]
Mr Hoban: We have recently announced the extension of the new enterprise allowance and have therefore considered the cost of running the scheme for a further 15 months for the duration of the extended period. Referrals to the new enterprise allowance will now continue until the end of December 2014. We are making an additional 60,000 mentoring places available, ensuring that access to business start-up support is available to claimants who wish to move into self-employment.
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Latest new enterprise allowance (NEA) statistics published on 21 August 2013 showed that from April 2011 up to and including May 2013 there have been 54,410 starts with a NEA business mentor and 26,160 starts to the NEA weekly allowance.
The administrative costs for NEA participants are determined locally. The maximum cost per person is £600 (although in some cases is lower). We are providing additional administrative funding of £35 million to meet this cost.
The NEA weekly allowance is payable over 26 weeks and is worth up to £1,274.
Occupational Pensions
Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress has been made on the rollout of auto-enrolment pension schemes. [168885]
Steve Webb: The largest employers began automatically enrolling their staff on 1 October 2012. All other employers are being "staged in" over the next five years.
Full roll-out will be achieved in 2018 and the early signs are that it is a success. The Pensions Regulator's (TPR) latest available registration figures show that by 31 July 2013 1,600 employers had enrolled more 1.4 million eligible workers into a qualifying workplace pension.
Opt out is lower than expected so far. Previous research suggested around a third of people would opt out but the latest research with large employers indicates that around 91% of individuals are currently choosing to continue to save.
The Department will publish research later this autumn describing the experiences of large employers who have been through automatic enrolment so far to identify key lessons and good practice for employers in the future.
Older Workers
Simon Kirby:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he intends to take to increase
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the number of people aged over 50 years old who want to return to work. [168961]
Mr Hoban: Advisers in local Jobcentres now have the flexibility to offer all claimants, including older people, a comprehensive menu of help which includes skills provision and job search support. All claimants who are long-term unemployed can access the tailored, back to work support, on offer from the Work programme.
Security
Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many departmental identity cards or passes have been reported lost or stolen by staff in his Department since May 2010. [168620]
Mr Hoban: The issue and management of site passes are carried out locally by the Department's accommodation service providers. There are no centrally held records of such losses, etc., and to obtain the information requested in relation to the Department's estate would involve disproportionate cost.
Similar considerations relate to departmental identity cards which are also issued on a local basis to a minority of staff for visiting purposes.
Staff
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many posts in his Department have been relocated from London to each other region in each of the last 10 years. [168286]
Mr Hoban: In line with the recommendations of the Lyons Review of Public Sector Relocation published in 2004, the Department reviewed activities undertaken in London and the South East regions. As a result, 1,170 posts were transferred from London to other regions, out of an overall total 4,069 posts relocated from London and the South East. This programme was completed in 2008-09 and no further relocation programmes have been undertaken since.
| Region | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | Total |
Standards
Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the reasons are for the time taken to publish his Department's Quarterly Data Summary for the second quarter of 2012-13 and the third quarter of 2012-13. [168831]
Mr Hoban:
The quarter 2 and quarter 3 Quarterly Data Summary (QDS) returns of all 17 Departments participating in the QDS process were delayed owing to the development of the Cabinet Office's Government Interrogating Spending Tool (GIST). The GIST was developed in response to recommendations made in Dr Martin Read's independent report entitled ‘Practical Steps to Improve Management Information in Government'. The GIST is an online tool that allows the public to access a breakdown of government expenditure through the Gov.UK website. It makes the process of
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accessing and analysing complex QDS and OSCAR data easier and quicker, and for these reasons was seen to justify a short delay in publishing QDS data.
Start-Up Loans Company
Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost to the Exchequer of doubling the loan book of the Start-up Loans Company. [168299]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Start-Up Loans programme is fully funded by Government, therefore doubling the size of the programme would double the expenditure. However, we expect repayments and interest to be generated and have set out in the grant letter to the Start-up Loans company that these monies should be recycled for the benefit of the programme reducing the burden on the Exchequer over time. On current projections every £1 million spent on loans will generate £2.2 million of additional lending over a 10-year period.
Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what amount his Department has spent on the Start-up Loans Company to date; and what that funding has been spent on. [168300]
Michael Fallon: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Start-up Loans Company is grant funded with an allocated budget of £117.5 million to the end of 2014-15. To date, the company has drawn down £57.5 million of this funding.
A maximum of 5% of total funding has been allocated to administration costs, with up to 20% intended to support the costs of mentoring, training and support, and loan disbursement and collection by Start-Up Loans' delivery partners (dependent on individually negotiated commercial terms). These allocations are specified under the terms of the grant offer.
Actual spend in the pilot year will be confirmed in the company's annual accounts, which will be published post-audit. However, information provided by the company indicates that savings on the revenue allocation from reduced administration and transaction costs in excess of £1 million were achieved and recycled as additional capital for lending in the pilot year (2012-13).
Trussell Trust
Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what agreements his Department has made with the Trussell Trust since May 2010; what the status of any such agreement is; and what discussions his Department has had with the Trussell Trust since May 2010. [168564]
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Mr Hoban: Following a meeting with representatives of the Trussell Trust in August 2011, Jobcentre Plus agreed local offices would signpost claimants in crisis if this service was requested by local food banks. We continue to offer this service and signpost claimants to food banks.
While we have had some correspondence with the Trussell Trust but it has not been considered necessary to have any further discussions; Food banks are not Government responsibility.
Universal Credit
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reason war disablement pension is disregarded under universal credit; and if he will make a statement. [168581]
Mr Hoban: There is a compelling case to accord special treatment to ex-service personnel to acknowledge their unique contribution to safeguarding this country's security. That is why war pensions and guaranteed income payments made under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme—both regular income payments and lump sums—are fully disregarded in universal credit.
Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what assessment he has made of the resource requirements of any introduction of Jobcentre Plus interviews for universal credit claimants who are deemed to be earning too little; [168913]
(2) what discussions he has had regarding possible Jobcentre Plus interventions for those earning less than £950 per month, following the introduction of universal credit; and if he will make a statement. [168916]
Mr Hoban: Universal credit will, for the first time, enable us to engage with people who are in low paid work so that they can earn more. The nature of how we work with these claimants is yet to be determined. No assessment has therefore been made of the resource implications.
As we made clear during the passage of the Welfare Reform Act we are committed to piloting to understand what type of support works best for people in work before putting in place a national regime. We have consulted widely through the call, for ideas on ‘in work' support, and have commenced a programme of tests to explore different approaches.
Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proposals his Department has made for sanctions under universal credit for claimants who are deemed to be earning too little; and if he will make a statement. [168915]
Mr Hoban: At the launch of universal credit we are not imposing full conditionality on claimants in substantive employment until we have identified the best approach through piloting and evaluation. However, claimants with earnings below the conditionality earnings threshold will in the future be expected to look for more work or better paid work or to prepare to be ‘work-ready' and will fall into the appropriate conditionality group according to their capability and circumstances.
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Work Programme
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people with a progressive condition are being placed on the Work programme; and what the success rate for placing these claimants back into work has been to date. [168579]
Mr Hoban: Information requested is not available.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
British Nationals Abroad: Detainees
Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what range of diplomatic responses and sanctions are available to the Government in its relationships with another state when a UK citizen is being detained illegally by that state. [168483]
Mark Simmonds: The British Government would take very seriously any case of a British national being detained illegally. We would seek advice on whether the detention was in fact unlawful. If it became apparent that a British national was being detained illegally, we would consider how best to make representations to the authorities of the country holding the British national.
Actions would include in the first instance a Note Verbal or letter from the embassy, high commission or consulate. If further consultations were required we could, where appropriate, make representation at ambassadorial, ministerial or prime ministerial level. This might take the form of a letter or phone call to their counterpart, and/or the case might be raised in person in a meeting.
Democratic Republic of Congo
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what monitoring is undertaken of the activities of British-based mining companies operating in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC); and what discussions he has held with the Government of DRC on the operation of Extractive Industries Transparency Protocol. [168340]
Mark Simmonds: British embassy staff in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) maintain contact with British-based mining companies or their representatives in the course of their business. However, regulating the activities of British businesses overseas is largely the responsibility of the host Government in the country of operation. The UK Business and Human Rights Action Plan, launched on 4 September by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), sets out the Government's expectations of business in relation to human rights and its own actions in support.
DRC became an Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) candidate in 2008 but was temporarily suspended in April 2013. We continue to encourage DRC to seek to meet EITI standards.
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Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with (a) his counterpart in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), (b) his Rwandan counterpart, (c) the UN Special Envoy to the Great Lakes and (d) the UN Special Representatives for the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the need for a renewed political dialogue between the Government of the DRC and the M23 rebel group. [168355]
Mark Simmonds: During the outbreak of the recent fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), I spoke to both the Special Representative of the Secretary General and the UN Special Envoy. I have also spoken to the Prime Minister of DRC and the Foreign Minister of Rwanda. I have encouraged restraint on all sides, and expressed my support for the work and leadership of the UN. I welcome the fact that talks between the DRC Government and the M23 are to restart. While these talks are unlikely in themselves to bring lasting peace to eastern DRC, they have a part to play in resolving the immediate conflict. This will allow the main focus to return to implementing the Peace, Security and Co-operation Framework for the Great Lakes—aimed at addressing the underlying causes of conflict in eastern DRC—with a dialogue between regional Governments to support it.
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to encourage the government of (a) the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and (b) Rwanda towards the resumption of the peace talks between the DRC and the M23 rebel group. [168356]
Mark Simmonds: During the outbreak of the recent fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), I spoke to both the Special Representative of the Secretary General and the UN Special Envoy. I have also spoken to the Prime Minister of DRC and the Foreign Minister of Rwanda. I have encouraged restraint on all sides, and expressed my support for the work and leadership of the UN. I welcome the fact that talks between the DRC Government and the M23 are to restart. While these talks are unlikely in themselves to bring lasting peace to eastern DRC, they have a part to play in resolving the immediate conflict. This will allow the main focus to return to implementing the Peace, Security and Co-operation Framework for the Great Lakes—aimed at addressing the underlying causes of conflict in eastern DRC—with a dialogue between regional Governments to support it.
Dominican Republic
Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the UK Ambassador to the Dominican Republic has requested a meeting with the (a) Attorney-General, (b) President of the Supreme Court and (c) President of the Dominican Republic to discuss the case of Nicole Reyes a constituent of the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth. [168485]
Mark Simmonds: Our ambassador to the Dominican Republic wrote to the Attorney-General on 28 August regarding the detention of Nicole Reyes. He has requested a meeting to discuss the case.
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Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will personally raise the case of Nicole Reyes a constituent of the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth with his counterpart in the Dominican Republic; [168486]
(2) if the Prime Minister will raise the case of Nicole Reyes, a constituent of the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth, who is detained illegally in the Dominican Republic with the President of the Dominican Republic. [168487]
Mr Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is fully aware of Ms Reyes's detention, and Ministers are being updated regularly. FCO officials are urging the relevant authorities, where appropriate, to address the concerns raised by Ms Reyes's lawyer about her continued detention. Most recently, on 28 August, HM ambassador to the Dominican Republic wrote to the Attorney-General, about Ms Reyes's detention and has requested a meeting to discuss the case.
Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many UK citizens are being detained illegally in the Dominican Republic. [168499]
Mr Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is aware of 12 British citizens currently detained in the Dominican Republic following conviction. We are actively seeking clarification from the authorities in the Dominican Republican regarding the continued detention of one other British national.
Female Genital Mutilation
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the practice of female genital mutilation. [168234]
Mr Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has regular conversations with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues. The UK Government are clear that female genital mutilation is unacceptable wherever and whenever it occurs. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office works with the Home Office, the Department of Health and the Department for Education to prevent female genital mutilation.
Iran
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contacts there have been with representatives of the government of Iran during the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [168338]
Alistair Burt:
Given the current level of diplomatic relations, there has been limited contact between the UK and Iran over the last 12 months. UK officials have met their Iranian counterparts at E3+3 nuclear talks, and in multilateral organisations. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs wrote and spoke
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to the previous Iranian Foreign Minister Salehi, and will now meet Foreign Minister Zarif later this month in New York. The Prime Minister has written to President Rouhani. The UK is ready to improve bilateral relations with Iran on a step by step and reciprocal basis.
Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Iranian Government about the murder of Mr Ataollah Rezvani on Saturday 24 August 2013; and if he will make a statement. [168904]
Alistair Burt: I am aware of reports of the murder of Mr Ataollah Rezvani—a member of the much persecuted Bahai faith in Iran. I called publicly for the Iranian Government to conduct a full investigation into his death on 30 August. I will be monitoring developments in this case closely.
Jerusalem
Mr Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the UK has made representations to the Israeli authorities on the state of the Shu'fat refugee camp which is within the Jerusalem municipality; if he will make a statement on the health of the inhabitants of the camp; and if he will make a statement. [168498]
Alistair Burt: We are aware of the issue of sanitation in Shu'fat refugee camp. We have made no representations to the Israeli authorities on this subject.
Syria
Mr Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of attacks on the historic Christian town of Maaloula by elements of Syrian opposition forces; whether groups affiliated to or members of the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) were involved in any such attacks; and what representations he has made to the SNC concerning toleration of religious minorities, including the Christian minority in Syria. [168835]
Alistair Burt: On Thursday 5 September, unconfirmed reports began to emerge of an attack on the regime-held town of Maaloula, in the Qalamoun hills some 35 miles north-east of Damascus. According to these reports, on the evening of Wednesday 4 September, the town was attacked by fighters from some extremist opposition factions—including the AQ-linked Jabhat al-Nusra (JAN), Ahrar al-Sham and Ahfad al-Rasul. These attacks were reportedly followed by regime shelling and air strikes. To date there have been no confirmed reports of civilians being killed or churches desecrated.
We regularly engage with the Syrian National Coalition and the Supreme Military Council and continue to encourage them to respect all minority rights. The National Coalition has committed to reaching out to minorities and has made clear that there will be a place for all Syrians, regardless of ethnicity or religious belief, in a
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future Syria. At the Friends of Syria meeting in Istanbul on 20 April, the National Coalition set out clear commitments on reaching out to minorities and to guaranteeing the rights, interests and participation of all components of Syrian society. During the visit of Coalition President Al-Jarba on 5 September 2013, I emphasised that the coalition should continue to show their commitment to the safety of Christians, and other minorities.
Justice
Electronic Tagging
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to (a) receive and (b) publish the report of the audit by PricewaterhouseCoopers into the electronic monitoring contracts held by G4S and Serco in England and Wales. [162827]
Jeremy Wright: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice received a preliminary audit report from PricewaterhouseCoopers in July, which informed his statement to the House on this subject on 11 July 2013, Official Report, columns 573-575. Auditors from PricewaterhouseCoopers are now in the process of auditing every other contract the Department holds with G4S and Serco. It would not be appropriate to publish audit reports at this stage, in order to avoid prejudicing any subsequent investigations. The Secretary of State will however continue to keep Parliament informed.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when his Department will publish the findings of its inquiry into payments to G4S and Serco as part of the contracts for provision of electronic tagging. [166072]
Jeremy Wright: Auditors from PricewaterhouseCoopers are now in the process of auditing every other contract the Department holds with G4S and Serco. It would not be appropriate to publish audit reports at this stage, in order to avoid prejudicing any subsequent investigations. The Secretary of State will however continue to keep Parliament informed.
Legal Aid Scheme
Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for exceptional funding under section 10 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 have been granted by the Legal Aid Agency since 1 April 2013. [162492]
Jeremy Wright: As of 27 June 2013, the Legal Aid Agency has granted exceptional funding in six cases.
Exceptional funding is available where a case is excluded from the scope of civil legal aid as defined in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his estimate of potential savings in the legal aid budget assumes a potential increase in costs to the court system arising from additional numbers of litigants in person. [163373]
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Jeremy Wright: Legal aid is paid for by taxpayers and resources are not limitless, especially in the current economic climate and we have had to make some tough decisions. The reforms to legal aid contained in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, implemented on 1 April 2013, safeguard legal aid to ensure legal advice is available for those who really need it.
While the reforms may result in an increase in numbers of litigants in person (LiPs), it is not immediately evident that this will result in increased costs for the courts. The impact assessment which accompanied the Act set out a number of actions that the MOJ will, and is now, taking to monitor the impacts on the courts.
The Ministry of Justice has established a Litigants in Person Programme Board which, as part of its responsibilities, monitors the impact of the legal aid changes in relation to litigants in person. The board includes members from Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and the Judicial Office and will be considering the impact of the changes on the effective running of the courts and tribunals. There are no plans to prepare or publish a report of the board's work.
In addition, Ministers and officials in the MOJ meet regularly with HMCTS and members of the judiciary and will receive regular feedback on the impact of the changes.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Justice's Analytical Services team has commissioned a research project to develop the evidence base on the range of litigants in person in private law family cases, their behavioural drivers, support needs and their impact on the court system.
The research includes two key elements:
(1) a detailed analysis of all cases listed for a hearing in five target courts over a three-week data collection period, involving observation of the hearings, interviews with the parties and the professionals associated with the case and scrutiny of the court file; and
(2) a local contextual study, designed to pick up the broader processes and perspectives relevant to litigants in person.
The aim is to improve our understanding of the full range of cases involving litigants in person and how their needs are supported during the court process.
Finally, between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the ‘Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system’ consultation. We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including nearly £1 billion of taxpayers' money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer. The impact assessments (IAs) published alongside the consultation paper contain the Government's initial assessment of the impact of the proposals, including the data on which the assessments were made. We noted a potential increase in litigants in person as a risk in the IAs, but the numbers were too uncertain to quantify and/or cost.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made, and on what evidential basis, of the effect of the removal from scope of (a) resettlement work and (b) work connected with security categorisation arising from his Transforming Legal Aid proposals; and if he will make a statement. [166154]
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Jeremy Wright: Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation. This included proposals to restrict the scope of legal aid for prison law. We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including around £1 billion of taxpayers' money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer and to address questions of public confidence in the legal aid system.
Respondents to the consultation raised a number of issues that will be addressed in the Government response, due to be published shortly.
The impact assessments (IA) published alongside the consultation paper contain the Government's initial assessment of the impact of the proposals, including the data on which the assessments were made. Specific assessments of the impact on resettlement work and security categorisation decisions were not specifically distinguished in the IA that covered the proposals for prison law. Impact assessments will be published alongside the forthcoming response, setting out the Government's final assessment of the impact of the proposals to be implemented.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made, and on what evidential basis, of (a) the amount of time prisoners are likely to spend in custody and (b) the amount of specialist law experience that will be available following implementation of his Transforming Legal Aid proposals; and if he will make a statement. [166155]
Jeremy Wright: Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation. This included proposals to restrict the scope of legal aid for prison law. We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including around £1 billion of taxpayers' money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer and to address questions of public confidence in the legal aid system.
The Impact Assessments (IAs) published alongside the consultation paper contain the Government's initial assessment of the impact of the proposals, including that for prison law, and contain data on which the assessments were made.
Impact Assessments will be published alongside the forthcoming response, setting out the Government's final assessment of the impact of the proposals to be implemented, although it should be noted that the consultation did not propose any changes to current sentencing policy.
We sought views from respondents to the consultation on the factors we should consider when designing the criteria for any future procurement process for criminal legal aid contracts and these are now being considered. We have no intention of lowering the quality standards from current levels and therefore will ensure any specialist skills or experience standards against which providers are currently assessed will as a minimum be maintained.
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Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made, and on what evidential basis, of the cost implications of an increase in litigants in person in the court system as a result of his Transforming Legal Aid proposal; and if he will make a statement. [166156]
Jeremy Wright: Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation . We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including around £1 billion of taxpayers' money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer.
The impact assessments (IAs) published alongside the consultation paper contain the Government's initial assessment of the impact of the proposals, including the data on which the assessments were made. We noted a potential increase in litigants in person as a risk in the IAs, but the numbers were too uncertain to quantify and/or cost. Updated impact assessments will be published alongside the forthcoming response, setting out the Government's final assessment of the impact of the proposals to be implemented.
The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has established a Litigants in Person Programme Board which is monitoring the impact of the legal aid changes in relation to litigants in person. The board includes members from Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and the judicial office and will be considering the impact of the changes on the effective running of the courts and tribunals.
In addition Ministers and officials in the MOJ meet regularly with HMCTS and members of the judiciary and will receive regular feedback on the impact of the changes.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made, and on what evidential basis, of the costs associated with any increase in appeals and onwards challenges against refusals of funding, resulting from his Transforming Legal Aid proposals; and if he will make a statement. [166157]
Jeremy Wright: Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation. We have been clear we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer and to address questions of public confidence in the legal aid system.
The Impact Assessments (IAs) published alongside the consultation paper contain the Government's initial assessment of the impact of the proposals, including the data on which the assessments were made. The Civil Credibility IA discusses appeals where it is relevant to do so. Updated Impact Assessments will be published alongside the forthcoming response, setting out the Government's final assessment of the impact of the proposals to be implemented.
Magistrates' Courts: Corby
Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the future of Corby Magistrates' Court. [168978]
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Mrs Grant: The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice has made no recent assessment on the future of Corby magistrates court.
HMCTS keeps the use of its estates under review to ensure it meets operational requirements. Any new proposals to close courts beyond this would be subject to consultation.
Oakwood Prison
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many contract failures there have been at HM Prison Oakwood since it opened; what those failures were; and what financial penalties were attached to them. [165789]
Jeremy Wright: One improvement notice was issued on 13 February 2013 requiring improvements to standards of cleanliness, levels of mandatory drugs testing, levels of purposeful activity, completion of the agreed searching programme, and staffing numbers.
From the date on which services commenced at the prison (24 April 2012) until the last calendar day of the same year (31 December 2012) performance points were not applicable owing to the "bedding-in period" specified in the contract. From January 2013 to March 2013: the number of performance points applicable for this quarter is currently under review owing to a requirement to clarify the means of interpreting the data involved in calculating the number of points.
From April 2013 to June 2013: performance data is not yet finalised for this quarter, so the number of performance points and the value of any associated financial penalties is currently unknown.
For the purposes of this answer I interpret "contract failures" to mean "improvement notices" and "performance points" as these are the two primary mechanisms for responding to instances of performance below the contractually required standard.
Prisoners: Repatriation
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many foreign nationals were repatriated to their home countries in 2012. [166069]
Jeremy Wright: In 2012, 4,765 foreign national offenders were removed from the United Kingdom.
Prisons
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what estimate he has made of the likely income from the sale of HMP (a) Blundeston, (b) Dorchester, (c) Northallerton and (d) Reading; [168139]
(2) who owns the (a) building and (b) land at HMP (i) Blundeston, (ii) Dorchester, (iii) Northallerton and (iiv) Reading; [168140]
(3) what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have had with companies or organisations in relation to the sale or purchase of HM Prison (i) Blundeston, (ii) Dorchester, (iii) Northallerton and (iv) Reading. [168174]
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Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice owns the prison sites at Blundeston, Dorchester, Northallerton and Reading.
Once the prisons have closed, consideration will be given to potential future uses and disposal of the sites. No meetings with companies or organisations have yet taken place.
The market value of each of the sites has not been formally assessed. We seek to gain best value from the sale of all surplus assets.
Protection from Harassment Act 1997
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many post-charge bail applications were (a) refused, (b) granted with conditions and (c) granted unconditionally in cases where a defendant has been charged with an offence contrary to the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 in (i) 2012 and (ii) 2011; [168466]
(2) how many post-charge bail applications have been (a) refused, (b) granted with conditions and (c) granted unconditionally in cases where a defendant has been charged with an offence against the person, in a domestic context in (i) 2012 and (ii) 2011. [168491]
Mrs Grant: The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. Information collated centrally does not contain the result of a bail application. All courts will have a record of the result of individual bail applications. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost by manually reviewing court records. Additionally it is not possible to identify domestic violence cases from other offences involving violence. This database holds information on offences provided by the statutes under which proceedings are brought but not the specific circumstances of each case.
Sir Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for the Home Department, (b) the Attorney-General, (c) the Lord Chief Justice and (d) Ministers and officials in his Department on further training for (i) police forces, (ii) the Crown Prosecution Service (iii) the Probation Service, (iv) magistrates and (v) judges on the application of sections 2A and 4A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997; and if he will make a statement. [168833]
Mrs Grant: The offences under sections 2A and 4A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 are the responsibility of the Home Office.
The Secretary of State for Justice is fully signed up to the Government Action Plan to End Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) which includes an undertaking to continue to raise awareness of stalking to improve professionals' response.
Since the creation of the new stalking offences the Ministry of Justice has supported the Home Office in the development and delivery of training for practitioners and will continue to do so in this and other areas.
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Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to issue revised sentencing guidelines in respect of new offences under sections 2A and 4A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. [168838]
Mrs Grant: The new stalking offences introduced by this Government are designed to address specific stalking behaviour as opposed to harassment more generally. The new offence under section 4A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 covers a course of conduct which causes serious alarm or distress which has a substantial adverse effect on the day-to-day activities of the victim. This recognises the overall emotional and psychological harm that stalking may cause to victims, even where there is no explicit fear of violence. The maximum penalty for the section 2A offence is six months' imprisonment and for the section 4A offence the maximum penalty is five years' imprisonment.
The independent Sentencing Council is responsible for producing sentencing guidelines and it will be for the Council to consider the issue of new or revised guidelines covering these offences.
Rape: Victim Support Schemes
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2013, Official Report, columns 653-5W, on rape: victim support schemes, how much was allocated from the Combined Fund (Sexual Violence) to Birmingham; and what projects in Birmingham were funded from that fund. [167411]
Mrs Grant: The 2010-11 Combined Fund (Sexual Violence) provided £50,000 of funding to the Rape and Sexual Violence Project in Birmingham.
Up to 2015, this Government have ring-fenced nearly £40 million to fund specialist local domestic and sexual violence support services and £1.5 million for victims of gang-related sexual violence.
Trials: Human Rights
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases were pursued in UK courts under the Human Rights Act 1998 in the last year; how many such cases were pursued by (a) prisoners and (b) foreign nationals; and how many of those cases were successful. [166207]
Mrs Grant: A claim under the Human Rights Act 1998 could arise in any proceedings before a court or tribunal, in addition to stand alone claims. No information is collected on such claims and therefore the information requested is not available.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Animal Products: Waste Disposal
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which UK companies are licensed to deal with category 1 waste; and how many tonnes of category 1 waste (a) in total and (b) from abattoirs in the UK each such company dealt with in each of the last three years. [168463]
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Mr Heath: Category 1 waste is animal by-product waste as defined in the EU Animal By-product Regulations 1069/2009. This includes specified risk material from abattoirs, international catering waste, carcasses of pet and zoo animals, carcasses of ruminants at the point of disposal and certain other animal by-products.
The vast majority of category 1 material will be sent for rendering or incineration. A list of approved rendering and incineration plants, including those that can handle category 1 material, is maintained by Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) and can be found at:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/ahvla-en/disease-control/abp/premises/
AHVLA does not keep a list of companies that exclusively handle category 1 waste.
Other businesses that may handle category 1 animal by-products include hauliers, certain licensed landfill sites, approved handling premises and plants producing technical products.
AHVLA does not keep a record of weights of category 1 material dealt with by each company.
Additionally, the Environment Agency issues permits to allow category 1 ABP waste to be disposed or treated by incineration or rendering.
The Environment Agency permitted five incineration facilities in England at the end of 2012 authorised to burn only ABP wastes. These were:
Ancillary Components Ltd, Rushden
EPR Thetford Ltd, Thetford
Granox Ltd, Widnes
Fibrogen Ltd, Flixborough
University of Bristol Field Station, Langford.
| Total tonnage burnt at these incinerators between 2010 and 2012 | |
| Tonnage incinerated | |
| Note: This data is for all categories of ABP. We cannot distinguish category 1 ABPs alone from our records. | |
The Environment Agency permitted seven facilities in England at the end of 2012 authorised to render ABP wastes.
Some facilities are abattoirs and/or renderers and as such permitted maximum quantities accepted may be in tonnes of ABP waste or numbers of animals. One or the other is given in the following table:
| Maximum tonnage or number of animals allowed to be accepted under the permit | |
| Company | Tonnage/number |
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Further work would be required to be carried out to collate actual annual quantities accepted over the last three years as this information is not held centrally.
The Environment Agency permits 65 facilities for slaughtering animals with a capacity of >50 tonnes per day in England.
Further work would need to be carried out to collate the data on the quantity of ABP waste produced by the facilities as this information is not held centrally.
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many tonnes of category 1 waste was produced by abattoirs in the UK in each of the last three years. [168464]
Mr Heath: The keeping of records of quantities of each category of animal by-product despatched from an establishment is the responsibility of the individual Food Business Operator (FBO). Food Standards Agency (FSA) staff monitor the FBO's compliance with the requirements of the Animal By-Products Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 but there is no requirement for the FSA to maintain records of everything that leaves the premises.
While the FSA does monitor quantities of specified risk material produced in bovine and ovine slaughterhouses at a local level, this information is used to determine frequency of inspections and is not held centrally.
There are no specific Category 2 rendering plants now in the UK meaning that all waste leaving plants is either Category 1 or Category 3. Category 1 material is therefore likely to contain Category 2 by-products that cannot be included in Category 3 collection systems.
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the most common final end uses of category 1 waste after processing were in each of the last three years. [168465]
Mr Heath: The most common final use of the meat and bone meal (MBM) and tallow produced by processing category 1 waste is likely to be burning for heat and electricity. Some category 1 tallow may also be used in the production of biodiesel.
Processing plants are approved for the purpose by Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA). AHVLA does not retain records to verify the final end use from all processing plants.
Bovine Tuberculosis
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what proportion of badgers exterminated during the current pilot cull the humaneness of extermination will be measured and recorded. [168096]
Mr Heath:
The cull is compliant with the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, and the hon. Member's reference to extermination is therefore inappropriate. Humaneness monitoring will be undertaken in accordance with a protocol developed with advice from statistical experts and approved by the independent experts panel set up by DEFRA to oversee the development of scientifically
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robust and policy-relevant monitoring protocols. The results of this monitoring will be published after the pilot culls have been completed.
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much of the £500,000 allocated by his Department for badger vaccination has been distributed to farmers in the cull areas to date. [168477]
Mr Heath: The Badger Vaccination Fund (£250,000 p.a.) has been open for two years. Only vaccination schemes in the pilot cull areas were eligible to apply in year one, when £6,302.80 was distributed. In year two DEFRA broadened the criteria to include the whole of the high risk TB area and publicised this particularly among wildlife groups with an interest in badger vaccination. A number of grants have already been awarded and others are under consideration but the amount distributed will only be known after the vaccination has taken place and claims submitted.
Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many monitors have been employed by Natural England to monitor the humaneness of the pilot badger culls. [168484]
Mr Heath: Natural England is responsible for ensuring the licence conditions are complied with. Humaneness observations, which are being conducted independently of Natural England, are being carried out on a statistically significant number of occasions.
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what date the findings of the trial badger cull will be published. [169019]
Mr Heath: A report to Ministers on the outcome of pilot culls will be published after the culls have been completed and following a review of the results by an independent panel of experts.
Food: Prices
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on developing a food pricing policy that tackles food poverty alongside public health concerns. [168566]
Mr Heath: I recently met with the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health to ensure a coherent approach across Government. This includes work to provide consumers with the information with which to make choices about healthy, sustainable and affordable diets.
Through the Public Health Responsibility Deal, the Government are working with business and others to encourage and enable people to adopt a healthier diet, and through schemes such as Love Food Hate Waste helping both businesses and individuals make healthy and affordable choices and save money.
We also work internationally to promote transparency, open global markets and a competitive domestic market to help producers and retailers offer the best prices to consumers.
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Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government is taking to help make fresh fruit and vegetables more affordable. [168567]
Mr Heath: We work across Government to provide consumers with the information with which to make choices about healthy, sustainable and affordable diets.
The School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme gives free fruit and vegetables to over 2 million children, and through 'Healthy Start' the Government provide a nutritional safety net, in a way that encourages healthy eating, to more than half a million pregnant women and children under four years old in very low income and disadvantaged families throughout the UK. Through the Public Health Responsibility Deal the Government is working with business and others to encourage and enable people to eat more fruit and vegetables.
We also work internationally to promote transparency, open global markets and a competitive domestic market to help producers and retailers offer the best prices to consumers.
Livestock: Transport
Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reason an Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency inspection at Dover port found a non-compliance issue with a lorry carrying sheep from travelling on the Joline to France on 4 September 2013; and whether that lorry had been inspected at point of loading under the supervised loading scheme. [168426]
Mr Heath: The vehicle in question was not supervised at loading and was therefore subject to an inspection by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency at Dover port, which identified vehicle approval irregularities and breaches of the technical rules set out in Annex I to Council Regulation (EC) 1/2005. Consequently, it was prohibited from continuing its journey.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Business: Billing
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many officials of his Department are working on plans to introduce a fine for late payment. [168920]
Michael Fallon: As indicated in my previous answer given to the hon. Member on 11 September 2013, Official Report, columns 738-39W, officials are still considering a range of options to tackle ongoing late payment problems.
Conditions of Employment
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff (a) directly employed and (b) indirectly employed through other companies by his Department were employed on zero-hours contracts in each of the last 10 years. [168270]
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Jo Swinson: The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) does not employ anyone directly on a zero-hours contract. The information cannot be provided for employees of other companies without disproportionate cost.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which stakeholders have met Ministers or officials of his Department to date as part of his Department's review of zero-hours contracts; on what date and with whom each such meeting took place; which stakeholders have submitted written evidence to that review; and on what date each such submission was received. [168921]
Jo Swinson: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 6 September 2013, Official Report, column 535W.
The review on zero hours was a fact-finding exercise officials undertook to understand and explore zero hours contracts. As this was not a call for evidence nor a consultation, stakeholders did not submit written evidence.
Cosmetics: Labelling
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what advice his Department has issued to (a) retailers and (b) importers on the correct implementation for cosmetic products of the mandatory origin labelling requirements of EU Regulation 1223/2009. [168490]
Jo Swinson: No specific advice has been issued to retailers and importers of cosmetics, as country of origin labelling was specified in the previous regulation, the Cosmetic Products (Safety) Regulations 2008, guidance for which highlighted this requirement.