Defence: Scotland

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) consultation and (b) meetings Ministers and officials in his Department have had with the Scottish Government regarding the production of its forthcoming White Paper on defence policy. [171183]

Dr Murrison: None. Engagement with the Scottish Government on issues where the reserved matter of defence touches devolved matters continues as normal and is not affected by the independence referendum or the debate around it.

Military Exercises

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) which Royal Navy vessels were to be deployed for the cancelled Exercise Djibouti Lion; [171162]

(2) how many Royal Marines personnel, by unit, were involved in the cancelled Exercise Djibouti Lion; [171163]

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(3) whether his Department has made alternative plans for Royal Marines' training exercises in the next six months following the cancelled Exercise Djibouti Lion; [171166]

(4) which (a) administration and (b) other problems led to the cancellation of Exercise Djibouti Lion; [171167]

(5) when his Department received formal notice from the French Government that French forces would not be taking part in Exercise Djibouti Lion; [171168]

(6) what the costs are, by category of expenditure, of the cancelled Exercise Djibouti Lion. [171184]

Mr Francois [holding answer 16 October 2013]: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan), on 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 34W, to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

Activity costs for individual exercises are not identified separately within the overall Cougar 13 deployment. The specific financial information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost but their marginal costs above planned operating levels are low. Travel and subsistence costs for the initial reconnaissance visit for Djibouti Lion and the subsequent visit for negotiations were £27,500.

HMS Bulwark, HMS Illustrious and RFA Mounts Bay, as part of Cougar 13, were due to participate in the cancelled Exercise Djibouti Lion. RFA Mounts Bay, RFA Fort Victoria, RFA Lyme Bay and the RoRo Hurst Point still intend to make scheduled port visits to Djibouti.

The numbers of personnel, by unit, who were due to participate in the Exercise, are shown in the following table:

Some Royal Marines have been re-tasked on other activity in the region, and some personnel will return to the UK in preparation for future exercises.

Exercise Djibouti Lion required agreement on a number of administrative issues in order for UK forces to gain permission to access Djibouti. Regrettably satisfactory agreement on some issues could not be reached in time for the Exercise to proceed. This was a value for money decision; it was not for lack of available resources as has been reported in some quarters. Vessels involved carried on with their planned exercises in the Gulf region and built in additional training packages.

French units were still planned to participate in Djibouti Lion before the UK cancelled the Exercise.

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RAF Akrotiri

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on improving armed forces accommodation in RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, in each year since 2010. [167921]

Mr Francois: It will take time to gather this information, I will write to the hon. Gentleman.

Substantive answer from Anna Soubry to Kevan Jones:

My predecessor undertook to write to you in answer to your Parliamentary Question on 6 September 2013 (Official Report, column 544W) about the Ministry of Defence's spend on improving Armed Forces accommodation in RAF Akrotiri.

The amount spent on improving Armed Forces accommodation in RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus in each financial year since 2010-11 is as follows:

Recruitment

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on the use of genetic data from asymptomatic candidates who may continue to be asymptomatic indefinitely for use in its recruitment programme; and if he will make a statement. [171215]

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence neither collects nor uses genetic data from any candidates, asymptomatic or otherwise, in any of its recruitment programmes.

Redundancy

Mr Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the (a) costs and (b) likely savings as a result of his Department's redundancy programme over the next five years. [168068]

Anna Soubry [holding answer 9 September 2013]: The final costs and savings from redundancies and early release schemes over the period will depend on a number of factors such as the level of natural wastage, salary, rank/grade and length of service of the personnel selected. Our current assessment is that the major drawdown in the numbers of service personnel and civilian staff will have been completed by financial year 2014-15. We estimate that the costs of exit packages in 2013-14 and 2014-15 will total some £460 million. Exit costs beyond 2014-15 are expected to be relatively small.

We have made no estimate of the savings accruing specifically from the redundancy and early release programmes themselves, since they are part of broader workforce reductions. We estimate, however, that by 2021-22 we will have achieved cumulative savings of some £23 billion as a result of reductions in service and civilian personnel and greater efficiency in the conduct of non-front-line activities.

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Reserve Forces

Mr Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the process is for dealing with Reserve Forces applications; and if he will make a statement. [167197]

Anna Soubry: The process for candidates applying to the Army Reserve is the same as for the Regular Army. After the initial online application, candidates complete medical screening questionnaires. If successful they proceed to face-to-face interviews with Army Career Centre staff. The interviews can also be undertaken by Army Reserve Liaison Officers for Army Reserve personnel. All continuing candidates will then be assessed, including medically, at one of the Army's four Assessment Centres. Final pre-employment checks are then conducted (including a basic security/criminal record check and confirmation of medical circumstances from each candidate's GP). If these pre-employment checks are completed successfully then the candidate can be enlisted and booked onto the appropriate initial (Phase 1) training course.

Territorial Army: Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what plans his Department has to dispose of (a) Caernarfon TA and (b) other redundant TA training centres; [170917]

(2) where staff currently employed at Caernarfon TA barracks will be redeployed; [170918]

(3) what plans his Department has for the disposal of tied houses in relation to Caernarfon barracks. [170919]

Dr Murrison: It is too early to say what the long-term future of the Caernarfon Territorial Army (TA) centre site or any other redundant sites may be. Once vacated by the TA, the site, including any tied housing, will be handed over to the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) in line with departmental procedures. The DIO will then see if there is any wider Ministry of Defence (MOD) use for the site, followed by wider Government use and, if no such use is found, finally place it for sale on the open market.

The effects of the Army Reserves basing announcement may affect the working arrangements of civilian staff. We do not yet know the fine detail of these changes, nor the definite time scale of implementation, but staff will be informed at the earliest possible opportunity. Staff affected by the changes will be managed in line with MOD policy.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what provision there is for training in the medium of Welsh at Territorial Army training centres in North Wales; [170916]

(2) what provision is made for Welsh-language training at TA training centres in north Wales. [170924]

Mr Francois: No Army training is conducted in the medium of Welsh at Territorial Army centres in north Wales, nor is any provision made for Welsh-language training for Army personnel.

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Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the average travelling times to each TA training centre in north Wales. [170921]

Dr Murrison: No assessment of the average travelling times to each Territorial Army (TA) training centre in north Wales has been made.

As part of the work on Army Reserve structures and basing announced on 3 July 2013, Official Report, column 924, we did consider the distance of travel for those personnel based at the Caernarfon Territorial Army centre, which is being vacated, and Colwyn Bay, the nearest alternative base. This showed that the majority of relevant Army Reserve personnel lived closer to Colwyn Bay than they do to Caernarfon.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how large the geographical area being served by the TA training centre in Colwyn Bay is. [170922]

Dr Murrison: There is no designated geographical area served by any Territorial Army Centre; while recruiting might be limited to a reasonable area, attendees can come from much further afield.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average attendance at each TA training centre in north Wales has been in each of the last 12 months. [170923]

Dr Murrison: I will write to the hon. Gentleman with the information requested.

Education

Anti-slavery Day

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what each Minister in his Department will be doing to acknowledge Anti-slavery Day on 18 October 2013; and if he will make a statement. [171036]

Elizabeth Truss: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Chatham and Aylesford (Tracey Crouch) on 24 June 2013, Official Report, column 128W.

Disciplinary Proceedings

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many members of staff in his Department are currently suspended; and for how long each such member of staff has been suspended. [171245]

Elizabeth Truss: No members of staff at the Department for Education are currently suspended.

Education Funding Agency

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to Cabinet Office Procurement Information Note 2/2010, whether the Education Funding Agency is required to comply with the advice that firms in construction supply chains should have payment security either through the use of project bank accounts

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or by Government clients requiring that all payments to sub-contractors are made within 19 days of the due dates in the main contract; and if he will make a statement. [171005]

Elizabeth Truss: As an Executive agency of a Government Department, the Education Funding Agency (EFA) is bound to comply with Procurement Information Notice 2/2010. The notice states that compliance with the Guide to Fair Payment Best Practice is a contractual requirement for central Government construction clients. Compliance with the guide has been a contractual requirement in the EFA's (previously Partnerships for Schools) Contractors Framework since 2009.

The EFA has not yet used project bank accounts (PBAs). The notice is clear that it is not intended to apply retrospectively to contracts already in place. The EFA is currently re-procuring the Contractors Framework and is putting in place provision for the use of PBAs. The EFA will use PBAs for all construction procurement contracts that it enters into under the new Contractors Framework. The EFA will be encouraging all Contractors Framework users to adopt PBAs although it is acknowledged that there are some limited circumstances when their use may not be appropriate; in those circumstances, compliance with the guide will continue to be required.

Free Schools

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of applications to open free schools were made by (a) academy sponsors and (b) teacher-led groups in each year since the inception of free schools. [170908]

Mr Timpson: All free schools are set up with the involvement of educational experts and all successful applications must show sufficient educational capacity. Looking only at free schools proposers which have self-identified as ‘teacher-led groups’ or ‘academy sponsor groups’ does not, therefore, provide a full picture of the range of individuals and groups involved in the set-up and running of a free school. The Department received 70 (22%) applications from groups describing themselves as teacher-led in 2010, 72 (26%) in 2011, 35 (15%) in 2012 and 35 (11%) in 2013.

The equivalent figures for applicants classifying themselves as academy sponsors are: 11 (3%) in 2010, 19 (7%) in 2011, 39 (16%) in 2012 and 77 (24%) in 2013. Some applications—while identified as academy sponsor groups–may be led by teacher groups who have opted to partner with an academy sponsor to bolster their expertise and capacity.

GCSE

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of pupils achieved five or more GCSEs at grade C or above, including mathematics and English (a) in London, (b) in other areas of England and (c) in England; and what proportion of such pupils (i) spoke and (ii) did not speak English as an additional language in each of the last three years. [171231]

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Mr Laws: The requested information on the proportion of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs at grade C or above, including English and mathematics by region, local authority and by English as a first language can be found in the Department’s Statistical First Release: ‘GCSE and equivalent attainment by pupil characteristics in England: 2011 to 2012.’¹

The link "National and local authority tables SFR04/2013" table 4 contains the information required. There is a drop down box in the top right hand corner of the table which allows the filtering of each year back to 2008.

¹ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gcse-and-equivalent -attainment-by-pupil-characteristics-in-england

Higher Education: South Yorkshire

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of school leavers in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) Barnsley, (c) south Yorkshire and (d) England went on to complete higher education in each of the last five years. [171062]

Mr Laws: Destination Measures data were published for the first time in July 2012 and covered the sustained educational destinations for academic year 2009/10. Constituency and regional level data are available only for the 2010/11 Destination Measures, published in 2013.

The higher education destinations for Barnsley Central constituency, Barnsley local authority, Yorkshire and the Humber region, and England are shown in the following table:

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many complaints his Department has received about its special advisers since May 2010; what proportion of these complaints were investigated; and if he will make a statement. [171246]

Elizabeth Truss: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), on 25 February 2013, Official Report, column 52W.

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Munro Review

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what progress he has made on implementing each of the recommendations of the Munro Review of child protection. [171151]

Mr Timpson: The following recommendations made by Professor Munro have been implemented in full:

1. the re-design of the inspection framework for services to safeguard children, including taking into account the feelings and experiences of children and young people about the services they receive;

2. publication of a revised children's safeguarding performance information framework;

3. new guidance issued on the role of directors of children's services and lead members;

4. stopping the evaluation by Ofsted of serious case reviews;

5. implementation of the professional capabilities framework for social workers;

6. recruitment of two chief social workers, one to focus on children and families social work and the other on adult social work; and

7. publication of 'Safeguarding vulnerable people in the reformed NHS: accountability and assurance framework'.

8. the publication of the revised statutory guidance, ‘Working together to safeguard children’, in March 2013 provided full implementation of the following recommendations:

9. revision of 'Working together to safeguard children' and 'The framework for the assessment of children in need and their families', including greater focus on the offer of early help;

10. strengthening the role and responsibilities of Local Safeguarding Children's Boards (LSCBS);

11. requiring LSCBS to produce an annual report submitted to the chief executive and leader of the council; and

12. promoting the use of systems methodology in undertaking serious case reviews.

Substantial progress is being made on implementing the other key recommendations, including supporting local areas in the redesign of their social work practice and designating a Principal Child and Family Social Worker in each local authority.

In respect of Professor Munro's recommendation on introducing a duty to secure provision of early help services, the Government have concluded that there is sufficient legislation in place to deliver early help services to children and families. We are continuing to work with sector partners to reinforce existing legislation and understand how early help offers in local areas can be improved.

Parents: Education

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what estimate he has made of the proportion of parents who have taken up classes in the CANparent trial areas who have below average household income; [171139]

(2) how many parents have taken up CANparent free parenting classes in the trial programmes in (a) Middlesbrough, (b) High Peak, (c) Camden and (d) Bristol to date. [171122]

Mr Timpson: Data on the household income of parents who have taken up classes in the CANparent Trial areas are not held by the Department.

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As of 15 October 2013, 417 parents have taken up CANparent classes in Middlesbrough, 307 in High Peak and 705 in Camden. The Department does not currently hold data on the number of parents taking up classes in Bristol. This trial area is operating under an alternative model with less central management.

Pre-school Education

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment his Department has made of the (a) supply of and (b) demand for early years workers in each of the next three years. [169979]

Elizabeth Truss: The early years and child care market is dynamic and diverse and we expect it to respond positively to a growing demand for places, including through the recruitment of additional high quality staff.

We know that the quality of the workforce is a crucial element of high quality early years provision, and that teachers, or other suitably qualified graduates, are particularly effective. The Government have, therefore, taking action to raise the status of the profession and help attract high quality people into early education.

We have introduced early years teachers who will specialise in early childhood development. Entrants to these courses (which started in September 2013) will need to meet the same requirements, and pass the same skills tests, as trainee school teachers. Early years teachers recruitment closed on 30 September and achieved 2,327 trainees (97%) against a target of 2,400. This recruitment level is higher than the previous September 2012 Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) recruitment of 78%. This successful outcome has been achieved in the context of tougher entry requirements for September 2013 with the addition of science GCSE.

The market will also benefit from the introduction of early years educators. Only the best qualifications, which meet rigorous criteria (which we published in the summer) set out by the National College of Teaching Leadership, will earn the early years educator title. Candidates can

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apply to undertake the new early years educator qualifications during 2013-14 and will start their courses in September 2014.

During this transition, and to support the delivery of early learning places for two-year-olds, we have introduced this September an apprenticeship bursary scheme of £2 million for the early years profession to provide up to 1,000 bursaries to highly qualified people aspiring to a career in early education. The Teach First programme has also been extended, from July this year, to include those working in the early years.

Public Appointments

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the role of non-executive board members of his Department is; and if he will make a statement. [171033]

Elizabeth Truss: Non-executives provide advice and bring an external perspective to the business of Government Departments; they do not have 'executive' decision- making powers.

Non-executives exercise their role through advice and challenge. They support and challenge the Executive on a range of areas, including implementation of the. Department's business plan and operational and delivery implications of departmental policy proposals.

Pupil Exclusions: Greater Manchester

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many exclusions there have been in (a) Denton and Reddish constituency, (b) the metropolitan borough of Tameside and (c) the metropolitan borough of Stockport in each of the last 10 years. [171225]

Elizabeth Truss: Information on the number of permanent exclusions and the number of fixed period exclusions in Denton and Reddish constituency, Tameside local authority, Stockport local authority and England is shown in the following tables.

Information has been provided for 2008/09 to 2011/12. To provide data for further years would incur disproportionate cost.

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Pupils: Bullying

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when his Department last updated its guidance to schools on homophobic bullying and language. [171201]

Elizabeth Truss: We substantively updated our bullying advice to schools in 2011, making it shorter and more accessible so that schools are clear about their legal obligations and powers. In July 2013 we made some minor changes mainly to tighten the drafting in relation to the legal obligations on maintained schools and academies in respect of their behaviour policies.

The advice states that all schools should have a behaviour policy. This should contain measures to prevent all forms of bullying, including bullying based on prejudice against any particular groups, on the grounds of, for example, race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. Our advice includes signposts to organisations, such as Stonewall, EACH and School's Out, where schools can access specialist information and advice on dealing with issues such as homophobic bullying.

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if his Department will review its guidance to schools on homophobic bullying and language. [171202]

Elizabeth Truss: We regularly review our guidance on behaviour and bullying to ensure that it is useful to schools. The current advice will next be formally reviewed in spring 2014. We will ensure that it contains up-to-date advice and signposting to specialist organisations to help schools tackle all forms of bullying, particularly that which is motivated by prejudice such as homophobic bullying and language.

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Pupils: Coastal Areas

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the Ofsted publication, Unseen children: access and achievement 20 years on, page 7, column 1, paragraph 2, what assessment he has made of the educational achievement of pupils in coastal towns. [171153]

Mr Timpson: Research published by the Department for Communities and Local Government on seaside towns in 2008¹, found that educational attainment varies considerably between areas.

More information on pupil attainment at local authority, super output area and ward is available via the Neighbourhood Statistics website².

¹https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/7624/englishseasidetowns.pdf

² Neighbourhood Statistics—Home Page.

Schools: Bible

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the total cost to his Department of his King James Bible project has been; what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of that project; and if he will make a statement. [171244]

Elizabeth Truss: There was no cost to the Department for the King James Bible project. The costs were met in full by charitable donations. These costs were published on the Department for Education website in February 2013 at the following link:

https://www.education.gov.uk/schools/toolsandinitiatives/b00205257/king-james-bible

We have made no formal assessment of the project. It is for schools to decide how they use the King James Bible to support the teaching of English literature and language, history, drama, art, music, and religious education or in school projects.

Schools: Finance

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools financial value standard declarations for (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) south Yorkshire and (c) England are outstanding from the last financial year. [171064]

Mr Laws: The Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) was introduced to local authority maintained schools in the academic year from September 2011. The SFVS does not apply to academies and free schools, but they can use the standard if they find it useful.

The first collation of data was from September 2011 to 31 March 2012, applicable only for those schools that did not achieve the Financial Management Standard in Schools (FMSiS) before. All the remaining schools were required to submit their SFVS forms by 31 March 2013, with an annual review thereafter.

The Education Funding Agency (EFA) monitors the submission of SFVS declarations through local authorities' dedicated schools grant assurance statements. It is a mandatory requirement for all local authority maintained schools to complete the SFVS assessment form on an annual basis and submit a signed copy to their authority.

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Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that schools submit SFVS returns and the EFA will be notified at that point if any warrant further investigation.

The assurance statements for 2012 to 2013 show that:

(a) There are no SFVS declarations outstanding in Barnsley local authority.

(b) The area of the former South Yorkshire Metropolitan Council includes Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield local authorities:

There are no SFVS declarations outstanding from schools in Barnsley;

There are no SFVS declarations outstanding from schools in Doncaster;

There are no SFVS declarations outstanding from schools in Rotherham; and

There are four SFVS declarations outstanding from schools in Sheffield.

A total of four SFVS declarations are outstanding from the area of the former South Yorkshire Metropolitan Council.

(c) 1.1% of SFVS declarations are currently outstanding from the total number of maintained schools in England.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools financial value standard declarations for the last financial year in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) south Yorkshire and (c) England have warranted further investigation. [171065]

Mr Laws: The Education Funding Agency (EFA) monitors Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) declarations through local authorities' dedicated schools grant assurance statements. The assurance statements for 2012 to 2013 show that 99% of SFVS returns have been submitted by schools in England. The assurance statements confirm that local authorities have systems in place that give adequate assurance over schools standards of financial management and the regularity and propriety of their expenditure. Therefore, the SFVS returns covered by the assurance statements do not warrant further investigation.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring that schools submit SFVS returns and the EFA will be notified at that point if any warrant further investigation.

Advertising: The Guardian

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much his Department spent on advertising with (a)The Guardian newspaper, (b)The Guardian website and (c)The Guardian Media Group in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11, (iii) 2011-12 and (iv) 2012-13. [171154]

Elizabeth Truss: The financial accounting system within the Department does not allow analysis to the level of detail requested in (a) and (b).

Data are only available up to 2010-11 because, since 2011, the Department has used the Central Office of Information and Creative Choices to procure advertising, without recording the identity of the end supplier.

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The Department has spent the following amounts with The Guardian News and Media Group:

Culture, Media and Sport

Billing

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many invoices were processed by her Department in the last financial year which figures are available. [171196]

Mrs Grant: In last the financial year (1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013) the Department processed 5,285 invoices.

Direct Selling

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what measures are in place to prevent nuisance calls originating from outside the UK. [170909]

Mrs Grant: The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003 prevents nuisance marketing calls being made from within the UK and also from outside the UK on behalf of UK companies. Callers are legally required to ensure they do not call a number that is Telephone Preference Service (TPS) registered, or if they have previously been notified by the caller not to make further calls. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) considers complaints about breaches of the PECR and can issue a monetary penalty of up to £500,000 to callers who wilfully or negligently breach the regulations. In addition, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) under the Communications Act 2003 covers silent and abandoned calls through their persistent misuse powers. This includes calls that originate from outside the UK made on behalf of UK companies and Ofcom can issue a monetary penalty of up to £2 million to company for a breach of its persistent misuse rules covering silent and abandoned calls. Marketing calls made from outside of the UK on behalf of non-UK companies are outside of the UK's jurisdiction. As part of the strategy paper published in July

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/connectivity-content-and-consumers-britains-digital-platform-for-growth

my Department has committed to consider further measures to enable improved enforcement action against nuisance calls. This includes legislating to allow sharing of information between Ofcom and ICO and consideration of measures to lower the legal threshold to allow ICO to issue more monetary penalties. Further thinking will be set out in an action plan in the autumn.

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what measures are in place to prevent companies in the UK employing foreign call centres to make nuisance sales calls on their behalf. [170910]

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Mrs Grant: Overseas call centres that are engaged by UK companies to make marketing calls on their behalf must comply with the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003. Callers are legally required to ensure they do not call a number that is Telephone Preference Service (TPS) registered, or if they have previously been notified by the caller not to make further calls. The Information Commissioner's Office can issue a monetary penalty of up to £500,000 for companies breaching PECR. Additionally, callers are required to ensure compliance with Ofcom's persistent misuse guidelines in relation to silent and abandoned calls and Ofcom can issue monetary penalties of up to £2 million for companies breaching its persistent misuse rules. As part of the strategy paper published in July

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/connectivity-content-and-consumers-britains-digital-platform-for-growth

my Department has committed to consider further measures to enable improved enforcement action against nuisance calls. This includes legislating to allow sharing of information between Ofcom and ICO and consideration of measures to lower the legal threshold to allow ICO to issue more monetary penalties. Further thinking will be set out in an action plan in the autumn.

Business, Innovation and Skills

Adoption: Self-employed

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward an amendment to the Children and Families Bill to extend statutory adoption pay and maternity allowance to self-employed adopters. [171067]

Jo Swinson: The Government have no plans to introduce an amendment to provide statutory adoption pay to self-employed adopters. Statutory adoption guidance asks local authorities to consider making a payment to self-employed adopters equivalent to maternity allowance.

This payment is discretionary and means-tested to ensure that resources are targeted at those adopters who need it most and forms part of a package of post-adoption support available to prospective adopters (irrespective of whether they are self-employed or not) once they have been approved as an adoptive parent and linked to a child.

We have committed to review the provision of shared parental pay for all self-employed after 2018. This would also consider the provision of shared parental pay to self-employed adoptive parents.

Business: Greater Manchester

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in (a) Denton and Reddish constituency, (b) the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside and (c) the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport were owned solely by women in the most recent period for which figures are available. [171229]

Matthew Hancock: Information is not available to answer this question for these specific geographical areas.

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However, estimates from the BIS Small Business Survey show that 18% of small and medium-size enterprises in the UK were either solely led by women, or had a management team of which the majority were women. This equates to around 860,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).¹

Further information is available via the link provided below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/small-business-survey-2012-businesses-led-by-women-and-ethnic-minorities

The Small Business Survey is not large enough to provide estimates for smaller areas.

¹ Private sector businesses with fewer than 250 employees.

Centre on Migration Policy and Society

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 May 2013, Official Report, column 81W, on Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, for what purposes that funding was granted; and for what purpose that funding was used. [170850]

Mr Willetts: Funding has been used for COMPAS' current research programme grouped around five thematic clusters, each addressing one element of the migration process:

Flows and Dynamics—exploring global migration flows and the dynamics that drive, facilitate and inhibit migration.

Labour Markets—analysing the socio-economics of international labour migration, particularly the economics and politics of labour shortages and demand.

Citizenship and Belonging—addressing the relationship between mobility, citizenship and the numerous ways in which people 'belong'.

Urban Change and Settlement—challenging assumptions around movement and settlement patterns, investigating emergent urbanisms and processes of integration.

Welfare—addressing the relationship between migration and welfare provision in ‘receiving' and ‘sending' countries.

Eligible costs on Research Council-funded grants include Principal and Co-Investigator time, staffing, travel and subsistence, equipment and survey costs, estates and indirect costs and the predicted costs for any communication, knowledge exchange, public engagement or other impact activities planned throughout the project. The COMPAS grant includes funding across all these headings.

Research Council funding is made on the basis of full Economic Costing, supporting 80% of eligible costs, with the remaining 20% provided by the host institution. All expenditure to date has been in line with Research Council funding rules.

Employee Ownership

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses have taken on an employee shareholder to date; and how many people are employed on employee shareholder contracts. [171287]

Jo Swinson: The new status came into effect on 1 September 2013. BIS has not collected any statistics to date. It is a voluntary option that some employers may wish to consider using.

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As part of the post-implementation review BIS will use information from a number of sources to make an assessment of the take up of the new status.

Those thinking of using the new status may seek advice from a number of different sources such as their legal contacts, or a helpline or business organisation. These are likely to provide information on take up.

External Trade

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which Ministers are responsible for the ongoing Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations; and if he will make a statement. [170990]

Michael Fallon: The Minister of State for Trade and Investment, my noble Friend Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint, is responsible for trade policy including EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations such as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills is the Cabinet Minister responsible for TTIP and the Minister without Portfolio, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke), is also closely involved in our work to engage with business and build political support for an ambitious deal in the EU and the US.

TTIP is a priority for the Government and has the potential to be the largest bilateral trade agreement in history and to bring significant economic benefits in terms of growth and jobs to both sides of the Atlantic. The UK has consistently pushed for an ambitious agreement that cuts tariffs, addresses behind-the-border barriers and helps to achieve regulatory coherence between Europe and the US.

Green Investment Bank

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what contribution he expects the Green Investment Bank to make to green growth. [900535]

Michael Fallon: Funded with £3.8 billion to March 2016, the Government expect the Green Investment Bank to play a significant role in accelerating the UK's progress towards a green economy both through its direct involvement in financing green projects and by helping to improve the overall financing environment and attracting new sources of capital into relevant green sectors. To date, the bank has committed £714 million in to green projects with every £1 invested mobilising approaching £3 of further investment from the private sector.

Royal Mail

Ms Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from the Northern Ireland Executive on the privatisation of Royal Mail; and if he will make a statement. [171264]

Michael Fallon: I have not received any representation from the Northern Ireland Executive regarding the sale of Royal Mail.

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Sri Lanka

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether a trade delegation will be accompanying the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Prime Minister to Sri Lanka for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. [171248]

Michael Fallon: The British Government will be represented at Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) by the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire). There are currently no plans for a trade delegation to accompany any Government representatives to CHOGM.

Some UK companies will attend the Commonwealth Business Forum which takes place before CHOGM on 12-14 November.

Students: Loans

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what value of loans provided by the Student Loan Company were paid late in each of the last five years; [171309]

(2) how many loans provided by the Student Loan Company that were paid late were paid within (a) one month, (b) two months and (c) three months of the original payment data in each of the last five years. [171313]

Mr Willetts: Information is not available in the form requested. Information about the performance of Student Loans Company (SLC) in the administration of student finance is included in their annual report. The latest annual report, for the 2012-13 financial year, stated that 99.9% of student finance applications¹ were processed before the start of term.

http://www.slc.co.uk/media/632300/slc_annual_report _1213_v14_final.pdf

¹ Student finance core applications received before the published deadlines.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students were unable to continue with their university education as a result of not receiving their student loan on time in the last academic year. [171310]

Mr Willetts: The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes statistics on students

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enrolled at UK higher education institutions (HEIs). Information on the number of entrants not continuing in higher education after their first year is published as part of ‘Performance Indicators in Higher Education in the UK’, which is available at the following link:

http://www.hesa.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task =view&id=2064&ltemid=141

However, there are no statistics available on the number of students who do not continue in higher education, specifically, as a result of not receiving their student loan on time.

Universities will often offer help to students in circumstances where loans are not received on time.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assistance his Department makes available to students who do not receive their student loan on time. [171311]

Mr Willetts: I am informed by the Student Loans Company that all complete applications received with the required evidence before the deadline are processed in date order and will lead to payment before the start of term. For late applications, or those where there is a requirement for further evidence, SLC will attempt to ensure that at least the minimum non-means tested payment is made available to students. Further payments can then be made when evidence to demonstrate entitlement has been received and processed. The further evidence will almost always be financial evidence to support an application for the means tested element of support.

Students who are facing financial hardship may be eligible to receive assistance from the Access to Learning Fund. This is a discretionary fund administered by higher education institutions. This year £37.4 million Government funding has been distributed to institutions to finance this fund.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what value of student loans were granted in each of the last five years. [171312]

Mr Willetts: Figures on the amount of loans awarded and paid to students are shown in the table.

These statistics are published each year by the Student Loans Company (SLC) in the publication ‘Student Support for Higher Education in England’. The latest publication is available via the following link and the relevant tables are 4A and 4B:

http://www.slc.co.uk/statistics/national-statistics

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The figures for 2012/13 were provisional. Final figures on Student Support for 2012/13 will be published by the Student Loans Company in November 2013.

Statistics on Student Support Awards are collated two months into the academic year and give an early indication of the likely trend in expenditure and are subject to change over the course of the academic year. Statistics on Student Support Payments cover the eventual expenditure after completion of the full academic year.

Vocational Training

Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what criteria he is using to judge whether round one of the Employer Ownership of Skills pilot has been successful. [171297]

Matthew Hancock: The Department has commissioned an independent evaluation of Round 1 of the Employer Ownership of Skills Pilot, which is being conducted by CFE in collaboration with the university of Sheffield and Qa Research. The overall aim of this evaluation is to provide evidence of the impact of the pilot and an assessment of whether giving employers direct access to public funding has increased or improved their investment in skills, or enabled them to demonstrate more effective ways of improving skills in the workforce than they can currently achieve through mainstream funding. The evaluation will gather evidence from employers, providers, learners and other stakeholders to ensure that we can evaluate the pilot processes; assess the impact and determine whether the pilot achieves value for money.

Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of the Employer Ownership of Skills pilot projects in round one (a) had a funding agreement in place, (b) had received funding, (c) have started and (d) had been completed as of 1 October 2013. [171298]

Matthew Hancock: Information on Round 1 projects in the Employer Ownership pilot is compiled by SFA on a quarterly basis. The next update is due in early November.

Currently, (a) all 36 projects have a signed grant offer letter and (b) 35 of these have received funding.

(c) All 36 projects are operational and will receive funding over a number of years. One project has started to deliver but has not yet made their first claim.

(d) None of the projects have been completed.

That is the sort of delivery hon. Members can expect from this Government.

Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many individuals (a) have completed and (b) are in the process of completing (i) apprenticeship frameworks and (ii) other nationally-recognised qualifications as part of round one the Employer Ownership of Skills as of 1 October 2013. [171299]

Matthew Hancock: Data on the number of starts and achievements for apprenticeships and other qualifications as part of Round 1 of the Employer Ownership Project will be published in the November 2013 Statistical First Release (SFR). Individuals starting/achieving more than

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one apprenticeship or other qualification will appear more than once. The SFR will be published here on 28 November:

http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current/

Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to publish analysis produced by (a) his Department and (b) the UK Commission for Employment and Skills on the performance of round one of the Employer Ownership of Skills pilot. [171300]

Matthew Hancock: The Department, in conjunction with the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, has commissioned an independent evaluation of the impact and value for money for Round 1 of the Employer Ownership of Skills pilot. This is being conducted by CFE in collaboration with the university of Sheffield and Qa Research.

The final impact evaluation report is due in September 2017 with annual reports earmarked as follows:

Summer 2014: baseline report;

Summer 2015: annual progress report;

Summer 2016: annual progress report.

Justice

Prisoners: British Nationals Abroad

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice who pays for the flights and associated security of British citizens jailed abroad coming to serve their prison time in the UK; and who makes the decision about such prisoners being permitted to serve their time in UK prisons. [170971]

Jeremy Wright: British nationals imprisoned abroad who voluntarily seek to serve their sentences in the United Kingdom are required to pay the cost of their own airfare. Other associated costs such as the provision of an escort are met by the National Offender Management Service.

Where a British national is transferred to the United Kingdom to continue serving his sentence here without that person’s consent, all costs involved in the transfer are met by the sentencing state which is responsible for delivering the prisoner to the United Kingdom.

The Secretary of State is responsible for the repatriation of prisoners into and out of England and Wales. Responsibility for the determination of individual applications is delegated to officials within the National Offender Management Service. All cases relating to high profile or high security transfers are referred to Ministers for decision.

The transfer of prisoners into and out of Scotland, and into and out of Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and separate arrangements may apply in those jurisdictions.

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many British citizens who committed crime abroad are serving their time in UK jails; and at what total cost to the public purse. [170972]

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Jeremy Wright: From 1 January 2007 to date, 493 British citizens have transferred from prisons abroad to prisons in England and Wales in order to serve their sentences here.

NOMS central databases are unable to identify separately those prisoners who have returned to the UK and who remain in custody as a result of that sentence.

NOMS does not calculate separately the cost of British citizens who committed crime abroad and are serving their sentences in prisons in England and Wales. NOMS does not analyse cost by prisoner nationality, gender or individual prisoner level, as costs recorded on the NOMS central accounting system do not allow identification of costs attributable to holding individual offenders.

The transfer of prisoners into and out of Scotland, and into and out of Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the relevant Minister.

Prisoners: Mental Capacity

Mr Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that the protections offered by the Mental Capacity Act 2008 are available to those in HM prisons. [169803]

Jeremy Wright: As in the community, prison mental health services are provided through a combination of primary care and specialist teams. Most prisoners' mental health care needs can be met by primary care.

Prisoners are screened on arrival in prison by trained staff to identify their health needs, including any requirement for a mental health assessment.

Prison Service Instruction 64/2011—Safer Custody has a dedicated chapter on complex behaviours providing an overview of mental health, including mental capacity, and staff are required to comply with it. Compliance is tested by the Chief Inspector of Prisons and Independent Monitoring Boards.

The National Offender Management Service also provides mental health training for relevant staff.

Prisoners: Mental Illness

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have been transferred to hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the last 10 years. [171092]

Jeremy Wright: The number of prisoners directed to hospital for treatment under the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the past 10 years is set out in the table.

These figure include persons sectioned under section 47 (sentenced prisoners) and section 48 (unsentenced prisoners, immigration detainees and civil prisoners).

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The proportion of prisoners transferred to hospital has remained stable in recent years.

Prisoners: Repatriation

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many foreign nationals sentenced in the UK have chosen to spend their prison sentence in their home country in each of the last three years. [170966]

Jeremy Wright: The number of foreign nationals sentenced to imprisonment in England and Wales who have voluntarily returned to serve their sentence in prisons in their home country in each of the last three years is as follows:

The repatriation of prisoners to and from Scotland, and to and from Northern Ireland is a devolved matter.

Work and Pensions

Annual Reports

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when his Department’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2012-13 will be published. [171284]

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I provided to the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth (Stephen Doughty) on 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 172W.

Cold Weather Payments

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of people eligible for cold weather payments in each weather station area of the UK. [171204]

Steve Webb: The estimates for the number of people eligible for cold weather payments in each weather station area in the UK will not be available until the end of October. The estimates are produced by a scan of the systems immediately prior to the start of the cold weather payment season, commencing 1 November 2013. The scan is conducted as close as possible to the start of the cold weather season to best represent the most accurate number of eligible customers.

When the estimates become available I will place a copy in the House of Commons Library.

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Employment and Support Allowance: Bradford

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employment and support allowance (ESA) applicants from Bradford were signed off ESA before their appeals were heard in the last 12 months. [171123]

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the success rate of appeals of decisions on entitlement to employment and support allowance from Bradford was in the last 12 months. [171141]

Mike Penning: The information requested, for new claims to employment and support allowance (ESA), is shown in the following table:

The information requested for appeals heard on fit for work decisions in the functional assessment for repeat claims to ESA is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Food Banks

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the oral answer of the Prime Minister of 11 September 2013, Official Report, column 975, what definitions his Department uses of referring and signposting. [171118]

Esther McVey: DWP is only a signposting body that does not get involved in any decision to award a food parcel. The act of signposting to any local organisation including foodbanks is not a formal referral or endorsement on the part of the DWP. The operation of foodbanks is not the responsibility of this Department.

Housing Benefit

Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what definition of significantly adapted properties is used to calculate discretionary housing payments. [171561]

Steve Webb: Local authorities have not been provided with a definition of significantly adapted accommodation as we do not want to limit the scope where help would be considered.

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Individual circumstances vary widely and local authorities are best placed to determine these based on local knowledge.

Housing Benefit: Scotland

Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what payments his Department plans to make from the discretionary housing payment budget to each of Scotland's local authorities in the year 2014-15; and what proportion of the overall discretionary housing payment budget this represents in each local authority area. [171568]

Steve Webb: The discretionary housing payment allocation for the 2014-15 financial year will not be available until early next year.

Jobcentre Plus: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were employed in job centres in Wales as of 1 April (a) 2011, (b) 2012 and (c) 2013. [171238]

Mike Penning: As at 31 March for the three years in question, the numbers of staff who were employed in jobcentres in Wales were as follows:

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the contribution by the Minister of State for Employment of 12 February 2013, Fourth Delegated Legislation Committee, column 19, what sanctions notifications will be in writing; in what proportion of cases that undertaking has been adhered to; and whether his Department plans to review that policy. [171120]

Esther McVey: All sanctions notifications should be in writing and there are no current plans to review this policy. No statistical information on the number of issue of such notifications is kept.

Motability: Newport (Gwent)

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Newport East constituency have a Motability vehicle. [171185]

Mike Penning: Information on how many people in Newport East constituency have a Motability vehicle is not held by the Department. As an independent charity, Motability is responsible for collating its own management information and they may be able to answer your question. Questions about Motability can be sent to: Declan O'Mahony, Director, Motability, Warwick House, Roydon Road, Harlow, Essex CM19 5PX.

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Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how his Department plans to calculate entitlement to universal credit for claimants with PAYE annual status. [171119]

Esther McVey: A universal credit award is adjusted by any earnings received in a claimant's monthly assessment period. Therefore, where all earnings are paid annually, they will be taken into account in that one assessment period. If the earnings are more than the claimant's universal credit award, he or she will lose entitlement to universal credit. The claimant can reclaim universal credit in the following assessment period and any unspent earnings will be classed as personal capital and may effect entitlement to universal credit. Where no earnings are received and the claimant has work-related requirements, he or she may be required to look for paid employment.

However, if the claimant is analogous to a sole trader, DWP will investigate the nature of the business and whether the claimant should be treated as self-employed. If treated as self-employed, the claimant will have an assumed level of earnings, the Minimum Income Floor, applied to the award and any PAYE earnings would be taken into account against the particular assessment period they were paid.

DWP is looking into the feasibility of introducing a carry forward of earnings in the future.

Vetting

Mr Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what assessments his Department has made of the cost of a DBS check; and what assessment he has made of the effects of the cost of a DBS check on the ability of unemployed people to move into work; [171032]

(2) what assistance his Department offers towards the cost of a Disclosure and Barring Service check for unemployed people moving into work. [171179]

Esther McVey: The cost of a Disclosure and Barring Service check is determined by the Home Office. The Department has made no assessment of the effects of the costs of a Disclosure and Barring Service check on the ability of unemployed people to move into work.

The Department's view is that employers in the first instance should meet the costs of these checks; however, where they refuse to do so, Jobcentre Plus officials can, in exceptional circumstances, decide to reimburse the employer for the cost of the check.

Welfare State: Reform

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to paragraph 7, page 34 of 21st Century Welfare, Cm 7913, what recent assessment he has made of the scale of project required to make the 17 changes necessary to deliver a more integrated system; and if he will make a statement. [171117]

Esther McVey: The Department is committed to rolling out universal credit in a careful and controlled way.

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This is the right approach for such a large and complex change, and the plans we announced in July mean we will be testing universal credit in each region across the country. Claimants will also start to benefit from using the claimant commitment which will help bring about a cultural shift in taking a more active approach to searching for work.

The roll-out of the claimant commitment for new claims to jobseekers' allowance started on 14 October.

We will set out more details on our development plan later in the autumn.

Women and Equalities

Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011

Mr Raab: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what recent estimate she has made of the total cost to public bodies of implementing the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011. [171260]

Mrs Grant: On 27 June 2011, the Government published an impact assessment detailing the estimated costs of implementing the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 in England. This estimated costs to the public sector as a one-off 'familiarisation' cost of between £7 million and £9 million and annual recurring costs between £21 million and £26 million.

The Government have recently conducted a review of the public sector equality duty and found little evidence of the costs or benefits and that a further review should be carried out in three years.

Cabinet Office

David Kelly

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment she has made of the circumstances surrounding the death of Dr David Kelly in 2003. [170259]

Mr Maude: There has been no recent assessment into the circumstances surrounding Dr David Kelly's death.

Security

Michael Dugher: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many departmental identity cards or passes have been reported lost or stolen by staff in his Department since May 2010. [168604]

Mr Maude: The Department takes seriously any losses or thefts of ID security passes. All such incidents, which staff must report immediately, are fully investigated. Passes are deactivated when reported lost or stolen, to ensure our access control measures will not allow the passes to be used.

Since May 2010 the Cabinet Office has recorded 139 passes as lost and 27 recorded as stolen. 55 of these were successfully recovered. The annual rate of losses is no higher than in years before the last general election.

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Select Committee Reports

Mr Jenkin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether it remains the policy of the Government to respond to reports from Select Committees of the House within two months. [170665]

Mr Maude: Guidance to Departments and officials on responding to Select Committee reports can be found in the .document 'Guidance on departmental evidence and response to select committees', available at:

www.gov.uk

I wrote to my hon. Friend on 21 June regarding the delay in responding to a PASC report. We are currently undertaking a review of business appointments and, as I explained, we intend to respond to the Committee's recommendations once that is complete.

Youth Services

Ian Austin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what estimate he has made of total Government funding for youth services in each of the last five years; [170981]

(2) what steps he is taking to provide support to youth services. [170977]

Mr Hurd: The Cabinet Office took over responsibility for youth policy from the Department of Education in July 2013.

Since then I have commissioned a review of the quality and quantity of existing youth provision. This will be carried out in collaboration with sector partners and will be complete by the end of the year.

The findings of this review will be used to inform future policy on youth services and will build on existing Cabinet Office initiatives including to:

support youth services that are looking to spin-out into public service mutuals. These local authorities can access funded specialist support and expert advice from the Cabinet Office's £10 million Mutuals Support Programme.

Several projects have already successfully applied for funded support, with many more in the pipeline:

increase the scale of National Citizen Service, which offers young people the opportunity to take part in structured activities outside of school that provide them with key skills for work and life; and

invest in the Campaign for Youth Social Action which aims to increase the quality and quantity of youth social action opportunities for young people aged between 10 and 20.