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Written Answers to Questions

Monday 18 November 2013

Leader of the House

Visits Abroad

Chris Leslie: To ask the Leader of the House how many overseas trips, and at what total cost, his staff made in each year since 2010; and what the costs of (a) flights, (b) internal travel, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence were of each trip. [175472]

Mr Lansley: Since 2010 the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons has undertaken one overseas trip to visit the European Institutions in Brussels. This took place in May 2013. My right hon. Friend the Deputy Leader of the House and I were supported by two officials and one special adviser. This visit provided an opportunity to consider and promote the role of national parliaments, including the House of Commons, in the processes of European legislation.

A summary of staff costs for this trip is as follows:

Women and Equalities

Autism

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities whether autism awareness training is included in the equality and diversity planning and single equality schemes of all Government Departments. [175459]

Mr Maude: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson) on 6 November 2013, Official Report, column 209W.

Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how many people employed by the Government Equalities Office hold an (a) bachelor's, (b) master's and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if she will make a statement. [175369]

Mrs Grant: DCMS and GEO employees are not required to hold a degree unless roles specifically require them. Where roles require qualifications, this is checked as part of the eligibility process before any appointment is made.

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Wales

Carer's Allowance

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many people in Wales receive carer’s allowance. [175096]

Mr David Jones: According to the latest data (February 2013), the number of people receiving carer’s allowance in Wales was 39,170.

Conditions of Employment

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arm’s length bodies are paid less than the living wage; and how many direct employees of his Department are on zero hours contracts. [174909]

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office has no direct employees. Staff at the Wales Office are subject to Ministry of Justice (MOJ) policies for pay purposes. The pay of the Department’s agency staff is determined by a Ministry of Justice contract. As there are fewer than five agency staff in London, breaking the numbers down would risk the identification of individuals. No other Wales Office staff are paid less than the living wage. No staff are employed on zero hours contracts.

Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many people employed by his Department hold a (a) bachelor’s, (b) master’s and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if he will make a statement. [175379]

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office does not hold this information. The Department does not employ staff directly, and Wales Office staff are either employed by the Ministry of Justice or on loan from other Government Departments.

Telephone Services

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many telephone lines with the prefix (a) 0845, (b) 0844 and (c) 0843 his Department (i) operates and (ii) sponsors; how many calls each number has received in the last 12 months; and whether alternative numbers charged at the BT local rate are available in each case. [175007]

Stephen Crabb: None.

Culture, Media and Sport

Arts: Finance

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which of the National Portfolio Organisations funded by Arts Council England received (a) over £50 million, (b) £30-£50 million, (c) £20-£30 million, (d) £10-£20 million, (e) £5-£10 million, (f) £1-£5 million, (g) less than £1 million in 2012-13. [174871]

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Mr Vaizey: Decisions on funding for National Portfolio Organisations and how much funding is allocated to each are a matter for Arts Council England, an arm's length body of Government, which makes such decisions independently of Ministers. Information on how much funding is allocated to each of the National Portfolio Organisations is publicly available on the Arts Council's website:

http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/our-investment/investment-in-the-arts-2012-15/

Gambling: Advertising

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what information her Department holds on advertising expenditure by the gambling industry (a) in total and (b) by media sector. [175686]

Mrs Grant: The Department of Culture, Media and Sport holds data on the total UK gambling advertising spend and the proportion of this spent on TV advertising. In 2012, UK expenditure on gambling advertising totalled £211.2 million and, of this, £115.9 million was spent on television advertising. These figures include spending on lottery and bingo products, however further breakdown by media sector is not available.

Hyde Park

Dame Tessa Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Royal Parks about their decision to introduce charges for people wanting to play sport on the section of Hyde Park known as the Old Football Pitches. [174892]

Mrs Grant: No discussions were held with The Royal Parks about the new charging arrangements for the Old Football Pitches. Charging for organised sporting activities in the Royal Parks is an operational matter for The Royal Parks Agency.

Dame Tessa Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she was informed of the Royal Parks' intention to introduce charges for people wanting to play sport on the section of Hyde Park known as the Old Football Pitches. [174894]

Mrs Grant: Charging for organised sporting activities in the Royal Parks is an operational matter for The Royal Parks Agency. Their intention to charge first came to the attention of officials in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in August 2013.

Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people employed by her Department hold a (a) bachelor's, (b) master's and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if she will make a statement. [175363]

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Mrs Grant: DCMS and GEO employees are not required to hold a degree unless roles specifically require them. Where roles require qualifications, this is checked as part of the eligibility process before any appointment is made.

Sports: Women

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many national governing bodies have been set a specific target for raising female participation in return for Sport England's 2013 to 2017 Whole Sport Plan investment. [175129]

Mrs Grant: Each Sport has individual targets in their Whole Sport Plan which reflect the investment priorities required to drive up participation levels.

Sports which are popular with women or where there is a high latent demand among women will therefore have a greater focus on women's participation to ensure they meet their overall target. Sports such as equestrianism, running and netball have high participation rates among women and receive Sport England funding to the sum of £6 million, £22 million and £25 million respectively.

Sports: Wales

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the statement of 5 November 2013, Official Report, on sporting legacy, how many of the projects listed by the Minister are operating within Wales. [174791]

Mrs Grant: Community and youth sport are devolved matters and therefore the responsibility of the Welsh Assembly Government. The UK Sport's 'Gold Series' programme includes five major sporting events in Wales. A number of Join In events have also taken place in Wales but exact figures will not be available until project evaluation is completed later this year.

Prime Minister

10 Downing Street: Security

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Prime Minister whether there were discussions of any potential security risks prior to the invitation of Councillor Abdul Aziz to attend a recent event at No. 10 Downing Street. [174910]

The Prime Minister: As I said in my answer on 6 November 2013, Official Report, column 247,1 shall write the hon. Member about this matter.

India

Mrs Glindon: To ask the Prime Minister how many officials accompanied him to India in 2013; and what the total cost of travel, accommodation and expenses was for each individual. [175543]

The Prime Minister: Details of ministerial overseas travel are published quarterly and are available on the gov.uk website.

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Travel

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2013, Official Report, column 607W, on travel, if he will publish a list of all occasions on which he has used military transport for domestic travel since taking office. [175398]

The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 1 November 2013, Official Report, column 607W.

Communities and Local Government

Affordable Housing: Lancaster

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding his Department allocated to (a) Lancaster city council and (b) the Lancaster area to construct social housing between (i) May 1997 and May 2010 and (ii) from May 2010 to date. [175666]

Kris Hopkins: There have been no allocations direct to Lancaster city council from May 1997 to date.

£22.6 million funding was given to the Lancaster area for delivery of social housing across the 13 years between 1997-98 and 2009-10.

£5.3 million has been allocated to the Lancaster area from the four years of 2011-15 Affordable Homes Programme for delivery of 231 new affordable homes.

I would note that the new affordable rent model now allows for more affordable housing to be delivered with lower levels of taxpayer capital subsidy and levers in more private investment. Across England, the £4.5 billion of public investment in affordable housing over 2011-15 is being accompanied by an additional £15 billion of private investment. My hon. Friend may wish to take this into account when comparing levels of housing investment.

BAE Systems

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if his Department will offer support to Portsmouth and neighbouring authorities to help those affected by the job losses announced by BAE Systems. [174872]

Kris Hopkins: Every effort is being made, both in Government and at a local level, to help those individuals and businesses affected by the job losses announced by BAE Systems.

A £1 million Department for Work and Pensions rapid response service will support those recently made redundant and £5 million from the regional growth fund will be used to support training for BAE staff facing redundancy.

The Government also recently announced the Portsmouth and Southampton city deal, which will bring millions in public and private sector investment and maximise the economic strengths of these two coastal cities and the wider Solent area by supporting further growth in the area's maritime, marine and advanced manufacturing sectors.

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Over its lifetime it is predicted that the city deal will deliver:

over 4,500 permanent new jobs particularly focused in marine, maritime and advanced manufacturing sectors;

over 14,000 construction jobs;

unlock 107,000 square metres of new employment floor space with a focus on supporting growth in the marine, maritime and advanced manufacturing sectors;

provide £113 million of local and national public sector investment;

lever in over £831 million of private sector investment into the area through site development, skills and unemployment schemes and business support services;

create 7,500 new apprenticeships with 2,000 over the next three years;

support 1,000 long-term unemployed over the next two years.

Bed and Breakfast Accommodation: Barking and Dagenham

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many families with children living in bed and breakfast accommodation in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham have been so accommodated for more than six weeks; [174300]

(2) how many families with children are living in bed and breakfast accommodation in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham. [174315]

Kris Hopkins: According to the most recent available information from the quarterly P1E homelessness return, 66 families with children were living in bed and breakfast accommodation arranged by the London borough of Barking and Dagenham as at 30 June 2013. Of these, 23 had been accommodated in bed and breakfast accommodation for more than six weeks.

This Government has strong protections in place to prevent families with children being placed in unsuitable accommodation for unacceptable periods of time.

The law says that local authorities can only place families with children in bed and breakfast accommodation only as a last resort and then for no more than six weeks.

We have provided £2 million for seven councils struggling with increasing bed and breakfast use so that they can reduce numbers and develop long lasting solutions to this problem. Barking and Dagenham will receive £300,000 of that funding. This is the first half of funding paid. Barking and Dagenham and the other six councils will be paid the second half of funding only when they achieve a 75% reduction in the numbers of families with children in bed and breakfast for over six weeks. The lessons learned will be shared with other local authorities.

We are also investing £470 million over four years (2011-12 to 2014/15) to help local authorities and voluntary sector partners prevent and tackle homelessness, rough sleeping and repossessions.

Buildings: Security

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance he has issued in relation to the security of smart buildings from cyber attacks. [174244]

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Brandon Lewis: The Cabinet Office has published the Government's “UK Cyber Security Strategy” which outlines the actions being taken to strengthen information security against cyber attacks.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology and the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure has published guidance about how to protect the technology that underpins smart buildings. This is available at

http://www.cpni.gov.uk/documents/publications/2013/2013063-resilience_cyber_security_technology_ built_environment.pdf?eps language=en-gb

Carbon Emissions

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on the Government Carbon Offsetting Framework in the latest year for which figures are available. [169891]

Brandon Lewis: In 2011-12, the Department spent £461 through the fund to offset air travel.

I also refer my hon. Friend to my answer to him of 17 October 2013, Official Report, columns 865-66W, on how we do not offset energy-related emissions, but have instead improved the energy efficiency of our own estate.

Conditions of Employment

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arm's lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts. [174972]

Brandon Lewis: My Department and its non-departmental public bodies have no staff earning less than the hourly living wage rate as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.

Similarly, my Department and its non-departmental public bodies have no staff employed on zero hours contracts.

Empty Properties

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty properties there were in the UK in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012. [175415]

Stephen Williams: Statistics on vacant dwellings in England and in each local authority district are published in the Department’s live table 615 which is available at the following link. This table shows the annual number of empty homes in the local authority, housing association and other public sector tenures:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants

This table brings together figures on vacant dwellings in England drawn from several separately published sources.

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The figures show that the number of long-term empty homes in England has fallen by over 40,800 from October 2010 to October 2012.

Statistics on vacant dwellings in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are published by the devolved Administrations.

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties which were empty in 2010 have since been purchased (a) by first-time buyers, (b) as second homes and (c) by overseas residents. [175416]

Stephen Williams: The requested information is not centrally collected.

European Commission

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many visits the permanent secretary and the four next most senior civil servants in his Department made to the European Commission in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [173777]

Brandon Lewis: The following visits have been made to the European Commission by DCLG senior officials.

(a) 2010-11

Joe Montgomery (Director General)

22 October 2010.

(b)2011-12

Sir Bob Kerslake (Permanent Secretary)

11 March 2011.

David Rossington (Acting Director General)

17 February 2011

11 March 2011

15 July 2011.

(c)2012-13

Nil return.

All of these visits were made in relation to the European Regional Development Fund. DCLG is the managing authority for the programme.

Disadvantaged Families

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what analysis his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the difference in complexity of cases relating to the Troubled Families Programme dealt with by the local authority, private sector and the third sector. [175385]

Kris Hopkins: The Department has commissioned a three-year independent evaluation of the Troubled Families programme. The details are available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/study-to-assess-impact-of-troubled-families-work

This evaluation does not specifically compare case complexity by sector, but will evaluate the impact of different types of interventions and delivery models.

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Fire Services

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) full-time firefighters and (b) fire stations there were in each of the last three years. [174429]

Brandon Lewis: To assist the hon. Member, I have listed as follows a table showing comparative data for the number of firefighters, fire stations and incidents over the last decade in England.

They show that overall firefighter strength has reduced by 5.9%, fire stations by 1.9% while the number of incidents have almost halved (-46%).

Fire Services: Equipment

Mr Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to standardise the specification of ladders used by fire and rescue services in England. [175201]

Brandon Lewis: There are existing British, European and International standards which ensure that fire equipment is fit for purpose. Except for national resilience purposes, it is a matter for individual fire and rescue authorities to determine the equipment needed to meet their operational requirements.

Fracking

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to require environmental impact assessments for fracking in the UK. [174849]

Nick Boles: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 20 May 2013, Official Report, columns 425-26W. Applications for new fracking sites in England, whether for exploratory drilling or full production, are already within the scope of the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2011. Whether an environmental impact assessment is required will depend on the circumstance of each application.

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Housing: Construction

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties on brownfield sites have extant planning permission for housing. [175414]

Nick Boles: This information is not centrally held.

On the broader issue of land with planning permission, I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 7 November 2013, Official Report, column 345-347W.

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of new houses built in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012 were built on brownfield sites. [175417]

Kris Hopkins: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 12 November 2013, Official Report, column 584W.

Local Government: Redundancy Pay

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authority employees who have received a contractual redundancy payment have subsequently been employed by (a) the same local authority or (b) a different local authority within 12 months in each of the last five years. [174766]

Brandon Lewis [holding answer 8 November 2013]: This information is not centrally held.

Ministers have been extremely clear that payments for ‘boomerang bosses', as well as the practice of ‘double dipping', are an unacceptable use of taxpayers' money, especially when councils need to be making sensible savings to help pay off the deficit left by the last Administration.

This Government have taken steps to increase local transparency and local accountability on the remuneration of council staff. This has included explicit guidance on the re-employment of senior staff who have previously been in receipt of a redundancy or severance payment, or who are in receipt of a local government/fire service pension. This is covered in the Secretary of State's guidance on councils' local pay policy statements under the Localism Act. Councillors now have powers to stop such payments: they should use them.

Local Plans

Mr Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authorities are reviewing their local plans or draft local plans due to problems with site viability and deliverability. [175206]

Nick Boles [holding answer 12 November 2013]: As planning is primarily a local matter, the Government do not hold information centrally on which local plans are being prepared or reviewed in light of problems with the viability or deliverability of specific sites.

National policy is clear on the importance of considering viability and deliverability in plan-making, underpinned by proportionate evidence, and on updating local plans regularly in response to changing circumstances. Where

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a local plan is out of date, which could include where questions arise over its deliverability or viability, the presumption in favour of sustainable development will apply.

The Government are supporting local planning authorities in their plan-making work by providing concise, accessible and practical advice in planning guidance (currently in beta mode) and through a programme of tailored support in conjunction with the Planning Inspectorate and Planning Advisory Service.

Local Plans: Solihull

Mrs Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to announce a decision on Solihull Metropolitan borough council's local plan. [175022]

Nick Boles [holding answer 11 November 2013]: The Planning Inspectorate hope to be in a position to issue the final report into the Solihull metropolitan borough council local plan in December 2013.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many officials at what grades are employed to provide direct support to special advisers in his Department. [174049]

Brandon Lewis: As I outlined in my answer of 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 138W, ministerial private offices are a key link in handling ministerial correspondence, organising ministerial diaries, conveying Ministers' views to officials, overseeing the compilation of ministerial boxes, handling communications with other Government Departments, and providing Ministers with general information related to the work of the Department.

Three members of staff, employed to provide administrative support to Ministers, are based within the special advisers' office; they are below senior civil service grades.

Although assigned to the special advisers' office, they provide private office support to all Ministers. They give administrative assistance of a non-political nature, in line with the Civil Service Management Code and Special Advisers' Code of Conduct. This has been the practice under successive governments, and the number of staff is the same as was the case under the last Administration in April 2010.

Non-domestic Rates

Mr Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of businesses which have claimed the increased small business rate relief in (a) Dorset and (b) England since its inception. [175384]

Brandon Lewis: Details of the number of businesses in Dorset (including the unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole) that were benefitting from the small business rate relief scheme as at 31 December 2010 are shown in the following table.

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Data as at 31 December 2012 were collected earlier this year and are currently being validated and will be published shortly.

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

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of businesses which have claimed the increased small business rate relief in (a) Portsmouth South constituency, (b) Hampshire and (c) England since its inception. [175610]

Brandon Lewis: Details of the number of businesses in Hampshire (including the unitary authorities of Portsmouth and Southampton) and England as a whole that were benefiting from the small business rate relief scheme as at 31 December 2010 are shown in the following table.

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

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

Non-domestic Rates: Public Houses

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many public houses receive small business rate relief; and what the average value is of such rate relief to public house businesses. [175616]

Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally.

While the Valuation Office Agency holds information on the rateable value of individual hereditaments, bills and rate relief are administered by local billing authorities.

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the likely effects on the public house sector in England and Wales arising from the ending of small business rate relief scheduled for April 2014. [175617]

Brandon Lewis: Business rates, like all taxes, are kept under review. Small business rates relief will be considered at the autumn statement 2013. Business rates in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Assembly Government.

Planning Permission

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to ensure that developers abide by planning conditions. [175622]

Nick Boles: Monitoring of compliance with conditions attached to planning permissions is a matter for the local planning authority. Local planning authorities adopt various strategies to do this, including, for example, asking developers to notify them of the start of works, so that pre-commencement conditions can be checked. If a developer fails to comply with a condition, the local planning authority may serve a breach of condition notice requiring compliance. If a breach of condition notice is not complied with, the person responsible for the breach can be prosecuted in the magistrates court where the penalty is a fine of up to £2,500 on conviction.

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Planning Permission: Rushden Lakes

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which Minister will make the decision on Rushden Lakes planning application following the inspector's inquiry; and when this decision will be (a) made and (b) announced. [175464]

Nick Boles: All decisions on planning cases are taken on behalf the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. The published date on which this decision is due to be made is on or before 13 February 2014.

Procurement

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department has (a) entered into a procurement arrangement with any other Government Department and (b) used any such procurement agreement to bulk purchase goods since May 2010. [174077]

Brandon Lewis [holding answer 5 November 2013]: The Department uses the centrally negotiated framework agreements operated by the Government Procurement Service to purchase common goods and services where typically Whitehall and other public bodies volumes have been leveraged to deliver value for money for taxpayers. However our goods and services (except for energy) are not ordered in bulk with other Departments but they are purchased as and when we require them.

On energy, we now purchase this through Government Procurement Service frameworks which are typically for five year periods, and following extensive market competition and EU wide tender processes. The bulk of central Government energy is aggregated under Government Procurement Service frameworks, which enables the Government Procurement Service Energy Team to actively engage directly with the energy markets to achieve best value and price for the taxpayer.

Also set out here is a list of the Government Procurement Framework Agreements

that the Department participate in:

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Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people employed by his Department hold an (a) bachelor's, (b) master's and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if he will make a statement. [175362]

Brandon Lewis: The Department does not hold information centrally on how many people hold a bachelors, masters or PhD-level degree in computer science.

Redundancy

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff in his Department were made redundant in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and how many such staff received payments in lieu of notice. [170363]

Brandon Lewis: DCLG audited accounts show that total staff costs fell from £216 million in 2009-10 to £99 million in 2012-13, a reduction of 54% in cash terms, or a saving of £117,000,000 per year. The number of staff has been reduced from 3,781 full-time equivalent in 2009-10 to 1,681 in 2012-13, a reduction of 56%.

Based on current budgets, the DCLG Group is making a 44% real term saving against its running costs over this spending review period by 2014-15. This equates to savings of over £570 million by 2014-15. This includes savings of around £420 million from the closure of the Government offices for the regions.

The number of staff that left due to voluntary or compulsory severance in each of the years in question and the number of those receiving a contractual payment in lieu of notice is set out as follows.

The number of contractual payments in lieu of notice in 2011-12 increased as the Department undertook a major restructuring exercise in this year and staff were not always able to work their full notice periods before leaving the Department.

Where contractual payments in lieu of notice were made, these were agreed for a variety of reasons including the inability of staff to serve contractual notice periods and the absence of work for them to do. All payments were made in line with contractual entitlement and under schemes approved by the Cabinet Office.

Sickness Absence

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff in his Department (a) were disciplined and (b) had their employment terminated as a result of a poor sickness record in each of the last 12 months. [174629]

Brandon Lewis: It is absolutely right that staff who are genuinely unwell have the necessary time to recover and return to work; but sick absence should not be used

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as an excuse for unjustified absenteeism. In the past 12 months, one person was disciplined and two others were dismissed for failing to maintain satisfactory standards of attendance.

High Streets

Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many applications for funds under the Mayoral High Streets Fund (a) have been received, (b) have been approved, (c) have been rejected and (d) are currently outstanding; and what total amount of funds remains unallocated under the High Streets Fund; [175084]

(2) how many applications for funds under the High Street Support Scheme (a) have been received, (b) have been approved, (c) have been rejected and (d) are currently outstanding; and what total amount of funds remains unallocated under the High Street Support Scheme; [175085]

(3) how many applications for funds under the High Street Innovation Fund (a) have been received, (b) have been approved, (c) have been rejected and (d) are currently outstanding; and what total amount of funds remains unallocated under the High Street Innovation Fund; [175086]

(4) what funds have been allocated to each Portas Pilot; what the total amount of these funds which currently remain unallocated is; if he will list the total amount of funds which have been allocated to town teams; and what the amount of these funds which currently remain unallocated is. [175087]

Brandon Lewis [holding answer 11 November 2013]: My Department does not hold information on the Mayoral High Streets Fund. It is held by the Mayor of London and requests for information about the Mayoral High Street Fund need to be made directly to his office.

The High Street Support scheme reimbursed local authorities for their eligible costs supporting local business recovery as a result of the 2011 public disorder. 24 local authorities submitted claims. None were rejected. There are no outstanding claims for the scheme which closed in 2012.

In March 2011, my Department set up a £10 million High Street Innovation Fund. It gave £100,000 each to the 100 places in England that had suffered most from the riots and had the highest empty shop rates. No funds remain unallocated.

There were 27 Portas pilots; three of whom are funded by the Mayor of London. Details of the amounts the respective pilots received have been placed in the Library of the House. The town teams which had applied to become Portas pilots but were unsuccessful, had the opportunity to apply for £10,000 of funding each, 333 took up this opportunity and no funds remain unallocated. The total funding provided by my Department is £5,616,644.

The High Street Innovation Fund, Portas pilot funding and Town Team funding were all given out to the relevant local authority to pass on to these organisations. No funds remain unallocated within DCLG.

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Scotland

Conditions of Employment

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arm's lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts. [174984]

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly. All staff that join the Office, and its one arm’s length body, do so on an assignment, secondment or loan agreement from other Government bodies. All staff on such arrangements are paid more than the living wage and none are on zero hours contracts.

Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people employed by his Department hold (a) an undergraduate, (b) a master's and (c) a PhD-level degree in computer science; and if he will make a statement. [175376]

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly. All staff that join the Office do so on an assignment, secondment or loan agreement from other Government bodies but principally from the Scottish Government or the Ministry of Justice. Information in relation to qualifications is retained by the parent body.

Business, Innovation and Skills

Apprentices

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to encourage small businesses to take on apprentices aged between 16 and 18 years old. [175148]

Matthew Hancock: We have introduced the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers, providing £1,500 payments to encourage and support smaller employers to take on a young apprentice aged 16 to 24. This is in addition to wider steps taken to make apprenticeships more attractive and accessible by simplifying the recruitment process and removing unnecessary bureaucracy.

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policy of Table 6.8 of findings of BIS Research Paper Number 77, published in May 2012, indicating a potential reduction in the number of apprentices aged 19 and over if employers faced cost increases equivalent to full fees. [175153]

Matthew Hancock: The Department undertakes research to assess the deadweight associated with its programmes to feed into our value for money assessments.

Measuring deadweight—i.e. the extent to which learning would have gone ahead in the absence of Government funding—is complex. The method used in the survey cited is a self reported measure, we do not know for certain that employers will act in the way they say they

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will when asked the hypothetical question. We have therefore also used other approaches, such as those outlined in BIS Research Paper No. 71 'Measuring the Deadweight Loss Associated with Public Investment in Further Education and Skills'.

However, to the extent that employers benefit from apprenticeships, then it is right that they contribute towards the costs of training. Co-investment will also ensure that employers have strong incentives to demand high-quality training from training providers, and to hold them to account for delivery. This principle is at the heart of the reformed apprenticeship funding system on which the Government consulted over the summer:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/apprenticeship-funding-reform-in-england

Apprentices: Portsmouth

Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships were completed in Portsmouth South constituency in each of the last three years. [175597]

Matthew Hancock: Information on Apprenticeship achievements by geography are published in Supplementary Tables to a Statistical First Release:

http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/60297A67-6111-4D21-B0C1-0FF90B108012/0/June2013_Apprenticeship_Achievements_revised.xls

http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/

Apprentices: Thirsk

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships were completed in Thirsk and Malton constituency in each of the last three years. [175390]

Matthew Hancock: Information on apprenticeship achievements by geography are published in Supplementary Tables to a Statistical First Release:

http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/60297A67-6111-4D21-B0C1-0FF90B108012/0/June2013_Apprenticeship_Achievements_revised.xls

http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/

Conditions of Employment

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arm’s lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts. [174969]

Jo Swinson: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) supports the living wage and encourages businesses to pay it when it is affordable and not at the expense of jobs.

Our primary policy for supporting the low paid is the national minimum wage (NMW) which is carefully set at a level that maximises wages without damaging employment prospects. In order to raise living standards we are focused on increasing employment and cutting taxes by raising the personal allowance to £10,000 from April 2014 and will have taken 2.7 million people out of income tax altogether by 2014-15.

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There are no direct BIS employees paid less than the living wage, either nationally or in London.

The Total Facilities Management (TFM) contract is with EC Harris who sub- contract operational delivery to Balfour Beatty Workplace (BBW). This operational delivery of FM services utilises a dedicated team of nearly 400 employees. There are currently 103 employees working under the London living wage (LLW) within London and the south east and 239 employees currently working under the national living wage across the national estate. BaxterStorey, who manage BIS catering, do not currently pay the LLW within the BIS estate.

However, on the basis of fairness and current affordability, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has instructed the Department to raise the wages of the lowest paid contracted staff working at BIS premises across the UK. We hope to report progress with implementing this by spring 2014. This is part of BIS' overall policy to try to increase living standards for its lowest paid staff.

Zero hours contracts are not new, but since 2005, there has been an increase in their use. More recently Government have been made aware of, and taken note of, anecdotal evidence that has illustrated instances of abuse.

As a result the Secretary of State for BIS announced that his officials would undertake a fact finding exercise to explore how these contracts work and what the issues are. This was undertaken over the summer.

On 16 September 2013, the Secretary of State for BIS said he would publish a consultation seeking views on zero hour contracts and how to address the concerns raised in the summer fact finding exercise. The consultation will be published in mid November.

There are no direct BIS employees on zero hour contracts.

At present there is limited use of zero hour contracts with our service providers and these workers are permitted to work elsewhere.

I have approached the chief executives of the Department's Executive Agencies (Insolvency Service, Companies House, National Measurement Office, Intellectual Property Office, UK Space Agency, Ordnance Survey, Met Office, Land Registry and the Skills Funding Agency) and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.

Letter from Dr Vanessa Lawrence, dated 7 November 2013:

As Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, I have been asked to respond to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, "how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arms lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts".

The answer is that all Ordnance Survey employees are paid above the living wage and we have no direct employees on zero hours contracts.

Letter from Ed Lester, dated 8 November 2013:

I write on behalf of Land Registry in response to Parliamentary Question 174969 tabled on 06 November 2013 which asked the following:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arms lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts.

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Land Registry currently has no staff paid less than the living wage and no staff on zero hours contracts.

Letter from Tim Moss, dated 8 November 2013:

I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 6 November 2013, UIN 174969 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

All of Companies House's direct employees and contracted workers are paid in excess of the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage, and we have no direct employees on zero hour contracts.

Letter from John Alty, dated 8 November 2013:

I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 6 November 2013, to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The Intellectual Property Office is an Executive Agency and Trading Fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. It does not have any employees or contracted workers being paid less than the living wage. It does not have any direct employees on zero hour's contracts.

Letter from Kim Thorneywork, dated 7 November 2013:

Thank you for your question in asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arms lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts. (174969)

Please be advised that based on our October data the Skills Funding Agency has 1,299 employees in the organisation, which includes 32 apprentices.

None of the direct employees or the contracted workers of the Skills Funding Agency are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation, and the 32 apprentices are all paid above the National Minimum Wage, albeit below the level set by the Living Wage Foundation.

We have no staff on 0 hours contracts.

Letter from David Parker, dated 11 November 2013:

Thank you for your question to ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arms lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts.

The UK Space Agency is an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and supports the Living Wage and encourages businesses to pay it when it is affordable and not at the expense of jobs.

In line with our parent department, our primary policy for supporting the low paid is the National Minimum Wage which is carefully set at a level that maximises wages without damaging employment prospects. In order to raise living standards we are focused on increasing employment and cutting taxes.

On current terms, all permanently employed UK Space Agency staff are already paid above the living wage, either nationally or in London, as relevant.

There are no direct UK Space Agency employees on zero hour contracts.

Letter from Peter Mason, dated 13 November 2013:

I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office, an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 6 November 2013, asking how many direct employees and contracted workers are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts.

With the exception of apprentices, this Agency does not have any direct employees or contracted workers paid less that the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage.

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We understand 'zero-hour contracts' to apply to individuals who can be called upon to support the business but who are not guaranteed work. The Agency does not employ staff on this basis. We do at times contract the supply of services from a limited number of contractors to deliver specialist requirements. The use of contractors is managed in accordance with BIS procurement procedures and is subject to regular review.

Letter from Dr Richard Judge, dated 14 November 2013:

The Secretary of State for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question, how many direct employees and contracted workers of his Department and its arms lengths bodies are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage; and how many direct employees are on zero hours contracts.

My response relates to the Insolvency Service, an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The Insolvency Service currently has no employees who earn less than the living wage. There are presently 33 agency workers who earn less than the living wage. However, under the Agency Workers' Regulations, once the agency workers' assignments with the Insolvency Service reach 12 weeks' duration, they will be paid a rate greater than the living wage.

The Insolvency Service has no employees on zero hour contracts.

Letter from John Hirst, dated 11 November 2013:

I am replying on behalf of the Met Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 6 November 2013, UIN 174969 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

There are currently 5 employees at the Met Office on temporary placements who are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage. Paid placement opportunities at the Met Office are generally offered to interns who have just completed the first year of A* levels, current undergraduates or those who have completed their studies. There are no Met Office employees on zero hours contracts.

Construction: West Midlands

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what change in construction output there has been in the West Midlands in each of the last four quarters. [175327]

Michael Fallon: The value of construction output at current prices, non-seasonally adjusted, for each of the latest available quarters in the west midlands is as follows:

Regional output for Q3 2013 will be made available with the next release on 13 December 2013.

Credit: Interest Rates

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to discourage people from taking out multiple payday loans. [175133]

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Jo Swinson: Government and regulators have been working together to tackle the problems in the payday lending market and to clamp down on unscrupulous and irresponsible lenders. We have made clear our aim to ensure that consumers should not be able to take out multiple loans the same day without their credit files being properly checked and, more broadly, that payday lenders are making proper and effective use of existing credit check mechanisms. Credit data sharing is key to lenders carrying out proper affordability assessments, and more progress on recording and using payday lending data in real time is vital to addressing problems around multiple loans.

All lenders are already required by law to assess the borrower's creditworthiness before providing credit. We welcome, in the short-term, the Office of Fair Trading's strong action on non-compliant payday lenders as a top enforcement priority. From April 2014, the Financial Conduct Authority, the new credit regulator has proposed tough new rules on payday lending. These will include: binding requirements on lenders to conduct proper affordability assessments; a limit on the number of times a loan can be rolled over; and a requirement to include risk warnings and information about free debt advice in all payday adverts, as well as before rolling over a loan.

Cybercrime

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to page 13 of the Government's publication, Cyber security organisational standards: guidance, published in April 2013, who the members of the selection panel are. [175456]

Mr Willetts: Ministers will be reviewing the outcome of this process shortly. Their decision will be based on a recommendation from Government policy officials from GCHQ, OCSIA in the Cabinet Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The overall process has been informed by advice received from academia, technical and standards experts, and broader UK industry through an open and public consultation.

EU Emissions Trading Scheme

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 5 November 2013, Official Report, columns 141-2W, on environment protection: taxation, which companies the Government has compensated for the indirect costs of the European Union Emissions Trading System; and how much compensation each such company received. [175455]

Michael Fallon: We are still assessing applications for the European Union Emissions Trading System compensation and will publish names of companies receiving compensation once this process has been completed. Due to commercial confidentiality we do not intend to disclose the amounts of compensation received by each company.

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Mental Illness: Discrimination

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 31 October 2013, OfficialReport, column 583W, on mental illness: discrimination, what steps his Department is taking to encourage businesses to sign up to the Time to Change initiative to end mental health discrimination. [175317]

Jo Swinson: BIS is currently not taking any specific action to encourage businesses to sign up to the Time to Change initiative. However, it is committed to ending mental health discrimination and will be supporting the Department of Health (Government's lead on the programme) to promote the Time to Change initiative across a wide range of businesses.

New Businesses: Bedford

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many start-up loans have been granted to businesses in postcode areas (a) MK40, (b) MK41 and (c) MK42 in the last year. [175307]

Matthew Hancock: The Start-Up Loans scheme volumes for businesses in postcode areas (a) MK40, (b) MK41 and (c) MK42 in the year ending 11 November 2013 are as follows:

(a) MK40—5 loans with a total value of £39,900

(b)MK41—0 loans

(c) MK42—8 loans with a total value of £45,100

New Businesses: Poole

Mr Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department has provided to help new start-up businesses in Poole access finance. [175351]

Matthew Hancock: Start-up businesses are vital to the economy and the Government are supporting them in many ways.

In Poole, 15 start-up loans have been drawn with a value of £104,600; and since May 2010, 22 enterprise finance guarantee scheme loans have been drawn with a value of £1.6 million.

Nationally we are supporting start-up businesses in a number of ways:

Start-up loans are now available to anyone over the age of 18 starting a business (or in the early stages of doing so) but lacking access to the necessary finance or support to realise their ambitions. Further information can be found at:

http://www.startuploans.co.uk

www.gov.uk is the home for Government services and information online. One of the tools available is the ‘Finance Finder’; a searchable database of publicly-backed sources of finance. The tool will help to explore the full range of options available, from Government grants to investment types of finance available from Business Angels and Venture Capitalists.

As part of a move to make it simpler and easier for small businesses to access help, the greatbusiness website:

www.greatbusiness.gov.uk

links to sources of information and advice on how to run, finance and expand a business.

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In addition to online support, the Business Link helpline is available to provide a quick response on queries about starting a business, or a personalised and in-depth advice service for more complex needs.

Post Offices

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post office branches were open at the end of (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12 and (d) 2012-13. [175579]

Jo Swinson: The Government have made a commitment that there will be no Post Office closure programme, planned or otherwise, and is providing £1.34 billion to 2015 to modernise and create a sustainable Post Office network of at least 11,500 branches which is also compliant with the Government-set access criteria. The Post Office network has experienced a high level of stability since 2010, halting over two decades of closures and decline. The size of the network is at its most stable for over 20 years as demonstrated by the annual end March figures in the following table:

Public Houses: Closures

Mr Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the rate of pub closures in (a) Poole and (b) England in the last two years. [175347]

Jo Swinson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Pendle (Andrew Stephenson) on 4 September 2013, Official Report, column 417W. The Government do not compile statistics on pub closures and has made no estimate of the number of pubs that have closed in the last two years.

Qualifications

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people employed by his Department hold a (a) bachelor's, (b) master's and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if he will make a statement. [175359]

18 Nov 2013 : Column 666W

Jo Swinson: BIS does not centrally record details of individual qualifications. To collate this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Regional Growth Fund: North East

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much has been paid to companies in the North East under the Regional Growth Fund to date. [175248]

Michael Fallon: To date Regional Growth Fund payments totalling £816.3 million have been made to projects and programmes in England. £92.7 million of that total has been paid in the North East.

Regional Growth Fund: Poole

Mr Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of the businesses in Poole received grants from the most recent round of the Regional Growth Fund. [175348]

Michael Fallon: No businesses in Poole have received grants from the fourth Regional Growth Fund bidding round.

Royal Mail

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to question 171111, how many shares in the Royal Mail are being sold to (a) foreign and (b) domestic shareholders; and how many shares were purchased in each region. [175059]

Michael Fallon: Of the base offer sold by Government on 11 October 2013, 67% of shares were allocated to institutional investors and 33% to individuals located in the UK through the retail offer. When allocating shares for institutional investors, we prioritised long-term, stable investors with 63% of the institutional tranche going to British-based institutions. We do not hold a regional break down.

Royal Mail is now listed on the London stock exchange with owners free to trade their shares. The maintenance of the Royal Mail plc share register is a matter for the company.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what fees his Department has paid to date to (a) Goldman Sachs, (b) UBS, (c) Barclays, (d) Bank of America Merrill Lynch and (e) Lazard in respect of the flotation of Royal Mail. [175396]

Michael Fallon: In total the underwriting banks are entitled to a maximum fee of 1.2% of the IPO proceeds, or £16.9 million. That maximum includes a discretionary fee of £4.2 million. No decision has been made on payment of this discretionary fee. The actual fees will be finalised shortly. Lazard will receive £1.5 million, as the Government's independent adviser on the Royal Mail transaction.

18 Nov 2013 : Column 667W

Secondment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many private sector employees have been seconded by the private sector to his Department; what the name was of the company from which they were seconded; and whether any of those employees have worked on drafting legislation. [175644]

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Jo Swinson: The following table gives details of those companies who have seconded individuals to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills since January 2011. It is unlikely that any of the individuals seconded would have been involved in drafting legislation but to verify each record would involve disproportionate cost.

Telephone Services

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many telephone lines with the prefix (a) 0845, (b) 0844 and (c) 0843 his Department (i) operates and (ii) sponsors; how many calls each number has received in the last 12 months; and whether alternative numbers charged at the BT local rate are available in each case. [174989]

Jo Swinson: Central records show that the 0845 numbers in use by the Department are:

0845 015 0010—BIS publications order line

0845 015 0020—BIS publications order line (fax)

0845 015 0030—BIS publications order line (minicom)

0845 600 9006—Business Link helpline.

The Department does not operate any 0843 or 0844 numbers. No records are available showing the number of calls made to these numbers in the last 12 months. Alternative 03 numbers charged at UK-wide geographic rates will be available by January 2014.

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Work and Pensions

Disability Living Allowance: Terminal Illnesses

Mrs McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the timescale was for decisions for terminally ill people who applied for disability living allowance under the special rules process from 1 January to 1 October 2013. [174643]

Mike Penning: The target for DLA special rules claims was 10 days. The percentage of claims cleared within 10 days between January 2013 and June 2013 was 85.4%. From July 2013 to October 2013 the percentage of claims cleared in 10 days is significantly impacted by far lower volumes of DLA special rules claims following the national go live for PIP.