Public Sector Information Independent Review

Sir Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he intends to respond to the recommendations of the Shakespeare review of public sector information. [179081]

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

The Government published a response to the Shakespeare review on 14 June 2013:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-response-to-shakespeare-review

and provided an update on progress in the National Information Infrastructure (NII) narrative at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/254166/20131029-NII-Narrative-FINAL.pdf

Shipbuilding

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support is available to local communities affected by changes to the location of shipbuilding jobs; and from which Department's budget such support is drawn. [178335]

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Michael Fallon: This Department is supporting local communities in the Portsmouth area affected by changes to the location of shipbuilding jobs. This is in addition to the support provided by BAE Systems. Action includes supporting the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Portsmouth City in establishing two local task forces that will focus on supporting affected workers and the future of the site and naval activities respectively. Additionally, this Department has overseen the establishment of a Maritime Forum which will focus on sustainable economic and jobs growth in the Solent area and provide a supplement to the Solent LEP Strategic Economic Plan. Underpinning all this is £19 million of Regional Growth funding to boost jobs (£10 million), skills (£3 million) and small and medium-sized enterprises (£6 million) while £2.5 million of European Social funding will be available to support all those facing redundancy.

Furthermore, the National Careers Service is available to offer free impartial careers advice to those impacted on updating skills or retraining for alternative employment as is the UK wide Talent Retention Solution (TRS) which helps match skilled workers to jobs in the advanced manufacturing and engineering sectors.

Students: Loans

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of students from (a) the UK

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and

(b)

other EU countries in (i) alternative providers, (ii) Higher Education Funding Council for England-funded Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and (iii) all HEIs who did not take out a tuition fee loan in the latest year for which data are available; and if he will make a statement. [R] [178051]

Mr Willetts: Statistics on the financial support awarded and paid to applicants for student support or their higher education institution (HEI) are published by the Student Loans Company in their annual statistical first release (SFR) “Student Support For Higher Education in England”. The latest SFR was published on 28 November 2013.

http://www.slc.co.uk/media/694170/slcsfr052013.pdf

Table 4b (ii) of the recent SFR provides estimates of the proportion of the tuition fee loan eligible population enrolled at public providers of higher education who were paid a tuition fee loan during the course of the academic year. The number and relative proportions that were estimated to be eligible but did not take out a tuition fee loan are shown in the table for the 2011/12 academic year, the latest year for which the loan-eligible population can be estimated.

Estimates of the size of the loan-eligible population at alternative providers of higher education are not available, though latest figures show that during the course of the academic year 2012/13 some 25,000 UK students and 700 EU students were paid tuition fee loans at alternative providers.

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what restrictions on future interest rates and debt collection policies were placed on the new owners of the Student Loan Book. [178841]

Mr Willetts: The Government announced the sale of the remaining publicly owned Mortgage Style student loans on 25 November for £160 million to Erudio Student Loans Ltd. There will be no changes to loan terms, including the calculation of interest rates which are fixed at a rate equivalent to the Retail Price Index, as a result of the sale.

Erudio Student Loans must adhere to strict OFT guidance about treating borrowers fairly which includes particular protections for vulnerable borrowers and those in financial difficulty.

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much of the total level of debt on the Student Loan Book was incurred in each year since its inception. [178842]

Mr Willetts: The Student Loans Company publishes statistics on student loan debt in its Statistical First Release (SFR), ‘Student Loans for Higher Education in England’. Information on the outstanding student loan balance (including loans which are not yet due for repayment) at the end of each financial year since 1990-91, when student loans were introduced, is provided in the table. The figures are derived from Table 1(i) of the SFR. Since 2000-01, the publication has been available in digital format from the Student Loans Company (SLC) website at:

http://www.slc.co.uk/statistics/official-statistics-archive.aspx

Copies of earlier publications are available in the Libraries of the House.

Since 2005-06 the Student Loans Company has published the statistics separately for each of the devolved Administrations; a separate series for England is presented in the table from this date.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 249W

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills who will be responsible for allocation and collection of student loans for the academic year 2014-15. [178843]

Mr Willetts: The Student Loan Company (SLC) will be responsible for allocating student loans in 2014-15. Student loan repayments will be collected either by HM Revenue and Customs if the borrower is employed or self-employed in the United Kingdom, or directly by the SLC if the borrower is living outside the UK.

Cabinet Office

Government Procurement: SMEs

8. Paul Flynn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent steps he has taken to reduce barriers to small and medium-sized enterprises participating in government procurement. [901555]

Mr Hurd: Last weekend, we published Small Business Great Ambition which sets out the next steps in taking forward Lord Young's recommendations to make our business more accessible to small and medium sized businesses.

Youth Services

11. Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the change in spending on youth services by local authorities since May 2010. [901559]

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Mr Hurd: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him in topical questions.

Transparency Agenda

12. John Cryer: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent steps he has taken to develop his Department's transparency agenda; and if he will make a statement. [901560]

Mr Hurd: This year the UK has led the way on transparency through our presidency of the G8 and as lead co-chair of the Open Government Partnership.

We have just published an Open Data Charter Action Plan, our second OGP National Action Plan, and the UK National Information Infrastructure.

Cyber-security

13. Ann McKechin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he is taking to improve cyber-security for consumers and small businesses. [901561]

Mr Maude: To increase confidence and measurably improve the online safety of consumers and SMEs, the Government will launch a major cyber awareness campaign in January 2014, building on the work of the National Fraud Authority and Get Safe Online. We have also produced guidance for small businesses.

Public Service Mutuals

14. Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent discussions he has had on public service mutuals. [901562]

Mr Maude: Mutuals continue to drive real change in our public services, helping to boost public sector productivity that had flat lined between 1997 from 2010. In recent months I have personally engaged at the European level to open up restrictive procurement rules, and met with many of the front-line staff taking control of their own services.

Civil Servants: Recruitment

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the ethnic breakdown was of all applicants who successfully completed the Civil Service Fast Stream application process between the 2011 and 2013 intakes; [178778]

(2) what the ethnic breakdown was of all applicants who applied to the Civil Service Fast Stream programme between the 2011 and 2013 intakes; [178779]

(3) what the gender make-up was of all applicants who successfully completed the Civil Service Fast Stream application process between the 2011 and 2013 intakes; [178785]

(4) what the gender make-up was of all applicants who applied to the Civil Service Fast Stream programme between the 2011 and 2013 intakes; [178786]

(5) how many applicants from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge successfully completed the Civil Service Fast Stream application process between the 2011 and 2013 rounds; and what proportion of all successful applicants this represents; [178775]

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(6) how many applicants from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge applied to the Civil Service Fast Stream programme between the 2011 and 2013 rounds; and what proportion of total applicants this represents; [178776]

(7) what the ethnic background is of all applicants who have applied to the 2014 round of the Civil Service Fast Stream programme; [178780]

(8) what the gender make-up is of all applicants who applied to the 2014 round of the Civil Service Fast Stream Programme; [178787]

(9) how many applicants from state comprehensive schools have applied to the 2014 Civil Service Fast Stream programme; and what proportion of all applicants this figure represents; [178783]

(10) how many applicants from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge applied to the 2014 Civil Service Fast Stream programme; and what proportion of all applicants this represents; [178781]

(11) how many applicants from state comprehensive schools successfully completed the Civil Service Fast Stream application process between the 2011 and 2013 rounds; and what proportion of all successful applicants this figure represents; [178782]

(12) how many applicants from state comprehensive schools applied to the Civil Service Fast Stream programme between the 2011 and 2013 rounds; and what proportion of all applicants these figures represent. [178784]

Mr Maude: The data for 2011 and for 2012 are on the gov.uk website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-fast-stream-report

The data for 2013 will be published next year. The 2014 Fast Stream programme is currently underway and data will not be available until 2015.

Construction: Billing

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what target he has set for the use of Project bank accounts. [178410]

Mr Maude: We hope to award £4 billion worth of contracts that make use of Project bank accounts by 31 March 2014.

Emergencies: Planning

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent progress he has made on National Contingency Planning. [178715]

Mr Maude: As set out in the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, the primary responsibility for emergency planning in the UK sits with local responders. The work at the local tier is constantly evolving and is supported by a wide range of activity at the national level, including: the production of an annual National Risk Assessment (NRA); the cross-Government National Resilience Capability Programme (NRCP); and the Emergency Planning College which develops and delivers doctrine and training to support the UK's resilience to emergencies of all types.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 252W

Government Departments: Procurement

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the usefulness of e-procurement in Government Departments. [178551]

Mr Hurd: The Government support measures that simplify the procurement process, including the use of electronic procurement and invoicing. Under the principles of LEAN Sourcing, all central government procurements are required to use Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) compliant e-sourcing tools to help manage the process.

Iraq Committee of Inquiry

Mr Amess: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many officials in his Department have duties relating to the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq War; and what the nature of those duties is. [178589]

Mr Maude: As was the case under the previous Administration a small number of Cabinet Office officials have duties relating to the Iraq Inquiry including assisting with requests for declassification and supporting Government witnesses.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the commitment in the coalition agreement to put a limit on the number of special advisers, what limit has been imposed. [178036]

Mr Maude: The Ministerial Code sets out the process for the appointment of special advisers.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178384]

Mr Hurd: The contents of the Official Report is a matter of public record and is readily accessible to the hon. Member online and in hard copy.

Profumo Inquiry

George Galloway: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office for what reasons the evidence given to the Denning inquiry into the Profumo affair has not been published. [178659]

Mr Maude: As stated in paragraph 7 of his report, Lord Denning assured each witness that the information given to him would be treated in strict confidence and would be used only for the purposes of his inquiry report. The documents are, however, covered by the Public Records Act 1958 and have been selected for permanent preservation.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 253W

Retail Trade

Ann Coffey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people are employed in the retail trade as a proportion of the total number employed, by (a) region and (b) constituency in the last five years for which figures are available. [178742]

Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.

Letter from Glen Watson, dated December 2013:

As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many people are employed in the retail trade as a proportion of the total number employed, by (a) region and (b) constituency in the last five years for which figures are available. [178742]

Annual employment statistics from 2008 onwards are available from the Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES). The tables show the number employed in the retail sector as a percentage of the total number employed in each region (Table 1) and each parliamentary constituency (Table 2).

National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at

http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

A copy of the table will be placed in the Library of the House.

Culture, Media and Sport

Direct Selling

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Telephone Preference Service in preventing unwanted calls; and if she will make a statement. [178545]

Mr Vaizey: The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) is a free service and more than 19.5 million numbers are currently registered with the TPS. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) considers complaints and can issue a monetary penalty of up to £500,000. Since January 2012, the ICO has issued four substantive monetary penalties totalling £360,000 and action against other organisations is also under current consideration. Additionally, in spring 2014 the Office of Communications (Ofcom) will be reviewing the effectiveness of the TPS in preventing unwanted calls and we will consider Ofcom's findings to determine whether further action is necessary:

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/silent-calls/joint-action-plan

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will bring forward legislative proposals to strengthen the laws relating to nuisance telephone calls and texts. [178546]

Mr Vaizey: We outlined our future plans to tackle nuisance calls and texts in our strategy paper “Connectivity, Content and Consumers: Britain's digital platform for growth”, which was published on 30 July 2013:

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

11 Dec 2013 : Column 254W

This includes bringing forward legislation to enable the Office of Communications (Ofcom) to share information more easily with the Information Commissioner's (ICO), in relation to organisations that make unsolicited marketing nuisance calls, so more effective enforcement action can be taken. Also, we are considering the scope to lower the legal threshold, which needs to be met before the ICO can issue a monetary penalty. Our further thinking will be set out in our action plan, which will be published shortly.

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what is the strongest action possible that can be taken against companies who break the law in relation to nuisance calls. [178547]

Mr Vaizey: Under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) can issue a monetary penalty of up to £500,000 to an organisation, which wilfully or negligently makes unsolicited direct marketing nuisance calls to Telephone Preference Service (TPS) registered numbers, or when a caller has been advised not to make further calls to a particular number. Additionally, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) can issue a monetary penalty of up to £2 million to organisations that breach their statement of policy on persistent misuse, which includes making abandoned and silent calls.

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many nuisance calls have been reported to the Information Commissioner's Office in each of the last five years. [178549]

Mr Vaizey: The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has advised that they are unable provide information for the last five years, due to the retention period they operate under, however complaint numbers in respect of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003, since 2009 were as follows:

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in her Department; and if she will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited. [178498]

Mrs Grant: There is no specific list of blocked websites. Rather, DCMS uses a web protection tool that intelligently filters or blocks access to certain types of inappropriate content such as pornography.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 255W

Newspapers: Regulation

Angie Bray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether she has instructed the Public Appointments Commissioner to draw up guidelines for the Recognition Panel for the purposes of newspaper regulation. [178301]

Mr Vaizey: The Commissioner for Public Appointments carries specific responsibilities under the Charter. The Commissioner's role is commenced the day following the date the Charter is sealed. The Charter sets out the terms under which appointments to the panel will be made, including eligibility criteria for membership of the Appointments Committee and the Board of the Recognition Panel.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in her Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178386]

Mrs Grant: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not mentioned the word 'poverty' in any parliamentary answer in the 2011-12 or 2012-13 Sessions.

Press: Regulation

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the cost to (a) the budget of the Commissioner for Public Appointments and (b) the public purse of the establishment of a recognition panel for the purposes of newspaper regulation. [178340]

Mr Vaizey: The Commissioner acts independently of Government. The Royal Charter, which includes funding details, has been published here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/leveson-report-cross-party-royal-charter

Defence

Afghanistan

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 31 October 2013, Official Report, column 552W, on unmanned air vehicles: Afghanistan, to what proportion of legitimate military objectives for targeting by UK unmanned aerial vehicles in Afghanistan have pattern of life analyses contributed. [R] [178628]

Mr Dunne: Pattern of life analysis is always undertaken prior to any kinetic strike being conducted.

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 4 September 2013, Official Report, column 402W, on Afghanistan, what the number, squadron and rank is of US Air Force personnel who man UK Reapers other than those in 62 Expeditionary Squadron responsible for launch and recovery of those assets. [R] [178632]

Mr Dunne: US Air Force personnel do not operate UK Reapers outside of the launch and recovery phase on UK missions.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 256W

Aircraft Carriers

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost of establishing a dedicated National Grid supply to support the first of the Queen Elizabeth Class carriers. [178518]

Mr Dunne: Establishing a dedicated National Grid supply to meet future electricity demand is one element of the £100 million investment in infrastructure at Her Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth.

The provision of a National Grid connection is currently the subject of contract negotiations with potential suppliers, and I am therefore withholding the information requested as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether additional Reaper aircraft will be introduced to Afghanistan under an urgent operation requirement; [R] [178432]

(2) pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Moray, of 15 October 2013, Official Report, column 640W, on armed forces: deployment, whether acceptance testing of the five additional Reaper aircraft has been completed. [R] [178631]

Mr Dunne: The acquisition of the five additional Reaper aircraft to support operations in Afghanistan will continue to be managed as an Urgent Operational Requirement. Acceptance testing of four of the five new aircraft has been completed; acceptance testing for the last aircraft should complete over the coming weeks.

Armed Forces: Vaccination

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) vaccinations and (b) inoculations are administered to armed forces personnel (i) on entry to the services and (ii) routinely throughout a service career; and if he will make a statement. [178533]

Anna Soubry: Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy identifies which diseases members of the UK armed forces should be protected against. This policy is based on the Health Protection England publication—“Immunisation Against Infectious Disease: The Green Book. The Green Book refers to vaccination rather than inoculation”.

Deployable Service personnel at every stage of their Service career are protected against:

Diphtheria

Hepatitis A and B

Measles, Mumps and Rubella

Pertussis

Poliomyelitis

Tetanus

Tuberculosis

Yellow Fever

Personnel who have no deployed role should not routinely be offered vaccination against Hepatitis A, Tuberculosis or Yellow Fever. Other vaccinations may

11 Dec 2013 : Column 257W

be offered if a medical risk assessment indicates that personnel may be exposed to other infectious disease threats.

Defence: Procurement

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on joint European equipment acquisition projects in each year since 2008. [178859]

Mr Dunne: The information requested is annually collated by the European Defence Agency and publicly available on its website at the following link:

http://www.eda.europa.eu/defencedata

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited. [178499]

Anna Soubry: All the computers on the Ministry of Defence (MOD)'s major networks connect to the Internet via the Enterprise Gateway Service (EGS). At the EGS the MOD determines whether requests to a particular site are allowed using categorisation software.

Those sites the software is configured to block include:

categories such as gambling and pornography;

individual sites such as commercial auction sites;

ones that pose a technical security risk, including web based mail systems, translation sites, those using mobile code;

Social Media. Though this is under review as the MOD seeks to balance the potential benefits against the specific risks posed by such sites to Defence networks.

There are some computers in the MOD with direct internet connections, used for specific purposes outside the main networks. The way that each of these is configured will be determined by local management as required.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178387]

Anna Soubry: The word "poverty" has been mentioned once in answers to parliamentary questions in the Sessions 2011-12 and 2012-13. This was in response to a question from the hon. Member for Colchester (Sir Bob Russell) on 6 February 2013, Official Report, column 224W.

Radioactive Waste: Fife

Mr Gordon Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when he expects work to clean up radioactive material in Dalgety Bay to begin; [178319]

(2) when he expects to sign an agreement with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency on the clean-up of Dalgety Bay radiation. [178320]

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Dr Murrison: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) remains committed to playing an active role, alongside other interested parties, in achieving a long-term solution at Dalgety Bay.

The MOD continues to work with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to develop a detailed risk assessment in order to ensure any mitigation or remediation is both effective and proportionate to the nature of the risk.

We support SEPA's efforts to bring all the interested parties together early in 2014 to discuss potential solutions, and our beach monitoring continues to ensure the risk to the public at Dalgety Bay remains very low.

Tornado Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) airprox incidents and (b) collisions there have been involving Tornado aircraft in each year since 1998. [178799]

Mr Francois: The airprox incidents and collisions involving Tornado aircraft in each year since 1998 are shown in the following table:

An airprox is a situation in which, in the opinion of a pilot or a controller, the distance between aircraft as well as their relative positions and speed have been such that the safety of the aircraft involved was or may have been compromised.

The figures in the table include Tornado GR4 aircraft and earlier variants of these aircraft, including the Tornado F3 which have since been withdrawn from service.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether operational command of unmanned aerial vehicles allocated for use by NATO can revert to US command to enable it to engage in operations outside the International Security Assistance Force mission. [178445]

11 Dec 2013 : Column 259W

Mr Dunne: The UK's unmanned aerial vehicle platforms are national assets and only operate in support of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Moray, of 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 102W, on unmanned air vehicles, what steps are outstanding in the Watchkeeper release to service process. [R] [178629]

Mr Dunne: The programme recently received a Statement of Type Design Assurance from the Military Aviation Authority; this is a key component of the certification process which will allow the Ministry of Defence to progress towards the initial release to service (RTS). The remaining steps include completion of the initial RTS recommendations by defence equipment and support, and duty holder assurance activities, which are expected over the coming months.

Veterans: Homelessness

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he has taken to tackle homelessness among military veterans; what estimate he has made of the number of homeless former members of the armed forces; and if he will make a statement. [178343]

Anna Soubry: The 2012-13 figures reported by the Combined Homelessness and Information Network indicate that 3% of those found sleeping rough in London say that they have served in our armed forces. This represents a 1% decrease against the previous year. We would like to bring the numbers down further.

The Department for Communities and Local Government has responsibility for homelessness issues. Nevertheless, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has introduced a number of initiatives in order to minimise the risk of service personnel becoming homeless on leaving the armed forces. Most recently, we announced the new £200 million Forces Help to Buy scheme which will commence on 1 April 2014. It will mean that servicemen and women can borrow up to 50% of their salary, up to a maximum of £25,000, interest-free, providing a boost to those needing to find a deposit to buy their own home. This will replace the current advance of salary and the Armed Forces Home Ownership Scheme, which enable service personnel to purchase their own homes. These initiatives will continue to 2014 and 2015.

To assist the transition of serving personnel to civilian life, the MOD offers a wide-ranging resettlement programme which includes a briefing by the Joint Services Housing Advice Office. This offers advice and information about a range of topics that armed forces personnel may find useful relating to an individual's housing needs before they leave the armed forces.

In addition, the MOD has supported the establishment of two supported housing schemes for ex-service personnel-Mike Jackson House in Aldershot, which opened in 2008, and The Beacon at Catterick, which opened to residents in September 2011. The focus is on helping individuals to develop independent living skills and with finding suitable ‘move on’ permanent accommodation, training and employment. Both schemes are managed by Riverside English Churches Housing Group.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 260W

Once a person leaves service, any need for social housing becomes a local authority matter. The MOD is working closely with the Department for Communities and Local Government to ensure the fair treatment of service families in need of social housing and ensure they are given proper priority on housing waiting lists.

Veterans: Military Decorations

Mr Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the processing backlog of medals for veterans. [178411]

Anna Soubry: The average time taken to process medal applications received from veterans is shown in the following table.

The information provided is based on applications completed between 1 January 2013 and 5 December 2013.

Deputy Prime Minister

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Office's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178388]

The Deputy Prime Minister: The content of the Official Report is a matter of public record and is readily accessible to the hon. Member online and in hard copy.

Education

Academies

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which schools that have not been given a requires improvement grade from Ofsted have been visited by an academy broker since May 2010. [178913]

Mr Timpson: The Department for Education does not hold data on the number of visits by academy brokers.

The Department may instruct an academy broker to visit any school where a sponsored academy solution is being considered. This includes all schools judged as inadequate by Ofsted since May 2010, schools judged by Ofsted to require improvement and schools with a history of underperformance. Academy brokers do not routinely visit schools judged as good or outstanding unless there are performance concerns or it is appropriate in the course of agreeing a local academy solution.

11 Dec 2013 : Column 261W

Apprentices

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reasons only eight % of employers in England currently offer apprenticeships. [178412]

Matthew Hancock: According to a UKCES survey, in England 14% of workplaces either currently employ apprentices or offer apprenticeships¹. In 2010, a similar survey found that 9% of workplaces either employed or offered apprenticeships².

The three main reasons why workplaces are not currently offering apprenticeships are:

a lack of awareness;

they choose not to;

or they have real or perceived barriers preventing them from doing so.

¹ The UKCES Employer Perspectives Survey 2012

² While the surveys are not directly comparable, the authors state that the figures ‘suggest that the proportion of employers offering formal Apprenticeships has increased significantly in the last two to three years’.

ICT

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many people are employed within centralised IT departments or teams in his Department; and if he will make a statement. [179165]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education has 201 staff working in centralised IT departments, as at 31 October 2013. The proportion of the Department's staff working in IT has fallen since May 2010. This is in the context of the Department reducing its administration costs by 50% in real terms by 2014-15.

Kings Science Academy

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) if he will publish all notes held by his Department of the telephone call from his Department to Action Fraud on 25 April 2013 reporting the alleged fraud at Kings School Academy, Bradford; [178887]

(2) if his Department would make a formal request to Action Fraud for a transcript of the recording Action Fraud made of the phone call from his Department on 25 April 2013 reporting allegations of fraud at Kings Science Academy, Bradford, and for the report made by Action Fraud on the basis of that phone call and passed to the National Fraud Investigation Bureau. [178891]

Mr Timpson: The Department does not hold notes of the telephone call to Action Fraud on 25 April 2013. The Department does not intend to make a request to Action Fraud for a transcript of any recording made by them, nor any report by Action Fraud arising from the telephone call.

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) when his Department was first made aware of the Crowe Clark and Whitehill Report into Kings Science Academy in Bradford; [178917]

(2) when his Department was informed of the conclusions of the Crowe Clark and Whitehill Report into Kings Science Academy in Bradford; [178918]

11 Dec 2013 : Column 262W

(3) when his Department's Internal Audit Investigation Team were aware of the conclusions of the Crowe Clark and Whitehill Report prior to that team's investigation into Kings Science Academy in Bradford. [178919]

Mr Timpson: The Department was made aware of work being undertaken by Crowe Clark Whitehill on behalf of Kings Science Academy's governing body on 24 October 2012. A copy of the final report, dated 8 December 2012, was shared with the Department on 10 December 2012. This was included in the briefing given to the internal audit investigation team on 10 January 2013.

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what support his Department provided in September 2011 to the governing body of Kings Science Academy when concerns were raised about the body's educational and financial experience. [178920]

Mr Timpson: Academies and free schools are responsible for their own education and financial management. All free schools are visited by education advisers after they have opened to assess progress.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178389]

Elizabeth Truss: The content of the Official Report is a matter of public record and is readily accessible to the hon. Member online and in hard copy.

Schools: Inspections

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many officials in his Department have observed lessons in (a) academies and (b) free schools since May 2010; and in which schools such observations were carried out. [178914]

Mr Timpson: It is not the role of officials in the Department for Education to undertake lesson observations in academies or free schools. The Department however contracts the services of Education Advisers to carry out lesson observations as appropriate.

Education Advisers conduct lesson observations in all open free schools, studio schools and university technical colleges (UTCs) at their post-opening monitoring visits. 179 free schools, UTCs and studio schools have had lesson observations carried out by an Education Adviser to date. 226 free schools, UTCs and studio schools will have had lesson observations by the end of this school term.

Schools: Northamptonshire

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) primary school places and (b) secondary school places have been created in (i) Corby constituency and (ii) East Northamptonshire since May 2010. [178878]

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Mr Laws: The most recent information available on primary and secondary school capacity in Northamptonshire relates to the position in May 2012.

We do not collect data by constituencies or parts of counties. The results from our annual survey for Northamptonshire since 2010 are detailed in the tables.

In 2012, the data show an increase of 404 primary places since 2010:

In 2012, the data show an increase of 670 secondary places since 2010:

It is the responsibility of each local authority to balance the supply and demand for primary and secondary school places in their area, and secure a place for every child of statutory age who wants one. The Department provided £41.88 million from 2011-12 to 2014-15 to support this, an increase of just over 30% against the £29.05 million provided over the preceding four year period (from 2007-08 to 2010-11).

Science: Qualifications

Mr Robin Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the proportion of students studying STEM subjects at (a) GCSE and (b) A-level in each of the last five years. [178793]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department does not hold information on the number of students studying STEM subjects. Information on the proportion of students attempting STEM subject examinations has been provided in the following table. Information has been provided for attempts in both STEM subjects individually and for at least one STEM subject.

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Energy and Climate Change

Air Pollution

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the effect of the classification of emissions associated with energy generation from combined heat and power and recycling of waste gases from certain industries on the calculation of the manufacturing sector emissions cap. [178684]

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has made no such assessment. In accordance with the 2003 EU ETS Directive (2003/87/EC), as amended, and the 2011 Free Allocation Decision (2011/278/EU), calculation of the manufacturing sector emissions cap is the responsibility of the European Commission.

Boilers: Biofuels

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what consultation his Department undertook (a) before and (b) after the implementation of recent changes to renewable heat initiative scheme funding for biomass boilers. [178024]

Gregory Barker: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 November 2013, Official Report, column 16-17W.

We published the consultation ‘Non-Domestic Scheme Early Tariff Review’ on 31 May 2013, the same day as our first degression announcement, which was open for responses until 28 June 2013. You can view the consultation at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/204446/Tariff_Review_Consultation_for_PUBLICATION.pdf

There was no formal consultation following the degression announcements in May, but we received informal feedback from stakeholders about the announcement.

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On 4 December, we published a Government policy document on the RHI: ‘Improving Support, Increasing Uptake’. This is available through our website at:

www.gov.uk/decc/rhi

The announcements relating to biomass in this document were:

Increase in support for large biomass boilers (i.e. of more than 1 megawatt capacity) to 2p per kilowatt hour (p/kWh).

The introduction of a dedicated tariff of 4.1 p/kWh for Combined Heat and Power Quality Assurance Programme (CHPQA)-certified biomass CHP, excluding energy from waste.

Continued application of the standard solid biomass tariff, now 2.0p/kWhs to the biogenic content of energy from waste.

In addition, we intend for the Biomass Suppliers List to be open for applications from suppliers of solid biomass in spring 2014. This will give biomass suppliers the time they need to prepare for the mandatory implementation of the criteria in autumn 2014.

DECC intends to introduce the following legislated requirements for sustainable biomass in the RHI scheme:

Minimum 60% GHG emission saving relative to EU fossil fuel heat average (=4.8g CO2 per MJ), from autumn 2014.

Land criteria which correspond to meeting the UK timber procurement policy for woody biomass, from 1 April 2015, subject to parliamentary processes.

In order to provide flexibility and simplify scheme administration and the Biomass Suppliers List in future years, we have amended RHI policy so that sustainability standards are not grandfathered. We intend that all existing and new applicants to the non-domestic RHI should comply with any updated criteria, from the date the amended legislation comes into force.

The 4 December document was a response to three consultations and a call for evidence, as follows:

“Expanding the non-domestic scheme”. This was published on 20 September 2012 and was open for responses until 7 December 2012. You can view the consultation at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/66160/RHI_-_expanding_the_non-domestic_scheme.pdf

“Air to Water Heat Pumps and Energy from Waste”. This was published on 20 September 2012 and was open for responses until 18 October 2012. You can view the consultation at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/66605/6452-renewable-heat-incentive-air-to-water-heat-pumps-.pdf

The early tariff review consultation mentioned above.

A call for evidence on large biomass. This was published on 20 September 2012 and was open for responses until 18 October 2012. You can view the document at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/66167/RHI_call_for_evidence_-_large_biomass.pdf

Apart from these formal approaches, there are informal discussions between DECC and stakeholders regarding the detailed policy.

It remains our intention to introduce the changes outlined in our 4 December announcement in spring 2014.

Developing Countries: Climate Change

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the written statement of 28 November 2013, Official Report, column 21WS, on Warsaw Climate Change Conference, what

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assessment he has made of the potential need for public funding in addition to private finance in order to help the most vulnerable people in the poorest countries to survive extreme and erratic weather; if he will make an assessment of the potential for providing climate finance through

(a)

a financial transaction tax,

(b)

fair charges on emissions from international transport and

(c)

redirection of fossil fuel subsidies; and if he will make a statement. [178851]

Gregory Barker: The two most comprehensive recent assessments of the costs of adaptation are the World Bank, Economics of Adaptation to Climate Change (EACC) ($71 billion to $82 billion average annual flows between 2010 and 2050) and the UNFCCC, Investment and Financial Flows study ($28 billion to $67 billion per year by 2030), although these are subject to considerable uncertainty. These assessments indicate that there is an important role for public finance to reduce the impacts on the most vulnerable in the poorest countries who are least able to protect themselves from extreme and erratic weather, although it is not the case that all of these finance needs should necessarily be met from public sources.

We are committed with other developed countries to jointly mobilise $100 billion of public and private climate finance a year by 2020, in the context of meaningful mitigation, and transparency of action.

The UK is providing £3.87 billion through the International Climate Fund (ICF) to support developing countries, to demonstrate low carbon development, protect forests and to help the poorest countries adapt to the impacts of climate change. The ICF is allocated as part of general Government expenditure, and is not raised through the hypothecation of revenues from any specific source.

A range of sources will be required to meet the $100 billion goal. Alongside direct budget contributions, we consider private finance, the Multilateral Development Banks, carbon markets and revenues from international transport measures to be the most promising sources of climate finance. We are working with international bodies like the UNFCCC, the International Financial Institutions, and the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the International Maritime Organisation, the G20 and others to support action in their areas on the back of the report of the UN Advisory Group on Finance (AGF).

The UK strongly support the development of global regimes for addressing emissions from international aviation and maritime transport in the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and International Maritime Organisation (IMO), and welcomes the agreement at the ICAO General Assembly in October to develop a global market based measure for aviation by 2016.

The Government support efforts to reduce fossil fuel subsidies to enable countries to reduce emissions while freeing up resources for other spending such as targeting poverty alleviation and increasing resilience to climate change.

The Government have no objection to Financial Transaction Taxes (FTT) in principle, but do not support the European Commission's proposals for a FTT. Any FTT would have to apply globally due to the risk of economic activity relocating to jurisdictions not applying the tax. No international consensus currently exists for a global FTT.

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Energy: Conservation

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the Prime Minister's speech of 4 February 2013 on energy efficiency and his Statement of 12 July 2012, on binding energy efficiency targets, if he will make it his policy to support a binding EU-level energy efficiency target for 2030; if he will make an assessment of the contribution that such a binding target could have on (a) jobs, (b) energy security, (c) carbon reduction and (d) savings for households and businesses; and if he will make a statement. [178800]

Gregory Barker: The Government consider energy efficiency an integral part of climate and energy policy for the long term but we should not risk pre-judging the most cost-effective pathway to achieving greenhouse gas emissions reductions. The Government made this clear in their opposition to a binding European Union energy efficiency target for 2030 within its response to the European Commission's Green Paper, "A 2030 Framework for Climate and Energy Policies". Therefore, no assessment has been made of the effect of a binding energy efficiency target on the factors the hon. Member has cited.

Fracking

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what evidence will be considered as adequate to demonstrate how decisions about the exploration and production of shale gas energy meet the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive (2011/92/EU). [178437]

Nick Boles: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.

The requirements relating to environmental impact assessment are set out in the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2011. When considering proposals for the exploration and production of shale gas, the relevant mineral planning authority will determine whether an environmental impact assessment is required. The Department publishes practice guidance to help secure the appropriate implementation of the directive.

Insulation

Mr Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many times he has met with representatives of the insulation sector in the last three months. [178590]

Gregory Barker: Details of meetings between Ministers and external organisations are published quarterly on the departmental website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change/series/ministers-meeting-with-external-organisations

Pay

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department. [178192]

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Gregory Barker: The median gross earnings of (a) men and (b) women in each pay band in DECC is published, in the Civil Service Statistics 2013 which can be found here:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pse/civil-service-statistics/2013/rft-statistical-bulletin-tables--2013.xls

Renewable Energy: Scotland

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2013, Official Report, column 974, if he will publish all correspondence between Ministers and officials in his Department and their counterparts in the Scottish Government on closure of the renewable obligation and transitional arrangements. [178895]

Gregory Barker: In order not to inhibit free and frank exchanges between the UK Government and the devolved Administrations, correspondence of this nature is not published.

Warm Front Scheme: Corby

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in Corby constituency have received assistance under the Home Energy Efficiency scheme since its inception. [178873]

Gregory Barker: The Department has been responsible for a number of energy efficiency schemes including Carbon Emission Reduction Target (CERT), Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) and the Energy Company Obligation (ECO), of which only information on measures installed under ECO are available at parliamentary constituency level.

The provisional number of measures installed in the Corby constituency up to the end of June 2013, was 331. By ECO obligation, 65 measures were under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Obligation (CERO), 161 measures were under the Carbon Savings Community Obligation (CSCO), and 105 measures were under Affordable Warmth (HHCRO).

The provisional number of ECO measures by ECO obligation by parliamentary constituency up to the end of September 2013, will be released on 19 December 2013.

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Plastic Bags

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2013, Official Report, column 299W, on plastic bags, if he will make an assessment of the increased risk of food poisoning as a result of reuse of carrier bags. [178620]

Jane Ellison: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department of Health.

There are no current plans to make an assessment of the increased risk of food poisoning as a result of reuse of carrier bags as there is currently no clear evidence of cases of illness linked to their use.

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The potential for an increased risk through the reuse of carrier bags has been recognised and relevant advice for consumers has been published by the Food Standards Agency and can be found at:

www.food.gov.uk/news-updates/news/2012/jul/carrierbags

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178391]

Dan Rogerson: The contents of the Official Report is a matter of public record and is readily accessible to the hon. Member online and in hard copy.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Cyprus

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of progress made in talks between President Anastasiades and Dr. Eroglu in reaching a joint settlement on the reunification of Cyprus. [178360]

Mr Lidington: Representatives of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities have been discussing a joint statement on the principles for a comprehensive settlement. President Anastasiades and Dr Eroglu last met informally on 25 November, and we hope that a first formal meeting can take place in the near future to mark the resumption of fully-fledged negotiations. Cypriots now have the best chance in years to achieve a just, lasting, and comprehensive settlement.

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy to seek a resolution on Cyprus to create a bizonal, bicommunal federation with a single sovereignty, a single international personality and a single citizenship. [178361]

Mr Lidington: The UK remains committed to supporting the UN's efforts to achieve a settlement based on a bizonal, bicommunal federation with political equality as defined by the relevant Security Council resolutions. It is for the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities to agree on the precise terms of a solution.

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the UK's role is in assisting international efforts to achieve an agreed settlement in Cyprus. [178362]

Mr Lidington: As a long-standing friend of Cyprus, the UK continues to support the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities in their search for a solution. We support the UN in its role, and regularly discuss the need for a settlement with a range of actors, including the other Guarantor Powers, the US, and European partners.

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Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department has taken to alleviate the financial crisis in Cyprus. [178363]

Mr Lidington: We are providing technical assistance in support of Cyprus’ efforts to implement the Troika Memorandum, which sets the framework for Troika support to the Cypriot economy. British expertise is helping to review and restructure parts of Cyprus’ central and local government. We recognise that President Anastasiades is leading Cyprus through an extremely challenging time, and commend his courage in seeing through the tough reforms required.

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the recent proposal by Cypriot President Anastasiades for the return of Famagusta to its former inhabitants. [178370]

Mr Lidington: We support proposals which would help build trust between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities. We welcome President Anastasiades' wish to demonstrate progress in the talks. Over the years, the Varosha area of Famagusta has been the subject of a series of proposals. Several attempts have been made to broker a deal as a confidence-building measure, so far without success. We support the ongoing efforts to reach a comprehensive settlement, the success of which would guarantee the resolution of this issue.

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on recent statements made by Dr Eroglu about an agreement on Cyprus. [178371]

Mr Lidington: I continue to follow the situation closely. I am aware of statements made by representatives from both communities on the settlement process. It remains important for all parties to use their public statements to support the prospects of a comprehensive settlement.

Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy to increase co-operation with Cyprus on foreign policy. [178372]

Mr Lidington: We value our co-operation with Cyprus in a broad range of areas, including foreign policy. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), met Cyprus Foreign Minister Kasoulides in June, where they discussed, among other subjects, security in the middle east. During my recent visit to Cyprus, I discussed with Foreign Minister Kasoulides co-operation on a range of foreign policy issues including EU reform and enlargement. Further contact between the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Cypriot Ministers will develop this co-operation over the long term.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to promote transparency and reduce corruption in the mining industry in Democratic Republic of Congo. [178433]

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Mark Simmonds: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State, Department for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Rutland and Melton (Mr Duncan), on 22 November 2013, Official Report, column 1043W.

Diplomatic Service

Mr Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people are employed by the Consular Crisis Centre. [178338]

Mark Simmonds: Crisis Management Department employ 31 staff in the Crisis Centre at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). During a crisis, these staff members would be augmented by trained volunteers and experts from across the FCO and wider Government.

Mr Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which three Consular Services offices received the most enquiries for help in the last 12 months. [178339]

Mark Simmonds: Over the past 12 months the consular offices that received the highest volumes of requests for assistance were Malaga (3,596), Paris (3,442) and Alicante (3,408).

Georgia

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to improve the UK-Georgia relationship. [178550]

Mr Lidington: The UK and Georgia already enjoy a strong bilateral relationship. We work together on areas of common interest including security, democratisation and trade. For example, the UK seconds a Special Defence Adviser to the Georgian Ministry of Defence and is helping develop the Georgian Government's crisis management capacity.

Our embassy in Tbilisi has just begun a year-long GREAT campaign, designed to raise the UK's profile in Georgia even further and boost trade. We plan to extend commercial, educational and cultural links between the two countries in 2014. The bilateral relationship is further supported by a range of inward and outward visits by UK and Georgian Ministers and senior officials.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited. [178504]

Mr Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) complies with the policies set out in the Government's Security Policy Framework (SPF), particularly Mandatory Requirement (MR) 39. MR 39 requires Departments to comply with the requirements of any Codes of Connection, including technical and procedural policies to manage the risks posed by all forms of malicious software.

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The number of websites covered by this policy is large and is kept under constant review. It is therefore is not practical to provide an exhaustive list of all websites blocked. However, access to the following categories of website are banned in order to comply with the SPF, the FCO's Acceptable Use Policy and to control bandwidth demands on the FCO's Corporate infrastructure:

those that contain viruses, trojans or other malicious software;

sites that by-pass anti-virus defences;

pornography and hate sites;

gaming and gambling;

bandwidth intensive sites which place excessive demands on the FCO's corporate infrastructure.

The FCO will consider requests to access sites that fall under banned categories if there is a strong business need for them and they do not pose a risk to the corporate net.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178392]

Mr Lidington: This information is not held within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and responding to this question would incur disproportionate cost.

Health

Bed Bugs: Tower Hamlets

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the prevalence of bed bugs in Tower Hamlets. [178414]

Jane Ellison: The Department does not hold information on the prevalence of bed bugs in Tower Hamlets. Control of bed bug infestations is a local authority matter.

Carers

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has given to local authority social services departments to ensure that details of care packages are conveyed to the receiving local authority when individuals from one area move to another; and if he will make a statement. [178341]

Dr Poulter: The Care Bill will for the first time set out a process that local authorities will have to comply with which will ensure that a person receiving care and support will continue to do so if they decide to move home to another authority.

The Bill will require the local authority where the person originally lives to provide certain information about the person's care and support to the authority he or she is moving to, including a copy of their care and support plan.

The second authority must take this into account when developing a new care and support plan. The new care and support plan could be different from the original one as the person's needs could have changed

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as a result of the move, for example the person may have moved to be closer to family or to take up employment or they may want to arrange services differently and as a result the outcomes they want to achieve could have changed.

The Department will issue statutory guidance to local authorities to support the implementation of the Care Bill, which will include providing further advice on the continuity of care provisions.

Cockermouth Community Hospital

Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the tendering for a pharmacy at Cockermouth Hospital. [178664]

Dr Poulter: Tendering decisions relating to the Cockermouth hospital site are a local matter and it would be for NHS England to consider whether a review of any tendering decision would be appropriate.

Diabetes

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many (a) males and (b) females in each (i) age group and (ii) location received structured education courses in the NHS for individuals with type 1 diabetes in each of the last three years for which information is available; [178409]

(2) what funding his Department provides for structured education courses in the National Health Service for individuals with type 1 diabetes; how much such funding is planned in each of the next two years; and if he will make a statement; [178434]

(3) what the current eligibility criteria are for structured education courses on the NHS for individuals with type 1 diabetes; whether any changes to the criteria are planned in the next two years; and if he will make a statement; [178534]

(4) what schemes are currently in place to increase public awareness of (a) the symptoms associated with diabetes and (b) the best ways to assist diabetes sufferers in emergencies; and if he will make a statement. [178535]

Jane Ellison: For patients with type 1 diabetes, patient empowerment and self-care through education is a major priority for NHS England As at 1 April this year, there are two measures in place to promote provision of structured education for those with type 1 diabetes:

A new quality outcomes framework indicator has been introduced, incentivizing provision of structured education within nine months of first diagnosis.

If someone with type 1 diabetes is admitted with diabetic ketoacidosis a new best practice tariff rewards the provision of structured education within three months of their discharge from hospital.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Quality Standard For diabetes, published in July 2011, sets out that people with diabetes should receive a structured educational programme. There are a number of education courses available on the national health service for people with diabetes. The most common structured education programme for type 1 diabetes is Dose Adjustment For Normal Eating (DAFNE). Since

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the DAFNE approach relies on carbohydrate estimation, it can be applied to any diet as long as the carbohydrate content of the food can be established.

There is no requirement for a specific level of education. The DAFNE programme provides guidance on who might benefit from DAFNE, but these are not criteria to be adhered to. It is up to individual clinicians to assess whether DAFNE is suitable for the patient on a case-by-case basis.

The funding of structured education courses for people with diabetes is the responsibility, of local clinical commissioning groups. The 2011-12 National Diabetes Audit report, published in October 2013, includes high-level analysis on what percentage of people registered with diabetes receive accredited structured education in line with NICE guidance. The report set out that for those people newly diagnosed as diabetic, 0.6% of patients with type 1 and 3.1% of patients with type 2 are recorded as attending structured education. For all people with diabetes, these figures are l% for type 1, 1.4% for type 2. The audit report can be found at the following link:

https://catalogue.ic.nhs.uk/publications/clinical/diabetes/nati-diab-audi-11-12/nati-diab-audi-11-12-care-proc-rep.pdf

Regarding awareness initiatives, this year NHS England and Public Health England have supported the largest ever type 2 diabetes awareness campaign, launched by Diabetes UK in September. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the risk factors of type 2 diabetes and enable people to understand their risk of developing the condition. More information can be found at the following link:

www.diabetes.org.uk/awareness-campaign

As part of this awareness raising I have taken part in a number of parliamentary events and spoken about diabetes in the media.

Local commissioners may also undertake awareness initiatives for local, populations.

Health Services: Cornwall

Sheryll Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) clinical, (b) managerial and (c) clerical NHS staff in Cornwall were paid more than (i) £50,000, (ii) £65,738 and (iii) £100,000 in the last year for which figures are available. [178669]

Dr Poulter: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following table.

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