Health Services: Medway
Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the additional £6,120,000 winter pressures funding allocated to Medway will be divided among NHS organisations in Medway. [178901]
Jane Ellison: We have been informed by NHS England the funding has been allocated as follows:
| Initial allocations | £ |
| Note: All projects are being monitored constantly and reviewed to ensure targeting to areas of greatest need and this could see a shift of funding between organisations. Source: NHS England | |
Heart Diseases
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to reduce heart disease in England since May 2010. [178322]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 277W
Jane Ellison: The Government have an ambitious programme to improve public health through strengthening local action, behavioural changes and promoting healthy choices, and changing the environment to support healthier lives.
We know that heart disease could be avoided by improving lifestyles. Our programme includes national ambitions to reduce smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, and harmful use of alcohol, all with appropriate metrics included in the Public Health Outcomes Framework. Published strategy documents have set out actions, at the national level that augment or support local delivery. These include:
prevention/early intervention initiatives including the mandatory National Child Measurement programme, and NHS Health Checks;
supporting local authorities to provide evidence-based smoking cessation, weight management, drug and alcohol treatment services;
social marketing campaigns e.g. Change4Life, “Stoptober”;
working with industry through the Responsibility Deal on food, alcohol, physical activity, and health at work; and
taking central Government action where industry and individuals cannot act alone.
Local action is being supported by Public Health England as the expert agency responsible for protecting and improving health.
Heart Diseases and Cancer
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make an assessment of the efficacy of the Ornish medicare lifestyle programme used in the US to tackle heart disease and cancer. [178486]
Jane Ellison: Reducing mortality and improving outcomes for people with heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in England is a key priority for this Government. In March 2013; we published the CVD Outcomes Strategy. The strategy sets out key actions for commissioners and providers to improve outcomes in CVD. NHS Improving Quality is supporting the delivery of the strategy by NHS England.
NHS England works to improve the quality of NHS services and is held to account through the Mandate. The indicator “Under 75 mortality fate from all cardiovascular diseases” is included in both the Public Health and NHS Outcome Frameworks and the Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set.
It is for NHS England to decide which healthcare programmes and initiatives it wishes to assess and consider.
Hepatitis
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance (a) his Department and (b) Public Health England is providing on (i) hepatitis B and (ii) hepatitis C to directors of public health in local authorities; if he will place in the Library copies of such guidance; and if he will make a statement. [178435]
Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) produces guidance documents to support directors of public health in local authorities and others involved in the prevention and control of hepatitis B and C. These include:
11 Dec 2013 : Column 278W
(1) ‘Standards for the local surveillance and follow up of hepatitis B and C’1.
(2) A “frequently asked questions on hepatitis document” has been produced for local government by Local Government Association and PHE to address questions that directors of public health and councillors may have on hepatitis and the viruses that cause it2.
Local PHE health protection teams also assist directors of public health in local authorities in performing their public health functions.
Copies of these guidelines have been placed in the Library.
1Health protection Agency. Standards for the local surveillance and follow up of hepatitis B and C. 2011
www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFile/HPAweb_C/1194947376936
2Local Government Association/Public Health England Hepatitis, Frequently asked questions. Briefing for councillors. 2013
http://www.local.gov.uk/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=f0e5b7b9-c32e-4c8e-a005-b5c4e87b0126&groupId=10180
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials in his Department have had with the Hepatitis B Positive Trust and the Hepatitis B Foundation; and if he will make a statement. [178459]
Jane Ellison: There have been no discussions between departmental Ministers or officials, and either the Hepatitis B Positive Trust or the Hepatitis B Foundation, in the last 12 months.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were vaccinated against hepatitis B in each primary care trust area in each of the last three years. [178460]
Jane Ellison: Vaccine coverage data for 2010-11, 2011-12, and 2012-13 are presented in Tables A1 and A2 (one set per year) and have been placed in the Library. The data represent reported coverage by trust for three doses of hepatitis B vaccine in those infants born to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive mothers who reached the age of one year, and coverage by trust of four doses of vaccine in infants who reached two years of age in the years 2010-11, 2011-12, and 2012-13 respectively.
A large number of Trusts reported that they were unable to supply some or all of the data required on infants born to hepatitis B positive mothers. Some figures in the tables provided have been suppressed due to potential disclosure issues associated with small numbers (indicated by *). The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) state that it would be inadvisable to draw conclusions from these data and no national or regional data have been published.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support his Department provides to the Hepatitis B (a) Helpline and (b) Forum; and if he will make a statement. [178461]
Jane Ellison: The Department does not currently provide any financial support to the Hepatitis B Helpline and Forum. However, the Department did provide the Hepatitis B Foundation with a grant of £38,169 in 2008-09, to contribute towards the cost of their helpline for the financial years 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 279W
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of prisoners in England received a full course of the hepatitis B vaccine in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011, (e) 2012 and (f) 2013 to date. [178462]
Jane Ellison: The prison health performance quality indicators (PHPQI) record data on the number of prisoners who were vaccinated against hepatitis B, either before or within one month of reception into prison. Incomplete reporting mean that these data probably under-represent the total number of prisoners receiving a full course of vaccine. Public Health England's Health and Justice Team collates these data centrally.
The number of prisoners receiving the full course of Hepatitis B vaccine and the percentage of prisoners this represents as reported in the PHPQI dataset for each year are as follows:
2008: 66,759 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 37% of total prison population;
2009: 60, 869 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 40% of total prison population;
2010-11: 143,774 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 57% of total prison population;
2011-12: 107,282 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 57% of total prison population;
2012-13: 111,497 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 57% of total prison population; and
Q1 2013-14: 29,008 prisoners fully vaccinated, representing 55% of total prison population.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of prisoners in England received a hepatitis B test in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011, (e) 2012 and (f) 2013 to date. [178463]
Jane Ellison: We do not have data on the total number of prisoners in England tested for hepatitis B virus infection. The reasons for this are that not all tests performed on serving prisoners are identified and the information is not collected centrally.
Public Health England does have a sentinel surveillance system which is used to monitor trends in blood-borne virus testing in 24 participating laboratories receiving samples from prisons across England. The reports from these laboratories do not represent the totality of testing conducted on prisoners throughout the prison estate but rather are used to identify changes in the level of testing for Hepatitis B (and Hepatitis C) virus infection among prisons covered by the participating laboratories. These data show that:
2008: 2,415 prisoners were tested (estimated 1.5% coverage)
2009: 2,992 prisoners were tested (estimated 1.8% coverage)
2010: 2,860 prisoners were tested (estimated 1.7% coverage)
2011: 3,463 prisoners were tested (estimated 2.0% coverage)
2012: 3,441 prisoners were tested (estimated 2.0% coverage).
We do not yet have data for 2013.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the availability of treatments for hepatitis B and C in (a) Essex, (b) London and (c) England and Wales; and if he will make a statement. [178516]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 280W
Jane Ellison: I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave on 5 December 2013, Official Report, column 796W, the hon. Member for Ealing, Southall (Mr Sharma).
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made by age group of the number of (a) males and (b) females who are infected with hepatitis B. [178517]
Jane Ellison: National surveillance of acute hepatitis B infection is carried out by Public Health England (PHE).
The most recent estimate was published in 2012 and comparable data have been collected since 2008.
Tables 1-5 show the age/sex breakdown of newly confirmed acute cases of hepatitis B from 2008-12, reported from laboratories and combined with epidemiological data collected and reported from PHE Centres.
| Table 1: Age and sex breakdown of acute hepatitis B reports for England, 2008 | ||||
| Age group | Female | Male | Not known | Total |
| Table 2: Age and sex breakdown of acute hepatitis B reports for England, 2009 | ||||
| Age group | Female | Male | Not known | Total |
| Table 3: Age and sex breakdown of acute hepatitis B reports for England, 2010 | ||||
| Age group | Female | Male | Not known | Total |
11 Dec 2013 : Column 281W
| Table 4: Age and sex breakdown of acute hepatitis B reports for England, 2011 | ||||
| Age group | Female | Male | Not known | Total |
| Table 5: Age and sex breakdown of acute hepatitis B reports for England, 2012 | ||||
| Age group | Female | Male | Not known | Total |
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of prisoners in England received a full course of the hepatitis C vaccine in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011, (e) 2012 and (f) 2013 to date. [178530]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 282W
Jane Ellison: There is no vaccine to prevent infection with the hepatitis C virus.
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to increase the number of people screened for (a) hepatitis B and (b) hepatitis C; and if he will make a statement. [178531]
Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) has contributed to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on hepatitis B and C1, and guidance on hepatitis B antenatal screening and newborn immunisation programme2, both of which make recommendations to increase uptake of testing.
PHE leads or collaborates on research projects to pilot models and develop best practice in contact tracing and management of dose contacts of hepatitis B individuals (mainly pregnant women identified through antenatal screening), and improved screening of patients for hepatitis B and C in primary care.
PHE has developed novel testing methods to improve point of care testing for hepatitis B and C in community settings, such as dried blood spot and oral fluid testing.
PHE offers a national dried blood spot testing service for infants born to mothers infected with hepatitis B as part of an initiative to improve testing for chronic hepatitis at 12 months of age.
PHE works collaboratively with NHS and non-governmental organisations to advocate for increased uptake of screening for hepatitis B and C.
1 Hepatitis B and C: ways to promote and offer testing to people at increased risk of infection; Issued: December 2012 last modified: March 2013
NICE public health guidance 43.
http://publications.nice.org.uk/hepatitis-b-and-c-ways-to-promote-and-offer-testing-to-people-at-increased-risk-of-infection-ph43/considerations
2 Department of Health. Hepatitis B antenatal screening and newborn immunisation programme:
Best practice guidance 2011
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/215622/dh_132637.pdf
Human Papillomavirus
Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the sub-committee on adolescent vaccinations of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to report on extending the HPV vaccine to all adolescent boys and men who have sex with men. [178327]
Jane Ellison: On 2 October 2013 the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) agreed to the formation of an HPV sub-committee to consider the impact and cost-effectiveness of changes to the routine HPV vaccination schedule, including the vaccination of men who have sex with men and adolescent boys. The HPV sub-committee will report its findings to JCVI following consideration of a yet to be completed study by Public Health England into the cost-effectiveness of extending HPV vaccination to men who have sex with men or adolescent boys. This study is expected to be completed in 2014 at the earliest.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 283W
Mesothelioma
Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the sustainability of funding for research into the causes of and potential cures for mesothelioma. [178596]
Jane Ellison: Total spend in future years by the Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) on research into mesothelioma depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity. The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including mesothelioma. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the scientific quality of the proposals made.
In 2012-13, the NIHR spent £0.2 million on research on mesothelioma through its programmes and centres. Total spend was higher than this because expenditure by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) on this topic cannot be disaggregated from total CRN expenditure. The CRN is currently recruiting patients to eight studies in mesothelioma.
In addition, in 2012-13 the Medical Research Council spent £2.1 million on research directly related to mesothelioma.
The issue holding back progress on research into mesothelioma is not lack of funding but the lack of sufficient high-quality research applications. With its partners the Department is therefore pursuing a package of measures we believe will stimulate an increase in the level of mesothelioma research. This package has four particular elements:
a partnership bringing together patients, carers and clinicians to identify priorities for mesothelioma research;
in conjunction with this priority setting partnership; the NIHR will highlight to the research community that it wishes to encourage research applications in this area;
the NIHR's research design service will be available to help prospective applicants develop competitive research proposals; and
leading researchers will convene to discuss and develop new proposals for studies.
NHS Property Services
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what Gateway reviews have been carried out on projects managed by NHS Property Services Ltd. [178922]
Dr Poulter: The Department has not carried out any Gateway reviews on programmes or projects managed by NHS Property Services Ltd.
NHS: Foreign Workers
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of non-EEA migrant workers currently employed within the NHS. [178766]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 284W
Dr Poulter: The number of non-European economic area migrant workers currently employed within the national health service is not collected centrally.
Data from the Health and Social Care Information Centre workforce census as at 30 September 2012 show that 34,043 Hospital and Community and Health Service doctors and general practitioners qualified outside the European economic area (EEA). Data on other healthcare professionals qualified outside the EEA and employed within the NHS are not available.
Nurses
Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many agency nurses work in the NHS; and what the average cost of an (a) agency-employed nurse and (b) directly-employed nurse is in the NHS. [178553]
Dr Poulter: The employment of nurses on either a permanent or temporary basis is a matter for individual trusts. The Department does not collect data about the numbers of agency nurses working in the national health service nor the average cost of an agency employed nurse. The average cost of a directly employed nurse in the NHS is £42,000 per full-time equivalent in 2012-13.
Pharmacy
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is his policy to encourage the use by the NHS of pharmacies owned by GPs rather than those owned by professional pharmacists. [178324]
Norman Lamb: Government policy does not encourage, or differentiate between particular business sectors owning national health service community pharmacies. It is for NHS England to commission NHS pharmaceutical services according to the needs of local populations.
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued to NHS bodies on the need to conduct a proper market tender before entering into a commercial lease for a pharmacy. [178325]
Dr Poulter: General guidance only has been given to national health service organisations on managing their land and property rather than for specific uses such as a pharmacy. This is provided in the Department's publication “Health Building Note 00-08: Estatecode”.
A copy of this publication has already been placed in the Library.
Pharmacy: Training
Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funds Health Education England has distributed to local education and training boards for education and training of pharmacists since April 2013. [178826]
Dr Poulter: Health Education England (HEE) provides funding to the local education and training boards (LETBs) to manage the education and training of healthcare staff within their area.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 285W
HEE does not allocate a specific amount of funding for the education and training of pharmacists because LETBs set their local investment priorities, working with the providers in their area. LETBs are required to fund the agreed number of pre-registration pharmacy posts within their area.
Plastic Surgery
Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abdominoplasty operations were undertaken in each primary care trust area in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [178342]
Jane Ellison: The following table shows a count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) with a primary or secondary operative procedure of abdominoplasty, arranged by primary care trust area in each of the last three years:
| FCEs | |||
| PCT name | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 |
11 Dec 2013 : Column 286W
11 Dec 2013 : Column 287W
| Note: These figures should not be described as a one episode of care within the same stay in count of people as the same person may have more than hospital or in different stays in the same year. | |||
School Milk
Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department plans to respond to its consultation entitled, Making the Nursery Milk Scheme more cost-effective. [179052]
Dr Poulter: The Department is conducting a comprehensive analysis of all the responses to the Nursery Milk consultation, the impact assessment and the accompanying survey of child care providers. A Government response on the future operation of the Nursery Milk Scheme will be provided after full consideration is given to these and other relevant information.
International Development
India
Sir Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made on initiatives to support agriculture in the State of Bihar in India. [178326]
Mr Duncan: During the Secretary of State's visit to India last year, the Government of Bihar requested technical assistance for the implementation of its Agricultural Roadmap. We have designed a programme to help link poor farmers to markets, and attract investment for agriculture. The details are now being finalised with Indian partners, and we hope to start implementing the programme soon.
Internet
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 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. [178507]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 288W
Mr Duncan: DFID can neither confirm nor deny whether websites or domains are blocked as this could provide information useful to those wishing to harm IT systems.
Military Stabilisation Support Group
Mr Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2013, Official Report, column 623W, on armed forces: deployment, whether (a) she or (b) other Ministers in her Department plan to visit the Military Stabilisation and Support Group. [178528]
Justine Greening: I am aware of the excellent work the group does with DFID and the Stabilisation Unit in supporting stabilisation and crisis response and of the frequent working contacts between the group and officials, and will visit when the opportunity arises.
Poverty
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in her Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178396]
Mr Duncan: DFID answers to parliamentary questions are a matter of public record.
Justice
Common Purpose
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department paid to Common Purpose in each of the last five years; for what purpose such expenditure was incurred; and what the outcome of the expenditure was. [165263]
Jeremy Wright: The amount paid by the Ministry of Justice to Common Purpose in each of the last five financial years is shown in the following table.
| £ | ||
| National Offender Management Service | Ministry of Justice | |
Most of the Ministry's use of the Common Purpose programme has been for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). The purpose of the programme is to provide opportunities for managers from a variety of business and third sector organisations to meet, and to develop their skills in multi-agency working and problem solving.
NOMS has no plans to make any further bookings and the contract will not be renewed when it expires at the end of March.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 289W
Community Orders: Greater London
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the cost of his Department's contract with Serco for the delivery of community payback in London has been since it began; [177643]
(2) what the cost to the public purse of his Department's contract with Serco for the delivery of community payback in London will be in (a) each year of the contract and (b) total. [177644]
Jeremy Wright: The contract with Serco to deliver community payback in London began on 31 October 2012. Spend in the first year of operation (to 30 October 2013) was £12.007 million. The projected spend for each future year is commercially confidential. The total value of the contract is £36.720 million.
Glasgow
Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his Department and the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority plan to remain in their current location at Tay House, Glasgow. [177236]
Damian Green: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) currently occupies two floors in Tay House, the lease for which is due for renewal in September 2014. CICA have already investigated options that strike a balance between maintaining continuity for their staff and value for money for the taxpayer but no decision has yet been made.
Human Trafficking
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether aftercare providers under his Department's contract supporting victims of trafficking require a data subject access request before releasing information from a victim's file in order for other organisations outside the contract to provide assistance to the victim. [177992]
Damian Green: Under the terms of their contract with the Ministry of Justice, the Salvation Army and their sub-contractors work closely with a range of other partners to support all victims to secure appropriate support. Victims can be referred to other services without the need for providers to submit a subject access request and this is working well.
The contract is aimed at helping some of the most vulnerable people in society and therefore protecting their safety and security is our primary concern. Personal data relating to victims supported by the Salvation Army and its sub-contractors are handled in line with the provisions of the Data Protection Act.
Given its sensitive nature, the Ministry of Justice's contract with the Salvation Army contains a standard clause to ensure victims' personal data (their case files) are not divulged to any third party unless this has been directed in writing by the Department. This is to help protect vulnerable people from being put at risk.
Where other organisations have requested access to a victim's case file, the Salvation Army is contractually obliged to notify the Ministry of Justice who will consider it as a formal subject access request.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 290W
Insurance Companies: Data Protection
Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that insurance companies respect data protection rules and do not pass on the personal details of claimants to third parties. [179683]
Damian Green: The Government take both the protection of personal data and the right to privacy extremely seriously. All data controllers, including insurance companies, are expected to comply with the data processing principles set out under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA).
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is the independent body responsible for regulating and enforcing the DPA. The ICO has a wide range of powers to ensure compliance with the DPA.
Prison Service
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what amount has been spent on equality and diversity posts in prison in each of the last three years. [178858]
Jeremy Wright: These figures are not held centrally and to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. It would involve contacting every prison and asking them to explore the staff involved, their grades and length of time they were in post, over the three year period requested. The prisons would then have to cost each individual finding before returning the figures to Headquarters to be collated and totalled.
Prisoners: Risk Assessment
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what system is used for assessing prisoner risk assessments; [177486]
(2) what the outcomes were of all prisoner risk assessments in 2012; [177487]
(3) who is responsible for undertaking prisoner risk assessments. [177491]
Jeremy Wright: All prisons are required to conduct assessments of prisoners during their time in custody. On entry to the prison, the assessment processes set out in Prison Service Instruction 74/2011; Early Days in Custody—Reception In, First Night in Custody, and Induction to Custody must be followed. This would include an assessment of the prisoner's physical and mental health and their risk of self-harm. A Cell Sharing Risk Assessment is also undertaken, which determines the prisoner's risk of killing or seriously assaulting a cell mate. Appropriately trained staff are responsible for undertaking prisoner risk assessments.
For prisoners that meet the criteria for MAPPA (Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements) the lead agency Offender Manager will ensure a comprehensive risk assessment is completed, taking advantage of coordinated information sharing across the agencies. The assessment tool that would be used for this assessment would be OASys which is used by the National Offender Management Service. This risk assessment would be reviewed six months prior to any potential release. It is not possible to provide details of all prisoner risk
11 Dec 2013 : Column 291W
assessments conducted in 2012 as this information is not held centrally and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.
Probation
Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his Department, when commissioning probation services from the private sector, will (a) evaluate and (b) monitor contractor performance; and what penalties will be incurred if agreed performance targets are not met. [179504]
Jeremy Wright: The reformed system will be regulated and held to account through a combination of independent inspection, audit and commercial account management by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS).
The independent Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation will inspect services delivered by both the National Probation Service and contracted sectors. The new Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) will be contractually obliged to develop their own internal audit processes and share these with NOMS. NOMS will have the right to audit CRC delivery, and the CRC contracts will also allow the National Audit Office to access CRC's financial systems where public assurance is needed.
Providers will need to engage with statutory and non-statutory partnerships and the NOMS account management function will monitor local partnership working as part of its role in obtaining assurance of the delivery of services, liaising with police and crime commissioners (PCCs) and other relevant partners as necessary.
We will reward providers who are successful in reducing reoffending and penalise those who underperform. We are developing a detailed performance mechanism now, in tandem with finalising the contractual requirements which will be placed on providers. We will have a range of performance measures to ensure that services are delivered to the appropriate quality.
Wrexham Prison
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many employees are planned for Wrexham Prison; and what their job description and salaries will be; [178693]
(2) on what basis he will decide whether Wrexham Prison will be run in the public or private sector; [178694]
(3) on what basis he will decide which inmates are held at Wrexham Prison. [178695]
Jeremy Wright: No decisions have been made on whether the proposed prison in Wrexham will be operated by the public or private sector. Should the operation of the prison be competed, a decision on the operator will be made based on a number of factors including value for money for the taxpayer, safety, security and decency.
Final decisions on the staffing profile and salaries are dependent on the operator but we estimate that between 800 and 1,100 jobs will be created directly at the prison. The variety of jobs created are likely to include management, administrative and support posts, prison officers, instructional officers, healthcare workers, psychologists, chaplains and industrial posts.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 292W
In the management of the prison population the aim is always to hold prisoners in establishments that provide the level of security required, are suitable for their gender, age and legal status, provide special facilities appropriate to prisoner needs, are near to their homes or the courts dealing with their cases and provide opportunities to engage with resettlement services before release.
Northern Ireland
Board Membership
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of her Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups. [178141]
Mrs Villiers: My Department does not keep ethnic background information for its executive board members who are all civil servants. However, I can inform you that the Department's non-executive board member has indicated 'white' as their ethnicity.
Internet
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 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. [178509]
Mrs Villiers: My Department receives managed ICT services via a service level agreement with IT Assist Confidential (ITAC), a service provided by Enterprise Shared Services, Department of Finance and Personnel, Northern Ireland. Websites and domains are blocked automatically by ITAC's website filtering software. Details of prohibited websites are not held by my Department but cover a wide range of categories including adult content, social media sites, blogs, internet email and gambling sites.
Police
Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions she has had with the Police Federation about the health and well-being of serving and former police officers in Northern Ireland. [178562]
Mrs Villiers: I last met Terry Spence QPM, Chairman of the Police Federation, on 9 September 2013 to discuss various issues.
Poverty
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in her Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178398]
Mrs Villiers: My Department's answers to parliamentary questions are a matter of public record and can be found in the Official Report.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 293W
Taxation
Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what meetings she has had with the Chancellor the Exchequer about (a) corporation tax and (b) air passenger duty in the last six months. [178563]
Mrs Villiers: I meet regularly with the Chancellor and other HM Treasury Ministers on a range of economic issues including corporation tax and air passenger duty.
Treasury
Immigration
George Galloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an estimate of the net cost or benefit to the public purse of taxation of and spending on Bulgarian and Romanian migrants in the last year for which figures are available. [178662]
Nicky Morgan: There is no reliable way of estimating the historical fiscal impact to the UK Government of Bulgarian and Romanian migrants.
Nuclear Power Stations
Paul Flynn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what criteria were set for the Wylfa B nuclear plant development to qualify for the Government's investment guarantee for that plant. [178855]
Danny Alexander: The Government have signed a memorandum of understanding with Horizon and Hitachi with the aim of being able to agree an in-principle UK guarantee by the end of 2016. This will be subject to final due diligence and ministerial approval.
Personal Savings: Interest Rates
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will require banks to simplify savings account interest rate deals. [178355]
Sajid Javid: The Government strongly support the principle of transparency in financial products, it welcomes the progress being made by the industry-led Simple Products initiative, which includes development of simple cash savings products with no introductory bonus rates.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is currently investigating whether the cash savings market is sufficiently competitive to work in the best interests of consumers. This study will look at the market for interest-bearing cash savings accounts, including the effect on competition of time-limited bonus rates. The FCA will consider whether it needs to take action as a result of its findings.
Taxation: North Sea Oil
George Galloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will commission a study to calculate the difference in tax income there would have been over the last five, 10 and 15 years to his Department if the UK had had the same tax regime for North Sea oil as (a) Norway and (b) Denmark. [178626]
11 Dec 2013 : Column 294W
Nicky Morgan: The Government have no plans to commission such a study. The UK’s oil and gas fiscal regime is designed to maximise the economic recovery of the country’s oil and gas reserves while ensuring a fair return for the taxpayer. The Government keep the regime under review to ensure it is achieving these objectives, including how it compares internationally. The tax regime is currently supporting record levels of investment in the North sea—expected to reach £14 billion this year alone—generating jobs and growth across the UK.
Welfare Tax Credits
Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Wavertree, of 9 January 2013, Official Report, column 317W, on welfare tax credits, what proportion of calls made to the tax credit helpline were made through the (a) 0345 and (b) 0845 code in the last year. [178645]
Nicky Morgan: In the 12 months ending 30 November 2013, the percentage of calls made to the Tax Credit helpline 0345 number was 83% and 17% to the 0845 number.
The Tax Credits Helpline migrated from the 0845 to 03 number on 8 December 2011. Between April and September 2013, HMRC also introduced alternative 03 numbers to all of its remaining customer facing 0845 lines making the service cheaper for most customers. They cost the same as those to 01 and 02 numbers.
Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will take steps to restore HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) powers to extend the 30-day time limit for making an appeal against a tax credit decision following the decision of the Upper Tribunal in JI v Commissioners for HMRC; [178822]
(2) if he will take steps to ensure claimants who make a late appeal for tax credits are not disadvantaged following the Upper Tribunal's decision in JI v Commissioners for HM Revenue and Customs. [178823]
Nicky Morgan: Legislation will be introduced to restore HM Revenue and Customs' power to accept late tax credit appeals. It is expected that amended regulations will be tabled early in the new year. Pending the introduction of the amending legislation HMRC will continue to accept late appeals under their care and management powers.
Women and Equalities
Poverty
Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in the Government Equalities Office's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13. [178393]
Mrs Grant: The Government Equalities Office used the word 'poverty' in one of its parliamentary responses in the 2012-13 Session—12 December 2012, Official Report, column 314W, and none in the 2011-12 Session.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 295W
Work and Pensions
Cold Weather Payments
Dr Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the criteria are to trigger cold weather payments; and if he will make a statement. [179079]
Steve Webb: The scheme runs from 1 November to 31 March each winter. A payment is made to all recipients of pension credit when the average temperature is recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0°C or below over seven consecutive days. Recipients of income support and income-based jobseeker's allowance are also eligible for such payment if they are in receipt of a pensioner or disability premium as part of their assessment. Income-related employment support allowance recipients are also eligible if they are also in receipt of the support component, the work-related activity component, a severe or enhanced disability premium, or a pensioner premium. Working-age recipients who have a disabled child or a child aged less than five years in the family are also eligible.
From April 2013 those in receipt of universal credit have also been eligible for a cold weather payment if they are not employed or self-employed and:
1. they or their partner receive either a limited capability for work element or a limited capability for work element with a work related activity element;
2. they receive a disabled child element within their assessment; or
3. they have a child under the age of 5 years in the family.
An exception to these criteria so that universal credit recipients who are employed or self-employed will be eligible for cold weather payments if they have a disabled child in the family.
Payments are usually issued automatically, without the need to make a claim.
Construction: Safety
Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to improve safety standards and reduce fatalities in medium and smaller scale construction projects; and if he will make a statement. [178816]
Mike Penning: The Construction Division of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has a specific programme of work designed to improve the standards of both health and safety on smaller construction projects. This includes proactive inspection of higher risk, smaller construction projects. Additionally HSE works with the construction industry to deliver free or low-cost safety and health awareness events and provides a wide range of straightforward guidance aimed at small construction businesses. HSE is also currently revising the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 and associated guidance with the support of the Construction Industry Advisory Committee to simplify the requirements and make it easier for small construction businesses to understand and comply with their responsibilities to manage the risks they create.
Sir Bob Russell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many serious accidents and fatalities occurred on construction sites in (a) 2012
11 Dec 2013 : Column 296W
and
(b)
2013 to date; and what proportion of such accidents were on medium to smaller scale projects. [178817]
Mike Penning: The numbers of fatal and serious non-fatal injuries arising from construction work reported to the Health and Safety Executive in the periods April 2012 to March 2013 and April 2013 to September 2013 are presented in the following table:
| April 2012-March 2013 | April 2013-September 2013 | |
| 1 Number of fatal injuries for April 2013 to September 2013 (Q1 andQ2) will be published on the HSE website on 19 December 2013. Before release they will undergo further routine checks and may differ slightly from the unverified figures provided here. | ||
Information regarding the size of construction project for non-fatal injuries is not collected. For fatal injuries, HSE records whether the number of workers on site was 15 or fewer, or more than 15. In the period April 2012-March 2013 the proportion of fatal injuries occurring on sites with 15 or fewer workers was 79%. Between April 2013 and September 2013 the proportion was 80%. Reliable data are not yet available after September 2013. All figures are provisional and subject to future amendment.
Board Membership
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups. [178146]
Mike Penning: The Department monitors the ethnic diversity of its boards. However, racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Therefore, given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.
Employment Services
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment has he made of the feasibility of introducing a jobseeker classification instrument in the UK similar to that used in Australia; and if he will make a statement. [178897]
Esther McVey: I refer the right hon. Member to the reply I gave to his previous question number 179529, on 3 December 2013, Official Report,column 658W.
The Department tested a classification instrument very similar to the Australian model in 2010-11.
A full report describing this work is available from the gov.uk website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/210303/WP116.pdf
11 Dec 2013 : Column 297W
The level of accuracy achieved by the model was better than in previous similar exercises but was not strong enough for the Department to be confident that it would be operationally effective.
Housing Benefit
Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the proportion of the total discretionary housing budget that has been spent during the last six months of 2012-13. [178995]
Steve Webb: We do not hold information on the proportion of the total discretionary housing budget spent by local authorities in the last six months of 2012-13.
From April 2013, the Department has collected six-monthly returns detailing DHP awards in each local authority. This includes the number of awards granted, but not the number of people granted an award. We are currently performing the necessary quality assurance checks on these data.
This year the Government contribution to discretionary housing payments has been increased to £180 million. As part of this, local authorities are able to bid for funding from a £20 million reserve fund. The scheme is open to bids until 3 February 2014.
Internet
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 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. [178515]
Mike Penning:
The Department for Work and Pensions uses internet filtering facilities, provided by one of its IT
11 Dec 2013 : Column 298W
suppliers, to protect its computer network and staff from accessing the following types of websites.
The list of blocked website categories is as follows:
Adult/Sexually Explicit
Chat
Criminal Activity
Downloads
Gambling
Games
Hacking
Illegal Drugs
Intolerance and Hate
Peer-to-peer
Personals and Dating
Phishing and Fraud
Proxies and translators
Ringtones/Mobile phone downloads
Spam URLs
Spyware
Streaming media
Tasteless and Offensive
Unscannable
Violence
Weapons
Web-based e-mail
Jobcentre Plus
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the ratio of Jobcentre Plus advisers to jobseeker allowance customers was in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011, (e) 2012 and (f) 2013 to date. [178893]
Esther McVey: The following table shows the ratio of Jobcentre Plus advisers to jobseeker allowance customers from 2008-09 to May 2013, the latest data available.
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | May 2013 | |
| Notes: 1. The adviser figures relate to all adviser activity, not just advice provided to jobseeker’s allowance claimants. The figures are the average FTE deployed in each period on all adviser activities. 2. The increase in FTE from 2009-10 was to deal with additional work due to the economic downturn. 3. The JSA Liveload is taken from the DWP Information, Governance and Security Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. | ||||||
It is worth stating that DWP is increasing the opportunities for people to access services digitally, so that more people are able to meet their needs via self-service rather than visiting jobcentres.
Mesothelioma
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received from (a) individuals and (b) organisations on compensation for sufferers of asbestos-related mesothelioma. [178264]
Mike Penning: The Minister for Disabled People met representatives of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Occupational Safety and Health on 15 October 2013 and representatives of the Asbestos Victims Support Group on the 5 November 2013 to discuss the Mesothelioma Bill currently before Parliament.
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people who would benefit from bringing forward eligibility for the scheme for sufferers of mesothelioma from July 2012 to February 2010. [178271]
Mike Penning: It is estimated that extending the scheme to include those diagnosed from February 2010 would result in an extra 702 successful scheme applications. The increase to the levy would be £83.1 million.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 299W
Pay
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups. [178184]
Mike Penning: The median gross salary of staff within the Department for Work and Pensions by ethnicity group is as follows:
| Pay band/grade | White British (£) | Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups (£) |
There are seven SCS3 staff and the median salary is £150,000. The Department monitors the ethnic identity of its employees. However, racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Therefore, given the small numbers involved, we could not disclose the SCS3 results without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.
There are proportionately higher numbers of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups in the inner and outer London pay areas. Staff are paid more in these areas and this is the predominant reason for their median salaries being higher in a number of grades.
11 Dec 2013 : Column 300W
The figures provided relate to those staff records where an ethnicity is recorded. Of the 101,297 records there are 24,385 (24%) where ethnicity is not recorded.
The Department no longer has any executive agencies.