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Telephone Services

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints his Department received about the cost of telephone calls made by members of the public to officials in his Department in each of the last five years. [183952]

Esther McVey: DWP completed the incremental roll-out of a new complaints process in December 2012. Complaints are now recorded against various standard DWP categories and related sub-categories. However, there is no specific sub-category for recording complaints regarding costs of telephone calls from members of the public to officials in DWP, so no data are available relating to this.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average cost of a telephone call from a member of the public to his Department. [183957]

Esther McVey: DWP currently use 0800 and 0845 numbers for its helpline services.

It is free to call the Department's 0800 benefit claim line numbers from all major landline providers and seven of the UK's largest mobile telephone operators—02, Everything Everywhere, Vodafone, Three, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Mobile and Cable and Wireless. 28% of all call minutes to our helplines are covered by these 0800 numbers.

For our inquiry lines we currently use 0845 numbers and these calls will attract a charge if not covered by the available minutes within a customer's call plan. Not all call plans cover 0845 numbers.

When charges apply, the cost from a landline call to any 0845 number varies by supplier from 1p to 10.5p per minute and from a mobile from 12p to 41p per minute. Similarly when charges apply, the cost from a landline call to an 0345 number varies from 2p to 10p per minute and from a mobile from 10p to 40p per minute.

Based on an August 2013 customer survey on some of our main 0845 helplines we found that 20% of callers who could be charged were covered by inclusive minute within call plans. We also assessed that adding alternative 0345 numbers would increase the number of callers who could avoid call charges to an estimated 47%. By offering both 0345 and 0845 numbers we also increase the opportunity to reduce the call charges when they apply.

Assuming a typical call duration of six minutes we currently estimate the average cost of a call to be 24p. This takes account of the free calls provided by this Department, 0800 benefit claim lines, customer access phones in our buildings and 0845 calls where the call is covered by inclusive minutes within call plans. This average cost will reduce further when 0345 numbers are introduced.

Work Capability Assessment

Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what account is taken of potential health and safety issues when declaring known drug or alcohol addicts as being fit for work; and what liability his Department has for subsequent problems. [182862]

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Mike Penning: The work capability assessment considers the functional impact of a claimant's condition, rather than the condition itself. The question of whether a claimant has limited capability for work is assessed against descriptors set out in legislation.

There may be some exceptional cases where a claimant does not meet the functional descriptors set out in legislation, but there would be a substantial risk to their (or someone else's) mental or physical health if they were not found to have limited capability for work. In such cases, regulation 29(2)(b) of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008 provides that a claimant is to be treated as having limited capability for work if there is such a risk and the risk could not be reduced by a significant amount by reasonable adjustments in the claimant's workplace.

In general, where there is a statutory regime which provides for appeal rights, acts of public administration do not give rise to any duty of care. Consequently, neither Atos health care professionals nor departmental decision makers could be held liable for any adverse consequence suffered by a claimant (or third party) following a decision that the claimant does not have limited capability for work. The decision-making process is an act of public administration, and there is an appeal right against the decision in question.

Business, Innovation and Skills

Clothing and Textiles: Qualifications

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the range of qualifications available for the study of fashion and textiles. [183733]

Matthew Hancock: Each qualification is developed with employer and sector support as part of its accreditation on the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF).

Qualifications on the QCF are all subject to Ofqual regulations, and awarding organisations that offer them are subject to Ofqual's formal General Conditions of Recognition.

Further Education: Qualifications

Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives of the Skills Funding Agency on the number of qualifications that have been removed in the last three years. [183752]

Matthew Hancock: The Skills Funding Agency has implemented a process to review the demand from employers and learners for qualifications approved for public funding. This annual review has taken place twice—looking at the demand for qualifications available for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 funding years. These reviews form part of the process the agency operates on my behalf for approving qualifications for public funding for adults, and ensuring that qualifications that the Government fund are high quality and have high demand. BIS officials have been involved in and kept up to date on this work as have Department for Education officials. In addition I have received updates directly from the agency on this work.

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Over the last two funding years (2012-13 and 2013-14) the agency will have removed nearly 3,000 qualifications from public funding which either have no use or very low use. In each case the agency has taken account of where the qualifications may be specialist or where they have been designed for a certain group of learners. The agency has also put in place a process for low demand qualifications to re-enter public funding where there is evidence of demand growing.

Higher Education: Finance

Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate his Department has made of the Resource Accounting and Budgeting charge for each cohort of students entering university from 2005 to 2012. [183815]

Mr Willetts [holding answer 21 January 2014]: The figures asked for are not published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) as they are not available from our modelling. BIS models the RAB charge by the year in which the loan is taken out, rather than by cohort of students entering university. The simplified loan repayment model, which is published on our website, has recently been updated with the latest OBR forecasts:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/simplified-student-loan-repayment-model

BIS will carry out an analysis using the simplified loan repayment model. This analysis will estimate:

1. A simulated RAB charge for loans issued to students starting courses in each of the years 2005-12.

2. The estimate for loans issued to borrowers starting in 2012 will be under the post-Browne repayment system.

The results of this analysis will be deposited in the Library of the House.

Higher Education: Private Sector

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 5 December 2013, Official Report, column 821W, on higher education: private sector, how many students who had their loans halted in the academic year 2013-14 to date were from (a) Romania and (b) Bulgaria. [183173]

Mr Willetts [holding answer 21 January 2014]:The numbers of students from Romania and Bulgaria at Alternative Providers, who have applied for student support on the basis they were resident in the UK for three years prior to the start of their course and had subsequently had their student support suspended in academic year 2013/14, are:

(a) Romania—4,773

(b) Bulgaria—882

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 5 December 2013, Official Report, column 821W, on higher education: private sector, how many students who had their loans halted in the academic year 2013-14 to date were from (a) the UK, (b) other EU countries and (c) countries outside the EU. [183174]

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Mr Willetts [holding answer 21 January 2014]: The numbers of students at Alternative Providers who have had their student support suspended in academic year 2013/14 are currently as follows:

(a) UK—1,114

(b) All other EU countries—10,512

(c) Countries outside the EU—0

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 13 November 2013 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr A. Ali. [183745]

Jenny Willott: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills responded to this letter on 3 December 2013.

Research: Misconduct

Mr Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many non-medical scientists have been found to have committed research misconduct in the last 30 years. [183735]

Mr Willetts: The Government are committed to maintaining the highest standards of propriety in publicly funded research.

For example, Research Councils UK, as signatories to the Universities UK Concordat to support research integrity, expects all individuals engaged in research-including researchers themselves, support staff, managers and administrators-to abide by its principles and foster a supportive and open environment.

While the Research Councils (RCs) do not have records for the past 30 years, RCs have identified recent non-medical cases as follows:

RCs are only made aware of research misconduct if a case is passed to them by an HEI which has been unable to resolve a case with the researcher in question, RCs are not responsible for investigating cases sector-wide. It is the responsibility of Higher Education Institutes (HEI) to investigate research misconduct among their employees. HEFCE ensure that HEIs have adequate policies and procedures that are adhered to, and have recently formalised that arrangement through financial memorandums.

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Student Loans

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the value is of (a) tuition and (b) maintenance student loans currently issued; and what proportion of such loans he estimates will be unrecoverable. [183701]

Mr Willetts: BIS accounts published as at 31 March 2013 show total outstanding student loans of £45.7 billion with a carrying value of £30.7 billion. Loans outstanding are not split between tuition and maintenance.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bis-annual-report-and-accounts-2012-to-2013

(Table on page 197)

UK Trade & Investment

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to assess the return on investment from Government funding of UK Trade & Investment West Midlands. [183539]

Michael Fallon: Monitoring evidence about the financial benefits generated by UKTI trade services is gathered quarterly through the Performance and Impact Monitoring Survey (PIMS).

This evidence is supplemented by a rolling programme of independent evaluation using a range of methodologies. For more information on how UKTI calculates the benefits derived from its activity please see Annex B of the UK Trade & Investment annual report and accounts:

http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/hc1314/hc00/0024/0024.pdf

Annual cost data of UKTI trade and investment activities is published on the UKTI annual report (see link above).

PIMS results published at the end of September 2013, based on data derived from services delivered in the 2012-13 financial year, reported estimated total benefits of £50.9 billion in terms of additional sales or £5.2 billion in terms of additional profit attributed by UKTI clients to the support received. The overall cost for the 2012-13 financial year (admin and programme spend) was £236 million. Combining the overall benefits reported by companies supported with the total UKTI costs yields a benefit cost ratio of £22:1 for all UKTI trade services in 2012-13. The rolling programme of evaluation evidence yields similar results.

Breakdowns of the benefits data at the regional level are not available.

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make it his policy to invest in a new UK Trade & Investment office in Shrewsbury to support local Shropshire businesses rather than maintaining one office in Birmingham for the whole of the West Midlands. [183538]

Michael Fallon: There are currently six teams of UKTI International Trade Advisers (ITAs) based within the Chambers of Commerce across the West Midlands. This includes advisers based in Shropshire at the Chamber of Commerce in Telford. There is also a drop-in centre for the ITAs in Shrewsbury. From 1 April 2014 it is

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Shropshire Chambers intention to move the drop-in centre to the Food Enterprise Centre at Battlefield Business Park Shrewsbury, where ITAs will be available on specific days to support businesses on site.

Work Experience

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged (a) 16 and under and (b) over 16 years old undertook work experience in his Department in each of the last three years. [183650]

Jenny Willott: The Department has put clear guidance in place for managers in BIS to enable them to offer unpaid “work experience” opportunities through the civil service jobs website. The Department does not hold information centrally on the numbers or the detail for any work experience opportunities arranged directly by managers in the Department and only obtain it could at disproportionate cost.

The Department continues to demonstrate a commitment to work experience and social mobility through its participation in central Government schemes such as the two-week summer ‘Whitehall Internship Programme’ when in August 2013, some 30 work experience students from that programme joined BIS. The Department is also actively working with DFE in the development of a pilot ‘Traineeship’ programme to offer work experience placements.

Education

Buildings

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which buildings occupied by his Department are owned or part-owned privately; what the total value is of the rent paid to private landlords for the use of such buildings for official duties; and to whom such rent is paid. [183636]

Elizabeth Truss: Since May 2010 the Department for Education has reduced the size of its estate from 30 properties under the previous Government, at a cost of circa £51 million per annum, to just 12 properties costing circa £34 million per annum. This is a saving of circa £17 million per annum. The Department plans to reduce the size of the estate further, to just six properties. During 2014 the Department will vacate Trust Court, realise additional sublet income to offset rental costs of Earlsdon Park and transfer surplus space in Piccadilly Gate to another Government Department. These activities will achieve further savings to the Department of circa £600,000 per annum. The Department also plans to vacate Sanctuary Buildings at lease expiry in 2017.

The Department for Education currently occupies six properties which are owned or part-owned privately. These are listed in the following table:

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Further Education: Finance

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the conclusions of the research commissioned by the Association of Colleges on the effect of the reduction in funding for 18 year olds on students from disadvantaged areas and Black, minority and ethnic students. [183807]

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Education has published its own impact assessment which is based on a complete analysis of the Individualised Learner Records submitted by colleges, whereas the Association of Colleges' research was based on a partial analysis. The Department for Education's impact assessment can be found here:

http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/i/impact%20assessment.pdf

Pupil Premium Plus

Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his policy is on extending the pupil premium plus to school children adopted before December 2005. [183510]

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Mr Laws: The criteria for the pupil premium are reviewed on an annual basis and the Government will, as part of this process, carefully consider the decision to link eligibility to adoptions under the Adoption and Children Act 2002 (implemented on 30 December 2005).

The decision to link eligibility to adoptions under 2002 Act for the 2014-15 financial year was to ensure consistency with the policy on priority school admissions for children adopted from care, and respond to the need to balance competing funding priorities during the current difficult economic climate.

Special Educational Needs

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many SEN students achieved the expected level in English and mathematics at Key Stage 2 in each of the last five years; how these figures compare to the national average in each of those years; and if he will make a statement. [183401]

Mr Timpson: The tables show information on the number of special educational needs (SEN) pupils achieving the expected levels in English and mathematics at the end of key stage 2 from 2009 to 2012.

Due to changes in the national curriculum assessment arrangements this information is not available beyond 2012. From 2013, pupils had to achieve the expected level in reading, writing and mathematics.

The Government are committed to closing attainment gaps between children with SEN and their peers. Through the draft SEN Code of Practice, which we recently consulted on, we are ensuring children with SEN have their needs identified as early as possible, so the right support can be put in place. The Code of Practice sets out clear guidance for schools on the process for appropriate identification, assessment, monitoring and securing further support for children with SEN. It also challenges schools to improve the quality of teaching and learning for all pupils, rather than inappropriately labelling pupils as having SEN. The new SEN Code of Practice is due to come into force from September 2014.

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Vocational Training

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many small and medium-sized enterprises have offered placements to people aged 16 to 23 as part of the Traineeship Programme; and if he will make a statement. [183768]

Matthew Hancock: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

We are currently working towards a reliable estimate of learners on the Traineeship programme and hence on the number of employer workplaces. We are working with providers to ensure that they are following the guidance and will publish information in due course.

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the quality assurance auditing process for the new Traineeship Programme is; and if he will make a statement. [183769]

Matthew Hancock: The Education Funding Agency and the Skills Funding Agency operate a robust and transparent audit process that is jointly agreed and published. This applies to all of their funded provision, including the delivery of traineeships. The details can be read in the agencies' Joint Audit Code of Practice, Part 1. A copy has been placed in the House Library.

Traineeship providers are subject to normal Ofsted inspection arrangements. To ensure a high quality start to the programme, in 2013-14 only providers who have achieved an Ofsted rating of Outstanding or Good can deliver traineeships.

World War I: Education

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to amend the provisions of the National Curriculum on (a) the causes of the First World War, (b) the quality of British generalship and (c) the reputation of Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig of Bemersyde; and if he will make a statement. [183582]

Elizabeth Truss: Teaching about the first world war is covered in the new national curriculum programme of study for history at key stage 3, which will be taught from September 2014. The programme of study requires that pupils understand that different versions of past events may exist and why this is so. It is for schools to decide how they teach and what resources they use to support teaching of the first world war.

Young People: Unemployment

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many 16 to 18-year-olds were not in education, employment or training in (a) England and (b) each local authority area in the East Midlands in the latest year for which figures are available. [182901]

Matthew Hancock: Definitive national estimates of participation in education, training and employment for young people aged 16 to 18 are published by the Department for Education in a Statistical First Release (SFR) each June.

These estimates cannot be broken down to local authority level. However, local authorities collect information on 16 to 18-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) in each local authority area in England. This information is published annually on the Department's website¹, although the quality of the data is dependent on the local data collection arrangements.

¹http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/youngpeople/participation/neet/a0064101/16--to-18-year-olds-not-in-education,-employment-or-training

International Development

Syria: Humanitarian Support

9. Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to improve the co-ordination of humanitarian support for Syria and the surrounding region. [902107]

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Justine Greening: I have pushed to improve the leadership and co-ordination of the humanitarian response, including by convening high level discussions of the key agencies and donors, most recently last month in Brussels. The UK undertook an ambitious lobbying strategy ahead of the Pledging Conference in Kuwait last week, to ensure a successful outcome.

Aid: Gaza

11. Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the adequacy of food and medical supplies entering Gaza daily. [902109]

Mr Duncan: The decrease in the level of fuel entering Gaza in recent months and the rising price of food are exacerbating the already precarious humanitarian situation caused by restrictions on the movement of goods and people and the devastation of the winter storms.

Palestinians: Jordan

12. Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid the Government are giving to displaced Palestinians in Jordan. [902111]

Mr Duncan: The UK provides funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) General Fund to support their work in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. We also provided an additional £2.2 million to UNRWA to support Palestine refugees from Syria in Jordan.

Scotland

13. Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the potential effect on her Department’s policies of Scotland becoming independent. [902112]

Justine Greening: The UK Government's position is clear: Scotland benefits from being part of the UK and the UK benefits from having Scotland within the UK. I am committed to delivering the best possible aid programme for the whole of the UK. It is clear to me that our UK Aid programme and Scotland's role within that works better together than it will apart.

Buildings

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which buildings occupied by her Department are owned or part-owned privately; what the total value is of the rent paid to private landlords for the use of such buildings for official duties; and to whom such rent is paid. [183642]

Mr Duncan: DFID occupies two buildings in the UK, one in Whitehall, London and the other in East Kilbride. We hold the leasehold on both properties and no rent is paid.

Burma

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether any (a) rice and (b) other humanitarian aid stolen by Burmese Army

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soldiers in the Nam Lin Pa Internally Displaced Person camp in Kachin State, Burma, in November 2013 was supplied by any agency or organisation funded by her Department. [183581]

Mr Duncan: DFID-funded rice was in the process of being delivered to the Nam Lim Pa Internally Displaced Person camp when armed conflict broke out there. Since the violence, our partner NGO has not had access to the camp. They have retrieved over half of the rice from nearby areas.

Developing Countries: Dementia

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department has taken relating to the effect of dementia on developing countries to support the Prime Minister's Dementia Challenge and the Dementia Summit. [902101]

Lynne Featherstone: The UK Government supports the improvement of dementia care through increased provision of all basic health services for the poor. In 2012-13 the UK provided over £1 billion in bilateral health aid, supporting work to strengthen health systems and health activities in 34 countries.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will increase her Department's support to the health systems of developing countries to help reduce migration of health workers from the developing world. [183939]

Justine Greening: In 2012-13 the UK provided over £1 billion in bilateral health aid, supporting work to strengthen health systems and deliver health programmes including the development of health work force capacity.

The UK is a signatory to both the Commonwealth and the World Health Organization Codes of Conduct on Health Worker Recruitment.

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the November 2013 report by the World Health Organisation entitled A Universal Truth: No Health Without a Workforce. [183963]

Justine Greening: DFID officials were part of the steering committee which reviewed the World Health Organisations report entitled ‘A Universal Truth: No Health Without a Workforce’, which was presented at the Third Global Forum of the Global Health Workforce Alliance.

North Korea

Mark Reckless: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much (a) food aid and (b) other aid her Department gave to North Korea in the most recent period for which figures are available; and how much aid has been given to North Korea in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [183432]

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Mr Duncan: DFID does not have a bilateral aid programme in North Korea.

For the last five years for which figures are available DFID’s share of funding contributions through multilateral agencies to North Korea is estimated at: 2007-08, £1,361,000; 2008-09, £935,000; 2009-10, £1,309,000; 2010-11, £4,832,000; 2011-12, £1,952,000. These figures are available on the Gov.UK website.

In addition to this, in 2009-10, DFID provided £2.8 million in humanitarian aid for North Korea through a core contribution to the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). This contribution was not earmarked for specific purposes. In 2007-08, DFID gave £649,422 in humanitarian assistance to North Korea, £500,000 of which was food aid for 215,000 people affected by floods.

Overseas Aid

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether UK Official Development Assistance budgets allocated to departments other than her Department are also bound by her Department's results framework. [183455]

Justine Greening: UK Official Development Assistance budgets allocated to Departments other than DFID are bound by the international rules governing Official Development Assistance from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and subject to review by the Independent Commission on Aid Impact.

Palestinians

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether funds from her Department to support education in the Gaza Strip (a) support or (b) are ring fenced from the Pioneers of Liberation programme for school-aged children run by the Gazan ministries for education and the interior. [183930]

Mr Duncan: The UK Government do not fund the Gazan ministries for education and the interior. DFID provides funding to the Palestinian Authority to pay civil servant salaries only. The process is independently audited to ensure that only named civil servants benefit.

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Philippines

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what humanitarian assistance her Department gives the Philippines to help prevent online sex abuse of Filipino children in poverty by paedophiles based in the UK. [183919]

Justine Greening: DFID humanitarian funding to the Philippines following the recent Typhoon Haiyan includes activities that aim to protect the most vulnerable people affected by this disaster from exploitation.

The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre of the National Crime Agency (NCA) has recently conducted safeguarding training in the Philippines as part of the International Child Protection Network. The NCA has also taken major steps to disrupt online child sexual exploitation in the Philippines. Operation Endeavour, a joint investigation with the Australian Federal Police and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, resulted in 29 international arrests.

Work Experience

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people aged (a) 16 and under and (b) over 16 years old undertook work experience in her Department in each of the last three years. [183665]

Mr Duncan: The information is as follows:

(a) DFID does not maintain central records for work experience of people aged 16 and under. Providing the details would incur disproportionate costs.

(b) The following table shows the number of people over 16 years old who undertook work experience within DFID of two weeks or more on DFID’s graduate programme and the cross-Whitehall schemes.