Education: Fraud

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what processes he has put in place to enable a whistleblower to generate an Education Funding Agency investigation into alleged financial impropriety. [186146]

Mr Timpson: The Department for Education has put in place a complaints procedure on its website, which sets out the means by which a complaint can be made to the Department. This includes what to do in the event of concerns about financial irregularity or impropriety. It explains that all concerns relating to Education Funding Agency (EFA) funded organisations are taken seriously. It states that an investigation will be opened in cases where concerns have been raised in good faith and there is sufficient evidence to support them. A link to the complaints procedure is provided here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-education/about/complaints-procedure

The Academies Financial Handbook makes it clear that academy trusts should ensure they have appropriate procedures in place for whistleblowing, including making sure that all staff are aware to whom they can report their concerns and the way in which such concerns will be treated.

Free Schools

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department has issued in the past to potential free school applicants on the freehold and leasehold of school sites. [186111]

Mr Timpson: We have not issued guidance to potential free school applicants on the freehold and leasehold of school sites. The current guidance for potential free school applicants can be found at:

http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/typesofschools/freeschools/b00222064/apply

Further Education: Finance

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many care leavers will be affected by the reduction in funding of 18-year-olds announced by the Education Funding Agency. [185948]

Matthew Hancock: The Education Funding Agency (EFA) does not hold data on care leavers by age. The EFA has recently published an impact analysis of the reduction in funding of 18-year-olds, which is available on the Department for Education's website at:

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

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what measures he is considering to mitigate the effects of the reduction in the funding of 18-year- olds announced by the Education Funding Agency. [186004]

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Matthew Hancock: The Department for Education is looking at various measures that would mitigate the impact for those institutions worst affected by the proposed funding reduction for 18-year-olds as we assess funding for institutions in the academic year 2014/15. As usual, this will be based on student numbers from the current academic year, so we will not have firm figures until the end of February.

Grandparents

Margot James: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the adequacy of grandparents' current rights of access to their grandchildren; and if he will bring forward legislative proposals to strengthen such rights. [185659]

Mr Timpson: The Government recognise that grandparents can play a very important role in children's lives. While there is no automatic right for grandparents to have contact with a child, they may apply for contact through the courts in cases where agreement cannot be reached within the family itself. The court will take into account the circumstances of each individual case and will make a contact order if it decides that it is in the child's best interests to have contact with the applicant. However, the Children Act 1989 requires that the court's paramount consideration in making such decisions must be the welfare of the child; the Government have no plans to change this fundamental principle.

Wherever possible and appropriate, the Government want families to resolve disputes without court intervention, and we are improving the advice and support to help them do so. As part of the dispute resolution process, parents will be encouraged to focus on the needs of their child, including the importance to the child of ongoing relationships with grandparents.

Kings Science Academy

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department considered purchasing the freehold for the Lidget Green site of the Kings Science Academy. [186112]

Mr Timpson: Yes.

Pensions

Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials of his Department at (a) AA, (b) AO and LO2, (c) EO and LO1, (d) HEO, (e) SEO, (f) 7 and (g) SCS grades and equivalents since May 2010. [186033]

Elizabeth Truss: Lord Hutton outlined in his report the strong case for changing public sector pensions, saying in his report

"these costs have generally fallen to the taxpayer".

The Commission reached the conclusion that

"if the Government wishes to make savings in the short-term it will be more effective to increase member contributions rather than alter the benefit structure".

Contributions were increased in April 2012, April 2013 and will be increased again in April 2014. The increases were tiered by salary, so that higher earners

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pay a larger percentage point increase than lower earners. A number of protections were introduced alongside the contribution increases, including:

1. Those earning less than £15,000 (full-time equivalent rate) will pay nothing extra.

2. Those earning up to £21,000 (full-time equivalent) will pay no more than an extra 1.5% of their pay in total by 2014-15.

3. Higher earners will pay extra, but no more than 5.35% of their total pay by 2014-15.

The following tables show the salary bands for staff in the Department for Education for each financial year since May 2010. Table 1 shows the salary bands for staff who are based outside of London and Table 2 shows the salary bands for staff based in London. Salary bands for the senior civil service are set centrally by the Cabinet Office.

Cabinet Office's answer to PQ 185222 provides information about how the take-home pay of those with different levels of salaries is affected by the pension contribution increases.

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Primary Education

Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will categorise the reception class in primary schools as part of key stage 1. [185500]

Elizabeth Truss: The Government consulted last year on a new accountability system for primary schools to raise expectations that no child should fall behind and every child should reach their potential. We proposed to introduce a baseline measure at the start of reception so schools are held to account for pupil progress, including in the key year of reception. We will be responding to that consultation shortly.

As my hon. Friend is aware, the national curriculum is currently not mandatory in academies and free schools, but the early years foundation stage is.

Private Education: Offences against Children

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to better highlight past abuse of children in independent boarding schools. [185578]

Mr Timpson: We are aware of the allegations of historic cases of abuse at a number of independent schools. Investigations of these are a matter for the police and other local agencies to pursue on a case-by-case basis.

We take safeguarding and child protection very seriously, and have been reforming the current system to ensure that it works in the best interests of children and minimises the risk of abuse in schools. The statutory guidance, “Working Together to Safeguard Children”, revised in March 2013, put in place a very clear framework for all who work with children, and we do not believe there is any excuse for a school to not have a clear idea of the structures, policies and procedures needed.

Pupils: Bullying

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make an assessment of the effect of recent public debate on immigration on the incidence of racist bullying of schoolchildren. [185886]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education does not routinely collect information about the prevalence of racist bullying so it is not possible to make a direct causal link between the recent public debate on immigration and the incidence of racist bullying of school children. UK and international research studies show wide variation in the likely prevalence of all types of bullying, ranging from 69% to a more moderate 21%. While this variation can in part be attributed to different survey methodologies and research questions, it is more likely to reflect variation in individual perceptions of what constitutes bullying.

The Government have made it clear to schools that all forms of bullying, for whatever reason, should never be tolerated. All schools must have a behaviour policy with measures to prevent and tackle all forms of bullying, including racist bullying. Schools are held to account by Ofsted for the behaviour and safety of their pupils and Ofsted inspectors consider pupils behaviour towards, and respect for, other young people and adults.

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The new programmes of study, which will come into force in schools from September 2014 for citizenship, history and geography, provide varied opportunities for pupils to learn about different cultures and religions which will help foster tolerance and harmony among young people.

Pupils: Tagging

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what guidance his Department has issued to (a) schools and (b) local authorities on the use of radio-frequency identification technology (RFID) with a Real Time Location System (RTLS) in schools for (i) tracking children and (ii) tagging equipment; if he will place in the Library a copy of such guidance; and if he will make a statement; [186124]

(2) what (a) discussions and (b) correspondence his Department has had with the Information Commissioner's Office on the compatibility of radio-frequency identification technology with a Real Time Location System in schools and the Data Protection Act 1988 in the last three years. [186128]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education has not issued guidance or made contact with the Information Commissioner's Office on the use of radio-frequency identification technology (RFID) with a Real Time Location System (RTLS) in schools.

Science: Teachers

Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) mathematics, (b) physics, (c) chemistry and (d) biology teachers there are in each local authority area. [185918]

Mr Laws: The information requested for each local authority area could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Special Educational Needs

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) whether information from the Autism Act 2009 statutory guidance will be included in the final Special Educational Needs Code of Practice; [186013]

(2) whether the final Special Educational Needs Code of Practice will refer to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on assessment and diagnosis of autism; [186014]

(3) if his Department will work with (a) the National Autistic Society and (b) other disability charities to ensure that educational needs of children and young people with specific impairments are fully reflected in the description of special educational need in the final Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. [186022]

Mr Timpson: The Department for Education recently consulted publicly on a draft Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice. Revisions are being made to the Code of Practice to take account of developments during the passage of the Children and Families Bill and responses to the consultation, which were from a wide range of organisations in the statutory and voluntary

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and community sectors, including those in the SEN and disability field. We will continue to work with those who must have regard to the Code of Practice and those who support children, young people and families as this is taken forward.

Once this work is completed a revised Code of Practice will be placed before both Houses of Parliament for approval.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the need to conduct a review into the feasibility of the single point of appeal for education, health and care plans. [186015]

Mr Timpson: Government amendments to the Children and Families Bill were tabled on 31 January providing for a review of the redress and complaint arrangements across education, health and social care for children and young people with special educational needs and, as part of the review, pilots to test whether the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) could make recommendations about the health and social care provision set out in education, health and care plans.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Afghanistan

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the funding streams his Department has to the Afghan Government; what the purposes are for the funding in each case; what steps he is taking to ensure that such funds are used by the Afghans for the intended purposes; and if he will make a statement. [185297]

Hugh Robertson: Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) funding to the Afghan Government comes from both the Conflict Pool and FCO’s Strategic Programme Fund. This takes the form of contributions to multilateral trust funds; bilateral financial support; and provision of expert assistance to individual departments. FCO funding is directed at supporting progress towards a political settlement, building a viable Afghan state and supporting security infrastructure.

The FCO and its partners work rigorously to ensure funds are used for the intended purposes and external evaluation is used where possible. Where funding is in partnership with international organisations such as the UN, they provide independent oversight and assurance. In addition, the presence of UK-funded advisers within line Ministries allows for further assurance.

Business: Human Rights

Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with EU counterparts about the Government's action plan on business and human rights. [185776]

Mr Lidington: We have promoted the UK's action plan with EU counterparts on a number of occasions, both formal and informal, including in EU meetings and at the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights

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in Geneva last December. The UK has been widely recognised as a leader in this area, as the first country to produce a national action plan, and a number of EU member states have sought our advice for the development of their own strategies. We have regularly raised the importance of business and human rights in discussions with EU partners and will continue to look for opportunities to do so.

China

Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has received since 2010 from (a) the BBC and (b) other broadcasters about the Chinese Government's blocking of BBC television and radio content. [185777]

Mr Swire: The BBC World Service has made no formal representations to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), nor formally requested our assistance, regarding Chinese Government blocking of BBC television and radio content. We are not aware of any other representations from other broadcasters.

Conferences

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many international summits he attended in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; what the cost to the public purse was of his attendance at each such summit; and what his carbon footprint was in travelling to each such summit. [185752]

Mr Lidington: The list of overseas engagements attended by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), which includes international summits, and the associated cost, is published every quarter on www.gov.uk

In addition to those, the Secretary of State has also hosted and attended international summits in the UK, such as the Cyber Conference and London Conference on Somalia.

It is not possible to answer the question in full as information on the carbon footprint in travelling to each summit is not held centrally and to collate it would incur disproportionate cost.

Electronic Surveillance

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions the Director of Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), or other GCHQ staff acting on his behalf, has requested ministerial authorisation to approve GCHQ reading the content of e-mails gathered as part of general metadata collection since May 2010; and on how many occasions such requests were turned down. [185759]

Hugh Robertson: It is the long-standing policy of successive Governments not to comment on matters of intelligence.

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European External Action Service

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 24 January 2014, Official Report, column 340W, on EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, on what date he used the aeroplane charted by the European External Action Service; and for what purpose. [185210]

Mr Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), used an aeroplane chartered by the European External Action Service (EEAS) on a return flight from Tunisia after a ‘Friends of Syria' meeting in the February 2012. This was at no cost to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Iran

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 428W, on Iran, what representations he has made to his Iranian counterpart about recent remarks that the P5+1 are misrepresenting Iran’s commitments under the Joint Plan of Action. [185910]

Hugh Robertson: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), discussed the entry into force of the Geneva agreement with Foreign Minister Zarif on 21 January. The E3 plus 3 and Iran reached an agreement on implementation of the Geneva deal on 12 January. This makes very clear the obligations of the parties.

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 428W, on Iran, what measures the Iranian authorities need to take to ensure the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear programme. [185919]

Hugh Robertson: To ensure the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear programme, Iran must take action on all of the key elements of its nuclear programme that represent a proliferation risk. This includes addressing concerns about the fuel cycle (enrichment levels, capacity and stockpile), heavy water-related activity, research and development as well as agreeing to enhanced monitoring and verification measures (including ratifying the additional protocol). The steps Iran has taken under the Joint Plan of Action, which came into force on 20 January, are an important first step. But Iran needs to take further significant and sustained steps before the international community can have full confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear programme.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on Iran’s possession of advanced IR-1 centrifuges. [186114]

Hugh Robertson: The IAEA’s November 2013 report on Iran’s nuclear programme to the Board of Governors verified that Iran currently has 18,458 IR-1 centrifuges

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installed for uranium enrichment. Only around half of these are currently operating. Under the Joint Plan of Action, which came into force on 20 January 2014, Iran has agreed not to make any further advances in its activities at the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant and Fordow. This includes not installing further centrifuges; bringing into operation any centrifuges installed but not being used to enrich; and limiting production to replacement of failed machines.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether IAEA inspectors will be granted access to Iran’s Parchin facility under the P5+1-Iran Joint Plan of Action. [186115]

Hugh Robertson: The Joint Plan of Action does not grant IAEA inspectors access to the Parchin military base. This issue is being discussed as part of the IAEA’s separate discussions with Iran on the possible military dimensions to Iran’s nuclear programme. We welcome the recent signature of a Joint Statement on a Framework for Co-operation between Iran and the IAEA and hope that this will soon include allowing the agency access to Parchin.

Pakistan

Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Government of Pakistan on the decision of the Federal Shariat Court in Pakistan to order the Government there to implement death as the only penalty for blasphemy. [185823]

Hugh Robertson: It is our long-standing policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances. The Prime Minister reiterated this to the House during questions on 29 January. Ministers regularly raise the issue of the death penalty in Pakistan at the highest levels both in terms of our principled stance and in supporting cases of British nationals facing the death penalty overseas. We also continue to regularly raise the issue of the blasphemy laws at a senior level with the authorities in Pakistan. The Senior Minister of State, my noble Friend the right hon. Baroness Warsi, most recently raised our opposition to the death penalty with the Chief Minister of the Punjab on 27 January.

Pay

Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at AO, LO2 and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010; [185227]

(2) what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at AA and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010; [185231]

(3) what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at EO, LO1 and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010. [185232]

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Hugh Robertson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Civil Society, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd), today.

This Cabinet Office answer to UIN 185222 provides information about how the take-home pay of those with different levels of salaries is affected by the pension contribution increases.

Press Freedom

Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations have been made by (a) officials and (b) Ministers to foreign Governments since 2010 about freedom of expression in the media. [185779]

Mr Lidington: Freedom of expression is an essential element of democracy and human rights, and one of the key human rights priorities at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). All Ministers regularly engage bilaterally on freedom of expression, and raise individual cases when appropriate.

We are unable to provide details of the precise number of representations made to foreign Governments since 2010. This information is not held centrally and can be collated only at disproportionate cost. More information about the FCO's representations on freedom of expression will be available in this year's Annual Human Rights Report, to be published on 10 April 2014.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of his Department's overall procurement spend for each of the last three financial years was spent (a) in joint procurement exercises with other Departments and (b) shared between different organisations within the same Department group. [185397]

Mr Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is committed to working collaboratively with other Government Departments. The FCO has several shared contracts. Notable examples are for the movement of personal effects overseas with Pickfords Move Management Limited, and the FCO language school via Language Services Direct. These are opened to as many Government Departments as possible. It is not possible to answer the question in full as this information is not held centrally and to collate it would incur disproportionate cost.

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for each of the last three financial years how much and what proportion of his Department's procurement was conducted using e-procurement tools; and what the value of such contracts was. [185403]

Mr Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office uses a number of e-procurement tools ranging from G-cloud to online mini-competition via the Government Procurement Service frameworks. However, relevant spend data categorised by procurement channel are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

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Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010. [185565]

Hugh Robertson: I have set out here the details for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. This information is current as of 31 December 2013.

May 2010 to December 2013

Number of employees made redundant then re-employed: 0

Number of employees who retired then re-employed: 14

Total: 14.

Data are taken from the FCO HR database on 31 December 2013. The individuals have been recruited to undertake specialist roles, for example reviewing FCO archives.

It should be noted that:

Staff re-employed within 28 days of being made redundant will have repaid their entire redundancy package;

Staff re-employed within six months of being made redundant since December 2010 will have had to repay part of their compensation;

Staff re-employed following retirement will have their pension abated so that the total value of their pension and new salary will be the same as their salary before retirement; and

The FCO along with the rest of the civil service does not operate a compulsory age retirement policy and has not done so since March 2010.

The Government reformed the Compensation Scheme in 2010 so as to reduce costs and to require the recovery of compensation payments where staff are dismissed and re-employed. Across Government, savings from work force reductions have resulted in savings of £2.2 billion compared to 2009-10.

Russia

Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions his Department has had with the Russian authorities about (a) security against terrorism and (b) human rights at the Winter Olympics. [185775]

Mr Lidington: The information requested is as follows:

(a) We are in regular contact with the Russian authorities and are working with them on their preparations for the Sochi Winter Olympics and Paralympics, including security issues. We continually review the security situation and update our travel advice for British nationals accordingly.

(b) The promotion and protection of human rights continues to be a key priority in our relationship with Russia. We regularly make it clear to Russia that human rights are universal and should apply equally to all. We have also expressed our concerns regarding recent legislation prohibiting the promotion of “non-traditional sexual relations” among minors. We work to improve the situation on the ground by supporting relevant projects and the development of civil society in Russia. We are working with the International Olympic Committee and British Olympic Association to ensure the Winter Games take place in the spirit of the Olympic Charter and are free from discrimination.

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South Sudan

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the South Sudanese Government about persecuted religious groups. [185343]

Mark Simmonds: We are not aware of evidence that religious groups have been targeted during the recent outbreak of violence in South Sudan, or of any significant religious persecution in the country previously. However we have been deeply concerned about the level of inter-communal violence that has taken place, often with an ethnic dimension. Religious leaders have an important role to play in calming tensions and promoting reconciliation.

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Government have made of the political stability of South Sudan. [185346]

Mark Simmonds: We welcome the signing of a cessation of hostilities agreement in Addis Ababa on 23 January 2014, although it is clear that this is only the beginning of the peace process. More than half a million South Sudanese have been displaced from their homes and they and many others are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. There has not yet been a full end to fighting on the ground. We are urging all sides to ensure that their forces put down their weapons immediately.

We are continuing to engage with both parties to facilitate dialogue, in support of mediation by the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and in close co-ordination with partners in the European Union and the Troika. We are also providing a supporting role in the establishment of the IGAD-led monitoring mechanism which is intended to oversee the implementation of the cessation of hostilities. During my meetings with Ethiopian, Kenyan, Sudanese, Ugandan and South Sudanese Foreign Ministers, I made it clear that the cessation of hostilities must lead to a genuinely inclusive political reconciliation process that strengthens the unity of South Sudan. We are ready to support this process fully when talks resume on 7 February 2014.

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to maintain the recent ceasefire in South Sudan. [185553]

Mark Simmonds: The recently signed Cessation of Hostilities Agreement provides for a monitoring and verification mechanism to oversee its implementation, which will be formed under the leadership of the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), with broader international participation. With our Troika partners, we have been supporting the establishment of this mechanism, and we have provided an expert to the advance party of the ceasefire oversight committee ("Joint Technical Committee") which arrived in Juba on 2 February 2014.

We continue to engage diplomatically with all partners and in the region to encourage respect for the cessation of hostilities, and to establish a political process to reach a full peace agreement. I held discussions on these

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matters with the South Sudanese Foreign Minister and a wide range of regional leaders during the recent African Union summit, including raising with the Foreign Minister of Uganda the role of those Ugandan troops who have been fighting alongside South Sudanese forces.

Staff

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many personnel of each grade are employed in his Department's Devolution Unit; and what the total cost of the unit to the public purse has been since its creation. [185818]

Mr Lidington: The Devolution Unit was established in September 2012 to make it easier for the Devolved Administrations to interact with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), and to advise FCO posts on the devolution settlement. It consists of two officers of B3 and C5 grade. The pay range of a B3 officer is between £21,646 and £27,658. The pay range of a C5 officer is between £33,075 and £40,905,

Prime Minister

Chiefs of Staff

Mr David Davis: To ask the Prime Minister if he will publish the minutes of any meetings between him and the Chief of the Defence Staff which took place in his constituency between 11 May 2010 and 31 May 2011. [185914]

The Prime Minister: I refer my right hon. Friend to the answer I gave to him on 17 January 2014, Official Report, column 725W.

House of Commons Commission

Parliamentary Tours

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how many tours of the Palace of Westminster were conducted by Blue Badge guides in each year since 2011; and how many such tours have been so allocated for 2014. [185589]

John Thurso: The following table details the number of paid-for tours of the Palace of Westminster visitor route for the last three financial years (including a forecast for remainder of 2013-14), with a forecast for 2014-15.

The increase in 2013-14 is largely due to the extension of paid-for tours to the December and February recesses.

The forecast reduction in 2014-15 is largely due to the forthcoming introduction of audio guided tours alongside guided tours, in line with the policy of offering paying visitors a richer range of tours at different prices.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent

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discussions the Commission has had on the fact that Palace of Westminster guides conduct Royalty and Splendour, and Tactile tours but are excluded from other non-Member tours. [185590]

John Thurso: The Commission has not discussed this specific point but in July 2012 agreed to increase the number and range of tours that were available to paying visitors, including specialist tours and the introduction of audio-guided tours alongside guided tours.

In-house guides conduct Member-sponsored tours of the Palace of Westminster visitor route, including the new tactile tours for blind and partially-sighted visitors. They have also piloted the ‘specialist’ Art and Architecture tours (“Royalty and Splendour” and “Contemporary Portraiture”). Established paid-for tours (on Saturdays, non-sitting Fridays, and during recesses) are conducted by Blue Badge guides under a contract secured by public tender.

Blue Badge guides are trained to Institute of Tourist Guiding level 4 (covering, traditionally, a Tourist Board area). In-house guides are trained to Institute of Tourist Guiding level 2 (site-specific visitor attraction).

The use of the two groups of guides for these different purposes is designed to best meet the requirements of different types of visitor in a cost-effective way.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much (a) Blue Badge guides and (b) Palace of Westminster guides are paid per tour of the Palace. [185591]

John Thurso: The professionally qualified Blue Badge guides are paid per day or half day, rather than per tour, on the basis of nationally agreed rates. Their current fees are £230.00 per day for English Language tours and £265.00 for foreign language tours. During a day a guide will conduct four tours, so they are paid the equivalent of £57.50 or £66.25 per tour.

For Member-sponsored tours when Parliament is sitting, the current policy is that guides are drawn primarily from serving or retired House staff. Palace of Westminster ‘in-house’ guides are booked and paid on a ‘per tour’ basis. These guides are currently paid £33.15 for tours during ‘working hours’ (up until 5 pm) and £50.00 for tours which take place in the evening, normally as part of another Member-sponsored event.

The difference in pay reflects the higher level and formal nature of the training and qualification of Blue Badge guides. The higher level of training includes more experience of the mechanics of guiding and detailed knowledge of London as a whole (which fits in with the requirements of paid-for tours visitors), as well as an independent parliamentary qualification.

Staff

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2014, Official Report, columns 287-8W, on House of Commons staff, what the (a) level of job satisfaction, (b) proportion of people proud to work for the House Service, (c) average days lost to sickness

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per employee and

(d)

turnover rate was for each staff survey conducted in the last 10 years. [185865]

John Thurso: The following table outlines the available data. These have been gathered through staff surveys and as part of the work force information that is considered regularly by the Management Board. Figures for earlier years are not available.

Business, Innovation and Skills

Adult Education

Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his strategy is for devolving skills funding in Wales and Scotland; and if he will make a statement. [185917]

Matthew Hancock: Skills funding is devolved to Wales and Scotland under the Barnett formula.

Apprentices

Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his most recent estimate is of the number of apprentices progressing to level 5 qualifications. [186132]

Matthew Hancock: Final data for the 2012/13 academic year show that there were 13,000 funded apprentices participating on a higher apprenticeship (Level 4+) in the 2012/13 academic year. Of these 6,000 were at level 5.

Apprentices: Shipping

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on access to public funding for the Maritime Skills Alliance in designing apprenticeships in partnership with the maritime industry. [185962]

Matthew Hancock: BIS officials are in discussion with a range of employers and other organisations who have expressed an interest in becoming a trailblazer to develop new apprenticeship standards for occupations

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in their industries. One of those organisations is the Maritime Skills Alliance but no decision has been made yet on whether the alliance’s proposals are suitable for development through a trailblazer project.

Employers in all sectors can apply for access to skills funding to develop and design new skills provision to create the training schemes they need to grow their business through the employer ownership pilot (EOP). Many proposals that have been approved for EOP are linked to apprenticeships and in the 2012/13 academic year, 1,200 apprenticeship starts were created through the EOP.

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions Ministers in his Department have had with representatives of the Scottish Government on maritime apprenticeships; and if he will ensure that further such discussions take place in the near future. [185963]

Matthew Hancock: Apprenticeships policy is a devolved matter and it is for the devolved Administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to determine how they manage their own schemes. Scotland has traditionally had a separate apprenticeship programme. I discuss apprenticeships with my Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish counterparts from time to time.

Business: Loans

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he has taken to implement the recommendations of the Tomlinson report into banks' lending practices. [185180]

Matthew Hancock: Mr Tomlinson's report makes serious allegations about RBS's treatment of businesses in financial difficulties and calls for a thorough and independent investigation. On receipt, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), referred the report to the financial services regulators. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has subsequently announced the appointment of Promontory Financial Group and Mazars to carry out an independent skilled persons review of the allegations against RBS using powers in section 166 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The first stage of the review will include consideration of whether any poor practices identified are widespread and systematic. If this is the case, stage two will identify the root cause of these issues and make recommendations to address any shortcomings identified. Separately, the FCA has written open letters to the other banks seeking confirmation that they are satisfied they do not engage in any of the poor practices alleged in the report.

Insolvency: Licensing

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received (a) in favour and (b) against the provisions in the draft Deregulation Bill on the licensing of insolvency practitioners. [185385]

Jenny Willott: Representations have been received from a range of interested parties relating to the licensing of insolvency practitioners.

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Widespread support was received in respect of the measure to remove the power for a competent authority to authorise an insolvency practitioner. As no competent authority has been designated, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), is the de facto competent authority and will no longer directly authorise insolvency practitioners.

In respect of the measure to allow specialised authorisation of insolvency practitioners, there was general support when the measure was discussed with interested parties, including two of the larger recognised professional bodies (which authorise insolvency practitioners), insolvency practitioners from a range of firms, and creditors. During pre-legislative scrutiny, concerns were raised about how the measure would apply to Scottish partnership insolvency, which we addressed by amending the clause before introduction. Concerns about the principle of allowing specialisation were also raised by a body representing insolvency practitioners and two recognised professional bodies. There has also been support for the principle of specialised authorisation, including from one of the larger professional bodies.

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effect of partial licensing of insolvency practitioners on small businesses seeking financial advice. [185386]

Jenny Willott: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has not conducted a specific assessment of the effect of specialised authorisation for insolvency practitioners on small businesses seeking financial advice. Views were invited on the proposal from interested parties, including business bodies and creditor representatives.

Olympic Games: Russia

Mr Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to promote UK business at the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. [185433]

Michael Fallon: Over 60 UK companies have secured contracts relating to the Sochi Olympic Winter Games, many of which have received support from UK Trade & Investment (UKTI).

During Games time in Sochi, UKTI will host a business networking event and a programme of meetings and briefings to expose UK companies to future sporting events organising and bid committees and other stakeholders. This activity will allow UK companies to directly engage with senior individuals overseeing the procurement of products and services for large-budget major sports events.

Efforts on Sochi form part of UKTI's ongoing Olympic legacy strategy, maximising the opportunity of major events to promote UK capability and attract investment. The programme has delivered £11.06 billion of benefit to the UK economy to date.

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Postal Services

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the sustainability of the universal postal service of the extension of end-to- end delivery services by providers other than the universal postal service provider; [185874]

(2) what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the universal postal service of operators other than the universal postal service provider extending end-to-end services in (a) Manchester, (b) Liverpool, (c) Edinburgh, (d) Glasgow and (e) Birmingham; [185875]

(3) if he will request Ofcom to expedite its review of the effect of end-to-end competition in the postal services market in order to ensure that the universal service obligation is protected. [185876]

Jenny Willott: Under the Postal Services Act 2011, Parliament transferred regulatory responsibility for the postal services sector from Postcomm to Ofcom as an independent regulator and gave Ofcom the primary duty to secure the provision of the universal postal service in the United Kingdom.

It is Ofcom's responsibility to monitor any effects of market competition on the provision of the universal service in the UK. Parliament has given Ofcom the powers to monitor market developments and to intervene if the provision of the universal service is ever at serious risk from the effects of postal competition.

Ofcom has put in place an effective and ongoing monitoring regime to track the financial sustainability of the universal postal service.

In March 2013, following a consultation, Ofcom published guidance on its approach to assessing impacts of end-to-end competition in the postal sector. In its November 2013 annual monitoring report Ofcom considered:

"it is not necessary to impose any additional regulatory conditions on end-to-end operators to secure the ongoing provision of a universal postal service at this point in time".

If Ofcom's ongoing monitoring regime does not prompt the need for any earlier assessment, it will carry out a full review of the impact of market competition towards the end of 2015 as a matter of course. This will ensure that the regulator has made a detailed assessment of the actual and potential impact of emerging end-to-end competition based on a better understanding of how the postal market is developing. More information about Ofcom's regulatory regime can be found on its website:

www.ofcom.org.uk

Sector Skills Councils

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much (a) public and (b) private funding is provided to each sector skills council in the UK. [185964]

Matthew Hancock: The total public funding provided to sector skills councils in the UK from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills for 2012-13 was £45,361,882 and the projected funding for 2013-14 is £38,571,309.

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In addition to their public funding, sector skills councils undertake a range of commercial business activities funded by employers in the sectors they represent. Details of their commercial income will be shown in their annual accounts.

Sector Skills Councils: Shipping

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which sector skills council is responsible for the maritime industry. [186050]

Matthew Hancock: The marine sector is not covered by any of the sector skills councils.

Space Technology

Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made on publication of a National Space Policy; and if he will make a statement. [185585]

Mr Willetts: A National Space Policy will be developed during 2014, which together with the UK Civil Space Strategy, which was published in 2012, and the National Space Security Policy, will set out UK Government space policy.

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the progress made by the space sector against the Government’s Space Innovation and Growth Strategy; and if he will make a statement. [185641]

Mr Willetts: The Space Innovation and Growth Strategy of 2010 was developed by industry and has helped drive the Government’s space policy since 2011, which has seen the establishment of the UK Space Agency, fresh investment in the European Space Agency and national projects such as the Satellite Applications Catapult Centre to promote growth in space services. Successes include export orders to Brazil, Russia and Canada and the establishment of a strong ESA presence in the UK at Harwell-Oxford. An update of the 2010 strategy, titled the Space Growth Action Plan, was published by industry in November 2013. I welcome its ambition to grow the British space sector from £9 billion now to £40 billion by 2030. The UK Space Agency is co-ordinating a Government response to those actions that requested Government support. I will publish this response after it has been agreed across Government.

In addition, a BIS/Cabinet Office “Challenger Business” programme is under way which responds to the needs of groundbreaking UK businesses offering new technologies, innovative products and vigorous business models. Businesses in space and satellite applications contributed to this programme during an event that I chaired on 22 November 2013.

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the potential contribution of space and satellite industries to UK defence and security. [185642]

Mr Willetts: The UK is an innovator in delivering defence and security services from space. The UK space and satellite industry already makes a significant

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contribution to UK defence and security through the provision of secure satellite communications via Paradigm Secure Communications (now part of the Airbus Defence and Space Division of the Airbus Group).

The Government continue to assess whether and how UK industry could contribute more. The context in which this is considered will be set out in the forthcoming National Space Security Policy.

Student Opportunity Fund

Mrs Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had on proposals to reduce funding for the Student Opportunity Fund. [185993]

Mr Willetts: We are currently working determining allocations for all of our budgets for the next two years and will set out our plans in the usual way.

Technology: Training

Mr Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what training initiatives his Department has launched to increase the skills needed by young people in new high technology enterprises. [185449]

Matthew Hancock: The Information Economy Strategy, published in June 2013, showed employers from all sectors face difficulties finding people with the right IT skills. The Information Economy sector council has set up an industry-led working group to agree concrete actions by the spring to address gaps in digital skills.

The Government have already taken steps to address this issue. To ensure young people have a strong grounding in computational thinking and programming skills we are introducing a new computing curriculum into schools in September which is more rigorous than existing ICT learning. We have also recently announced £40 million funding over 2014-15 and 2015-16 for 20,000 more Higher Apprenticeships, more than doubling current volumes. This includes the IT Higher Apprenticeship, developed as an alternative route into the sector for young people with A-Levels or equivalent qualifications.

UK Trade & Investment: West Midlands

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff in UKTI West Midlands have been tasked with supporting inward investment into the region in each of the last five years. [185432]

Michael Fallon: Figures for the regional development agency responsible for the west midlands in 2009 and 2010 are not available. From 2011 UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) has supported delivery of inward investment to the UK, by working with local investment bodies, such as local enterprise partnerships.

UKTI and its partners work with a very wide range of foreign-based companies, investors, sovereign wealth funds and Governments to attract inward investment into the UK. At any one time, UKTI and its partners may be engaged with several tens of thousands of organisations, a number of which will have regard to potential investment in the west midlands. The key

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conversations take place before investors make contact with the west midlands, rather than when they have decided on a location.

With respect to the west midlands, UKTI has a west midlands office, where the regional director, representing both trade and investment, for the west midlands is based. The focus of the team is international trade. Working with them is an Investment Services Team (IST) partnership manager for the LEPs that broadly correspond to the west midlands, who undertakes liaison and support work with LEPs and other local investment bodies.

Work and Pensions

Child Maintenance

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to his answer of 23 January 2014, Official Report, column 263W, on children’s maintenance, which particular Project Change Lifecycle Framework criteria will govern his Department’s assessment of its operational readiness to start the process of Child Support Agency case closure. [185384]

Steve Webb: The standard criteria by which all DWP change is assessed prior to going live are very detailed. The project provides a wealth of evidence to stakeholders to meet the criteria confirming that:

The business has the necessary resources and that it is ready to implement the services and the business change;

There are management and organisation controls to manage the project through implementation and operation;

All parties have agreed plans for training, communication, roll-out, production, release and support;

All contractual arrangements are up to date;

The business case has been quality assured;

Benefits will be realised;

All necessary testing is completed (including business integration and user assurance testing) to the business’s satisfaction and that the business is ready to receive implementation;

There are feasible and tested contingency and reversion arrangements, and longer term business continuity and recovery plans are in place;

All remaining risks and issues are being managed effectively and do not threaten implementation and evaluate the risk of proceeding with the implementation of the business change if there are any unresolved issues;

Lessons and best practice from assurance reviews and earlier projects have been considered and actioned; and any new lessons captured;

Agree funding draw downs and deliverables to either key milestones or the next gate.

Departmental Responsibilities

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions his Department has held with officials from HM Treasury in the last four months. [185549]

Esther McVey: Officials in the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Treasury have met regularly over the last four months to discuss a broad range of issues and will continue to do so.

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Employment and Support Allowance: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Warrington North constituency have (a) been placed in the work-related activity group for employment and support allowance, (b) appealed against a decision to place them in that group and (c) died before their appeal against a decision to place them in that group was heard or in the last 12 months thereafter in each of the last three years. [186129]

Mike Penning: The information requested for part (a) is shown in the following table.

The information requested for parts (b) and (c) is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Financial Services

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have met (i) Prudential, (ii) Fidelity Investments, (iii) the Association of British Insurers and (iv) the Investment Management Association in the last four months; and for what purpose. [185421]

Steve Webb: The information is as follows:

(a) Details of meetings with external organisations held by DWP Ministers are published quarterly, three months in arrears, on GOV.UK as part of this Government's transparency drive. Information relating to October to December 2013 is due to be published in April 2014.

(b) Department for Work and Pensions officials have not met Fidelity Investments in the last four months. In the last four months officials have met representatives from Prudential five times, representatives from the Association of British Insurers six times, and representatives from the Investment Management Association three times.

Additionally, in the last four months officials have met representatives from the NAPF, the CBI, Which?, AgeUK and the TUC around 20 times.

Discussions have covered general strategic issues on likely future trends; developments affecting the pensions and insurance markets (including implementation of the ABI Code of Conduct on retirement choices); defined contribution quality; proposals outlined in the consultation on charging; automatic transfers; decumulation; and defined ambition pensions.

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The above list is not exhaustive, as officials also have ongoing contact with stakeholders through working groups, roundtables, open workshops, and other collective forums.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what evaluation his Department has undertaken of Jobcentre Plus support contracts; and if he will make a statement. [186106]

Esther McVey: Jobcentre Plus support contract is funded using money from the Flexible Support Fund (FSF) therefore it has not been evaluated separately. The FSF is evaluated as part of the Jobcentre Plus offer.

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether jobseekers whose benefit has been sanctioned but who otherwise meet the conditions for entitlement to jobseeker’s allowance are included in the claimant count; and if he will make a statement. [186109]

Esther McVey: Yes, jobseekers who otherwise meet the conditions for entitlement to jobseeker's allowance are included in the claimant count.

Occupational Pensions

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the Office of Fair Trading to complete its review of legacy pension schemes; and if he will make a statement. [185422]

Steve Webb: As part of its report into the defined contribution workplace pensions market, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) agreed with the Association of British Insurers that an audit should take place of pre-2001 and high-charging pension schemes. The OFT report stated that this audit should be complete by the end of December 2014. We welcome this audit and look forward to its launch in due course.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions he has had with the Office of Fair Trading on the review of legacy pension schemes; and if he will make a statement. [185423]

Steve Webb: We welcome the audit of pre-2001 and high-charging pension schemes agreed by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the Association of British Insurers (ABI). I have met the OFT twice with regard to this topic, and have also met the proposed chair for the audit. DWP officials have also been part of the discussions between the OFT and ABI. We look forward to the launch of the audit in due course.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the written statement of 23 January 2014, on pensions, whether he will introduce a pensions charge cap inclusive of transaction costs; and if he will make a statement. [185426]

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Steve Webb: The consultation on charging closed on November 28 last year, and received 166 written responses. This is an important and complex consultation that requires our proper consideration to ensure we get it right. The decision on whether to introduce a cap, and the design of any such cap, will be included in our response to the consultation, to be published in due course.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment his Department has made of the number of pension pots in pension schemes with an annual management charge in excess of 1 per cent; and if he will make a statement. [185427]

Steve Webb: The 2012 DWP pensions landscape and charging survey looked at schemes where members paid charges as a percentage of funds under management. This report found that within this group 6% of trust-based schemes and 10% of contract-based schemes had an annual management charge in excess of 1%.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish a code of conduct on the disclosure of pension charges to employers; and if he will make a statement. [185428]

Steve Webb: The consultation on charging closed on November 28 last year, and received 166 written responses. This is an important and complex consultation that requires our proper consideration to ensure we get it right. The consultation included options to improve disclosure for employers and we will bring forward further disclosure proposals in our response, to be published in due course.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the consultation announced by his Department on pension charge cap published on 30 October 2013; and if he will make a statement. [185429]

Steve Webb: This information is not held centrally by the Department and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the written statement of 23 January 2014, on Pensions, whether the delay announced to the introduction of a charge cap on workplace pension scheme also extends to his Department's planned changes regarding the governance of pension schemes; and if he will make a statement. [185547]

Steve Webb: As well as considering responses to the consultation on charging, the Department is considering responses to the call for evidence on quality standards in defined contribution (DC) pension schemes and recommendations set out in the Office of Fair Trading’s market study into workplace DC pensions.

As recognised by the Office of Fair Trading, good governance is a key feature of scheme quality. We will publish proposals covering both governance and charges in due course.

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Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the written statement of 23 January 2014, on Pensions, when he expects to bring forward proposals for a pensions charge cap before Parliament; and if he will make a statement. [185548]

Steve Webb: The consultation on charging closed on 28 November last year, and received 166 written responses. This is an important and complex consultation that requires our proper consideration to ensure we get it right, and our proposals will be published in due course. We remain committed to making sure pension savers get good value for money.

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the written statement of 23 January 2014, on Pensions, if he will publish the responses to the Government consultation on charging in workplace pensions. [185550]

Steve Webb: We will publish the names of all those who responded to our consultation and will include extracts from these where appropriate in our response to the consultation. We are considering whether there is sufficient public interest to publish the responses to the consultation, particularly given the high volume of response.

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make it his policy to introduce a pension scheme for those beginning employment for the first time which would commence at a nominal monthly sum, increase automatically each year on a compound basis but have an opt-out basis. [185551]

Steve Webb: The introduction of automatic enrolment has been very successful. Since October 2012 over 2.55 million workers have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension by more than 5,400 employers, and so far more than 90% have remained in their scheme.

The minimum contribution levels for all defined contribution arrangements used for automatic enrolment will be phased in to help both employers and individuals adjust gradually to the additional costs of the reforms. The following table shows the arrangements for phased contributions between October 2012 and October 2018.

Making changes during the implementation process would be difficult to manage and risk upsetting the rollout programme. Our first priority is to encourage people to participate and that is what the automatic enrolment is designed to achieve.

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Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Written Statement of 23 January 2014, what advance notice he will give pension providers of changes to auto enrolment provisions; and if he will make a statement. [185684]

Steve Webb: The consultation on charging closed on 28 November last year, and received 166 written responses. This is an important and complex consultation that requires our proper consideration to ensure we get it right. We will publish proposals in due course.

Olympic Airlines

Kwasi Kwarteng: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that members of the Olympic Airlines pension scheme are able to access the Pension Protection Fund. [185959]

Steve Webb: The Government are actively exploring whether we can make amendments to the Pension Protection Fund legislation on employer insolvency to enable members of the UK Olympic Airlines pension scheme to benefit from the Pension Protection Fund.

Pension Credit

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what recent assessment he has made of the take-up of pensions credit among those who are eligible; [185424]

(2) what steps he plans to take to increase the take-up of pensions credit among those who are eligible. [185425]

Steve Webb: The Government are committed to ensuring pensioners receive the benefits they are entitled to. The Income Related Benefits: Estimates of Take-up report provides caseload and expenditure estimates of take-up for pension credit in Great Britain for the financial year 2009-10. The figures are available online and can be found here:

http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=irb

DWP's National Partnerships Team works with over 4,400 customer representative organisations, both nationally and locally, to provide a wide range of advice and support for pensioners.

DWP has also introduced a web-based pension credit toolkit at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit

Its purpose is to provide customer representative organisations with all the information needed in order to talk to pensioners about pension credit. In partnership with Age UK, local authorities and other groups, a structured campaign was undertaken to create awareness of the Toolkit among those who support our customers.

In addition, DWP makes information available in various locations, for example our website at:

https://www.gov.uk/browse/benefits

and leaflets are available from our DWP Information Line on 0845 7313233 to ensure that people are aware of the benefits to which they may be entitled and how to claim them.

When a customer makes a claim to state pension or reports a change in their circumstances, a customer adviser also discusses a pension credit application with

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those who may be entitled. There is also a visiting service available to support vulnerable customers who are unable to access services through other channels. Pensioners can, where eligible, claim housing benefit alongside pension credit in a single phone call, without the need for a signed claim form. Calls to the 0800 claims number from a BT landline or from the six largest mobile phone networks are free.

Personal Independence Payment

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what assessment he has made of the average waiting time for claimants of the personal independence payment who require a home consultation in each (a) country, (b) region and (c) parliamentary constituency of the UK; [185381]

(2) how many claimants of personal independence payment who require a home consultation have waited longer than (a) one month, (b) two months, (c) three months, (d) four months, (e) five months and (f) six months or more for such a consultation to date. [185382]

Mike Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin), on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 164W.

Procurement

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which of his Department's contracts are covered by the EU's de minimis funding rules. [186104]

Mike Penning: All DWP contracts are competed for within the market place or awarded directly by applying one of the exceptions included in the Public Contract Regulations 2006. None of the Department's contracts are therefore covered by the European Union's de minimis funding rules.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010. [185571]

Mike Penning: The latest information shows that since May 2010, nine staff who left the Department were subsequently re-employed by the Department.

Social Security Benefits

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on advertising (a) tackling benefit fraud and (b) unclaimed benefits on Facebook in the current financial year. [185441]

Mike Penning: There has been no spend to date this financial year on Facebook advertising regarding tackling benefit fraud or advertising unclaimed benefits.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) appeals against ATOS assessments and (b) successful appeals in (i) Leeds and (ii) Leeds Central constituency there have been in each of the last three years. [186018]

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Mike Penning: The information as requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

It is important to note that Atos does not make decisions on eligibility for employment and support allowance. Decisions are taken by DWP decision makers, taking account of all the available evidence including the report provided by Atos.

Social Security Benefits: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many benefit claimants in Warrington have been sanctioned in the last (a) six and (b) 12 months. [186122]

Esther McVey: The available information on how many benefit sanctions were applied to claimants in Warrington local authority in the last (a) six and (b) 12 months is shown as follows.

The information requested for JSA sanctions applied between 1 June 2012 and 21 October 2012 is not readily available by local authority and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

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Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claimants in the universal credit pilot areas have (a) been mandated out of the universal credit scheme or (b) found employment since the introduction of universal credit. [186113]

Esther McVey: In line with the published departmental strategy on the release of official statistics, we issued the statistics for the pathfinder areas, for the period April 2013 to 31 October 2013, on 22 January 2014.

As IT systems are further developed and data from them become available, a wider range of breakdowns for universal credit claimants will be developed and published. These will be developed in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics and details included in the Universal Credit Statistical Release Strategy

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/universal-credit-statistics

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library a breakdown by principal impairment of the number of people in receipt of employment and support allowance who have so far been referred to the Work programme; and how many in each category have so far secured a job outcome. [186103]

Esther McVey: Information on Work programme (referrals and Job Outcomes) by primary health condition can be found at:

http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/WorkProg/tabtool.html

Guidance for users is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of (a) incapacity benefit, (b) employment and support allowance placed in the support group and (c) income support have volunteered for the Work programme in each month since June 2011. [186108]

Esther McVey: Statistics on the number of Work programme referrals, by payment type, in each month since June 2011 can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool

Guidance for users is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Cabinet Office

Civil Servants: Pay

Mr McCann: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what effect changes in pensions contributions have had on the take-home pay of civil servants compared with May 2010. [185222]

Mr Hurd: Lord Hutton outlined in his report the strong case for changing public sector pensions, saying in his report

“these costs have generally fallen to the taxpayer.”

The Commission reached the conclusion that,

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“If the Government wishes to make savings in the short-term it will be more effective to increase member contributions rather than alter the benefit structure”.

Contributions were increased in April 2012, April 2013 and will be increased again in April 2014. The increases were tiered by salary, so that higher earners pay a larger percentage point increase than lower earners. A number of protections were introduced alongside the contribution increases, including:

Those earning less than £15,000 (full-time equivalent rate) will pay nothing extra;

Those earning up to £21,000 (full-time equivalent) will pay no more than 0.6% of pay extra in 2012-13 (and no more than 1.5% of pay extra in total by 2014-15).

Information about the pay of AAs, AOs and EOs can be found in the annual civil service earnings survey. The distribution of salaries for employees of these grades is available at:

http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/129.1/advanced.aspx

This Cabinet Office answer—to UIN 185222—provides information about how the take-home pay of those with different levels of salaries is affected by the pension contribution increases.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many special advisers are currently employed by the Government; and at what cost to the public purse such advisers are employed. [185833]

Mr Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the published list of special advisers and cost which was published on 25 October 2013 at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/special-adviser-data-releases-numbers-and-costs-october-2013

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of his Department's overall procurement spend for each of the last three financial years was spent (a) in joint procurement exercises with other Departments and (b) shared between different organisations within the same Department group. [185395]

Mr Maude: Information regarding procurement expenditure is published in Departments' and their arm's length bodies’ annual report and accounts and are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications

As part of my Department's transparency programme, details of all new contracts over the value of £10,000 (excluding VAT) and payments of over £25,000 (excluding VAT) are published on Contracts Finder

https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office for each of the last three financial years how much and what proportion of his Department's procurement was conducted using e-procurement tools; and what the value of such contracts was. [185401]

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Mr Maude: Under the principles of LEAN Sourcing, all central Government procurements are required to use OJEU-compliant e-sourcing tools to help manage the full process.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010. [185558]

Mr Maude: This Government reformed the Compensation Scheme in 2010 to reduce costs and to require the recovery of compensation payments where staff are dismissed and re-employed. In 2012-13 the Exchequer saved £2.2 billion from reducing the size of the civil service. Under the reformed scheme if staff are made redundant and subsequently re-employed they may have to repay part of their compensation. Since May 2010, five or fewer staff who were made redundant or retired from the Cabinet Office were subsequently re-employed by the Department.

In line with the practice of previous Administrations, exact numbers are not usually disclosed to protect individual privacy when numbers are five or fewer.

Energy and Climate Change

Carbon Sequestration

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many members of staff have been employed by his Department to work full time on carbon capture and storage in each month since June 2010. [185997]

Michael Fallon: The number of staff employed by the Department of Energy and Climate Change to work full time on carbon capture and storage from June 2010 to January 2014 are set out in the table on an annual basis:

Within the time available to respond to this named day PQ it has not been possible to produce a monthly breakdown, but I will forward this to the hon. Member once available.

These figures are for civil servants only and do not include contractors and interim staff.

Eggborough Power Station

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential effects on the (a) local and (b) national economy of Eggborough power plant not converting to a biomass energy plant. [185543]

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Michael Fallon: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 517W, to the hon. Members for Bassetlaw (John Mann) and Sunderland Central (Julie Elliott).

Electricity Generation

Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of MWHr of electricity that will be generated by the Short Term Operating Reserve in each of the next five years. [186067]

Michael Fallon: The Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR) is an electricity reserve product procured by National Grid that acts as an insurance policy from sources of generation or demand reduction to manage wider system issues. Neither the Government nor National Grid can predict how much STOR will be utilised in any given year as the need to despatch the product is an indication of complex background market challenges with demand and generation.

Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many MWHr of electricity were generated by the Short Term Operating Reserve in each of the last five years. [186068]

Michael Fallon: The following data from National Grid show how many GWHr of electricity were utilised by the Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR) over the last five full STOR years (April-March):

Energy Supply: Fees and Charges

Mr Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects the final decision to be made on approval and implementation of Ofgem's reforms to Project TransmiT. [185909]

Michael Fallon: The timeline for approval and implementation of changes to the transmission charging regime as a result of Project TransmiT is a matter for Ofgem. In its update of 16 December 2013, Ofgem said that it is working towards making a decision in March 2014 with implementation of changes if approved in April 2015.

Mr Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the effect of the year's delay in the implementation of Ofgem's reforms to the transmission charging regime, Project TransmiT, announced by Ofgem on 16 December 2013. [186020]

Michael Fallon: The timeline for approval and implementation of changes to the transmission charging regime as a result of Project TransmiT is a matter for Ofgem.

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Ofgem has considered the most appropriate implementation date for reforms to the transmission charging regime in the light of responses to its August 2013 consultation on its "preferred approach" and impact assessment. Details, including the effect of a later implementation date, can be found here:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/project-transmit-update-progress-and-next-steps

Energy: Competition

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effect of ring fencing between energy supply and generation businesses. [185995]

Michael Fallon: Ofgem, the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition and Markets Authority are currently undertaking the first annual competition assessment for the gas and electricity markets. Their report will be published in March 2014 and as part of the assessment the authorities will be looking at the impact of vertical integration on competition. The regulators will set out the next steps, which may include recommendations to the Government.

Energy: Prices

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the total value of payments made by customers to British Gas through domestic energy bills as a result of the introduction of the Energy Company Obligation at 31 December 2013. [186105]

Gregory Barker: The Government impact assessment for the current phase of ECO, published in June 2012, estimated the costs of the obligation at around £1.3 million per annum on average, equating to around £50 per household per year on average. Companies will differ in how efficiently they discharge the obligation, and Government have published information on an anonymised basis, showing that some companies have had higher costs than others in respect of different elements of the scheme. However, the companies concerned have not agreed to the publication of this information on a named basis; nor do the Government have access to detailed information on the extent to which pass-through costs charged to consumers reflect the actual costs of delivery. I am therefore unable to answer the question specifically in relation to British Gas.