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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 10 February 2014
Prime Minister
Police Service of Northern Ireland
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Prime Minister what the dates and duration of his meetings with the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland have been in the last 12 months. [186473]
The Prime Minister: I have met the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland on a number of occasions in London and in Northern Ireland and am also regularly updated on the policing and security situation in Northern Ireland.
Public Appointments
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Prime Minister how many public appointments No. 10 Downing street made in the last 12 months; how many such appointments are remunerated posts; what the level of such remuneration is; and how many people so appointed are (a) women and (b) men. [186404]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 301W.
Public Houses: Opening Hours
Dr Huppert: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he had with the (a) Secretary of State for the Home Department and (b) Minister for Crime Prevention before stating on social media on 3 February 2014 that the Government would consult with the pub trade, police and councils on having extended pub opening hours on 14 June 2014. [186479]
The Prime Minister: I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues and others.
Northern Ireland
Electoral Register
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the implications of UK policy on changes in Northern Ireland voter registration statistics in the last three years. [186302]
Mrs Villiers: A range of factors contributed to the improvement in Northern Ireland voter registration statistics in 2013. The most important were:
The use of an electoral canvass to improve the accuracy of the register. The register was estimated to be 78% accurate in 2012. The update made possible by the recent electoral canvass is expected to deliver an accuracy level of around the same as that produced by previous canvasses (94.3%);
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Technical improvements to data-matching in Northern Ireland and the retention of names on the Northern Ireland register, where it was possible to confirm through data-matching that the details on the register were likely to be correct. This increased the comprehensiveness of the register by about 8%.
Confirmation data-matching and canvass activity will be used as part of the transition to individual electoral registration in Great Britain.
Northern Ireland
Dr Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assets her Department has sold in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; and what the value of each such sale was. [186637]
Mrs Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010, and subsequent reconfiguration of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.
From 12 April 2010 to date, my Department has not sold any assets in Northern Ireland.
Public Appointments
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many public appointments her Department made in the last 12 months; how many such appointments are remunerated posts; what the level of such remuneration is; and how many people so appointed are (a) women and (b) men. [186403]
Mrs Villiers: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given on 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 301W, by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude).
Wales
Floods
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with Ministers in the Welsh Government on lessons learned from water management in the Gwent levels for other flood-prone areas in Wales. [186355]
Mr David Jones: I discussed matters relating to flooding during my recent bilateral meeting with the First Minister.
As a devolved matter it is for the Welsh Government to assess how they manage flood-risks in Wales. It is, however, important to share experiences and evidence of land management measures, such as drainage and planting, in order to ensure that communities on both sides of the border are protected.
Public Appointments
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many public appointments his Department made in the last 12 months; how many such appointments are remunerated posts; what the level of such remuneration is; and how many people so appointed are (a) women and (b) men. [186408]
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Stephen Crabb: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), Official Report, column 301W.
Scotland
Child: Poverty
Mr McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent assessment he has made of the level of child poverty in Scotland. [186695]
David Mundell: The latest Child Poverty Strategy report from the Scottish Government published in September 2013 shows that both relative child poverty and absolute child poverty are at their lowest rate in Scotland since 1994-95.
Statistics released in June 2013 show how the number of children in workless poor families has reduced by 100,000 children over the past year, a 2% reduction.
Job Creation: Private Sector
Mr McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent assessment he has made of the level of private sector job creation in Scotland. [186555]
David Mundell: Latest official statistics show that in Q3 2013 there were 1,968,900 people employed in the private sector in Scotland, an increase of 75,800 (4.0%) over the year, and up 107,600 from when this Government came into power.
This more than makes up for the decrease in public sector jobs, of 37,900 since 2010.
Private sector employment in Scotland accounts for 77.3% of total employment; the highest proportion seen since the series began in 1999.
Public Appointments
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many public appointments his Department made in the last 12 months; how many such appointments are remunerated posts; what the level of such remuneration is; and how many people so appointed are (a) women and (b) men. [186405]
David Mundell: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), Official Report, 5 February 2014, column 301W.
House of Commons Commission
Conditions of Employment
John Cryer: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether full-time employees of the House Service are required to have a separate contract if they are also employed by the House on a zero-hours contract. [186421]
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John Thurso: House employees may volunteer to take on an additional role with the House which is not part of their main job or prejudicial to it. Such extra work is normally offered and declined or accepted on an “as and when” basis and there is no obligation on either side to offer, or to accept, work.
When House employees are taken on as tour guides, they are paid per tour (not by time worked). Substantive employees may take on duties, provided that:
their line manager approves the extra work; and
they either perform the extra work outside contractual working hours or while on annual leave; if they perform the extra work while “not required on post” in their substantive job, they will not receive extra pay, because that time is already paid.
The employee is required to sign an undertaking on the terms applying to the additional optional work.
Parliamentary Tours
John Cryer: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether Palace of Westminster guides are contractors or employees of the House of Commons Commission. [186345]
John Thurso: Tour guides for Member-sponsored tours of the Palace of Westminster are paid per tour and divide into two categories:
i. Current employees who conduct tours as an addition to their regular jobs and hours.
ii. Others who work on a casual basis and who are paid through the payroll; these are predominantly retired House staff. There is no obligation on either side to offer, or to accept, work.
Paid-for tours are currently delivered by Blue Badge Guides, who are contractors rather than employees and are paid by the day or half day under a contract secured by public tender.
Home Department
Arrests: Young People
Sir Alan Meale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people aged 14 to 24 years classified as having complex needs have been arrested in (a) total and (b) each region since May 2010. [186496]
Damian Green: The information requested is not collected centrally by the Home Office.
Crime: Essex
Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of trends in the level of crime in (a) Chelmsford constituency and (b) Essex in each of the last five years. [185595]
Norman Baker: The Home Office holds data on crime for police force areas (PFA) and community safety partnerships (CSPs), but not for parliamentary constituencies. The overall number of offences (excluding fraud) recorded in Essex PFA and Chelmsford CSP in each of the last five years is shown in the table provided.
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The Office for National Statistics publishes quarterly statistics on crime. As part of this, a set of open data tables is published, showing crime at police force area and community safety partnership level. These contain the data requested, and can be found using the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables
| Total offences in Chelmsford CSP and Essex PFA in each of the last five years to September | |||||
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | |
| Note: The recording of fraud offences has moved from police forces to Action Fraud in recent years. The number of crimes shown excludes fraud offences to allow for consistent comparisons over time. | |||||
Drugs: Misuse
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 647, on psychoactive substances, if she will list the 250 new psychoactive substances banned since May 2010; [185528]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 26W, on drugs: misuse, if she will list the members of the expert advisory panel on new psychoactive substances who have been appointed to date; [185531]
(3) pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 647, on psychoactive substances, what public awareness campaigns her Department has undertaken to alert young people to the dangers of new psychoactive substances. [185532]
Norman Baker [holding answer 3 February 2014]: We have banned over 250 substances since 2010, including those already seen in the United Kingdom and emerging substances which have not yet been encountered, through the use of generic definitions. The generic definitions that describe the substances that have been banned can be found in paragraphs (aa), (ab), (ac), (c) and (d) of part 2, schedule 2 to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
I will announce members of the expert panel for the Home Office review into new psychoactive substances shortly.
From July to October last year, the Home Office ran a communications activity targeted at young people to inform them of the harms and consequences of new psychoactive substances. This activity was carefully directed at those searching for these drugs online or looking to go to parties, clubs and festivals where these drugs are often consumed. The activity included radio advertisement and partnership channels. Adverts directed young people to the Government’s drug awareness website, FRANK, to find out about the effects, harms and consequences of new psychoactive substances.
Drugs: Northern Ireland
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with her counterpart in the Northern Ireland Executive on the availability of legal highs on the high street. [186501]
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Norman Baker: I have been in recent correspondence with my counterpart in Northern Ireland regarding the review I am leading into new psychoactive substances or so called ‘legal highs', and to provide an update on other Home Office activity such as the concerted enforcement action that started in November 2013 and has so far resulted in 44 arrests and seizures of quantities of new psychoactive substances.
There have also been discussions regarding the availability of new psychoactive substances at official level including through the Home Office's Forensic Early Warning System project and at meetings of the Sectoral Group on the Misuse of Drugs of the British-Irish Council.
Drugs: Prosecutions
John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions for supply of each legal high subject to temporary banning orders have been brought in the last three years. [185739]
Jeremy Wright: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.
Information held centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the Court Proceedings Database does not contain information about the circumstances behind each case, beyond the description provided in the statute under which proceedings are brought. It is not possible to identify from this centrally-held information prosecutions for supply of legal highs subject to temporary banning orders from those for supply of other drugs subject to temporary banning orders.
European Commission
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will set out her Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over its 2014 Work Programme; and if she will make a statement. [185314]
James Brokenshire: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W, by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington).
Firearms: Licensing
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what recent representations she has received from the Association of Chief Police Officers on the cost of licensing firearms; [186478]
(2) what the cost of (a) administering firearms licenses and (b) income from firearms licenses was in each police force in England and Wales in each of the last five years. [186652]
Norman Baker: The National Policing Lead for Firearms has recently written to me about a number of issues relating to firearms including the cost of the licensing process. He has expressed concerns about the disparity between administration costs and income. I will be meeting with him shortly.
The most recent assessment of the cost of the firearms licensing process was undertaken by the Association of Chief Police Officers in 2009-10. Their report estimated
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that the gross cost to forces was £23.6 million and the income received was £6.4 million. Time required to measure the cost meant that the calculation was based on a sample of forces.
There has been no full assessment of the impact on each of the 43 individual forces, but if the £17.2 million shortfall were applied evenly, that would suggest an average net cost to each force of £400,000 in 2009-10. I remain committed to addressing this disparity, which is unsustainable other than in the short term.
Fixed Penalties
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fixed penalty notices were issued in each region in the UK in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; for what offences such notices were given; and if she will make a statement. [186953]
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Damian Green: Available data relate to fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by the police in England and Wales in 2010 and 2011 and were published in the most recent Home Office statistical release on Police Powers and Procedures, available online via:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-powers-and-procedures-in-england-and-wales-201112
For easy reference, breakdowns by region and offence group are shown in the tables. Data for 2012 are scheduled to be published in April 2014. Data on FPNs issued by police in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.
How road traffic law is enforced in individual cases is an operational matter for the police. Whether or not an offer of a fixed penalty notice for an alleged road traffic offence is accepted is entirely a matter for the recipient. Payment of the fixed penalty notice discharges any liability to conviction for the offence and does not acquire a criminal record. The recipient is free to decline a fixed penalty notice offer and contest the matter in court.
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|
Miscellaneous motoring offences (excluding seat belt offences) | |||||||||||
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|
Miscellaneous motoring offences (excluding seat belt offences) | |||||||||||
| 1 Data on FPNs for this offence grouping were collected by the Home Office for the first time in 2011. | |||||||||||
Forced Marriage
David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many forced marriages have been recorded in the UK in the last five years for which figures are available. [186217]
Norman Baker: The Government's Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) captures the number of reports they receive relating to possible forced marriage cases.
The following is a breakdown of reported cases relating to a possible forced marriage received by the FMU from 2008-12:
In 2008, a total of 1618 reports were received;
In 2009, a total of 1682 reports were received;
In 2010, a total of 1735 reports were received;
In 2011, a total of 1468 reports were received;
In 2012, a total of 1485 reports were received.
2013 figures are currently being compiled and will be published shortly.
Human Trafficking
Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many identified victims of human trafficking received funded support in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012. [185639]
Damian Green: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.
The Ministry of Justice is able to provide information on the numbers of victims supported with Government funding since the start of the current contract with the Salvation Army on 1 July 2011. Equivalent information before that date and the current integrated support contract is not available.
Between July 2011 and December 2011, 192 victims received support via the contract. In 2012 it was 452.
Independent Police Complaints Commission
Mr Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many officers are currently being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission in relation to complaints of excessive use of force; [186410]
(2) how many investigations into individual complaints of excessive use of force have been undertaken by the Independent Police Complaints Commission in each of the last five years; [186411]
(3) how many investigations the Independent Police Complaints Commission has abandoned due to the officer or officers under investigation leaving the police force in each of the last five years. [186412]
Damian Green [holding answer 6 February 2014]:This information is not held centrally. The Independent Police Complaints Commission will write to my hon. Friend and I will place a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.
National Wildlife Crime Unit
Mr Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to secure the long-term future of the National Wildlife Crime Unit. [186305]
Norman Baker: Further to the Home Secretary's announcement to the House last week about the Home Office's commitment to continue funding the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
I am pleased to confirm that the Home Office will provide specific funding of £136,000 for the Unit in each of the next two financial years to ensure that the Unit can continue its important work. The Department
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for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will be providing the same amount of funding for the Unit over the next two financial years.
The coalition Government takes the issue of wildlife crime, both domestically and internationally, very seriously.
Offences against Children
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions under section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 there were in cases where the victim was aged (i) under 13 and (ii) 14 to 17 in each year from 2010-11 to 2012-13. [184233]
Jeremy Wright: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.
This Government are absolutely committed to tackling the abhorrent crime of child sexual exploitation. The
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Minister for Crime Prevention is leading a national group to tackle sexual violence against children and vulnerable people. On 24 July 2013, the Government published a progress report and action plan on the work of the National Group on Sexual Violence Against Children and Vulnerable People. The documents set out activity already delivered by Government and an action plan to take forward activity identified by the group.
The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates court and found guilty at all courts for offences under Section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, in England and Wales, from 2010 to 2012 calendar years (latest available) can be viewed in the table.
Please note: Section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 only states the victims' age as being under 13, under 16 and 16 or 17.
Court Proceeding data for calendar year 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
Police
Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what recent representations she has received on establishing a national pricing scale for charges by local police authorities for policing of commercial public events; and if she will make a statement; [R] [186260]
(2) what recent representations she has received on the charges levied by local police authorities for policing of commercial public events; and if she will make a statement; [R] [186261]
(3) what recent representations she has received on the different level of charges levied by local police authorities for policing of commercial public events; and if she will make a statement. [R] [186262]
Damian Green: We have received no recent formal representations on the level of charges levied by Police and Crime Commissioners, or in respect of a national pricing scale.
Police and Crime Commissioners
Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department plans to take to ensure that police and crime commissioners engage with the College of Policing. [186880]
Damian Green: The College of Policing is already regularly engaging with police and crime commissioners on a wide range of issues and three police and crime commissioners sit on the college board.
Police: Defibrillators
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of police cars are equipped with defibrillators. [186492]
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Damian Green: The Home Office does not hold this information centrally.
Police: Recruitment
Dr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what bursaries and financial assistance her Department makes available to those from lower socio-economic backgrounds to attain the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing. [186776]
Damian Green: The Home Office does not provide any bursaries or financial assistance to applicants wishing to attain the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing. Those wishing to undertake this qualification can access funding if they are:
(i) 18 and under;
(ii) 23 and under and this is their first level 3 qualification;
(iii) unemployed; and
(iv) ex-military personnel.
Other people can access a student loan to cover the cost of the fees, which is not repayable until they are earning £21,000.
It is open to forces to put in place arrangements to address local circumstances. For example, I understand that the Metropolitan Police Service, from early 2014, will be offering financial support with the cost of the certificate in the form of an interest free loan. Financial support will be available on the basis of London residency and means-tested household income.
Further and higher education providers, as well as independent providers, will obtain a licence from the College of Policing to deliver the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing course and may offer grants or loans to individual students through the skills agency.
Proceeds of Crime
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many financial investigators are currently accredited; and which such investigators are accredited for (a) confiscation orders, (b) civil recovery, (c) cash seizure litigation and (d) intelligence. [186899]
Damian Green: The Home Office does not hold this information centrally.
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the Government's commitment to give due consideration to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) when making new policy and legislation, if she will place in the Library all assessments of how new policy and legislation from her Department since January 2013 has given due consideration to the UNCRC. [186588]
James Brokenshire: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to my answer of 3 February 2014, Official Report, columns 38-39W.
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Environmental Stewardship Scheme
Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information is made available to members of the public about individual recipients of environmental stewardship grants from Natural England. [186177]
Dan Rogerson: Information on the land covered by environmental stewardship agreements is published by Natural England on the Magic website
www.magic.gov.uk
which provides geographic information about the natural environment from across Government. For all agreements, this includes the agreement reference number, the scheme it is under, the start date of the agreement and the total area (in hectares) under the agreement. In addition, for those agreements where the agreement holder is not a private individual or sole trader, the name of the agreement holder, the total cost of the agreement and the amount paid to date is also provided. This is in line with current EU regulations on the publication of recipients of EU payments.
Flood Control
Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will establish a national review of flood defence mechanisms. [186744]
Dan Rogerson: The Government have no current plans to establish such a national review.
Floods: Somerset
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what consideration he has given to building wind-powered pumps to assist water management on the Somerset levels; and whether he has had discussions with his Dutch counterpart on the use of such pumps in the Netherlands. [186353]
Dan Rogerson: We have had no discussions directly with the Government of the Netherlands on this issue. The Somerset Levels and Moors Action Plan, which is currently under development, will consider a range of options for improving the long term resilience of the area.
Food Poverty
Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on food poverty; and if he will make a statement. [185706]
George Eustice [holding answer 3 February 2014]: There is no official definition of food poverty. The issues are complex and encompass economic, social and environmental influences. A single measure of “food poverty” would not be able to reflect the multi-faceted aspects of this issue.
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The Government know that some of the poorest families are struggling to afford to feed themselves. Although it is not the Government's role to control the price of food, the impact of food price inflation is a real concern for the Government.
Through a range of policies that promote a growing, resilient and sustainable food and farming sector the Government are supporting the sector to meet the needs of consumers. For example, we work internationally to promote transparency, open global markets and a competitive domestic market to help producers and retailers offer the best prices to consumers.
Food inflation fell to an annual rate of 1.9% in the year to December, down from 2.8% in November. Food inflation is now below general inflation at 2.0%, which fell from 2.1% in November.
Insecticides
Richard Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to control the sale and use of chlorpyrifos. [186191]
Dan Rogerson: Plant protection products (essentially agricultural and horticultural pesticides) may not be placed on the market or used unless they have been authorised by Ministers. Authorisations include statutory conditions of use which must be followed to ensure that these products are used safely.
Chlorpyrifos is an active substance approved under Regulation (EC) 1107/2009 for use in plant protection products. Products which contain it must be authorised before being placed on the market or used and chlorpyrifos products are restricted to professional users only. Products which were already on the market under national rules at the time of the European Union active substance approval are being reassessed, to confirm that they meet the authorisation requirements of Regulation (EC) 1107/2009. Following that reassessment, authorisations will be confirmed, amended or withdrawn as necessary.
Motorways: Eastleigh
Mike Thornton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many people live within the 75 dB noise contour of each motorway in Eastleigh constituency. [186172]
Dan Rogerson: From the 2012 noise mapping results it is estimated that, in the Eastleigh constituency, there are:
(a) 50 people living in the vicinity of the M3; and
(b) 150 people living in the vicinity of the M27,
who are exposed to 75 dB (LA10,18h) or above due to road traffic noise. The values are rounded to the nearest 50.
Poultry
Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what recent assessment he has made of the prevalence of maceration in UK hatcheries; [186322]
(2) if he will take steps to encourage greater use of carbon dioxide-based methods of male chick disposal at UK hatcheries. [186323]
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George Eustice: In the UK, most hatcheries now routinely use gas to kill surplus male chicks rather than maceration.
The Government encourage the highest standard of animal welfare and have in place legislation that ensures animals are treated humanely, including when they are killed.
River Kennet
Richard Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he will publish the results of the investigation into the pollution of 15km of the River Kennet following the release of chlorpyrifos into that river at Marlborough in 2013; and if he will make a statement. [186192]
Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency is carrying out a comprehensive programme of ecological monitoring, including invertebrate and fish surveys. This is to assess the impacts and recovery of the River Kennet following the pollution incident in July 2013. This monitoring programme began during the incident and was repeated two weeks later. It was used to highlight the effects of the pollution on the water's macro-invertebrates.
In October 2013 the Environment Agency began the first of a series of recovery surveys. The evidence from its most recent surveys demonstrates many of the affected invertebrates, with the exception of freshwater shrimps, are recovering. Specific monitoring of these animals will commence later this month. The Environment Agency will share the results of survey work with all interested parties.
The next of these surveys is due now, but we are waiting for river levels to drop before these can be done. These surveys will continue quarterly until August 2014, when a review will be carried out to assess the need for continued monitoring of the recovery of the river.
Richard Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress he has made in discussions with Thames Water on ending over-abstraction from the River Kennet; and if he will make a statement. [R] [186193]
Dan Rogerson: The abstraction reductions in the River Kennet catchment are included in Thames Water's draft water resources management plan, to be implemented by 2017. This plan was recently referred to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), for his decision on the next steps.
Thames Water has included measures to manage the abstraction reductions in its business plan submission to Ofwat.
Water: Meters
Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the effect of water meters in reducing housing water bills. [186320]
Dan Rogerson: Many households would see bills fall with the installation of a meter, while others, notably large households in properties with low rateable values, would be likely to see their bills increase to reflect their actual water consumption. We want companies to do more to promote metering to those who would benefit.
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When Southern Water assessed its compulsory metering plan it calculated that 57% of customers would see a reduction in their bill with 43% seeing an increase. Across its customer base the typical range is between a £100 increase or a £100 decrease in the household bill, although there will be outliers.
Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures are in place to promote the use of water meters. [186384]
Dan Rogerson: The Government want water companies to do more to promote metering to those who would benefit, but some struggling customers would see their bills rise.
All water companies are required to fit a meter, on request, free of charge for household customers. All companies provide information on each household customer bill about how to get a meter fitted. Since 1999 any new-build property is fitted with a meter. All non-household customers are charged by meter. Where an area is seriously water-stressed, companies can use universal metering as one way of reducing demand, but other options may be more appropriate in some regions.
Culture, Media and Sport
HMS Victory
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how Lord Lingfield's name was spelt on all documentation regarding his application to her Department regarding the future of HMS Victory 1744. [186932]
Mr Vaizey: Correspondence received from Lord Lingfield has been spelt Lord Lingfield or Sir Robert Balchin.
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what due diligence her Department conducted regarding the genealogy of Lord Lingfield and his request to raise HMS Victory 1744. [186933]
Mr Vaizey: The genealogy of Lord Lingfield is irrelevant to the future management of HMS Victory 1744 so no such investigations were made.
Mobile Phones
Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2014, Official Report, column 88W, on mobile telephones, what steps she will take on what timeframe to provide a gaining-provider-led system for mobile contract switching. [185698]
Mr Vaizey: The Government and the independent regulator, Ofcom, have identified simplifying the switching process as a priority to benefit consumers and enable them to take full advantage of a competitive communications market. In December 2013 Ofcom mandated reform of the switching processes for fixed voice telephone and broadband services offered over BT Openreach's copper network to deliver a harmonised gaining-provider-led switching process by June 2015.
Ofcom will publish details and timetables for carrying out further work in this area in spring 2014, including consideration of switching between mobile networks.
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In July 2013 the UK Government set out their objectives to move to gaining provider led processes for switching across the board', and to ensure consistent and effective experiences for consumers switching between bundles in their consultation document ‘Connectivity, Content and Consumers: Britain's digital platform for growth’.
Public Appointments
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many public appointments her Department made in the last 12 months; how many such appointments are remunerated posts; what the level of such remuneration is; and how many people so appointed are (a) women and (b) men. [186393]
Mrs Grant: I refer to the answer provided on 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 301W, by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude).
Public Service Broadcasting
Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to implement section 93 of the European Commission's guidance on Public Sector Broadcasters (PSBs); and what steps she is taking to ensure that an arm’s length principle is applied to all subsidiaries of PSBs. [186974]
Mr Vaizey: Article 93 of the Communication from the Commission on the application of state aid rules to public service broadcasting (2009/C 257/01) refers only to publicly funded PSBs (i.e. the BBC).
In line with article 93, and in accordance with article 24(2)(k) of the Charter, the BBC Trust set out its fair trading policies and framework in November 2011. Compliance with the fair trading policies and framework is a matter for the BBC Trust, as the BBC is operationally and managerially independent of Government.
A communication is not a directive and does not need to be implemented in national law.
Wrecks
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport under what conditions and criteria her Department transfers ownership of discovered British shipwrecks to private individuals. [186934]
Mr Vaizey: DCMS does not own any shipwrecks.
Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will publish details of the location and contents of all the protected wreck sites designated by her Department under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973. [186937]
Mr Vaizey: Details of the 48 sites in English territorial waters that have been designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 can be found in the National Heritage List for England. This is published on the English Heritage website.
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Electoral Commission Committee
Absent Voting
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made on the effects of postal voting on voter engagement and participation. [186082]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that the proportion of electors with postal votes in Great Britain trebled from 4% to 12% between 2001 and 2005. It now appears to have stabilised and remains at about 15% of electors.
Turnout among postal electors continues to be higher than that among in-person voters. Postal votes accounted for 49% of all votes at the count at the 2012 police and crime commissioner elections and for 31% at the local elections in England on 2 May 2013.
The Commission also conducts regular public opinion research following elections and has asked some specific questions on the impact of postal voting on voter participation. Following the English and Welsh local elections in 2008 the Commission's post-election research found that nearly six in 10 (58%) of those who voted by post (or 7% of all people) said that the availability of postal voting encouraged them to vote. Four in 10 (42%) said it had little effect.
Postal voters in the survey who said that the availability of postal voting encouraged them to vote were then asked if they would have still voted if they had not been able to vote this way. Just over half (56%) said they would not otherwise have voted and 42% that they probably would have voted anyway.
The Commission's 2010 post-election research also found that nearly four in 10 (38%) of non-voters said that they would have been more likely to vote if it was easier to get a postal vote. These figures should be treated with caution since there may be a research effect whereby respondents say they are ‘more likely' to do something (vote) that is generally considered a good thing to do.
Postal voters also continue to report high levels of satisfaction with the process. For example, the 2013 post-election research found that 96% of postal voters were satisfied with the postal voting process, with 87% saying that they were very satisfied.
Elections: USA
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made of the effectiveness of the use of the non-partisan get out the vote message on Facebook for the 2010 US Congressional elections. [185889]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has made no assessment of this. The Commission does however make use of social media, including Facebook, as part of its own public awareness campaigns.
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Electoral Register
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, if the Electoral Commission will offer support and publicity to groups within civic society which help to increase electoral registration. [185899]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it does, and will continue, to offer support to groups within civic society to increase electoral registration.
The Electoral Commission refers the hon. Gentleman to its earlier reply of 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 621W, in which it outlined the assistance it gives to groups within civic society.
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made of which areas will show the greatest variation in electoral registration as a result of the introduction of individual electoral registration. [186095]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has conducted a detailed analysis of the trial run of the confirmation process that will be used during the transition to individual electoral registration (IER).
This analysis showed that the percentage of the electorate that can be matched against the Department for Work and Pensions database, and therefore retained on the registers under IER, varies significantly between and within local authority areas.
It also showed that some people, including students and those who move home more often, are less likely to be matched. This analysis is available on the Commission's website.
However, this dry run of confirmation also means electoral registration officers (EROs) will know which wards in their area are going to have lower match rates and where they therefore need to target their efforts in encouraging people to register individually under the new system.
Funding provided by Cabinet Office to EROs as part of the implementation of IER also varies depending on the likely match rates that different areas can expect.
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what estimate the Electoral Commission has made of changes in electoral registration levels in advance of the next boundary review. [186096]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission has made no such estimate. However, the Commission has published several reports on registration levels in recent years and will produce a further report on the accuracy and completeness of the registers across Great Britain later in 2014. This will act as a baseline for assessing the impact of the introduction of individual electoral registration (IER).
The Commission will also report in mid-2015 in order to inform a ministerial decision on whether the end date for the transition to IER should be moved
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forward from December 2016 to December 2015. This analysis will be available in time to inform considerations about the use of the December 2015 electoral registers for the next scheduled review of parliamentary constituency boundaries.
Research
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what research the Electoral Commission has conducted on its standing amongst hon. Members. [186387]
Mr Streeter: The Commission informs me that it undertook a stakeholder survey in 2013. This project was to help the Commission to understand more fully the network of stakeholders with whom it needs to work to achieve its objectives and fulfil its responsibilities, and their own plans and concerns, particularly given current financial pressures.
This built on a similar survey in 2009, but added a formal analysis of the Commission's stakeholder network and reflected the recommendation of the National Audit Office that the Commission should ask its stakeholders about its future priorities.
As part of the survey the Commission wrote to a range of stakeholders, including hon. Members, Members of the House of Lords, political parties and their local constituency branches and local authorities, inviting them to take part in this stakeholder survey.
In 2013 the Commission found that a majority of its stakeholders were satisfied. Compared with 2009, satisfaction among politicians and political party officials had risen markedly.
The final report from the survey, which includes stakeholder perspectives, can be found on the Commission’s website here:
www.electoralcommission.org.uk/_data/assets/pdf_file/0018/155106/Full-report-on-our-stakeholder-survey-April-2013.pdf
The Commission informs me that it also has a parliamentary advisory group. The group is made up of senior politicians whose expertise it uses to help it ensure that it works as effectively as possible. The group aims to meet three times a year and is constituted of one MP and one peer from each of the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, as well as one MP from the Scottish National Party and one from Plaid Cymru.
Voting Behaviour
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the voter turnout was in (a) each 10-year cohort from 18 onwards, (b) each socio-economic group and (c) each ethnic group in the last national election. [185970]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that information on voting behaviour by age, socio-economic or ethnic group is not available because these details are not currently recorded on electoral registers. It is therefore not possible to provide a breakdown of actual turnout, as percentages, by these demographics.
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However, estimated turnout figures have been produced by the research agency Ipsos-MORI. These aggregate data from voting intention surveys conducted during general election campaigns to produce turnout estimates by a range of demographics, such as age and socio-economic group.
Following is a table, based on the Ipsos-MORI data, showing the aggregated estimates of voter turnout by age for the 2010 general election:
| 2010 | |
| Age | Percentage |
The next table shows the aggregated estimates of voter turnout by socio-economic group for the 2010 general election:
| 2010 | |
| Socio-economic group | Percentage |
Further information is available from Ipsos-MORI, published on their website at:
http://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/poll.aspx?oltemId=2613&view=wide
The 2010 Ethnic Minority British Election Survey also provides some reliable turnout statistics, which are broken down by some minority ethnic groups:
| 2010 | |
| Ethnic group | Percentage |
Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, if he will list the 50 wards with the greatest change in turnout between the 2005 and 2010 general elections. [186084]
Mr Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not hold this information at ward level. This is because returning officers are not required to report data at ward level for parliamentary elections.
However, the following table shows the 50 constituencies with the greatest change in turnout between the 2005 and 2010 general elections (note a positive percentage indicates an increase in turnout in 2010, a negative indicates a decrease).
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| Constituency (2010 names) | Turnout 2005 (including votes rejected at count) | Turnout 2010 (including votes rejected at count) | Percentage point change in turnout 2005-101 |
| 1 Professors Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher at the elections centre, Plymouth university, collected and collated these data from returning officers on the Commission’s behalf. 2 2005 election postponed and held on 23 June. 3 2010 election postponed and held on 27 May. | |||
These data come from an analysis provided to the Commission by the university of Plymouth. It should be noted that because of changes to constituency boundaries and names between the 2005 and 2010 general elections, direct comparisons cannot always be made. Some of these figures may therefore only give an indication of what the levels of turnout might have been had the 2010 constituency boundaries been in use at the 2005 general election.