Communities and Local Government

Council Tax

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the council tax freeze grant will be; and whether this sum will be built into the council base settlement for future years. [186230]

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Brandon Lewis [holding answer 6 February 2014]: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the written ministerial statement I made on 18 December, Official Report, columns 103-04WS, which sets out the extra funding the Government are making available to support councils that freeze council tax in both 2014-15 and 2015-16. Ministers have also agreed that funding for two years will be built into the spending review baseline.

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he intends to announce the capping limit on council tax for the coming financial year; and if he will make a statement. [186231]

Brandon Lewis [holding answer 6 February 2014]: Capping was abolished by the Localism Act 2011 and replaced with a new provision for council tax referendums, which allows local people to approve or veto excessive council tax increases.

For the forthcoming financial year, I refer the right hon. Gentleman to my written ministerial statement of 5 February 2014, Official Report, columns 19-21WS.

Council Tax Reduction Schemes

Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment he has made of the effects of council tax support schemes on people on low incomes. [185080]

Brandon Lewis: These are local schemes, and it is for local authorities to ensure that the effect on specific groups of council tax payers is proportionate and fair. We made a £100 million transition grant available in 2013-14 to help councils develop well-designed schemes and maintain incentives to work.

An independent review of the policy will be carried out within three years. We are working with local authorities to identify the right data sources for that review.

Spending on council tax benefit doubled under the last Government, costing taxpayers £4 billion a year—equivalent to almost £180 a year per household. Welfare reform is vital to tackle the budget deficit left by the last Administration.

Our reforms to localise council tax support now give councils stronger incentives to support local firms, cut fraud, promote local enterprise and get people into work. We are ending the last Administration's ‘something for nothing' culture and making work pay.

Fire Services

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which agency is recruiting resilience firefighters via the Direct.gov website; and what role this organisation plays. [186521]

Brandon Lewis: The Department of Communities and Local Government is not responsible for the Direct.gov.uk website, nor is it responsible for the recruitment policies and practices of individual fire and rescue authorities or other bodies.

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Fracking

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with councils on fracking and business rates. [185883]

Brandon Lewis: My Department holds regular discussions with representatives of local government on business rates and the rates retention scheme. We will engage with interested parties including local government on regulations to implement 100% local business rates retention for shale gas production.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reasons his policy is to allow councils to keep 100% of business rates from fracking operations. [185897]

Brandon Lewis: Allowing local authorities to keep 100% of business rates on shale gas production sites is part of our long-term economic plan to build a stronger, more competitive economy, create more jobs and secure a better future for Britain. We believe communities that host a shale gas site should see a concrete benefit. The industry has committed to a package for communities that host a shale gas site which includes a payment of £100,000 for each hydraulically fractured well at the exploratory stage, as well as 1% of all revenues from production. Local councils will benefit from shale gas production as well by keeping 100% of business rates from shale gas production—double the current figure of 50%. This commitment could be worth up to £1.7 million a year for a typical site. It will be funded by central Government and will ensure that local government feels a direct financial incentive, in addition to local jobs and growth supported by shale gas development.

Homelessness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the percentage change in funding spent on homelessness was in each local authority area between the last two years for which data are available. [184196]

Kris Hopkins: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 20 January 2014, Official Report, column 56W.

Housing: Construction

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes were built on a floodplain in each year since 2009. [183265]

Nick Boles: The following table shows the estimated number of dwellings built within areas of high flood risk in England, since the statistics began in 1989 to the most recent year available. They show that the number is now at its lowest rate since records began.

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The decision whether to grant planning permission is a matter for local planning authorities, taking advice where appropriate from the Environment Agency and weighing up the different material considerations.

The figure will never be zero—as this would mean there would be complete ban on any form of development in many existing towns and cities which happen to be flood risk areas. Rather, national planning policy is clear that any new buildings that are needed in flood risk areas are appropriately flood resistant and resilient. Mitigation measures such as land raising, landscaping, raised thresholds and re-arranging the internal uses of buildings, can sometimes make development acceptable in such areas.

Moreover, the National Planning Policy Framework states that inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding should be avoided. Local planning authorities should direct development away from areas at highest risk, including floodplains, but where development is necessary, it must be demonstrated that it is safe and will not increase flood risk elsewhere.

Local Government: Energy

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) local authorities use energy more efficiently in local authority controlled buildings and (b) public street lighting is illuminated only when required. [185060]

Brandon Lewis: My Department encourages local authorities in England to adopt common sense measures to reduce their energy bills inside their own buildings. Our publication, ‘50 Ways to Save: Examples of sensible savings in local government’, also included examples of councils making savings by grouping together to procure energy in partnership with local energy providers.

Street lighting plays an important role in road safety, as well as ensuring the personal safety of pedestrians.

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There may be some roads where lights could be dimmed in the very early hours, saving taxpayers' money. However, this should be a local decision by elected local councillors, reflecting local circumstances—especially in relation to any concerns about crime. Equally, not every neighbourhood wants street lighting, as some communities, especially in rural areas, value dark skies. Councils should listen to the views of their local residents and then adopt appropriate local policies based on the neighbourhood, the precise location and the usage of the road/street. There is no prescriptive Whitehall guidance.

Indeed, the Government publication, ‘Manual for Streets’ (2007), while out of date in certain areas (e.g. on parking and density), does still contain some useful guidance on getting the balance right when providing street lighting, taking into account the different issues around safety, street clutter and light pollution. It can be found at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/manual-for-streets

Non-domestic Rates: Essex

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of small retail businesses in the (a) administrative county of Essex and (b) Colchester constituency which will benefit in financial year 2014-15 from the Government's policy of reducing business rates by £1,000. [185927]

Brandon Lewis: I refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 4 February 2014, Official Report, columns 175-76W.

Pay

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of staff employed by (i) his Department, (ii) agencies of his Department and (iii) contractors of his Department are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage. [184440]

Brandon Lewis: My Department and its agencies have no staff or contractors working inside the Department earning less than the hourly living wage rate as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.

Pensions

Mr McCann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 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. [186030]

Brandon Lewis: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the Minister of State, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd), on 4 February 2014, Official Report, columns 214-5W.

Procurement

Chris Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of his Department's contracts have been let to companies with (a) one to five, (b) six to 49, (c) 50 to 250 and (d) more than 250 staff. [182667]

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Brandon Lewis: The Cabinet Office publishes data on small and medium-sized enterprises spend by Departments. In 2012-13, our performance was 29.3%, placing the Department third highest within all central Government Departments and meeting the Government's aspiration for supporting small and medium-sized enterprises.

Yearly spending will fluctuate due to the nature and number of contracts awarded. However, the following table illustrates the profile of contracts awarded in the last three years.

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's 10 largest contracts let since financial year 2010-11 are; what savings have been made in such contracts; what the level of overspend or underspend was in each such contract; and what steps his Department has taken to monitor the performance of each such contract following the contract award. [185217]

Brandon Lewis: The information requested has been placed in the Library of the House.

The Department has already delivered a significant saving for taxpayers by reducing spend with suppliers by 57% from £314 million in 2009-10 to £136 million in 2012-13 for core DCLG.

The DCLG group is reducing its annual running costs by 41% in real terms between 2010-11 and 2014-15. This equates to net savings of at least £532 million over this spending review period.

Public Houses

Mr Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what advice and assistance his Department has made available to communities seeking to retain their local pubs. [185450]

Brandon Lewis: My Department is taking the following steps to support community pubs:

The Assets of Community Value Regulations implementing the Community Right to Bid provisions of the Localism Act 2011 are giving communities a fairer chance to bid to take over local assets of community value, including pubs.

Research by the Campaign for Real Ale shows that 300 pubs are now listed as assets of community value.

A £19 million support programme to help eligible community organisations to take on the community ownership and management of assets that are important to them, including pubs, is in place.

We are providing funding for business partners, such as Pub is the Hub and the Plunkett Foundation, to expand their work in helping communities to bring their pubs into community ownership and to diversify or innovate their provision of services.

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The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that to deliver the social, recreational and cultural facilities that communities need, planning policies and decisions should provide for the use of such facilities, including pubs, and guard against their unnecessary loss.

In the autumn statement on 5 December 2013 we announced a range of business rates measures to help small businesses such as community pubs, including extending the doubling of small business rate relief by a further year, until April 2015, and a £1,000 discount in 2014-15 and 2015-16 for premises with a rateable value of under £50,000.

We have set up a cross-Whitehall Ministerial Group on Pubs to consider and co-ordinate Government policies affecting pubs.

In addition, the Government have not only scrapped the last Administration's plans for a 10% rise in cider duties (the so-called cider tax), but at Budget 2013 we cut beer duty, amounting to a pint of average strength beer being reduced by 1p, and scrapped the beer escalator which would have further increased beer duty by 3p. This move has been warmly welcomed across the pub and brewing industry.

Pubs have also benefited from action the Government have taken to reduce red tape affecting the pub sector. For example, we have provided greater flexibility on weights and measures, allowing beer and wine to be sold in different sizes than were previously allowed by regulations, and have made it easier for pubs to play live music.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010. [185559]

Brandon Lewis: The Department has not re-employed any civil servants who have previously been made redundant or retired in the period since May 2010.

I can also confirm that the Department is fully compliant with civil service-wide policies and rules which relate to re-employment with the civil service.

Training

Chris Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which Ministers in his Department have undertaken training courses; and in the case of each such course what the (a) name of the course provider, (b) purpose of the course and (c) cost of each session in the course was. [183217]

Brandon Lewis: No Ministers have undertaken training courses at public expense to the Department.

I note that the parliamentary record states that Ministers in the last Administration from 2008 to 2010 spent £2,115 on public speaking training and £650 on professional development (as outlined in 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 966W).

William Hill

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 489W, on William Hill, if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter received in November 2011 and the response from his Department. [186335]

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Brandon Lewis [holding answer 6 February 2014]: In line with the procedure by which my Department would handle a Freedom of Information request, we have consulted the organisation as a third party and it has no objection to its release. I also note that the letters from two years ago have no particular bearing on current policy development. In that light, I have placed copies in the Library of the House of the incoming letter and the ministerial response from my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) declining a meeting.

As the ministerial response indicated, we received views and representations from both sides of the debate. The long-standing policy position which my Department has taken to date is laid out in the answer of 4 December 2013, Official Report, column 741W, and, indeed, this is the same stance first outlined in the ministerial response of 24 November 2010, Official Report, column 407, by my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill).

The debate on this issue has become quite polarised. However, we have consistently taken a pragmatic middle way, highlighting how councils can and should have the power to take targeted action to tackle localised problems, while avoiding disproportionate regulation being applied to the whole planning system.

Education

Teaching Profession

21. Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department is taking to raise the status, professionalism and morale of the teaching profession. [902489]

Mr Laws: Our reforms are making teaching the profession of choice for top graduates: 74% of new teachers now have a first or upper-second class degree, compared with 63% in 2010. Prestigious scholarships and bursaries of up to £25,000 are attracting the very best; teaching is now the number one destination for graduates from Oxford university. And we are freeing the profession from Government interference, giving teachers and school leaders the powers they need to exercise their professional judgment and make decisions that have a real impact on improving standards in the classroom.

Apprenticeships

23. Iain Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to increase the quality and availability of apprenticeships for 16 to 18-year-olds. [902492]

Matthew Hancock: We have already raised the quality of apprenticeships by making them real jobs, introducing minimum durations, rooting out poor quality delivery, and insisting on more stretching qualifications in English and maths.

We have created the £1,500 apprenticeship grant for employers to support recruitment of young apprentices.

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Our reforms will put employers in the driving seat, increasing quality and further simplifying the system, making it easier for employers to offer more apprenticeships in the future.

Academies

Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will bring forward legislative proposals to permit the Independent Schools Inspectorate to undertake inspections of state-funded academies which are sponsored by schools or foundations within the independent sector. [R] [186351]

Mr Laws: There are no plans to make any legislative changes to Ofsted inspection. Inspection of all publicly funded schools, including academies and free schools, is the responsibility of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector.

Apple Corporation

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will place in the Library the minutes of the meeting between the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families and Apple Corporation representatives on 12 February 2013. [186908]

Mr Timpson: The record of the meeting is in a letter I sent to the representatives of Apple shortly after the meeting, which is already in the public domain. A copy of this letter has been placed in the House Library.

Criminal Investigation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which organisation his Department and its subsidiary bodies use to tackle internal instances of crime, including corruption and fraud; and whether he has designated this organisation or any individual within it to grant authorisation for carrying out directed surveillance under section 28 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. [186708]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department handles all investigations into fraud, corruption and crime and involves outside agencies such as the police when appropriate.

Edapt

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will publish details of any meetings involving officials or special advisers in his Department since May 2010 that included discussion of Edapt UK Ltd; and whether any of the ministerial meetings listed in his Department's Ministers' Quarterly Returns for 2012 or 2013 relating to gifts, hospitality and meetings included discussion of Edapt UK Ltd. [186882]

Mr Laws: Information regarding discussions of Edapt UK Ltd in departmental meetings involving Ministers, officials or special advisers, in the form requested, is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

The Department's Ministers' Quarterly Returns include any meetings directly with Edapt UK Ltd.

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Free School Meals: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of schools in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency and (b) Cumbria that will require additional staffing expenditure to allow the introduction of universal free school meals. [186785]

Mr Laws: This information is not held centrally.

In his autumn statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced over £1 billion of revenue funding for universal free school meals for pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2 between 2014 and 2016. This funding, which includes special provision of £22.5 million for small schools in 2014-15, will be used by schools to pay for the cost of producing school lunches for newly eligible pupils, including staffing costs.

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of schools in (a) Barrow and Furness constituency and (b) Cumbria which will require capital investment to allow introduction of universal free school meals. [186787]

Mr Laws: This information is not held centrally.

In his autumn statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £150 million of capital funding to support schools in implementing the policy of universal free school meals for pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2.

The details of the capital allocations for universal infant free school meals by local authority were announced on 18 December¹.

£21 million of the available funding has been added to the Academies Capital Maintenance Fund, to which academies are able to bid to improve their kitchen or dining facilities.

¹https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capital-allocations-for-basic-need-and-infant-free-school-meals

Free School Meals: Merseyside

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in (a) Liverpool, Walton constituency, (b) Liverpool and (c) Merseyside are currently in receipt of free school meals. [186837]

Mr Laws: The requested information is provided in the following table.

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This information is already published in the underlying data section of the ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2013' Statistical First Release¹.

¹ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2013

GCSE

Mr Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of pupils in England achieved no GCSEs at A* to C grade in 2012-13. [186306]

Mr Laws: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 3 February 2014, Official Report, column 48W.

Mr Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what percentage of pupils in England in 2012-13 achieved no GCSEs at A* to C at all. [186665]

Mr Laws: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 3 February 2014, Official Report, column 48W.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) whether children with dyslexia or other language difficulties will be allowed additional time for GCSE examinations to take into account the assessment of grammar and language for all GCSE subjects; [186909]

(2) whether his Department plans to make special arrangements for children with dyslexia and other language difficulties in regard to the new marking system which includes spelling and grammar assessments for all GCSE subjects. [186910]

Mr Timpson: This is a matter for the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation and I have asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey, to write directly to the hon. Gentleman.

A copy of her reply will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

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Grammar Schools

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will assess the potential benefits of establishing more grammar schools in England. [186646]

Mr Laws: It is not the policy of the Government to establish new grammar schools in England.

Health Education: Hazardous Substances

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will take steps to assist schools in educating young people on the dangers of using hazardous substances. [186350]

Mr Laws: Schools may decide that it is necessary to teach pupils about the potential dangers of using hazardous substances as part of their health and safety assessment and policy.

Teachers are well placed to judge which topics to cover, tailored to the needs of their pupils and in the context of the school's overall programme.

Kings Science Academy

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what contingency plans he has to safeguard the investment of public money in the buildings on the site of Kings Science Academy in the event of the freeholder not renewing the lease of the site. [186756]

Mr Timpson: The site of Kings Science Academy is secured on a 20-year lease due to expire in 2032. Under the terms of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, Kings Science Academy has a statutory right to renew the lease at the end of the 20-year term. The provisions of the Act will safeguard the investment of public money, which has provided suitable buildings for the school.

Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2014, Official Report, column 187W, on Kings Science Academy, for what reason his Department decided to (a) purchase the leasehold and (b) not purchase the freehold of the Lidget Green site of the Kings Science Academy. [186904]

Mr Timpson: The Department for Education undertook an assessment of the leasehold options against a freehold acquisition of Hartley Business Park in Lidget Green. That assessment concluded that entering into a long- term lease represented better value for money than freehold acquisition.

Pre-school Education

Mr Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) with reference to page 69 of the draft SEN Code of Practice, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of making the Early Years Foundation Stage profile non-statutory on the future learning of children; [186527]

(2) with reference to page 69 of the draft SEN Code of Practice, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of making the Early Years Foundation Stage profile non-statutory on the support needs of children; [186528]

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(3) with reference to page 69 of the draft SEN Code of Practice, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of making the Early Years Foundation Stage profile non-statutory on the support needs of children with speech, language and communication needs; [186529]

(4) what recent assessment he has made of the effects of making the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) profile non-statutory on summarising and describing children's attainment at the end of the EYFS; [186530]

(5) what recent assessment he has made of the effects of making the Early Years Foundation Stage profile non-statutory on the relationship between early years settings and local primary schools; [186531]

(6) what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the Early Years Foundation Stage profile non-statutory on ensuring a smooth transition of educational support between early years settings and local primary schools. [186532]

Elizabeth Truss: On 17 July 2013, the Department for Education launched a public consultation on proposals to reform primary school assessment and accountability. The consultation proposed that the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) would remain in place but, to minimise the assessment burden, the Government would consider making the EYFS profile non-statutory at the end of reception. The consultation closed on 11 October. The Department will be publishing the Government response to the consultation shortly.

The Early Years Foundation Stage and the Early Learning Goals within it will continue to be statutory in reception. The revised EYFS came into force from September 2012 following the Tickell Review. The prime areas of the EYFS deliberately cover the knowledge and skills which are the foundations for children's school readiness and future progress, and have been aligned with the national curriculum, including in relation to literacy and maths.

Pupil Exclusions: Special Educational Needs

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what role Ofsted plays in relation to permanent exclusions of statemented SEN children. [186654]

Elizabeth Truss: This question is a matter for Ofsted. I have asked Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, to write to the hon. Gentleman. A copy of his reply will be placed in the House Library.

Pupils: Disadvantaged

Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he has taken to ensure that infant schools still receive the level of pupil premium they are entitled to once free school meals for all have been introduced. [186786]

Mr Laws: Schools will continue to receive pupil premium funding on the same basis as before. Funding allocations for 2014-15 will be based on School Census data collected this January. In subsequent years, the Department for Education will continue to use the School Census to gather the same data about pupils in families who receive the relevant benefits that currently entitle them

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to a free school meal. This information will be used to allocate the pupil premium, as well as other deprivation-related school funding.

Pupils: Tagging

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will place in the Library copies of all correspondence his Department holds on the use of radio-frequency identification technology with a real-time location system in schools produced in the last three years. [186344]

Elizabeth Truss: We have undertaken an electronic and paper search which has identified a Freedom of Information request and two correspondence replies on this matter in the last three years. These have been placed in the House Library.

Schools: Finance

Mr Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the level of Government spending was on schools in England in each year since 1984, adjusted for inflation. [186724]

Mr Laws: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 284W.

Schools: Standards

George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools were rated (a) outstanding, (b) good, (c) satisfactory or requires improvement and (d) special measures by Ofsted in each parliamentary constituency and local authority in England in (i) May 2010 and (ii) January 2014. [186388]

Mr Laws: I have asked Sir Michael Wilshaw, Her Majesty's chief inspector, to write to the hon. Gentleman about this matter, which is the responsibility of Ofsted. A copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.

Schools: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much capital funding for new school building has been allocated to Warrington Borough in each year since 2010. [186791]

Mr Laws: A significant amount of funding is provided to local authorities for them to spend according to their own local capital investment priorities. As such, the Department for Education does not hold complete information on the level of funding that has been used for new school buildings.

However, since 2010-11, £4.56 million has been paid to Warrington borough council through the Basic Need programme to provide new school places either through expanding existing schools, or creating new ones. In addition to this, a further £10.47 million of Basic Need funding was announced on 18 December 2013 for the three-year period 2014-15 to 2016-17.

The requested information is available online in the schools capital allocations data¹.

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The following table provides the funding allocated to Warrington borough council through Basic Need for each year since 2010-11.

¹http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/adminandfinance/schoolscapital

Staff

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many staff working in his Department have a teaching qualification. [186955]

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education does not hold information on staff qualifications.

Teachers: Conditions of Employment

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he (a) has had and (b) plans to have with the School Teachers' Review Body about extending the terms and conditions for teachers to allow them access to salary sacrifice car schemes. [186808]

Mr Laws: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 3 February 2014, Official Report, column 58W.

Truancy: Fines

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment his Department has made of the effect of education penalty notices on low income families. [186504]

Elizabeth Truss: All parents should meet their legal responsibilities to ensure their children of compulsory school age, who are registered at school, attend regularly. Where a child is absent from school without authorisation, their parents may be issued with a penalty notice.

All parents can avoid being issued with a penalty notice by ensuring their children's regular attendance at school and not taking them out of school without permission.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 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 he will place in the Library all assessments of how new policy and legislation from his Department since January 2013 has given due consideration to the UNCRC. [186583]

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Mr Timpson: The Department for Education is committed to giving due consideration to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) during the policy-making process. A formal assessment of the Children and Families Bill against the UNCRC was carried out prior to publication and a copy has already been placed in the House Library or can be found on the Department website¹. We also published a Children and Young Persons guide to the Children and Families Bill on 25 February 2013 and this is available online².

¹Note:

http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/e/140213%20echr %20and%20uncr%20note%20for%20publication%20final%20lao.pdf

²Note:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-young-persons-guide-to-the-children-and-families-bill

Under Article 12 of the UNCRC, children have a right to be consulted on issues that affect them and to have their views respected. In the past year, the Department has consulted children on a wide range of issues. For example, we involved Equality, Participation, Influencing, Change (EPIC)—a group of disabled young people—to advise on changes to the special educational needs and disability part of the Children and Families Bill.

I also meet quarterly with groups of children in care to talk about how to improve the support they receive and have separate quarterly meetings with care leavers.

The UK Government are due to report to the UN Committee responsible for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child shortly. The Department is co-ordinating the response with contributions from other Government Departments. Once the Government have submitted their response to the UN Committee, a copy of the report will be placed in the House Library.

Treasury

Children: Day Care

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the savings to the public purse of restricting the new tax-free child care scheme to parents earning less than (a) £100,000, (b) £90,000, (c) £80,000, (d) £75,000, (e) £70,000, (f) £65,000 and (g) £60,000 a year. [186597]

Nicky Morgan: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given to parliamentary question 179269 on 3 December 2013, column 607W.

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential effects of the Government's policy on tax-free child care on low-income households. [902490]

Nicky Morgan: The Government believe that the introduction of tax-free child care will support those who want to work and ensure that it always pays to work. Working families not already receiving support through tax credits will be able to pay for child care with support for 20% of costs up to £6,000 for each child under the age of 12.

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The overall system of child-care support does remain focused on those on lower incomes. Low-income families can claim 70% of their child-care costs through working tax credit, and around 40% of two-year-olds will be eligible for a free nursery place from September 2014. In addition, child-care support under universal credit will extend child-care support for the first time to those working fewer than 16 hours, enabling parents to take the first steps into work.

Cost of Living

Mr McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he has taken to reduce the cost of living for those on low incomes; and if he will make a statement. [186694]

Nicky Morgan: There is no doubt that times have been tough. We are still recovering from the Great Recession when our economy shrunk by 7.2%—the largest squeeze in over 100 years and the country is poorer as a result. However, our long-term economic plan is seeing record new jobs created: 1.3 million new private sector jobs means 1.3 million people with the security of a pay packet.

The Government's long-term plan is also cutting taxes, so people keep more of what they earn. The Government have increased the personal allowance, taking 2.7 million people out of tax, alongside freezing fuel duty, council tax and introducing tax-free child care and marriage tax allowances.

There is more to do but the best way to raise living standards is to stick to the Government's long-term economic plan so that hard-working people have more economic security and peace of mind for them and their families.

Eurobonds

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what amount of quoted eurobonds were issued by companies within the charge to UK corporation tax or income tax in circumstances where there is only one noteholder; what total interest was paid on those eurobonds; and how much such interest was (a) allowed as a deduction against such companies' corporation tax or income tax profits, (b) disallowed pursuant to self-assessed transfer pricing returns or advance in capitalisation agreements and (c) disallowed following inquiries by HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last six years. [186301]

Mr Gauke: For the purposes of thin capitalisation, eurobonds are treated no differently from other forms of debt finance, so HMRC does not separately identify eurobond finance in its record. The cost of the work required to separate the data relating specifically to eurobond issues from other debt finance would be disproportionate.

HMRC has used eurobond issues as a marker for identifying thin capitalisation risk to ensure that the thin capitalisation risk posed by eurobond issues is fully addressed.

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Excise Duties: Alcoholic Drinks

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many HM Revenue and Customs staff have been employed in its alcohol duty enforcement team in each of the last five years; and how many staff he expects to be employed in this area on 31 March in each year between 2014 and 2016; [180888]

(2) how much HM Revenue and Customs has spent on alcohol duty enforcement in each year since 2010-11; and how much it expects to spend on alcohol duty enforcement in each year between 2013-14 and 2015-16. [180889]

Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is committed to tackling the problem of alcohol duty fraud across every area of the alcohol supply chain.

During the period 2009-13, the duty losses stopped by virtue of the activity of HMRC and UK Border Force is shown in the following table.

Resources used on this work often operate on a multi-disciplinary basis (e.g. criminal investigators may move from an alcohol case to a VAT case dependant on the current risk level) and resource levels therefore fluctuate over time. In addition, HMRC operates in partnership with colleagues in Border Force and in other EU member states. The resource figure in the following table represents full-time equivalent (FTE) staff numbers expended on tackling alcohol duty fraud in each year from 2008-09 to 2012-13.

These figures do not include staff in other organisations, such as Border Force, working to tackle alcohol fraud. The apparent dip in resource in 2011-12 is mainly due to the transfer of a large number of officers from one business stream to another. Resource was recorded as multi-functional and it was not possible to provide a breakdown into alcohol work/other regimes.

In the autumn statement of 5 December 2013, Official Report, columns 1101-13, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), announced a proposal to introduce a registration scheme for alcohol wholesalers which is designed to reduce the supply of alcohol to the illicit market. This measure includes some 300 compliance staff who will start training during 2014-15.

HMRC is currently engaged in business planning for 2014-15 and beyond, and the issue of tackling alcohol duty fraud features as part of that planning process.

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Financial Services Compensation Scheme

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate he has made of the total value of deposits held by financial institutions registered in Scotland which are covered by the current Financial Services Compensation Scheme; [186845]

(2) what estimate he has made of the total value of deposits held by UK residents which are covered financially by the current Financial Services Compensation Scheme. [186846]

Sajid Javid: The information sought was included in Annex A of the Government's report ‘Scotland analysis: financial services and banking’ published on 20 May 2013.

The total value of deposits protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme held by institutions registered in Scotland on 31 December 2011 was £173,748,538,000. The total value of deposits protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme held by all institutions in the United Kingdom on 31 December 2011 was £878,708,756,000.

Gambling: Excise Duties

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the additional gaming duty raised by taxing at the point of consumption remote gambling operators based offshore. [186155]

Mr Gauke: At Budget 2012, the Government announced that they will move to taxing remote gambling on a place of consumption basis. This move will affect three duties: general betting duty, pool betting duty and remote gaming duty. As set out in Budget 2012, based on unchanged 15% rates and a 1 December 2014 implementation date, the changes to these duties are expected to (collectively) raise additional Exchequer revenues of £70 million in 2014-15, £240 million in 2015-16, and £270 million in 2016-17.

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the revenue from remote gaming duty in each year since 2010. [186156]

Mr Gauke: Due to the small number of taxpayers who dominate the statistics on remote gaming duty these data cannot be disclosed. For reasons of taxpayer confidentiality, remote gaming duty collected is included in gaming duty reported in the HMRC betting and gaming bulletin. The link to the bulletin is as follows:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/bet-game.htm

Insurance

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consult the Association of British Insurers on whether the insurers' code of conduct is working effectively for people about to retire. [186643]

Mr Gauke: The Association of British Insurers' (ABI) ‘Code of Conduct for Retirement Choices’ came into force in March 2013, and is binding on all ABI members. The code was established as a result of the work of the

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Open Market Option Review Group, which was set up by Government and comprises industry, consumer group and Government representatives, with the objective of ensuring consumers shop around for an annuity.

The Government are committed to making sure that the annuity market is working in the best interests of consumers. The ABI has committed to review the effectiveness of its code this year, one year after its implementation.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what recent assessment he has made as part of his continuing review of all taxes of the environmental impact of liquid petroleum gas in comparison with other road fuel gases; [186311]

(2) what estimate he has made of the (a) cost to the Exchequer and (b) effects on vehicle uptake of reducing the duty differential for liquid petroleum gas by 1p per litre per year in each year from 2010-11 to 2015-16; [186382]

(3) with reference to paragraph 2.92 of the autumn statement 2013, what assessment he has made of the (a) fiscal effects and (b) effects on vehicle uptake of his plans to continue reducing the duty differential for liquid petroleum gas by 1p per litre per year in each year up to 2024-25. [186383]

Nicky Morgan: The reduction of the liquid petroleum gas (LPG) differential by 1p per litre (ppl) per year is a continuation of the approach set out by the previous Administration, following their recommendation in the 2003 Alternative Fuels Framework. Along with the main rate of fuel duty, the LPG differential was cut by 1ppl in 2011, and will remain frozen until the end of Parliament. The Government will review the taxation of all road fuel gases in 2018, along with vehicle take-up and the impact of the differential on the public finances.

Table 2.1 of the autumn statement document sets out the fiscal impacts of the reduced rates of fuel duty for road fuel gases.

At autumn statement the Government provided 10-year certainty over the differential between the main rate of fuel duty and road fuel gases, which will encourage the purchase and development of alternatively fuelled commercial vehicles. However, given that the market is at an early stage of development it is not possible to precisely estimate the impact on sales.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Steve McCabe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 19 November 2013, Official Report, columns 258-59W, on mortgages: Government assistance, if he will place an analysis of the people to whom such mortgages have been granted. [186566]

Sajid Javid: On 2 January, the Prime Minister announced that in the first three months of the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme, more than 6,000 people had put in offers on homes and applied for a Help to Buy mortgage. The mortgages, once approved, would represent nearly £1 billion of new lending to aspiring

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home owners who may have previously found the property market out-of-reach because of the size of the deposit required.

Now the scheme is open, the Government are collecting data on the mortgages supported by the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme and will report in due course.

Chris Leslie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many transactions have taken place under the Help to Buy scheme for home purchase valuations (a) under £100,000, (b) between £100,000 and £200,000, (c) between £200,000 and £300,000, (d) between £300,000 and £400,000, (e) between £400,000 and £500,000 and (f) between £500,000 and £600,000; and what the value of the guarantee provided was in each such transaction. [186796]

Sajid Javid: On 2 January, the Prime Minister announced that in the first three months of the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme, more than 6,000 people had put in offers on homes and applied for a Help to Buy mortgage. The mortgages, once approved, would represent nearly £1 billion of new lending to aspiring home owners who may have previously found the property market out-of-reach because of the size of the deposit required.

The Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme continues to support responsible lending. On average, households are looking to buy homes worth £160,000 which remains below the UK average house price of £247,000.

Now the scheme is open, the Government are collecting data on the mortgages supported by the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme and will report in due course.

New Businesses

Mr McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what comparative assessment he has made of the number of small business start-ups in (a) Scotland and (b) the rest of the UK. [186829]

Nicky Morgan: The latest ONS data, based on PAYE and/or VAT registrations, reported that in 2012 there were 17,385 new businesses in Scotland and 269,565 new businesses in the UK as a whole.

The 2013 BIS population estimates reported 326,000 private sector businesses in Scotland in the beginning of 2013. There were 4.9 million private businesses in the UK as a whole. 99% of these businesses were small and medium sized businesses.

New Businesses: Scotland

Mr McKenzie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to support women who want to set up businesses in Scotland. [186830]

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

We are supporting people across the UK who want to set up a business, including women in Scotland. The new enterprise allowance provides funding and support to help unemployed people start their own business.

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To date over 4,000 women have received start-up loans, providing start-up finance and business advice. And from March 2014, the scheme will be extended to entrepreneurs in Scotland.

The UK is a great place to start a business and we have worked with Scotland to develop our proposals to make it easier for businesses to grow, in our publication “Small Business: GREAT Ambition”. Business support is a devolved issue and people who want to set up a business in Scotland can find details of available help and support at

http://www.business.scotland.gov.uk/

PAYE

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many HM Revenue and Customs employees are working on the delivery of real time information. [179031]

Mr Gauke [holding answer 12 December 2013]: The real time information (RTI) is being delivered by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Real Time Information Programme. There are currently five distinct teams containing 116 people, directly managed within the programme. The programme also receives support from other individuals across HMRC. These people have not worked full time on the programme but have made contributions to specific aspects of delivering the programme.

Real time reporting of PAYE information will bring PAYE into the 21^st century and make it more accurate for employers, HMRC and employees. RTI has been designed to reduce burdens on employers by integrating reporting within normal payroll processes.

Public Appointments

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 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. [186407]

Nicky Morgan: 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), 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 301W.

Public Expenditure

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the workings of the Barnett formula. [186215]

Danny Alexander: The Barnett formula is reviewed from time to time. Full details of the working of the Barnett formula are published in the statement of funding policy.

The Barnett formula works well for all parts of the UK. As set out in the Coalition Programme for Government, this Government's priority must be to reduce the deficit and therefore any discussion of change to the Barnett formula must await the stabilisation of the public finances.

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Tax Allowances: Married People

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to introduce a taper for the removal of the transferable tax allowance in the event of a change in (a) personal and (b) financial circumstances. [186758]

Mr Gauke: The transferable tax allowance will be introduced from April 2015 to recognise marriage in the tax system. Legislation will be introduced in Finance Bill 2014. The legislation, which has been published in draft, does not provide for a taper, as the Government attach high priority to simplicity, and this will make it easier for individuals to understand their tax liabilities.

Tax Evasion

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2013, Official Report, column 367W, on tax evasion, what recent progress has been made by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in initiating proceedings against all current HMRC fugitives; and if he will make a statement. [181134]

Mr Gauke: HMRC continues to work towards bringing all current HMRC fugitives (including those featured in the Most Wanted Campaign which was launched by HMRC in August 2012) before the UK courts. HMRC uses all available systems and resources to locate and trace individuals. This includes working closely with HMRC’s fiscal liaison officers based overseas, Crown Prosecution Service, National Crime Agency, Interpol and other international partners.

Since the answer provided on 12 December 2013, Official Report, column 367W, Paul James Wright has had his sentence of three years imposed by Manchester Crown court. Wright was deported from Malaysia having attempted to enter Malaysia while using a false passport. He was arrested by HMRC officers at London Heathrow on his return to the UK.

HMRC continues to receive information concerning fugitives both from the UK and from overseas. This information is analysed with the aim of supporting further arrests and successful extraditions from both the European Union and elsewhere.

HMRC has over 2,500 criminal investigators with direct access to information on tax fugitives who are able to investigate any information received on these fugitives. In addition, there are HMRC staff available to take calls from the public who have information. HMRC is very proactive in publishing the names of the Most Wanted (within legal parameters provided by HMRC solicitors office), and our efforts have resulted in four fugitives caught since the first list was published in 2012.

Although, in itself, the HMRC fugitive unit is a small team, the team does not work in isolation in bringing about the tracing/locating of HMRC fugitives.

The fugitive unit works with a number of teams across HMRC to locate fugitives.

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Taxation

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an estimate of the number of people who would pay no income tax or national insurance contributions if the threshold at which such payments began were raised to £12,000 a year in 2014-15. [186743]

Mr Gauke: It is estimated that raising the personal tax allowance and all NIC thresholds to £12,000 in the year 2014-15 would take 3.7 million individuals out of liability at a cost of £33 billion to the Exchequer.

These estimates are based on the Survey of Personal Incomes 2011-12 projected to 2014-15 using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's December 2013 economic and fiscal outlook.

Taxation: Appeals

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of (a) first-tier and (b) upper-tier tax tribunal cases were won by HM Revenue and Customs in each year since 2010. [184757]

Mr Gauke: Information on first-tier tribunal decisions is published by HMRC:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/complaints-appeals/news.htm

In 2012 HMRC was successful in 86% of tax cases decided at upper tribunal and in 2013 HMRC succeeded in 84% of decided cases. Although HMRC does not hold statistics for earlier years, the upper tribunal does publish all decisions and they are available from its website.

Taxation: Bingo

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the (a) economic and (b) fiscal effect of reducing the take of bingo duty to 15%. [186518]

Mr Gauke: The Government keep all taxes, including bingo duty, under review.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the total amount that will be received in penalties paid by people who failed to complete their self-assessment by 31 January 2014. [186644]

Mr Gauke: No estimate has been made regarding the total amount that will be received in penalties paid by people who failed to file their 2012-13 self-assessment tax return by 31 January 2014.

Of the 10.74 million self-assessment tax returns due by 31 January 2014, 93.4% were filed on time, of which 84.5% were filed online.

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Welfare Tax Credits

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much was overpaid in tax credits by HM Revenue and Customs in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12; [186464]

(2) what proportion of overall tax credits payments in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12 were found to be overpayments. [186468]

Nicky Morgan: HMRC tax credit overpayment figures are available in the Finalised Child and Working Tax Credits statistics annual award supplement on payments located here:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/fin-main-stats/cwtc-awards-sup.xls

on the ‘Main Aggregates’ table.

HMRC total tax credit expenditure figures are available in the Finalised Child and Working Tax Credits statistics located here:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/fin-main-stats/cwtc-awards.xls

in Table 1.1.

Wholesale Trade: Registration

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what steps he plans to take to tackle duty fraud before wholesale registration comes into effect in 2017; [186175]

(2) what resources he will provide to enforce the wholesaler registration scheme when it comes into effect in 2017. [186176]

Nicky Morgan: The Government invested a further £18 million in HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) strategy to tackle alcohol fraud through the 2010 spending review. HMRC enforcement work protected revenue of over £600 million in 2012-13, almost a three-fold increase during this Parliament.

In 2013, HMRC announced, in its consultation response document “Alcohol Fraud: Next Steps”, that it would be strengthening its strategy further, including measures to tighten the regulatory environment and increase the impact of enforcement. These include: introducing due diligence requirements for all excise businesses; changing regulations to tackle abuses of the brewing regime; tightening requirements for financial guarantees required from new excise businesses; and dealing more robustly with those caught holding or moving illicit product.

Resourcing for the wholesaler registration scheme formed part of HMRC's overall settlement for the SR period. Precise resource requirements are currently being assessed.

Working Tax Credit

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) couples with children who are no longer eligible for working tax credits and (b) children now deemed to be in poverty as a result of the higher working hours threshold. [186154]

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Nicky Morgan: The number of couples with children working 16 to 24 hours who are eligible for child tax credit (CTC) but are not eligible for working tax credit (WTC) as at 2 December 2013 is around 40,000. This figure relates to the snapshot position of families at this time.

There are also around 10,000 couples with children working 16 to 24 hours eligible for CTC who have lost WTC eligibility but whose income was high enough that the WTC element of their award was fully tapered away, so they were only in receipt of the child tax credit (CTC) element.

An estimate of the impact on child poverty of the change is not available. The Government remain committed to eradicating child poverty. However, the Government strongly believe that looking at relative income in isolation is not a helpful measure to track progress towards this.

The Government have consulted on developing better measures of child poverty to provide a more accurate picture of the reality of child poverty and drive the right action. The consultation has closed and we will respond in due course.

Energy and Climate Change

Buildings

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of the office space owned or leased by his Department is not in regular use; what the total (a) rental and (b) retail value is of all such unused office space; and if he will place in the Library a copy of his most recent departmental real estate valuation. [186864]

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not have any unused office space. Nor does the Department own any property.

Criminal Investigation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which organisation his Department and its subsidiary bodies use to tackle internal instances of crime, including corruption and fraud; and whether he has designated this organisation or any individual within it to grant authorisation for carrying out directed surveillance under section 28 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. [186709]

Gregory Barker: Neither the core Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) nor its subsidiary bodies have engaged external organisations to tackle internal instances of crime including corruption and fraud.

The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), has not made use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act since DECC’s inception, so they are no nominated officers.

Eggborough Power Station

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish all relevant documents on the decision not to award the Eggborough power plant a green subsidy. [186604]

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Michael Fallon: Based on their provisional ranking following Phase 2 of FID Enabling for Renewables, the three Eggborough biomass conversion units that applied to the process have provisionally been assessed as not being affordable. They remain in the process and have received a draft investment contract and have been invited to submit a binding application in March 2014. The final selection of projects and affordability assessment will be carried out following the receipt of binding applications. Signed investment contracts will be laid in Parliament in accordance with the Energy Act 2013.

DECC will not comment on individual projects or applications to FID Enabling for Renewables while the selection process is ongoing.

Information on the process regarding the qualification and evaluation of applications for the FID Enabling for Renewables process can be found on the DECC website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/increasing-certainty-for-investors-in-renewable-electricity-final-investment-decision-enabling-for-renewables

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many apprenticeships have been awarded at the Eggborough power plant site in the last five years. [186613]

Michael Fallon: The Department does not hold this information.

Electricity Generation

Mr O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish forward projections of electricity generation by type for the next 15 years. [186356]

Michael Fallon: DECC publishes annual updates of energy and emissions projections (UEP). The UEP includes projections of electricity generation by type up to 2030, and was most recently published in September 2013. It can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2013

Annex D shows projected electricity generation by major power producers and generators of renewable electricity. Annex E shows projected generation by all power producers, including generation by companies who produce their own electricity, but whose main business is not electricity generation.

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of the UK's electricity was supplied by each source, for each of the past 12 months. [186679]

Michael Fallon: The information is as follows.

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Fracking

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what contribution he expects fracking to make to the UK economy. [186924]

Michael Fallon: There is potential for shale gas development to provide a substantial contribution to the UK economy in the future. Until more work is done to determine the extent of gas that can be technically and commercially recovered, we will not be able to accurately predict the entire contribution it can make.

The Government are determined that the UK economy will benefit from any shale gas development that might take place through benefits such as increased tax revenues, greater energy security, growth and jobs. On 13 December last year, we published for consultation an environmental report as part of the process of strategic environmental assessment for further oil and gas licensing onshore. On a high activity scenario, the report estimates that oil and gas activities which might be carried out on new licences might create 16,000 to 32,000 new full-time equivalent positions in the peak development phase, including direct, indirect and induced jobs.

Prior to this report, the Institute of Directors estimated that 74,000 direct jobs could be created from the entire shale industry, including those direct jobs created from new licences.

Northern Ireland

Dr Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assets his Department has sold in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; and what the value of each such sale was. [186570]

Gregory Barker: The Department has not sold any assets in Northern Ireland.

Pay

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many civil servants are on each pay grade in (a) his Department and (b) agencies and public bodies accountable to him. [187244]

Gregory Barker: The number of civil servants on each pay grade employed by (a) the Department of Energy and Climate Change and (b) the non-departmental public bodies for which it is responsible are set out in the following table.

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The numbers above are shown as full-time equivalents (fte) and are regularly published on our website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/decc-workforce-management-information

Power Failures: Wolverhampton

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many power outages that were in (a) Wolverhampton and (b) Wolverhampton North East constituency in (i) 2011, (ii) 2012 and (iii) 2013. [186554]

Gregory Barker: Annual data on power outages in GB are made available by Ofgem. See indicator 12, figure 20, from the following link:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/ofgem-publications/85923/sustainabledevelopmentindicators-theme4-ensuringasecureandreliablegasandelectricitysupplyfebruary2014.pdf

The data are produced and published by Ofgem. These data are republished by DECC in our Energy Sector Indicators.

Public Appointments

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 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. [186396]

Gregory Barker: The Government publish details of diversity in public appointments across Departments. The latest list can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/262039/diversity-pub-appointments-_1-April-30-Sept-2013.csv/preview

Figures for 1 October 2013 to 31 March 2014 will be published later this year.

Solar Power

Mr Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) how many applications Ofgem has received for large commercial solar schemes; [186463]

(2) how many large commercial solar applications have been approved by Ofgem to date; [186465]

(3) what steps he is taking to simplify and speed up the applications process for commercial solar schemes; [186466]

(4) what the average time taken by Ofgem to complete large solar commercial applications is. [186467]

Michael Fallon: These are matters for Ofgem in accordance with its responsibility for administering the renewables obligation. I have asked the chief executive to write directly to the hon. Gentleman and will place a copy of the letter in the Libraries of the House.

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Health

Accident and Emergency Departments: Greater London

Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people (a) in total and (b) in each hospital in London who were admitted to accident and emergency departments were not seen by a doctor within four hours in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [186891]

Jane Ellison: The information is not available in the format requested. The information available is in the following table, which shows the number of people in the week ending 2 February 2014 who were not discharged, admitted or transferred within four hours of arrival for all types of accident and emergency departments, including minor injury units and walk-in centres, for England and national health service hospital trusts in London.

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Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people waited more than (a) two and (b) four hours to be seen by accident and emergency staff in each London NHS trust in the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [186894]

Jane Ellison: Information is not available in the format requested. Tables showing number of attendances (excluding planned) with a duration to assessment, treatment and departure of over four hours and over two hours for each provider national health service trust in London for the years 2008-09 to 2012-13 have been placed in the Library.