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Written Answers to Questions

Tuesday 25 February 2014

Health

Calciphylaxis

18. Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of trends in the number of cases of calciphylaxis. [902641]

Jane Ellison: Calciphylaxis is thankfully rare. Information on the number of cases is not collected centrally, so it is not yet possible to identify trends.

A calciphylaxis registry has been set up in Manchester, but data from this are not yet available.

Young Adult Carers

22. Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to support young adult carers. [902645]

Norman Lamb: Carers are central to Government’s care and support reforms. The Care Bill contains significant improvements for adults caring for adults, which apply to young adult carers. The Bill extends carers’ rights to assessments and for the first time, there will be a duty on local authorities to meet carers’ eligible support needs.

Independent Reconfiguration Panel

23. Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has given the Independent Reconfiguration Panel on the length of time that body should take to make a decision once a referral has been made. [R] [902646]

Mr Jeremy Hunt: The Independent Reconfiguration Panel advises the Secretary of State for Health on contested proposals for local clinical service changes. It is not a decision-making body.

Abortion

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 30 January 2014, Official Report, columns 650-51W, on abortion, when the issue with extracting data from the HSA4 form first started to occur; and what steps the Government are taking to address the problem. [187682]

Jane Ellison [holding answer 13 February 2014]: The current issue came to light when compiling the information requested in the PQ table by my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Fiona Bruce), on 23 January 2014. Officials are now reviewing the data collection processes.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to tackle neknomination. [187487]

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Jane Ellison: Reports of the popularity of the drinking game neknomination are a matter of concern. The game's encouragement of participants to outdo each other with ever more reckless stunts brings with it significant risks of alcohol-related harm including acute intoxication, alcohol poisoning, accidents and injury.

There is also the potential for cyber bullying of those who are seen to ‘chicken out’. It has already cost lives and we would advise anyone against taking part in the game to avoid putting themselves in a potentially dangerous situation.

On 6 February 2014, Public Health England posted some information about the risks of taking part in neknomination on its FRANK drug information website (aimed at young people):

www.talktofrank.com/news/hide-your-goldfish

The article warned of the health risks of drinking too much alcohol on a single occasion, and included some advice about what to do if young people are feeling under pressure.

Ambulance Services

Mr Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to provide ambulance crews with additional specialised equipment to allow them to deal safely with moving larger patients. [188335]

Jane Ellison: Decision-making regarding the equipment in ambulances is an operational issue and is therefore a matter for the local ambulance trust.

Asbestos: Children

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has specialist expertise on the asbestos risks to children. [188133]

Jane Ellison: Public Health England has expertise in toxicology within its Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards and can draw on expertise on asbestos risks to children through the Department of Health expert committee on carcinogenicity (COC) of chemicals in food, consumer products and the environment. This Committee has reviewed evidence and produced a statement on the relative vulnerability of children to asbestos compared to adults, which can be found at:

www.iacoc.org.uk/statements/documents/Asbestosinschoolsstatement_000.pdf

Further information on the Committee, including the papers and minutes of the discussions on relative vulnerability of children to asbestos compared to adults, is available from the COC website at:

www.iacoc.org.uk

Baby Care Units

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what NHS England's budget for neonatal services will be in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15. [188507]

Dr Poulter: This information is not collected centrally.

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'Routine' neonatal care is commissioned by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and 'specialised' neonatal care is directly commissioned by NHS England.

NHS England does not hold data on current spend across the country on specialised neonatal care. It is in the process of developing a single, standard mechanism for counting, coding and analysing specialised services activity and finance data. NHS England does not hold information relating to CCG expenditure on 'routine' neonatal care.

Breast Cancer

Mrs Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Office for National Statistics about providing data on breast cancer incidence and survival by clinical commissioning group. [188055]

Jane Ellison: No discussions have been had with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) about providing data on breast cancer incidence and survival by clinical commissioning group. The ONS has not published breast cancer incidence and survival by clinical commissioning group. Public Health England plan to make available results on breast cancer incidence over the coming year but these will not be official statistics.

Cancer: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the amount spent on research to develop drugs to treat cancer in children in the UK in each of the last five years. [188348]

Dr Poulter: Estimated expenditure on paediatric cancer drug research and development by the Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) through its infrastructure for experimental medicine is shown in the following table:

Total NIHR spend on this topic is higher than this because expenditure by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) on paediatric cancer drug trials cannot be disaggregated from total CRN expenditure.

The Department has made no estimate of paediatric cancer drug research and development by other United Kingdom funders including industry and medical research charities.

Care Homes: Fees and Charges

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on introducing a cap on care costs. [902628]

Norman Lamb: Everyone will be protected against catastrophic costs by the insurance the cap will provide from April 2016, in line with the Dilnot Commission's recommendations.

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We are currently putting the legislative framework for the cap in place, and will consult on draft regulations and guidance in autumn this year.

Chronic Illnesses

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps he is taking to improve the management of patients with long-term conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes; and if he will make a statement; [187878]

(2) if he will publish annual reviews of the Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes Strategy; and if he will make a statement; [187879]

(3) what progress his Department has made in reducing premature mortality from cardiovascular disease. [187880]

Jane Ellison: Through the Government's Mandate to NHS England, we are monitoring how well the national health service supports people with long-term conditions such as cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes. One of the improvements measured is how successfully the NHS manages long-term conditions by looking at unnecessary hospital admissions and excessive length of stay in hospital.

In January 2014 NHS England published ‘Action for Diabetes’, which sets out how NHS England will drive prevention of type 2 diabetes and earlier diagnosis of all diabetes, and support better management of diabetes in primary care.

The CVD Outcomes Strategy, published in 2013, sets out key actions for commissioners and providers to improve outcomes in CVD and includes a chapter on living with cardiovascular disease. NHS Improving Quality is supporting the delivery of the strategy by NHS England.

NHS England advises that it has no immediate plans to publish an annual report on progress in implementing the CVD outcomes Strategy.

Between 2001 and 2010 the CVD mortality rate in the under 75s fell from 108 deaths per 100,000 to 65 deaths per 100,000—a fall of 40%. Between 2011 and 2012, this rate fell from 58 deaths per 100,000 to 56 deaths per 100,000¹

¹ Direct comparison with previous year's mortality, prior to 2011, is not advisable. There was a decrease in the number of deaths, with an underlying cause coded as 'Cardiovascular Disease'. However, a large proportion of this decrease is caused by a correction to the coding of vascular dementia, which was coded as underlying cause CVD (167.9) until 2010 and is now coded as underlying cause in “Mental Health” deaths (F01). Further details can be found at:

www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/subnational-health3/results-of-the-icd-10-v2010-bridge-coding-study--england-and-wales--2009/2009/index.html

Clinical Priorities Advisory Group

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps NHS England has taken to ensure the transparency and public accountability of its Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG); and whether CPAG meeting papers will be published on the NHS England website. [187742]

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Jane Ellison: The Directly Commissioned Services Committee (a Committee of the NHS England Board) determined at its meeting in January 2014 that the agenda and. minutes of the Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) will be published on the NHS England website, at the point at which the recommendations of the CPAG have been approved.

Papers taken to the CPAG are usually national service specifications or clinical access policies and these are routinely taken through a 12-week public consultation, unless there is an urgent clinical reason to move rapidly to implementation.

Depressive Illnesses

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of patients with depression were given mindfulness-based therapies in each primary care trust area in England in the last year for which figures are available. [188568]

Norman Lamb: Currently we not collect data on the proportion of patients with depression who were given mindfulness-based therapies. However, from July 2014 the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) Data Standard will be expanded to include mindfulness as a delivered therapy type.

Data on the number of sessions of Mindfulness delivered by IAPT services will be held by the NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been allocated by Health and Wellbeing Boards towards (a) primary and secondary care for type-2 diabetes and (b) prevention of type-2 diabetes. [188200]

Norman Lamb: The Department does not systematically collect information on the priorities of local areas, or their spending on diabetes prevention and treatment.

Health and wellbeing boards are for local authorities, the national health service, local Healthwatch, communities and wider partners, to share system leadership of both health and care services and population health.

While boards do not hold budgets or allocate funds, they are responsible for developing Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategies (JHWS) (based on Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNA)) that form the basis of NHS and local authorities' own commissioning plans across health, social care, public health and children's services.

JSNA and JHWS are locally-led processes through which local areas identify the current and future health and well-being needs of the local population, and may well include provision for diabetes prevention and treatment.

In January 2014, NHS England published 'Action for Diabetes', which sets out how plans should be prepared for the prevention of type 2 diabetes, earlier diagnosis of all diabetes and integrated care for those living with diabetes.

NHS England is also putting a real emphasis on screening for high risk or the presence of type 2 diabetes through NHS health checks. The NHS Health Check is a risk assessment and management programme, for those aged 40 to 74, aimed at raising awareness and preventing a range of illnesses, including diabetes.

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Delivery of the NHS Health Check Programme has been mandated to local authorities from April 2013, and NHS England has an objective in its mandate from the Department to work with Public Health England to support local government in this work.

Drugs: Misuse

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths have been recorded from volatile substance abuse in (a) North Staffordshire and (b) the UK in each of the last five years; and what steps he is taking to prevent volatile substance abuse among children and young adults. [188480]

Jane Ellison: The following table shows information collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) about the number of deaths where the underlying cause was drug poisoning and a volatile substance was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate registered between 2008 to 2012, the latest year for which data are available. ONS holds information for deaths occurring only in England and Wales.

Education plays an important role in helping to ensure that young people are equipped with the information they need to make informed, healthy decisions and to keep themselves safe. Drug education, including information about volatile substances, is part of national curriculum science at key stage 2 and key stage 3. Provision in this area can be built on through personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education.

Public Health England manage the Talk to FRANK service which provides young people in England with friendly, confidential advice and information about drugs, including volatile substances, and has tips on how to resist peer pressure to experiment. The service is provided in a range of channels (helpline, website, SMS, email, web chat) to suit a variety of different needs.

The Association of Convenience Stores helps ensure that its members:

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(a) understand that it is illegal to supply gas lighter refills to anyone under the age of 18;

(b) reduce underage access to gas lighter refills by removing accessible displays, helping to prevent shoplifting of gas lighter refills; and

(c) restrict sales to one tin per customer.

The Department has worked with the Association of Convenience Stores to encourage retailers who are not members of the Association to adopt the same standard of practice.

Also, the Department has funded Re-Solv to develop its Community for Recovery website to help people who abuse volatile substances. This can be accessed at:

www.communityforrecovery.org/

Electronic Cigarettes

Mrs Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 10 February 2014, Official Report, column 606, if he will assess the effects of e-cigarettes on passive smokers in cars; and what estimate he has made of the cost of prescribing e-cigarettes through the NHS. [188502]

Jane Ellison: The limited number of studies conducted to date indicate that the risk of passive exposure to electronic cigarette vapour is small relative to tobacco cigarettes. Further research was, however, recommended to evaluate the impact of e-cigarettes on indoor air quality and to estimate any possible effects of passive inhalation of e-cigarette vapour. There is no research assessing the risks to health in small confined spaces, such as cars.

No estimate has been made of the cost of prescribing licensed e-cigarettes. Any e-cigarette licensed as a medicine would be treated as a nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in accordance with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence public health guidance on smoking harm reduction. The revised European Union Tobacco Products Directive makes provision for e-cigarettes not subject to medicines licensing to be regulated as consumer goods with specific requirements set out in the directive.

The current cost of prescribing NRT on the national health service can be found in the Prescription Cost Analysis section of the NHS Business Services website at:

www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/PrescriptionServices/3494.aspx

Gender Recognition

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made by his Department in implementing the commitments contained in the Government’s action plan for transgender equality; and if he will make a statement. [188089]

Dr Poulter: Good progress has been made in delivering the commitments identified in “Advancing Transgender Equality: A Plan for Action”.

A report on progress on the action plan will be published in due course.

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Health Services: Young People

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what amount his Department has allocated to provision of habilitation services for blind and partially-sighted children and young people under the age of 25 in each of the next three years; [188339]

(2) what amount his Department spent on habilitation services for children and young people under the age of 25 in the last (a) 12 and (b) 24 months. [188340]

Norman Lamb: The Department does not collect this information centrally.

Health: Weather

Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change about the effects of cold homes on (a) individual health and (b) NHS services. [187554]

Jane Ellison: The Secretary of State for Health met with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on 13 February to discuss the effects of cold homes on individual health and NHS services as part of a wider discussion on fuel poverty and health.

No other discussions on this subject have taken place.

Home Care Services

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what requirements his Department places on local authorities to record or declare the number of visits cancelled or unattended by carers to clients under the care of a local authority; [188110]

(2) what requirements there are on local authorities and commissioned care agencies to ensure the health and wellbeing of a client on the occasions a carer is unable to attend an appointment; [188111]

(3) what assessment his Department has made of the cost to local authorities of cancelled or unattended carer visits in each of the last five years; [188112]

(4) whether local authorities are required to pay care agencies for appointments where the carer fails to attend the appointment or the provider cancels the appointment; [188113]

(5) what systems his Department has to monitor how many care appointment visits are cancelled by care organisations paid by local authorities. [188115]

Norman Lamb: The Department has made no such assessments and does not monitor numbers or the cost of missed care visits or appointments. Local authorities are responsible, under the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990, for providing or arranging adult social care services for their communities and for ensuring that such services meet peoples' assessed needs.

It is for local authorities to ensure, where services are delivered by external providers under contract, that the terms of any such contract are adhered to, that appointments are not missed and that service users receive the care they have been assessed as needing.

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Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect and to receive good quality care, whether in their own homes, in hospital or in care homes. More than 300,000 people in England currently rely on publicly-funded homecare services. The great majority of care is very good, but there are still examples of poor practice. We are determined to drive up quality and stamp out poor care.

We recognise the importance of local authority purchasing decisions to those whose care is publicly funded. We are working with the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and the Local Government Association to develop standards for local authority commissioning that will support sector-led continuous improvement that should lead to more effective purchasing and better quality services being provided. The Care Bill provides that in commissioning services local authorities must consider the impact on peoples' well-being.

Medical Records: Databases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discretion GPs will have not to make patients records automatically available to NHS schemes. [187690]

Dr Poulter: NHS England has directed the Health and Social Care Information Centre under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to extract data from general practitioner (GP) practices for the care data programme. However, identifiable data will not be extracted from GP records of patients who have objected to the sharing of this information.

On 18 February 2014, NHS England announced that they will collect data from GP surgeries in the autumn, instead of April, to allow more time to build public awareness of the benefits of using the information, what safeguards are in place, how people can opt out if they choose, and look into further measures that could be taken to build public confidence.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 589W, on medical records: databases, whether there would be grounds to take legal action against a GP who releases less data than that requested by the Health and Social Care Information Centre. [187918]

Dr Poulter: Although a general practitioner (GP) who failed to provide information requested by the Health and Social Care Information Centre under its powers to obtain information would be breaking the law, there would be no grounds for taking legal action against that GP.

However, the GP would be in breach of contractual terms that require compliance with all legal requirements and NHS England would need to consider whether to take remedial action for breach of contract.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Copeland, of 11 February 2014, Official Report, column 616W, on medical records: database, whether the full findings of the survey evaluating the Better information means better care leaflet will be made

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public; what the sample size and sampling methodology is of this survey; and who will carry out the survey on behalf of NHS England. [188235]

Dr Poulter: The research methodology being used to evaluate the survey is face to face interviews, in a representative spread of locations across England and is being carried out by the independent market research agency BDRC-Continental. The sample size of the research is 1,500.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that people with a visual impairment or a learning disability are aware of and understand the care.data scheme. [188253]

Norman Lamb: The patient information leaflet ‘Better Information means Better Care’ is available in a range of accessible formats, for example, braille, audio, large print and easy read and are available online:

http://www.nhs.uk/caredata

or can be ordered via the patient line.

NHS England is also working alongside a number of organisations, including the disability partnership programme, to understand how awareness amongst these groups can be further developed.

On 18 February 2014, NHS England announced that they will collect data from GP surgeries in the autumn, instead of April, to allow more time to build public awareness of the benefits of using the information, what safeguards are in place, how people can opt out if they choose, and look into further measures that could be taken to build public confidence.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that psychiatric in-patients who are not living at home are aware of the effects of the care.data scheme on their medical data. [188255]

Dr Poulter: NHS England is working with colleagues responsible for the commissioning and provision of mental health services to understand how they can improve awareness among psychiatric in-patients.

On 18 February 2014, NHS England announced that they will collect data from GP surgeries in the autumn, instead of April, to allow more time to build public awareness of the benefits of using the information, what safeguards are in place, how people can opt out if they choose, and look into further measures that could be taken to ensure greater public confidence in the programme.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons he decided not to publish the findings of the review carried out by the Health and Social Care Information Centre at the request of NHS England on the possibility of pseudonymising data extracted under the care.data scheme at source. [188256]

Dr Poulter: The review being carried out by the Health and Social Care Information Centre on the application of pseudonymisation is still under way, this involves discussions with a range of stakeholders.

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Mental Health Services

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of levels of access to mindfulness-based therapy. [188266]

Norman Lamb: No such assessment has been made. Currently we do not collect data about levels of access to mindfulness-based therapy. However, from July 2014, Improving Access to Psychological Therapy (IAPT) services will be collecting data on mindfulness as a therapy type as part of the IAPT Data Standard.

Nursing and Midwifery Council

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will hold discussions with the Nursing and Midwifery Council on that body reversing the increase in its compulsory annual fee. [188536]

Dr Poulter: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is an independent body and it is therefore for the NMC Council to determine the level of the annual fee it charges for registration. The NMC advises that no decision has been made. Any proposed increase would be subject to public consultation where the NMC's case would be scrutinised.

Obesity

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been allocated by Health and Wellbeing Boards towards lifestyle weight management programmes. [188201]

Norman Lamb: The Department does not systematically collect information on the priorities of local areas, or their spending on lifestyle weight management programmes.

Health and wellbeing boards are for local authorities, the national health service, local Healthwatch, communities and wider partners, to share system leadership of both health and care services and population health.

While boards do not hold budgets or allocate funds as such, they are responsible for developing Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategies (JHWS) (based, on Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSSA)) that form the basis of NHS and local authorities' own commissioning plans across health, social care, public health and children's services.

JSNA and JHWS are locally-led processes through which local areas identify the current and future health and well-being needs of the local population, and may well include provision for weight management services.

Radiotherapy

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the recommendations made by the 2011 National Radiotherapy Implementation Group report into stereotactic radiotherapy remain the standard by which progress in the treatment of stereotactic radiotherapy is measured. [188509]

Jane Ellison: The National Radiotherapy Implementation Group (NRIG) report on Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR), published in 2011, was one of a number of sources of evidence and guidance which NHS England considered when developing its-commissioning policy statement on SABR.

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NHS England will continue to consider the NRIG recommendations as one of the sources of standards, information and evidence when making decisions about future radiotherapy progress and planning.

Royal Sussex County Hospital

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will update the House on the proposed timescale for the release of funding for the 3Ts redevelopment of the Royal Sussex County Hospital. [188416]

Dr Poulter: An Outline Business Case for the redevelopment of the Royal Sussex County Hospital is currently being reviewed by the Government. Release of funding for the redevelopment will be dependent on approval of a subsequent Full Business Case (FBC), which will confirm the final construction costs and contract details. However, it is not yet possible to give an indication of when an FBC will be approved, and funding released.

Self-harm: Prisoners

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will commission research to develop treatment guidelines to be followed across the prison estate for males and females who self-harm; and if he will make a statement; [188137]

(2) if he will discuss with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence developing self-harm guidelines within the prison estate; [188138]

(3) if he will introduce a minimum threshold for moving an individual out of the prison estate and into a psychiatric setting; and if he will make a statement; [188143]

(4) how many randomised trials of treatments for mental health issues and self-harm have been carried out by academic researchers within the prison estate since 2008; and if he will make a statement. [188145]

Norman Lamb: Clinicians and healthcare staff treating prisoners in English prisons who self-harm are expected to take National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guidelines into account when making treatment decisions. Copies of this guidance, “Self-harm: the short-term physical and psychological management and secondary prevention of self-harm in primary and secondary care” NICE clinical guideline number 16 (2004) and “Longer-term care and treatment of self-harm” NICE clinical guideline number 133 (2011) have been placed in the Library.

Clinical guideline 133 on longer term care and treatment is due for review by NICE in 2014 and NICE plans to review clinical guideline 16 in 2015. NHS England has no current or confirmed plans to introduce further treatment guidelines specific to treating self-harm in prisons.

Decisions about transferring prisoners with severe mental illnesses (SMI) to secure psychiatric units are clinical decisions based on clinical judgement about the prisoner's need for hospital treatment. Most SMI conditions are treatable within prison. Prisoners are considered for transfer to secure psychiatric units when a prison cannot provide appropriate treatment in the judgement of the consultant psychiatrist in charge of the prisoner's treatment.

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NHS England is currently analysing data on self-inflicted deaths across the prison estate to identify trends and to ensure that lessons are learned. This will include initiatives to reduce self-harm amongst prisoners. NHS England is also working with the National Offender Management Service and the Royal College of General Practitioners Secure Environment Group to improve commissioning for prisoners who self-harm and ensure that their physical and mental health needs are met.

Specialised Services Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the minutes of all meetings of NHS England's Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group to date. [188510]

Dr Poulter: NHS England's intention is to publish on its website the minutes for all of The Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group for Specialised Commissioning meetings since April 2013, when NHS England came into existence.

The request to publish the minutes needs to be formally agreed by the Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group for Specialised Commissioning which next meets on 18 March 2014.

Staff

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 identified their ethnicity as (a) white British and (b) from a minority ethnic background. [188076]

Dr Poulter: The proportions by ethnicity of the 378 civil servants recruited to the Department since 5 May 2010 are presented in the following table.

Streptococcus

Mike Thornton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his future plans are for introducing Enriched Culture Medium testing for Group B Strep. [188108]

Dr Poulter: There are currently no plans to introduce, the test because within current clinical guidance from the key professional bodies, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists or the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, there are no clinical indications which should prompt the offer of an enriched culture medium test for group B streptococcus.

Should the clinical guidance change the situation would be reviewed.

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Tobacco: Packaging

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence has been submitted to the Chantler Review of standardised packaging of tobacco which is considered to be outside the remit of that Review; why each such submission is so considered; and whether he plans to publish such evidence. [188153]

Jane Ellison: The Chantler Review into the public health impact of standardised packaging of tobacco is due to report in March. The review is independent and it will be up to the review itself to set out the evidence submitted and how it has been considered. Sir Cyril Chantler has set out the way of working for the review, including how it proposed to seek further relevant evidence, in a method statement available at:

www.kcl.ac.uk/health/packaging-review.aspx

International Development

Developing Countries: Abortion

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how many abortions funded by her Department were (a) procured in jurisdictions other than the UK and (b) provided in cases of rape in each of the last 10 years; [188049]

(2) how much financial support was provided as aid to procure abortion services overseas in each of the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement. [188052]

Lynne Featherstone: The information requested is not available. On access to abortion services, UK policy is clear: Where abortion is permitted, we can consider support for activities to improve the quality, safety and accessibility of abortion services.

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she has put in place to ensure value for money in the provision of overseas aid to abortion providers; and if she will make a statement. [188437]

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how her Department ensures value for money in overseas aid to abortion providers; and if she will make a statement. [188050]

Lynne Featherstone: DFID seeks to ensure value for money in all our programmes in order to maximise the impact of each pound spent to improve poor people's lives.

The UK funds partners to deliver comprehensive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services including in humanitarian situations. Investing in reproductive, maternal and newborn health is excellent value for money due to its low cost and far reaching benefits. We encourage others to do likewise. These SRH services may include improving access to safe abortion in line with our policy paper on safe and unsafe abortion.

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how many abortions funded by her Department were procured in jurisdictions other than the UK in each of the last 10 years; [188501]

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(2) how much financial support the Government have provided in aid to procure abortion services overseas in each of the last 10 years. [188436]

Lynne Featherstone: The information requested is not available. On access to abortion services, UK policy is clear: Where abortion is permitted, we can consider support for activities to improve the quality, safety and accessibility of abortion services.

Developing Countries: Family Planning

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much financial support was provided to (a) Marie Stopes International, (b) the International Planned Parenthood Federation and (c) the United Nations Population Fund in each of the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement. [188053]

Lynne Featherstone: The question has been answered covering the past three years instead of 10 years due to the time it would take to gather historical data. DFID provided £1.06 million to Marie Stopes International (MSI) in 2010-11; in 2011-12 MSI received a £4.35 million Programme Partnership Arrangement (PPA) grant plus an additional £4.7 million of other DFID funding; in 2012-13 MSI received £4.35 million of PPA funding plus an additional £16.8 million of other DFID funding. International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) received £9 million of PPA funds in 2010-11, £8.6 million of PPA funds in 2011-12 and £8.6 million of PPA funds in 2012-13. DFID provided United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) with £20 million each year for the period 2010-11 to 2012-13.

Details of further historical funding can be found in Table 18 and 19 of the Statistics on International Development (SID) which are available in the Library of the House.

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much financial support the Government provided to (a) Marie Stopes International, (b) the International Planned Parenthood Federation and (c) the United Nations Population Fund in each of the last 10 years. [188438]

Lynne Featherstone: The question has been answered covering the past three years instead of 10 years due to the time it would take to gather historical data. DFID provided £1.06 million to Marie Stopes International (MSI) in 2010-11; in 2011-12 MSI received a £4.35 million Programme Partnership Arrangement (PPA) grant plus an additional £4.7 million of other DFID funding; in 2012-13 MSI received £4.35 million of PPA funding plus an additional £16.8 million of other DFID funding. International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) received £9 million of PPA funds in 2010-11, £8.6 million of PPA funds in 2011-12 and £8.6 million of PPA funds in 2012-13. DFID provided United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) with £20 million each year for the period 2010-11 to 2012-13.

Details of further historical funding can be found in Table 18 and 19 of the Statistics on International Development (SID) which are available in the Library of the House.

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Disaster Relief

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to monitor its expenditure on disaster risk reduction. [188173]

Justine Greening: Expenditure is principally tracked through the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Creditor Reporting System (CRS).

Scotland

Equality

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the (a) total departmental expenditure, (b) number and (c) cost of people employed for the purpose of promoting equality and diversity was for each of the last five years. [187647]

David Mundell: All the staff in the Scotland Office are on loan or secondment, mainly from the Scottish Government or the Ministry of Justice; both bodies provide a range of initiatives promoting equality and diversity. There are no direct costs to the Scotland Office.

Staff

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 identified their ethnicity as (a) white British and (b) from a minority ethnic background. [188081]

David Mundell: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave on 26 November 2013, Official Report, columns 197-98W.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Ministers' Private Offices

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the size, in square metres, of the offices assigned to each of his Department's Ministers is; and how many officials, at what grade, work in the private offices of each of his Department's Ministers. [188317]

Mr Lidington: The size of the offices assigned to each Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister is as follows:

Please note that these room sizes include the Minister's office and all of the outer offices where the Minister's staff sit.

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For information on the number and grade of staff in private offices, I refer the hon. Member to my previous answer to the hon. Member for Barnsley East (Michael Dugher) dated 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 47W.

Defence

Tornado Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what steps were taken in respect of recommendation 95 in the Tornado Airworthiness Review Team report’s table of recommendations, Action Officers and Status Notes dated 5 February 1998; [186448]

(2) what safety issues were identified in recommendation 95 of the Tornado Airworthiness Review Team report’s table of recommendations, Action Officers and Status Notes dated 5 February 1998 regarding the Tornado's ejection seat. [186449]

Mr Dunne: I will write to the hon. Member shortly.

Substantive answer from Philip Dunne to Angus Robertson:

I undertook to write to you in answer to your Parliamentary Questions on 10^th February 2014 (Official Report, column 473W) about recommendation 95 of the Tornado Airworthiness Review Team report.

The Tornado Airworthiness Review Team report was produced circa 1996 and, although information on the recommendations made by the Review Team remains extant, despite a thorough search, we have been unable to locate a copy of the full report.

In the absence of the report, it is not possible today to re-identify the specific issue in the ejection seat that recommendation 95 was intended to address. What is clear is that by March 1998 the issue had been satisfactorily addressed and this had been briefed to the relevant RAF personnel. Recommendation 95 was considered closed, as were all of the recommendations arising from the Tornado Airworthiness Review. This, together with the passage of time since 1998, may explain why no copy of the report has been retained.

I should add that in the 18 years since the Tornado Airworthiness Review Team reported, the Mk10 ejection seat has been the subject of a mid-life upgrade programme, in the late 1990s, and an extensive modification programme from 2007 to 2010 that introduced many improvements. The Mk10 ejection seat in its current configuration is much improved as compared to 1996. As you are aware, further improvements are now being made as a result of the tragic accident to Flt Lt Sean Cunningham in November 2011.

Treasury

Banks: Foreign Investment

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the total investment of British banks in the national debt for (a) Greece, (b) Spain, (c) Italy and (d) Ireland. [188394]

Sajid Javid: Data on external claims of UK-owned monetary financial institutions, and of their branches and subsidiaries abroad, are available on the Bank of England website at:

www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics/Documents/bankstats/2013/sep13/tabc4.2.xls

These data include UK banking groups' direct exposures to the entire public sectors of Greece, Spain, Italy and Ireland.

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Business: West Midlands

Karen Lumley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many small businesses in (a) the West Midlands, (b) Worcestershire and (c) Redditch have benfited from the Funding for Lending Scheme. [188451]

Sajid Javid: The Bank of England publishes net lending data for the UK for each participating bank under the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS) on a quarterly basis. Decisions about whether to lend to specific businesses in specific locations remain commercial decisions for banks and building societies.

In November 2013, the Government announced that the scheme extension will be re-focused on business lending, SMEs in particular. Recent evidence shows that credit conditions have improved significantly for businesses, including small businesses. Gross lending to SMEs was £4.49 billion (12%) higher in 2013 than in 2012.

Equality

Mr Raab: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the (a) total departmental expenditure, (b) number and (c) cost of people employed for the purpose of promoting equality and diversity was for each of the last five years. [187649]

Nicky Morgan: In common with other Government Departments, HM Treasury seeks to promote equality of opportunity for all its employees.

Table 1 gives the total expenditure in each of the last five financial years on promoting equality and diversity.

The expenditure detailed in Table 1 includes funding for reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities as required by the disability section of the Equality Act.

Staff costs on promoting equality and diversity are (i) one full-time equivalent employee at HM Treasury Range D/D2 in last five years (in current pay range £31,000 to £45,000) and (ii) from April 2013, 20% of an HR Business Partner leading on diversity at HM Treasury Range E (in current pay range £45,283-£64,498).

Equity Finance

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to the use of tax breaks to encourage companies to use equity finance. [187823]

Sajid Javid: The Government continue to explore ways to enhance equity financing in the UK and, as announced at the autumn statement, will shortly publish a discussion paper on this topic.

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Gender Recognition

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what progress has been made by his Department in implementing the commitment contained in the Government's action plan for transgender equality to improve guidance for employers and customers for the implications of gender reassignment for tax purposes; [188099]

(2) if he will issue guidance for employers and customers for people who do not wish to be identified for tax purposes as a particular gender. [188100]

Mr Gauke: The gender of customers is needed by HMRC to fulfil their statutory duty of confidentiality to confirm customers' identities.

HMRC will publish updated PAYE guidance for employers with transgender employees in the Employer Further Guide to PAYE (booklet CWG2) and in web guidance when both are updated on 6 April 2014. Guidance for customers will be made available at the same time.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on advertising and marketing the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme to date. [187603]

Sajid Javid: [holding answer 13 February 2014]: As part of the Government's transparency agenda, all Departments publish details of transactions above £25,000. Data are published one month in arrears. Any data relating to Help to Buy advertising and marketing expenditure above this threshold will appear in future releases at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/25000-spend

State Retirement Pensions

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the cost to the public purse of continuing the triple lock policy of uprating the basic state pension for each financial year between 2015 and 2020. [184039]

Mr Gauke [holding answer 23 January 2014]: As a result of the triple lock commitment; the basic state pension now represents a higher share of average earnings than at any time over the last 20 years. Thanks to the triple lock, the rate of the basic state pension will be around £440 a year higher from next April, than it would have been if uprated in line with average earnings since 2011-12. By the end of this year, the Government will have spent £5.9 billion in total on the triple lock.

The cost of the triple lock is included in OBR forecasts. The triple lock provides reassurance and certainty for pensioners and delivers dignity in old age.

Taxation

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of fraudulent websites mimicking HM Revenue and Customs tax return services; and whether HM Revenue and Customs has any procedure for making the public aware of potential scams. [182319]

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Mr Gauke: HMRC takes customer confidence in its online services very seriously. Ministers have asked a cross Government group, at which HMRC is a participant, to work with industry experts to mitigate the risks posed by copycat websites to our customers.

HMRC's extensive online services are best accessed by typing this address

www.hmrc.gov.uk

directly into an internet browser.

Taxation: Business

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were employed by HM Revenue and Customs to work in the Large Business Service in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14 to date. [183521]

Mr Gauke: HMRC's Large Business Service deals with the tax affairs of the 800 or so largest businesses in the UK. HMRC's approach has enabled it to recover over £16 billion in additional compliance revenues from large businesses dealt with by the Large Business Service between April 2010 and March 2013, as follows:

The numbers of people employed by HMRC to work in the Large Business Service at each year end and currently are:

The Large Business Service also calls on the services of specialist staff employed in other units in HMRC when dealing with the tax affairs of the large businesses for which it is responsible.

Taxation: Charities

Nick de Bois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many charities using the online portal have been fined for late return of an annual return in each year since 2010; [183506]

(2) what the average cost has been to charities appealing against late filing penalties of the online annual return in each year since 2010. [183507]

Mr Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) recognises that asking a charity to claim tax relief every year would be administratively burdensome and therefore they do not require every charity to file a tax return every year.

However, they do require every charity to file a tax return once every few years so that they can check that the charity is claiming any tax exemptions and reliefs in accordance with the law. In addition, charities have an

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obligation to complete a tax return where they have reason to believe that they should be paying tax on some of their income or gains.

If HMRC sends a notice to a charity to file a tax return the charity must complete it and submit it within the time limits given on the forms or they may face a penalty.

HMRC has issued charities with penalties for late submission of their company tax returns in each of the financial years since 2008 as follows:

This includes penalties issued on paper returns. From 1 April 2011, nearly all company tax returns for periods ending after 31 March 2010 have to be delivered to HMRC online.

HMRC does not collect data on the cost to charities of appealing these penalties.

VAT: Local Government

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many local authorities were selected by HM Revenue and Customs for checks specific to their VAT returns; and how long such checks took in each case. [187743]

Mr Gauke: For the current year to date HMRC has undertaken 701 checks in relation to the VAT returns of local authorities. For 2012-13 the number was 657.

The length of time involved in each case differs according to the nature of the check. In the case of simple checks, where perhaps a phone call to the customer is all that is needed, the case is resolved on the same day as it is started. In the case of other checks, especially in relation the larger local authorities, these may last weeks, months, or longer.

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of the Department for Transport of 11 February 2014, Official Report, columns 525-6W, on Government Departments: unmanned air vehicles, which remotely piloted aircraft systems his Department employs to collect data; which policies are supported by the collection of such data; and where those systems are operated. [R] [188570]

Dan Rogerson: Core DEFRA has not used any unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, the Food and Environment Research Agency, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Royal Botanic Gardens have used unmanned aerial vehicles to support work on flood defence and coastal erosion and the monitoring of crops, plants and nature reserves. All flights were

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carried out within the UK, except for an aerial plant survey in Peru carried out by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

UAV systems used include:

Quest UAV 200

Flysense Ebee

DJI S800 Spreading Wings

Swinglet.

Culture, Media and Sport

Staff

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of staff recruited to her Department since 5 May 2010 identified their ethnicity as (a) white British and (b) from a minority ethnic background. [188069]

Mrs Grant: The proportion of staff recruited to DCMS since 5 May 2010 that identified their ethnicity is shown in the table:

Completion of these data is non-mandatory for staff. As such these figures may not be fully representative of work force diversity.

Telecommunications

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the potential benefit to consumers in the communications sector of the Government's proposals to streamline regulatory and competition appeals. [187440]

Mr Vaizey: I believe that streamlining the framework for regulatory and competition appeals offers benefits for consumers and industry. The Government published an impact assessment alongside our consultation on proposals to streamline regulatory appeals and this is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/207702/bis-13-924-regulatory-and-competition-appeals-impact_assessment.pdf

This assessment is being updated in the light of consultation responses received and we will publish that alongside the Government’s response to the consultation in the spring.

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her timetable is for reform of the regulatory and competition appeals processes in the communications sector. [187441]

Mr Vaizey: My officials have been working closely with officials in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills following the consultation on appeals that was held last year. We are considering the responses received and will publish the Government's response in due course.

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Communities and Local Government

Gender Recognition

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made by his Department in implementing the commitments contained in the Government’s action plan for transgender equality; and if he will make a statement. [188095]

Stephen Williams: Good progress has been made in delivering the commitments identified in “Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action”.

A report on progress on the action plan will be published in due course.

Housing: Construction

Mr Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what assessment he has made of the Consumer Code for Homebuilders; [188481]

(2) what his policy is on the introduction of a statutory redress mechanism for new homebuyers. [188482]

Kris Hopkins: The Consumer Code for Homebuilders (the Code), is an industry-led scheme which gives protection and rights to purchasers of new homes, ensuring that new homebuyers are treated fairly and are fully informed about their purchase.

The Code applies to all homebuyers who reserve to buy a new or newly converted home on or after 1 April 2010, built by a home builder registered with one of the supporting warranty bodies. It also offers an independent dispute resolution scheme that determines a builder's responsibilities without the consumer having to take legal action.

Its Management Board publishes a report on an annual basis setting out progress and future plans for ensuring that consumers continue to be well-protected. The reports are available on the Consumer Code for Homebuilders web-site.

It is right that industry is taking a lead on this and I am pleased that the industry-led work to further increase the impact of the Code is being progressed.

Ministers' Private Offices

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the size, in square metres, of the offices assigned to each of his Department's Ministers is; and how many officials, at what grade, work in the private offices of each of his Department's Ministers. [188310]

Brandon Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 138W, on the staffing of private offices.

Ministerial private offices are a key link in handling ministerial correspondence, organising the ministerial diaries, supporting Ministers on external engagements and visits, conveying Ministers' views to officials and overseeing the provision of advice to Ministers, handling communications and policy discussions with other Government Departments, and providing Ministers with general information and views from their Departments. Notwithstanding, we have cut the administrative costs

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of private offices by 25% from 2009-10 to 2012-13, reflecting the broader administrative savings we are making across the Department.

In relation to office size of each private office, the Secretary of State’s office is 61 square metres, the Senior Minister of State's private office is 35 square metres (who also has a Foreign and Commonwealth Private Office), and the five Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of States' offices are 40, 42, 42, 42 and 56 square metres respectively. Such dimensions are substantively unchanged from the last Administration. To assist the hon. Member, I would note that (as stated in the answer of 28 June 2006, Official Report, column 457W), the private office of John Prescott when he was a Cabinet Minister was 802 square feet.

The Department will be making further savings from office space when we move to Marsham Street later this year, sharing a building with the Home Office. The move will save my Department a net £9 million per year, and save taxpayers a total of £220 million over the lifetime of the building's lease commitments. This illustrates the scope for sensible savings by councils and the wider public sector from better property management and sharing of services.

Education

Independent Schools Inspectorate

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) whether the parental complaints he has received connected with the termination of inspectors working for the Independent Schools Inspectorate relate to concerns over the treatment of children within the schools inspected; [187216]

(2) how many inspectors working for the Independent Schools Inspectorate have ceased to be deployed for reasons connected with statutory notices being served on schools to date; [187217]

(3) pursuant to the answer of 3 February 2014, Official Report, column 52W, on private education: offences against children, on what date the inspector subject to direct allegations was suspended. [187369]

Mr Timpson: We have asked the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) and have been given the following information:

1. in the case concerned, the complaint related to the treatment of children in a school which the inspector had been associated with;

2. information is only available from 2013 onwards: in that time 16 team inspectors from a total of 10 schools have ceased to be deployed after the school received a statutory notice;

3. the inspector concerned was suspended from deployment on 5 March 2012 by ISI immediately when it was informed of the allegations.

Home Department

Asylum: Pregnant Women

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when her Department plans to publish revised guidance on procedures for dispersing and accommodating pregnant women who seek asylum in the UK. [188376]

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James Brokenshire: The Home Office has been consulting about changes to the guidance. The Refugee Council and Maternity Action have provided a detailed response which we are considering. Once that is completed we will move towards finalising and publishing the revised guidance.

British Nationality: Armed Forces

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for British citizenship have been made by foreign and Commonwealth personnel (a) currently or (b) recently serving in the armed forces who have been refused citizenship on the grounds that the good character request is not met; and if she will make a statement. [188104]

James Brokenshire: Four serving members of HM armed forces have been refused British citizenship because they did not meet the criteria set for good character in the 12 months leading to their application.

Gender Recognition

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what progress her Department has made on implementing the commitments contained in the Government’s action plan for transgender equality to review how gender identification is represented in passport application forms and passports; and if she will make a statement; [188091]

(2) when her Department ceased to record on passports the holder's (a) profession, (b) place of birth, (c) date of birth, (d) country of residence, (e) height, (f) eye colour, (g) hair colour, (h) special peculiarities and (i) distinguishing features; for what reasons the Government decided to cease recording each of the characteristics on passports; what rules it currently applies to people of indeterminate sex and people who do not identify as either gender in relation to how they describe their gender on passports; what consideration she has given on the need to record a person's sex on passports; and if she will make a statement. [188102]

James Brokenshire: A copy of Her Majesty's Passport Office review into gender markings in the British passport has been placed in the Library of both Houses.

http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2014-0152/Gendermarkings__290114.pdf

The review was carried out in response to the recommendation in the Government's action plan for transgender equality published on 8 December 2011.

The information set out in the biographic page of the British passport conforms to standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The British passport biographical page lists name, nationality, date of birth, gender, place of birth, photograph, and signature of the holder in addition to place and date of issue of the passport.

Previous information contained in the British passport has been removed in the light of technological advances in the quality of photographs or because the information was no longer considered relevant to the person's ability to apply for and use the passport. Changes have been made from time to time and the need for information to

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be gathered is subject to regular review. Her Majesty's Passport Office collects only information considered relevant to ensure the safe and secure issue of the British passport and to protect the identity of the individual and ensure their safe passage through international borders.

As the review above indicates, gender is considered an important identifier.

It is used to assist the application process and, at frontiers, provides border agencies with direction on the handling of the passport holder. We recognise that a very small number of countries have adopted the use of an 'X' in the passport but UK law does not recognise a third gender classification.

Immigration Controls

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to increase pre-entry medical screening for those wishing to reside in the UK for more than six months. [188157]

James Brokenshire: We are switching to TB pre-entry screening abroad in preference to screening on entry to the UK. We are currently operating TB pre-entry screening in 94 locations. We will complete our planned overseas roll-out this year, expanding to 101 locations by the end of March 2014.

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the UK Border Force in safeguarding public health. [188158]

James Brokenshire: The Border Force operational command of the Home Office plays an effective role in helping to safeguard public health. Medical inspectors appointed by Public Health England are available at various ports.

Border Force works closely with the medical inspectors and, where appropriate, refers arriving passengers to them.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of the Department for Transport of 11 February 2014, Official Report, columns 525-6W, on Government Departments: unmanned air vehicles, which remotely piloted aircraft systems her Department employs to collect data; which policies are supported by the collection of such data; and where those systems are operated. [R] [188569]

Damian Green: The Home Office does not employ remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS).

Wales

Equality

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the (a) total departmental expenditure, (b) number and (c) cost of people employed for the purpose of promoting equality and diversity was for each of the last five years. [187650]

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Stephen Crabb: No post exists solely for promoting equality and diversity within the Wales Office, the function is incorporated into the generic HR role. As such, the Wales Office is unable to disaggregate the total departmental expenditure for the purpose of promoting equality and diversity.

Energy and Climate Change

Energy: Meters

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the contribution of the Minister of State of 4 February 2014, Official Report, column 237, whether his Department has made an assessment of the number of suppliers who charge customers to have prepayment meters removed and the level of such charges. [187756]

Michael Fallon: Energy suppliers have different policies on whether to pass on costs incurred from Meter Operators to change a customer from a prepayment to a credit meter. Suppliers may waive charges for vulnerable consumers. DECC understands that companies that make no charge include British Gas, EON and EDF. The following table shows the energy supply companies that charge.

Nuclear Installations

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many staff work in his

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Department's Nuclear Resilience and Assurance Directorate; how many such staff work on nuclear security matters; and what proportion of such staff have expertise in nuclear security. [187993]

Michael Fallon: The Nuclear Resilience and Assurance Directorate (NRAD) in my Department is responsible for the policy frameworks for civil nuclear security, emergency planning and safety assurance, as well as working to improve the security of nuclear and radiological material overseas and taking forward UK nuclear non-proliferation priorities. NRAD also houses the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority. The Directorate currently has an allocation of 52 staff with a range of cross cutting expertise in these areas, who work closely with expert partners in other organisations, including the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Property

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the (a) name, (b) location, (c) floor space, (d) tenure status and (e) value is of properties (i) owned and (ii) occupied by (A) his Department and (B) agencies and public bodies accountable to him. [187285]

Gregory Barker: The following table includes the name, location, floor space and tenure status of buildings occupied by the Department. The Electronic Property Information Mapping Service (e-PIMS™) is the central database of Government Central Civil Estate properties and land. A subset of data from e-PIMS™ is in the public domain:

www.data.gov.uk

and includes details of property location, tenure, and other key attributes. It is a sample of all departmental holdings.

The global running cost figure for the central civil estate of c£3 billion per annum.

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Public Appointments

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) which paid public appointment contracts he has (a) renewed and (b) not renewed since May 2010; and how many posts were held by (i) women and (ii) men; [187017]

(2) what the titles are of the individual public appointments that have been made by his Department since May 2010; and which of those appointees were women. [187078]

Gregory Barker: I refer the hon. Member 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 11February 2014, Official Report, column 607W.

Staff

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 identified their ethnicity as (a) white British and (b) from a minority ethnic background. [188072]

Gregory Barker: Prior to November 2010 the Shared Service provision for Human Resource in the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was provided by two suppliers with data maintained in differing formats. Therefore data in a consistent format are only available from November 2010.

From November 2010 to January 2014, 56% of civil servants who were recruited to DECC have declared diversity data. Of those who have declared diversity data, 78% have declared that they are white British and 13% have declared that they are from a minority ethnic background.

The remaining 9% are other white backgrounds.

Northern Ireland

Equality

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the (a) total departmental expenditure, (b) number and (c) cost of people employed for the purpose of promoting equality and diversity was for each of the last five years. [187646]

Mrs Villiers: My Department is fully committed to promoting equality and diversity and to fulfilling our statutory responsibilities in this regard. This work is co-ordinated by our Corporate Governance team in addition to a range of other duties. As such, it is not possible to provide a breakdown of costs and staff numbers as to do so would incur disproportionate cost. My Department has published an Equality Scheme and provides annual progress reports on delivery of the Scheme to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland in line with our Section 15 responsibilities.

All staff in my Department have received Section 75 equality training—in 2013-14 this was provided at a cost of £4,775. In addition, all staff have access to a wide range of diversity networks in both Belfast and London.

Cabinet Office

Civil Servants

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for the Vale of Glamorgan on 11 December 2013, Official Report, column 224, in which Government Department each official was employed. [187852]

Mr Maude: Details of facility time provision, broken down by Department, are published on gov.uk.

Civil Servants: Career Development

Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the average career progression of fast stream civil servants who identify as (a) white British and (b) any other minority ethnic background has been since May 2010; [187935]

(2) what the average pay progression of fast stream civil servants who identify as (a) white British and (b) any other minority ethnic background has been since May 2010; [187936]

(3) what the average career progression of (a) male and (b) female fast stream civil servants has been since May 2010; [187937]

(4) what the average pay progression of (a) male and (b) female fast stream civil servants has been since May 2010. [187938]

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Mr Maude: Civil servants can, but are not compelled to, declare their ethnicity. As a result, we don't hold sufficient information to give an accurate response. The civil service is, however, committed to harnessing the ambition and potential of its staff, whoever they are. In addition to initiatives such as the Summer Diversity Internship Programme, which specifically targets those of minority ethnic or lower socio-economic background, it is a key component of the civil service talent strategy to ensure that all talent development schemes are accessible to all those who show the ability and aspiration to make a difference to the civil service.

Justice

Magistrates

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will provide a breakdown by ethnic background, age cohort and gender of lay magistrates in each panel for each year from 2010. [188223]

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Mr Vara: A more diverse judiciary is important in retaining the public's confidence and trust in justice, and better reflecting the society it serves. This Government have made a number of changes through the Crime and Courts Act 2013 that we believe will promote judicial diversity. We have introduced part-time working in the senior courts, including the Supreme Court, we have enabled the equal merit provision for judicial appointments to allow protected characteristics to be taken into account where two applicants are of equal merit and we have introduced a statutory duty for the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice to encourage judicial diversity.

Magistrates in England and Wales are recruited and selected by a network of local advisory committees, which record data on the diversity profile of magistrates in their respective areas. In order to be able to provide the requested information, we have interpreted the reference to panels in the question to mean local advisory committee areas. The following tables contain the requested data:

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