Fracking

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) when he next plans to meet representatives of organisations that have made representations on the environmental effects of the shale gas industry. [194141]

(2) what plans he has to meet representatives of Cuadrilla and other members of the shale gas industry. [194142]

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Dan Rogerson: The Secretary of State has no such planned engagements at present but always welcomes meeting a broad range of organisations to understand their needs and concerns. The UK Government are committed to the development of the shale gas industry in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will establish shale gas extraction exclusion zones in sensitive areas for wildlife and water resources. [194143]

Dan Rogerson: Each application for shale gas exploration and extraction will be assessed on its merits and operators will require planning permission from the local minerals planning authority. The Environment Agency will object to shale gas extraction infrastructure or activity within a source protection zone (SPZ) 1 (i.e. drinking water protected zone). Outside SPZ1, the agency will also object when the activity would have an unacceptable effect on groundwater based on a site specific assessment.

In England, an environmental impact assessment is required if a particular development is located wholly or partly in a ‘sensitive area’.

Planning authorities assess each application on a case by case basis. There is a general presumption against approving a permit in such areas.

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make it his policy that costs associated with the regulation and monitoring of exploration and extraction of unconventional gas are levied on industry. [194844]

Dan Rogerson: The issue of environmental licences and permits at individual shale gas sites is financed through the Environment Agency's charges. The shale gas industry remains at an early exploration stage and the Agency will keep its charges under review in light of developments. In the meantime, the Environment Agency will ensure that it allocates sufficient resources within its overall budget to regulate a safe and sustainable shale gas industry.

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) amount and (b) proportion of the budget of the Environment Agency is allocated to staff and other departmental costs associated with the regulation of hydraulic fracturing and unconventional gas in each year between 2010-11 and 2014-15. [194845]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency does not keep separate records of its regulatory costs for hydraulic fracturing and unconventional gas so we cannot provide figures for previous years.

For 2014-15 the Environment Agency has allocated £2.6 million to its work on onshore oil and gas. This is 0.39% of the Environment Agency's total revenue budget.

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff of the Environment Agency are engaged in regulation of hydraulic fracturing and unconventional gas. [194846]

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Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency has set up a team of 10 national officers working full-time to develop the regulatory regime for oil and gas activities. This work covers conventional and unconventional oil and gas activities.

This team is supported by additional technical resource from elsewhere in the organisation. The workload fluctuates and these specialists are not solely dedicated to regulating and permitting unconventional activities. It is therefore not possible to give an exact answer, but the Environment Agency estimates that approximately a further 40 staff are currently involved in this work across England.

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the costs of the regulation and monitoring of exploration and extraction of unconventional gas (a) at each drilling site and (b) the exploration in England and Wales. [194851]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency raises charges for environmental permits and licences at the individual sites it regulates in England. The costs can vary depending on the nature of the site and the permits required. The shale gas industry remains at an early exploration stage and the agency will keep its charges under review in light of developments. The annual budget the Environment Agency receives is adequate to ensure that sufficient money is allocated to costs associated with regulating the industry and for monitoring of sites during the exploration phase. As the industry develops over the next few decades appropriate funds will continue to be available to ensure the safe and sustainable exploitation of shale gas.

Hunting Act 2004

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many civil servants in his Department spent some or all of their time working on the Hunting Act 2004 in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014 to date; and what the grade is of each such staff member. [194164]

George Eustice: Since 2010, a range of civil servants in DEFRA from across all grades have had some responsibilities for working on the Hunting Act 2004 and have spent some of their time doing so. However, the amount of time they spend on this varies considerably according to levels of correspondence, interest and activity at any one time. As these officers also work on a range of other issues, no specific records are kept for how much of their time is spent working on the Hunting Act 2004.

Mondelez International

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 35W, on Mondelez International, for what reason 13 March 2014 was chosen for the date of the visit to the Mondelez factory. [194476]

George Eustice: This visit was planned as a follow-up to National Apprenticeship Week. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my

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right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson) wanted to meet young people beginning careers in the food production chain. In Birmingham he walked the production line on the factory floor with Mondelez apprentices, discussing with them and the Director of Manufacturing how a recent injection of £75 million is turning Bourneville into a world class manufacturing site. Mondelez is taking part in the Strategic Relationship Management (SRM) initiative, which is a government commitment to help companies overcome barriers to growth and investment.

DEFRA leads on the relationship with Mondelez, which has been chosen for SRM because it makes a significant contribution to the economy. The visit timing also coincided with the Big Bang Science and Technology Fair; the Secretary of State visited the Food and Drink Federation's stand and discussed how the food and drink industry, the largest manufacturing sector in the UK, is inspiring youngsters to seek careers in the sector. The Secretary of State concluded the day with a speech to the Harper Adams Forum, a student run body at Harper Adams University. His speech highlighted the opportunities in the agriculture sector, including agri-technology following the launch of “UK Strategy for Agricultural Technologies”.

Nature Conservation

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the threat to the UK's environment from invasive alien plant species. [194969]

Dan Rogerson: The Non-Native Species Framework Strategy for Great Britain sets out our mechanism for addressing non-native species, including plants. The strategy includes a comprehensive risk assessment mechanism to assess the potential negative impacts of non-native species, including threats to the environment. To date 126 risk assessments have been completed or are in progress. Of these, 58 are plant species.

Procurement

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) 20 highest and (b) 20 lowest value contracts awarded by his Department were in each financial year since 2009-10. [194220]

Dan Rogerson: The 20 highest and 20 lowest value contracts awarded by DEFRA for the respective financial years are set out in the table which will be placed in the Library of the House.

We are unable to provide data for 2009-10 as we did not have a central contracts management system in place prior to April 2010.

The lowest value for contracts shown here is £10,000. Any purchasing below that level is made under standard purchase order terms and conditions rather than through a specific contract. These are not recorded on our central system.

The data do not include contracts for research and development which are not held centrally and could be included only at disproportionate cost.

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Seeds

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on the proposed EU regulations on heritage seeds. [194385]

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA is negotiating for a proportionate, flexible and simplified approach to the proposed new EU legislation for Plant Reproductive Material. Our principal objectives are to make things simpler and to achieve positive outcomes for businesses and gardeners alike.

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to protect a diversity of older and heritage seed varieties. [194386]

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA takes the lead for the UK’s membership to the international treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture and the convention on biological diversity. These require contracting parties to conserve the genetic diversity of agricultural varieties, including heritage varieties. DEFRA sponsors three genetic resource collections which maintain heritage varieties: the National Fruit Collection, the John Innes Pea Collection and the vegetable collection at Warwick university. DEFRA is planning to follow up previous research assessing, conserving and encouraging the further cultivation of locally adapted fruit and vegetable varieties (landraces).

DEFRA took a leading role in developing simpler EU registration requirements, introduced in 2009, for heritage varieties of agricultural and vegetable species. These allow marketing on the basis of a simplified, low cost description, with proportionate controls to assure seed quality. DEFRA is now seeking further simplification in the proposed new plant reproductive material legislation currently under discussion at European level.

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations he has made to the European Commission on proposed regulations relating to seeds. [194394]

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has made numerous representations to the European Commission on its proposed regulation for Plant Reproductive Material. The representations have been through correspondence, negotiation at Council Working Groups, informal discussion, and in a specially convened meeting between DEFRA, Commission officials and UK stakeholders in London in June 2013.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 20 March 2014, Official Report, column 697W, on unmanned air vehicles, if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidance note issued to his Department's network staff on data protection aspects of unmanned air vehicles. [R] [195013]

Dan Rogerson: I will place a copy of the guidance in the Library.

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Communities and Local Government

Bellwin Scheme

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether local authorities affected by flooding can claim under the Bellwin scheme for the cost of disposing of sandbags that have been contaminated with sewage. [194489]

Brandon Lewis [holding answer 3 April 2014]: Local authorities can claim the costs of removing sandbags used during the flooding emergency under the Bellwin scheme. This includes sandbags that have been contaminated with sewage.

Bus Services: Concessions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effects of reductions in shire county council bus subsidies on the opportunities for social interaction of elderly and disabled people. [194924]

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Transport is the lead Department on policy and funding for buses.

Children in Care

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department provides on how much funding from the Local Government Finance Settlement local authorities should allocate to virtual headteachers. [193878]

Brandon Lewis: Both Revenue Support Grant and retained business rates, the two local authority funding streams directly included within the Local Government Finance Settlement, are unringfenced, therefore, authorities can use them to fund any service, provided they meet their statutory duties. It is up to authorities to decide how to set their budgets, taking into account local priorities.

Combined Authorities

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the Government Response to Lord Heseltine's report “No Stone Unturned: In Pursuit of Growth”, when he expects to publish a draft legislative reform order to ensure that the current legislation on combined authorities is fit for purpose. [193920]

Brandon Lewis: As I told the House on 18 March 2014, Official Report, column 704, and as the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles) indicated on 3 March 2014, Official Report, column 621, we are minded to amend legislation to allow councils that do not share the same boundaries to join a combined authority if they wish. This change can be delivered through a Legislative Reform Order, subject to statutory consultation and approval of Parliament.

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Council Tax: Lancaster

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what reports he has received of levels of council tax set by Lancashire county council for 2014-15. [194561]

Brandon Lewis: The DCLG statistical release of 26 March 2014 showing the levels of council tax set by local authorities in England for 2014-2015 is available here and shows council tax levels down to local authority level:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/council-tax-levels-set-by-local-authorities-in-england-2014-to-2015

The average council tax for Lancashire county council and Lancaster district council excluding parish precepts (band D) are shown as follows.

Fire Services

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the age profile of firefighters is in each fire service area. [R] [194708]

Brandon Lewis: To assist the hon. Member, a table giving the latest available information has been placed in the Library of the House.

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many firefighters were (a) sacked and (b) made redundant after failing the capability assessment (i) nationally, (ii) in Devon and Somerset and (iii) in London last year. [R] [194709]

Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally.

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many firefighters were redeployed (a) nationally, (b) in Devon and Somerset and (c) in London last year. [R] [194710]

Brandon Lewis: The Department collects annual counts of staff for each fire and rescue authority in England and these are published in “Fire and Rescue Operational Statistics” at

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fire-and-rescue-authorities-operational-statistics

The Department does not collect information on firefighter deployment or redeployment.

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ICT

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the status is of the ICT Relet Project; what costs his Department has incurred; and if he will make a statement. [194510]

Brandon Lewis: As I outlined to the right hon. Member in my answer to him on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 600W, the programme replaces computers which are seven years old, and also upgrades the systems from Windows XP which is no longer being formally supported by Microsoft with security patches.

The last Administration failed to get value for taxpayers' money due to poor management of IT contracts. Indeed, the Department published a contract tender in December 2009 for a desktop IT programme costing up to £160 million. This was subsequently cancelled under this Government as part of our wider reduction in departmental spending and reconfiguration of IT procurement policy.

The fact that we have delivered a 40% saving on our IT costs is an example of how all parts of the public sector can deliver sensible savings through better procurement.

Local Government

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of line of business and desktop applications in local government. [194949]

Brandon Lewis: My Department has not made any estimates in this area but I do encourage local authorities to take full advantage of the efficiencies that electronic ways of working can bring.

Mary Portas

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether Mary Portas is still engaged as an adviser to the Government on high streets in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement. [195143]

Brandon Lewis: Mary Portas has helped raised the profile of British High Streets and sits on the Future High Street Forum as one of the founding members. All members play an important role and are working with Government to bring the issue of High Streets to national attention.

This Government are committed to standing up for local shops and high streets. We have done this by cutting business rates for local shops, making sensible changes to planning rules and taking action to tackle unfair parking practices.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many first time buyers have been helped by the Government's Help to Buy scheme (a) nationally and (b) in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency. [194542]

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Kris Hopkins: This Government are committed to supporting people's aspirations to own their own home.

In the first 11 months of the scheme, 16,465 households purchased a new build home with the support of the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme.

By January 2014, the time of the last quarterly statistical release, first time buyers accounted for 89% of sales nationally. In Lancaster there were 16 sales by the end of January and first-time buyers accounted for 88% of all Help to Buy: equity loan sales in the area.

Home owners will also have been supported by the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme, which is overseen by HM Treasury.

Pensioners: Council Tax

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward legislative proposals to lift people over 75 years of age out of council tax. [194543]

Brandon Lewis: Low-income pensioners are already protected under the nationally set council tax support scheme for pensioners, and do not have to pay any council tax. They have saved and worked hard all their lives, and deserve security in retirement.

Social Rented Housing: Lancaster

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many council houses or social housing new builds have been built by Lancaster District Council, and in which areas, since 1997. [194539]

Kris Hopkins: Statistics on house building completions by tenure in each local authority district are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annual) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:

http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building

Taken together, the Private Registered Provider (housing association) and local authority tenures provide estimates of total social housing completions, but these figures understate total affordable supply. This is because the house building figures are categorised by the type of developer rather than the intended final tenure, leading to under recording of affordable housing, and a corresponding over recording of private enterprise figures.

More comprehensive statistics on affordable housing completions funded by the Homes and Communities Agency since 2009-10 by local authority district are available at the following link:

http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/housing-statistics

These statistics include both newly built housing and acquisitions but exclude delivery of affordable housing not funded by Homes and Communities Agency programmes that are reported in local authority returns to the Department. A fuller picture of all affordable housing completions is published in the Department's live tables 1006, 1006a, 1007 and 1008, which are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply

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There is no data source that provides information on affordable homes delivery at any geography smaller than local authority district.

Over 170,000 new affordable homes have been delivered in England since April 2010 (to the end of September 2013). Our Affordable Homes Programme will lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment over the current spending review period. Over 2015-18, we will be investing a further £23 billion in public and private funding for affordable housing.

Third Sector: Tower Hamlets

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the use of public money by the Mayor of Tower Hamlets to fund third sector organisations; and if he will make a statement. [194881]

Brandon Lewis: I refer the right hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made today by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles).

Travel

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost of travel within the UK was for his Department in each year since 2010; and how much of this was spent on (a) hire cars, (b) helicopter hire, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence. [176826]

Chris Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many overseas trips, and at what total cost, his Department has made in each year since 2010; and what the costs of (a) flights, (b) internal travel, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence were of each trip. [175475]

Brandon Lewis: The information is as follows:

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Role of the Department

Reflecting our responsibilities for local government, housing, planning and communities across England, the work of the Department involves staff travelling to different parts of the country.

Improved procurement has reduced our average domestic hotel rate in the UK by 8% between 2009-10 and 2012-13. Moreover, domestic flights for longer journeys can avoid the need for paying for staff to stay in a hotel overnight.

Since 2011-12, the Department accepted responsibility for some new functions outside of London, including residual functions following the closure of the Government offices for the regions and then oversight of the European Regional Development Fund following the abolition of the Regional Development Agencies. As these business functions relate to work in areas outside of London and to the European Commission, this has therefore increased our travel spend compared to the base of 2010-11. However, this is far more than offset by the very significant savings to taxpayers of the abolition of these regional bodies.

Based on current estimates (which reflect accounting consequences from machinery of government changes) the DCLG Group is reducing its annual running costs by around 40% in real terms between 2010-11 and 2014-15. This equates to net savings of at least £532 million over this spending review period and includes savings of around £420 million from the closure of the Government offices for the regions.

In addition to this, I note that the Regional Development Agencies were spending in the region of £246 million a year on administration (as cited in 11 March 2009, Official Report, column 592W).

Spending data

The following tables list spending on travel by financial year. Figures for 2009-10 are from July 2009, as this is when the Department's current approved travel agent contract commenced; those figures are therefore only for three-quarters of the financial year, and the full year is likely to be proportionately higher.

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Travellers: Caravan Sites

Dr Phillip Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to ensure that the allocation of sites for Gypsies and Travellers is fair; and if he will take steps to ensure that land is granted to such groups only when there is demonstrable need and a lack of current provision. [903558]

Mr Pickles: Our policy is clear that councils are responsible for assessing local needs, and identifying appropriate sites for Travellers to meet those needs. We will consult shortly on proposals to amend the definition of Travellers used for planning purposes to those who actually travel, and strengthen protection for the green belt.

Waste Disposal: Fires

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the cost to the fire services was of dealing with fires at privately-owned waste management sites in the last two years; [194780]

(2) what the cost to the fire services was of dealing with fires at local authority-owned waste management sites in the last two years. [194781]

Brandon Lewis: This information is not held centrally. The cost to fire and rescue authorities in England of dealing with specific fires is a matter for each fire and rescue authority. The cost to fire and rescue authorities in Wales of dealing with specific fires is a devolved matter.

Fire and rescue authorities must produce regularly, and consult on, an integrated risk management plan. The plan must identify the risks facing local communities and detail how the fire and rescue authority will allocate its resources to mitigate them effectively. People have opportunities to make their voices heard on such issues.

There is still scope for fire and rescue authorities to make sensible savings, such as through reforms to flexible staffing and crewing arrangements, better procurement; shared services, collaboration with emergency services and other organisations on service delivery and estates, sickness management; sharing of senior staff, locally led mergers and operational collaborations, new fire-fighting technology, preventative approaches and working with local businesses.

Wind Power

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the prevalence of wind turbine developers using the Community Right to Build scheme to circumvent the local planning process. [193840]

Kris Hopkins: The Community Right to Build allows local communities to undertake small-scale, site-specific, community-led developments. It may only be used by community organisations in which local people in the relevant neighbourhood area have a majority of the voting rights and have the majority on the board of directors or governing body of the organisation, and, include different people from at least 10 different addresses

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within the area. This means the Community Right to Build cannot be used by property developers, including wind turbine developers, to gain planning permission for their development proposal—unless that development is something that the community wishes to see and which the community initiates.

Proposals that require an Environmental Impact Assessment or are likely to have significant effects on a site protected under the Habitats Regulations are not eligible to use the Community Right to Build. Where proposals are eligible they will be tested by an independent examiner to see that they are appropriate in the light of national planning policy and generally conform with the strategic policies of the Local Plan for the area and any neighbourhood plans that are in force.

The National Planning Policy Framework is very clear that local councils should design their policies to ensure the adverse impacts of renewable energy developments are addressed satisfactorily. To help implement the environmental balance expected by the Framework, we issued new planning practice guidance for renewable and low carbon energy last July. The guidance makes clear that the need for renewable energy does not automatically override environmental protections and the planning concerns of local communities.

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2014, Official Report, column 533W, on wind power, (1) how his Department makes decisions on planning and recoveries without centrally holding the capacity of energy schemes; [194931]

(2) how much onshore wind capacity was recovered in each month in 2013. [194930]

Kris Hopkins: The main consideration in the recovery of wind turbine appeals is the potential impact of the development on the surrounding area, in the particular circumstances of each appeal and its location. The generation capacity of the appeal is not a driver in the decision on whether or not the appeal should be recovered.

As I said in my earlier answer my Department does not centrally hold details of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals.

Attorney-General

Crown Prosecution Service

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Attorney-General what recent assessment he has made of the cyber security crime skills of staff of the Crown Prosecution Service. [194951]

The Attorney-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has mandatory training for all prosecutors on cybercrime and specific training for prosecutors on offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. This supports guidance for prosecutors on the range of offences which can be committed through the use of cyber technology.

In addition, the CPS will soon be introducing new consolidated guidance for prosecutors on cyber-offending and a new package of e-learning for prosecutors in

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relation to cybercrime which will cover: digital evidence gathering; online grooming; online fraud; and, social media.

Empty Property

Hilary Benn: To ask the Attorney-General what estimate he has made of the empty property business rates for the vacant properties recorded on the e-PIMS database owned by (a) the Law Officers’ Departments and (b) any Executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies of the Law Officers’ Departments in the current financial year. [191801]

The Attorney-General: The Law Officers’ Departments have been actively reducing their estate running costs since 2010 in line with Government policy and have already made significant savings.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) estate rationalisation programme began in 2009 and is set to be completed in 2016, with most of the leases on empty property having expired by then. This programme has already led to a reduction in expenditure and increased efficiency. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has paid £320,178.38 in property business rates in the current financial year on the properties which are currently recorded as vacant on the e-PIMS database as at 14 March 2014. The costs figure has been produced by DTZ who are CPS’s managing agents and have not yet been audited.

The Treasury Solicitor’s Department owns a lease on a building which has some vacant space. This building attracts full business rates in the current financial year. This lease is due to expire in 2016. The estimated business rates for the vacant proportion of the property for 2013-14 are £59,372.71.

The remaining Law Officers’ Departments do not have any vacant properties.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Hilary Benn: To ask the Attorney-General when he expects to answer question No. 191801 tabled by the Rt hon. Member for Leeds Central on 12 March 2014. [194895]

The Attorney-General: I have done so today.

International Development

Developing Countries: Agriculture

Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to “A UK Strategy for Agricultural Technologies”, how much of the £10 million provided by her Department to support the transfer of technology and new products to developing countries has been spent; and if she will make a statement. [194479]

Lynne Featherstone: No DFID funds have been spent as part of the Agri-Tech Catalyst. The selection of the projects from the first round of the Catalyst competition is ongoing. The second round of the competition closes on11 June 2014.

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Development Aid

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking at the High Level Meeting of the Global Partnership for Effective Development to ensure that future aid delivery via the private sector follows the Busan Principles. [194624]

Justine Greening: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for East Renfrewshire (Mr Murphy) on 27 March 2014, Official Report, column 390W.

Ethiopia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions she has had with the Ethiopian Government on her Department's aid funding; and what recent reports she has received of the violent expulsion of Ethiopian farmers from their land. [194636]

Lynne Featherstone: DFID ministers and senior officials continue to engage with the Government of Ethiopia on resettlement, including meetings with the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, in May 2013, November 2013 and December 2013. These discussions have included encouraging the Government of Ethiopia to follow international good practice on resettlement, implementation of a Grievance Response Mechanism, and monitoring and investigation of and action in relation to allegations of abuse.

A summary of the findings and recommendations of multi-donor visits, including DFID, to monitor resettlement in Ethiopia will be made available in due course on the Development Assistance Group's website at:

www.dagethiopia.org

Members: Correspondence

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when she intends to respond to the email of 17 October 2013 sent by the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish concerning her Department's plan for spending and distributing the core funds of £375 million that were pledged in June 2013. [194311]

Lynne Featherstone: I replied to the hon. Member's correspondence on 14 February 2014.

Microfinance

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding her Department allocated to microfinance schemes in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13. [194399]

Lynne Featherstone: DFID's work on microfinance is integrated into broader financial sector development programmes that work to strengthen policy and regulation, build infrastructure and innovate new products and services that meet the needs of poor people.

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DFID monitors expenditure in terms of actual spend. Actual spend on the financial sector development portfolio totalled £50.9 million in 2010-11; £50.9 million in 2011-12 and £59.2 million in 2012-13. Cumulative spend between 2007 and 2012 totalled £282.0 million.

Offences against Children

Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent steps she has taken to ensure that all children are protected from sexual violence in conflict zones. [194843]

Justine Greening: DFID is committed to tackling sexual violence against women and girls, with relevant programming in over 20 countries. For example, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) we have invested £60 million to build security forces capable of better protecting women and girls from sexual violence and DFID has provided £21.6 million to protect women and children from sexual violence in humanitarian emergencies in a range of countries.

Overseas Aid

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what measures are in place to ensure that aid given to foreign countries is used for the purposes intended; and what proportion of such aid not being used for those purposes would result in future aid being denied to that country. [194676]

Justine Greening: DFID has a number of controls in place focusing on monitoring and evaluation, including both internal and external audits and reports from the International Development Committee and the Independent Commission for Aid Impact.

DFID has strong internal review processes in place to make sure projects are properly monitored and closed if they are not delivering good results and value for money.

Pakistan

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with which non-governmental organisations and agencies her Department is working to help residents in the desert region of Thar in Sindh Province, Pakistan. [194942]

Justine Greening: The UK Government provide funding to the World Food Programme and UNICEF who are responding to the situation in Thar.

South Sudan

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions her Department has had with non-governmental agencies in South Sudan on levels of food provision. [194681]

Lynne Featherstone: The UK is extremely concerned about the deteriorating food security in South Sudan, and the urgent need to increase the provision of food supplies and livelihoods support to vulnerable populations. The eruption of conflict on 15 December 2013 has sharply exacerbated an already fragile food security

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situation: 3.2 million people are now at immediate risk of food insecurity and up to 7.2 million are estimated to be at some risk.

DFID South Sudan is in regular contact with critical non-government agencies operating in the country, both UN agencies such as the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), as well as with key non-government organisations, to understand and inform the humanitarian response and to monitor needs and the quality of the humanitarian operation. DFID South Sudan staff have visited displaced communities in Unity and Jonglei States in recent weeks to meet affected people, and international agencies delivering assistance, in order to better understand food security needs.

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to prevent famine in South Sudan. [194692]

Justine Greening: The UK is the second largest donor to the Crisis Response Plan for South Sudan, and we are working with the UN and other donors to raise the prominence of the appeal, and secure new and increased commitments of funds. DFID has contributed £20.8 million of new humanitarian funding in South Sudan since December 2013. We have also allocated £17 million to support the refugee response in neighbouring countries.

Syria

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions she has had with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees on the average time taken to register a Syrian refugee in neighbouring countries. [194682]

Justine Greening: My officials are in regular discussion with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) at both national and regional levels regarding UNHCR's efforts to protect and assist Syrian refugees. UNHCR has devoted considerable resources to reducing the average time taken for refugee registration. In Lebanon, for example, average registration time has fallen from 80 days to 21 days.

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions her Department has had with agencies working within Syria on the work of the Syrian Recovery Trust Fund; and how the £3 million funding announced on 31 March will be spent. [194738]

Justine Greening: DFID and FCO officials have held discussions with a range of donors to the Trust Fund as well as the trustee, implementing partners and the national coalition.

Energy and Climate Change

Biofuels

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on what date he intends to publish the Bioenergy Emissions and Counterfactual calculator. [194603]

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Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change intends to publish the Bioenergy Emissions and Counterfactual calculator during the first half of 2014, as set out during the Commons debate on the Draft Renewables (Amendment) Order 2014, on 20 March 2014 by the Minister of State for Energy, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Michael Fallon).

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what audit requirements are (a) in place and (b) planned for generating stations over 1MW in size that use solid biomass or biogas. [194620]

Gregory Barker: The Renewables Obligation (Amendment) Order 2014, which came into force on 1 April 2014, requires generating stations with a total installed capacity of 1MW and above that use solid biomass or biogas to provide an annual sustainability audit report in respect of the biomass that they use. There are exceptions for landfill gas, sewage gas, municipal waste, manure and for other fuels which do not meet the specific definition of biomass within the renewables obligation (RO).

The audit report must be prepared to ISAE3000 standard or its equivalent, and must be prepared by a person who is not the owner or operator of the station or a connected person. In the case of biomass which is not waste or derived from waste, the audit must cover the information provided by the operator of the station in respect of the land criteria or Timber Standard, and greenhouse gas sustainability criteria. In the case of biomass which is waste or derived from waste, the audit must cover the information provided by the operator of the station that the biomass was waste or wholly derived from waste. Other detailed requirements for the audit report are set out in article 54B of the Renewables Obligation Order 2009, as inserted by article 15 of the Renewables Obligation (Amendment) Order 2014.

A similar audit requirement is planned to apply to Combined Heat and Power (CHP) stations receiving support under the renewable heat incentive (RHI) if they choose not to source fuel from the RHI Biomass Suppliers List (BSL), a list of suppliers selling sustainable fuel, but instead report against the RHI sustainability criteria to Ofgem.

It is intended that the Contracts for Difference (CfD) awarded for bioenergy under the first Electricity Market Reform Delivery Plan will follow the same approach on sustainability audit as set out under the renewables obligation.

Ofgem, as the administrator of the renewables obligation, carries out a programme of audits of accredited generating stations, primarily to guard against fraud and error. This can include stations over 1MW in size that use solid biomass or biogas. They also ensure that a generating station remains an eligible renewable generating station for the purposes of the RO, that Ofgem holds the most up-to-date information for a station, and that the correct number of renewables obligation certificates (ROCs) has been issued to the generator in question. The audits are carried out on a rolling basis, with targeted audits where it is deemed necessary. The CfD Counterparty company will be empowered under the Contracts for

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Difference to audit any generating station it chooses, with one business day's written notice, to check compliance with agreed fuel measurement and sampling procedures.

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the quantity of biomass consumed by the 1% of biomass plant that was below 1MW in capacity. [195006]

Michael Fallon: We have not made a recent estimate of the quantity of biomass consumed by biomass plant below 1MW in capacity.

However, based on modelling published in the Impact Assessment to the Renewables Obligation Banding Review 2012, we can estimate the theoretical quantity of biomass that would be consumed by 1% of total generating capacity. Assuming all the planned plants were built, this would give a theoretical maximum equivalent to around 150,000 oven dried tonnes per annum in 2016-17. This figure excludes potential capacity changes to plants below 1MW as a result of the introduction of the 400MW cap for new build dedicated biomass.

Combined Heat and Power

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effect of deterioration in normal operation on the efficiency assumptions for the new combined heat and power classifications. [194621]

Gregory Barker: In 2013 the Government reviewed the minimum performance standards for renewable combined heat and power (CHP) set in our Quality Assurance programme. In response to the consultation responses on the proposed revisions we reviewed available data on renewable CHP performance, including deterioration. As a result of this review, performance assumptions for new engines/turbines were relaxed in finalising the requirements based on evidence. In respect of deterioration in normal operation the Government reviewed CHP Quality Assurance data on the operational efficiency of eight renewable CHP schemes, each with two to 13 years operational data. Of these, three showed increasing efficiency over time and five showed no discernible increase or decrease over time.

Energy: Business

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what sanctions or remedies are available if energy suppliers do not end automatic run-overs of contracts for supplying energy to small businesses. [193790]

Michael Fallon: The practice of the automatic roll-over of contracts does not breach any licence condition and therefore there are currently no sanctions available to Government or the independent regulator (Ofgem).

Last year Ofgem carried out a review of the practice of automatic renewal contract arrangements in the non-domestic retail energy market. As a result of the review, Ofgem is currently consulting on proposals to improve end of contract arrangements. The proposals do not include a ban on automatic rollovers because Ofgem considers that such a ban could reduce competition

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from independent suppliers, which gives small businesses a greater choice to choose a deal that suits their business needs. The focus is on improving protections for non-domestic consumers by improving the clarity of information provided by energy supply companies. The consultation closes on 9 April and is available from Ofgem's website at:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/non-domestic-automatic-rollovers-and-contract-renewals

In June last year we set up a No. 10/DECC SME Energy Working Group to tackle issues facing small business with groups including the Federation of Small Businesses and the Forum for Private Business and Energy UK.

As a result a number of energy companies have already agreed to introduce arrangements before the end of this year to limit back-bills to 1 year where the supplier is at fault, which is the same rule as for domestic customers, and to end automatic-rollovers for all new customers from spring 2014 and to existing customers shortly after.

We will continue to work with industry and SME consumer groups to address issues to help disengaged small business energy consumers.

Fuel Poverty

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure that the new Fuel Poverty Target will address the specific needs of people affected by conditions such as muscular dystrophy and neuromuscular conditions. [194868]

Gregory Barker: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Harborough (Sir Edward Garnier) on 26 February 2014, Official Report, column 416W.

Fuel Poverty: Scotland

Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on fuel poverty and the use of prepayment meters by the fuel poor. [194841]

Gregory Barker: Officials in the Department liaise regularly with the Scottish Government on a range of fuel poverty related issues.

Magnox Ltd

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the socio-economic development performance of Magnox in North Ayrshire. [194319]

Michael Fallon: Magnox Ltd is the site licence company that operates 10 Magnox sites under contract to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Magnox Ltd published a socio-economic strategy for its sites in 2011, which includes Hunterston A in North Ayrshire. DECC has no direct role in assessing Magnox's performance in this area which is a matter for the NDA.

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Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what involvement his Department had in overseeing the activities of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in awarding the Magnox/RSRL contract; and if he will make a statement. [194916]

Michael Fallon: The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is responsible for running the competition to secure a new parent body organisation for Magnox Ltd and Research Sites Restoration Ltd in line with its statutory duties and responsibilities under the Energy Act 2004. The competition is run in strict accordance with UK and EU procurement regulations. Oversight and governance is provided by the NDA's Competition Programme Board, on which the Government are represented by the Shareholder Executive (on behalf of DECC), HM Treasury and Infrastructure UK. Formal Government approval will be required before the contract can be awarded in September.

Nuclear Management Partners

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the socio-economic development performance of NMP in West Cumbria. [194320]

Michael Fallon: NMP is the parent body organisation for Sellafield Ltd, the site licence company that operates Sellafield site under contract to the NDA. NMP, Sellafield Ltd and the NDA work collaboratively to support the socio-economic agenda in west Cumbria, with all three organisations having focused their activities through Britain's Energy Coast, the private/public sector partnership established to promote and develop the economic prospects of the area. DECC has no direct role in assessing NMP's performance in this area which is a matter for the NDA.

Ofgem

Mr Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether customers phoning Ofgem can speak to an employee in addition to using the automatic system; whether it is Ofgem's policy to advise callers to contact the nearest citizen's advice bureau for queries on energy firms and prices; and if he will make a statement. [194650]

Michael Fallon: Telephone calls to Ofgem's main telephone number initially lead to an automated system, where complaints or inquiries about an energy company or a need for advice lead to a recorded message advising the person to contact the relevant energy company or Government-funded citizen's consumer service. If callers wish to speak to a named person, have an inquiry about Ofgem policies or have any other inquiry they will be transferred to a person.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much solar photovoltaic generating capacity was installed on roof tops under the 250-5MWp FIT band in 2013; and how much capacity will be so installed in 2014. [194355]

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Gregory Barker: In 2013 5MW of solar photovoltaic (across 10 installations) was installed under the 250-5MW FIT band. The Central FIT Register, from which these figures are taken, does not contain information on whether these installations are located on rooftops or ground mounted but all schemes under this tariff band will be wired to provide electricity to a building.

However, the Government are actively focused on unlocking to deployment in the mid-sized market. Our current estimates suggest that around 20-230MW may be deployed in the 250-5000kW tariff band in 2014; this range reflects the uncertainties described above.

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress his Department has made in mobilising the mid-scale solar photovoltaic sector; and if he will make a statement. [194724]

Gregory Barker: On Friday 4 April, I launched the UK's first Solar PV Strategy, which set out our ambition for Solar PV in the UK. Central to this is an emphasis on deployment on Commercial and Industrial buildings as well as domestic roof tops, rather than large scale ground-mounted systems.

The solar strategy sets out a number of wide ranging actions which will encourage deployment in this part of the sector.

Education

Academies

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he plans to allow Ofsted to inspect bodies which run chains of academy schools. [194163]

Mr Timpson: Ofsted already inspects academy chains through batched inspections of schools within chains. It has recently undertaken focused inspections of academies within the E-ACT multi-academy trust and has previously inspected a group of academies within the AET chain. This has shown to be an effective approach and there are no plans to widen Ofsted's role to inspect head offices.

Children in Care: Asylum

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on care-leaving arrangements for asylum seekers who came to the UK alone as children. [194871]

Mr Timpson: Guidance to local authorities on care- leaving arrangements for asylum seekers who came to the UK alone as children is included in Volume 3 of ‘The Children Act Guidance and Regulations: Planning Transition to Adulthood for Care Leavers’.

http://resources.leavingcare.org/uploads/c4f7aeaf941cdef b8f4a18f478aa1f19.pdf

The Department for Education published for consultation in January of this year draft statutory guidance to local authorities on the care of unaccompanied asylum seeking and trafficked children.

https://www.education.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=conResults&consultationid=1945& external=no&menu=3

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This new guidance brings together guidance on transition planning with wider guidance on providing care for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. That consultation has now closed and final guidance will be published in due course.

Curriculum

Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to increase the involvement of practising teachers in the design of the national curriculum. [194571]

Elizabeth Truss: The new national curriculum, which was published on 11 September 2013, has been developed with due regard to the views of subject experts, teachers, and the findings of international best practice comparisons. Over 2,470 of the responses to the consultation on the new curriculum were from individual teachers, headteachers and schools. In response to the representations, changes were made to improve clarity, precision and consistency of the content.

We are confident that our reform of the national curriculum will give teachers greater flexibility and freedom than ever before, which will help to raise standards and expectations for all pupils. The national curriculum has been significantly slimmed down and will free up teachers to use their professional judgment to design curriculums that meet the needs of their pupils.

Education: Assessments

Mr Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the written statement of 27 March 2014, Official Report, columns 35-6WS, on primary and 16-to-19 assessment and accountability, how the progress of pupils with severe educational needs will be taken into account in his Department’s accountability reform programme. [194854]

Mr Laws: We plan to continue to publish information on attainment and progress of pupils with special educational needs at national and local authority level. A new web portal, which is under development, will improve access to 16-18 performance data, including the core demographic information, such as that on special educational needs, that is currently available for primary and secondary schools.

Any pupils not able to access the relevant end of key stage test will continue to have their attainment assessed by teachers, and we will retain P scales for reporting teachers' judgments.

Mr Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the written statement of 27 March 2014, Official Report, columns 35-6WS, on primary and 16-to-19 assessment and accountability, what account will be taken of the progress made by children who have entered the school beyond the baseline reception assessment procedure, but who do not warrant exemption under the final two years prior to key stage 2 exams. [194855]

Mr Laws: Schools will continue to be expected to assess all of their pupils upon entering school and track their progress. Ofsted will expect to see evidence that pupils are making appropriate progress, with inspections informed by the school's data on pupil progress. Assessment at key stage 1 will remain a statutory requirement.

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Forced Marriage

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure that teachers are aware of how to support students at risk of forced marriage; and what material his Department makes available in schools on sources of help for those threatened with forced marriage. [194819]

Mr Timpson: On 3 April the Government published ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education', updated statutory guidance for schools and colleges on their safeguarding responsibilities. The Secretary of State for Education wrote to all headteachers to draw their attention to the updated guidance, which can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education

The guidance contains links to sources of more detailed information and guidance on specific risks, including forced marriage. The information on forced marriage includes multi-agency practice guidelines, which contain a chapter targeted at schools, colleges and universities and details of national support agencies that may assist girls and young women.

Home Education: Pendle

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in Pendle constituency are home-schooled. [194346]

Elizabeth Truss: The information requested is not collected by the Department for Education.

Literacy: Primary Education

Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of long-term trends in the number of hours of literacy teaching which primary school children receive and how this affects reading and writing attainment. [194155]

Elizabeth Truss: We do not collect data on the number of hours of literacy teaching primary school children receive.

We are committed to raising standards of literacy in schools and making sure that every child masters the basics of reading and writing at a young age. The new primary national curriculum for English is explicitly designed to make sure that all children leave primary school fully literate and ready to progress at secondary school.

The new national curriculum sets out very clearly what should be taught to pupils. However, it gives schools the flexibility to decide how to teach it, including how much time to spend on teaching literacy, because schools are best placed to determine the needs and abilities of their pupils and how to meet them.

National College for Teaching and Leadership

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will take steps to require all police referrals to the National College of Teaching and Leadership to include details of the school where the alleged teacher previously taught. [194601]

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Mr Laws: Referrals by the police to the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) are currently made under the Notifiable Occupations Scheme, which is the responsibility of the Home Office (Home Office Circular No. 6/2006). The scheme is currently under review with new provisions being considered by the Home Office to supersede the existing scheme.

Officials at NCTL are in discussions with the Association of Chief Police Officers to ensure that the new scheme continues to provide consistent, timely and relevant information. Disclosure of the teacher's current or last employment will be considered as part of those ongoing discussions.

Park View Academy

Mr Khalid Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reasons eight of the 13 governors from Park View Academy resigned within five months of its transfer to academy status. [195027]

Mr Timpson: Governors may resign at any time for their own reasons; they do not need to tell the Department for Education or their fellow governors why.

The Department's preference is for small and manageable, skill-based strategic governing bodies as these are more effective, and it will normally recommend this when an academy trust is first formed. The governance arrangements for an academy trust are set out in its articles of association.

Park View Educational Trust has told the Department that there was a need to rationalise the governing body to ensure it could operate more effectively, and in order to comply with the Department's preferred model when other academies joined the trust to form a multi-academy trust.

We are aware of the serious allegations made in relation to some local authority schools and academies in Birmingham. Park View Academy has recently been inspected by Ofsted, and officials from the Department have also visited the school. We will not hesitate to take firm action if the high standards and requirements expected of schools are not being met—in particular, where we become aware of issues of concern in an academy we will move quickly to resolve these. It would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.

Procurement

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the (a) 20 highest and (b) 20 lowest value contracts awarded by his Department were in each financial year since 2009-10. [194218]

Elizabeth Truss: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 2 April 2014, Official Report, column 721W.

Pupil Exclusions: Autism

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2014, Official Report, columns 787-8W, on pupil exclusions: autism, how his Department deals with allegations that schools are disregarding the statutory guidance on exclusion in respect of students with autistic disorders. [194185]

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Elizabeth Truss: As part of their legal duties in relation to exclusion, schools must have regard to the statutory guidance issued by the Department for Education. Parents approaching the Department with concerns about an exclusion are informed about the formal routes of challenge available to them and directed to sources of free and impartial advice. If the Department identifies that a governing body has acted unlawfully or unreasonably in carrying out its legal duties, and it would be expedient to do so, then the Secretary of State could issue a direction. The Department would also pass to Ofsted any relevant evidence that fell within the inspectorate's remit.

Pupils: Per Capita Costs

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the (a) total and (b) average funding per head is under the basic funding formula for pupils in Staffordshire in 2014-15. [194795]

Mr Laws: Total funding under the schools block element of the dedicated schools grant in financial year 2014 to 2015 for Staffordshire is £455.7 million, with an associated unit of funding per pupil of £4,310.

More information on the dedicated schools grant allocations for financial year 2014 to 2015 can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-2014-to-2015

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the (a) total and (b) average funding per head is under the basic funding formula for pupils in Somerset in 2014-15. [194796]

Mr Laws: Total funding under the schools block element of the dedicated schools grant in financial year 2014 to 2015 for Somerset is £273.2 million, with an associated unit of funding per pupil of £4,278.

More information on the dedicated schools grant allocations for financial year 2014 to 2015 can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-2014-to-2015

Schools: Finance

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 426W, on schools: finance, what the (a) total and (b) per pupil funding for each local authority area for 2015-16 is under the proposals currently published for consultation. [195005]

Mr Laws: I announced on 13 March that in 2015-16, in addition to funding all local authorities at the same cash level per pupil as in 2014-15, we will provide an additional £350 million to the least fairly funded local authorities in the country. Our indicative figures for each local authority that gains under our proposals are published in Annex A of the consultation document at the following address:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fairer-schools-funding-2015-to-2016

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We will protect the funding for all local authorities that do not gain under our minimum-funding-level proposals, ensuring that they will be funded at the same cash level per pupil as in 2014-15. The 2014-15 total and per pupil rates of funding for these local authorities are published at the following address:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-2014-to-2015

We will be able to announce final decisions on per pupil funding for each gaining local authority in 2015-16 after we have considered responses to the consultation, which closes on 30 April. We will be able to announce the total funding for each local authority in 2015-16 once final pupil numbers are confirmed.

Schools: Governing Bodies

Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of how well-prepared school governors are in advance of their taking the first decisions regarding performance-related pay. [194632]

Mr Timpson: Governors have held school leadership to account for school performance, including the assessment of overall teacher performance, for some time. With the introduction of performance-related pay, governing bodies will have already approved revised pay policies that set out precisely how their schools will make performance and pay decisions.

To support governors in exercising their responsibilities, the Department for Education issued advice on implementing the new pay arrangements. The National College for Teaching and Leadership has also offered training for governors on performance-related pay and financial efficiencies. In addition, the National Governors Association has published guidance on how governors should prepare to deal with pay appeals. We believe that, with this support, most governing bodies will have the knowledge and awareness of the key issues they need to address to ensure that robust evidence-based pay decisions are made this September.

Teachers

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many people have entered (a) teacher training and (b) the teaching profession as qualified teachers in each of the last five years; and how many unqualified teachers have been employed in (i) England and (ii) North Yorkshire in each of the last five years. [193524]

Mr Laws: The following table provides the number of initial teacher training entrants, qualified teacher entrants and full-time equivalent unqualified teachers in service in publicly funded schools in England, 2008 to the latest year available. Information on teachers starting training and entering service is not available by local authority area so cannot be provided for North Yorkshire. Figures for the number of full-time equivalent unqualified teachers are available and have been given.

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Truancy

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the incidence of truancy was in schools in the latest period for which figures are available; and what steps he is taking to reduce it and to involve parents in those efforts. [194633]

Elizabeth Truss: Since the report by Charlie Taylor on improving school attendance, the Government's focus has been on reducing absence overall and encouraging schools to address patterns of poor attendance early.

To help schools do this, the Department for Education reduced the threshold at which pupils were classified as persistent absent, from 20% to 15% of sessions missed. In 2012, we increased the level of the school attendance penalty fines, from £50 and £100 to £60 and £120 respectively, and in 2013 reduced the overall time scales for paying fines from 42 to 28 days. The second most common reason for absence is family holiday, so we tightened the law in September 2013 so that headteachers could only grant requests for leave during term time in exceptional circumstances.

Our reforms are working. In 2012/13, 300,895 pupils were persistently absent, down from 433,130 in 2009/10—a fall of almost a third. 130,000 fewer pupils were missing

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15% of school in 2012/13 compared with 2010/11. Overall absence rates are down from 6.3% of possible sessions missed in 2008/09 to 5.2% in 2012/13.

Defence

Armed Forces Covenant

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department has made in implementing the Military Covenant; and if he will make a statement. [195185]

Anna Soubry: There is a statutory obligation on the Secretary of State for Defence to report annually on progress in implementing the Armed Forces Covenant. The second annual report was published in December 2013 and contains comprehensive updates on the four major areas specified in the Armed Forces Act 2011, namely health care, education, housing, and the operation of inquests.

I look forward to significant further progress in the coming year, including supporting service personnel to buy their first home through the £200 million Forces Help to Buy scheme, improving patient care by establishing a unified defence primary health care service, and allocating £40 million to support charities which assist veterans with housing needs.

The Covenant is not just a matter for the Government; recognising and respecting the specific needs of the armed forces community is a duty incumbent on the whole of society. Charities, employers, local authorities and individuals can play their role in providing the support and fair treatment that our service personnel, veterans and service families so richly deserve.

Armed Forces: Pensions

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what savings have accrued to the Exchequer through the linking of the value of armed forces pensions to the Consumer Prices Index rather than the Retail Prices Index. [193206]

Anna Soubry [holding answer 25 March 2014]: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is used to set the inflation target for the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee; it is the headline measure of inflation in the UK as reported by the Office of National Statistics, and is an internationally comparable measure.

CPI is therefore considered by the Government to be the appropriate index to provide protection from inflation, which is why both the armed forces and civil service pension schemes use this measure.

The armed forces continue to benefit from the only major public sector pension scheme that is non-contributory.

The information requested is shown in the following table. These figures are estimates:

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Armed Forces: Sexual Offences

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many prosecutions of (a) rape and (b) sexual assault of members of the armed forces resulted in a conviction by the Military Courts Service in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013; [190437]

(2) how many allegations of (a) rape and (b) sexual assault were made within the chain of command against members of the armed forces in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013; and, of such cases, how many resulted in a prosecution by the Service Prosecution Authority. [190438]

Anna Soubry: All allegations of rape and sexual assault will be thoroughly investigated by either the civil or service police, depending upon who has jurisdiction. The following table provides details of the number of allegations of rape and sexual assault made within the chain of command against members of the armed forces in each of the last four years as recorded by the service police. Reference to rape covers offences under section 1 and sexual assault covers offences under sections 2 and 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

The following table provides details of the number of referrals to the Service Prosecuting Authority (SPA) in each of the last four years, the number directed for trial and the number of convictions in the Military Court Service.

The SPA may receive referrals in one year and the cases are directed/not directed and/or tried in the following year, so there is no direct correlation to the number of cases brought in any one year.

I should also like to take the opportunity to clarify the relationship between the figures provided in this answer and earlier answers. The figures for sexual assaults in this answer are different from those provided by the then Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan), on 6 July 2012, Official Report, column 822W, in response to a question from the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs Moon), for sexual assault referrals in the years between 2010 and 2012 (although 2012 was only for part of the year). This is because the term

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“sexual assault” has been expanded to cover the offences of indecent assault and sexual activity with a child. In addition, the figures provided in a response given by my predecessor (Mark Francois) on 30 November 2012,

Official Report,

column 555W, again to the hon. Member for Bridgend, referred only to the number of cases where the victim was a member of the armed forces. The figures in the tables above cover all cases handled by the SPA, whether or not the victim was a member of the armed forces.

Armed Forces: Training

Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 27 March 2014, Official Report, column 317W, on armed forces: training, how many hours of equality and diversity training new services entrants receive during basic training; how many hours refresher training (a) Army, (b) Navy and (c) RAF personnel receive each year they are required to receive such training; and if he will make a statement. [194670]

Anna Soubry: The requested information is set out in the following table:

Armed Forces: Young People

Sir Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when RAF enlistment papers and information given to prospective recruits will be updated to reflect the extended discharge as of right for recruits enlisting under the age of 18 years old, as introduced in the Armed Forces (Terms of Service) (Amendment) Regulations 2011. [194725]

Anna Soubry: The RAF's enlistment paperwork was updated immediately after the amendment in 2011 and continues correctly to reflect the rights for discharge of airmen under 18 years of age.

Army: Recruitment

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the “More than meets the eye” recruitment campaign has cost; and if he will place in the Library copies of the written brief for the campaign and any evaluation that has been made so far. [192998]

Anna Soubry: The date and approximate cost of each campaign specified is shown in the following table:

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The evaluation work for the “More than meets the eye” campaign is expected to report in May. The figure quoted reflects the media costs of the campaign, and includes approximately £1.2 million from the existing contracted budget. I have placed a copy of the marketing brief and analysis of results for the “Step Up” campaign in the Library of the House. The “Start Thinking Soldier” campaign took place four years before the current partnering arrangement between the Army and Capita started. Although formal evaluation is no longer held for “Start Thinking Soldier”, I have placed the marketing brief for the television advertising in the Library of the House.

The Army is always recruiting, as it requires a constant flow of personnel to enter as privates and officer cadets, and then to gain the knowledge and experience to be promoted through the ranks. Consequently, it will always need to run recruitment campaigns. Army recruiting will continue to be supported by targeted campaigns, designed to highlight the variety of skills and trades available in both the regular and reserve forces.

BAE Systems

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's agreement in principle for three offshore patrol vessels with BAE Systems. [194242]

Mr Dunne: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 8 November 2013, Official Report, column 401W.

Brompton Road Station

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what valuation was undertaken prior to the sale of Brompton Road tube station; [194734]

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(2) what the sale process was for Brompton Road tube station; [194735]

(3) how many bidders there were for Brompton Road tube station; [194736]

(4) how many tube stations his Department owns. [194737]

Dr Murrison: No tube stations are currently owned by the Ministry of Defence.

Brompton Road Tube Station was valued by the Department's independent marketing agent. The top bid received was in excess of this valuation.

Brompton Road Tube Station was sold in accordance with the normal departmental procedures as mandated by the Treasury.

There were 12 bidders for Brompton Road Tube Station.

Clyde Submarine Base

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the tritium gas emissions have been from RNAD Coulport in each of the last four years; and what estimate he has made of emissions in each of the next four years; [194177]

(2) how much of each type of radioactive emission will change at (a) RNAD Coulport and (b) HMNB Clyde in each of the next six years. [194178]

Mr Dunne: The most up-to-date figures for tritium discharges from Royal Naval Armament Depot (RNAD) Coulport are published annually in “Radioactivity in Food and the Environment”, which the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) co-authors. They are also shown in the following table:

These discharges are well within the current limits approved by SEPA. This compares well with tritium gaseous discharges from other sites regulated by SEPA. For example, Hunterston B Nuclear Power Station in 2012 had an annual discharge of 2560 GBq.

Future discharge levels of each type of radioactive discharge from Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde, which includes the RNAD Coulport, will depend on the specific activities and operations that take place at those sites, but are expected to be well within the annual limits proposed by the Ministry of Defence which are currently under consideration by SEPA.

Defence Equipment and Support

Sir Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will publish the corporate plan of the Defence Equipment and Support Organisation relating to its new bespoke trading fund status; [194809]

(2) what advantages he expects to accrue from the new bespoke trading fund status of the Defence Equipment and Support Organisation; and what new freedoms that organisation will have which were not previously available to it. [194815]

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the detailed arrangements for the bespoke trading entity being set up with existing DE&S. [194684]

Mr Dunne: Copies of the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Corporate Plan and the Framework Document will be placed in the Library of the House in due course and published on the gov.uk website and the Defence Intranet. The Corporate Plan sets out the DE&S strategic objectives and timelines for the next three years. The Framework Document includes the function and governance arrangements for the new DE&S, including the freedoms and benefits.

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Defence: Procurement

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department spend was in total in 2013-14 on defence procurement; and what proportion of that total was spent in the (a) UK, (b) EU and (c) rest of the world. [194941]

Mr Dunne: Information on spending on defence procurement in financial year 2013-14 will be available once the audit of defence expenditure in that year has been completed; we are due to report our 2013-14 financial performance in our Annual Report and Accounts before the House rises for the summer recess. Information for April to September 2013 was published in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Mid-Year Report on 24 January 2014, available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministry-of-defence-mid-year-progress-report

The MOD does not routinely record information on the geographic location of its supply chain.

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department plans to spend on defence procurement in 2014-15 as a proportion of the overall departmental budget. [194943]

Mr Dunne: This information will be available once the 2014-15 Main Supply Estimates have been laid before the House, which is currently planned for the end of April 2014.

Guided Weapons

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the planned in-service date is for the Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon; how many will be procured; and what estimate he has made of the (a) total programme and (b) unit cost. [194768]

Mr Dunne: The planned in-service date for the Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon (Heavy) (FASGW(H)) is 2020. I am withholding the information relating to the number being procured as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

The total programme cost for FASGW(H) is £500 million and is a joint investment with the French Government. The UK's contribution is £280 million (contract value excluding VAT). I am withholding information on the unit cost of FASGW(H) as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

I am also withholding all information on the FASGW (Light) as contract negotiations are ongoing and disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect of other nations buying fewer joint strike fighters than originally planned on the final price of that aircraft. [194767]

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Mr Dunne: As part of the Ministry of Defence's annual budgeting cycle and in-year financial management process, the Department is constantly reviewing the unit production cost (UPC) for the Joint Strike Fighter as it affects the UK programme. Consequently, the UK is always aware of the impact of any changes in other nation's aircraft buys. The impact of changes in UPC is mitigated via financial risk provision within the programme budget.

Members: Correspondence

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth (Stephen Doughty) of 23 December 2013, regarding a review of a discharge from the British Army. [194955]

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no record of receiving the letter from the hon. Gentleman. The MOD requested a copy of the letter on 3 April 2014 and will respond shortly.

Military Aviation Authority

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2014, Official Report, column 39W, on Military Aviation Authority, when the Military Aviation Authority plans to publish its Annual Air Safety Report for 2012-13; and for what reason it has not yet been published. [194766]

Mr Francois: The Director General of the Military Aviation Authority's Annual Report on Defence Air Safety, for the period July 2012 to August 2013, is now available on the Military Aviation Authority website at:

http://www.maa.mod.uk/about/index.htm