Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many mobile telephones have been found in prisons in England and Wales, by establishment, in each year since 2010. [197705]
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Jeremy Wright: The National Offender Management Service takes the issues of mobile phones in prison seriously and is committed to addressing the risks that they present. Part of its response is to deploy technology in prisons that prevents mobile phones from working.
The Government has supported the Prisons Interference with the Wireless Telegraphy Act which came into force on 21 October 2013. This Act creates clear statutory powers to enable all prisons to use signal denial technology to suppress the use of wireless telegraphy such as mobile phones by prisoners.
A range of mobile signal denial technology was trialled in a small number of prisons. The trials demonstrated that the equipment is capable of denying signals to illicit mobile phones within the prison perimeter as required by law and Ofcom regulations. NOMS has since distributed 300 short range portable blockers around the prison estate.
Since April 2010, prisons have been asked to send all unauthorised phones and SIM cards found to a central unit for interrogation, or to notify the unit if an unauthorised phone or SIM card has been found but not sent for analysis. Data prior to April 2010 are not held centrally and data for 2013 and 2014 are being verified and are not yet available.
The following table shows the number seizures of mobile phones and/or SIM cards reported by each prison between April 2010 and December 2012. One seizure may constitute a handset containing one SIM card or media card, a handset only, or a SIM card only.
| Establishment | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |
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All figures provided have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
Prisons: Seized Articles
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many seizures of (a) class A drugs, (b) mobile telephones and (c) knives there were in each high security prison in 2013. [197706]
Jeremy Wright: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) takes the issue of all contraband in prisons extremely seriously and deploys a comprehensive range of robust searching and security measures to detect items of contraband both at the point of entry to the prison and concealed within the prison. These include targeted searching, random and targeted mandatory drug tests, the use of x-ray machines and CCTV surveillance cameras, Body Orifice Security Scanners to detect contraband secreted internally, and the imposition of closed (non-contact) visits. Prisoners found with prohibited items face swift and robust punishment. This can include having days added to their custody, being transferred to a different prison and losing privileges.
NOMS records seizures of heroin and cocaine in prisons on its Incident Reporting System (IRS). Seizures of any other class A drug are recorded in a miscellaneous category alongside seizures of other drugs and drug taking paraphernalia. To disaggregate the seizures of other class A drugs from other seizures recorded in the miscellaneous category would require a manual inspection of each record and would incur disproportionate costs for each area inquired of.
Similarly, seizures of knives and other bladed weapons are also recorded in a miscellaneous category on the IRS, alongside seizures of other contraband, and can only be extracted through a manual inspection of each record. For six of the areas enquired of, such an inspection would incur disproportionate costs.
Data relating to mobile phones seized in prisons in 2013 is being verified and is therefore not available for this response.
The following table gives the number of seizures of heroin, cocaine and knives (including bladed improvised weapons and individual blades) seized in each prison in each area in 2013, where extracting the data would not incur disproportionate cost.
| Establishment area | Establishment | seizures of cocaine | seizures of heroin | Seizures of knives |
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It is important to note that many drugs are similar in appearance and in many cases drugs seized are not categorically identified by scientific analysis. Some will have been identified using indicative reagent or Marquis tests. Many will have been identified by appearance only.
All figures in this answer have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. The data are not subject to audit.
Probation
Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) on what date contracts for probation work will be signed; and when operations will go live; [188998]
(2) what the close of tender date will be for the Transforming Rehabilitation agenda; [188999]
(3) what criteria will be used to identify preferred bidders for probation contracts; [189000]
(4) what risks arising from the outsourcing of probation contracts bidders in the process of transition have brought to the attention of his Department. [189001]
Jeremy Wright: Under our Transforming Rehabilitation proposals we are opening up the market to a diverse range of new providers across the public, private and voluntary sectors to bring innovation to rehabilitative services and help deliver reductions in reoffending rates. We are currently engaged in a competition to appoint the 21 owners of the new community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) which will be responsible for the provision of services to all but those offenders which pose the highest risk. We will assess the bids we receive over the summer, and appoint CRC owners later this year. Offers will be evaluated using quality and financial criteria. We expect the new owners to implement their new operating models during 2015.
We are taking a staged approach to implementation and are rolling out business readiness tests at key stages of implementation so that we can ensure we are managing the transition to the new system in a safe and measured way which maintains public protection.
Procurement
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what meetings (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) special advisers have had with (i) G4S, (ii) Serco, (iii) Sodexo, (iv) A4E, (v) Capita, (vi) Mitie, (vii) GEOAmey and (viii) Working Links since September 2013; what the dates of each such meeting were; and what was discussed at each meeting. [189213]
Jeremy Wright: All meetings with external organisations up until October 2013 are published by the Cabinet Office on the gov.uk website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications
Details of meetings from October 2013 onwards will be published shortly. In addition, I can confirm that special advisers have not attended any meetings independently from Ministers.
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Prosecutions
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average length of time is between a defendant being charged and the first day of proceedings in court in cases of (a) domestic violence, (b) sexual abuse and (c) rape. [197386]
Damian Green: The Government are committed to modernising courts and using technology to improve efficiency.
The average (median) number of days taken from charge to first listing in court for completed criminal
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cases (domestic violence, sexual abuse and rape) in England and Wales, annually 2010-13, is shown in table 1.
The way in which offence level data is collected and reported means that some offences are not separately identifiable from others. The information presented in table 1 relates only to those offences which can be separately identified from others and relates specifically to the legislation listed under a given category. Statistics on domestic violence have not been provided due to the reason outlined above and therefore excluded from table 1.
| Table 1: Average (median) number of days taken from charge to first listing for all completed criminal cases, in England and Wales, annually 2010-131, 2, 3, 4 | ||||
| Sexual abuse5 | Rape6 | |||
| Defendants | Charge or laying of information to first listing (days) | Defendants | Charge or laying of information to first listing (days) | |
| Number | Median | Number | Median | |
| 1 Excludes breaches and cases with an offence to completion time greater than 10 years. 2 Statistics are sourced from linked magistrates courts and Crown court administrative data systems—with a match rate of around 95%. 3 Only one offence is counted for each defendant in the case. If there is more than one offence per defendant that complete on the same day, a set of validation rules applies to select one offence only and these relate to the longest duration, seriousness and the lowest sequence number of the offence. 4 Included all criminal cases which have received a verdict and concluded in the specified time period, in either the magistrates courts or the Crown court. 5 Sexual abuse offences refer to the sum of the detailed offences such as sexual assault, sexual activity and familial sexual offences under Sexual Offences Act 2003. 6 Rape offences refer to the sum of the detailed offences such as rape and attempted rape under Sexual Offences Act 2003. 7 Timeliness figures are only available from April 2010, so data for 2010 is presented above for Q2 to Q4 only. Source: Criminal Court Statistics, Justice Statistics Analytical Services. | ||||
Remand in Custody
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 406W, on remand in custody, what proportion of the total number of defendants charged with the relevant offences the figures represent. [197887]
Jeremy Wright: The following table shows the total number of defendants proceeded against for the specified offence groups and the number of defendants who were remanded in custody, broken down by sex. It also shows the percentage of defendants remanded in custody out of the total number of defendants proceeded against for the specified offence categories.
| Defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts, by remand status, offence group and sex, England and Wales, 20121, 2 | |||||||
| Percentage of total proceeded against | |||||||
| Offence group | Remand status | Male | Female | Total | Male | Female | Total |
| 1 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 2 Magistrates courts data for 2012 are estimated. 3 Based on new Office for National Statistics (ONS) crime classifications. For further detail see: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/method-quality/specific/crime-statistics-methodology/presentational-changes-on-police-recorded-crime-in-england-and-wales.pdf 4 Includes those remanded in custody at any stage of proceedings at the magistrates court who may also have been given bail at some stage of those proceedings. 5 Includes offences under S.2, S.2A(1), S.3, S.4, S.4A(1)(a)(b)(i), S.4A(1)(a)(b)(ii), S.5, SS.5A(2) & 5(5) and (6) of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, and S.31(1)(b) and (4), S.31(1)(c) and (4) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, and S.42A of the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice. | |||||||
Reoffenders
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of offenders who (a) breached their licence conditions and (b) re-offended while on licence were recalled to prison in each year since 2008. [187481]
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Jeremy Wright: For offenders, the period of post-release supervision on licence forms an integral part of a sentence imposed by the court. The overriding priority is to protect the public from harm and prevent re-offending.
Recall of offenders on licence is designed to protect the public by removing an offender from the community who, by breaching his licence conditions, is considered to present an increased risk of re-offending and where probation officers recommend that this is the most effective response to that increased risk, in order to protect the public.
Behaviour that can result in recall includes: the commission of further offences or charges being laid; behaviour which indicates that further offending is imminent; or breaches of licence conditions which undermine the Probation Service’s ability to provide effective supervision, such as not living at the address stipulated on the licence or failing to attend probation appointments.
Data on those offenders who had committed minor breaches of licence, were warned, and not recalled to prison are not collected centrally.
Those offenders whose breach of licence has resulted in a recall to prison are published quarterly in the Ministry of Justice’s Offender management statistics bulletin. This may be found at the following web address:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/offender-management-statistics-quarterly
These are data are also shown in the following table. Also included in the table are data on the reasons for recall. Data on reasons for recall before the year 2011-12 was not reliably recorded on the central IT system and as such, are not available.
| Recall for breach of licence conditions | Recall following further charges | Recalls to prison | |
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| 1 The data on recall on grounds of further charges includes those cases where further charges were not proceeded with. | |||
Sentencing: West Yorkshire
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people of each gender were sentenced in the West Yorkshire police force area to immediate custody for a first offence in each year since 2008; and for which offences such people were sentenced. [194706]
Jeremy Wright: The sentencing framework and sentencing guidelines apply equally to all offenders. Sentencing is entirely a matter for the courts, taking account of all the circumstances of each case. This will include the seriousness of the offence, including all aggravating and mitigating factors, and a guilty plea.
Defendants are now more likely to be convicted for committing crime and sent to prison for longer than they were a decade ago. In addition, criminals convicted since 2010 are more likely to receive an immediate custodial sentence, both overall and for a first time offence.
Table 1 shows the number of offenders given an immediate custodial sentence in the West Yorkshire police force area for their first offence, by offence class and gender 2008-13.
| Table 1: Number of first time entrants1 who received immediate custody for their first offence by offence class and gender2, West Yorkshire police force area, 12 months ending September 2008 to 12 months ending September 2013 | ||||||||||||
| Number | ||||||||||||
| 12-month period to the end of December: | ||||||||||||
| 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | |||||||
| Offence class | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male |
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| 1 First time entrants are offenders who received their first reprimand, warning, caution or conviction for a recordable offence committed in England and Wales. Offenders who were resident outside of England and Wales at the time of their first conviction, caution, reprimand or warning are not counted in these statistics. Additionally, non-recordable offences (i.e. TV licence evasion, driving without insurance) are not recorded on the police national computer and therefore not counted. Where an offender was dealt with for multiple offences on the same occasion, the primary offence as recorded on the police national computer has been counted in the above table. 2 Offenders whose gender is unknown, has not been included in the above table. Note: All data have been taken from the MOJ extract of the police national computer. This includes details of all convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings given for recordable offences, see www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2000/1139/schedule/made_for_definition It is therefore possible that some offenders presented in the table above have previously also received convictions for offences not recorded on the PNC. Some less serious offences that do not attract a custodial sentence are also included on the PNC, usually when accompanied by a recordable offence in the same case. Source: Ministry of Justice, Police National Computer (PNC). | ||||||||||||
Victim Support
Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent progress he has made on plans to extend the funding of Victim Support beyond 2015. [197465]
Damian Green: The Ministry of Justice is extending grant funding arrangements to March 2015, for the provision of its core victims’ support service. These extended arrangements will cover all areas until October 2014, when a small number of Police and Crime Commissioners will move out of MOJ grant arrangements with Victim Support. The remaining majority of areas will continue to be covered by the grant funding arrangements until end March 2015.
From April 2015, the MOJ grant arrangement with Victim Support for its core service will end as all Police and Crime Commissioners replace the MOJ grant arrangement with Victim Support with locally commissioned arrangements for support to victims. These arrangements may include Police and Crime Commissioner commissioning services from Victim Support, but are not restricted to this.
Some national services, including the national homicide service, the court-based witness service, the rape support fund, and some telephone helplines will remain nationally commissioned by the Ministry of Justice. Victim Support is the current provider of some of these services and is able to compete for future provision of these services.
Youth Courts
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on how many occasions magistrates in youth courts handed down maximum two-year sentences in each of the last five years. [197812]
Jeremy Wright: There is a separate and distinct youth justice system, including a different sentencing framework. The Detention and Training Order is the main custodial sentence for children and young people and the only custodial sentence available in the youth court.
Detention and Training Orders are available for persistent and serious offending committed by children and young people under 18-years-old. When determining the length of sentence, courts must have regard to the specific Sentencing Council guideline for young people. This includes factors such as the age, maturity and culpability of the young offender as well as the seriousness of the offence.
Data on the number of Detention and Training Orders given by magistrates alone (not including district judges) in the youth court is not held centrally. However data on the number of children and young people aged 12 to 17 given a Detention and Training Order of 24 months in length in the youth court is set out in the following table:
| Juveniles sentenced to the maximum custodial sentence of two years at magistrates' courts, England and Wales, 2008-12 | |
| 2 year sentence | |
| Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice | |
Business, Innovation and Skills
Apprentices: Pay
Mike Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will commission research into whether the rate of pay for apprentices under 18 years is a disincentive. [197748]
Jenny Willott: The last Apprentice Pay Survey was published in 2012. The Government has recently commissioned a new Apprentice Pay Survey. This will provide a complete overview of Apprentice pay in Great Britain by autumn 2014. In addition it is now possible to specifically identify information relating to apprentices within the large Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
Apprentice pay is reviewed annually by the independent Low Pay Commission (LPC) as part of their review of the Apprentice National Minimum Wage. Since its introduction in 2010 the LPC has not found any evidence that the Apprentice rate damaged employment levels.
The Government has recently accepted the LPC's recommendation to increase the Apprentice rate by 2% to £2.73 per hour. In the judgment of the LPC a higher
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rate would risk damaging employment of Apprentices. Research shows that in reality the majority of employers pay more – the average pay for apprentices in 2012 is £200 per week (England only).
The Apprentice minimum wage recognises that employers invest significantly in apprenticeships and may be put off recruiting apprentices due to their lack of experience in the workplace and the additional training costs involved. Young people who complete an Apprenticeship derive significant long-term advantages and their investment in training has clear benefits.
Business: Cumbria
Rory Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support the Government is giving to small and medium-sized businesses in Cumbria. [903988]
Matthew Hancock: We continue to work hard to provide the right support to make life easier for small and medium sized business everywhere.
The home for Government services and information online is
www.gov.uk
One of the tools available is the 'Finance and Support Finder;' a searchable database of publicly-backed sources of finance and business support. The website
www.greatbusiness.gov.uk
also provides support and advice for anyone trying to start or grow a business.
In addition to online support, the Business Support Helpline is available to provide a quick response on queries about starting a business, or a personalised and in-depth advice service for more complex needs.
Cumbria has benefitted from a number of support schemes. The Start-Up Loan Scheme has provided business advice and 43 loans with a value of £275,000 to people starting a business. Since May 2010, 165 companies have benefitted from the Government’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme with a drawn down value of £12.1 million. 470 employer workplaces have received payments to take on an Apprentice’s through the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers Scheme (AGE 16-24).
Business: Registration
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people registered a business (a) online and (b) offline in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13. [197731]
Michael Fallon: There is no register containing every business in the UK. The Companies House register provides information on a subset of businesses required to file information with the registrar of companies; for example, those businesses that incorporate as companies or limited liability partnerships or register as limited partnerships. Not all of the companies that register with Companies House are businesses or go on to become actively trading businesses.
Companies House statistics show that in the years in question the following numbers of companies were registered (a) online and (b) offline:
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| 2010/11 | 2011/12 | 2012/13 | |
Construction
Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 312W, on building regulations, what assessment he has made of the cybersecurity implications of the Building Information Modelling Smart City project. [198285]
Mr Willetts: The next phase of the Building Information Modelling (BIM) programme will include provision for data interaction between designs created using BIM and other interfaces, such as Smart Cities. The potential for this to give rise to security issues has been considered as part of the base design, and this phase will incorporate a secure but workable approach developed in conjunction with partners inside and outside of Government.
Direct Selling
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to protect consumers from fraud and other doorstep crimes. [197891]
Jenny Willott: The Government take doorstep crime very seriously and the issue has been identified as a top priority by the Consumer Protection Partnership (CPP) which brings together enforcement, consumer education, and advocacy partners to identify, prioritise and coordinate collective action to tackle the issues causing greatest harm to consumers.
Both the National Trading Standards Board (NTSB) and Trading Standards Scotland (TSS), which are funded by BIS, are putting resources into tackling doorstep crime and Trading Standards Officers across the country are cracking down on these fraudsters. In Lincolnshire for example, Trading Standards has teamed up with the Police and Community Lincs to raise awareness of doorstep crime amongst professionals caring for the elderly, including awareness of bogus callers, rogue traders, distraction burglary, and scam mail. To date 330 health and social care professionals who work regularly with 4,300 elderly and vulnerable people have been trained in how to spot potential victims and how to intervene at an early stage of a scam.
Doorstep Crime will also be the focus on this year’s National Consumer Week in November 2014, when CPP Partners and the Government will work together to in raise consumer awareness of how to spot a bogus salesperson and where to report it.
We are also hitting the perpetrators of fraud hard. A recent operation involving Trading Standards companies across the country and 20 police forces brought down a trio of fraudsters targeting vulnerable caravan park residents across the country. This resulted in six years of custodial sentences being handed down and the recovery of £20,000 in cash.
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We encourage anyone who believes that they have been the victim of doorstep crime or fraud to contact the Citizens Advice Consumer helpline on 08454 040506.
Respite Care
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which organisations have received how much funding from his Department aimed at supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families experiencing all types of disadvantage in each of the last five financial years. [197818]
Jenny Willott: Departmental records show that in each of the last five financial years, no funding was made in respect of supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture: Herefordshire
Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total value is of Common Agricultural Policy payments to farms in Herefordshire in the last five years for which data are available. [197808]
George Eustice: Our records do not currently distinguish between farms and other claimants; the figure provided relates to all eligible claimants paid (including farms).
The total value of all Common Agricultural Policy claims paid by the Rural Payments Agency and the Forestry Commission to all claimants with a registered address in Herefordshire during the five years up to 15 October 2013 was €261,476,438.25.
Birds
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to catch and control magpies and hooded crows. [197939]
George Eustice: DEFRA is not taking action to catch or control magpies or hooded crows.
Like all wild birds in Great Britain, magpies and hooded crows are protected by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
Within England, general licences are issued by Natural England permitting users to kill or take magpies for a range of purposes, such as the protection of public health and safety. These may be relied upon by landowners and other authorised persons as long as they are satisfied they have met the conditions of the licence.
In the UK, the hooded crow is found primarily in Scotland and Northern Ireland and is not normally resident in England. As nature conservation is a devolved matter, the Department of the Environment Northern Ireland and the Scottish Government should be approached regarding their wildlife legislation and policy for the control of magpies and hooded crows.
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Common Agricultural Policy
Sir Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to his answer of 8 April 2014, Official Report, column 208W, on Common Agricultural Policy, if he will assess the value and purpose of advertising the merits of the EU Common Agricultural Policy in British cinemas. [196875]
George Eustice: We do not have any plans to assess the value and purpose of advertising the merits of the EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in British cinemas. Using cinema advertising is not part of the Government’s approach to communicating information on the CAP. My Department is informed by the European Commission that the advert ran for four weeks across the EU, including in the UK, but it has now ended and that the campaign was funded by reducing other activities, such as European Commission attendance at certain events.
Deer
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment his Department has made of the prevalence of ticks in deer; and what steps he is taking to tackle ticks in deer. [197936]
George Eustice: DEFRA has not made an assessment of the prevalence of ticks in deer but I am aware that they are widespread. The Deer Initiative, which is part funded by DEFRA, provides advice on ticks on its website.
Forests
Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will bring forward legislative proposals to protect the UK's forests. [198252]
Dan Rogerson: Forestry is a devolved matter. As far as public forests in England are concerned, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 394W, to the right hon. Member for Stirling (Mrs McGuire).
Mangos: India
Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions, he has had with (a) EU officials, (b) Indian authorities and (c) affected UK businesses regarding the European Commission's ban on the import of Indian mangos. [198233]
Dan Rogerson: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has met with the Indian high commissioner to discuss the ban on imports of mangos from India and will be working with the European Commission and other member states to facilitate a lifting of the ban subject to the necessary plant health standards being achieved. DEFRA officials have discussed the issue with the main trade association, the Fresh Produce Consortium, both prior to and following the introduction of the ban and also recently with the National Asian Business Network.
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Mink
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to control mink. [197937]
George Eustice: The Government are not undertaking any nationwide action to control mink. However, landowners are free to control mink on their land as long as they do so humanely and within the law. Advice on controlling mink can be obtained from Natural England. As a non-native species, it is an offence to release mink into the wild and I would encourage landowners to control them wherever practical.
The Environment Agency is not directly involved in any mink control programmes in England. It does, however, contribute a small amount of annual funding to the Wildlife Trusts and some other local organisations towards the cost of local water vole conservation projects. Some of these projects may involve an element of mink control. The Environment Agency is one of a number of contributors to these projects.
Transport
Bus Services: Disability
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will commission independent research to analyse the effectiveness of a voluntary approach to disability awareness training for bus staff. [198249]
Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport is currently reviewing the use of a derogation applied under EU Regulation 181/2011 (concerning the rights of passengers in bus and coach transport) exempting bus and coach drivers from undertaking mandatory disability awareness training.
To inform this review, on 24 February 2014 my noble Friend, the Minister of State for Transport, Baroness Kramer, wrote to various bus industry representatives, disability groups and charities with an interest in disability awareness training requesting information on the structure and effectiveness of disability awareness training courses currently available.
The commissioning of further research on this subject is one of a number of options the Department is considering in response to the findings of the review. Once we have considered all responses to the review, we will provide further details on how the Department intends to proceed shortly.
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions officials or Ministers of his Department have had with bus company representatives on disability awareness training and EU Regulation 181/2011 since 9 January 2014. [198250]
Stephen Hammond:
Although there have been no meetings between Department for Transport Ministers or officials and bus company representatives specifically focusing on disability awareness training or EU Regulation 181/2011 since 9 January, the Minister of State for Transport, my noble Friend Baroness Kramer, has met bus industry representatives on a number of occasions to discuss a variety of issues, including bus accessibility. More specifically, on 27 March 2014, Baroness Kramer
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attended the launch of the new RNIB ‘We’re on Board’ bus charter and gave a speech highlighting the importance of disability awareness training to an audience including several bus operators.
In addition, on 24 February 2014, as part of the Department’s review of the derogation applied under EU Regulation 181/2011 exempting bus and coach drivers from undertaking mandatory disability awareness training, Baroness Kramer wrote to the Confederation for Passenger Transport (CPT) requesting information on the structure and effectiveness of disability awareness training courses currently offered and sought an update on the percentage of drivers that have completed this important training.
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how his Department plans to monitor voluntary compliance with disability awareness training by bus and coach companies. [198251]
Stephen Hammond: In March 2013, the Department for Transport applied a number of time-limited exemptions available within EU Regulation 181/2011 (concerning the rights of passengers in bus and coach transport) including one from the requirement for drivers to undertake mandatory disability awareness training.
Before taking this decision, the Department requested information from the Confederation of Passenger Transport (trade association for the bus and coach industry) on the percentage of bus and coach drivers that had completed some form of disability awareness training. The information provided suggested that this figure was approximately 75% in March 2013.
On 24 February 2014, my noble Friend, the Minister of State for Transport, Baroness Kramer wrote again to the Confederation for Passenger Transport, seeking an update on the percentage of drivers that have completed disability awareness training. This updated information is being used to inform the Department’s current review of the disability awareness training exemption and will be made available shortly when the Department announces the outcome of this review.
As part of the review, Ministers will consider what the appropriate future monitoring arrangements should be.
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions officials and Ministers in his Department have had with disability or transport groups on bus driver awareness training and EU Regulation 181/2011 since 9 January 2014. [198287]
Stephen Hammond: On 18 March 2014 my noble Friend, the Minister of State for Transport, Baroness Kramer, met representatives from ‘Transport for All’ to discuss a range of bus accessibility issues, including disability awareness training and EU Regulation 181/2011. Furthermore, on 27 March 2014, Baroness Kramer attended the launch of the new RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People) ‘We’re on Board’ bus charter and gave a speech highlighting the importance of disability awareness training to an audience including disability campaigners.
On 24 February 2014, as part of the Department’s review of the derogation applied under EU Regulation 181/2011 exempting bus and coach drivers from undertaking mandatory disability awareness training, Baroness Kramer
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wrote to a number of disabled transport stakeholders and charities with an interest in disability awareness training, requesting information on the structure and effectiveness of disability awareness training courses currently offered around the country. Responses have been received from organisations including Guide Dogs for the Blind, RNIB and the muscular dystrophy ‘Trailblazers’ campaign.
Mr Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport of 9 January 2014, Official Report, column 174WH, on disabled people (access to transport) and to his oral answer of 8 May 2014, what his Department's policy is on reviewing the UK's derogation from the requirement to have disability awareness training for bus drivers as set out in EU Regulation 181/2011. [198288]
Stephen Hammond: In March 2013, the Department for Transport made use of a number of time-limited exemptions available within EU Regulation 181/2011. These included an exemption from the requirement for drivers to undertake mandatory disability awareness training. However, we are also committed to review the use of the disability awareness training exemption in March 2014, this process is largely complete.
To inform the review, on 24 February 2014 my noble Friend, the Minister of State for Transport, Baroness Kramer, wrote to bus industry representatives requesting information on the structure and effectiveness of disability awareness training courses currently offered and sought an update on the percentage of drivers that have completed this important training. A copy of this letter was also sent to disability stakeholders and charities with an interest in disability awareness training, seeking their input on this issue.
Throughout March, the Department received many comprehensive responses on this subject from a range of stakeholders and we are currently working through this information. Once we have considered all responses in detail, Baroness Kramer will provide further details on how the Department intends to proceed shortly.