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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 9 June 2014
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland Government
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many times she has met the Northern Ireland Minister for Social Development in the last 12 months. [198757]
Mrs Villiers: I have met the Northern Ireland Minister for Social Development twice in the last 12 months.
Communities and Local Government
Affordable Housing
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average rent was for new homes built under the Affordable Homes programme in each local authority from the launch of that programme to date. [198762]
Kris Hopkins: The information is not held centrally.
Building Alterations: National Parks
Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if it remains Government policy that barn conversions to dwellings without the need for planning permission will not be permitted in national parks; and if he will make a statement. [198987]
Nick Boles: As I outlined in my written ministerial statement of 6 March 2014, Official Report, column 51WS, the permitted development right for the change of use from an agricultural building to a dwellinghouse does not apply in national parks. There are no plans to change this. However, we have been clear that we expect national parks and other local planning authorities to take a positive and proactive approach to sustainable development, balancing the protection of the landscape with the social and economic well-being of the area.
Homelessness: Greater London
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 19 December 2013, Official Report, column 714W, on homelessness: Greater London, what use his Department makes of the statistical return provided to his Department by local authorities in London on the number of homeless families placed out of borough. [198944]
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Kris Hopkins: Data provided by local authorities are published online at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness
See Live Table 775 for national figures on the number of households placed in temporary accommodation in another local authority district. See ‘Detailed local authority level homelessness figures’ for quarterly data for each local authority.
The quarterly statistical release ‘Statutory Homelessness in England’ available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics
provides commentary on these data.
This Government have invested £470 million to prevent and tackle all forms of homelessness over the spending review period. The homelessness legislation in England provides one of the strongest safety nets in the world for families with children and vulnerable people who become homeless through no fault of their own.
No council should be sending tenants en masse to a different part of the country—the law is clear that councils have a responsibility to take into account people’s jobs and schools when securing homes for those in need. And we have given them more power to provide families with suitable, settled accommodation in the private rented sector to avoid long waits in temporary accommodation. Indeed the average stay in temporary accommodation in England has been reduced from 20 months at the beginning of 2010 to 14 months now. The Government have also made £445 million of Discretionary Housing Payments available to local authorities to ease the transition across the welfare reforms in this Spending Review. We expect them to use these effectively to help households who have particular needs to stay, and to give short-term help, for example, through school exams.
Housing: Bassetlaw
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new houses are under construction in Bassetlaw district. [198795]
Kris Hopkins: The Department does not hold data centrally on the number of homes currently under construction. Data are recorded when a building is started, defined as the laying of the foundations and when the residence is completed, defined as when ready for occupation or supplied with a completion certificate. The length of time between these two points will vary and therefore we cannot know how many are currently under construction.
Statistics on house building starts in Bassetlaw District are published in the Department’s live tables 253 (annually) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:
http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new houses have been built in Bassetlaw district in each of the last five years. [198799]
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Kris Hopkins: Statistics on house building completions in Bassetlaw District are published in the Department’s live table 253, which is available at the following link:
http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building
Social Rented Housing
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many tenants from elsewhere in the UK have taken advantage of Home Swap Direct to arrange exchanges to Scotland in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [199053]
Kris Hopkins: Details of the number of moves that have taken place under the HomeSwap Direct Scheme from elsewhere in the United Kingdom to Scotland in each of the last three years are not held centrally.
HomeSwap Direct increases opportunities for social tenants who wish to find a new home by allowing tenants looking for a swap to see details of every possible property nationwide, no matter which mutual exchange website their landlord has chosen to subscribe to. The scheme has operated very successfully since its launch in October 2011 with tenants carrying out over 18 million searches of the property data held on HomeSwap Direct.
Culture, Media and Sport
Equality
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how many reports on equality information and objectives each category of public authority has published under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 in each year since the regulations came into force; and what the cost of producing those reports was for each category of public authority in each such year; [198764]
(2) how many public authorities in each category of public authority published equality information and objectives under the Equality Act (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 in each year since they came into force. [198765]
Mr Vaizey: The specific information requested is not collected or held centrally.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), an independent statutory body, is responsible for the enforcement, monitoring and assessment of how public bodies comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) and specific duties. The EHRC has published two reports to date which look at the performance of public bodies in England under the PSED and specific duties:
‘Publishing equality information: Commitment, engagement and transparency’ was published in December 2012. This report looked at how public authorities had performed with regard to the first specific duty (publication of equality information). Data for this assessment were collected between February and April 2012 and covered 1,159 public authorities in England. The report indicated that about half of the public authorities reviewed were publishing equality information on their workforce and service users by April 2012. Many more (78%) were publishing information on either their staff or their service users.
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‘Assessment of the publication of equality objectives by English public authorities’ was published in Autumn 2013. This report sets out the findings of an assessment of how public authorities in England are publishing equality objectives. Data for the assessment were collected between September and December 2012 and covered 2,010 public authorities.
These reports do not estimate the associated costs of producing and publishing equalities information.
Deputy Prime Minister
Electoral Register
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will bring forward legislative proposals to provide that the freeze dates for population size for boundary reviews and the census be in the same year. [198970]
Greg Clark: The Government have no plans to do so. Using population figures derived from census data would not provide a better basis for a review of constituency boundaries than using the electoral register.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to disseminate the lessons learned from the data mining pilots for the introduction of individual electoral registrations; and if he will make a statement. [198972]
Greg Clark: The Government published the results in March 2012 and July 2013 and they can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/60723/FINAL-Data-Matching-Evaluation-Report-new.pdf
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/223850/Data_Mining_Evaluation_FULL_Report_FINAL.pdf
The Electoral Commission also produced their assessment of the pilots. Their reports can be found at:
http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/162106/Data-mining-pilot-evaluation-report.pdf
http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/146836/Data-matching-pilot-evaluation.pdf
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the introduction of individual electoral registration in Northern Ireland. [198973]
Greg Clark: The experience of Northern Ireland has helped inform the plans for the transition to Individual Electoral Registration (IER) in Great Britain. As a result the approach in Great Britain differs from Northern Ireland in several key respects. Unlike the transition to IER in Northern Ireland in 2002, in Great Britain data matching is being used to ‘confirm’ the majority of current electors on the existing register without them having to make a new application. The transition is being phased over two years, which means no one who registered to vote at the last canvass will lose their right to vote at the General Election in 2015. The annual canvass is also being retained and on-line registration is being introduced to make electoral registration more accessible.
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Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 20 May 2013, Official Report, column 443W, on electoral register, what the results were of his Department’s cooperation with data holding organisations on datasets that can be used to ensure completeness and accuracy of the electoral register. [199000]
Greg Clark: The Government published the results of the pilots in March 2012 and July 2013 and they are publically available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/60723/FINAL-Data-Matching-Evaluation-Report-new.pdf
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/223850/Data_Mining_Evaluation_FULL_Report_FINAL.pdf
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 387W, on electoral register, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of gathering and holding information on the proportion of attainers who are registered to vote; and what assessment he has made of the usefulness of such information for improving the introduction of individual electoral registration. [199037]
Greg Clark: The Government have made no such estimate or assessment.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 23 April 2012, Official Report, column 623W, on electoral register, what steps he has taken to improve student registration in the run up to individual electoral registration. [199048]
Greg Clark: The Government are working with the Higher Education sector to maximise the registration of students.
Measures include provision of data from the universities to the electoral registration officers to help them contact students individually and promoting the use of online registration, when it becomes available, particularly during course enrolment.
The Government have produced guidance for university registrars to help them implement these steps before the start of the 2014/15 academic year when students will register under Individual Electoral Registration.
Sovereignty: Scotland
Mr Weir: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) if he will publish the (a) scope, (b) date of commissioning, (c) date of polling and (d) cost of polling commissioned by the Devolution Team in his Department on attitudes in Scotland towards Scottish independence and related matters from (i) Ipsos-MORI and (ii) other opinion survey companies since May 2011; [198768]
(2) if he will publish the (a) scope, (b) date and (c) cost of contracts for public relations services commissioned by the Devolution Team in his Department from (i) Engine Partners and (ii) other public affairs and public relations consultancies since May 2011; [198769]
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(3) if he will publish the findings of all market research on attitudes in Scotland towards Scottish independence and related matters commissioned by the Devolution Team in his Department since May 2011; [198770]
(4) what plans his Department has to commission polling on attitudes in Scotland towards Scottish independence and related matters before 18 September 2014; and what the (a) scope and (b) value of each such contract is. [198771]
Greg Clark: The UK Government regularly commission independent research to inform and evaluate major policy programmes. Cabinet Office has contracted Ipsos MORI for the purposes of providing market research in relation to the Scotland Analysis Programme. Two formal tenders for this research were issued in March and August 2013 respectively and, as with other tenders for Government contracts, these processes were managed by the Government Procurement Service (now part of the Crown Commercial Service).
Cabinet Office has also contracted Engine Partners LLP for the purposes of providing communications support work in relation to the Scottish independence referendum. A formal tender for this work was issued in September 2013 and was managed by the Government Procurement Service.
As part of the Government’s commitment to transparency in expenditure, information relating to the costs of both sets of work is publicly available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-spend-data
Transport
Abbey Railway Line
Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that (a) enhanced frequency and (b) restoration of late night trains are mandatory requirements in the specification for the tendering process of Abbey Line between Watford Junction and St Albans Abbey station. [198822]
Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport intends to negotiate a Direct Award for the West Midlands franchise to run from April 2016 to June 2017. We will work with the incumbent train operator, London Midland, to consider service enhancements and we will include the Watford Junction-St Albans route in our discussions. Any improvements will have to demonstrate both a positive business case and that they are affordable within the budget provided for the franchise.
Cycling
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the last meeting of (a) the Cycle Stakeholders Forum and (b) the safety sub-group of the Cycle Stakeholders Forum took place; and what future meetings are scheduled. [198790]
Mr Goodwill:
The most recent meeting of the full Cycling Stakeholder Forum was on 30 September 2013 and that of the safety sub-group was on 16 July 2013.
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The next meeting of the full Cycling Stakeholder Forum is scheduled for 24 June 2014. I am chair of the High Level Cycling Group, a sub-group of the Cycling Stakeholder Forum that meets frequently. The most recent meeting of the High Level Cycling Group was 21 May 2014.
Driving Under Influence: Drugs
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) whether guidance provided to police officers on the implementation of the new drug driving offence will include information on the position of patients taking legitimately prescribed medications; and if he will make a statement; [198826]
(2) what guidance will be provided to police officers on the implementation of the new drug driving offence; and if he will make a statement; [198827]
(3) what discussions his Department has had with external stakeholders regarding guidance for police officers of the implementation of the new drug driving offence; and if he will make a statement. [198833]
Mr Goodwill: The Department is in regular contact with the Police Service about the implementation of the new drug driving offence and has every confidence that the police will implement it effectively including the application of the statutory medical defence.
The Police Service is in the process of amending their procedures, which will include the statutory medical defence and its operation. These will be issued in advance of the introduction of the new offence. This will provide each force plenty of time to consider the new procedures. We are confident forces will properly consider and include the new offence alongside current drink and drug drive training.
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what discussions his Department has had with external stakeholders on planned communications regarding the new drug driving offence; and if he will make a statement; [198834]
(2) with reference to the answer of 30 April 2014, Official Report, column 760W, on driving under influence: drugs, what the proposed timetable is for the steps his Department proposes to take to communicate the new drug driving offence. [198828]
Mr Goodwill: Officials working on the new drug driving legislation meet regularly with stakeholders from both the law enforcement and health care sectors. These meetings include discussions on how the new offence will be communicated.
The medical profession has assisted the Department in developing guidance to health care professionals to use in discussion with their patients. We expect to publish the guidance later in the summer and will circulate it to the medical profession. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is currently working with pharmaceutical companies to update the product information of those medicines implicated by the new legislation. MHRA also expects to issue a ‘Drug Safety Update’ article later in the summer to include details about the new offence for health care professionals. This will be accompanied by an article for patients. MHRA also works closely with
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the British National Formulary to update the prescribing information for medicines as new safety information emerges and will ensure this new information is brought to their attention. The Think! campaign is in the process of being developed but we expect to start informing the public about the new offence just prior to its introduction followed by a more concentrated campaign on its introduction.
Pedestrian Crossings
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress his Department has made in reviewing the adequacy of the amount of time allowed for pedestrians to use pedestrian crossings including those crossings out of the scope of the consultation on the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions. [198803]
Mr Goodwill: Local councils are responsible for setting pedestrian crossing timings with reference to the Department for Transport's guidance walking speed of 1.2 metres per second.
The Department is conducting a review of the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions, which include all pedestrian crossing types, and once that is complete will consider the need to update the guidance.
Railways: Cumbria
Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent representations he has received on the reopening of the Keswick to Penrith railway line. [198813]
Stephen Hammond: In the last two years the Department for Transport has received four letters on the matter. The Department for Transport is aware of an ongoing campaign led by a group called CKP Railways to reopen the Penrith to Keswick line. As any reopening would primarily address local rather than strategic transport needs, it would be for Cumbria county council and the Local Enterprise Partnership to determine whether the reopening of the line is a priority and secure funding from locally allocated funds, such as the Local Growth Fund. We have received no indication that this scheme is a priority for the council.
Cabinet Office
Armed Forces: Medals
Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) when the proposals on medals policy put forward by Sir John Holmes will be published. [198810]
(2) which claims for medals remain outstanding following Royal approval of the latest proposals put forward by Sir John Holmes. [198811]
Mr Maude: The next set of reviews is to be discussed by the Committee on the Grant of Honours this month.
An announcement will be made once the full set of reviews is complete and has been approved in the usual way.
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Average Earnings: York
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average weekly gross earnings of full-time (a) men, (b) women and (c) people in York has been in (i) cash terms and (ii) at constant prices in each year since 2006-07. [198533]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated June 2014:
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average weekly gross earnings of full-time (a) men, (b) women and (c) people in York has been in (i) cash terms and (ii) at constant prices in each year since 2006-07 (198533)
This information is contained within the York Unitary Authority section of the answer provided to your Parliamentary Question reference 198532. A copy of the table will be placed in the Library of the House.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate the UK Statistics Authority has made of the median gross weekly earnings of (a) men, (b) women and (c) all people employed (i) full-time and (ii) part-time in the areas covered by (A) York travel to work area, (B) City of York local authority area and (C) York Central constituency (1) in cash terms and (2) at constant prices in each year since 1997. [198532]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated June 2014:
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate the UK Statistics Authority has made of the median gross weekly earnings of (a) men, (b) women and (c) all people employed (i) full-time and (ii) part-time in the areas covered by (A) York travel to work area, (B) York Unitary Authority and (C) York Central constituency (1) in cash terms and (2) at constant prices in each year since 1997 (198532)
The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), carried out in April each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom. Weekly levels of earnings are estimated from ASHE, and are provided for employees on adult rates of pay, whose earnings for the survey pay period were not affected by absence. Figures relate to employee jobs, which are defined as those held by employees and not the self-employed. Individuals with more than one job may appear in the sample more than once.
The tables show estimates of median gross weekly earnings, for male, female and all employees in each area, broken down by full-time and part-time employees. This is provided at current and constant (2013) prices from April 1997 to April 2013, the latest period for which results are available. A copy of these tables will be placed in the Library of the House.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate the UK Statistics Authority has made of average net weekly household income in the City of York council area in each year since 2004-05 (i) in cash terms and (ii) at current prices. [198534]
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Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate the UK Statistics Authority has made of average net weekly household income in the City of York Council area in each year since 2004-05 in (i) cash terms and (ii) at current prices. (198534)
Table 1 shows the average net weekly equivalised household income for the City of York Council and York Central constituency areas, both before and after housing costs for the years 2004/05 to 2007/08, the latest period for which data are available, in cash terms and 2013 prices. These figures are based on small area income estimates published by the ONS. The data in the table have been adjusted to 2013 prices, the latest available, using the implied expenditure deflator for the household sector.
These estimates, as with any involving sample surveys, are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
The next year for which ONS small area income estimates will be available will be 2011/12. The release date for these statistics has not yet been finalised, but it is anticipated that they will be released in January 2015.
| Table 1: Average net weekly equivalised household income in the City of York Council and York Central parliamentary constituency areas, 2004-05 and 2007-081,2 | ||||
| £ per week | ||||
| City of York council | York Central parliamentary constituency | |||
| Mean income (before housing costs)3 | Mean income (after housing costs)3 | Mean income (before housing costs)3 | Mean income (after housing costs)3 | |
| 1 Incomes are presented net of income tax payments, national insurance contributions and council tax. 2 Figures rounded to the nearest £10. 3 Housing costs include rent (gross of housing benefit), water charges, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance, ground rent and service charges. Source: Office for National Statistics. | ||||
Business: York
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many businesses there were in City of York local authority area in each year since 2001. [198537]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated June 2014:
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many businesses there were in the City of York local authority area in each year since 2001. [198537]
Annual statistics on the number of businesses (enterprises) are available from the ONS release—UK Business: Activity, Size and Location at:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/bus-register/uk-business/index.html
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Data on the number of enterprises broken down by districts, counties and unitary authorities can be found in table B1.1 of the publication.
The table has been produced using extracts from the Inter Departmental Business Register. (IDBR) It shows the number of enterprises in the City of York local authority area from 2001 to 2013. Data for 2014 will be available at the end of October 2014. The figures in the table have been rounded to protect confidentiality. Please note that these numbers do not include very small businesses, typically those below the threshold for VAT and PAYE.
| Count of enterprises in the City of York local authority area, 2001-13 | |
| Number | |
Civil Servants: North Yorkshire
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many full-time equivalent civil servants of each Department or Executive Agency were employed in (a) the City of York and (b) the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs central science laboratory at Sand Hutton on 31 March in each year since 1997. [198536]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated June 2014:
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many full-time equivalent civil servants of each Department or Executive Agency were employed in (a) the City of York and (b) the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs central science laboratory at Sand Hutton on 31 March in each year since 1997 (198536).
York is defined for the purpose of this information by the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, Level 3, and may differ from the City of York. The data was not available for York prior to 2008, as data was only collected at regional level, therefore we have provided the information you requested for the years 2008-2013 inclusive in the table.
| Civil service employment in York 2008-131,2,3,4, all employees | ||||||
| Full-time equivalent | ||||||
| Department5 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 |
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Electoral Register
Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of people eligible to be on the most recent (a) census and (b) electoral register who were not recorded. [198969]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Joe Grice, dated June 2014:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate has been made of the number and proportion of people eligible to be on the (a) most recent census and (b) most recent electoral register were not recorded (198969).
The population of England and Wales was estimated to be 56,075,900 at the 2011 Census and, of these, it was estimated that 3,789,100 did not respond. This implies a coverage rate of 93.2 per cent.
A summary of the response and coverage rates can be found in the explanatory paper published on 16th July 2012, available at:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-data/2011-first-release/first-release--quality-assurance-and-methodology-papers/response-rates-in-the-2011-census.pdf
An accompanying spreadsheet, showing rates for England, Wales and all local authorities was also published and is available at:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/census-data/2011-census-data/2011-first-release/first-release--quality-assurance-and-methodology-papers/census-response-rates.xls
ONS does not have the data required to answer the question in respect of the electoral register. While data are collected on the number of people who are registered to vote, no data are collected
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on the number of people who are eligible to vote but who choose not to register. The latest electoral statistics were published on 1 May 2014 and are available from:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pop-estimate/electoral-statistics-for-uk/2013/index.html
Employment: Females
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of women in Pendle were in work in each of the last five years. [198562]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary question to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions asking what proportion of women in Pendle were in work in each of the last five years. (198562)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles estimates of the number people in employment from the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions.
The table shows the percentage of women aged 16 to 64 resident in Pendle constituency who were in employment according to survey responses from the APS for the 12 month periods ending in December from 2009 to 2013.
As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a certain level of uncertainty.
National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
| Table 1: Percentage of women aged 16 to 64 in employment resident in Pendle constituency | |
| Percentage | |
| Source: Annual Population Survey Table | |
Government Departments: Telephone Services
Richard Burden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress Departments have made on implementing the Guidance on Customer Service Lines published in December 2013. [198817]
Mr Hurd: The guidance we published in December 2013 set out that Departments should use prefixes offering a geographic call rate as a default policy position for the provision of core public services. This was not the case in the past.
My officials are working with the cross-Whitehall group on customer service lines.
We will publish information from Departments on their customer telephone lines later in the summer.
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Health: Statistics
Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what (a) subjective and (b) objective measures the Office for National Statistics uses to measure public wellbeing; and whether that Office is considering any changes to those measures. [198857]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what (a) subjective and (b) objective measures the Office for National Statistics uses to measure public well-being; and whether that Office is considering any changes to those measures (198857).
There are currently 41 measures used in Measuring National Well-being. The attached table gives a list of these measures under the ten themes (domains) and is annotated to show which are subjective and which are objective.
Measuring National Well-being is an ongoing development programme so that the measures and their sources are regularly reviewed.
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National Income: South East
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the gross value added was for the (a) Brighton and Hove and (b) South Hampshire built-up areas in the latest period for which figures are available; [199401]
(2) what the gross value added per capita was for the (a) Brighton and Hove and (b) South Hampshire built-up areas in the latest period for which figures are available. [199400]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated June 2014:
On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions (199400 and 199401) asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the latest estimates of gross value added (GVA) and GVA per capita were for the (a) Brighton and Hove, and (b) South Hampshire built-up areas.
ONS produces regional estimates of GVA for areas according to the European classification Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS). The smallest areas for which GVA estimates are produced are at the NUTS3 level, which generally corresponds to counties and unitary authority areas.
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There is a NUTS3 area that corresponds directly to the Brighton and Hove unitary authority area. However, for South Hampshire there is no single area that matches your request. There are NUTS3 areas for both Portsmouth and Southampton unitary authorities, with the remainder of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight having separate NUTS3 areas.
Below are the latest figures (provisional estimates for the year 2012) for Brighton and Hove, Portsmouth, Southampton, and a combined Portsmouth/Southampton aggregation that is not published but has been calculated by combining the two NUTS3 areas.
| Area | Total GVA (£ million) | GVA per capita (£) |
These figures are taken from the Regional GVA (Income Approach) statistical bulletin published in December 2013:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/regional-accounts/regional-gross-value-added--income-approach-/december-2013/stb-regional-gva-2012.html
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Biofuels: Air Pollution
Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the answer of 8 May 2014, Official Report, column 272W, on biofuels: air pollution, for what reasons estimated social costs of biomass emissions of fine particles contained in his Department's answer of 26 March 2009, Official Report, column 697W, on air pollution, were not reflected in that answer; and for what reasons his Department no longer estimates the social costs of fine particles emitted by biomass combustion. [198818]
Dan Rogerson: The social (health) costs included in the answer of 26 March 2009 were calculated by DEFRA to evaluate specific scenarios of uptake of biomass heat in 2020. These costs were calculated for policy development purposes in accordance with Treasury Green Book guidance and methodologies developed with the support of the Interdepartmental Group on Costs and Benefits.
Estimates of emissions by source (including biomass emissions) are updated annually and reported in the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory, but social (health) costs by emissions source are not routinely calculated.
Estimates of the health burden due to total anthropogenic fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the UK are calculated as part of the Public Health Outcomes Framework indicator. This is based on modelled annual population weighted mean total anthropogenic PM2.5 levels in the UK.
Bovine Tuberculosis
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) whether (a) the Prime Minister or (b) officials in his Office ever advised the National Farmers' Union not to communicate with journalists during the commencement phase of the pilot badger culls in Somerset and Gloucestershire in 2013; [198755]
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(2) what meetings his Department had with the National Farmers' Union in the six months before the start of the pilot badger culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset in 2013; and whether he advised that union to operate a media blackout during the first phase of the culls; [198763]
(3) what meetings (a) the Prime Minister and (b) officials in his Office had with the National Farmers' Union (NFU) on the pilot badger culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset in 2013; what advice he has given to the NFU on communications with the media during the commencement of the culls; and if he will make a statement. [198753]
George Eustice: Meetings were held with the National Farmers Union in the six months prior to the start of the pilot culls in 2013.
There was no media blackout during the pilots. DEFRA and the National Farmers Union continued to make spokespeople available to talk to the media throughout the period in which culling was taking place.
However, both the National Farmers Union and DEFRA were always clear that operational information that could compromise the effectiveness of the cull or the safety of those involved would not be disclosed during the operation.
Energy: Waste
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what assessment he has made of the effect of export of refuse-derived fuel and solid recovered fuel for use in energy from waste plants overseas on the availability of such fuel for similar plants in the UK; and if he will make a statement; [198844]
(2) if he will review the export of refuse-derived fuel and solid recovered fuel for use in energy from waste plants overseas; and if he will make a statement. [198890]
Dan Rogerson: We published a call for evidence on the refuse-derived fuel market in England on 12 March. This included a request for evidence on the effect that exports of refuse-derived fuel had on its availability on the domestic market. The call for evidence closed on 9 May. We are currently analysing the evidence submitted, which will aid our understanding of the situation, help us to determine whether there is a need for some form of intervention and, if so, help us to develop policy options.
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the amount of (a) refuse-derived fuel and (b) solid recovered fuel produced in the UK exported annually for use in energy from waste plants overseas. [198850]
Dan Rogerson: In 2012 (the most recent year for which definitive figures are available), 977,452 tonnes of refuse-derived fuel and 7,783 tonnes of solid recovered fuel were exported from England and Wales for use in energy from waste plants. Data for Scotland and Northern Ireland are collected separately and fall under the responsibility of the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive respectively.
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Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the amount of (a) refuse-derived fuel and (b) solid recovered fuel produced annually in the UK. [198852]
Dan Rogerson: Data cannot be obtained on the amount of refuse-derived fuel and solid recovered fuel produced annually in the UK. The amount of refuse-derived fuel received at incineration plants in England in 2012 was 768,173 tonnes and the amount of refuse-derived fuel exported from England and Wales in 2012 was 977,452 tonnes.
Flood Control
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has received on the funding formula for flood defence; and if he will make a statement. [198854]
Dan Rogerson: DEFRA regularly receives representation from those seeking Government funding for flood and coastal risk management schemes to be more focused on delivering a particular type of outcome such as improved protection for homes, agricultural areas or infrastructure at risk of flooding. These representations are not in a consistent direction.
A recent external evaluation found that, on the whole, the current partnership funding approach is progressing well in meeting its policy objectives and that the funding formula should not be changed at present.
Our focus is on working with Risk Management Authorities and local communities to put together a six-year investment programme on the basis of the current funding formula, for announcement this autumn. The programme will reduce flood risk for 300,000 households by March 2021.
Floods
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much of the Flood Defence Repair Fund paid to the Environment Agency has been (a) allocated to the Environment Agency and (b) spent by the Environment Agency to repair flood defences to date. [198652]
Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has made available to the Environment Agency an additional £30 million in 2013-14 and up to £135 million in 2014-15, to respond to the winter floods and repair flood and coastal defences. The Environment Agency spent £31.2 million on repairs and emergency response between January and March 2014. This includes £26 million on asset repair costs, £1.5 million of which was paid to local authorities. The remaining £5.2 million was spent on other associated costs, such as incident management and emergency response. These are the latest figures available.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much of the Repair and Renew Grant for flooded businesses or households has been (a) allocated to local authorities and (b) received by households or businesses to date. [198654]
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Dan Rogerson: Local authorities make payments to households and businesses and invoice DEFRA quarterly for these amounts. We are expecting the first invoices in July.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much of his Department's partnership funding framework has been spent on property level protection schemes to date. [198656]
Dan Rogerson: Property Level Protection describes a suite of measures used in places where other solutions are either not cost effective or not practical. The amount allocated to schemes since the partnership funding approach was launched in 2012 is £2.43 million. This consists of £2.08 million in grant in aid from the Government, and contributions of £0.35 million from partners.
Livestock: Transport
Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make it his policy to check all lorries containing live animals for export at UK ports. [198838]
George Eustice: The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) takes a risk-based approach to vehicle inspection in relation to exports of livestock for slaughter. The Government have no plans to change this approach.
Water: Drugs
Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 41W, on drinking water, whether his Department has conducted a study of levels of psychotropic drugs in UK rivers and seawater. [198996]
Dan Rogerson: Currently no psychotropic drugs have been identified as Priority Hazardous Substances, Priority Substances or UK Specific Pollutants under the Water Framework Directive. As such no routine monitoring is carried out for these substances in England.
However, previous research by the Environment Agency on pharmaceuticals in surface waters included environmental monitoring for the psychotropic drug fluoxetine (an anti-depressant). In 2005, monitoring was undertaken in rivers downstream of a number of sewage works across England and Wales. 39 samples were taken with fluoxetine occurring in 85% of samples with a maximum concentration of 0.044 microgrammes/litre, and norfluoxetine in 51% of samples with a maximum concentration of 0.083 microgrammes/litre.
During 2011, a programme of monitoring for pesticides was undertaken in six catchments. The psychotropic drugs carbamazepine and gabapentin were detected in all six catchments with maximum levels of 0.7 microgrammes/litre and 1.2 microgrammes/litre respectively.
The report published by the Drinking Water Inspectorate evaluated the risk from psychotropic drugs in river water used for abstraction for drinking water supplies.
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Water: EU Law
Richard Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what basic measures his Department takes in relation to (a) controls on abstraction and (b) preventing and controling pollutants from diffuse sources in order to comply with Article 11.3 of the Water Framework Directive. [198576]
Dan Rogerson: Controls on water abstraction are applied through the licensing system operated by the Environment Agency, which sets out prior authorisation and control of water abstractions and impoundments.
Measures to prevent and control pollutants from diffuse sources include:
i. Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010. These make it an offence to cause or knowingly permit a water discharge activity or groundwater activity, except under, and to the extent authorised by, an environmental permit. The Environment Agency regulates discharges under the environmental permitting regime. It can carry out works itself to rectify activities causing pollution, or issue anti-pollution works notices to require work to take place to prevent, remedy or prohibit pollution, as well as prosecuting offenders if pollution does take place;
ii. the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2008, which aim to reduce agricultural nitrate pollution and the risk of further such pollution occurring. The regulations implement the Nitrates directive, and apply within designated Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (57% of England);
iii. the Water Resources (Control of Pollution) (Silage, Slurry and Agricultural Fuel Oil) (England) Regulations 2010, which set standards for storing silage, livestock slurry and agricultural fuel oil to minimise the risk of water pollution. These are applicable nationally; and
iv. cross-compliance requirements for those farmers claiming direct payments and those participating in various rural development schemes.
Energy and Climate Change
Boilers
David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will bring forward proposals to encourage households off the mains gas grid to use condensing boilers. [198780]
Michael Fallon: The Government fully recognise that Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) and oil, like other fossil fuels, will continue to play a part in the UK’s energy mix, while the way we heat our homes changes. DECC has introduced the domestic renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme to support renewable heating systems. The domestic RHI is targeted predominately at off-gas grid households, by compensating for the additional costs faced when replacing an oil boiler with a renewable heating system. New incentives for oil and LPG boilers would undermine the balance struck in the design of the RHI, and potentially cause confusion for consumers.
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) will continue to support oil and LPG condensing boilers for low income and vulnerable households. By February this year around 320,000 households were helped under ECO. We are making changes to ECO to provide a greater incentive for targeting measures at off-gas grid households.
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David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change for what reasons condensing oil and liquefied petroleum gas condensing boilers were excluded from being eligible technologies for the purposes of the receipt of monies from the Green Deal Improvement Fund. [198781]
Gregory Barker: DECC has introduced the domestic renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme to support renewable heating systems. The RHI aims to compensate householders for the additional costs they face when installing a renewable heating system compared to an oil heating system. The domestic RHI is targeted at, but not limited to, homes off the gas grid. Incentivising oil and LPG boilers in this context would undermine the design of the RHI, and potentially cause confusion for consumers. For more vulnerable customers, support is available through the Energy Company Obligation, with proposals to strengthen this support for off-grid properties. For these reasons, DECC considers it appropriate to exclude these heating measures from the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund (GDHIF) scheme.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Bankruptcy
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) bankruptcy orders were granted and (b) individual voluntary arrangements were agreed in each (i) region of England and (ii) London borough in (A) 2011-12, (B) 2012-13 and (C) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement. [199140]
Jenny Willott: Figures for the number of bankruptcies, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements in each region of England and each London borough in 2011 and 2012 can be found in the tables below. The sum of these procedures represents the total number of individual insolvencies in each area.
The Insolvency Service compiles its regional individual insolvency statistics on a calendar year basis, therefore financial year totals are not available. Figures for 2013 will be available on the Insolvency Service website from 10 July 2014.
| Table 1: Number of Bankruptcies, Debt Relief Orders and Individual Voluntary Arrangements in each Region of England, 2011-121 | ||||||
| Bankruptcies | Debt Relief Orders | Individual Voluntary Arrangements | ||||
| Region | 2011 | 2012 | 2011 | 2012 | 2011 | 2012 |
| 1 Where individual has provided a valid postcode | ||||||
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| Table 2: Number of Bankruptcies, Debt Relief Orders and Individual Voluntary Arrangements in each London borough, 2011-121 | ||||||
| Bankruptcies | Debt Relief Orders | Individual Voluntary Arrangements | ||||
| London borough | 2011 | 2012 | 2011 | 2012 | 2011 | 2012 |
| 1 Where individual has provided a valid postcode | ||||||
It should be noted that these figures do not account for any changes in the base population over time. Using the rate of bankruptcies per 10,000 adults allows for a like-for-like comparison across years.
Headline figures for insolvencies in England and Wales can be found in the quarterly “Insolvency Statistics” release, a National Statistics publication. Figures for January-March 2014 were published on 29 April 2014, and can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/insolvency-statistics-january-to-march-2014
Annual numbers and rates of bankruptcies by region for 2000-2012 are available in the “Individual Insolvencies by Region” publication, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/insolvency-statistics-individual-insolvencies-by-region
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Business: Billing
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he has taken to speed up payments by public bodies and private concerns to small businesses; and what recent assessment he has made of average payment times. [199086]
Matthew Hancock: We announced further reforms to public procurement on 30 May to speed up payments by public bodies to small businesses. These include improvements to e-invoicing, procurement processes and greater powers for Ministers to investigate complaints raised by the Cabinet Office’s ‘mystery shopper scheme’.
We have also announced new legislation that will require larger businesses to report on their payment performance and practices. Increasing transparency and driving openness is at the heart of building a more responsible payment culture that UK businesses need to thrive.
Recent research suggests that UK businesses experience an average 17 day delay to payment of invoices. This is a reduction in the past two years but a figure that is still too high and is holding back investment and growth.
Conditions of Employment
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the number of zero-hours contracts in the UK which bar any additional employment. [198782]
Jenny Willott: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not collected any quantitative information on the number of zero-hours contracts in the UK which bar any additional employment. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) suggested, in its report ‘Zero Hours Contracts: Myth and reality’ that 9% of workers on zero-hours contracts reported that they were never allowed to work for another employer when their primary employer had no work for them.
Diabetes
Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent on research for a cure for Type 1 diabetes in the last three years; and if he will take steps to increase such funding in the forthcoming financial year. [198819]
Mr Willetts: The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the seven Research Councils sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). The MRC funds a broad portfolio of diabetes research which amounted to £24 million in 2012/13. Of this, £3.6 million (15%) is relevant to Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). This includes underpinning studies relevant to diabetes in general, as well as studies on the prevention, treatment and the downstream consequences of T1D. Expenditure on T1D research over the last five years is as follows:
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| Medical Research Council expenditure on Type 1 diabetes, 2008/09 to 2012/13 | |
| Expenditure (£ million) | |
| Note: Where a research project is related to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, 100% of the project value has been included in the totals shown above. | |
The MRC does not routinely analyse expenditure on diabetes research beyond an analysis of T1D and Type 2 Diabetes research. However, details of all research supported by the MRC, including summaries describing the aims of the research and links to research publications and outputs can be found on the Research Council UK’s Gateway to Research at:
http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk/
The MRC does not normally allocate funds to particular topics but always welcomes high quality applications into any aspect of human health. All applications are judged in open competition and the primary considerations in funding decisions are scientific quality and importance to human health. In keeping with the Haldane principle, decisions on research priorities and funding are taken by the Research Councils based on advice from the scientific community through peer review.
The Technology Strategy Board spend on T1D in the last three years was £354,879.00. This relates to a project which ran in 2010/11.
Insolvency
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many insolvencies there were in each (a) region of England and (b) London borough in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement. [199141]
Jenny Willott: Figures for the number of individual insolvencies in each region in England and each London borough in 2011 and 2012 can be found in the following tables. Individual insolvency figures include bankruptcy orders, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements.
The Insolvency Service compiles its regional individual insolvency statistics on a calendar year basis, therefore financial year totals are not available. Figures for 2013 will be available on the Insolvency Service website from 10 July 2014.
Regional breakdowns for the number of company insolvencies are not currently available.
| Table 1: Number of individual insolvencies in each region of England, 2011-121 | ||
| Region | 2011 | 2012 |
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| 1 Where individual has provided a valid postcode. | ||
| Table 2: Number of individual insolvencies in each London borough, 2011-121 | ||
| London borough | 2011 | 2012 |
| 1 Where individual has provided a valid postcode. | ||
It should be noted that these figures do not account for any changes in the base population over time. Using the rate of bankruptcies per 10,000 adults allows for a like-for-like comparison across years.
Headline figures for insolvencies in England and Wales can be found in the quarterly “Insolvency Statistics” release, a National Statistics publication. Figures for January-March 2014 were published on 29 April 2014, and can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/insolvency-statistics-january-to-march-2014
Annual numbers and rates of bankruptcies by region for 2000-12 are available in the Individual Insolvencies by Region publication, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/insolvency-statistics-individual-insolvencies-by-region