Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 24 April 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr Michael Adebayo Johnson. [199215]

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 2 June 2014.

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 22 April 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr A Mehmood. [199217]

James Brokenshire: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 15 May 2014.

Surveillance: Aircraft

Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what role her Department's Centre for Applied Science and Technology has in (a) the trial of the Aeryon Skyranger drone around Gatwick airport and (b) the trial or use of any other surveillance aircraft operated by Government Departments, agents or public bodies in the UK. [199440]

Karen Bradley: CAST has no direct role in the Gatwick trial, but does liaise with the trial team in order to learn from their experience.

Trials conducted by other Departments and their agencies are matters for the respective Departments.

Treasury

Aggregates Levy: Northern Ireland

Ms Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress he has made on reinstating the Northern Ireland aggregates levy credit scheme. [200110]

Nicky Morgan: In January and February of this year, the Government received two sets of follow-up questions from the European Commission as part of their formal investigation into the aggregates levy credit scheme. Treasury officials worked closely with members of the

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industry and the authorities in Northern Ireland and have submitted further evidence in response to the questions posed.

While a new relief scheme cannot be considered until the investigation concludes, the Government remain fully committed to reinstating an aggregates levy credit scheme in Northern Ireland.

Day Care: North West

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the number of families that would be eligible for support for child care costs under the provisions of the Childcare Payments Bill in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Pendle constituency. [199648]

Nicky Morgan: The information requested is not available.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national well-being as defined in that index since 2010. [198873]

Nicky Morgan: As the Prime Minister has said:

“we'll start measuring our progress as a country not just by how our economy is growing, but by our quality of life.”

The National Wellbeing Index and Measures of Wellbeing provides a rich contribution to the debate about the health and happiness of the people of the United Kingdom.

These are relatively new statistical series, meaning that the evidence base on wellbeing, and the implications for policy making, are still being developed. The ONS Wellbeing statistics released on the 4 June made a helpful contribution to this debate. They revealed, for example, that those households that receive more of their income from benefits are more likely to have lower life satisfaction. This Government have overseen record employment levels and are reforming the benefit system so that it always pays to work and people are not trapped in a life on benefits.

Investment

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the levels of (a) public sector investment, (b) private sector investment, (c) investment in intangibles and (d) other investment was in each G7 country in each of the last 10 years. [199413]

Nicky Morgan: Gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) is an internationally standardised measure that captures whole economy investment, covering business, Government and residential investment. International data on GFCF are available from the OECD, while data on the UK can be found in the ONS business investment release

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/bus-invest/business-investment/index.html

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Detailed internationally comparable data on investment are not readily available. Some countries also collect data on the shares of GFCF carried out by different institutional sectors, especially that conducted by general Government; these data can be obtained from the OECD.

While some forms of intangible investment are captured in the standard national accounts measure of investment (most notably software), a large range of intangible assets are not, including research and development, advertising, organisational know-how and training. The most comprehensive set of internationally comparable estimates are produced by

www.intan-invest.net

These are produced on a market-sector basis and are therefore not directly comparable with the OECD statistics referenced above, which cover both market and non-market activity.

It should be noted that a range of forthcoming changes to national accounting rules will affect cross-country estimates of GFCF and GDP. The most relevant of these for estimates of GFCF are the inclusion of spending on research and development and weapons systems. Further details can be found on the ONS website, at the following address:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/development-programmes/esa2010/index.html

Sanitary Protection: VAT

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what consideration he has given to changing the 5% VAT rate applied to female sanitary products; [199803]

(2) for what reason HM Revenue and Customs considers female sanitary products non-essential for tax purposes; and if he will make a statement; [199804]

(3) if he will lower the VAT rate applied to female sanitary products. [199805]

Mr Gauke: A reduced rate of VAT of 5% currently applies to female sanitary products. This has been in place since 2001 and is the lowest rate possible under EU law.

The application of VAT in the EU, including rates and flexibilities afforded to member states in this regard, is governed by EU law. The Government cannot introduce a new zero rate as this would require a change to EU VAT legislation, which would require a proposal from the European Commission and the unanimous agreement of all 28 member states.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, columns 113-14W, on taxation, how much is owed in penalties and interest for failure to meet the deadline set for self-assessment returns in the year ending 31 March 2014. [199786]

Mr Gauke: This information is available only at a disproportionate cost.

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Travel: Insurance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to encourage insurance companies to set travel insurance premiums for the elderly based on their state of health rather than their age. [199078]

Andrea Leadsom: Insurers take into account a range of different factors when considering risk, and decisions concerning the pricing of insurance products are a commercial matter for individual insurers. The Government do not seek to intervene in these decisions.

The insurance industry recognises that older people can face difficulties finding appropriate travel insurance and in 2012 signed an agreement, endorsed by the Government, to re-direct older customers to an alternative insurer or to a specialist insurance broker where they cannot provide insurance themselves.

Working Tax Credit: Bolton

Mr Crausby: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been paid through working tax credits to people in Bolton North East constituency in each of the last three years. [199151]

Mr Gauke: The information is as follows:

These figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million.

Education

Academies

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what evidence his Department holds or has assessed on the effects of conversion to academy status on the test results of children in primary schools. [199446]

Michael Gove: In 2013, the percentage of pupils in converter academies that achieved level 4 or above in reading, writing (teacher assessment) and mathematics was 81%.¹ This was an improvement of one percentage point from 2012, and compares with 76% of pupils who achieved the same threshold in local authority maintained mainstream schools. Furthermore, the percentage of pupils in converter academies that exceeded this threshold was 25%, compared with 21% in local authority maintained mainstream schools.

¹ Table 5, National Tables, SFR51/2013:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-assessments-at-key-stage-2-2012-to-2013

Children: Social Services

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department takes to ensure that third party organisations delegated to undertake children's social care functions of local authorities are of an appropriate standard. [199693]

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Michael Gove: The Government’s recent consultation seeks to enable local authorities to delegate children’s social care functions to broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The proposals do not remove responsibilities from local authorities for ensuring their statutory obligations on child protection and children’s social care are met, and it remains local authorities’ responsibility to ensure the quality of that provision.

Delegated social care function arrangements will continue to be inspected by Ofsted, in the same way as directly delivered local authority social care functions, as part of its local authority inspection framework. In addition, regulations currently govern the fitness of third party providers and require their registration with Ofsted.

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to exempt any functions from his proposals to allow further delegation of children's social care functions. [199764]

Michael Gove: Part 1 of the Children and Young Person’s Act 2008 currently allows local authorities to delegate social care functions relating to children in care and care leavers. The legislation precludes delegation of independent reviewing officer functions, and of adoption functions, unless the other party to the arrangement is a registered adoption society.

The Government’s proposals would not alter those exemptions, but seek to enable local authorities to delegate a wider range of social services functions (if they so wish), to broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The recent consultation on the proposals closed on 30 May and responses are being considered.

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effects of proposals for further delegation of children's social care functions on the implementation of the recommendations of the Munro review of child protection. [199775]

Michael Gove: The Government are considering the outcome of their consultation on proposals to enable local authorities to delegate children’s social care functions to third parties, to help broaden the range of approaches available to secure the best outcomes for children in their area. The proposals place no obligations on local authorities and do not remove their responsibility for ensuring their statutory obligations on child protection and children’s social care are met.

Dominic Cummings

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the (a) dates and times and (b) purpose of all visits to his Department by Dominic Cummings have been since Mr Cummings resigned his post as a special adviser. [199800]

Elizabeth Truss: This information is not held. Mr Cummings is no longer employed by the Department for Education.

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Free School Meals: Nuneaton

Mr Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in schools in Nuneaton will receive free school meals from 2014-15. [199236]

Mr Laws: The information requested is not available. Receipt of a free school meal is dependent upon eligible parents or pupils making an application, and it is not possible to predict how many will do so.

We do, however, recognise that 631 pupils in reception, year 1 and 2 were known to be eligible for and claiming free school meals in Nuneaton constituency in January 2014. This was 18.7% of all pupils in those year groups. With the introduction of universal infant free school meals in September 2014, all children in reception, year 1 and year 2 will be eligible for a free school lunch.

GCSE

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 656W, what change there has been in the proportion of pupils at the end of key stage 4 achieving five or more GCSEs or equivalent at grades A*-C including English and maths in those (a) schools and (b) academies that have established a sixth form since September 2011. [199349]

Mr Laws: Key stage 4 results for individual schools, including academies, are published online in Performance Tables.¹ A copy of the list of schools and academies that established a sixth form since 2011, with their current details, has been placed in the House Library.

¹ Available at:

http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/performance/

Sixth-Form Education: Student Numbers

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the answer of 14 May 2014, Official Report, column 637W, on sixth-form education: student numbers, (1) how the approximate total net cost of unfilled student places in school sixth forms, academy sixth forms and 16 to 19 free schools was calculated; [199347]

(2) what these costs were per student. [199348]

Matthew Hancock: The net cost of unfilled places referred to in my previous answer was based on the funding per student for each individual institution and the number of students recruited in that institution above or below the allocated number as appropriate. This figure was then adjusted to take into the account the sixth-form element of funds recovered by the Education Funding Agency from those academies which are funded on the basis of estimated pupil numbers but which educated fewer pupils than had been provided for in those estimates.

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Communities and Local Government

Disabled Facilities Grants

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average waiting time was in each local authority for an assessment for a disabled facilities grant in the most recent period for which figures are available. [199285]

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect this information.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what use his Department has made of the National Wellbeing Index introduced by the Office for National Statistics in formulating policy since the introduction of that index in 2011; and what policies his Department has introduced to improve national well-being as defined in that index since 2010. [198864]

Stephen Williams: The Office for National Statistics is measuring national well-being, not as an index but through a framework of 41 indicators that capture social progress around important aspects of life for individuals, communities and the nation. The statistics are experimental at this stage and as such we should not expect to have examples of major policies that have been heavily influenced by the well-being data at this stage. The Department for Communities and Local Government aims to create great places to live and work, and give more power to local people to shape what happens in their area. As such, many of the Department's policies are aligned with the wellbeing agenda. Evidence provided to the Environmental Audit Committee for its inquiry into well-being can be found at:

http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/environmental-audit-committee/inquiries/parliament-2010/well-being/

Furthermore, the Department is contributing £100,000 per year for three years to the “What Works Centre for Wellbeing”. This centre will be dedicated to understanding what local as well as national Governments, voluntary and business partners can do to increase well-being, and the research programme will include a communities theme.

Housing: Disability

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authorities in the UK maintain a register of accessible or adapted homes; and what guidance his Department issues to local authorities on registers of accessible housing. [199290]

Kris Hopkins: The Department does not hold this information.

The Government recognise the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities are able to access suitable accommodation which meets their needs.

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Accessible housing registers can be useful and we are aware that some councils and social landlords have incorporated such an approach within their lettings scheme.

The Government believe it is more important that people who require accessible housing are given the right level of priority under a council’s housing allocation scheme, and that councils and social landlords are able to make the best use of affordable housing in their area, including accommodation which is accessible or has been adapted.

That is why, through the Localism Act 2011, we have retained the statutory reasonable preference requirements which ensure that priority for social housing is given to those who need to move on medical and welfare grounds (including grounds relating to a disability). We have also made sure that council and housing association landlords have the flexibility to use their social housing stock in a way which best meets the needs of individual households and their local area.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to assist homeowners facing problems paying their mortgages and to provide practical advice and support. [199225]

Kris Hopkins: The Council of Mortgage Lenders reported 28,900 repossessions in 2013, down from 33,900 in 2012 and the lowest level since 2007. It has revised down its forecasts for 2014 to 28,000. The Government are not complacent, but believe this fall in repossessions is a consequence of improved arrears management by lenders and action the coalition Government have taken to tackle the deficit and keep interest rates down.

Homeowners struggling with mortgage payments should take action as soon as possible by discussing their situation with their lender or contacting money advice experts such as Citizens Advice, Shelter, StepChange or National Debtline for free and independent advice on taking control of their finances.

Government support is available in the form of Support for Mortgage Interest, paid as part of DWP benefits to help eligible out-of-work households meet their monthly mortgage interest payments. The Budget in March this year extended the enhancements to the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme (a shortened 13 week waiting period and an increased capital limit of £200,000), until 31 March 2016.

Within England the Government continue to ensure the provision of free on-the-day legal advice (the Housing Possession Court Duty Scheme) to assist households at possession hearings. We are providing £470 million of funding in the current spending review period to prevent and tackle homelessness and repossessions.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in receipt of disability living allowance or personal independence payments have received support from the Help to Buy scheme. [199284]

Kris Hopkins: This Government are committed to supporting people's aspirations to own their own home. That is why we have introduced schemes such as Help to

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Buy Equity Loan scheme and Help to Buy: Mortgage Guarantee scheme, which is managed by HM Treasury. We do not collect data on the number of people purchasing a home using either of the Help to Buy schemes who are in receipt of disability living allowance or personal independence payments.

Mortgages: Huntingdon

Mr Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the average age of buyers using the Government’s Help to Buy scheme was in Huntingdon constituency; [199063]

(2) how many applications have been made (a) successfully and (b) unsuccessfully under the first stage of the Government's Help to Buy scheme in Huntingdon constituency; [199059]

(3) what the total value of Government assistance provided under the Help to Buy scheme is in the Huntingdon constituency; [199060]

(4) what the average (a) household income and (b) house property acquisition price was of those buying under the Government's Help to Buy scheme in Huntingdon constituency. [199062]

Kris Hopkins [holding answer 9 June2014]:The area of Huntingdonshire district council comprises all the Huntingdon constituency and part of the North West Cambridgeshire constituency. Separate figures for the Huntingdon constituency could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Figures for the numbers of sales under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme as at 30 April 2014 broken down by local authority and postcode sector are available at

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/help-to-buy-equity-loan-scheme-monthly-statistics

I have also placed a copy of the table in the Library of the House.

A figure for the average age of buyers in Huntingdonshire is not available because central Government do not collect information on the ages of buyers under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme.

The average annual total applicant income of the 127 households that had bought a property within the area of Huntingdonshire district council under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme as at 31 March 2014 was £49,181. During this period, the average purchase price of properties bought under the scheme in the same area was £213,573 and the total amount of equity loan payments made by central Government was £5,424,768.

Central Government do not collect figures on the numbers of applications that have been (a) successful or (b) unsuccessful under the Help to Buy equity loan scheme. A breakdown for Huntingdonshire is therefore not available.

The Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme is a matter for the Treasury. Its most recent statistics show that the average value of the 23 properties in Huntingdonshire that had been sold under the scheme by 31 March 2014 was £162,228, and that the total value of loans supported by the scheme for these properties was £3,528,682. This information is available from Table 7 at:

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https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-to-buy-mortgage-guarantee-scheme-quarter1y-statistics-october-2013-to-march-2014

Out of Town Shopping Centres: Northampton

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the reason is for the time taken to make a decision on the Rushden Lakes development; and when he plans to announce that decision. [199254]

Nick Boles: [Holding answer 10 June 2014] The Secretary of State issued his decision on this case on 11 June. He has decided to grant planning permission for this development. A copy of the decision letter and the inspector's report has been sent to the hon. Member and to other interested parties, and these documents are available on the gov.uk website at:

https://www.gov.uk/planning-applications-called-in-decisions-and-recovered-appeals

Mr Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government by what date he plans to announce whether the Rushden Lakes/Skew Bridge planning application has been accepted. [199622]

Nick Boles: The Secretary of State issued his decision on this case on 11 June. He has decided to grant planning permission for this development. A copy of the decision letter and the inspector's report has been sent to my hon. Friend and to other interested parties, and these documents are available on the gov.uk website at:

https://www.gov.uk/planning-applications-called-in-decisions-and-recovered-appeals

Sleeping Rough: North West

Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many rough sleepers there were in each local authority in the North West in each year since 2010. [199273]

Kris Hopkins: As outlined in the written ministerial statement of 18 September 2012, Official Report, column 32WS, my Department no longer publishes statistics by the former Government Office regions. National and local authority data on rough sleeping can be found in the Rough Sleeping in England statistical release, which can be found on the Department’s website at

https://www.gov.uk/government/collectinos/homelessness-statistics#rough-sleeping.

We are investing £470 million over the current spending review period to help local authorities and voluntary sector partners prevent and tackle homelessness, rough sleeping and repossessions. This includes £20 million to support the roll-out of the ‘No Second Night Out’ standard and protect vital front-line services. We have also supported the voluntary sector to deliver ‘StreetLink' a national rough sleeping hotline, website and app, to connect rough sleepers to local services.

On 10 June we announced that over £65 million of funding across Whitehall is being offered to councils and other organisations to tackle homelessness around the country and ensure that vulnerable people can access a range of support and lead independent lives.

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Social Rented Housing: Foreign Nationals

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people registered for social housing in (a) Liverpool, (b) the North West and (c) England are non-UK nationals. [198910]

Kris Hopkins [holding answer 9 June 2014]:Information about the nationality of households on local authority waiting lists is not collected centrally. Last December we published statutory guidance for local authorities to ensure that—with the exception of service personnel—only those with a well-established local residency and local association qualify for social housing. The guidance also encourages local authorities to consider how accurate and anonymised information on waiting list applicants and lettings outcomes could be routinely published, to strengthen public confidence in the fairness of their allocation scheme.

Information on social housing lettings is collected by the Department through the Continuous Recording of Lettings (CORE). In 2012-13, 92% of all new social housing (general and supported, social and affordable rents) lettings were to households where the lead tenant was a UK national. In Liverpool this was 91%. National data are published annually

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/social-housing-lettings-in-england-april-2012-to-march-2013

Ministers have been very clear that local authorities should ensure they have up-to-date information about prospective tenants' nationality and immigration status, in order to ascertain their eligibility for social housing.

International Development

Developing Countries: Education

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes by 2030 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the sustainable development goals. [199772]

Justine Greening: The UK supports a target to ensure all girls and boys complete primary and secondary education with relevant learning outcomes in the post-2015 sustainable development framework. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.

The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will, however, be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk

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protection, with particular attention to the most marginalised and people in vulnerable situations in the Open Working Group negotiations on the sustainable development goals. [199773]

Justine Greening: The UK supports the inclusion of ensuring universal health coverage as a target under an outcome-focused health goal. By definition, universal health coverage includes financial risk protection. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.

The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will, however, be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Housing

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure universal access to adequate and affordable housing and basic services for all, and eliminate slum-like conditions everywhere by 2030 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the sustainable development Goals. [199771]

Justine Greening: The UK supports the proposed language of the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June:

“to ensure universal access to adequate and affordable housing and basic services for all, and eliminate slum-like conditions everywhere,”

by 2030.

The final goals and targets in the post-2015 development framework will be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Working Conditions

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to end child labour by 2030 and protect the rights of and ensure safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers and those in precarious employment in Open Working Group negotiations on the sustainable development goals. [199765]

Justine Greening: The UK supports ending child labour and safe and secure working environments for all workers. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.

The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will, however, be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Developing Countries: Young People

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to halve the

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number of young people not in employment, education or training by 2020 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the sustainable development goals. [199774]

Justine Greening: The UK supports a post-2015 target on employment. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.

The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will, however, be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

Palestinians

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid her Department has given to the Palestinian Authority in each of the last five years. [199228]

Mr Duncan: Information on the amounts of direct financial assistance provided by the UK to the Palestinian Authority over the last five years can be found on the DFID Development Tracker website at the following links:

http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-202564/

http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-113709/

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what arrangements are in place to monitor the use of funds given to the Palestinian Authority. [199229]

Mr Duncan: UK direct financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority is channelled through the World Bank Palestinian Reform and Development Plan Trust Fund and is used to pay the salaries of civil servants from an approved list. The list of individuals is systematically screened and checked against international (including Israeli) and ad hoc sanctions lists. The whole process is independently audited which ensures we know exactly where and how our money is being spent.

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) whether any UK aid given to the Palestinian Authority has been distributed to prisoners convicted of terrorism-related activities in the last five years; [199230]

(2) whether any UK aid given to the Palestinian Authority has been distributed to individuals released from prison after serving sentences for terrorism-related activities. [199231]

Mr Duncan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided to my hon. Friend the Member for Aberconwy (Guto Bebb) on 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 461W.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Colombia

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he and his Department have received regarding alleged fabrication of charges by the Colombian state against David Florez, spokesperson for the Patriotic March movement. [199777]

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Mr Swire: My Department has not received any representations regarding alleged fabrication of charges by the Colombian state against David Florez.

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to his Colombian counterpart about reports that agents acting on behalf of the Colombian Government are bringing trumped-up charges against leading members of the Patriotic March movement. [199778]

Mr Swire: My Department has not received any evidence regarding alleged trumped-up charges by agents acting on behalf of the Colombian Government against leading members of the Patriotic March movement.

Gibraltar and Spain

Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what representations he has made to the European Commission in respect of petitions from the Government of Gibraltar for a representative to monitor the border crossing; [199448]

(2) what assessment he has made of the effect of delays on the border from British Gibraltar territory into Spain on vehicles crossing that border. [199447]

Mr Lidington: The delays imposed by the Spanish authorities at the border with Gibraltar continue to have a significant impact, resulting in significant changes in behaviour at the border: visitor arrivals in Gibraltar are down and vehicle traffic has fallen. The Government are concerned about the impact that border delays are having on businesses in both Spain and Gibraltar.

Since the beginning of the disruption last summer, the Government have raised this issue regularly with the European Commission. We recently sent detailed information on the delays, supplied by Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar, to the Director General for Home Affairs, together with an update on the steps taken by Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar to address the recommendations made to them by the Commission. Ministers have also been in direct contact with the Commission, including the Commissioner for Home Affairs. In our conversations we stressed the need for the Commission to make follow-up visits to monitor the continuing delays. We continue to request that the Commission urge Spain to act on its recommendations and return border checks to reasonable and proportionate levels.

Iran

Mr Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to his Iranian counterpart on that country's material and financial support for terror organisations. [R] [199626]

Hugh Robertson: We have serious concerns about Iran's support for a number of militant groups in the Middle East, including Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the military wing of Hamas, and Shi’a militia groups, including in Iraq. This support undermines prospects for peace and stability in the middle east. We

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have raised our concerns about such activity during our expanding bilateral engagement with Iran, and will continue to do so.

Palestinians

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of recent reports that Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal said that his organisation will not renounce violence or recognise Israel. [199277]

Hugh Robertson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 10 June 2014, Official Report, column 91W.

Sri Lanka

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which (a) Sri Lankan Government representatives and (b) Sri Lankan non-governmental organisations and civil society organisations (i) were invited to and (ii) attended the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict. [199776]

Mr Swire: The Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict that the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs is co-hosting with the Special Envoy of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees from 10-13 June 2014 will turn the political commitments contained in the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict into practical action. All Governments who have endorsed the declaration have been invited. We have invited the Sri Lankan high commissioner to London to attend as an observer, as Sri Lanka has not yet endorsed the declaration. We have invited a range of Sri Lankan civil society representatives and hope that their expertise on the situation on the ground will contribute to the discussion of the issues at hand.

Transcaucasus

Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has held with the Russian Government on the right to self-determination of people in the North Caucasus. [199762]

Mr Lidington: I have not specifically discussed the right to self-determination of people in the North Caucasus with the Russian Government. However, this Government regularly raise concerns about the human rights situation in Russia with the Russian Government. Concerns about the human rights situation in the North Caucasus were included in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s 2013 Annual Human Rights Report.

Health

Abortion

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has (a) conducted and (b) evaluated into the circumstances in which a typical abortion is performed on the grounds that it is necessary to prevent the physical or mental health of any existing children of the family of the pregnant woman; and if he will make a statement. [199183]

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Jane Ellison: No research has been commissioned by the Department. It is for two doctors, in the light of their clinical opinion of the circumstances of the pregnant woman's individual case, to form an opinion in good faith that one and the same of the lawful grounds in the Abortion Act are met.

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women (a) of each age group, (b) in each health authority area and (c) of each type of complication and cause of death died following health complications after abortion procedures in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013 and (iii) 2014 to date. [199192]

Jane Ellison: In 2012, no deaths were recorded on Abortion Notification form HSA4 submitted to the chief medical officers of England and Wales. No data have been published by the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Death for the years requested but will be available in due course.

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women (a) of each age group, (b) in each health authority area and (c) suffering from each type of complication suffered health complications following abortion procedures in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013 and (iii) 2014 to date. [199194]

Jane Ellison: The following tables show categories of information collected on form HSA4 about complications of abortion up to time of discharge. The categories are headed 'none', 'haemorrhage', 'uterine perforation', 'sepsis', and ‘other’. Health authority data are not available. Data were analysed by local authority and grouped into regions to protect patient confidentiality. The data are for 2012 only; 2013 and 2014 data have not been published yet.

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Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were performed for foetal abnormality in each of the last five years which were reported to a foetal abnormality register but were not notified through the submission of an HSA4 abortion notification form to the Chief Medical Officer. [199204]

Jane Ellison: Results from a matching exercise undertaken on the 2011 and 2012 data between the abortion notification forms and NDSCR records were published on 23 May 2014 entitled ‘Matching Department of Health abortion notifications and data from the National Down’s Syndrome Cytogenetic Register and recommendations for improving notification compliance’. No matching exercise was undertaken for the years 2008, 2009 and 2010. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library. It is also available at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/under-reporting-of-abortions-for-fetal-abnormalities

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were performed beyond the 24-week limit where feticide was declined in each of the last five years. [199205]

Jane Ellison: Information on whether feticide was declined is not collected on the abortion notification form HSA4.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he intends to take to ensure that literature distributed by abortion clinics informing women about adoption as an alternative to abortion under the new Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy is of the highest possible quality and objectivity. [199240]

Jane Ellison: The updated Required Standard Operating Procedures set out that:

“women must be given impartial, accurate and evidence based information (verbal and written) delivered neutrally”

covering a range of issues, including adoption. Part of the Care Quality Commission's (CQC) inspection methodology is to look for open and honest communication from a service provider about the nature of the services it provides. The CQC's inspectors would ask to see a sample of information that would be provided to service users and use this as part of the decision-making process when making a judgment.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy, what assessment he has made of the possibility that inaccurate diagnoses will follow his Department's decision to allow women to refrain from informing their GP of a prior abortion. [199241]

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Jane Ellison: Women seeking an abortion have the right to confidentiality and their decision must be respected if they do not want their general practitioner to be informed.

Abortion: Counselling

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what (a) formal and (b) informal discussions officials had with (i) pro-life organisations, (ii) the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, (iii) Marie Stopes International and (iv) pro-choice organisations before the publication of guidance on the provision of non-judgemental counselling; and if he will make a statement; [199214]

(2) how many staff of each grade are employed in his Department's Sexual Health Policy Team; [199184]

(3) which Directorate in his Department produced guidance on the provision of non-judgemental counselling; which Directorate has policy responsibility for implementation of this guidance; and if he will make a statement. [199212]

Jane Ellison: Departmental officials have made a number of visits and have had informal discussions with a number of counselling providers which included pro-life and pro-choice organisations; these are listed as follows.

Organisations visited or with which contact was made

Brook Advisory Centre, Brixton

British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), Richmond

Care Confidential, Alternatives Trust, Newham

City Pregnancy Counselling and Psychotherapy Service, Islington

Homerton NHS Trust, Hackney

Hull Sexual and Reproductive Health Care Partnership

Life Care Centre, Walsall

Marie Stopes International, Brixton and Bristol

Norwich Contraception and Sexual Health Clinic

Plymouth Community Healthcare

The Government produced guidance on the provision of non-judgmental abortion counselling in ‘A Framework for Sexual Health Improvement in England’(March 2013). The Framework was produced by the sexual health policy team in the Public Health Directorate.

The Sexual Health Policy team is made up of the following staff at each grade:

one Senior Civil Servant (who also manages policy areas other than sexual health)

one Grade 6

two Grade 7

one Senior Executive Officer

one Higher Executive Officer (seven whole time equivalent)

one Executive Officer

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Revised Standard Operating Procedures for the Approval of Independent Places for the Termination of Pregnancy, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients seeking abortion counselling are not subject to pressure to agree to the procedure as a result of his Department's requirement that abortion treatment must be delivered within 10 days of the first appointment; and if he will make a statement. [199239]

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Jane Ellison: The Required Standard Operating Procedures make clear that women can choose to delay appointments/booked procedures and this should always override issues of timeliness.

Cancer

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of patients with cancer of the unknown primary first presenting at accident and emergency. [199342]

Jane Ellison: NHS England expects that the treatment and care for patients with cancer of unknown primary reflects patients' needs and preferences and that services are provided taking into account National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.

Public Health England leads on developing a public health strategy for England which aims to tackle ‘upstream’ factors to reduce risks from cancer caused by tobacco, alcohol and obesity and to promote health through improved diets and exercise promotion. The national health service has a key role to play in supporting local authorities by commissioning smoking cessation services, specialist alcohol services, as well as through raising awareness of lifestyle risks with people who are in contact with NHS services and providing intensive support where needed.

Alongside supporting Public Health England to increase symptom awareness among the general population, NHS England is also working to increase cancer symptom awareness among health care professionals, and to provide support to general practitioners in early diagnosis.

In 2013-14 NHS England made £2.3 million available to support improved symptom awareness and early diagnosis. The majority of this funding was provided to strategic clinical networks which have the function of co-ordinating a more strategic approach to the development of cancer commissioning and provision in England. They also support early diagnosis through delivery of transparent data about performance in outcomes. For example, new indicators on stage of diagnosis of cancer and diagnosis through emergency routes are being introduced as part of the clinical commissioning group (CCG) outcomes indicator set in 2014-15. This will support CCGs to understand how their local communities are performing in relation to cancer outcomes.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to improve the collection and reporting of data relating to the incidence of cancer of the unknown primary. [199343]

Jane Ellison: Information has recently been published by Public Health England's National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) about the routes taken by patients prior to a diagnosis of cancer of unknown primary (CUP), and the links between age and socio-economic deprivation and CUP. These publications increase our understanding of the epidemiology of CUP and allow clinical teams to benchmark their levels of CUP diagnoses.

A survey of CUP registration and reporting practices in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia was recently conducted by the NCIN and the University of New South Wales. The results, which identified differences in CUP registration practice, are currently being analysed

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by the NCIN and will be used to develop a better understanding of historic data. The findings can also support and inform future standardisation of national and international registration guidance.

Preliminary results from the CUP survey will be presented at the Cancer Outcomes Conference-the Power of Information 2014.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the importance of psychological support services for patients suffering from cancer of the unknown primary. [199344]

Jane Ellison: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance manual: Improving Supportive and Palliative Care for Adults with Cancer:

www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/csgspmanual.pdf

provides a framework for the provision of psychological support in people with cancer—including cancer of unknown primary.

The NICE clinical guideline for Depression with a chronic physical health problem (CG91) is also a useful resource.

All patients should have systematic psychological assessment and have access to an appropriate psychological intervention from professionals competent to provide them.

Care Homes: West Sussex

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps he plans to take to implement the recommendations of the Serious Case Review into the private care home sector in West Sussex; [199801]

(2) what plans he has to reform the Care Quality Commission. [199802]

Norman Lamb: The Department has noted the report of the serious case review into deaths at Orchid View care home. The great majority of the report’s recommendations are for local attention and response. However, the Department is taking action to improve the regulation and oversight of care providers and to enhance protection from abuse and neglect.

The Care Act places care and support law into a single statute for the first time and enshrines the principle of individual well-being as the driving force behind it. It ensures that people will have clearer information and advice to help them navigate the system, and a more diverse, high quality range of support to choose from to meet their needs.

The Act sets local authorities’ responsibility for protecting adults with care and support needs from abuse or neglect in primary legislation. This is vital to ensure clear accountability, roles and responsibilities for helping and protecting adults with care and support needs who are experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect as a result of those needs. Local authorities are given a lead role in co-ordinating local safeguarding activity.

Following the failure of Southern Cross Healthcare, the Government consulted widely on how to address the issues around the financial failure of large care providers. The Care Act establishes the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as the financial regulator of providers which, because of their size, geographical coverage or specialism, could cause difficulty to local authorities in arranging alternative care in such circumstances.

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The CQC will look at the finances of these providers and, where there are significant concerns about financial sustainability, take action to ensure a provider is taking steps to return to financial health. Where that is not possible, the CQC will share all the information it has with relevant local authorities, to help them minimise the negative effects should the provider fail and to ensure a smooth process that provides continuing care to individuals.

The aim of this new regime is not to prop up failing providers, but to provide reassurance and co-ordinate continuity of care for people affected should a care business fail. The CQC is currently working to establish this new function, which will begin in April 2015 and sit alongside its role to oversee the quality of providers. In the meantime, the Department has a team overseeing the finances of the five largest providers.

Significant reform is already under way to ensure the CQC is an effective regulator. Chief inspectors have been appointed, for hospitals, adult social care, and general practice. The CQC is putting in place specialist inspection teams, headed by the chief inspectors, to carry out more in-depth inspections that subject providers to greater scrutiny than before.

Under the leadership of the chief inspectors and, after a phase of testing, since April 2014 all acute national health service trusts inspections have used the new methodology; the inspection reports from this wave were all published by March 2014, three of which produced a shadow rating. The CQC is completing the second wave of inspections and all 13 of the 19 inspection reports already published have a shadow rating. The CQC also began testing its new inspection model in mental health, community services and NHS general practice out of hours services in January 2014 and in adult social care in April 2014.

Subject to parliamentary agreement, regulations will introduce new fundamental standards as requirements for registration with the CQC. These will allow the CQC to take robust action against providers that do not deliver an acceptable standard of care. The CQC will produce ratings of the quality of care ranging from “outstanding” to “inadequate”, to provide service users with a fuller picture of the quality of care available. The aim is to introduce both sets of regulations in October 2014.

Cervical Cancer

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations of the Demos report, Behind the Screen, to increase uptake of cervical screening; [199629]

(2) what assessment he has made of the conclusions of the Demos report, Behind the Screen on (a) the decline in screening rates for all age groups and (b) the costs to both the NHS and individual women of screening uptake levels; [199630]

(3) what plans his Department has to (a) support cervical Screening Awareness Week and (b) promote awareness by other means of the importance of cervical cancer screening for cervical abnormalities and cancer; and if he will make it his policy to set a target of 85 per cent for screening uptake. [199664]

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Jane Ellison: We welcome the Demos report, Behind the screen: “Revealing the true cost of cervical cancer...”, which we have discussed in detail with Public Health England (PHE). On the specific recommendations in the report:

it is NHS Cervical Screening Programme policy that general practitioners should offer 'on the spot' cervical screening tests to women during other appointments, as long as they are overdue. In 2012-13, more than 500,000 were taken without an immediate invitation;

on awareness campaigns, PHE is looking at a number of other cancers for potential local pilot tests within the Be Clear on Cancer programme, and a decision will be made later in the summer;

a strategy on using celebrities or religious leaders to improve coverage would need to be tied in with any overall marketing campaign, but previous experience shows that this only has a short-term effect and needs frequent repetition. The publicity around Jade Goody, diagnosis, illness and subsequent death, brought in many under-screened women, but this dissipated within months following Jade's death at the end of March 2009; and

PHE has funded research on the effects of mother/daughter relationships on uptake of screening and vaccination, including in lower socio-economic groups. PHE would be very happy to discuss this with Demos and Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust.

We know that for a number of reasons coverage rates among women have fallen slightly over the last decade, as highlighted further in the report, and a considerable amount of work is under way to tackle this decline. The third annual report of our Cancer Outcomes Strategy said that a priority for 2014-15 will be to improve screening uptake among disadvantaged groups. PHE is undertaking analysis on local screening programmes with poor coverage, and will work with them to develop action plans to increase coverage in their local areas.

Specifically on younger women, the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment programme has commissioned a £1 million study to determine which interventions are effective at increasing screening uptake among women who are receiving their first invitation from the programme. We also know that coverage rates are lower in certain communities. NHS Cancer Screening Programmes have worked with Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust to host two events looking at challenges to screening uptake among black and minority ethnic communities, and a third event is due to be held in Birmingham in July 2014. NHS Cancer Screening Programmes has also funded an award winning Lesbian and Gay Foundation's Are You Ready for Your Screen Test? campaign targeting lesbian and bisexual women to raise awareness about the need to attend for regular cervical screening tests.

Regarding costs discussed in the report, we will ensure that the report is sent to colleagues in NHS England who are responsible for commissioning the cervical screening service. The report will also be discussed at the next meeting of the Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening in the autumn.

Acceptable and achievable standards for cervical screening coverage rates are being discussed as part of the update of the cervical screening service specification attached to the NHS public health functions agreement: Public health functions to be exercised by NHS England (section 7a agreement) for 2015-16.

We are fully supportive of Cervical Screening Awareness Week (CSA Week) and the work Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust does, who I met recently.

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I wrote to all Members of Parliament on 11 June to draw their attention to CSA Week, update them on national and local screening statistics and ask for their support in promoting take-up of screening. In addition, the Department and PHE promoted CSA Week on social media.

Chlamydia

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people (a) sought chlamydia screening and (b) tested positive in each local authority in 2012-13. [199243]

Jane Ellison: The table contains the number of chlamydia tests and diagnoses made in each Upper Tier local authority in England for the most recent year-for which data are available (2012) for 15 to 24-year-olds.

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