Bovine Tuberculosis
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research his Department has undertaken of the effect of the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project on the incidence of bovine TB in cattle. [202590]
George Eustice:
The purpose of the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project is to learn lessons about the practicalities of deploying an injectable vaccine; provide training for others who may wish to apply for a licence
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to vaccinate badgers; and build farmer confidence in the use of badger vaccination. It was not designed as a scientific trial to assess the impact of vaccination on bovine TB in cattle and the scale of the project is insufficient to produce statistically reliable data on this.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to expand the training provided by the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project. [202591]
George Eustice: We are working with our Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency to consider training needs and how these can be met, building on lessons from the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project. Announcements on this will be made in due course.
Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) whether his Department (a) has funded or (b) plans to fund badger vaccination against bovine TB in this calendar year; [202736]
(2) how much resource his Department plans to provide as matched funding for badger vaccination to tackle bovine TB in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16. [202618]
George Eustice: In April 2013, as part of the Government’s strategy for achieving officially bovine tuberculosis-free status for England, the Secretary of State announced new support for privately led vaccination initiatives in the edge area. Building on ongoing work with stakeholders, including a key workshop held on 24 June, a new scheme will be launched shortly and will offer financial and other support, such as training and advice. Announcements about the future of the existing badger vaccination fund, which has been available since 2012 and has offered more limited support, will also be made in due course. The total funds offered will be dependent on demand.
Common Agricultural Policy
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when his Department plans to issue further guidance on ecological focus areas; and if he will make a statement. [202227]
George Eustice: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), made a statement to the House on 10 June covering a range of common agricultural policy reform implementation decisions. A number of subsequent decisions have to be made in relation to the greening ecological focus area requirements, and we plan to issue further guidance to claimants within the next two months.
Dogs: Diseases
Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases of lungworm in dogs have been identified in each of the last five years. [202698]
George Eustice: The data requested are not collected or held by DEFRA.
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Food Supply
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the minimum number of weeks supply of food stocks required for the UK to maintain an acceptable level of food security. [201925]
George Eustice: The UK Government do not hold stocks of food. Food supply is part of the UK's critical national infrastructure, and food industry sectors are resilient, with wide and diverse sources of supply and strong contingency plans. DEFRA works closely with the industry and across Government, including devolved Administrations, on the resilience of food supply, and ensures that industry sectors have the support they need to respond in the event of emergency situations.
Marine Animals
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will assess the potential changes in levels of marine animals and aquatic life on UK beaches and coasts as a result of climate change and a consequent effect on levels of tourism. [202457]
George Eustice: DEFRA has in place monitoring to inform our understanding of the conservation status of certain marine habitats and species, much of which is in response to EU legislation. We also continue to support the Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership which brings together scientists, government, its agencies and NGOs to provide co-ordinated advice on climate change impacts around our coast and in our seas. Further, we have recently consulted on proposals for monitoring the state of the marine environment, including marine animals, under the provisions of the marine strategy framework directive. We will be publishing our response to that consultation shortly.
DEFRA currently has no plans to specifically assess the impact of potential changes in populations of marine animals as a result of climate change on levels of tourism. However, where appropriate, Government impact assessments include consideration of the economic impacts of policies in the marine environment on tourism.
Valuation of Life and Health Interdepartmental Group
Mr O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what the explicit monetary value per quality-adjusted life was in the context of the flood risk management, as quoted as part of the Environment Agency's submission to the Inter-Departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review in 2008; [202422]
(2) if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's submission to the Inter-Departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review and all evidence submitted to the series of interviews with his Department's staff conducted by researchers from the university of Leeds in 2008; [202413]
(3) what the explicit monetary value per quality-adjusted life was in the context of the health benefits from air pollution reduction, as quoted as part of his Department's submission to the Inter-Departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review in 2008. [202421]
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Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency did not provide an explicit monetary value for a quality adjusted life in the context of flood risk management as part of the 2008 review. It did provide a discussion of risk to life valuation in connection to flood risk in Boscastle, as referenced on page 10 of the 2008 Review.
The explicit monetary value per quality-adjusted life from air pollution reduction, as quoted as part of the Department’s submission to the Inter-Departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review in 2008 was valued using a “lost life years” methodology at £29,000 (in 2004 prices) for each additional year of life. This figure was informed by a 2004 DEFRA report entitled Valuation of Health Benefits Associated with Reduction in Air Pollution available here
http://archive.defra.gov.uk/environment/quality/air/airquality/publications/healthbenefits/airpollution_reduction.pdf
The 2004 study did not directly give the £29,000 figure but was instrumental in its adoption.
The lead economist working in health and wellbeing in the Department was a member of this group in 2008. His interview responses were formed from his experience within the Department. Records of the interviews conducted by the university of Leeds (other than what is incorporated into the report itself) were not kept by the Department.
Veterinary Medicine: Antibiotics
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the oral evidence of the Under-Secretary of State with responsibility for farming, food and marine environment, my hon. Friend the Member for Camborne and Redruth (George Eustice) to the Science and Technology Committee of 12 March 2014, HC 848, question 327, what the evidential basis is for his statement that antibiotics tend to be used in the veterinary world more sparingly than in the medical world. [201646]
George Eustice: Data on antibiotic use in the medical and veterinary sectors are currently collated in a different format, which prevents direct comparison.
However, data from the Health and Social Care Information Centre shows that 376 tonnes of just one class of antibiotic, the ß-lactams, was used in primary care in England in 2012. This does not factor in other classes of antibiotic, or those used in secondary care, in contrast the total sales of all antibiotics for use in animals for the whole UK was 409 tonnes, 82 tonnes of which were ß-lactams.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Agriculture: Technology
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress he is making in increasing exports of UK agricultural technologies; and if he will make a statement. [201942]
Michael Fallon: To support the international priorities of the Government's industrial strategy for agricultural technologies, UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has established the Agri-Tech Organisation. This industry-led team provides strategic and practical export support to UK-based companies and promotes the UK for inward investment.
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The Agri-Tech Organisation is identifying opportunities in mature and early stage markets with the support of the UK Business Ambassador for Agri-Tech and private sector advisers to maximise the UK's agricultural technology sector's growth potential. This includes working closely with UKTI overseas posts in scoping and promoting visits or events.
Apprentices
Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reason allowing employers which wish to continue with current apprenticeship funding arrangements to do so was not listed as an option in his Department's recent consultation on the future of apprenticeships. [202656]
Matthew Hancock: The Apprenticeships Funding Reform Technical Consultation sought evidence on the practical implications for employers of two new systems for routing apprenticeship funding: the PAYE model and the Apprenticeship Credit. The practical implications of the current system are already well understood, therefore we did not include this in the technical consultation. We are giving careful consideration to all feedback received, before announcing our next steps in the autumn.
Business: North Yorkshire
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department is giving to small and medium-sized businesses in North Yorkshire. [202144]
Matthew Hancock: We continue to work hard to provide the right support to make life easier for small and medium-sized businesses everywhere.
www.gov.uk is the home for Government services and information online. One of the tools available is the ‘Finance and Support Finder;' a searchable database of publicly-backed sources of finance and business support. The website:
www.greatbusiness.gov.uk
also provides support and advice for anyone trying to start or grow a business.
In addition to online support, the business support helpline is available to provide a quick response on queries about starting a business, or a personalised and in-depth advice service for more complex needs.
North Yorkshire has benefitted from a number of support schemes. The start-up loan scheme has provided business advice and 629 loans with a value of £3.3 million to people starting a business. Since May 2010, 165 companies have benefitted from the Government’s enterprise finance guarantee scheme with a drawn down value of over £22 million.
Business: Northern Ireland
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what work the British Business Bank is doing in Northern Ireland to promote its services to small businesses located there. [202620]
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Matthew Hancock: British Business Bank programmes facilitated £7.5 million of new lending and investment to smaller businesses in Northern Ireland in 2013/14.
The Business Bank’s enterprise finance guarantee programme supported £5.1 million of additional lending to Northern Irish businesses during 2013/14, bringing the total amount of lending through the programme in Northern Ireland to £36.1 million.
The bank’s start-up loans programme was extended to Northern Ireland in June 2013 and since then, it has provided 120 loans to Northern Irish start-ups, lending a total of over £560,000.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Northern Ireland Executive recently hosted a roadshow in Northern Ireland to promote the delivery of Business Bank programmes through Northern Irish finance providers and the Business Bank is actively discussing with the Executive how it can continue to support Northern Irish businesses in the future.
Companies: Ownership
Mr Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will ensure that his legislative proposals aimed at creating a public register of beneficial ownership ensure that information in the register has undergone verification. [202441]
Jo Swinson: The Government recognise that register integrity is an important issue. This Department is carefully considering with Companies House and others what checks are necessary to ensure integrity of data and that the registration of company information in the UK remains quick, simple and inexpensive.
The current UK register is one of the most open in the world, and is accessed over 240 million times a year. This means the information is policed on a significant scale by the public, who report anomalies to Companies House for follow up.
Educational Testing Service
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the Educational Testing Service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. [202232]
Jo Swinson: The Department does not have any contracts with the Educational Testing Service or any of its subsidiaries.
I have approached the chief executives of the Department’s executive agencies (Insolvency Service, Companies House, National Measurement Office, Intellectual Property Office, UK Space Agency, Ordnance Survey, Met Office, Land Registry and the Skills Funding Agency) and they will respond to my hon. Friend directly.
Information for non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Letter from John Alty, dated June 2014:
I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled 24 June, to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. (202232)
The Intellectual Property Office has no contract with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
Letter from Neil Ackroyd, dated 26 June 2014:
As Acting Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, I have been asked to respond to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's Executive Agencies or Non-departmental Public Bodies hold with the Educational Testing Service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
Ordnance Survey does not hold any current contracts with the Educational Testing Service or its subsidiaries.
Should you have any further questions, please let me know.
Letter from Richard Judge, dated June 2014:
The Secretary of State for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question, what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. My response relates to the Insolvency Service, an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Insolvency Service has no contract with the educational testing service or any of that organisation’s subsidiaries.
Letter from Tim Moss, dated 25 June 2014:
I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 24 June 2014, UIN 202232 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
Companies House does not have any current contracts with the Educational Testing Service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
Letter from Barbara Spicer, dated 25 June 2014:
Thank you for your question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. (202232)
Please be advised that the Skills Funding Agency does not currently hold a contract with any of the following organisations: ETS or any of the subsidiary organisations that they refer to including Computerized Assessments and Learning LLC, Edusoft Ltd, Prometric and ETS Global.
I hope this satisfactorily addresses your question. If you have any follow up queries, please let me know.
Letter from David Parker, date 25 June 2014:
Thank you for your question addressed to the Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills asking what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
The UK Space Agency is an Executive Agency of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills and has no contracts with the educational testing services or any of its subsidiaries.
Letter from John Hirst, dated 26 June 2014:
I am replying on behalf of the Met Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 24 June 2014, UIN 202232 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The Met Office holds no contracts with the educational testing service or any of its subsidiaries.
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Letter from Richard Sanders, dated 25 June 2014:
I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office (NMO), an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 24 June 2014 asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. (202232)
The National Measurement Office has no current contracts with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
Letter from Ed Lester, dated 25 June 2014:
I write on behalf of Land Registry in response to Parliamentary Question 202232 tabled on 24 June 2014 which asked the following:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries.
I can confirm that Land Registry do not hold any contracts with the Educational Testing Service. If you could let me know the names of any subsidiary companies you would like me to check, please let me have the company names.
Energy: Industry
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he first notified the European Commission of his plans to compensate certain energy-intensive users for the indirect costs of the carbon price floor; and if he will make a statement. [201725]
Michael Fallon: Government pre-notified the European Commission of our plans to compensate certain energy- intensive industries for the indirect costs of the carbon price floor in September 2012 and, following feedback from the Commission, we formally notified them on 11 February 2014.
The European Commission approved our state aid application on 21 May 2014 and we will be able to start paying companies shortly.
EU External Trade: USA
Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement regulations on UK public services and businesses as a result of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership; and what UK Government policy is towards such regulations in international investment agreements. [202532]
Michael Fallon:
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has commissioned research into Investor- State Dispute Settlement clauses (ISDS), reviewed academic research, consulted external experts and carried out its own internal analysis on investment provisions. The UK currently has over 90 investment protection agreements with other countries. There has been no successful action against the UK in respect of any of these agreements. ISDS provisions in investment and trade treaties can help to create a positive investment climate. The ISDS provisions in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership are still under negotiation. We believe these provisions must strike the right balance between protecting
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investors and the host nation’s right to regulate and determine policy and also provide transparency of process. A balanced ISDS clause in TTIP could act as a model for future trade and investment agreements.
Foreign Investment in UK: Northern Ireland
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what work the Regeneration Investment Organisation is undertaking to promote Northern Ireland as a location for investment in regeneration projects. [201729]
Michael Fallon: The Regeneration Investment Organisation (RIO) is actively working on several investment opportunities in Northern Ireland with a gross development value of around £3 billion. The team has held commercial dialogue with overseas investors for some of these schemes.
The RIO team has a dedicated regional project manager who engages with development opportunities in Northern Ireland, works closely with Invest Northern Ireland and helps projects advance to a stage where they would be able to attract overseas investment.
There is also official representation from Northern Ireland on the Regeneration Investment Advisory Board (RIAB), a group consisting of industry and Government specialists set up to provide strategic advice and oversight of RIO activity.
National Careers Service
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of potential changes in the number of jobs at the National Careers Service arising from the Government's digital-by-default policy. [202577]
Matthew Hancock: The new National Careers Service has been designed to respond to the changing needs of the economy with a focus on local leadership and providing inspiring careers advice for customers, including a new brokerage role to facilitate relationships between schools and employers.
As part of the re-procurement process organisations were assessed on their capacity and capability to deliver the service through face to face services and a range of media that meet customers’ specific needs and preferences. It is a matter for the new contractors how they achieve outcomes for customers including how they deploy their staff resource to deliver the service.
New Businesses: Government Assistance
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many start-up loans have been granted to local businesses in (a) Thirsk and Malton constituency, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) North of England in each of the last five years. [202142]
Matthew Hancock: The start-up loans programme commenced in 2012.
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Thirsk and Malton | North Yorkshire | North of England1 | ||||
Loan Volume | Value of loans (£ million) | Loan Volume | Value of loans (£ million) | Loan Volume | Value of loans (£ million) | |
1 North England comprises values for North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humber. Note: All values are loans drawn down. |
New Businesses: Hackney
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many start-up loans have been granted to businesses in Hackney North and Stoke Newington constituency in each of the last five years. [202501]
Matthew Hancock: The start-up loans programme commenced in September 2012, in that year there was one loan with a value of £5,000 drawn down in Hackney North and Stoke Newington constituency. In 2013 there were 110 loans with a drawn value of £752,465 granted and in 2014 to date there have been 53 loans with a drawn value of £259,065 granted.
NHS: Drugs
Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effect of the US-EU Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on the cost of medicine procurement for the NHS. [202107]
Michael Fallon: Previous trade agreements outline a number of high-level principles in relation to arrangements for controlling the prices of medicines. We do not expect the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership to include any additional obligations in this area.
Performance Appraisal
Mrs Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff employed by his Department received each level of performance rating in their end of year performance assessment for 2013-14. [202047]
Jo Swinson: In common with most other Government Departments, BIS currently has three performance categories: category 1 (top), category 2 and category 3. The following table sets out the percentage of employees who have declared a disability within each performance category, and the percentage of all other staff in each performance category for the 2013-14 reporting year. The percentage of all other staff includes those who have either declared that they do not have a disability, have chosen the option of ‘prefer not to say’ or have not made a declaration. 6.5% of staff BIS have currently declared that they have a disability.
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Percentage | |||
Category 1 | Category 2 | Category 3 | |
BIS undertakes a number of activities to mitigate against the risk of discriminatory performance markings including training for managers and staff on unconscious bias and specific guidance on making reasonable adjustments for disabled employees.
Public Houses
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make it his policy to introduce a legal requirement for pubcos to offer a free-of-tie option in the public house sector. [202502]
Jo Swinson: The Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill, introduced to this House on 25 June 2014, does not include provision for mandatory free-of-tie. The Government recognise that some tenant groups and campaigners support this option, which might appear to offer a simple way of ensuring that tied tenants are no worse off than free-of-tie tenants. We looked carefully at this measure but have decided not to introduce it.
The responses to the Government’s consultation on a statutory code and adjudicator for the pubs sector raised concerns that mandatory free-of-tie would create uncertainty for pub-owning companies and have an unpredictable impact on the wider pubs sector which could even undermine the tied model. Even among the polarised views in the industry, there is strong support for the tie as a business model. What is important to the Government is that there are protections in place so that the tied model operates fairly. The reforms being taken forward in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill will rebalance the relationship between pub-owning companies and their tied tenants, without threatening the balance of the wider industry.
Regional Growth Fund
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many projects have received funds from the Regional Growth Fund in (a) Thirsk and Malton constituency, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) the North of England in each of the last five years. [202143]
Michael Fallon: No Regional Growth Fund (RGF) awards have been made in the constituency of Thirsk and Malton.
The following table shows the number of projects and programmes in the region that have been awarded RGF grants in rounds 1-4 and the years in which the selected bidders for each round were announced.
RGF Round | Year selected bidders were announced | The North (North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humberside) | North Yorkshire |
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Selected bidders for round 5 were announced in April 2014 and round 5 contracting is under way.
Businesses in the north of England can apply to regional and national RGF programmes for support.
Trade Promotion: Egypt
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans for the next Government trade delegation to visit Egypt; and if he will include in that delegation construction companies from the UK. [202262]
Michael Fallon: I am planning to visit Egypt from 12-15 October 2014 with a business delegation. Our embassy in Cairo intends that the visit should focus on the following four sectors: Energy, Education, Retail and Construction.
Home Department
Animal Experiments
Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made towards ending the testing of household products and ingredients on animals; and if she will make a statement. [202373]
Norman Baker: We have made a commitment to ban the testing of household products on animals.
Although superficially straightforward, the details have not been easy to resolve. Any solution has to be legally viable since we cannot ban testing which may be required under UK or EU law.
The key issue is around ingredients. I am looking to develop a solution that is workable and sensible, but does not have a chain of unforeseen circumstances.
We are looking to publish progress on the commitment later in the year.
Billing
Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many creditors had remained unpaid by her Department on 1 June 2014 for (a) 45 days, (b) 60 days, (c) 75 days and (d) 76 days and over. [201596]
Karen Bradley: The information requested is shown in the following table.
Overdue period, payments owing: | Number of creditors |
When calculating the unpaid period, the Home Office starts counting from the date when the invoice was due to be paid.
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The above figures refer to all creditors, including those with balances below £10,000.
Invoices may be overdue for a number of reasons including the Department disputing the amount.
Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences
Mr Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what steps her Department is taking to increase the reporting of domestic and sexual violence offences by victims; [201160]
(2) what funding under which categories of expenditure her Department has allocated to domestic and sexual violence support services in each of the last five years; [201164]
(3) what steps her Department has taken to tackle domestic violence and sexual abuse since 2010. [201159]
Norman Baker: Domestic and sexual violence are devastating crimes and are not acceptable within our society. The coalition Government's continued approach to tackling such violence and abuse is set out in our Violence against Women and Girls Action Plan, updated in March 2014.
Supporting victims is at the heart of this approach, which includes giving victims more confidence to report, and it is encouraging that police recorded crime figures show more victims are having the confidence to come forward.
The Government has ring-fenced nearly £40 million of stable funding from 2010 up to 2015 for specialist local domestic and sexual violence support services, rape crisis centres, the national domestic violence helplines and stalking helpline.
Over the spending review period the Home Office funding of £28 million provides for:
144 Independent Domestic Violence Advisers, 87 dedicated Independent Sexual Violence Advisers, 54 Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference Co-ordinators, and funding to Coordinated Action Against Domestic Abuse to provide support and advice to MARACs, as well as running a programme of quality assurance and £1.2 million for three years from 2012 to improve services for young people suffering sexual violence in major urban areas. £900,000 a year is used towards the running costs of national helplines for victims of domestic violence and stalking.
In 2013, the Home Secretary commissioned Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary to undertake a comprehensive review on how the police deal with domestic violence and abuse. HMIC's report exposed significant failings. In response to the Review, the Home Secretary has established a National Oversight Group, which she is chairing, and on which I sit, to ensure HMIC's recommendations are acted upon. The Group met for the first time on 10 June.
The Home Secretary has also written to chief constables making it clear that every police force must have an action plan in place by September 2014, to improve their response to domestic violence and abuse.
Domestic Violence: Peterborough
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to reduce incidents of domestic abuse and violence against women in Peterborough; and if she will make a statement. [202228]
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Norman Baker: The coalition Government has made the tackling of violence against women and girls a high priority. Our approach is set out in our strategy, ‘Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls’ published in November 2010, together with a supporting Action Plan. A revised version of the Action Plan was published in March 2014 and contains 150 actions across Government departments.
For the first time, this Government has put stable funding in place, ring-fencing nearly £40 million for specialist local domestic and sexual violence support services, rape crisis centres, and national helplines. This includes £20,000 funding provided by the Home Office for the provision of an Independent Domestic Violence Adviser at Peterborough City Council, and £10,000 to the Cambridgeshire Sexual Assault Referral Centre, and £30,000 per financial year 2011-2014, increased to £45,000 for 2014/2015 and 2015/2016, provided by the Ministry of Justice to Peterborough Rape Crisis.
This Government is committed to driving improvements in the police response to victims of domestic violence. That is why, last September, the Home Secretary commissioned Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) to conduct an all force review of domestic violence. HMIC published its findings on 27 March 2014 and highlighted serious failings in the police response. In response to the review, the Home Secretary is leading a series of measures to improve the police response. This includes establishing a new National Oversight Group, which she chairs and on which I sit. The Home Secretary has also written to all chief constables making it clear that the police must make significant improvements and that every police force, including Cambridgeshire Police, must have an action plan in place by September 2014 to address HMIC’s findings.
Educational Testing Service
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what current contracts (a) her Department and (b) each of her Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the Educational Testing Service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. [202171]
Karen Bradley: There are currently no contracts held by the Home Department or any of its executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies with the Educational Testing Service or its subsidiaries.
HM Passport Office
Mr Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much in additional payments has been paid to staff of HM Passport Office of each grade between po1 and 6 in each month of 2014; how many staff of each grade received such payments; and what the total amount of such payments is. [200159]
James Brokenshire: Her Majesty’s Passport Office does not hold data on overtime payments in the format requested. However, below is the overtime costs associated with additional work undertaken in each month of 2014.
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£ | |
Mr Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much in overtime costs has been spent in HM Passport Office in each month of 2014. [200816]
James Brokenshire: Overtime costs in Her Majesty's Passport Office in each month of 2014 are as follows:
£ | |
HM Passport Office: Newport
Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department saved for the Exchequer by closing the Passport Office in Newport. [200286]
James Brokenshire: Her Majesty’s Passport Office has not closed its office in Newport. There is an office in Newport providing counter fast-track and premium services, interviews for first-time adult applicants and the customer contact centre.
During 2011-12, as part of a wider operations restructuring, postal passport application processing ceased in Newport and the office was relocated. It is estimated that this reduced operational costs by around £2.6 million per year.
Human Trafficking
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent changes have been made to the structure of the Human Trafficking Unit in the Metropolitan police; and which other police forces in the UK operate a modern slavery or human trafficking unit. [201840]
Karen Bradley: On 12 May 2014, the Metropolitan Police Service launched the new Trafficking and Kidnap Unit, the aim being to provide enhanced support to the victims of human trafficking and modern slavery. The new unit has an enhanced management structure to serve the growing demands of trafficking and modern slavery investigations. It is one of the largest pro-active investigation teams in London, and the only full time modern slavery police unit in the United Kingdom.
The National Crime Agency's UK Human Trafficking Centre provides 24/7 tactical advice capability for local forces, which have developed their own bespoke structures and processes according to local needs.
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Islam: Marriage
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many mosques are registered with the General Register Office to perform civil marriages and partnerships. [201475]
Karen Bradley: No mosques are registered with the General Register Office for England and Wales for civil marriages or civil partnership.
The governing body of a mosque or other building where the Muslim faith is practised may apply to have that building certified as a place of religious worship under the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855. Following this, the building can then be registered for the solemnisation of marriages under the Marriage Act 1949.
There are 258 such buildings registered.
Passports
Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether HM Passport Office is meeting the 2013-14 performance targets (a) to process 99.5% of straightforward passport applications within 10 working days, (b) where additional information is required from customers to process 93% of applications within 29 working days, (c) to process 99.5% of premium and fast track applications within four hours or seven days and (d) to achieve a customer satisfaction rating of at least 90% . [199399]
James Brokenshire: In 2013-14 Her Majesty's Passport Office met its performance targets for straightforward passport applications, non-straightforward passport applications and premium and fast-track passport applications. In March 2014, Her Majesty's Passport Office achieved its customer satisfaction target.
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of passport applications have been received in each month since June 2010 from (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) England, (d) Wales and (e) Northern Ireland. [199971]
James Brokenshire: Her Majesty's Passport Office does not hold this information in the form requested. The cost of identifying it from individual applicant data would be disproportionate.
Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of fast-track passport applications made in the last six months have been processed within seven days. [200526]
James Brokenshire: The following table gives the proportion of fast-track passport applications that were processed within seven days.
Percentage | |
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Passports: Ashfield
Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many passport applications from residents of Ashfield constituency received more than three weeks ago HM Passport Office is processing; [201023]
(2) how many passport applications from residents of Ashfield constituency received in the last three months were not processed by HM Passport Office in three weeks. [201024]
James Brokenshire: Her Majesty’s Passport Office does not hold the information in the form requested. The cost of providing it from individual applicant data held would be disproportionate.
Passports: Kilmarnock
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of passport applications submitted by residents of Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency in each month since June 2010; and how many such cases were processed within three weeks of receipt. [200724]
James Brokenshire: This information is not held in an accessible form by Her Majesty's Passport Office.
The cost of extracting these data would be disproportionate and so unfortunately I cannot provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Performance Appraisal
Mrs Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff employed by her Department received each level of performance rating in their end of year performance assessment for 2013-14. [202059]
Karen Bradley: The performance management data for 2013-14 are not yet available.
Police
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there are per head of the population in (a) England and (b) Wales. [201501]
Damian Green: The figures provided show the number of police officers per 100,000 population in England and in Wales as at 31 March 2013.
Number of full-time equivalent1 police officers per 100,000 population2 as at 31 March 2013 | ||
Total number of police officers | Total officers per 100,000 population | |
1 This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been presented to the nearest whole number. 2 Population figures relate to mid 2011 population estimates based on the 2011 Census. |
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Telephone Services
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many telephone lines with the prefix (a) 0845, (b) 0844 and (c) 0843 her Department (i) operates and (ii) sponsors; how many calls each such number has received in the last 12 months; and whether alternative numbers charged at BT local rates are available in each such case. [201386]
Karen Bradley: Please see the following tables detailing the use and purpose of non-geographic numbers, 0843, 0844 and 0845. These figures are taken directly from BT’s call reporting system.
Home Office | |||
Prefix | Number of lines/service | Inbound calls in last 12 months1 | Alternative BT Local Rate No? |
1Note: On 7 March 2014 the Nationality Contact Centre/European Inquiry Line and the Asylum Support Line both migrated from 0845 to the 0300 prefix with calls charged the same as calls to 01/02. The above volumes for those lines therefore are from June 2013 to March 2014. |
HM Passport Office | |||
Prefix | Number of lines/service | Inbound calls in last 12 months | Alternative BT Local Rate No? |
Passport verification services (PVS) (a Business to Business Service) |
Viral Haemorrhagic Disease
Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps UK Visas and Immigration can take to prevent no cases of Ebola reaching the UK. [202298]
James Brokenshire: The UK does not specifically screen pre or at entry for Ebola.
Public Health England has assessed the risk of importation of Ebola in the UK as very low. It is extremely unlikely that an outbreak of Ebola would occur in the UK even if there was to be an imported case, as there are factors operating in West Africa which would not be seen in the UK. The outbreak in West Africa is driven by person to person spread in the absence of any infection control precautions. Human cases of Ebola virus disease have never yet been exported from an outbreak zone to a European country.
All UK ports have systems and plans for dealing with issues of public health concern. However, they all require that the public health system is first notified of the arrival of someone with a suspected disease of concern.
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Crew are trained to do this by their respective companies and an example of the type of guidance that they work towards can be found on the International Air Transport Association (the international airline trade body) website at:
https://www.iata.org/whatwedo/safety/health/Documents/health-guidelines-cabin-crew-2011.pdf
At all UK ports, there is a system for routing reports, produced by the commander of a craft, to a local health protection team who are available on a 24/7 basis throughout the year. Health protection teams have generic responsibility for managing incidents of public health concern in all settings including our ports. They will then take the lead in managing the incident from a public health perspective with the NHS being responsible for the provision of health care.
The international health regulations (IHR), which entered into force on 15 June 2007, require countries to report certain disease outbreaks and public health events to WHO, including Ebola.
Education
Children: Protection
Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will review whether the recent guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education, distinguishes between legislation which applies to further education colleges as opposed to sixth-form colleges; and if he will make a statement. [202690]
Mr Timpson: The Department for Education's Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance is clear that it applies to children under the age of 18 in both further education and sixth-form colleges.
We are currently considering requests for clarification to the guidance as part of our implementation review.
Educational Testing Service
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the educational testing service or any of that organisation's subsidiaries. [202233]
Elizabeth Truss: The Department and agencies have no current contracts with the educational testing service or its subsidiaries.
Government Procurement Card
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many transactions were made by each (a) Minister and (b) official in his Department on government procurement cards held by his Department in the last financial year; and what the cost, date and reasons for each such transaction was. [202410]
Elizabeth Truss: Government procurement card transactions over £500 are published on:
http://data.gov.uk/dataset/gpc-spend-dfe
Information on transactions below that level is not held centrally and could be compiled only at disproportionate cost.
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Internet: Bullying
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department gives schools and teachers on online abuse from a student towards a teacher. [202117]
Elizabeth Truss: Guidance to schools about online abuse by pupils towards teachers is set out in our advice document, “Preventing and Tackling Bullying”. This guidance signposts schools to “Digizen.Org” who offer a range of advice and support for school staff. Schools can also access a range of practical resources from the UK Safer Internet Centre.
Languages: Education
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department is taking to improve the quality and increase the uptake of foreign language training in schools; and if he will make a statement. [202499]
Elizabeth Truss: The new national curriculum introduces the teaching of a foreign language to key stage 2 (ages seven to 11) from September 2014, which will increase the uptake of foreign languages in both primary and, over time, secondary schools. By starting languages earlier, pupils will have longer to develop their skills to a high level before continuing with language learning in secondary school.
The English Baccalaureate is already encouraging more young people to take a language at GCSE level. Take up by key stage 4 pupils in England of a modern foreign language increased by over 20% between 2012 and 2013.
The Department for Education believes it is important to give teachers the flexibility to decide how to teach. We expect schools to identify the support that they need to prepare for the new curriculum, recognising that different schools will face different challenges.
We are allocating £350,000 this year to fund training on the new national curriculum for teachers of modern foreign languages in primary and secondary schools. We have also allocated some £1.9 million to teaching schools to lead curriculum change across and within their teaching school alliances. 46 of the projects being supported involve languages.
The independent Expert Group, chaired by a leading primary headteacher, has published links to useful resources, which are hosted on the website of the Association for Language Learning. This is specifically to support the introduction of a compulsory foreign language at key stage 2. We are also making extensive use of social networking, including using high profile headteachers and others to raise the profile of the new curriculum, including for languages, through podcasts, webchats and blogs.
Local Government Services: Children
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what meetings Ministers in his Department have had on the outsourcing of local authority children's services since May 2010. [202592]
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Mr Timpson: Through its Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme the Government are supporting local authorities to take new approaches to maximise the capacity and skills brought to bear in improving services for the most vulnerable children. Part of that work involves giving local authorities greater freedom to test new delivery models and harness external ideas and expertise by allowing them to delegate children’s social care functions to external providers.
Ministers have regular internal and external meetings to discuss this policy in particular and approaches to delivering children’s social care more widely.
Pupils: Disadvantaged
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance he has issued to schools on the role of special educational needs co-ordinators in decisions on spending the pupil premium. [201974]
Mr Timpson: The Department for Education has not issued guidance to schools on the role of the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) in decisions on how to spend the pupil premium. We expect that schools will want to involve the SENCO in determining how to use the pupil premium to fund support for those pupils with special educational needs who are economically deprived, looked after by the local authority or who have left care via adoption or other routes.
It should also be noted that the draft 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice states that the SENCO, headteacher and governing body or proprietor should consider their strategic approach to meeting special educational needs in the context of the total resources available to the school, including any resources targeted at particular groups, such as the pupil premium. The draft SEND Code of Practice was laid before Parliament on 11 June 2014 and must be approved by Parliament before it comes into force on 1 September 2014.
Pupils: Mental Health
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the adequacy of specialist support within maintained schools to help students with mental health problems. [202247]
Mr Timpson: The way in which specialist support is provided will vary according to local arrangements.
When specialist provision is required, schools and teachers should have support from appropriately trained and qualified local health partners and other organisations. Both education and health providers should be clear when referrals to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) are the most appropriate form of specialist support.
To support schools with doing this, on 16 June 2014 the Department for Education issued new non-statutory guidance for schools and teachers on pupils’ mental health and behaviour. This guidance helps school staff identify those pupils who may have emerging problems and provides guidance on appropriate routes of ensuring appropriate specialist support where necessary.
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Schools: Admissions
Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) primary and (b) secondary school places have been created in (i) Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency, (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber and (iii) the North of England since May 2010. [202648]
Mr Timpson: The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of available school places (school capacity) in state-funded primary and secondary schools (except special schools) through an annual survey. The most recent data available relate to the position at May 2013 and can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2012-to-2013
Statistics for May 2010 can be found in table 1 of the SFR main tables:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2010-to-2011
Schools: Swimming
Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department takes to promote the teaching of water safety in schools. [202697]
Mr Timpson: In the new national curriculum, which comes into force from September 2014, swimming and water safety remain compulsory in the programme of study for physical education (PE) at primary level. We are sending a clear message to schools that swimming and water safety are essential: no other activities are specified requirements in the PE curriculum. The programme of study for PE is available online here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-physical-education-programmes-of-study
The Department for Education is providing over £450 million of ring-fenced funding across the academic years 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16 to go directly to primary schools, to be spent on the improvement of PE and sport. Headteachers are best placed to decide how the funding should be used and, using the funding, they can provide additional training and instruction in swimming and water safety (over and above the requirements of the national curriculum) if they choose.
There are a range of resources to help schools provide high-quality teaching, including from organisations such as the Amateur Swimming Association and from the Royal Lifesaving Society.
Special Educational Needs
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department gives teachers and those working in schools on responding to a violent student with special educational needs. [202118]
Elizabeth Truss:
We have issued advice to schools on the use of reasonable force, which makes clear that teachers have a specific power to use reasonable force to prevent pupils from causing injury to themselves or others, causing damage to property or from causing
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disorder. While there is no requirement for schools to have a policy on the use of force, we say that it is good practice to do so. Our advice says that any school policy on the use of reasonable force should acknowledge their legal duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled children and children with special educational needs (SEN). Whether or not to physically intervene is down to the professional judgement of the staff member concerned and should always depend on individual circumstances and the needs of the individual pupil.
Additionally, we have laid before Parliament a new 0-25 SEN and Disability Code of Practice. This makes it clear that schools should seek to identify whether there are any factors, such as undiagnosed special educational needs, that might underlie disruptive behaviour. We also issued advice on behaviour and mental health in June 2014 to help teachers differentiate between pupils that are simply behaving badly, and behaviour—whether it is disruptive, withdrawn, anxious, depressed or otherwise—that may be related to an unmet mental health need. This advice also outlined how these children can be supported.
Vocational Guidance
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what steps he plans to take to ensure that young people without access to the necessary computer equipment have access to a digital-by-default careers service; [202578]
(2) if he will take steps to ensure that (a) young people in custody and (b) other difficult-to-reach young people are able to access a digital-by-default careers service. [202579]
Matthew Hancock: Local authorities retain their legal responsibility, under section 68 of the Education and Skills Act 2008, to make available to young people aged 13-19 and to those up to the age of 25 with a learning difficulty assessment or education, health and care plan, support that will encourage, enable or assist them to participate in education or training. Local authorities are expected to pay particular attention to young people who are not in education, employment or training or whose current activity is not known. This includes agreeing how these young people can access intensive support, drawn from the range of education and training support services available locally.
It is for local authorities to determine what support is necessary to fulfil their statutory responsibilities and consider whether additional services are needed, including to complement those available from young offender institutions. Local authorities should provide strategic leadership in their areas to support participation, agreeing ways of working with other partners such as voluntary and community sector organisations, young offender institutions and probation services.
The National Careers Service complements the support available to young people, offering information and advice on education, training and employment options. We are reshaping the service from October 2014 to respond to the changing needs of the economy with a focus on local leadership and providing inspiring careers advice for customers, including a new brokerage service to facilitate relationships between schools and employers. Young people can continue to access support through a range of channels including a telephone helpline and website.
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Defence
Chief Scientific Advisers
Mr Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many meetings he has had with his Department's Chief Scientific Adviser in the last 12 months. [200785]
Mr Dunne: As was the case under previous Administrations, details of internal meetings are not normally disclosed.
Defence: Procurement
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which contracts with his Department worth over £50 million are behind schedule owing to the failure of suppliers to deliver to an agreed schedule; and in the case of each such contract, who the suppliers were. [202639]
Mr Dunne: The Ministry of Defence currently has around 400 open contracts with a total value of more than £50 million. Current performance related information on each contract is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Egypt
Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his Egyptian counterpart on training and capacity building in the Egyptian army. [202265]
Dr Murrison: The Secretary of State for Defence has not had any discussions with his Egyptian counterpart on training and capacity building in the Egyptian army.
As part of wider UK defence engagement, Ministry of Defence officials regularly discuss the potential for further engagement with a number of countries and may from time to time provide training as required and in accordance with wider Government policy.
Interception Warrants
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many interception warrants were (a) issued, (b) declined and (c) cancelled by his Department under (i) section 8(1) and (ii) section 8(4) of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 in the last six months for which figures are available. [201669]
Mr Francois: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire Moorlands (Karen Bradley), on 30 June 2014, Official Report, column 376W.
Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) which software block is installed on each Lightning II delivered to his Department to date; [201932]
(2) from which low-rate initial production lot each Lightning II delivered to his Department to date came from. [201931]
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Mr Dunne: The Ministry of Defence has taken delivery of three aircraft to date. Two aircraft, ordered in low rate initial production (LRIP) 3, are at Block 1A software standard and one aircraft, ordered in LRIP 4, is at Block 2A standard.
Reserve Forces
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many sponsored reserves there were in the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) Royal Air Force service in each financial year from 2010-11 to 2014-15. [201970]
Anna Soubry: The information requested is as follows:
Number of sponsored reserves as at 1 April each year | |||||
2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
Notes: 1. All numbers are sourced from the Joint Personnel Administration by Defence Statistics (Tri-Service). 2. All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10, numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not equal the sums of their rounded parts. 3. All reserves statistics are provisional due to ongoing data quality investigations. More detailed information on reserve numbers, including sponsored reserves can be found in the Defence Statistics Tri-Service Publication at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/314795/uk_reserve_force_cadets_2014.pdf |
Justice
Prison Places
20. Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that there are sufficient prison places to accommodate people who receive custodial sentences. [904583]
Jeremy Wright: We are building new accommodation at four existing prisons, changing the role of prisons we do not need for their original purpose, and bringing back into use capacity we did not need in the past. As a result, 2,000 additional prison places will have been opened by April next year, and there will be more adult male prison places at the end of this Parliament than this Government inherited.
A new 2,000 place prison in Wrexham will also be opened in 2017.
Homicide: Bereaved Families
21. Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assistance his Department makes available to families bereaved by homicide. [904584]
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Damian Green: The Government are committed to ensuring that families bereaved by homicide get the necessary support. The Ministry of Justice grant funded national Homicide Service provides tailored and intensive support based on families’ needs. We also fund a number of organisations that provide peer support and specialist counselling services to the bereaved.
Work and Training: Prisoners
22. Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to encourage prisons in the (a) public and (b) private estate to enable offenders to take part in meaningful paid work and training; and if he will make a statement. [904585]
Jeremy Wright: We want to see more prisoners engaged in meaningful work and training and, since this Government came to power, the number of hours worked in public sector prisons workshops has risen from 10.6 million to 13.1 million, with a further 1.5 million hours delivered in private prisons.
We are committed to delivering still more, including through commercial contracts, and we expect prisoners to engage in purposeful activity if they want to earn their privileges.
Access to Justice
23. Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department is taking to promote access to justice. [904587]
Mr Vara: The Government’s overall reform programme to promote access to justice aims to deliver a simpler justice system that is more accessible to the public; limit the scope for inappropriate litigation and the involvement of lawyers in issues which do not need legal input; and support people in resolving their disputes through simpler, more informal remedies.
Direct Selling
Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many companies have been closed down by the Claims Management Regulator as a result of persistent nuisance calls to date. [201424]
Mr Vara: Since the start of regulation in 2007, the MOJ'S Claims Management Regulation (CMR) Unit has closed down over 1,100 CMCs.
The Claims Management Regulator (CMR) has not closed down a claims management company (CMC) for persistent nuisance calls. It has taken other enforcement action in relation to non-compliant marketing practices including calls by CMCs. During 2013/14, for example, the CMR's specialist marketing compliance team carried out 45 audits, commenced five investigations, issued warnings to five CMCs in respect of their marketing practices, and restricted the marketing activity of one CMC. The CMR is working closely with the Information Commissioner's Office and Ofcom to support the delivery of the Government's Nuisance Call Action Plan, and has joined a taskforce led by consumer group, Which? to review issues concerning consent and lead generation. The taskforce is due to report back to the Government in late 2014.
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Drake Hall Prison
Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Drake Hall spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which data are available. [202315]
Simon Hughes: Up until the end of 2011-12, information was collected on the average hours during each weekday when prisoners cells were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day, it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell.
Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-2010 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House. Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Time unlocked was discontinued as a performance indicator for prisons at the end of 2011-2012 because it was not used in the day to day management of prisons and NOMS had concerns over the burden on the frontline of collecting the data. Figures for time in cell for the years 2012-13 and 2013-14 could therefore be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Indicators introduced into prison service learning agreements in respect of rehabilitation, resettlement and work in prisons provide a better demonstration of efforts to prepare prisoners for release and reduce reoffending.
Work in prisons is a key priority to make sure that prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and a work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, which is a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-2011 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda in 2012-2013, which is the first year when they were required to supply figures, private sector prisons reported that they delivered over 1.5 million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. In addition there are substantial numbers of prisoners who work to keep prisons running by performing tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13
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and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Our reforms to the Incentives and Earned Privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.
Everthorpe Prison
Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Everthorpe spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which data are available. [201867]
Jeremy Wright: Up until the end of 2011-12 information was collected on the average hours per weekday that prisoners were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell. Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-10 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House.
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Figures for time in cell for the years 2012-13 and 2013-14 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Work in prisons is a key priority to ensure prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and a work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-11 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda and have reported that they delivered over 1½ million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops in 2012-13 which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners.
In addition there are substantial numbers of prisoners who work to keep prisons running on tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
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The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Information on hours worked during 2013-14 is scheduled for publication on 31 July 2014.
Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Our reforms to the Incentives and Earned Privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.
Homicide: Legal Aid Scheme
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many victims bereaved by homicide have (a) applied for and (b) been successful in applications for legal aid since May 2010. [202206]
Damian Green: The Legal Aid Agency does not record on its IT systems whether recipients of legal aid have been bereaved by homicide. There is no legal or business requirement for the agency to record this information. In the consideration of legal aid eligibility the agency assesses a person's overall financial circumstances.
Homicide: Victim Support Schemes
Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department has taken since May 2010 to improve the provision of (a) legal advice and legal representation, (b) trauma and emotional support services and (c) services for children for victims bereaved by homicide. [202210]
Damian Green: Since May 2010, the Ministry of Justice has provided funding to Victim Support for a Homicide Service to provide tailored and intensive support based on need to families bereaved by homicide.
In addition to a variety of practical support, including funeral arrangements, closing bank accounts, informing employers or schools, understanding the stages of an inquest and accessing restorative justice, caseworkers also prepare bereaved families for court, explaining the process and arranging pre-trial visits to the court.
The Ministry of Justice funded Homicide Service also arranges specialist trauma and/or bereavement counselling services for both adults and children in the immediate aftermath and more long term, and arranges for legal advice, based on need.
In addition to the funding provided to Victim Support, since 2011 the Ministry of Justice has provided separate grant funding to a number of peer support and specialist therapy organisations who can support adults and children bereaved through homicide.
The Ministry of Justice recently announced that following a competed grant award process, Victim Support has been commissioned to operate a new national Homicide Service from October 2014 until March 2017 supporting people in England and Wales who have been bereaved by acts of homicide since 2010. This nationally commissioned service will include a range of emotional
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and practical support, specialist support including counselling for both adults and children, access to legal services and, for the first time, will incorporate peer support.
The Ministry of Justice continues to provide separate funding to organisations who provide emotional, practical and specialist peer support for families bereaved prior to the establishment of the national Homicide Service in 2010.
Human Rights Act 1998
Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on reform of the Human Rights Act 1998; and if he will make a statement. [904576]
Damian Green: I have not received any recent representations on the reform of the Human Rights Act 1998. The coalition agreement makes it clear that there will be no major changes to the human rights framework before the election.
Low Newton Prison
Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Low Newton spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working was by prisoners in that prison in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14. [202769]
Simon Hughes: Up until the end of 2011-2012, information was collected on the average hours during each weekday when prisoners cells were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day, it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell.
Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-2010 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House. Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Time unlocked was discontinued as a performance indicator for prisons at the end of 2011-2012 because it was not used in the day to day management of prisons and NOMS had concerns over the burden on the frontline of collecting the data. Figures for time in cell for the years 2012-13 and 2013-14 could therefore be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Indicators introduced into prison service learning agreements in respect of rehabilitation, resettlement and work in prisons provide a better demonstration of efforts to prepare prisoners for release and reduce reoffending.
Work in prisons is a key priority to make sure that prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn
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skills and a work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, which is a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-2011 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda in 2012-2013, which is the first year when they were required to supply figures, private sector prisons reported that they delivered over 1.5 million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. In addition there are substantial numbers of prisoners who work to keep prisons running by performing tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Our reforms to the Incentives and Earned Privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.
New Roads and Street Works Act 1991
Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there have been in relation to offences under section 57 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 in each of the last 10 years. [202384]
Mr Vara: Data for offences under Section 57 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 are not reported centrally to the Ministry of Justice. This information may be held by the individual courts in England and Wales and as such it can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Performance Appraisal
Mrs Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff employed by his Department received each level of performance rating in their end of year performance assessment for 2013-14. [202061]
Simon Hughes: At present we do not have any publishable performance markings data for 2013-14. The data you have requested will form part of the 2013-14 equalities report which will be published in November 2014.
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Personal Injury: Compensation
Mr Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what plans he has to reduce the statute of limitations for whiplash claims; [201838]
(2) what representations his Department has received on reducing the statute of limitations on whiplash claims since May 2010. [201839]
Mr Vara: The Government considered the recommendation to reduce the three-year limitation period for soft tissue personal injury claims made by the Transport Committee in its whiplash report of 15 July 2013. While the recommendation was not taken forward at that time, the Government remain committed to cutting the cost of whiplash and are willing to consider proposals that will achieve that aim.
Prisoners
Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many hours per week prisoners in HMP Exeter spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which data are available; [202043]
(2) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Forest Bank spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners in that prison was in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; [202229]
(3) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Ford spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners in that prison was in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; [202230]
(4) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Featherstone spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners in that prison was in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; [202231]
(5) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Feltham spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working was by prisoners in that prison in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14. [202258]
Jeremy Wright: Up until the end of 2011-12 information was collected on the average hours per weekday that prisoners were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell. Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-10 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House.
1 July 2014 : Column 563W
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. Figures for time in cell for the years 2012-13 and 2013-14 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Work in prisons is a key priority to ensure prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and a work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-11 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda and have reported that they delivered over 1.5 million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops in 2012-13 which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. In addition there are substantial numbers of prisoners who work to keep prisons running on tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Our reforms to the Incentives and Earned Privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.
Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Durham spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners was in that prison in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; [202625]
(2) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Edmonds Hill spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners was in that prison in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14; [202628]
1 July 2014 : Column 564W
(3) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Elmley spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the average number of hours per week spent working by prisoners was in that prison in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14. [202629]
Jeremy Wright: Up until the end of 2011-12, information was collected on the average hours per weekday that prisoners were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day, it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell. Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-10 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House.
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Time unlocked was discontinued as a performance indicator for prisons at the end of 2011-12 because it was not used in the day-to-day management of prisons and NOMS had concerns over the burden on the front-line of collecting the data. Indicators introduced into prison SLAs in respect of rehabilitation, resettlement and work in prisons provide a better demonstration of efforts to prepare prisoners for release and reduce reoffending.
Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. Figures for time in cell for the year 2012-13 and 2013-14 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Work in prisons is a key priority to ensure prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and a work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-11 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda and have reported that they delivered over 1.5 million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops in 2012-13 which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. In addition, there are substantial number of prisoners who work to keep prisons running on tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum, available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
1 July 2014 : Column 565W
Our reforms to the incentives and earned privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Deerbolt spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which information is available; [202862]
(2) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Chelmsford spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which information is available; [202863]
(3) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Coldingley spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which information is available; [202864]
(4) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Cookham Wood spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the last date for which information is available; [202865]
(5) how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Dartmoor spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such prisoners were classed as unemployed on the latest date for which information is available. [202900]
Jeremy Wright: Up until the end of 2011-12, information was collected on the average hours per weekday that prisoners were unlocked. By subtracting the average hours unlocked from the 24 hours in a day, it is possible to estimate hours spent locked in cell. Figures for each prison establishment for the three years from 2009-10 to 2011-12 have been placed in the Library of the House.
It should be noted that time in cell includes hours when prisoners are asleep. Time unlocked includes time where a prisoner is either out of their cell or where the cell door is unlocked allowing them to move freely in and out of the cell.
Time unlocked was discontinued as a performance indicator for prisons at the end of 2011-12 because it was not used in the day-to-day management of prisons and NOMS had concerns over the burden on the front-line of collecting the data. Indicators introduced into prison SLAs in respect of rehabilitation, resettlement and work in prisons provide a better demonstration of efforts to prepare prisoners for release and reduce reoffending.
Figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. Figures for time in cell for the year 2012-13 and 2013-14 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Work in prisons is a key priority to ensure prisoners are engaged purposefully while they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and a
1 July 2014 : Column 566W
work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, a key element to reducing reoffending.
The number of prisoners working in industrial activity across public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-11 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,700 in 2012-13. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 13.1 million hours. Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda and have reported that they delivered over 1.5 million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops in 2012-13 which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. In addition, there are substantial number of prisoners who work to keep prisons running on tasks such as cooking, serving meals, maintenance and cleaning.
Figures for public sector prisons are published in the NOMS Annual Report Management Information Addendum, available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225225/mi-addendum.pdf
The establishment-level breakdown of weekly hours worked is not available centrally for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information on the proportion of prisoners classed as unemployed is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Our reforms to the incentives and earned privileges national policy framework came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013. Prisoners will be expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges.