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Written Statements

Thursday 27 March 2008

Children: Byron Review

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Children, Schools and Families (Lord Adonis): My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (Ed Balls) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Andy Burnham) and I today welcome the publication of the report of the Byron review of the risks to children of potentially harmful or inappropriate material on the internet and in video games. A copy of the report, Safer Children in a Digital World, will be placed in the Library.

In September 2007, the Prime Minister asked Dr Tanya Byron to lead an independent review to helpparents and their children to get the best from new technologies while protecting children from inappropriate or harmful material. This review has been jointly sponsored by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The objectives of the Byron review were: to undertake a review of the evidence on risks to children’s safety and well-being of exposure to potentially harmful or inappropriate material on the internet and in video games; to assess the effectiveness and adequacy of existing measures to help to prevent children from being exposed to such material and help parents to understand and manage the risks of access to inappropriate material; and to make recommendations for improvements or additional action.

Dr Byron’s final report, published today, sets out a detailed analysis of the evidence on the risks and benefits of new technologies and evaluates the work already being done to protect children online and to ensure appropriate access to age-rated video games. In doing so, Dr Byron recognises the need to develop a shared culture of responsibility with families, industry and government all playing their part to reduce the availability of potentially harmful material, to restrict access to it by children and to increase children’s resilience and ability to understand and manage risk. We welcome and support this approach.

To achieve this, Dr Byron recommends reforming how government and stakeholders work to improve our children’s safety when using the internet through the following measures:

The creation of a new UK Council for Child Internet Safety, established by and reporting to the Prime Minister, including representation from across government, industry, children’s charities and other key stakeholders. The council is to be chaired jointly by the Home Office and DCSF. DCMS will play a key role given its important policy responsibilities and expertise in this area of media and content regulation. A range of other departments will also be closely involved.

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The development by the council of a three-pronged national strategy for improving child internet safety:

challenging industry to take greater responsibility in supporting families through: clearer advice; establishing independently monitored codes of practice on areas such as user-generated content; improving access to high-quality parental control software and safe search; and better regulation of online promotions;developing a comprehensive public information and awareness campaign on child internet safety, including an authoritative “one-stop shop” on child internet safety. This is to be led by the Government but using the support and expertise of all council members; andputting in place sustainable education and children’s service initiatives to improve the skills of children and their parents around e-safety.

On video games, Dr Byron recommends a range of high-profile and targeted efforts to help to inform parents and children of the appropriateness of different video games and to restrict inappropriate access such as:

lowering the statutory requirement to classify video games to 12+, which is consistent with film classification and easier for parents;putting in place a hybrid classification system, using both PEGI and BBFC mechanisms with one set of symbols, from BBFC, for parents to understand;having clear and consistent guidance for industry on how games should be advertised; andchallenging industry to provide sustained and high-profile efforts to increase parents’ understanding of age ratings and improved parental controls.

We accept Dr Byron’s recommendations in full and commend her for delivering a groundbreaking report that will make a real difference to children and young people’s lives. In particular, we would like to congratulate Dr Byron on conducting such a thorough and open process, giving all those with an interest an opportunity to engage with the review on this important debate. The Government will develop a comprehensive action plan in response to Dr Byron’s recommendations.

Coroners Bill

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Bridget Prentice) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

The Government’s plans to reform the coroner system were set out in the draft Coroners Bill, which was published in June 2006. Extensive consultation since then has helped to refine several policy areas. Today I am publishing a briefing note that explains the policy changes and compares the revised policy with that set out in the draft Bill.

Some of the changes have been announced already, such as the addition of provisions to strengthen the public protection role of coroners and a return to the current position on the reporting of inquests. Other

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changes, such as the scope of the appeals system and inspection arrangements for the coroners’ service, will be announced for the first time in the briefing note.

The briefing note refers to the removal from the Bill of a provision on restricting the reporting of some inquests. Instead, I have been working with the Press Complaints Commission to produce a short discussion paper on how its press code can be improved to protect bereaved families. The discussion paper also considers how the code, and the role of the commission, can be better brought to the attention of families. This paper is also being published today.

Copies of the briefing note, Coroners Bill—Changes made resulting from consultation, and of the discussion paper on press reporting of inquests have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses, the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.

Copies of the briefing note are also available on the internet at www.justice.gov.uk/publications/draft-coroners.htm.

Copies of the discussion paper are also available on the internet at www.justice.gov.uk/publications/coroners-sensitive-reporting.htm.

Deaths in Custody

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): My right honourable friend the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Jack Straw) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (Ed Balls) and I wish to make the following Statement to the House. It concerns the Government’s response to recommendations made by the coroners following the inquests into the tragic deaths of Gareth Myatt at Rainsbrook secure training centre in April 2004 and Adam Rickwood at Hassockfield secure training centre in August 2004.

In reply to a letter from HH Judge Richard Pollard, who presided at the inquest into Gareth’s death, we promised a full response to his recommendations. To that end, we have drawn up an action plan that sets out the measures that the Government and the Youth Justice Board have taken, and are taking, in response to Judge Pollard’s recommendations and those of Mr Andrew Tweddle, who presided at the inquest into Adam’s death.

We are placing copies of the action plan in the Library of the House. Copies have also been made available in the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office. It can also be accessed on the publications section of the Ministry of Justice website at www.justice.gov.uk/publications/publications.htm or the publications section of the Department for Children, Schools and Families website at www.dfes.gov.uk/publications.

The action plan demonstrates the volume and variety of work that is being done to enhance safeguarding and child protection in the under-18 secure estate. One important strand of that work is the independent joint review of the use of restraint, which is due to report to the Ministers of State for Justice and for Children, Young People and Families by 20 June.

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Department for Work and Pensions: Agency Targets and Business Plans

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Lord McKenzie of Luton): My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (James Purnell) has made the following Statement.

I am today able to announce the annual performance targets in 2008-09 for the executive agencies of the Department for Work and Pensions. The targets that I have agreed are set out below.

Further information on the plans of Jobcentre Plus and the Rent Service in 2008-09 is contained in their individual business plans, which have been published today. Copies have been placed in the Library. The Child Support Agency’s business plan has also been placed in the Library and will be published shortly. The business plan for the Pension, Disability and Carers Service will be published in due course.

Jobcentre Plus

2008-09

Job Outcome Target (JOT)*

To achieve a total points score 5 per cent higher than that achieved in 2007-08.

^* The target will be a 5 per cent increase on actual outturn for 2007-08, which will be calculated in the autumn when the end-of-year JOT performance figures for 2007-08 are available

Interventions Delivery Target
To make sure that specified Jobcentre Plus labour market interventions take place within set timescales in 86 per cent of cases checked.
Components	Planning Assumption
IS lone parent review/trigger work-focused interviews	85
JSA interventions (JSA 13 and 26, 52 and 78 week interventions)	90
IB interventions (initial IB WFIs)	85

Average Actual Clearance Times

To process claims within specified average actual clearance times (AACTs) for incapacity benefit (IB), income support (IS) and jobseeker’s allowance (JSA)—15 days, 10 days and 11.5 days respectively.

Fraud and Error

To prevent and detect overpayments and underpayments of benefit consistent with DWP’s aspiration for the proportion of expenditure overpaid and underpaid due to fraud and error as set out in the department’s business plan for 2008-09

Customer Service Target

To achieve an 86 per cent customer service level in the delivery of the standards set out in the customers and employers charters.

Employer Engagement Target

At least 92 per cent of employers placing their vacancies with Jobcentre Plus will have a positive outcome.

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Pension, Disability and Carers Service

To deliver an annualised value of new successful pension credit applications of £767 million and to secure at least 250,000 successful new pension credit applications.

Achieve an accuracy rate of 92 per cent on new claims and changes of circumstances to pension credit.

Achieve an accuracy rate of 98 per cent on new claims and changes of circumstances to state pension.

Clear new applications and changes of circumstances to pension credit within an average of 15 working days.

Clear at least 95 per cent of new claims to state pension within 60 days.

The number of disability living allowance/attendance allowance cases referred to the tribunal service to be no more than 4.5 per cent.

Achieve 82 per cent of customers satisfied with the service they receive.

Clear new claims for disability living allowance within 38 days, attendance allowance within 16 days and carer’s allowance within 13.5 days.

Reduce the cost of processing disability benefits to £34.35.

Achieve an accuracy rate of 94 per cent on decisions on claims for disability living allowance and attendance allowance.

Achieve a financial accuracy rate of 98 per cent for carer’s allowance.

To have at least 93 per cent of calls answered by an adviser with less than 1 per cent receiving an engaged tone.

To prevent and detect overpayments and underpayments of benefit consistent with DWP’s aspiration for the proportion of expenditure overpaid and underpaid due to fraud and error. Prevent and detect fraud and correcting fraud and error in a minimum of 50,600 cases.

Reduce staff sickness absence to less than 8.2 average working days lost.

Child Support Agency

Number of children	Maintenance will be collected or have been arranged by the agency on behalf of 790,000 children.
Total maintenance collection (Arrears)	Collect or have arranged £1,080 million in child maintenance between 1 April 2008 and 31 March 2009, of which at least £220 million maintenance will be arrears.
Maintenance outcomes	By 31 March 2009, in 69 per cent of cases across both the new and old schemes in which a liability to pay maintenance exists, the non-resident parent has either made a payment via the collection service or a maintenance direct arrangement is in place.
Uncleared applications to the new scheme	By 31 March 2009, the volume of uncleared new scheme applications will be no more than 90,000.

The Rent Service

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Service Delivery

To determine 94 per cent of housing benefit claims with an inspection in 15 working days.

To determine 94 per cent of housing benefit claims without an inspection in three working days.

To determine 94 per cent of pre-tenancy housing benefit claims within four working days.

To determine 94 per cent of redeterminations within 15 working days.

To determine 94 per cent of fair rents within 40 working days.

Quality

95 per cent of all housing benefit determinations that are checked as part of our quality assurance processes are verified as being accurate.

95 per cent of all fair rent valuations that are checked as part of our quality assurance processes are verified as being accurate.

Customer Satisfaction

To ensure that at least 95 per cent of our local authority customers rate our service as satisfactory or better during the year.

To ensure that at least 95 per cent of our fair rent customers, and those housing benefit customers whom we inspect, rate our service as satisfactory or better during the year.

Valuation Assurance

To review in the first year of LHA 25 per cent of broad rental market areas.

Value for Money for Service Delivery Teams

Productivity—To increase productivity within the service delivery function by 2 per cent by the end of the year.

Cost per case—To reduce the service delivery function cost per case by 1.5 per cent in real terms by the end of the year.

Sickness Absence

To keep sickness absence below 8 working days per employee per year.

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