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A total of £17,835,609.79 million was paid to grant recipients through the scheme. A full list of organisations funded and the total amount paid has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Countryside and Rights of Way Act

Question

Asked by Lord Greaves

The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change & Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): Detailed discussions were held with Ordnance Survey and other bodies, including the Countryside Agency (now Natural England), the Local Government Association and the National Park Authorities, in 2004 and 2005, about whether access points could be added to the OS Explorer Maps which show areas of access land mapped under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. The conclusion reached from these discussions was that access points to access land should not be shown on the maps because it was considered that most of the access points were sufficiently clear (roads, rights of way, paths, tracks and at car parks) and that adding access points might also add some unnecessary clutter to these maps.

Cyprus: Property

Question

Asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass

The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Malloch-Brown): The European Court of Justice judgment in case C-420/07 concerns the interpretation of certain aspects of Council Regulation (EC) No.44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. The ruling confirmed the applicability of the regulation to judgments of the courts of the Republic of Cyprus given in respect of property in northern Cyprus. The regulation is therefore potentially applicable in relation to other judgments made by those courts against citizens of all EU member states, whether those judgments relate to property in the north or south of the island.

Dogger Bank

Questions

Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach



20 May 2009 : Column WA316

The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change & Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): Defra has received recommendations from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) proposing Dogger Bank as a special area of conservation. Defra is considering the recommendations in discussion with JNCC and plans to commence a formal consultation on the proposals in November 2009.

Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Defra officials and our statutory nature conservation body, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, have discussed with the Netherlands and Germany the scientific evidence and boundaries supporting the designation of Dogger Bank as a special area of conservation on a number of occasions.

Education (Schools Premises) Regulations 1999

Questions

Asked by Baroness Tonge

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Children, Schools and Families (Baroness Morgan of Drefelin): We aim to begin consultation in June on specific proposals for changes to the requirements in the regulations relating to kitchen and dining facilities, and to make decisions on the results of that consultation in the autumn.

The Schools Capital Consultative Group comprises representatives from a local authority, Catholic Education Service, National Governors Association, Church of England's National Society, Education Building and Development Officers Group, National Association of Head Teachers, Foundation and Aided Schools National Association, Association of School and College Leaders, Association of Directors of Children's Services,

20 May 2009 : Column WA317

4Ps, Local Government Association, National Middle Schools' Forum, National Association of School Business Management, National Governors' Association, National College of School Leadership, British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta), Partnerships for Schools. The group provides advice to officials on capital and school buildings-related issues; it considered a range of issues and options in relation to the school premises regulations in order to help reach a decision on the way ahead. Because the group's advice is in order to inform policy, the discussions are not published.

Education: Health and Safety Diploma

Question

Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Children, Schools and Families (Baroness Morgan of Drefelin): We have no plans to introduce a formal qualification in health and safety. Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education already offers opportunities for children and young people to learn key concepts such as: how to use knowledge and understanding to make informed choices about safety, health and well-being; how to find information and support from a variety of places; and how to assess and manage the element of risk in personal choices and situations.

Embryology

Questions

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has informed me that it monitors the use of embryos in research as part of its inspection process. A licence condition requires centres to ensure that a sample of all stem cell lines, from embryos that are developed or used in the course of the research project, must be deposited in a stem cell bank in accordance with any relevant bank guidelines. This is why the culture of these cells is something that may be reflected in inspection reports.

My Answers of 22 July 2008 (WA 244-45) and 5 May 2009 (WA 96) referred only to the latest inspection reports published on the HFEA’s website. The HFEA has informed me that the report of the inspection at St Mary’s Hospital, dated 26 September 2007, was not included because the derivation of stem cells did not take place on these premises.

Embryos were transferred to Roslin Cells Limited where the derivation of stem cell lines took place.

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

Lord Darzi of Denham: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) may only issue a research licence for the purposes outlined in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, as amended by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Research Purposes) Regulations 2001. A licence committee of the HFEA would refuse a research licence application if it was not satisfied that the proposed research was necessary or desirable for one of the prescribed purposes and that the use of an embryo was necessary.

The HFEA has advised me that this requirement is integral to the decisions of its research licence committee when it considers research licence applications, inspection reports and progress reports.

Energy: Heating

Question

Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Bach): Prisons use energy as a normal part of their mandate to keep in custody those committed by the courts.

Since 2005-06, Her Majesty's Prison Service has implemented various measures at different sites to reduce energy use in prisons. These include cavity wall insulation, building management systems upgrade, automatic lighting controls, boiler controls and voltage optimisation. Her Majesty's Prison Service has contracted the help of the Carbon Trust to undertake an estate-wide systematic programme of identifying the most cost-effective opportunities for saving energy and putting in place a governance structure to deliver effective carbon management.

Energy: Light Bulbs

Question

Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): Guidance in the Building Regulations Approved Document for Part L (Conservation of Fuel and Power) for new homes calls for a proportion of fixed light fittings that can only take low-energy lamps to be installed as reasonable provision. No particular make or style of light fitting is specified.

It is also a requirement under Part L that the owner of a building should be provided with sufficient information about the fixed building services (lighting, heating, ventilation systems etc) and their maintenance requirements so that the building can be operated in such a manner as to use no more fuel and power than is reasonable in the circumstances.

We shall shortly be consulting on proposed revisions to Part L, which will include revised guidance on low-energy lighting to take into account developments in the lighting market, particularly the phasing out of tungsten filament lamps resulting from an EU regulation under the energy-using products directive.

Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme

Question

Asked by Lord Bates



20 May 2009 : Column WA320

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform & Cabinet Office (Baroness Vadera): As of 13 May 2009, over 3,300 businesses have been registered as eligible for support, with a potential lending value of over £375 million.

We are comparing each region's share of EFG lending against their share of registered businesses in 2007. A table is attached giving the regional breakdown.

Regional and country share of businesses and EFG loans offered
Businesses at the start of 20071EFG loans as at 13.05.2009

UK

100%

100%

North East

2.9%

3.7%

North West

9.5%

11.0%

Yorkshire and Humber

7.5%

5.8%

East Midlands

7.0%

6.5%

West Midlands

8.0%

9.9%

East of England

11.0%

13.0%

London

16.2%

11.6%

South East

15.8%

15.1%

South West

8.9%

11.0%

England

86.8%

87.6%

Wales

4.2%

5.5%

Scotland

6.2%

6.4%

Northern Ireland

2.8%

0.4%

Equal Pay: Government Departments

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