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15 July 2009 : Column WA217
15 July 2009 : Column WA217
15 July 2009 : Column WA217
Wednesday 15 July 2009
Alcohol
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many units of alcohol are in a litre of liquid with an alcoholic strength of 7 per cent alcohol by volume. [HL4784]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): Seven units.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the excise duty on a litre of (a) beer, and (b) cider, containing (1) 6 per cent alcohol by volume, (2) 7 per cent alcohol by volume, (3) 71/2 per cent alcohol by volume and (4) 8 per cent alcohol by volume. [HL4785]
The Financial Services Secretary to the Treasury (Lord Myners): Excise duty imposed on a litre of beer and cider containing (1) 6 per cent alcohol by volume, (2) 7 per cent alcohol by volume, (3) 71/2 per cent alcohol by volume and (4) 8 per cent alcohol by volume, are shown in the table below. Full details on alcohol duty rates can be found on the HMRC website at http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2009/bn86.htm.
| Amount of Excise Duty imposed on a litre of: | ||
| Alcoholic Strength | Beer | Still Cider |
Asylum Seekers: Detention of Children
Questions
Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children of asylum seekers were detained at Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre and for what length of time in (a) January to June 2007, (b) July to December 2007, (c) January to June 2008, (d) July to December 2008, and (e) January to June 2009. [HL4727]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): The information requested on the number of children of asylum seekers detained at Yarl's Wood and the periods for which they are detained is not yet centrally collated. The information
15 July 2009 : Column WA218
Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children of asylum seekers were detained at Tinsley House immigration removal centre and for what length of time in (a) January to June 2007, (b) July to December 2007, (c) January to June 2008, (d) July to December 2008, and (e) January to June 2009. [HL4728]
Lord West of Spithead: The information requested on the number of children of asylum seekers detained at Tinsley House and the periods for which they are detained is not yet centrally collated. The information requested could only be obtained by the detailed examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.
Autism
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Darzi of Denham on 29 June (WA 3), why the decision was taken not to proceed with the study by Professor Gillian Baird and her colleagues announced on 8 May 2008 by Mr Ivan Lewis in a press notice and on the No 10 website but instead a different set of researchers was chosen. [HL4758]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The decision to undertake transition research for young people with autism with the University of York and not through the services of Professor Baird, was taken after detailed consideration of the remit of the research and strict government procurement requirements.
This is no reflection on Professor Baird or her team and we hope that she will continue to work with the department on future projects. We value her expertise and the contribution she has made so far to our understanding of autism and autism services.
Civil Service: Costs
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what efficiency savings they expect to achieve in 2010-11 within the administrative costs of the civil service. [HL4770]
The Financial Services Secretary to the Treasury (Lord Myners): The 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review agreed 5 per cent annual real reductions in administration budgets across all departments, releasing over £1.2 billion by 2010-11 for investment in priority areas and further reducing the cost of running central government.
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Climate Change: Carbon Dioxide Emissions
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in the last three years in reducing carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles in the Government car service. [HL5004]
The Secretary of State for Transport (Lord Adonis): The Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA) has reduced the carbon dioxide emissions from its car fleet by 15.9 per cent from 160.32 grammes per kilometre (g/km) in 2006-07 to 134.84 g/km in 2008-09. The GCDA is on target to meet the Government's target of an average of 130 g/km for its fleet by March 2010.
Department for Transport: Ombudsman
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will place in the Library of the House copies of the letter or letters from the Local Government Ombudsman to the Department for Transport regarding the proposal by the Department for Transport, enacted and brought into force in 2008, to remove from the Ombudsman his powers to investigate complaints concerning the civil enforcement of traffic regulations where there was a right of appeal to an adjudicator, and of any replies to those letters.[HL4741]
The Secretary of State for Transport (Lord Adonis): A copy has been placed in the Libraries of the House of the response from the Local Government Ombudsman to the consultation on the draft parking regulations that took place in July 2006. There were no individual replies to any of the responses to the consultation.
Department of Health: Arm's-length Bodies
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Department of Health has reduced the number of arm's-length bodies to 20, as proposed in the 2004 review Reconfiguring the Department of Health's Arm's-Length Bodies; which arm's length bodies are involved in health and social care (under the review's definition of such bodies); and what their total expenditure was in 2008-09 (in 2003-04 prices). [HL4763]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): Following the review of the department's arm's-length bodies (ALBs), the number of pre-existing ALBs has been reduced from 38 in 2004 to 20 in 2009. Subsequent to
15 July 2009 : Column WA220
In 2008-09 there were 24 ALBs as the transfer of three ALBs into the new Care Quality Commission, and the merger of the National Institute of Biological Standards and Control into the Health Protection Agency, took place on 1 April 2009. Total ALB revenue expenditure funded by the department in 2008-09 (also in 2003-04 prices) is summarised in the following table:
| Arm's-Length Body | Department Funding £m | Restated at 2003-04 Prices £m |
- 2003-04 prices quoted are calculated using the GDP Deflator at market prices issued by ONS, as at 30 June 2009.
Embryology
Questions
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government what new offences will be brought into force by the draft Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Special Exemption) Regulations 2009. [HL4755]
To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures the Department of Health intends to take to address the comments of the Merits of Statutory Instruments Committee in its 21st Report (HL Paper 118) about the quality control system for drafting statutory instruments in the department; and how they propose to address the committee's observation that the drafting errors might have been identified at an earlier stage if the department had put the proposal out for public consultation. [HL4757]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The draft Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Special Exemption) Regulations 2009 will replace the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Special Exemption) Regulations 1991. The regulations have been updated to take account of the changes made by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (the 2008 Act), specifically to the definition of embryo and the introduction of human admixed embryos. The regulations themselves do not introduce any new offences or new policy. The regulations are simply being remade in consequence of amendments made by the 2008 Act.
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