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Furthermore, the ODA has committed to ensuring that 50 per cent of materials by weight will be delivered by either rail or waterways, significantly reducing the number of construction-related vehicles from the road network.
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Olympic Games 2012: Energy
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made in using biomass from waste food or crops to provide power for the Olympic Park at Stratford. [HL5074]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The Olympic Park has an energy centre which, during Games time, will produce its energy from the combustion of both natural mains gas and biomass with the majority of energy being produced through the combustion of natural gas. There are also separate wood burning boilers which will produce entirely renewable energy and current plans are that these will use wood pellet rather than wood waste.
The London Development Agency (LDA) is currently assessing the potential for a waste-derived gas solution to replace natural gas in the energy centre in legacy, which would then make the energy supply system wholly renewable.
In addition, the LDA is looking at the possibility of a local food waste-to-fuel conversion plant to utilise Games-time food waste.
Olympic Games 2012: Shooting
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government what person or organisation is responsible for specifying the equipment to be installed in the 2012 Olympic shooting venue; what meetings that person or organisation has had with British Shooting to discuss the specification of the equipment; when next that person or organisation intends to meet British Shooting for that purpose; and what expectations and proposals that person or organisation has for the reuse of the equipment after the Olympic Games. [HL4616]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has responsibility for procuring the sporting equipment for the Olympic shooting events, with the specification set by the International Shooting Sport Federation as the ruling body for the Olympic shooting competition. LOCOG has the same responsibility for the Paralympic shooting events, with the specification set by the International Paralympic Committee.
British Shooting has recently committed to work collaboratively with LOCOG and stakeholders to help define and secure the best possible legacy for the sport. As a consequence LOCOG is in the process of arranging an appropriate meeting with British Shooting to follow up on this welcomed support. LOCOG and the Olympic Delivery Authority will also assess the potential to reuse and relocate assets and equipment used in the 2012 shooting events in conjunction with British Shooting, government and Sport England.
5 Oct 2009 : Column WA415
To ask Her Majesty's Government what proposals they have to secure a legacy for shooting from the 2012 Olympic Games, other than reuse of equipment. [HL4617]
Lord Davies of Oldham: There are three components to the legacy. First, the Olympic and Paralympic Games will provide the opportunity to showcase the shooting events in an iconic London location and raise the profile of the sport. Secondly, there is the reuse of sports equipment and shooting ranges following the Games. British Shooting has recently provided a much welcomed commitment to work with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) to help define and secure the best possible legacy from the Games. The engagement with British Shooting will consider every opportunity, including those that may exist beyond the reuse of equipment.
Thirdly, through using inspiration of London 2012 Games, Sport England has recently invested £750,000 in the development of grassroots target shooting as part of the Whole Sports Plans 2009-13. The plan will harness the interest in the sport created by the 2012 Games and aims to increase participation levels.
5 Oct 2009 : Column WA416
Parliaments: Costs
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual cost of maintaining (a) the House of Commons; (b) the House of Lords; and (c) the European Parliament, with the cost to the United Kingdom separately identified, including (1) salaries, pensions travelling allowances, secretarial expenses for Members; (2) salaries, allowances and pensions and other costs of supporting staff; (3) accommodation, including rent, operating costs and security; and (4) all other administrative costs such as stationery, office equipment, publications, payments to parliamentary bodies and other relevant outgoings for 2008-09 and the previous three financial years. [HL4954]
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Baroness Royall of Blaisdon): The information requested is set out in the table below. The House of Commons and House of Lords have provided data relating to costs on a resource basis, consistent with their resource accounts. This data replaces the information detailed in the Answer given to the noble Viscount on 24 June 2008, Official Report col. WA234-5.
| House of Lords | ||||
| £ 000s | 2008-09 | 2007-08 | 2006-07 | 2005-06 |
|
Accommodation costs, including rent, operating costs and security | ||||
|
Accommodation costs, including rent, operating costs and security (e) | ||||
(a) Members of the House of Lords do not receive a salary but are entitled to reclaim reimbursement of expenses. This figure includes Members' expenses.
(b) Includes non-cash and capital expenditure.
(c) Figures from resource accounts: Member salaries & pensions, staffing allowance, incidental expenses provision, additional costs allowance, communications allowance (from 1 April 2007), travel, contribution to Members' staff pensions, temporary secretarial assistance, staff redundancy and winding-up allowance only.
(d) Cost of House staff salaries taken from the resource accounts.
(e) Accommodation costs taken from resource accounts include buildings rental, accommodation services and security, depreciation on land and buildings, and cost of capital charge.
(f) This figure is the net resource outturn less (b) and (c). The figure for 2005-06 includes a technical accounting adjustment on the pension provision worth £115.7 million.
The resource costs shown on accommodation services fluctuate depending on the type of projects undertaken during the year.
The European Parliament outtum figures for calendar years 2005, 2006 and 2007, and budget figures for 2008 and 2009 can be found on the European Parliament website(g).
(g) European Parliament budget information can be found on their website: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public/staticDisplay.do?Ianquage=EN&;id=153
5 Oct 2009 : Column WA417
Revenue and Customs: Fraudulent E-mails
Question
Asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of fraudulent e-mails circulating under the designation HM Revenue and Customs with an e-mail address hmrc@hmrc-refund.com.uk and a postal address at Plymouth, PL6 5BZ, advising recipients of tax refunds due; whether they have referred that matter to the police; and whether HM Revenue and Customs has procedures for alerting the public about it. [HL5304]
Lord Davies of Oldham: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) takes online security, including instances of "phishing", very seriously. Customers are encouraged to forward potentially fraudulent e-mails to the department's phishing mailbox, phishing@bhmrc.gsi.gov.uk. The e-mails are then analysed and action taken in concert with the Metropolitan Police to close them down.
Information about phishing/scam attempts and advice on how to avoid fraud are provided to the public through the department's website at http://www.hmrc.gov. uk/security/fraud-scams.htm.
HMRC is aware of this specific phishing attempt and is working with the Metropolitan Police's e-crime unit to close it down. HMRC did not publicise details on its website about this particular incident due to the very low numbers in circulation in comparison to other attacks. The department has advised customers who submitted it to the department's phishing mailbox that the email was a scam and that HMRC were taking action to disrupt it.
Sport: Active People Survey
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the methodology and questionnaire format being used by IPSOS MORI in compiling the Active People Survey 3, showing how the sample of 500 people per local authority is prepared and implemented. [HL5165]
Lord Davies of Oldham: An easily accessible questionnaire briefing note is available on Sport England's website. This provides detail of every question in the survey, who it is asked of, and the rationale for each question (see link below). A hard copy of the actual CATI (Computer Aided Telephone Interviewing) questionnaire is available, on request, from Sport England.
http://www.sportengland.org/research/active_people_survey/idoc.ashx?docid=fa95a28c-f30d-44cc-865d-613ee320c400&;version=1
The Active People Survey 3 is based on a random stratified sample to ensure minimum samples in each Local Authority in England. Random Digit Dialling (RDD) is used in the selection of the sample, with one respondent randomly selected from the eligible household members.
5 Oct 2009 : Column WA418
Frequently Asked Questions outlining the methodology are available on Sport England's website (see link below). A full technical report is also is available, on request, from Sport England (this relates to Active People Survey 1, as subsequent technical reports have not yet been published).
http://www.sportengland.org/research/active_people_survey/idoc.ashx?docid=ced8e91f-0ee8-4a20-8a6d-353e7c85d483&;version=1
Warm Front Scheme
Questions
Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
To ask Her Majesty's Government why an engineer registered under the Warm Front Scheme may carry out a boiler replacement that is eligible for a £300 voucher but may not do the same work if the householder is awarded a grant for the full cost. [HL5246]
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): Installers registered to work on the £300 rebate scheme cannot work on the Warm Front Scheme unless they are appointed to do so through the relevant competitive tendering process.
Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
To ask Her Majesty's Government why engineers registered under the Warm Front Scheme have a £50 administrative charge debited from each £300 voucher they present for payment. [HL5247]
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: The £50 administration charge is representative of eaga's (eaga is the UK's leading provider of residential energy efficiency solutions: http://www.eaga.com) costs of administering the voucher scheme.
Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether engineers registered under the Warm Front Scheme will be able to claim tax allowances for administrative charges debited from £300 vouchers in the period before the Warm Front Scheme started to issue invoices for those debits. [HL5248]
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: Installers registered on the £300 rebate scheme are able to reclaim VAT for the administrative charge debited from the £300 voucher if they are VAT-registered with HM Revenue & Customs. Invoices for the administrative charge were issued from the start of the £300 rebate scheme.
Asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many engineers are registered under the Warm Front Voucher Scheme; how many under the full grant scheme; and how many in the former category have carried out work without being sent an invoice for the £50 administrative charge per claim. [HL5249]
5 Oct 2009 : Column WA419
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: 7,924 installers are currently registered to work on the £300 rebate scheme. 116 installers are currently registered to work on the Warm Front Scheme.
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