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19 Jan 2010 : Column WA226
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government with regard to a letter from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority's legal adviser on 7 December 2009 describing the volume of correspondence about the use of eggs under research licence R0152, how many academics, clinicians or interested members of the general public requested such information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000; what indication such applicants provided regarding their interest in the relevant data; what response was provided to each of those applicants; and what proportion of the HFEA's time was spent dealing with those requests. [HL1214]
Baroness Thornton: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that a high-level keyword database search of over 400 freedom of information requests made between 18 September 2006 and 13 January 2010 identified eight relevant requests, excluding requests from the noble Lord. The HFEA also advises that it is not possible to quantify what proportion of its time was spent dealing with these requests, and responses to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act are undertaken without consideration of the applicant or their purpose in making the request. The HFEA's responses to these requests concerned the regulatory oversight of the research licence.
Flooding
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what payments they have made to (a) local authorities, and (b) other bodies, in connection with the flooding in 2007. [HL960]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Davies of Oldham): In the wake of the summer floods of 2007, the Government committed to the effective management of flood and coastal erosion risk. Spending across central and local government has increased from £307 million in 1996-97 to £660 million in 2008-09, £715 million in 2009-10 and is set to reach £780 million in 2010-11.
The Government made available a comprehensive package of over £136 million to assist those affected by the 2007 floods. Funding given to local authorities included:
£18.8 million funding through the Bellwin scheme which provides financial assistance to local authorities dealing with emergencies;
£18.4 million from the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) for flood recovery grants to support the recovery work of local authorities, and particularly their work with those in greatest and most immediate need;around £41 million from the Department for Transport for repairs to local highways;19 Jan 2010 : Column WA227
Other main recipients of the £136 million support package included:
regional development agencies provided £10 million in support of business and economic recovery in the affected areas;19 Jan 2010 : Column WA228
Following the 2007 floods, Sir Michael Pitt carried out a review of the event. The Government set aside £34.5 million to implement Sir Michael's review.
The table below provides details of how much has been allocated to date. It shows that a total of £20.2 million has been allocated to individual agencies and bodies by Defra.
From: Annex A of the Progress Report on the Government's Response to Sir Michael Pitt's Review (published 15 December 2009).
Government Departments: Bonuses
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government for each of the last three years for which figures are available, how many people were eligible for performance bonuses and special bonuses in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and its agencies, by civil service band; how many people received each type of bonus, by civil service band; what the average payment was for each type of bonus, by civil service band; and what the maximum payment was for each type of bonus, by civil service band.[HL36]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Davies of Oldham): An element of Defra's overall pay award is allocated to non-consolidated variable pay related to performance. These payments are used to drive high performance and form part of the pay award for members of staff who demonstrate exceptional performance-for example, by exceeding targets set or meeting challenging objectives.
Non-consolidated variable pay awards are funded from within existing pay bill controls, and have to be re-earned each year against predetermined targets and, as such, do not add to future pay bill costs. The percentage of the pay bill set aside for performance-related awards for the SCS is based on recommendations from the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
The table below details how many people were eligible for and received a non-consolidated variable pay awards and the average and the maximum payment for a non-consolidated variable pay award, by civil service band, awarded under the Defra standard pay and performance management process for the three most recent performance years for which the relevant payments have been published in the department's accounts.
Table 1 covers staff at grade 6 and below or equivalent in core Defra (including staff who transferred to DECC on 3October 2008) and those executive agencies (Animal Health, Veterinary Medicines Directorate and Marine and Fisheries Agency) that are covered by the core department's remuneration arrangements. It covers senior civil servants in core Defra and its executive agencies (Animal Health, Veterinary Medicines Directorate, Marine and Fisheries Agency, Rural Payments Agency, Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the Central Science Laboratory-which is now part of the Food and Environment Research Agency, which was created on 1 April 2009).
The remaining tables cover staff at grade 6 and below or equivalent, employed in those executive agencies that operate delegated pay arrangements (Rural Payments Agency, Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the Central Science Laboratory, which is now part of the Food and Environment Research Agency, which was created 10 April 2009).
To ask Her Majesty's Government for each of the past three years for which figures are available, how many people were eligible for performance bonuses and special bonuses in the Department of Health and its agencies, by civil service band; how many people received each type of bonus, by civil service band; what the average payment was for each type of bonus, by civil service band; and what the maximum payment was for each type of bonus, by civil service band[HL37]
Baroness Thornton: An increasing element of the pay awards for the department and its agencies over the past three years has been allocated to non-consolidated performance pay. These payments are used to recognise excellent performance and exemplary behaviours in contributing to the department's objectives.
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