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18 Jan 2012 : Column WA127
18 Jan 2012 : Column WA127
18 Jan 2012 : Column WA127
Wednesday 18 January 2012
Agriculture: Eggs
Question
Asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking in respect of battery hen egg imports from the European Union.[HL14615]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Taylor of Holbeach): As stated in the Minister of State's Written Statement of 6 December 2011, Defra and the devolved Administrations have adopted a robust enforcement strategy from 1 January 2012. The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency, which is carrying out inspections on imported shell eggs, has an understanding of the level of compliance with the laying hens directive across the EU.
Assisted Dying
Question
Asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recent report from the Commission on Assisted Dying.[HL14618]
The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord McNally): The Government will look at the conclusions reached by the Commission on Assisted Dying with interest. However, the Government have made clear that any change to the law in this emotive and contentious area is an issue of individual conscience and therefore a matter for Parliament to decide rather than one for government policy.
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Question
Asked by Baroness Finlay of Llandaff
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all school children are aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning from fossil fuels.[HL14609]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Hill of Oareford): Through the non-statutory subject of personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, pupils are taught how to stay safe in different situations.
Schools teach their pupils about different risks, how to avoid them and what to do if they feel they are in danger. Teachers are free to use their professional judgment to decide how to teach about risk. They can
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The Government are currently reviewing PSHE to determine how to support schools to improve the quality of all PSHE teaching while giving teachers the flexibility to use their professional judgment to meet the needs of their pupils. The review was launched on 21 July 2011. The consultation to collect evidence closed on 30 November 2011. We will publish our proposals for public consultation later in the year.
Civil Service: Redundancy
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the numbers, by department, of civil servants who have taken redundancy or retirement in the latest period for which figures are available, and who have since been engaged as external consultants or associates by the same department.[HL14560]
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The information requested is not recorded centrally. Individual departments are responsible for making civil servants redundant, managing retirements and decisions on engagement of external consultants.
If a person's severance pay is worth six months of salary or over, they will have to wait six months before taking up a post with an organisation that is covered by the Civil Service pension and compensation arrangement. Should they take up post in less than six months, they would have to pay back the severance payment on a pro rata basis.
Climate Change
Question
Asked by Lord Stevens of Ludgate
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 13 December 2011 (WA 232), why no budget was agreed before the delegation was sent to the 2011 United Nations climate change conference.[HL14679]
Baroness Stowell of Beeston: A number of limits were imposed on the UK delegation to the 2011 United Nations climate change conference in order to keep costs to the minimum required to deliver the UK's objectives for the conference and to within those for sending the UK delegation to the 2010 conference. The 2010 cost was £355,701, which was significantly less than the cost in 2009. Examples of the limits imposed include the size of the delegation, the class of travel and the size of the delegation office space. The final costs will be published once figures have been finalised. This will be via publication on the department's website, as was the case following the 2010 United Nations climate change conference.
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Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many victims of human trafficking have (1) successfully, and (2) unsuccessfully, made compensation claims using the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. [HL14681]
The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord McNally): The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) does not have figures for this. Compensation for victims of violent crime is based on the injuries people sustain, not the particular crimes of which they were a victim. The injuries for which CICA can compensate, and therefore provide reliable figures, are set out in the tariff of injuries in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (2008), but the tariff does not contain any injuries specific to human trafficking.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to ensure that victims of human trafficking who wish to claim compensation via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme are granted leave to remain in the United Kingdom.[HL14682]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Henley): Victims do not need to be resident in the UK to make an application under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.
Victims who are co-operating in a criminal investigation will be granted an extendable 12 months leave at the request of the lead police investigator. Personal circumstances that may require a grant of leave, such as pursuing claims for compensation through the civil courts, are considered in line with the UK's domestic and international obligations.
Education: Roma History
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have implemented the provision of the Council of Europe Recommendation on the education of Roma and Gypsy children in Europe that Roma history should be studied in schools.[HL14564]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Hill of Oareford): We are currently conducting a review of the national curriculum in England with a view to focusing it on the essential knowledge that all children should have and giving schools greater freedom to adapt their wider curricula to meet the needs of their pupils.
As part of the review we are considering the place and status of history in the school curriculum. Once we have brought forward proposals as to whether history should remain within the national curriculum, and at which key stages, we will consider the detailed content of any programme of study.
18 Jan 2012 : Column WA130
Equality Act 2010
Question
Asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to implement Section 29 of the Equality Act 2010 on the prohibition of age discrimination in he provision to the public of goods, facilities and services.[HL14727]
Baroness Verma: We will announce how we intend to proceed in the Government's published response to the age discrimination consultation in due course.
Export Control
Question
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce further legislation on export controls.[HL14602]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox): There is a planned update of the Export Control Order 2008. This is necessary for several reasons: to implement Directive 2009/43 EC simplifying terms and conditions of transfers of defence-related products within the Community; to update the military list in accordance with Wassenaar Arrangement changes; some consequential changes arising as a result of amendments to Council Regulation (EC) No 1236/2005 (the torture regulation) and to Regulation (EU) 1232/2011 amending the Community regime for the control of exports, transfer, brokering and transit of dual-use items. There will also be an order to provide for enforcement and penalty provisions arising from the last and current round of EU sanctions against Syria.
Finance: Payday Loans
Question
Asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the socio-economic status of people who make use of payday loans.[HL14614]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox): BIS has recently commissioned Bristol University's Personal Finance Research Centre to carry out research to assess the impact of introducing a cap on the total cost of credit that can be charged in the short to medium term high cost credit market. As part of the research, Bristol University will also look at the characteristics of users of payday loans. This research is due to report in summer 2012.
In its 2010 review of high cost credit, the Office of Fair Trading found that almost half of people using payday lenders earned over £25,000 per year.
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Government Departments: BIS Ministers
Question
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government which Minister in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has responsibility for answering (1) oral, and (2) written questions, in the House of Lords where the Minister with policy responsibility sits in the House of Commons.[HL14657]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox): Any Lords Minister of the Crown can answer a question tabled to Her Majesty's Government. As Parliamentary Secretary for Business, Innovation and Skills I lead on answering questions in the House of Lords, where the departmental policy responsibility rests with a House of Commons Minister. In this role I am assisted by my noble friends Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint and Baroness Verma.
Lord Green, as Minister of State for Trade and Investment, also leads on answering questions within his policy responsibility.
Government Departments: Sport
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government which government department is responsible for the planning and delivery of sport and physical activity for children and young people in school.[HL14637]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Hill of Oareford): The Department for Education has responsibility in Government for schools, including physical education and competitive sport. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport leads on the coalition programme for government commitment to create the School Games. In addition, the Department of Health is responsible for children's health, including physical activity. The departments work closely together on these matters. It is, however, governing bodies and head teachers who are responsible for planning and delivery in their own schools.
Government Departments: Staff
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Richard Benyon, on 22 November (Official Report, Commons, col. 306W), how many staff were in the salary bands in November 1997 and 2001.[HL14374]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Taylor of Holbeach): Defra did not exist until June 2001 when it was created from the former Ministry of Agriculture,
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The table below shows staff numbers by salary band as at 1 April 1997 in MAFF and its agencies. No information is available on the number in staff in each salary band in DETR in 1997, nor is any information available as at November 1997.
| Salary Band | No. of staff |
The table below shows staff numbers by salary band as at 1 April 2001 in MAFF and DETR, including agencies. No information is available on the number in staff in each salary band in the Environment Group of DETR.
| Salary Band | No. of staff | |
| MAFF | DETR | |
The earliest available information on the number of staff by salary band in Defra and its major constituent agencies is as 1 April 2002, which is shown in the table below.
| Salary Band | No. of staff |
House of Lords: Crossbench Peers
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government who authorises the annual number of Crossbench peers appointed by the House of Lords Appointments Commission. [HL12784]
To ask Her Majesty's Government why the Cabinet Office has not been able to answer Question for Written Answer HL12784, tabled on 25 October 2011, as to who authorises the annual number of Crossbench peers appointed by the House of Lords Appointments Commission.[HL14669]
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: In line with the practice under previous Administrations, the House of Lords Appointments Commission recommends Crossbench peers to the Prime Minister against an overall approach on numbers agreed by the Prime Minister. In line with the approach of his predecessor, the Prime Minister has said that only in exceptional circumstances will he decline to pass on a recommendation to Her Majesty the Queen.
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of Question for Written Answer HL12784 remaining unanswered on 21 December, whether they were aware on 25 October 2011 of the identity of the person or persons who authorise the number of Crossbench peers to be appointed by the House of Lords Appointments Commission.[HL14607]
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: I refer my noble friend to the reply I gave to the noble Lord Barnett today.
Immigration and Unemployment
Question
Asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recent report by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Examining the Relationship Between
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The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Henley): The Government will continue to consider the full range of evidence on the impacts of migration as we develop our policy proposals. The discussion paper by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Examining the Relationship Between Immigration and Unemployment using National Insurance Number Registration Data, claims to present initial results only. The Government will focus on the wider report commissioned from the Migration Advisory Committee on the impacts of migration, which was published on 10 January.
Immigration: Security Services
Questions
Asked by The Lord Bishop of Ripon and Leeds
To ask Her Majesty's Government what changes they have made to the arrangements for enforced removals from the United Kingdom in the light of the Amnesty International report Out of Control: The case for a complete overhaul of enforced removals by private contractors of July 2011.[HL14603]
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the Amnesty International report Out of Control: The case for a complete overhaul of enforced removals by private contractors of July 2011, what restraint and hold techniques have been developed for operations onboard aircraft during enforced removals; and whether handcuff and other mechanical training is a mandatory requirement for the detainee custody officers' accreditation.[HL14604]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Henley): My honourable friend, the Minister for Immigration, wrote to Amnesty International in June 2011, addressing in detail its concerns about enforced removals. A copy of that letter will be placed in the House Library.
Detainee custody officers (DCOs) are accredited by the UK Border Agency to fulfil their functions, which include using reasonable force as a last resort to ensure that an individual complies with their removal. All DCOs are trained in control and restraint techniques accredited by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), and receive refresher training, including the use of handcuffs and velcro leg restraints, every 12 months as a condition of their individual accreditation to work as a DCO. Restraint training is delivered by professionals and we are satisfied that the techniques are safe. We have however asked NOMS to conduct a fundamental review of the techniques used in order to see if they can be made even safer.
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Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with, and what representations have been made by, the insurance industry in relation to the proposals in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill concerning after-the-event insurance in respect of (1) clinical negligence claims, and (2) other claims.[HL14591]
The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord McNally): Ministers and officials have met with a number of different insurers as the proposals have been developed since Lord Justice Jackson's final report was published in January 2010. A substantial amount of correspondence has also been received by the department. Although some after the event (ATE) insurance providers have said publicly that they will pull out of the ATE market if the proposals in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill are implemented, others have indicated that they will look positively at developing products which meet market needs as the detail of the proposals is finalised.
Legislation
Question
Asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Taylor of Holbeach on 6 December (WA 146), how information is held on legislation passed in the 2005-10 Parliament that is the responsibility of the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs and has yet to be brought into force, either in full or in part.[HL14294]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Taylor of Holbeach): Information on legislation passed in the 2005-10 Parliament that is the responsibility of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and has yet to be brought into force, either in full or in part, is held electronically on a website managed by the National Archives at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/.
People Trafficking
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assess the implementation of their strategy on human trafficking in relation to tackling demand for trafficking into the United Kingdom.[HL14683]
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The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Henley): Progress on implementation of the strategy is overseen by the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Human Trafficking, chaired by the Minister of State for Immigration.
Planning
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Neighbourhood Planning Front Runners approved in the first four waves are in (a) parished areas, and (b) unparished areas; which are in unparished areas; and which are in business areas.[HL14732]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Hanham): A list of Neighbourhood Planning Front Runners is available from the Department for Communities and Local Government's website at: http://www.communities. gov.uk/documents/planningandbuilding/pdf/2007697. pdf.
The Government approved 126 schemes in the first four waves of Neighbourhood Planning Front Runners:
96 are in parished areas; and30 are in unparished areas.The following front runners are in unparished areas:
Crawley (Three Bridges) was in an unparished area but has since withdrawn from the front runner programme.
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The following front runners are business-led:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications for grant funding in the first four waves of Neighbourhood Planning Front Runners were made and how many were rejected; what was the location to which each rejected application related; and for what reasons they were rejected.[HL14733]
Baroness Hanham: The Government received applications for grant funding for 129 schemes in the first four waves of the Neighbourhood Planning Front Runners programme, and 126 schemes were approved. Applications were assessed against the criteria stated on the Department for Communities and Local Government's website and those meeting the criteria were funded.
Police and Crime Commissioners
Question
Asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether members of the House of Lords, subject to meeting other criteria, are eligible to seek election as police and crime commissioners.[HL14700]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Henley): Membership of the House of Lords does not in itself disqualify anyone from standing as a police and crime commissioner.
Poverty Gap
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what analysis they have undertaken, or are undertaking, of the income gap between rich and poor; and what are its implications for social cohesion, social mobility and social unrest.[HL14174]
Baroness Warsi: The Government have undertaken and are continuing to undertake a number of studies into this area. The analysis by the Department for Work and Pensions of the income gap between rich and poor can be found in the latest Households Below Average Income publication published in May 2011 and preceding publications, which can be found at: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=hbai_arc#hbai.
In addition, the Office for National Statistics produces an annual article The effects of taxes and benefits on household income (ETB) which uses data from the
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The Government's social mobility strategy Opening Doors, Breaking Barriers: A Strategy for Social Mobility (http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/opening-doors-breaking-barriers-strategy-social-mobility) looked at the evidence base on the link between income inequality and social mobility.
There is an active debate about the relationship between income inequality and social mobility. The drivers of social mobility are complex, and income alone does not determine future outcomes. There are a number of countries that have relatively high levels of income inequality but also high levels of social mobility and vice versa. The strategy looks at more than just income and focuses on interventions which have been shown to have a causal link with future success.
With regards to social cohesion, analysis of the 2009-10 Citizenship Survey found that those from lower socio-economic groups were more likely to feel that their local area was cohesive. This analysis is complex but suggests that it is not low income that is driving poor cohesion: http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/citizenshipsurvey 200910spirit (see chapter 3).
Railways: Network Rail
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they will give in the forthcoming command paper on the railways to requiring Network Rail to be subject to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and for parliamentary questions for written answer on rail infrastructure to be answered directly by Ministers.[HL14544]
Earl Attlee: Network Rail is a private sector company. The Government have no current plans to extend the Freedom of Information Act to the company. However, we welcome the fact that Network Rail is taking steps to enhance its own transparency and is developing a voluntary publication scheme with which it will comply.
Network Rail is the owner and operator of the UK's railway infrastructure. The company is, therefore, best placed to provide timely and accurate responses to questions on matters concerning operational railway infrastructure. Ministers will continue to answer questions on railway matters directly where they fall within Government's locus.
18 Jan 2012 : Column WA139
Roads: Tolls and Bridges
Question
Asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much money the government collected from bridge tolls in each year from 1996 until the last year for which records are available.[HL14702]
Earl Attlee: The tolls at bridges for which the Secretary of State for Transport is the responsible highway authority, such as those at the Severn River Crossing, and until 2003, those at the Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing, are part of specific concession agreements used to finance the construction of new crossings.
The concessionaire is permitted to levy tolls to recover the costs of construction and to fund ongoing maintenance and operation of the crossing during the concession period. Therefore the Government do not directly receive revenues from these tolls.
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The Highways Agency produce an annual account for the Dartford Crossing Road user charge introduced in 2003, copies of which are available in the House of Commons Library or through the Highways Agency website at: www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/4068.aspx.
UK Honours
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many recipients of (1) knighthoods, and (2) CBEs, have been described as "professor" in each biannual honours list over the past 20 years; and, in each case, what percentage of the total awards in each of the two categories did they constitute.[HL14630]
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The information requested is available publicly. Honours lists are published in the London Gazette, back copies of which can be found at www.london-gazette.co.uk.
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