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Written Answers

Tuesday 6 May 2014

Abortion

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks by Earl Howe on 3 April (HL Deb, GC 291-4), whether the Secretary of State for Health, in the exercise of his powers conferred by section 2 of the Abortion Act 1967, is able to lay before Parliament amendments to Schedule 1 to Part 1 (HSA1 certificate) and Schedule 2 to Part 2 (HSA4 certificate) of the Abortion Regulations 1991 (as amended) without prior amendment of the Act which gives effect to those Regulations.[HL6638]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): The regulation-making power under section 2 of the Abortion Act 1967 enables the Secretary of State to make amendments to certificates HSA1 and HSA4.

Afghanistan: Women and Girls

Questions

Asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Northover on 18 March (WA 16) on women’s rights in Afghanistan, what are the details of the funding already being allocated to tackling violence against women in Afghanistan; and what proportion it constitutes of the total budget for work in Afghanistan by the Department for International Development. [HL6561]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Northover on 18 March (WA 16), how many programmes are already being implemented to tackle violence against women in Afghanistan; and how many programmes focussing on the other strategic priorities of the Department for International Development in Afghanistan are being implemented.[HL6562]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): Two programmes directly address violence: £3M towards a joint programme with Australia to improve the implementation of laws designed to protect women and girls affected by violence; and £19.9M DfID support to the Tawanmandi programme with grants to Civil Society Organisations, where at least £2M of grants from 2014 will go to organisations primarily focused on the elimination of violence against women and girls.

Violence is also indirectly addressed through a long-term approach of promoting women’s rights, empowerment and education. DfID has a wide range of programmes supporting this agenda, e.g. £4.5M nation-wide support to women’s political participation and the £47M Girls Education Challenge fund improving access to education for 250,000 marginalised girls.

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Agriculture: Common Agricultural Policy

Question

Asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the financial impact, in terms of percentage of United Kingdom food prices, of the United Kingdom’s participation in the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy; and what is their assessment of the overall effect on the United Kingdom economy if the Common Agricultural Policy were abandoned.[HL6528]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord De Mauley) (Con): The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development estimates that the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) cost EU consumers approximately €16 billion in 2012 as a result of higher food prices. This equates to 4% of consumption expenditure on agricultural commodities (at farm gate prices).

The Government does not have estimates of the effect of abandoning the current CAP programme. However studies are available from 2009 which estimated the impact of removing aspects of the CAP policies and budgets that were in place at the time:

1) Modelling commissioned by Defra estimated the impact of phasing out direct payments in CAP and liberalising agricultural trade. The results vary by sector, ranging from a negligible impact expected on UK cereal production and prices to around a 25% reduction in beef prices and production.

2) A European Commission study estimates the impact of eliminating direct payments and liberalising trade. The results showed a 6% reduction in land use and a 30% reduction in land prices across Europe. However the impact on agro-food production was modest and food price changes ranged from a 33% fall in beef, to just a 1% fall for milk and eggs.

Agriculture: Laying Hens

Question

Asked by Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what regulations apply to smallholders with flocks of less than 50 laying hens if they (1) want to sell their eggs to the public, (2) want to sell products to the public such as cakes made from the eggs laid by their hens, and (3) want to sell their eggs to third parties who wish to make cakes from them for resale at venues such as country markets and farmers' markets; whether the regulations covering the third category are national regulations, and if so, which regulations; and whether those regulations are liable to local authority interpretation.[HL6691]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord De Mauley) (Con): The sale of eggs in England (equivalent regulations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) is regulated by the Eggs and Chicks (England) Regulations 2009, the Control of Salmonella in Poultry Order 2007

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and European Union food hygiene and food safety regulations. Any exemption from the legislation is subject to Article 14 of Regulation (EC) 178/2002.

1) Exemption from rules on quality and grading is available to smallholders with fewer than 50 laying hens providing their eggs are sold at the production site, door-to-door or directly in local markets without any marketing indication (e.g. grading) directly to the final consumer. Producers supplying fewer than 360 eggs per week (Food Standards Agency (FSA) guidance) directly to consumers or to local retailers and caterers are exempt from the requirements of Regulation (EC) 852/2004, which establishes basic food hygiene requirements for registered food businesses.

2) Smallholders with fewer than 50 laying hens who use their own eggs for cakes and other food products sold to the public as part of a regular and organised operation are required to register as a Food Business Operator with the local authority and comply with the food hygiene regulations. The FSA has issued advice for local authorities as to which operations require registration to ensure that charity and community food operations are not disproportionately burdened.

3) There is no obligation on smallholders with fewer than 50 laying hens to ascertain what use customers will make of their eggs.

Air Quality

Question

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they are making in complying with the European Union Directive 2008/50/EC on air quality.[HL6587]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord De Mauley) (Con): The UK reports compliance with the limit values in the Ambient Air Quality Directive (2008/50/EC) to the European Commission in September each year. The last report related to concentrations of air pollutants in 2012. This indicated that the UK met both the daily and annual limit values for particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometres or less (PM10) and complied with the EU limit on values for sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, benzene and lead.

Meeting the nitrogen dioxide (NO2) limit values alongside busy roads continues to be a significant challenge for the UK and most other Member States. In 2012, 32 zones exceeded the annual mean limit value (or margin of tolerance for zones with a time extension) and two exceeded the hourly mean limit value. The UK is investing heavily in measures to reduce emissions, in particular from transport, and over £2bn worth of measures have been announced since 2011. These measures will address both particulate matter and NO2.

Further information is available in the series of reports on “Air Pollution in the UK” available at:

http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/library/annualreport/index

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Alcohol

Questions

Asked by Lord Avebury

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what changes they expect in alcohol consumption from on-trade and off-trade purchases respectively over the next five financial years, following the changes in alcohol duty announced in the Budget.[HL6692]

The Commercial Secretary to the Treasury (Lord Deighton) (Con): Changes to beer, cider and wine duty at Budget 2014 help support British pubs. The Government also supports the Scotch whisky industry for the unique role it plays in the UK economy. Freezing the duty on spirits supports the domestic market for the Scotch whisky industry and jobs in Scotland.

The Government expects that there will be a small increase in alcohol consumption as a result of these changes to alcohol duty at Budget 2014 in both the on-trade—where alcohol is sold to be consumed on the premises (e.g. pubs, bars, restaurants)—and for the off-trade—where alcohol is sold to be consumed off the premises (e.g. supermarkets, off-licences). The tables below provide estimates of changes in consumption in both percentage and volume terms relative to the previous alcohol duty rates policy.

Asked by Lord Avebury

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the industrially produced white cider marketed under the labels Frosty Jack’s, Diamond White, White Ace, White Star, White Strike, Three Hammers, Ice Dragon and White Magic respectively meet the minimum juice content required to qualify for lower rates of alcohol duty.[HL6693]

Lord Deighton: Cider made with at least 35 per cent fruit juice is treated as cider for duty purposes while cider made with less than 35 per cent fruit juice is treated as made wine for duty purposes. As not all cider makers publicly state the proportion of fruit juice in their cider, this question cannot be answered without breaching taxpayer confidentiality.

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Asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether those involved in their public health responsibility deal on alcohol misuse have considered the consistency with the collective pledges of the use of David Beckham to promote spirits brands.[HL6815]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): Every organisation that signs up to the Public Health Responsibility Deal (around 650) makes a commitment to help people to drink within the guidelines.

Alcohol advertising is governed by strict rules on what constitutes appropriate advertising and promotion of alcoholic products.

The Advertising Codes (the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) codes) contain special rules for alcohol, which are in addition to the general Code provisions that all advertisements must not mislead, or cause harm or offence. The system is designed to ensure that alcohol advertisements should not be targeted to young people under 18 and should not condone or encourage immoderate, irresponsible, or anti-social drinking.

For marketing other than paid advertising, the Portman Group's Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks, which is supported throughout the industry, seeks to ensure that drinks are marketed in a socially responsible way and to an adult audience only. The Code complements and reflects the CAP and BCAP codes.

Any complaints about breach of the Advertising Codes or the Portman Group's Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks should be addressed to the Advertising Standards Authority or the Portman Group respectively.

Annuities

Question

Asked by Lord Lea of Crondall

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the average number of annuities purchased in each of the last five years for which data are available. [HL6523]

Lord Newby (LD): There is no requirement for individuals to report the purchase of an annuity and the Government do not collect data on the number or purchase value of annuities. Industry data is collected and published by the Association of British Insurers and may be found on their website https://www.abi.org. uk/Insurance-and-savings/Industry-data/

Apprenticeships

Questions

Asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of apprentices enter into employment with the company to which they were apprenticed after their apprenticeship scheme has finished.[HL6574]

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Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con): We publish information on learning outcomes on the Further Education Choices website to help better inform learner choices. This website presents information on learner outcomes with any employer as well as other destinations:

http://fechoices.skillsfundingagency.bis.gov.uk

Asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to creating a kitemark scheme for identifying good apprenticeship programmes. [HL6575]

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We want all apprenticeships to be world class. That is why we are reforming apprenticeships and putting employers in the driving seat to develop new apprenticeship standards that fully meet the needs of their sectors. Employers choosing to design and offer apprenticeships is the best mark of their success.

Argentina

Question

Asked by Lord Patten

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the announcement by the government of Argentina that their new 50 peso banknote will show the Falkland Islands as part of their national territory.[HL6753]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The British Government obviously has no control over what other countries choose to put on their currency. However, we are clear that incorporating the Falkland Islands in this way in no way affects either the UK’s sovereignty or the right of the Falkland Islanders to self–determination, which they exercised in March 2013 in an overwhelming vote to remain part of the UK.

Armed Conflict: Child Soldiers

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the use of children in armed conflict in the Central African Republic, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; which parties in those countries they consider to be using child soldiers; and what action they are taking to co-ordinate international action to secure the demobilisation of child soldiers. [HL6713]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The British Government recognise that parties to conflict who commit grave violations against children, including recruitment and use, are named in the annexes of the annual reports of the UN Secretary-General on children and armed conflict. This applies to the Central African Republic, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and the Democratic Republic

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of Congo. Of the five countries in question, the Governments of Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo are currently listed for the recruitment and use of children. The latter two have signed action plans with the UN to end this practice. There are also non-state armed groups listed for recruitment and use of children in all the countries in question, except South Sudan. The UK actively participates in the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict to hold perpetrators to account as well as working with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict and non-governmental organisations to urge those Governments who have not already done so to enter into time-bound action plans with the UN. The Minister for Africa, my honourable friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), is leading a campaign to raise awareness and help prevent the recruitment of child soldiers and children from becoming victims of sexual violence. He continues to raise the issue with a number of counterparts in countries where there are reports of children being recruited into armed groups and forces, including in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Armed Forces: Airfields

Question

Asked by Lord West of Spithead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Astor of Hever on 25 March (WA 105–6), how many non-operational airfields the Royal Air Force owns in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland. [HL6760]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Astor of Hever) (Con): This information will take some time to collate. I will write to the noble Lord as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Food and Accommodation

Question

Asked by Lord Glenarthur

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the “entitled” and “non-entitled” rates of charges required to be paid by serving officers of HM Forces towards their food and accommodation in the officers' mess; and whether there is any differential in those charges between regular officers and officers on full-time reserve service on home stations.[HL6558]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Astor of Hever) (Con): The entitled and non-entitled rates of charges required to be paid by serving Officers of the Armed Forces towards their food and accommodation in an officers’ mess (Single Living Accommodation) are detailed in the following tables.

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Accommodation charges for non-entitled personnel are set on a daily basis and the rates for FY 2014-15 have not yet been confirmed.

The entitled Daily Food Charge for FY 2014-15 is £4.72. The following table shows the non-entitled cash casual meal charge for FY 2014-15. These charges apply to all ranks of Service personnel.

There are three types of Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS)—Full Commitment (FC), Limited Commitment (LC) and Home Commitment (HC). As the nature of the FTRS commitment varies so does the entitlement to occupy mess accommodation at home units.

FTRS(FC) personnel are entitled to occupy mess accommodation and pay entitled food and accommodation charges. FTRS(LC) and (HC) personnel have no entitlement to occupy mess accommodation; but have an eligibility to occupy surplus mess accommodation, and would be expected to pay non-entitled rates, the exception to this being when on compulsory detachment.

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In order to better support single Service requirements, application can now be made within their respective Business Areas for FTRS personnel to occupy surplus mess accommodation at entitled rates. To ensure that a benefit in kind tax implication does not arise, individuals are expected to meet their own food bills

Arts: Theatres

Question

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking in relation to the safety of theatres following the Apollo Theatre roof collapse.[HL6351]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The Government will invest nearly £3 billion in the arts during this Parliament and DCMS continues to support theatres in this country through a range of investments via Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery Fund. We have recently launched a consultation on the introduction this year of a theatres tax relief.

The safety of theatres and other places of entertainment are the responsibility of the owners of such venues and the local authorities in which they operate. Local authorities have a responsibility to ensure that premises licensed by them are complying with the requirements of the licence, including public safety. Theatres and other places of entertainment also have to comply with other relevant legislation. For example, health and safety law applies to theatres as it does to other businesses. The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and related legislation places duties on employers, employees, the self-employed and those in control of premises.

Asylum Seekers

Questions

Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of asylum applications were granted (1) in the first instance, and (2) after some form of appeal, in each year since 2010.[HL6630]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Taylor of Holbeach) (Con): The table below shows the total number of asylum applications received in each year since 2010, and the proportion of asylum applicants in the first instance that were (1)(i) granted asylum, (ii) granted Humanitarian Protection, Discretionary Leave or Other Grants, and after some form of appeal were (2)(i) granted asylum, (ii) granted Humanitarian Protection, Discretionary Leave or Other Grants, as at May 2013 when the statistics were compiled.

Figures for 2013 will be published at the end of August 2014.

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Source: Table as_06 Outcome analysis of asylum applications, as at May 2013

HP Humanitarian Protection

DL Discretionary Leave

The analysis of the outcomes of asylum applications are the recorded outcomes of the group (or cohort) of applicants in any one year, as at a particular time. A proportion of applications made in each of the years provided will be awaiting the outcome of an initial decision or an appeal. Applications from earlier years will inherently have had longer for the case to be processed than those from more recent years. This dataset is updated, in full, annually.

There are a large variety of routes that an asylum application can take to a final asylum outcome. As a consequence, analysis of the outcomes of asylum applications in any one year requires interpretation for a small percentage of cases. This interpretation is undertaken consistently by established computer code. The proportions and underlying figures for final outcomes of the analysis of applications for the group (or cohort) of applicants in any one year, are therefore estimated.

The Home Office publishes statistics on the outcome of asylum applications in Table as_06 (Asylum data tables Volume 1) of Immigration Statistics. The latest release Immigration Statistics October to December 2013 is available from:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2013 and from the Library of the House.

Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the judgment issued on 9 April by Mr Justice Popplewell in Refugee Action v Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether they have any plans to establish an inquiry into the way asylum support rates are calculated.[HL6814]

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The Government plan to review asylum support rates. That review will take account of the judgment and other information. The review will be completed by 9 August 2014.

Azure Card Scheme

Question

Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno

To ask Her Majesty’s Government which (1) food, and (2) non-food, outlets are part of the azure card scheme; and whether they have plans to expand that list.[HL6629]

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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Taylor of Holbeach) (Con): The Azure Card is already accepted by Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, the Co-operative, Boots, Peacocks, Early Learning Centre, Mothercare, The British Red Cross, The Salvation Army and a few small independent retailers.

There are ongoing discussions with other retail outlets who may be interested in joining the scheme.

BBC: Black and Minority Ethnic Issues

Question

Asked by Lord Patel of Bradford

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the BBC’s decision to withdraw one of its black and minority ethnic (BME) reporter posts and its BBC UK Black weekly Podcast, whether in the negotiations with the BBC in respect of the renewal of its Charter they intend to set requirements relating to the coverage of BME issues in the BBC’s output; and if so, what requirements.[HL6773]

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con): The process, scope and timing of the review of the BBC’s Charter has yet to be determined. However, the Government is committed to the issue of BAME diversity in TV, film and the Arts, both on and off screen. The Culture Minister recently met with leading figures from these sectors, including the BBC, to consider options to improve representation.

Bees

Question

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what they are doing to ensure the protection of bees.[HL6808]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord De Mauley) (Con): The importance of pollinators, including the honeybee, and their value to both food security and sustaining the natural environment is recognised as a high priority. In view of this, Defra has taken action on a number of fronts, including:

contributing £2.5 million over five years to the Insect Pollinators Initiative;establishing the Healthy Bees Plan, a ten year plan to protect and improve the health of honeybees in England and Wales, of which five years has already been completed;continuing to fund the long-established National Bee Unit bee health programme, which includes inspection of colonies, diagnosis of bee pests and diseases, and training for beekeepers; andlaunching a public consultation on the National Pollinator Strategy this month.

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Benefits

Question

Asked by Lord Willis of Knaresborough

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, according to the latest data available, how many young people in England were claiming Jobseeker's Allowance at age (1) 18, (2) 19, (3) 20, (4) 21, (5) 22, (6) 23 and (7) 24; and, for each age group, how many were claiming for (a) less than 3 months, (b) 3–6 months, (c) 6–12 months, and (d) 12 or more months. [HL6806]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Glen Watson, Director General for Office for National Statistics, to Lord Willis, dated April 2014

As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking Her Majesty's Government, how many young people in England were claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance at age (1) 18, (2) 19, (3) 20, (4) 21, (5) 22, (6) 23 and (7) 24; and, for each age group, how many were claiming for (a) less than 3 months, (b) 3-6 months, (c) 6-12 months and (d) 12 or more months.(HL6806)

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics on the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance from the JobcentrePlus Administrative system. However, information is not held for all of the requested age bands.

As an alternative, in table 1 we have provided the number of people in England aged 18, 19 and 20-24 who been claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) for up to 3 months, over 3 months up to 6 months, over 6 months up to 12 months and over 12 months.

National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at http://www.nomisweb.co.uk.

Source: Jobcentreplus Administrative System

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1 Data rounded to nearest 5. Totals may not equal the sum of the independently rounded components.

2 Computerised claims only. Information on age of claimant is only available for computerised claims which currently make up 99.8% of all claims.

3 Claimant count figures for February 2014 do not yet include claimants of Universal Credit.

Benefits: Sanctions

Question

Asked by Lord Hylton

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they ensure that claimants of benefits who are subject to sanctions know that they may apply for hardship payments; and what is the median time between such applications being made and cash payments being received.[HL6723]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Lord Freud) (Con): Where a benefit doubt is identified and the case is being referred to a decision maker, claimants are given information (verbally and in writing) about the doubt in question, what happens next, what they can do if a sanction is applied and the availability of hardship provision. Once a decision is made and a sanction applied, a formal notification is issued to the claimant, which includes information about how to apply for hardship.

The department does not record information about the length of time it takes to make a hardship payment following receipt of an application.

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Questions

Asked by The Earl of Dundee

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what current plans they have to enhance stability and democracy in Bosnia Herzegovina.[HL6423]

The Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Warsi) (Con): The United Kingdom continues to be deeply committed to enhancing stability and democracy in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The UK is a strong supporter of European Union Force (EUFOR) Operation Althea’s maintenance of the safe and secure environment in BiH, and is proud of its contributions in theatre, and through a reserve company, 1 Scots. Our support for BiH’s policing has led to our contributing to establishing a trilateral Police Co-operation Centre (PCC) in Trebinje, resulting in more efficient and effective actions being taken between law enforcement agencies in the region. UK Ministers and officials have made clear to BiH’s leaders their responsibility for ensuring that their public rhetoric is not inflammatory or ethnically divisive.

Following the recent protests, we have made clear to BiH’s leaders that they need to respond to the population’s legitimate desire for change, most recently when the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right honourable friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), met the BiH Presidency and Foreign Minister on 27 March. During his recent visit the Foreign Secretary met

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representatives of civil society and plenums and expressed our support to widen the political space in BiH so as to allow citizens to hold politicians to account.

Part of our work to widen the political space is the recent British BiH Fellowship Programme, a one-month residential programme in the UK designed to equip BiH’s future leaders with the skills and experience to lead positive change in their country.

The Foreign Secretary also announced continuing UK assistance for BiH’s path towards EU membership, in the form of new funding to foster democratic governance in Bosnia by strengthening the judiciary, civil society organisations, governance and supporting BiH’s EU accession process. Specific examples include political and financial support focused on strengthening the State Court and State Prosecutor’s Office, which will improve the operation of rule of law systems in BiH.

In addition, the UK supports the activities of the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD), whose work in BiH has focused on equipping local non-governmental organisations with the skills they need to provide effective evidence for parliamentary committees. WFD has done valuable work with BiH’s Parliament to raise awareness of the value of such committees. This has influenced positively the formation of legislation and opened up the process of law-making to public scrutiny, while promoting citizen participation in the democratic process.

Asked by The Earl of Dundee

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Plenum movement within Bosnia Herzegovina in providing a constructive and peaceful catalyst towards constitutional reform. [HL6424]

Baroness Warsi: The protests and plenums are focussing primarily on socio-economic issues, demonstrating the frustration of the population with Bosnia and Herzegovina's (BiH) leaders’ failure to implement reforms on issues which matter most to ordinary Bosnians. The UK views these grievances as being rooted in a wider frustration with the functionality of the state, and as indicative of a broader malaise within BiH, which includes the Constitution. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), visited BiH on 27-28 March, and emphasised to BiH’s leadership the importance of their engaging fully with the population’s legitimate calls for change, which will include broader reforms. The UK has made clear, bilaterally and within the EU, that it stands ready to assist BiH’s leaders in implementing a wide range of changes, should BiH’s leaders demonstrate their commitment to engage fully with protesters, and summon the political will to make reforms.

Asked by The Earl of Dundee

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for international intervention or guidance to assist the efforts of the Plenum movement to reduce corruption and financial irregularities in Bosnia Herzegovina.[HL6426]

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Baroness Warsi: The recent protests and work of the plenums are evidence of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) political stalemate and economic malaise. We are making clear to BiH’s leaders that the onus is on them to respond to the socio-economic grievances expressed by protesters and the plenums, most recently in the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague)’s meetings with the Presidency and the Foreign Minister on 27 and 28 March. We see an opportunity also for the international community, particularly the EU, to support reform ahead of October’s elections. This includes assistance through new initiatives on economic reform and anti-corruption announced by EU Commissioner Fule, and the EU Special Representative’s planned ‘Compact for Growth’. We support these efforts to develop and build popular support for concrete reforms in economic governance, transparency and anti-corruption.

Asked by Lord Hylton

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to propose a European Union working-party to discuss and make proposals for assisting Bosnia-Herzegovina to draw up an appropriate constitution that would make possible the ending of various forms of international supervision.[HL6650]

Baroness Warsi: The challenges that Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) faces are regularly discussed in the EU working group on the western Balkans. However these discussions have not focused on constitutional change. The UK fully supports BiH’s aspiration to join the EU but they must meet the conditions. We continue to call on BiH’s leaders to make the necessary decisions to progress on the EU accession path, namely through aligning their Constitution with the European Court of Human Rights’ judgment in the Sejdic-Finci case. The onus is on BiH’s leaders to work collectively to resolve the issue.

Until real progress is made, the international community must remain closely engaged in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The UK fully supports the Office of the High Representative (OHR) and the European Union Force (EUFOR) Operation Althea and their work to ensure implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. Closure of the OHR will occur once the BiH authorities have met the agreed five objectives and fulfilled the agreed two conditions. Disagreement among the main political parties has prevented the agenda’s full implementation. The UK is committed to EUFOR’s maintenance of a safe and secure environment in BiH, and is proud of its own contributions, including through a reserve company, 1 Scots. Recent protests have demonstrated the fragility of the security situation in BiH. Therefore, it is vital that EUFOR continues to be able to fulfil its role in country. The UK will continue to support EUFOR’s presence in BiH until conditions on the ground change sufficiently to merit its withdrawal.

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Botswana

Questions

Asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Botswana about the ban on hunting imposed on the Bushmen, in contravention of the terms of independence agreed by the United Kingdom in 1966.[HL6780]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The British Government have had regular discussions with the Government of Botswana regarding the situation of the San (Bushmen). In those discussions we have consistently encouraged the Government of Botswana to seek an inclusive, sustainable and negotiated solution. EU Heads of Mission discussed the impact of the hunting ban on the San (Bushmen) in February 2014 with the Minister of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism.

Asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have discussed with the Government of Botswana its decision to allow only the 189 successful applicants in the Bushmen’s case against their Government in 2006 to return to the Central Kalahari Game Reserve.[HL6781]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The British Government have had regular discussions with the Government of Botswana regarding the situation of the San (Bushmen). In those discussions we have consistently encouraged the Government of Botswana to seek an inclusive, sustainable and negotiated solution. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right honourable friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised the situation of the San communities in Botswana with President Khama when they met on 13 February.

Asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have discussed with the government of Botswana its decision to restrict water bore holes for the Bushmen, in view of that country’s court decisions in 2006 and 2011 and the terms of independence agreed by the United Kingdom in 1966.[HL6782]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The British Government have had regular discussions with the Government of Botswana regarding the situation of the San (Bushmen). In those discussions we have consistently encouraged the Government of Botswana to seek an inclusive, sustainable and negotiated solution. We welcomed the government’s announcement that it would abide by the 2011 ruling concerning boreholes.

Asked by Lord Pearson of Rannoch

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have discussed with the government of Botswana its decision in 2013 to ban Mr Gordon Bennett from entering that country following his pursuit of successful cases against that government on behalf of the Bushmen.[HL6783]

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Lord Wallace of Saltaire: Our High Commissioner to Botswana has raised the issue of Mr Bennett’s visa status with senior officials from the Government of Botswana.

British Nationality

Questions

Asked by Baroness Berridge

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British citizens have obtained their nationality by naturalisation.[HL6624]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British citizens have obtained their nationality by registration.[HL6625]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Taylor of Holbeach) (Con): Information on the resident population of the UK by nationality and country of birth is published by Office for National Statistics at:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/taxonomy/index.html?nscl=International+Migration

Information on the total number of British citizens who have obtained their nationality by naturalisation or by registration is not available.

Data is published on the annual number of grants of British citizenship based on naturalisation and registration made in each year from 1962 to 2013 in table cz 03 of Immigration Statistics, available in the library of the House and at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

The latest edition of table cz 03 is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/283703/citizenship-q4-2013-tabs.ods

From 1962 to 2013 there were 2.9 million grants of British citizenship based on naturalisation and 0.9 million grants based on registration. It is not possible to determine from the administrative data how many of the persons granted British citizenship since 1962 have subsequently died or changed citizenship.

Asked by Baroness Berridge

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British citizens have nationality by being born in Britain.[HL6626]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Joe Grice, Director & Chief Economist for National Statistics, to Baroness Berridge, dated April 2014

In the absence of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking Her Majesty’s Government how many British citizens have nationality by being born in Britain. [HL6626]

6 May 2014 : Column WA330

ONS does not have data on the number of British nationals who were born in Great Britain. However, the Annual Population Survey provides estimates of the number of UK nationals who were born in the UK and who were resident in the UK at the time of the survey. This estimate would exclude UK nationals who were born in the UK but who are usually resident abroad.

The latest estimates use APS data for the 12-month period of January to December 2012 and show that there were 54,151,000 UK nationals who were born in the UK and were usually resident in the UK in 2012, with a corresponding margin of error of +/- 321,000. The margin of error refers to the 95 per cent confidence interval and is a measure of the uncertainty associated with making inferences from a sample.

Burma

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report Marching to Genocide in Burma; and what, if any, action they intend to take in response.[HL6491]

The Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Warsi) (Con): We share many of the concerns that United to End Genocide raise in their recent report on the plight of the Rohingya. We continue to press the Burmese Government to find a long-term solution to bring peace and reconciliation to the communities in Rakhine State. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right honourable friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), summoned the Burmese Ambassador on 7 April and called on the Burmese Government urgently to restore humanitarian access to all communities in need, and to ensure the security of humanitarian aid workers and all communities in Rakhine State. Mr Swire raised our wider concerns about the situation in Rakhine State with senior Burmese Ministers during his visit in January. I personally discussed the situation with the Minister of National Planning and Economic Development, Dr Kan Zaw, during his visit to the UK in March.

We remain in close contact with Médecins Sans Frontières and have made clear to the Burmese Government their responsibility to ensure services are adequately delivered. We continue to maintain that allegations of human rights abuses must be dealt with immediately through a clear and transparent investigative and prosecutorial process that meets international standards.

Cabinet Office: Precedent Book

Question

Asked by Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made towards preparing the Cabinet Office's Precedent Book for declassification; and whether a target date can be set and announced for its release at the National Archives.[HL6627]

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Lord Bates (Con): Progress continues to be made but it would be premature to indicate a date for declassification.

Cameroon: Boko Haram

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of the kidnapping of two Italian priests and a Canadian nun by unidentified gunmen in the Maroua district of Cameroon, and of the identity of the perpetrators; and what information they have of the spread of Boko Haram’s influence and activity in Cameroon.[HL6642]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): We are very concerned about kidnappings in Cameroon, which follow two similar incidents in 2013. We are aware of the growing evidence of Boko Haram having a presence in Cameroon, and discuss this regularly with the Government of Cameroon and other partners in the region. Our Travel Advice reflects the threat from kidnapping in Cameroon and other countries in the region. We have advised against all travel to the Far North Province of Cameroon since March 2013.

Care Sector: Immigrant Workers

Question

Asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno

To ask Her Majesty’s Government which disclosure and barring service checks are required in order for immigrant workers to be employed in the care sector.[HL6628]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): The Disclosure and Barring Service undertakes checks based on the nature of the work to be undertaken. Eligibility for checks is not linked to the nationality or immigration status of the applicant. Therefore immigrant workers are treated in the same way as other workers who wish to work in the care sector. However intelligence from police sources will sometimes indicate information about crimes in other countries; this applies equally to immigrant workers as for British nationals. Checks are undertaken on all people whose work falls into the category of ‘regulated work’.

Caste Discrimination

Question

Asked by Lord Avebury

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of their announcement in July 2013 that the consultation on caste legislation was expected in February or March 2014, why it has not yet been issued.[HL6447]

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con): The Government is currently considering two issues which have developed and which have potential implications for the consultation.

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In February, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published helpful research designed to inform the introduction of new legislation on caste, as outlined in the July 2013 announcement. However, that announcement said:

‘...work will also be undertaken to determine information about the extent of caste discrimination in Britain that can be used as a comparative baseline for any future consideration of the effectiveness of caste legislation.’

We had intended to reflect consideration of this work in the public consultation process. However, further discussions between Government and the EHRC about the research needed for it have revealed concerns that not only might this be difficult to commission successfully, but it could be seen as intrusive and might have an adverse effect on good relations in the relevant communities. We are therefore considering how best to proceed with the consultation in the light of this.

Another recent development is the judgment in the Employment Tribunal case of Tirkey v Chandok which concluded that there is already legal protection against caste discrimination through the race provisions of the Equality Act 2010. We need to review recent case law to consider whether and how it may affect the way in which we implement the legislation.

We would expect the public consultation document, including our conclusions on these matters, to issue in the Autumn.

Cats

Question

Asked by Lord Black of Brentwood

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of cats deliberately poisoned by antifreeze products each year; and what action they are taking to combat such attacks.[HL6695]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord De Mauley) (Con): The Government has not made any estimate of the number of cats deliberately poisoned by antifreeze products. Any deliberate poisoning of a cat is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 punishable by a fine of £20,000 and/or six months imprisonment.

Central African Republic

Questions

Asked by Baroness Berridge

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of recent reports that anti-balaka forces from the Central African Republic have attacked villages in Northern Cameroon.[HL6623]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): UK officials and their Cameroon counterparts hold regular discussions on the Central African Republic (CAR), including the impact of cross-border violence and refugees. We both agree that the international community’s top priority is to protect civilians and stop the violence; this is in the best interests of both CAR and the region as a

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whole including Cameroon. We therefore welcome the continued efforts of African Union and French forces in CAR, and welcome the imminent deployment of European troops to provide further assistance.

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to issue a new Ministerial Statement on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR); what plans the Minister for Africa has to visit the CAR; and when they last discussed with their international partners a strategy for tackling the humanitarian crisis in the CAR, the security risks, the political challenges and the case for reconciliation in that country.[HL6639]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), attended a Mini-Summit on the Central African Republic (CAR) on 2 April at which the international community discussed the ongoing challenges in CAR, in particular how to tackle the humanitarian, stability, security, and political challenges. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), discussed these issues with a number of key European and African Ministers at the recent EU-Africa Summit. Mr Simmonds will consider a visit to CAR against other commitments and priorities and will continue to keep parliament updated.

UK officials have been engaged in UN Security Council negotiations regarding a new Resolution for CAR. The Resolution will authorise a comprehensive UN Peacekeeping Operation from September to help restore stability, prevent abuses and promote reconciliation and recovery.

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they consider that the holding of elections in the Central African Republic on 15 February 2015 will support the development of good governance; what assessment they have made of the impact such elections will have on disenfranchised Muslim refugees who have fled the country and are in refugee camps beyond its borders; and whether they have made representations about the inclusion of Central African Republic citizens in the election process.[HL6641]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: Preparations for elections, which the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), discussed with the Head of the Central African Republic (CAR)’s Transitional Government, Catherine Samba-Panza, on 2 April, are at a very early stage. The primary focus of the international community is to stabilise CAR and protect its civilians. However, progress on the political front, including through the establishment of a strong, democratic government that represents its whole population, will be vital if long-term peace and security are to be achieved in CAR.

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Asked by The Lord Bishop of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which sexual violence has been used by all parties to the conflict in the Central African Republic.[HL6647]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: Reports suggest that sexual violence in conflict is widespread in the Central African Republic (CAR). UN Security Council Resolution 2149 on CAR authorises a UN Peacekeeping Operation which will, as part of its mandate, be required to help to prevent sexual violence, and contribute to efforts to identify and prosecute perpetrators. The UK is also looking to provide funding to the African Union (AU)’s response to the urgent needs of CAR’s victims of sexual violence, and to track and report on specific occurrences of sexual violence. We encourage CAR to endorse the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict and to attend the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, in London in June 2014.

Asked by The Lord Bishop of Worcester

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to deploying experts from their Stabilisation Unit to the Central African Republic to enhance the capacity of institutions and communities in that country to support the survivors of sexual violence in conflict and to end impunity for perpetrators.[HL6648]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) Stabilisation Unit is looking for opportunities to share its expertise and has been asked to provide a strategic communications expert to the African Union (AU) to support the efforts of the AU-led International Support Mission to the Central African Republic (CAR). The UK is also looking to give support to the AU’s response to the urgent needs of CAR’s victims of sexual violence, and to track and report on specific occurrences of sexual violence.

UN Security Council Resolution on CAR 2149 authorises a UN Peacekeeping Operation which will, as part of its mandate, be required to help prevent sexual violence, and contribute to efforts to identify and prosecute perpetrators.

Asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the call made by Ban Ki-Moon for funds to enable the United Nations to deploy peacekeepers to the Central African Republic. [HL6740]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: On 10 April the UK co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 2149 establishing a UN Peacekeeping Operation—MINUSCA —in the Central African Republic (CAR). We welcome this development which will support an end to the violence and help build long-term stability in CAR.

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The UK is the fifth largest contributor to the UN’s peacekeeping budget, which will be used to support the UN Mission.

Asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the cases made by the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme in respect of the establishment of a humanitarian operation in the Central African Republic.[HL6741]

Lord Bates (Con): It estimated that 1.3 million people (30% of the population) are food insecure. 60% of farmers have indicated that their crop production in 2013 was significantly reduced and around 50% of livestock was either looted or lost. 94% of farmers reported insufficient access to seeds for the upcoming planting season.

DFID is supporting short and medium term solutions to assist people through the lean season and plant staple crops to harvest in August. We have committed £4 million to FAO for the distribution of seeds and tools and to support livelihood activities such as home gardening. FAO will assist 150,000 farming households through the provision of seeds and tools. We will continue to closely monitor the humanitarian situation.

The UK has been closely monitoring the situation and has pledged a total of £23m to the response in 2013 and 2014 and is one of the largest humanitarian donors to CAR. The UK’s assistance is helping hundreds of thousands of people and will go towards the protection of civilians (in particular violence against women and girls); to urgent medical assistance; and to food security and livelihoods assistance.

Asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the level of aid funding available to the Central African Republic and of the need of food of the population of that country.[HL6742]

Lord Bates: The humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is acute. There are critical and pressing needs in the country following the coup in March 2013. The UN estimates that the whole population (4.6 million people) have been affected by this conflict and that 2.5 million people are in immediate need of humanitarian assistance, including protection, food, health, water and sanitation and shelter. 1.3 million people (3% of the total population) are in need of food assistance.

The UK has pledged a total of £23m to the response in 2013 and 2014 and is one of the largest humanitarian donors to CAR. The UK is the third largest humanitarian donor to CAR in 2014 alongside pledges from the EC: $62(£37m), USA: $47m (£28m), the UN Central Emergency Response Fund: $20m (£12m), the World Bank: $20m (£12m) and Sweden: $15m (£9m).

Asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the financial contributions made by each individual member state of the European Union to the crisis in the Central African Republic.[HL6743]

6 May 2014 : Column WA336

Lord Bates: On 20 January, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the EU co-chaired a high-level meeting in Brussels to discuss the humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic, its implications and financial requirements. Countries and International Finance Institutions pledged a total of $496m to the appeal: $203m of this is for humanitarian operations in 2014, and $294m for stabilisation and recovery. Member States have to date collectively contributed $87m (£52m) to the crisis in the Central African Republic.

Contributions by EU Member States include: UK: £18m; Sweden: £9.2m; Denmark: £5.4m; France: £5.3m; Finland: £3m; Luxembourg: £2.3m; Ireland: £2.1m; Germany: £2.0m; Netherlands: £1.7m; Italy: £1.6m; Belgium: £800,000; Austria: £400,000; Czech Republic: £100,000; Estonia: £80,000; Greece: £40,000; Slovenia: £20,000; Malta: £20,000; Lithuania: £16,000.

Chad and the Central African Republic

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recruitment of child soldiers by the government of Chad; whether they have raised concerns about the presence of Chadian soldiers in the Central African Republic; and whether they are part of the African-led International Support Mission to the Central African Republic.[HL6640]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised concerns about the conduct of Chadian troops in Central African Republic with Chad President Iddris Deby Itno when they met on 13 February. The Government take any allegations of wrongdoing by national armies very seriously.

Chad is making progress to tackle the issue of child soldiers in close co-operation with the UN, although there is still work to be done, particularly on birth registration and recruitment processes. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), pressed the Chad Foreign Minister, Moussa Faki, for further progress when they met on 28 January at the African Union (AU) summit and 2 April at the EU-Africa Summit.

Chad has announced that it is withdrawing its troops from the African-led International Support Mission to the Central African Republic (MISCA) in agreement with the AU. The UK is not part of MISCA, but has provided £2 million to MISCA to cover some essential MISCA costs including food, fuel and water. The UK is also providing logistical support to French and EU deployments and £23 million in humanitarian aid to the ongoing crisis.

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Children: Mental and Emotional Abuse

Questions

Asked by Lord Storey

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Action for Children’s proposed Cinderella neglect law.[HL6799]

The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Faulks) (Con): The Government believe protecting children from harm is fundamental and that child cruelty is an abhorrent crime which should be punished. All children should be able to grow up in a safe, happy environment.

Officials at the Ministry of Justice have been exploring the views of relevant experts in England and Wales to ascertain whether there are any gaps in the criminal law on child cruelty. We are currently considering the outcome of this work with a view to determining next steps.

Asked by Lord Storey

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are taking to ensure that (1) social workers are prepared to identify and intervene in cases of mental or emotional abuse towards children, and (2) social services are adequately funded to carry out such investigations to the highest standards.[HL6800]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Nash) (Con):Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2013 defines abuse and neglect including emotional abuse. Social workers will use this definition when deciding what action to take to protect a child. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone.

To be registered as a social worker, students will have undertaken an approved course providing an understanding of forms of harm, relevant legislation and policy, and the ability to assess risks and intervene appropriately.

Following the Narey review of social work education, the Chief Social Worker is leading work on a definitive document that will define more clearly the knowledge and skills required by children’s social workers. The ability to identify and intervene in cases of mental or emotional abuse will be a key part of the document.

Local authority funding for safeguarding children and young people is included within core funding for children’s social care which comes from the Department for Community and Local Government’s Formula Grant and local taxation. Funding is not ring-fenced and it is for local authorities to decide how to apply their funding across the services they deliver. A report from the Audit Commission^[1] published in November 2013 found that children’s social care has been largely protected from spending reductions from 2010/11 to 2013/14.

^[1] http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Tough-Times-2013-Councils-Responses-to-Financial-Challenges-w1.pdf

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Children’s Secure Estate: Risk-based Strip-searching

Question

Asked by Baroness Stern

To ask Her Majesty’s Government which establishments in the children’s secure estate, including young offender institutions, secure training centres and secure children’s homes, moved to risk-based strip-searching on 1 April; and on what date they expect each of the remaining establishments in the children’s secure estate to move to a risk-based system of strip-searching.[HL6622]

The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Faulks) (Con): Full searching is necessary to ensure the safety and security of young people in custody. We have a duty to keep any item that could endanger the safety of young people out of secure establishments and use a number of measures to disrupt their supply. Full searches are an important part of this and can be used effectively when conducted on a risk or intelligence-led basis—so when there is reason to believe the young person is concealing an item that represents a risk to themselves or others.

Following a review by the Youth Justice Board in early 2011, a new risk-based approach to full searching was introduced in Secure Children’s Homes and Secure Training Centres. All Secure Children’s Homes and Secure Training Centres were therefore already operating a risk based approach on 1 April 2014. A predominantly risk and intelligence-led approach to full searching in under-18 Young Offenders Institutions has been taken since April 2012, although there continued to be a mandatory requirement to routinely full search all young people in certain circumstances where it was considered there was a heightened risk of contraband being smuggled into the secure environment.

Since June 2013, the National Offender Management Service has been piloting a fully risk-led approach to full searching in Parc and Werrington under-18 Young Offenders Institutions. Hindley under-18 Young Offenders Institution was added to the pilot in October 2013. Following an evaluation of this pilot, all under-18 Young Offenders Institutions will be moving to a fully risk-led approach on 5 May 2014. A revised Prison Service Instruction on searching of young people was published today and can be found at the following link: http://www.justice.gov.uk/offenders/psis

China

Question

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what they are doing to promote trade in China.[HL6811]

The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Livingston of Parkhead) (Con): Increasing trade with emerging markets, including China, is a government priority. The Chancellor has made £9m available over the next two years for UK Trade and

6 May 2014 : Column WA339

Investment (UKTI) to increase its support in China and India for UK exporters. In China this includes expanding UKTI's sector expertise to embrace the opportunities that arise from China’s increasing urbanisation, globalisation and consumption.

UKTI works closely with the China-Britain Business Council, its delivery partner in China. Together they provide services including the Overseas Market Introduction Service; seminars; information on sectoral business opportunities; and the Tradeshow Access Programme, which helps companies attending overseas trade shows. UKTI also runs events such as Export Week, to encourage companies across the UK to export.

Trade missions to China promote UK expertise across key sectors and introduce companies to opportunities and potential partners. In December 2013, the Prime Minister led one of the largest UK trade missions ever to China, and Ken Clarke has also more recently visited the country with a high-profile delegation of companies from the healthcare sector.

China: Religious Freedom

Question

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of the removal of crosses from churches in the province of Zhejiang including the cities of Hangzhou and Zhoushan; when they last raised the issue of religious freedom and, in particular, the detention and imprisonment of the Bishop of Shanghai, with the government of China; and what response they received.[HL6643]

The Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Warsi) (Con): We have concerns about restrictions on freedom of religious belief in China, and raise them regularly with Chinese counterparts. We are aware of particular cases such as that of Bishop Ma Deqin, who is reportedly being kept under house arrest at the Sheshan seminary in Shanghai, and raise them publicly through our Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report.

Citizenship Curriculum: Voter Registration

Question

Asked by Baroness Royall of Blaisdon

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to include voter registration as part of the citizenship curriculum.[HL6636]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Nash) (Con): The new national curriculum includes an improved programme of study for citizenship education. It is organised around core knowledge about democracy, government and how laws are made and upheld. At key stage 4, pupils will be taught about the different electoral systems used in and beyond the United Kingdom, and about the actions citizens can take in democratic and electoral processes to influence

6 May 2014 : Column WA340

decisions locally, nationally and beyond. Schools may include voter registration as part of their citizenship curriculum.

The Cabinet Office has developed a resource to help schools, the Rock Enrol! lesson framework, which suggests activities for young people to discuss the importance of voting, and increase awareness of voter registration opportunities. It is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rock-enrol-engaging-young-people-in-democracy

Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010

Question

Asked by Lord Rooker

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to implement the changes set out in sections 45 and 46 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.[HL6516]

The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Faulks) (Con): Implementation is already well underway. The point at which historic central government records are transferred to The National Archives is being reduced from 30 years to 20 years. This change is being implemented in a phased way over a ten-year period starting from 1 January 2013, with two years worth of records being transferred every year until transition is complete. This was implemented by The Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 (Commencement No 7) Order 2012 (SI 2012 No. 3001) and The Public Records (Transfer to the Public Record Office) (Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2012 (SI 2012 No. 3028).

The Government intends to begin, from 2015, a similar ten-year transitional period for records transferred to 116 local places of deposit, subject to the outcome of further detailed work on costs and the impact to the local authority archive sector.

Contingent Liability: Nuclear Indemnity

Question

Asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by Lord Astor of Hever on 27 March (WS 49–50) regarding a contingent liability for nuclear indemnity, whether, in the light of the statement in the Departmental Minute that “the value of the contingent liability is unquantifiable due to the potentially catastrophic nature of a nuclear incident”, they have any plans to halt the process and review the basis of the indemnity. [HL6573]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Astor of Hever) (Con): It is our intention to proceed with the Contingent Liability as this work is an essential enabler in allowing the Ministry of Defence to deliver its projects and estate maintenance requirements on estates where nuclear assets are sited.

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Council Tax

Question

Asked by Baroness King of Bow

To ask Her Majesty’s Government which local authorities have increased the minimum payment required under their local Council Tax Reduction Schemes following the withdrawal of transition funding for 2014–15.[HL6482]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Stowell of Beeston) (Con): We do not collect this information centrally. These are local schemes, and it is for local authorities to ensure that the effect on specific groups of council tax payers is proportionate and fair.

The £100 million transition grant was a voluntary grant for the first year only of the new system of local council tax support. We have been clear from the outset that it was intended to give councils time to transition to the new localised regime and realise greater efficiencies such as cutting fraud and error, which cost £230 million in 2012-13.

Spending on council tax benefit doubled under the last Government, costing taxpayers £4 billion a year—equivalent to almost £180 a year per household. Welfare reform is vital to tackle the budget deficit left by the last Administration. Our reforms to localise council tax support now give councils stronger incentives to support local firms, cut fraud, promote local enterprise and get people into work.

Courts and Tribunal Service

Question

Asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

To ask Her Majesty’s Government in respect of right to manage requests, what is the average time between (1) the application for a hearing at the First Tier Tribunal and the actual hearing, (2) a First Tier Tribunal hearing and the issuing of the decision, and (3) an Appeal and an Upper Tribunal hearing.[HL6816]

Lord Newby (LD): Right to manage cases, which are leasehold disputes, are heard in the First-tier Tribunal Property Chamber. Onward appeals from the First-tier tribunal are to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber). HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of the Property Chamber and the Upper Tribunal (Land Chamber). The number of cases received by the First-tier tribunal and Upper Tribunal is published by the Ministry of Justice Tribunal Statistics (quarterly) on the GOV.UK website at the following address:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics

Data specific to right to manage cases is not routinely published. To obtain the information requested would require interrogation of case files within the First-tier tribunal and the Upper tribunal, and quality assurance checks on that data to ensure it is accurate, reliable and in a form suitable for publication. This could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

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Deaf People

Questions

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding they provide towards the diagnosis of dementia in deaf people and their treatment.[HL6668]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): There are no specific plans or budgets for the diagnosis and treatment of dementia in deaf people. However, it is good clinical practice to take into account a person's general health, including their hearing, when people are investigated and treated for dementia.

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding they make available to help with the provision of sign language services for the deaf.[HL6670]

Earl Howe: No specific funding is made available by the Department for the provision of sign language services. It is the responsibility of local providers and commissioners to make the reasonable adjustments required by Section 20 of the Equality Act (2010) to ensure that disabled people are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled people.

Whilst the Department does not make funding available for British Sign Language (BSL) services as a matter of course, funding has been made available for specific projects as part of the Department's Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development Fund and we are currently providing funding over three years to the East Lancashire Deaf Society in support of their BSL Health Trainer Project.

Debt Management Office

Question

Asked by Lord Myners

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have commissioned any investigation into, or received any report about, possible manipulation of auctions conducted by the Debt Management Office on behalf of HM Treasury or of purchases of securities under the Asset Purchase Scheme.[HL6507]

Lord Newby (LD): Any evidence relating to the potential manipulation of financial markets received by a public or private body or member of the public should be passed to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has a statutory responsibility for regulating conduct in financial markets.

Any investigation into the potential manipulation of financial markets would be a matter for the FCA. As a matter of policy the FCA does not normally provide any comment about potential or actual investigations or potential enforcement so as to avoid prejudicing cases.

The FCA announced on 20 March 2014 that it had taken enforcement action against an individual for the manipulation of a government bond in the run-up to a

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Bank of England operation on 10 October 2011. The FCA’s investigation found this was the action of one trader on one day, and there was no evidence of collusion with traders in other banks.

Disclosure and Barring Service

Question

Asked by Lord Greaves

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average waiting time for completion of disclosure and barring service checks in the (1) standard, (2) enhanced, and (3) enhanced with list checks, categories.[HL6797]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Taylor of Holbeach) (Con): For the financial year 2013-14 the average turnaround times were as follows:

All enhanced disclosures: 11.9 days (3,715,222 disclosures)All standard disclosures: 4.8 days (233,511 disclosures)

Enhanced disclosures are broken into:

Enhanced disclosures with list checks: 12 days (3,554,721 disclosures) Enhanced disclosures with no list checks: 10.9 days (160,501 disclosures).

Doctors: Misconduct

Question

Asked by Lord Campbell-Savours

To ask Her Majesty’s Government under what circumstances the names of doctors in the medical profession accused of community offences under the law, and found guilty of breaches of professional regulations by the General Medical Council, can be withheld from publication on the basis of data protection legislation.[HL6818]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): The General Medical Council (GMC) is an independent body and responsible for matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties.

The GMC makes decisions on the fitness to practise of registered doctors, rather than on matters relating to a particular criminal or civil order.

The GMC has a statutory duty under Section 35B(4) of the Medical Act 1983 to publish in such a manner that it sees fit, a range of decisions by Fitness to Practise Panels, Interim Orders Panel, the Investigation Committee and undertakings agreed with doctors. It has a discretionary power to withhold any information concerning the physical or mental health of a person for whom it considers such information to be confidential. The GMC's approach is contained in its publication and disclosure policy which is published on its website:

www.gmc-uk.org/DC4380_Publication_and_ disclosure_policy_36609763.pdf

The GMC is subject to a range of legislative duties in relation to information governance including the Data Protection Act 1998, Human Rights Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

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Domestic Violence

Question

Asked by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to combat domestic violence. [HL6588]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Taylor of Holbeach) (Con): The Government is determined to do all it can to tackle domestic violence and abuse and bring perpetrators to justice. Our approach is set out in our strategy, ‘Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls’ published in November 2010, together with a supporting Action Plan. A revised version of the Action Plan was published in March 2014 and contains a hundred and fifty actions across Government departments.

We are committed to ensuring that the police response to victims of domestic violence is as good as it can be. That is why last September, the Home Secretary commissioned Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) to conduct an all force review of domestic violence. HMIC published its findings on 27 March 2014 and highlighted serious failings in the police response. In response to the review, the Home Secretary is leading a series of measures to improve the police response. This includes establishing a new national oversight group, which she will chair. The Home Secretary has also written to chief constables making it clear that the police must make significant improvements and that every police force must have an action plan in place by September 2014 to address HMIC’s findings.

The Coalition Government is also committed to ensuring that the police and other agencies have the tools necessary to tackle domestic violence, to bring offenders to justice and to ensure victims have the support they need to rebuild their lives. That is why on 8 March 2014, we commenced the national rollout of Domestic Violence Protection Orders and the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme across England and Wales and why we are currently providing funding for 144 Independent Domestic Violence Advisers and 54 Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference co-ordinators.

DVLA

Question

Asked by Earl Attlee

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to address the issue of online third parties acting as middlemen between the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and driving licence applicants.[HL6767]

The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Baroness Kramer) (LD): The Government is taking decisive steps against such websites.

Officials are working with various government organisations and search engine providers to raise awareness and ensure appropriate enforcement action is taken. Ministers recently met with Google and as a

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result, Google has taken down a series of adverts. Similar work will be carried out with other search engine providers.

The National Trading Standards Board will receive an additional £120,000 to clamp down on misleading websites.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has issued messages on Twitter and gov.uk to advise customers that gov.uk is the only official website. Officials have worked with the press to inform customers that they may be charged an unnecessary fee if they do not use gov.uk. The DVLA is arranging to amend forms, leaflets and envelopes to make the correct website clearer for customers. Officials will continue to issue appropriate communications to help raise awareness of these sites.

Economy: Deficit Reduction

Question

Asked by Lord Stevens of Ludgate

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Deighton on 27 March to remarks by Lord Myners, Lord Higgins and Lord Flight (HL Deb, col. 676) and the Written Answer by Lord Sassoon on 3 July 2013 (WA 143), whether they continue to consider that borrowing from the central bank is illegal under Article 123 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union; and, if so, what options are available in respect of government debt and quantitative easing while the United Kingdom remains a member of the European Union.[HL6470]

Lord Newby (LD): The Independent Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England has operational responsibility for monetary policy. The MPC makes decisions on its policy tools, including quantitative easing (QE), in order to meet the 2% inflation target in the medium term.

The separation of fiscal and monetary policy is a key feature of the UK’s economic policy framework. To use monetary policy tools to meet fiscal objectives, such as financing government borrowing, could conflict with the MPC’s objective of price stability and undermine confidence in the UK’s monetary policy framework. Additionally, government borrowing from the central bank is illegal under Article 123 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Economy: Job Vacancies

Question

Asked by Lord Clement-Jones

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of the number of job vacancies in the United Kingdom; and, of that figure, how many are (1) full-time, (2) part-time, and (3) zero-hours contracts, temporary or self-employed vacancies. [HL6530]

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Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Glen Watson, Director General for ONS, to Lord Clement-Jones, dated April 2014.

As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question To ask Her Majesty’s Government for the latest estimate of the number of job vacancies in the United Kingdom; and, of that figure, how many are (1) full-time, (2) part-time, and (3) zero-hours contracts, temporary or self-employed vacancies. (HL6530)

The latest estimate from the ONS Vacancy Survey for December 2013 to February 2014 is that there were 588,000 job vacancies. The ONS Vacancy Survey does not collect information on full-time, part-time or zero-hours contracts so these breakdowns are not available.

Education: Primary and 16-19 Assessment and Accountability

Question

Asked by Baroness Whitaker

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by Lord Nash on 27 March (WS 53–4) on primary and 16 to 18 assessment and accountability, how the progress which is to be measured will be disaggregated into ethnic groups. [HL6499]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Nash) (Con): The detail of the new accountability measures has yet to be fully developed. However, we expect to mirror current practice and to publish information on attainment and progress by ethnic group at national and local authority level rather than at school or college level.

A new web portal, which is under development, will improve access to 16-18 performance data including the core demographic information such as ethnicity which is currently available for primary and secondary schools.

Egypt

Questions

Asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the independence of the judiciary in Egypt.[HL6391]

The Senior Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Warsi) (Con): The new Egyptian constitution, adopted in January 2014, states that the judicial system is independent, and allows the judiciary its own budget, and to appoint the Prosecutor General and members of the Supreme Constitutional Court. We do, however, have some concerns over recent judicial decisions, including the sentencing to death of 529 people in Minya on 24 March. Reports that many of the defendants were tried in their absence and may not have been represented

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properly are deeply troubling. We have been urging the Egyptian authorities to ensure that the rights of defendants are fully respected in all cases.

Asked by Lord Patten

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the number of death sentences handed down so far during 2014 in Egypt; and whether they have discussed the issue with the government of Egypt.[HL6751]

Baroness Warsi:The British Government is aware of 559 people who have been sentenced to death in Egypt during 2014, including 529 by a court in Minya on 24 March. We are deeply concerned by these sentences. We have raised this issue with the Egyptian government, most recently during the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague)’s meeting with Foreign Minister Fahmy on 2 April. The Foreign Secretary asked the Egyptian government to review these sentences as a matter of urgency and to ensure that the individuals’ human and legal rights were properly upheld. The Foreign Secretary also made a statement on 24 March in which he expressed his concern over the sentences.

It is the long-standing policy of the British Government to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances

Electoral Registration

Questions

Asked by Lord Tyler

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what will be the date of the electoral register to be the basis of the 2018 review of United Kingdom parliamentary constituencies by the Boundary Commissions, under the provisions of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011.[HL6721]

Lord Bates (Con): The Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986, as amended, provides for the 2018 review to be based on the number of electors on the electoral register as at 1 December 2015.

Asked by Lord Tyler

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether 16 and 17 year olds registered to vote in Scotland for the referendum on the future of the United Kingdom will automatically be registered to vote in United Kingdom elections at their 18th birthday.[HL6722]

Lord Bates: There is no provision in UK electoral registration legislation for those who are included on the Register of Young Voters, which was created specifically for the referendum by Act of the Scottish Parliament, to be automatically included in the register of electors for those elections for which the UK Parliament has competence.

Electoral Registration Officers will be conducting a full Household Enquiry canvass every summer from 2015. Provided that they are eligible, young people who appeared on the Register of Young Voters will be captured by the canvass and invited to register under Individual Electoral Registration.

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Embryology

Questions

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 1 April (WA 178), which entries in the MITOMAP database describe how muscular dystrophy can be caused by mitochondrial DNA mutations; how the prevalence of each of the most frequently diagnosed forms of muscular dystrophy in the United Kingdom compares to the separate prevalences for each of the most commonly diagnosed mitochondrial diseases; and in how many separate instances they have suggested in correspondence that muscular dystrophy might be treated by proposed mitochondrial replacement techniques.[HL6714]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe) (Con): The information in the MITOMAP database is publicly available to be interrogated for the information mentioned in the noble Lord’s question. The database can be accessed at:

www.mitomap.org/MITOMAP

The department does not hold any information about the prevalence of each commonly diagnosed mitochondrial disease.

As stated in my Written Answer of 1 April 2014, Official Report, col. WA 178, a search of the department’s ministerial correspondence database has identified 128 departmental responses to correspondence received between January 2013 and September 2013, which mentioned muscular dystrophy as a condition that could be caused by mitochondrial DNA disease. However, no correspondence has stated that transmission from mother to child of a specific condition will be prevented by mitochondrial donation techniques.

We have been consistently clear that the estimated number of cases of families at risk of serious mitochondrial disease, who might benefit from mitochondrial donation treatment, is relatively small.

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 2 April (WA 194), whether any previously published research on rodents was ever referenced by the Expert Panel in relation to the potential safety of either pronuclear transfer or spindle-chromosomal complex transfer; if not, what were the reasons for excluding such evidence; and if so, why no further information could be provided in response to the previous question.[HL6715]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Earl Howe on 2 April (WA 194) and by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health, Jane Ellison, on 27 March (HC Deb, col. 363W), to what extent they consider that the available time between the deadline for written submissions for the Expert Panel’s third report for the Government and the notification provided regarding that deadline reflected both the importance of the subject matter and the typical time constraints of clinicians and scientists.[HL6716]

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Earl Howe: As stated in my Written Answer of 2 April 2014, Official Report, col. WA 194, there is nothing further I can add to the information already given to the noble Lord on this subject.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that the expert panel reports of April 2011 and March 2013 outline the research referred to by the noble Lord. These reports are available on the HFEA’s website at www.hfea.gov.uk/6372.html

The HFEA has also advised that its call for evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of the pro-nuclear transfer and maternal spindle transfer mitochondrial donation techniques followed the process used for previous reviews and will allow the expert panel sufficient time to consider the evidence, seek clarification or request additional information from researchers, where needed, and to draft a report to be published in late May 2014. This timescale will allow the Secretary of State to consider this update alongside the outcome of the current public consultation on draft regulations that would enable mitochondrial donation techniques to be used in clinical practice.

The call for evidence asked for published studies, which have not been submitted in previous calls for evidence or have been published since January 2013, unpublished research or statements. As part of the review, a meeting was held on 4 April 2014 to provide researchers an opportunity to submit evidence confidentially or have discussions with the expert panel.

Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Earl Howe on 4 December 2013 (WA 48–9), 6 February (WA 76) and 1 April (WA 177–8), whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the calculations used to derive the original estimate that a proposed mitochondria replacement technique could save the lives each year of 10 people who would otherwise die; whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the calculations used to derive the updated estimate that 10 to 20 families per year might be assisted by proposed mitochondrial donation techniques; and in what ways those two estimates and the statement that it will save the lives of people rather than entities reflect the distinction between those human embryos that are transferred to a woman and those that perish.[HL6717]

Earl Howe:The estimates have been based on advice from the Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research at Newcastle University. The potential for the new mitochondrial donation techniques is based on numbers of patients currently coming forward for either pre-implantation genetic diagnosis or prenatal testing each year in the United Kingdom and, therefore, already undergoing some form of reproductive assistance. The department has no written calculations that can be placed in the Library.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, as amended, does not provide for or recognise a direct correlation between those human embryos that are transferred to a woman and those that are not and, consequently, perish. It would be inappropriate, therefore,

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to attempt to draw a direct correlation between children born free of serious mitochondrial disease as a result of mitochondrial donation and the embryos that are created to achieve that purpose but are not transferred to the patient.

Employment

Questions

Asked by Lord Beecham

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the workforce deemed to be in employment is estimated to be on (1) full-time, (2) part-time, and (3) zero-hours, contracts.[HL6504]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD): The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Caron Walker, Director, Collection and Production, Office for National Statistics to Lord Beecham dated April 2014.

On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the workforce deemed to be in employment is estimated to be on (1) full-time, (2) part-time, and (3) zero-hours, contracts. [HL6504]

Estimates of employment are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). In the LFS, the distinction between full and part-time employment is based upon the respondents’ views about the hours they work. The LFS collects information on zero-hours contracts from a question regarding flexible working. People in employment are asked what variable working arrangements, if any, they have and to select from a list which has “zero-hours contract” as an option. The results from the LFS therefore depend on respondents recognising correctly their employment contract type. Estimates should therefore be used with caution.

The table provided contains the number and proportion of the workforce by full and part-time status for the three-month period November 2013 to January 2014 with estimates of those on a zero-hours contract based on the period October to December 2013.

Source: Labour Force Survey

6 May 2014 : Column WA351

Guide to Quality:

The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV - for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220.

The answers given to the flexible working question are independent of any answer given to the question on full and part-time work. Therefore respondents can be on a zero-hours contract and consider themselves in either full or part-time work. This means that the estimate in the table for those in employment on a zero-hours contract is not mutually exclusive, as these individuals will also be included under either the full- or part-time categories.

As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. These are indicated in the table.

Asked by Lord Wigley

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the latest available figures of the number of people in employment in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales respectively; and how they compare with the figures for three and six years earlier.[HL6601]

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Peter Fullerton, Director, Collection and Production Operations for Office for National Statistics, to Lord Wigley, dated April 2014.

In the absence of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking To ask Her Majesty's Government for the latest available figures of the number of people in employment in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales respectively; and how they compare with the figures for three and six years earlier. [HL6601]

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles employment statistics for the countries of the United Kingdom from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions.

Table 1 shows the number of people aged 16 years and over in employment resident in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. These estimates are compiled from LFS interviews held during the period November

6 May 2014 : Column WA352

2013 to January 2014, the latest period available, and the equivalent period three and six years earlier.

As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. A guide to the quality of the estimates is given in the table.

Additionally, the information you have requested is published each month in the Regional Labour Market Statistics Bulletin in a summary sheet containing LFS data for all regions and countries of the UK, including all historical data for these series. The latest version of this spreadsheet, published 19 March 2014, is available at

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/subnational-labour/regional-labour-market-statistics/march-2014/rft-lm-hi00-march-2014.xls

National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at http://www.nomisweb.co.uk.

Source: Labour Force Survey

1. Coefficients of Variation have been calculated for the latest period as an indication of the quality of the estimates. See Guide to Quality below.

Guide to Quality:

The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV - for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220.