Written answers

Wednesday, 25 April 2007

  • Environment Food and Rural Affairs

    • Agriculture: Employment Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what support his Department plans to give to the National Care Farming Initiative.

    • Agriculture: Subsidies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farms in each district authority in Cumbria are eligible for single payment scheme payments; how many received SPS...

      Agriculture: Subsidies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to ensure that single farm payments are made in their entirety and on time.

      Agriculture: Subsidies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of farmers in England are awaiting single payment scheme payments from financial year 2006-07; how many farms...

      Agriculture: Subsidies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farmers received Single Farm Payments of more than (a) £40,000 and (b) £50,000 in 2006.

      Agriculture: Subsidies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farms are eligible for single farm payments; how many single farm payments were made in 2006; and what the average...

      Air Pollution: Contracts

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which companies providing carbon offsetting arrangements his officials examined in making a choice for his Department's...

      Avian Influenza

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from which (a) UK county and (b) other countries the turkey poults supplied to the Bernard Matthews' plant at Holton,...

      Common Agricultural Policy: Food

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the effect of the Common Agricultural Policy on the amount spent by an average family in the UK...

      Departments: Official Hospitality

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures are in place to limit the amount of money spent on alcohol for hospitality purposes by his Department.

      Departments: Paper

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what mechanisms are in place to ensure his Department's economical use of paper.

      Departments: Surveys

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department undertakes employee exit surveys.

      EU Emissions Trading Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what reduction in UK carbon emissions is predicted to result from (a) phase 1 and (b) phase 2 of the EU emissions...

      Farmers: Manpower

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farmers there are in (a) England, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) Scotland and (d) Wales.

      Inland Waterways: Rochdale

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 6 February 2007, Official Report, column 763W, on inland waterways: repairs and maintenance, how...

      Milk: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Competition Commission on the share of the retail price of milk that is passed on...

      Peat Bogs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what studies his Department has undertaken into the degrading of peat bogs by the releasing of carbon in the form of...

      Peat Bogs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department has taken (a) to preserve and (b) to reactivate drained peat bog land as carbon sinks; what his...

      Power Stations: Carbon Emissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will estimate the effect on the UK's carbon dioxide emissions if the existing nuclear generating fleet was replaced by...

      Rural Development Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) whether non-agricultural or environmental rural businesses will be able to access funding from the rural development...

      Rural Development Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how the rural development programme for England will financially incentivise environmental stewardship.

      Rural Development Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations his Department has received from the Lake District national planning authority on the rural development...

      Rural Payments Agency: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much was (a) spent on and (b) allocated to bonuses for staff in the Rural Payments Agency in the financial year (i)...

      Sugar

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average price was of a pound of sugar produced (a) in the UK and (b) overseas in 2006; and what volume of sugar...

      Waste Management

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff in his Department have work objectives that make reference to composting; and what the pay band is of each...

  • Transport

    • A358

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate he has made of the number of vehicles he expects the new dual carriageway on the A358 between the M5 and the A303 to carry each...

    • A358

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) timetable and (b) budget is for the construction of the new dual carriageway on the A358 between the M5 and the A303.

      British Transport Police: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how much funding the British Transport police received from (a) his Department, (b) the rail industry, broken down by service provider, and...

      Channel Tunnel Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to increase the speed of Eurostar trains between the Channel Tunnel and London; and if he will make a statement.

      Pedicabs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received since June 2006 on the application of traffic regulations to pedicabs.

      Railways: Accidents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the progress of the rail accident investigation into the Oxenholme derailment.

      Railways: Air Pollution

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate has been made of the potential change in carbon dioxide emissions of operating longer trains.

      Railways: Bicycles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what requirement exists for train operating companies (a) to carry and (b) to provide space for carrying bicycles on their trains; and if he will...

      Railways: Stockport

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the proposed service frequency is for Stockport in the invitation to tender issued by DfT Rail for New Cross Country; and if he will make a statement.

      Railways: Traffic Congestion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate has been made of the potential reduction in motor vehicle journeys due to the extra capacity on the rail network.

      Rolling Stock

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the 1,000 new carriages in the high level output specification to which he referred in his speech to the rail conference on 14 March 2007 are...

      Rolling Stock: Virgin Trains

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the 1,000 new train carriages announced on 14 March 2007 will include the 106 carriages needed to reduce congestion on Virgin's Pendolino trains.

  • House of Commons Commission

    • Fruit

      To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what quantity of (a) fruit and (b) vegetables was purchased by the Refreshment Department in each of the...

  • Defence

    • Afghanistan: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many comfort boxes sent to UK military personnel in (a) Afghanistan and (b) Iraq have been robbed (i) in transit and (ii) on arrival in theatre...

    • Afghanistan: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what security measures he is taking to prevent comfort boxes sent to UK military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan from being robbed.

      Armed Forces: Casualties

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 22 February 2007, Official Report, column 854W, on the armed forces: casualties, whether the full board of inquiry report has...

      Armed Forces: Inquests

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his statement of 17 April, on service personnel killed on operations: changes to arrangements for repatriation, what assessment he has made...

      Armed Forces: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to mark the 40(th) anniversary of the deployment of troops to Northern Ireland in 1969; and what representations he has...

      Armed Forces: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how he made the calculation that the impact of the Budget on the lowest paid members of the armed forces who are single is that they will be worse off by...

      Ballistic Missile Defence: USA

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the risks and benefits to the UK of allowing the US to install a ballistic missile defence system on British territory.

      Defence and Communications Services Agency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the cost has been of the project to rationalise communication systems in the Defence and Communications Services Agency; how many (a)...

      Defence and Communications Services Agency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many private consultants were employed in each of the last 24 months by the Defence and Communication Services Agency; at what cost; and if he...

      Departments: Official Hospitality

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent on hospitality by his Department in the financial year 2006-07.

      Departments: Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many people in his Department participated in (a) involuntary and (b) voluntary staff exit schemes in each year since 1997-98; and if he will...

      Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been achieved since October 2006 on military reform in the Iraqi provinces of (a) Al Basrah, (b) Al Muthanna, (c) Dhi Qar and (d)...

      Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the reasons for the number of personnel listed as having sustained disease or non-battle injury during November 2006 as...

      Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) the net cost has been of the British military operations in Iraq in each year from 2002-03 and (b) the predicted cost is of continued British...

      Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made on information exchange with the US in the last 12 months with regard to achieving sovereign capability on the joint strike...

      Rendition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 1 March 2007, Official Report, column 1455W, on rendition, whether the bilateral arrangements mentioned apply to state...

  • Culture Media and Sport

    • British Grand Prix

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had on the future of Formula One Grand Prix racing at Silverstone.

    • Gaming Machines: Standards

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the testing regime for ensuring that gaming machines comply with the technical standards required under the Gambling Act 2005...

      Gaming Machines: Standards

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether contractors have been selected to undertake on behalf of the Gambling Commission the tests required to ensure that gaming...

      Horserace Totalisator Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what recent discussions her Department has had with personnel from HM Treasury on the future of the Tote; (2) if she will make a...

      National Lottery

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average (a) value of lottery receipts from sales made, (b) number of applications for lottery awards from and (c) number of...

      Olympic Games: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department plans to take to ensure that Colchester shares in the (a) economic, (b) social and (c) sporting benefits...

      Sport England: Expenditure

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Sport England spent on administration and running costs in each region in each of the last eight years.

      Sport England: Manpower

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people Sport England employed in each region in each of the last eight years.

      Sport England: Publicity

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Sport England spent on advertising in each of the last eight years.

      Sport England: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of Sport England's budget was spent on (a) sporting events, (b) capital spending on sports facilities and (c) support...

      Sports: Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will instigate a national debate to promote sport and fitness in schools.

  • Trade and Industry

    • Departments: Parliamentary Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many oral questions tabled by hon. and right hon. Members to his Department have been transferred to other departments since May 2005.

    • Financial Services: Marketing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what safeguards are in place to ensure that businesses offering individual voluntary arrangements do not use misleading marketing; and if he...

      Natural Gas: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the percentage of the price of gas from the cost of companies buying gas is maintained through price fluctuations.

      Natural Gas: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2007, Official Report, column 1601W, on natural gas: prices, what steps the Government have taken to...

      Natural Gas: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will instruct the regulator to analyse and to report to him on the time taken between raw material gas prices falling and any reductions...

      Redfern: Inquiry

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Redfern Inquiry will have access to the National Archives files on radiation exposure experiments from 1950.

      Small Business Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the reorganisation of the Small Business Service.

  • Northern Ireland

    • Absconding Prisoners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to introduce greater deterrents for prisoners who abscond from custody in Northern Ireland.

    • Alzheimer's Treatment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the provision of Alzheimer's treatment by the NHS in Northern Ireland.

      Northern Ireland Office

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what effect he expects the transfer of responsibilities to the devolved Assembly to have on the future size of the Northern Ireland Office; and...

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were diagnosed with cancer in Northern Ireland in each of the last six years, broken down by type of cancer.

      Doctors: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the evidential basis was for the decision on the relative proportion of speciality training and fixed term speciality training posts in...

      Doctors: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost has been of (a) modernising medical careers in Northern Ireland and (b) the Medical Training Application Service in Northern Ireland.

      Domestic Wastes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) total and (b) average amount of domestic waste was produced per household in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.

      EU Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which programmes have been funded in Northern Ireland from the PEACE budget of the European Regional Development Fund in the last 12 months.

      Fly Tipping

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had in the last 12 months with Ministers from the government of the Republic of Ireland on illegal dumping in Northern...

      Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are planned to be taken to ensure that sufficient medical staff are available to provide a high standard of patient care in Northern...

      International Fund for Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which projects have been funded in Northern Ireland by the International Fund for Ireland in the last 12 months.

      Local Government

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what powers and responsibilities he intends to devolve to councils in Northern Ireland.

      Ministerial Visits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many days he spent in Northern Ireland on official business in each of the last 12 months; and on how many occasions he stayed overnight.

      Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation: Public Appointments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Northern Ireland approved the procedure for the recent appointment of a board member of the...

      Pedestrian Crossings: Bangor

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many complaints his Department has received about the lack of pedestrian crossing provision on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor,...

      Public Libraries: Bangor

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment has been made by his Department of the adequacy of the public library provision in Bangor; and if he will make a statement.

      Religious Persons

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions in the last 12 months (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have met leaders of (i) the Presbyterian Church,...

      Sexual Offences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted on charges relating to having sexual intercourse with an underage person in each...

      Sexual Offences: Sentencing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether he plans to introduce changes to the law on the sentencing of sex offenders in Northern Ireland.

  • Home Department

    • 101 Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are employed within the 101 programme; what the total cost is of their annual salaries; and what the annual cost is of the...

    • Autism

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the partnership between Dyfed Powys Police, North Wales Police and Autism Cymru to develop an assessment of...

      Burglaries: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many recorded burglaries there were in each London borough in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of those recorded burglaries...

      Community Support Officers

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the impact of community safety police teams.

      Crime: Surveys

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department expects to reach a conclusion on the appropriateness of extending the British Crime Survey to include those who are aged...

      Criminal Justice Bill

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to be in a position to introduce to Parliament the Criminal Justice Bill announced in the Queen's Speech 2006.

      Departments: Publications

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on unpublished research in (a) 2005 and (b) each of the previous five years.

      Human Trafficking

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how often the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Human Trafficking has met in the last 12 months; and how often it plans to meet in the...

      Identity Cards

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he expects to submit a final cost estimate for the identity cards scheme to HM Treasury; (2) when his Department first submitted...

      Immigration Controls

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what checks are carried out to assess the employability of non-EU citizens applying to enter the UK.

      Intermittent Custody

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the average travelling distance from home to intermittent custody centres is for women prisoners subject to (a) a weekday and...

      Police: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers in each London borough are on paid sick leave.

      Police: Retirement

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average retirement age was of police officers in each of the last 15 years.

      Police: Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many schools in England and Wales have an allocated police officer, broken down by local authority area.

      Prisoners: Locks and Keys

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders in (a) Category C prisons, (b) Category D prisons and (c) youth offender institutions in England and Wales have access...

      Respect Task Force: Advertising

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Respect Task Force has spent on advertising since its establishment; and what the projected advertising budget is for each of...

      Special Constables

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 28 March 2007, Official Report, column 1651W, on special constables, for what reasons the recruitment figures are...

  • Work and Pensions

    • Departments: Huddersfield

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people employed by his Department were working in Huddersfield in each of the last 10 years.

    • Employment Schemes: Lone Parents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measure are (a) in place and (b) planned to be introduced to help lone parents into employment.

      Grandparents: Carers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what representations his Department has received on the allowances for grandparents caring for their grandchildren; what level of benefits they...

      Income Support: Disqualification

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many sanctions were imposed on lone parents claiming income support who had missed their first work focused interview in each quarter since...

      Income Support: Lone Parents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on income support for (a) lone parents whose youngest child was (i) under three, (ii) under five, (iii) under 11, (iv)...

      Industrial Injuries Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the potential savings to the Exchequer in each year from 2008-09 to 2020-21 of ending industrial injuries benefit...

      National Insurance: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the latest performance statistics are for the processing of national insurance number applications at each of the London offices dealing...

      New Deal

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average cost per person moving into unsubsidised employment was of each New Deal programme in each year since 1997-98.

      New Deal for Disabled People: Copeland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Copeland have participated in the new deal for disabled people since its launch.

      Social Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the latest performance statistics are for each office where Social Fund applications are processed.

      Social Security Benefits: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Asian men were on benefits in (a) the UK and (b) Luton over the last five years; and what proportion of (i) male and (ii) all...

      Social Security Benefits: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether lie detector test pilot schemes for benefit claimants will analyse the psychological impact of undertaking a lie detector test on...

      Social Security Benefits: Lone Parents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 20 March 2007, Official Report, column 816W, on social security benefits: lone parents, how many lone parents there...

      Television: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the Government spent to provide free television licences to pensioners in each year since 1997.

      Winter Fuel Payments: Expenditure

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the Government has spent to provide winter fuel allowances to pensioners in each year since 1997.

  • Treasury

    • Departmental Expenditure Limits: Department of Health

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date he increased the Department of Health's planned resource departmental expenditure limit for 2005-06 from £75,090 million, as stated in...

    • Departmental Staff

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2006, Official Report, column 721W, on departmental staff, whether individual teams in his Department keep records of...

      Departments: Public Opinion

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on (a) opinion polls and (b) focus groups in each of the last five years.

      EU Budget

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much expenditure was categorised under the European Union budget line of sundry debtors in the 2006-07 financial year; and if he will make a statement.

      Energy: Conservation

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 15 March 2007, Official Report, column 474W, on energy: conservation, what proportion of the funding announced by his Department...

      Excise Duties: Motor Vehicles

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made of the merits of hypothecating vehicle excise duty revenue for funding policies to address climate change and other forms of...

      Migrant Workers: Eastern Europe

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the impact of workers from Eastern Europe on the UK economy.

      Stamp Duties

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the reduction in revenue from applying higher rate stamp duty (3 per cent. to 4 per cent.) only to the amount from a property sale above...

      Taxation: Arrests

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on how many occasions in 2005-06 HM Revenue and Customs requested that the police use their power of arrest as a result of a tax inquiry.

      Taxation: Electric Vehicles

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax is paid on the purchase of a new (a) Toyota Prius and (b) Honda Accord hybrid car.

      Welfare Tax Credits: Cardiff

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether staff working for the tax credit office in the Cardiff contact centre have guidelines for the number of calls they should deal with from...

      Loans: Students

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to ensure that the best possible price is achieved from the planned sale of tranches of the student loan book.

  • Constitutional Affairs

    • Departments: Official Hospitality

      To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much was spent on hospitality by her Department in the financial year 2006-07.

  • International Development

    • Democratic Republic of the Congo: Rain Forests

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will provide a breakdown by major heading of how the recently announced £50 million to help conserve the Congo basin...

    • Departments: Official Hospitality

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was spent on hospitality by his Department in the financial year 2006-07.

      Departments: Oral Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many questions tabled by hon. and right hon. Members to his Department for oral answer have been transferred to other departments...

      Developing Countries: AIDS

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the progress made by developing countries in delivering universal access to treatment for AIDS sufferers...

      Developing Countries: Cleft Palate

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent providing support to organisations that treat children in developing countries with cleft lip and...

      Developing Countries: Debts

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what targets his Department has to reduce debt in developing countries over the next two years.

      Developing Countries: Forestry

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the extent of economic, social and environmental benefits of the traditional...

      Developing Countries: HIV Infection

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress is being made by the G8 in delivering universal access to HIV prevention treatment and care by 2010.

      Developing Countries: HIV Infection

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress was made at the G8 meeting of Development Ministers on 26 and 27 March in Berlin on establishing a funding plan for the...

      Environmental Transformation Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) if he will publish a detailed breakdown of the expenditure of the Environmental Transformation Fund; (2) what measures his...

      Latin America: Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Global Conflict Prevention Pool in Latin America.

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what evaluations his Department has made of the effectiveness of technical assistance.

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to include significant participation from Southern country recipients in its forthcoming review of...

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of the bilateral aid budget was spent on technical assistance in each year since 2001.

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of technical assistance contracts were awarded to (a) UK firms, (b) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and...

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what guidelines exist on the process of bidding for technical assistance contracts; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure...

  • Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    • Afghanistan: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what international development assistance has been given by the Government to (a) Helmand Province and (b) the Government of...

    • Colombia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Colombian Government on the fulfilment of the Colombian Supreme Court...

      Colombia: Mining

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reason British embassy officials in Bogota will not meet representatives of communities forcibly displaced by coal...

      Entry Clearances: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will estimate the number of fraudulent applications for visas in each of the last four years; and if she will make a...

      Gibraltar: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the outstanding issues are between the British and Spanish Governments over the operation in Gibraltar of the 1996 Hague...

      Iran: Nuclear Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the statement of 24 March 2007 by the Foreign Ministers of China, France, Germany, Russia, the UK and the US, with...

      Iraq: Casualties

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British civilians have died in Iraq in violent circumstances since the beginning of March 2003.

      Iraq: Conferences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the next round of the Iraq neighbours conference is expected to take place; and whom she expects to be representing the...

      Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she has had with the (a) Defence Secretary and (b) Home Secretary on a future resettlement program for those...

      Iraq: Reconstruction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funding and resources she provided to the Property Claims Commission in Iraq in each year since 2001; and what funding she...

      Iraq: Reconstruction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Property Claims Commission in Iraq.

      Sudan: Peace Keeping Operations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Darfur Peace Agreement; and if she will make a statement.

      Thailand: Elections

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she (a) has made and (b) intends to make to her opposite number in Thailand on the conduct of elections...

      Thailand: Politics and Government

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects a referendum on a new constitution to be held in Thailand.

      United Nations Security Council

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the UK priorities and objectives are for its presidency of the United Nations Security Council.

      Vietnam: Religious Freedom

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the extent of freedom of religion in Vietnam; what representations the United Kingdom is making...

  • Duchy of Lancaster

    • Government Services

      To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what assessment she has made of the use of Government services by each socio-economic group.

  • Education and Skills

    • Children in Custody

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in custody were looked after by the state (a) under a court order and (b) under a voluntary care order (i) prior to and...

    • Departments: EC Action

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which bilateral agreements have been signed between the European Union and non-EU countries establishing co-operative projects in the areas...

      Departments: Official Hospitality

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures are in place to limit the amount of money spent on alcohol for hospitality purposes by his Department.

      Departments: Oral Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many questions tabled by hon. and right hon. Members to his Department for oral answer have been transferred to other Departments since...

      Departments: Public Appointments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the former hon. Members who left Parliament in 2005 who have since been appointed to public bodies by his Department, broken...

      Education: EC Action

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) which (a) conferences, (b) seminars and (c) other events have been funded under bilateral EU-Australia funding for joint activities...

      Education: EC Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which UK educational establishments for which he is responsible are in receipt of EU funds.

      Education: EC Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what EU grants were made to UK educational establishments for which he is responsible in each of the last two years for which figures are...

      Education: EC Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which UK agencies are funded under Article 8(2) of the EU Youth in Action Programme.

      Educational Psychology

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the funding of training of educational psychologists.

      English Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on English for Speakers of Other Languages in each London borough in each of the last five years for which figures are...

      EU-Canada Joint Committee on Higher Education Training and Youth

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which (a) conferences, (b) seminars and (c) other events have been funded under bilateral EU-Canada funding for joint activities in...

      Further Education: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the annual gross income for each further education college in England was in the latest year for which figures are available.

      Higher Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students in higher education completed degree studies in (a) soft furnishing and (b) cabinet making in each year between 1996 and...

      Law: Students

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding support is available for students taking a legal practice degree course.

      Nurseries: Non-domestic Rates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the implications for nurseries of levying business rates on private nurseries but not maintained nurseries or...

      Nurseries: Non-domestic Rates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make it his policy to equalise the levels of business rates for all nursery provision.

      Personal Social and Health Education: UK Membership of EC

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his policy is on the inclusion of material promoting European citizenship in the European Communities Youth in Action programme; and if...

      Pre-school Education: Expenditure

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much has been spent on (a) School Action (b) School Action Plus, (c) Early Years Action and (d) Early Years Action Plus in each year...

      Pupils: Sight Impaired

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he last surveyed the availability of textbooks to blind or partially sighted children; and if he will make a statement.

      Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of children in West Lancashire with a special educational need were referred to the Special Educational Needs and Disability...

      Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills who is responsible for monitoring the performance and practices of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal; and if he will...

      Students: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of the book value of the tranche of the student loan book to be sold he hopes to achieve in the planned sale that he...

      Students: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people have defaulted on the payments of their student loans; and what the cost of these defaults was in each of the last five years.

      Training: Expenditure

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 29 March 2007, Official Report, column 1685W, how the percentage of the train to gain budget not accounted for by...

  • Communities and Local Government

    • Centrica: Canvey Island

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will set a target timetable for dealing with all stages of the Calor Gas and Centrica appeal in respect of their proposal...

    • Community Wardens

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects the Government Office for the West Midlands to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall, North...

      Departments: Oral Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many oral questions tabled by hon. and right hon. Members to her Department have been transferred to other Departments since...

      Energy: Conservation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she plans (a) to make proposals and (b) to provide incentives to improve the energy efficiency of district heating schemes.

      Equal Opportunities: Adoption

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether an adoption agency expressing a preference to place a child with (a) a black or Asian family, (b) a family of a...

      Housing: Hampshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) individuals and (b) families are in housing need in each local authority area in Hampshire; and what strategy she...

      Maps: Databases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the cost was of developing the Maps on Tap database; (2) what datasets are incorporated into her Department's Maps...

      Non-domestic Rates: Children's Centres

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what level of business rates Sure Start children's centres pay when located within primary schools; (2) what level of...

      Parking: Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what changes Planning Policy Statement 3 has made to the number of car parking spaces allowed in new housing developments; what...

      Planning: Milton Keynes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to her Department's observations of 22 February 2007 on the petition presented to the House on 26 April by the hon....

      Planning: Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department is considering changing the guidelines for any planning policy relating to energy producing wind turbines...

      Temporary Accommodation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will make a statement on the progress of the research commissioned by her Department into the experiences of homeless...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects to reply to question 126691, on guidelines for planning policy regulations, tabled by the hon. Member for...

  • Health

    • Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she intends to take following the recommendation of the National Screening Committee, that a national screening policy should be implemented by...

    • Acute Beds

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many delayed transfers of care from acute beds there have been in each NHS trust in the last 12 months; and what proportion of the total number of...

      Acute Beds: East Sussex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many delayed discharges there were in acute hospitals in (a) Eastbourne and (b) East Sussex in the last 12 months.

      Animal Feed

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what restrictions are in place to ensure that pet food manufacturers do not add unsuitable ingredients to pet food; why such restrictions do not extend to...

      Blood: Diseases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what her Department's per capita spending on (a) sickle cell and (b) cystic fibrosis was in each of the last five years.

      Carers: Grants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether funding for the carers special support grant will continue to be made available to local authorities after March 2008; and if she will make a...

      Cervical Cancer: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations (JCVI) to make a recommendation as to whether a national immunisation programme for...

      Cervical Cancer: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether she has held discussions with the Department for Education and Skills on the possible implementation of a schools-based vaccination...

      Dental Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the current ratio is of (a) NHS dentists, (b) private dentists and (c) all dentists to people in England; and what it was in each year since 1997.

      Dental Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of NHS dentists operating in (a) Coventry and (b) England.

      Dental Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to ensure that people have access to an NHS dentist.

      Dental Services: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding was allocated for NHS dentistry in each of the last five years.

      Drugs: Prisons

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding for the Integrated Drug Treatment System has been allocated to each prison in England and Wales.

      Family Practitioner Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress she has made in establishing an expanding practice allowance, as referred to in paragraph 3.33 of her Department's White Paper of 30 January...

      Influenza

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 March 2007, Official Report, column 1138W, on influenza, what estimate she has made of the total number of poultry workers...

      Maternity Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to reduce the negative effects on (a) babies, (b) parents and (c) the NHS associated with pre-term birth.

      NHS Direct

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2007, Official Report, column 1748W, on NHS Direct, which organisations the NHS Direct NHS Trust pays for the...

      NHS Treatment Centres

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she plans to publish the review of NHS walk-in centre funding arrangements.

      Nutrition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Food Standards Agency's nutrient profiling model; and if she will make a statement.

      Testosterone

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of waiting times for testosterone therapy.

      Tobacco Packs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 19 February 2007, Official Report, column 65W, on tobacco packs, when she plans to publish final proposals relating to the...

      Transplant Surgery

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth of 29 March 2007, Official Report, column 1797W, on transplant surgery, if she will break...

  • House of Lords

    • Ambulance Service: Northern Ireland

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What plans they have to provide extra capacity for the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service.

    • Animal Welfare: Captive Birds

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether, further to Statutory Instrument 2007/406 amending the planning laws to cover temporary protection for poultry and other captive birds, the planning...

      Armed Forces: Illegal Drugs

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Of those military personnel who tested positive for illegal drugs in 2006, how many have subsequently been required to leave the Armed Forces.

      Aviation: Liquid Explosives

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What assessment they have made of the required amount of weight and volume of liquids required to create a device that could cause destruction to an aircraft; and...

      Care Services: Older People

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What is their response to the conclusions of the report Securing Good Care for Older People; and how they envisage that such care would be funded.

      Children and Young People: Discipline

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they have plans to introduce any forms of national service for young people in order to assist them with their development, discipline, education and...

      Concessionary Bus Travel Bill

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether there is a specification for the concessionary travel passes which will be needed to comply with the provisions of the Concessionary Bus Travel Bill.

      Crime: Sharp Instruments

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they propose to bring Northern Ireland legislation on the possession of sharp instruments in public places into line with the legislation in the rest of...

      Energy Demand Research Project

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How the results and data obtained from the Energy Demand Research Project will be incorporated into their implementation of the European energy services directive...

      Energy: Meters

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How they intend to ensure that new smart metering technologies for gas and electricity energy consumption are introduced to homes throughout the United Kingdom so...

      Health: Dentistry

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How many redundancies from public health departments have been made by each primary care trust in the past year; and how many of these redundancies have been made...

      House of Lords: 1 Millbank

      asked the Chairman of Committees: What estimate has been made of the costs of purchasing and refurbishing accommodation in 1 Millbank for use by the House of Lords in (a) 2006-07; (b) 2007-08;...

      Houses of Parliament: Old Palace Yard

      asked the Chairman of Committees: What action is being taken to repair the damaged blockwork road sections in Old Palace Yard; and who will fund the work.

      Houses of Parliament: Old Palace Yard

      asked the Chairman of Committees: Whether the blockwork sections of road in Old Palace Yard were designed to carry the current levels of traffic.

      Housing: Fuel Poverty

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What estimate they have made of the level of fuel poverty by 2010 in (a) the United Kingdom, and (b) each of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom.

      Local Government: Council Tax

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they will implement a rolling revision of council tax valuations to avoid the turbulence of periodic reviews.

      Local Government: Unitary Authorities

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How many unitary authorities there are in the United Kingdom; when each was created; and what is the current population of each.

      National Parks: Quarrying

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they will take steps to stop permanently quarrying at Backdale Quarry in the Peak District National Park.

      Northern Ireland Office: Block Grant

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Further to the Written Answer by Lord Rooker on 6 March (WA 25), whether the Northern Ireland Office departmental expenditure limit has replaced the Northern...

      Northern Ireland: Place Names

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether the Northern Ireland Department of Finance and Personnel uses the word Derry in the return address for the collection of rates; and, if so, why it uses...

      Olympic Games 2012: Security

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What are their current estimates of the cost of providing security for the London Olympic Games in 2012.

      Questions for Written Answer

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Why the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has so far been unable to answer Lord James of Blackheath's Question for Written Answer of 22 March (HL2959) which...

      Railways: Leatherhead Station

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Which train operator is responsible for providing information and timetables when buses are substituted for trains at Leatherhead station; and what action they...

      Regional Development Agencies

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How many new jobs have been created by each regional development agency in each of the last three years.

      Roads: Belfast

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What plans they have to provide traffic-calming measures in the Ballyhackamore area of Belfast; and what is the timescale for such measures.

      Roads: Congestion

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What changes have occurred in the levels of congestion on roads in England since 2001.

      Royal Air Force: Board of Inquiry

      asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether there will be an inquiry into the deaths of a father and his two children in a fire at their home on a Royal Air Force base in Cyprus on 18 March.

      Smoking: NHS Residential Care

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What restrictions on the right to smoke cigarettes apply in the case of mentally confused persons who reside on a permanent basis in residential care facilities...

      Ulster Historical Foundation

      asked Her Majesty's Government: How much funding has been provided to the Ulster Historical Foundation in each financial year since 2000-01; what consultation was carried out on the level of...

      Ulster Historical Foundation

      asked Her Majesty's Government: What steps they propose to take to develop relations between the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Ulster Historical Foundation.

What is this?

The parliamentary question is a great way for MPs and Peers to discover information which the government may not wish to reveal. Ministers reply via written answers, a list of which gets published daily.

We let you vote on whether or not the answer given is adequate.

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