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27 Nov 2007 : Column WA107
27 Nov 2007 : Column WA107
27 Nov 2007 : Column WA107
Tuesday 27 November 2007
Afghanistan: Military Fatalities
Lord Roberts of Llandudno asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many United Kingdom military fatalities there have been in Afghanistan since the commencement of the United Kingdom's involvement in the current military campaign. [HL397]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): Since operations began in October 2001 there have been 84 service fatalities in Afghanistan, as at 21 November 2007.
Records of the number of UK military fatalities together with the names and service details are kept up to date on the Ministry of Defence website, at the following address: www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/Fact Sheets/OperationsFactsheets/OperationsInAfghanistanBritishFatalities.htm.
Airports: Delays
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will support the United Kingdom airports management sector in new efforts to avoid unnecessary queues and delays for passengers. [HL422]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Government certainly support any initiatives to reduce unnecessary queues and delays for air passengers. On 21 November, we published a report, Improving the Air Passenger Experience, and we have asked the Civil Aviation Authority for its views on how to improve the transparency of check-in times and other aspects of performance related to getting through the airport.
Armed Forces: Reservists
Lord Rogan asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, since the introduction of the joint personnel administration method of remuneration for reserve forces, there have been instances where some reservists have not received payment between January and October 2007; and, if so, whether they will provide details in each case. [HL266]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): There have been no instances between January and October 2007 where reservists have not been paid their salary. However, delays or errors in individual payments can occur as the result of late or incorrect inputs by unit human resources staff, and can also be due to the failure to follow the correct payroll processes.
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There are no known systemic problems. Two separate JPA errors have, however, resulted in the delayed payments of home-to-duty travel claims during this period. The first error resulted in 416 payments being made in July instead of June, and the second resulted in 10,752 payments being made in September rather than August.
To provide the details of each individual case would require the examination of 11,168 records and could be provided only at disproportionate effort.
Armed Forces: War Pensions
Lord Roberts of Conwy asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the replies by Lord Drayson on 19 June (Official Report, cols. 87—88) and 11 October (Official Report, cols. 341—43), whether they will now urgently review the war pension entitlement of Gulf War veteran Mark McGreevy in the light of the letter sent on 10 October by the Ministry of Defence to the late Mr TE Walker's father. [HL159]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency strives to ensure that all decisions made are in accordance with the rules of the scheme and in accordance with the evidence.
Building Regulations: Energy Performance
Lord Beaumont of Whitley asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Ministerial Statement by Baroness Andrews on 8 June 2006 (WS 97-98) on the Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Bill, what steps have been taken by English planning authorities since then to take account fully of the positive approach to renewables set out in this Statement. [HL333]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): Many local planning authorities have responded enthusiastically and taken positive steps in response to the Written Ministerial Statement of 8 June 2006. In commenting on their own survey of local planning authority policies, the Town and Country Planning Association highlighted “an impressive surge in onsite renewable energy policies”. This suggested that more than 170 local authorities were “working up policies to require developers to generate clean, safe energy onsite in new developments”.
Buses
Lord Bradshaw asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many bus operator appeals are outstanding against the funding allocated by local government for the pensioners concessionary bus travel scheme; when the appeals were made; and when they will be concluded. [HL281]
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Lord Bassam of Brighton: Bus operators may appeal against the reimbursement arrangements proposed by local authorities for concessionary fares schemes. They do not appeal against the funding allocated to local authorities by central government. As of 15 November, there remain to be determined 83 appeals by bus operators against local authorities' reimbursement arrangements. In 2007-08, 102 appeals were submitted but 19 have since been withdrawn. Of the appeals now under consideration, 41 were submitted in March, 27 in April, three in June, one in July, two in August, one in September, seven in October and one in November. Before an appeal can be determined it is essential to gather robust information about the scheme from both the appellant and the relevant travel concession authority.
In the majority of cases the appeals relate to local schemes which offer more generous concessions than the statutory minimum—by, for example, offering countywide travel and/or a start time before 9.30 am. Such enhancements are funded locally.
The appeals will be determined by an independent adjudicator, appointed on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport, in due course.
Corruption
Lord Lee of Trafford asked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the five largest sums of money involved in successfully prosecuted cases of fraud, theft and corruption in the past year since the introduction of the Defence Irregularity Reporting Cell; and what is the average sum of money for all such cases. [HL253]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): The five largest sums of money attributed to cases of fraud, theft and corruption successfully prosecuted by the Ministry of Defence Police in the past year are as follows:
The values shown are not necessarily the result of like-for-like outcomes. They relate to cases where a demonstrable loss has occurred and those where an attempted fraud has been successfully prosecuted and a potential saving arises from the attempt being disrupted. The average value of all such cases is not held centrally.
The Defence Irregularity Reporting Cell is not involved in the conduct of investigations or the outcome of successful criminal prosecutions.
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Crime: Drug Dealing
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many prosecutions have been brought in connection with drug dealing in each of the past five years, and this year for the first nine months, in Northern Ireland. [HL27]
Lord Rooker: Data for 2006 and the first nine months of 2007 are not yet available. The following table gives the number of prosecutions in Northern Ireland for drug dealing for the calendar years 2001 to 2005.
Data are collated on the principal offence rule; therefore only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
Cultural Olympiad
Lord Clement-Jones asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have any plans to allocate further funding for the Cultural Olympiad, in addition to what has already been granted to the Legacy Trust UK Consortium and taking account of the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review. [HL69]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government expect the necessary funding to deliver our commitments for the Cultural Olympiad to be available.
Potential sources of funding include DCMS non-departmental public bodies following the positive outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review, Legacy Trust UK, sponsorship and other sources; for example, regional development agencies and local authorities.
Energy: Biofuels
Lord Teverson asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, under the renewable transport fuel Obligation, biofuel suppliers will be granted certificates only if they can demonstrate that their feedstock was sourced from environmentally sustainable methods of production; and [HL109]
Whether, under the renewable transport fuel obligation, biofuel suppliers will be granted certificates only if they can demonstrate that their feedstock was produced in a way that does not reduce food availability to populations in developing nations; and [HL110]
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Whether, under the renewable transport fuel obligation, biofuel suppliers will be granted certificates only if they can demonstrate that their feedstock was produced under a regime where fair wages are paid to agricultural workers; and [HL111]
How they will ensure that any sustainability test, in relation to biofuels qualifying towards renewable transport fuel obligation, retains the confidence of the industry and consumers. [HL112]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: Under the renewable transport fuel obligation (RTFO), which will come into effect in April 2008, all transport fuel suppliers will be required to report on the carbon savings offered by, and wider environmental and social impacts associated with, any biofuels in respect of which they wish to claim renewable transport fuel certificates. The precise reporting requirements will be a matter for the Renewable Fuels Agency (RFA). The Government consulted over the summer on its detailed draft recommendations to the RFA in this area, and are due to publish a summary of responses very shortly. The information provided in these reports is likely to become publicly available, which should create a real incentive on transport fuel suppliers to source only those biofuels that can be proved to come from sustainable sources.
Further, the Government announced on 21 June 2007 that from 2011 they aim to reward biofuels under the RTFO only if the feedstocks from which they are produced meet appropriate sustainability standards. The Government will be able to do this, however, only if that is consistent with the mandatory EU-wide sustainability framework for biofuels which is currently being developed by the European Commission. The Government are actively lobbying the European Commission to ensure that this framework is sufficiently robust. The Government will also need to ensure that any such requirements are compatible with World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and European Union technical standards requirements. Mandatory requirements relating to social issues such as minimum wages, for example, are likely to be inconsistent with WTO rules.
The RFA will have a duty to report annually to Parliament on the effects of the RTFO on carbon emissions, agriculture, other economic activities, sustainable development and the environment generally. The Government will monitor how markets are affected by growing biofuel demand and will tailor their policies accordingly.
Energy: Renewables
Lord Beaumont of Whitley asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether “buyouts” purchased by electricity providers under the renewables obligation contribute towards the national percentage of renewable energy generated in the United Kingdom. [HL220]
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The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office & Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (Lord Jones of Birmingham): Buyout payments under the renewables obligation do not contribute towards the national percentage of renewable energy generation in the United Kingdom.
Lord Beaumont of Whitley asked Her Majesty's Government:
What percentage of energy generated in the United Kingdom has come from renewable sources in each year since 1997. [HL221]
Lord Jones of Birmingham: Total energy includes energy used for electricity generation, heating and transport. The contribution of renewable sources to total energy can be measured in two ways, either in primary fuel input terms or in final consumption terms. The table below shows percentages on both bases.
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