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48769

registered interest
date	28/04/2014
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of employees hired under the Employment Allowance Scheme are (a) employed on zero-hours contracts and (b) paid below the living wage as set by the Living Wage Foundation.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196856
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/05/2014 answer text <p><strong>The information requested is not available. </strong></p><p> </p><p><strong>The Employment Allowance is available to businesses and charities and is worth up to £2,000 off their total employer Class 1 National Insurance contributions (NICs) bill.</strong></p><p> </p><p><strong>Employers are likely to use the NICs savings from the allowance in a variety of ways. Research by the Federation of Small Businesses suggests that employers may use these savings to increase wages, employ more staff or invest in their business.</strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke question first answered 01/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

48862

registered interest
date	28/04/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 396W, on courts, how many calls were made to higher rate telephone numbers for (a) magistrates' courts, (b) county courts and (c) the county court bulk centre in Northampton in each year since 2009; what the average duration was of calls to the higher-rate telephone numbers in each case in the most recent period for which figures are available; how much revenue was generated from such calls; which individual numbers are used for more than one court; and how many courts are covered by each of these numbers.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196914
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/05/2014 answer text <p> </p><p> </p><p>Information on volumes and durations for calls to higher-rate telephone numbers for magistrates' courts, county courts and the county court bulk centre in Northampton in each year since 2009 is not systematically collected by the service providers, and to obtain it would incur disproportionate costs.</p><p> </p><p>Between November 2013 to March 2014 the percentage of higher rate calls dropped significantly from 41% to 30% with the increasing use of 0300 numbers. This figure is set to drop even further as 19 higher rate numbers to the county court bulk centre are currently being replaced by 0300 numbers.</p><p> </p><p>During this period 137,763 calls to higher rate numbers were answered at the county court bulk centre with an average duration of 4 minutes 14 seconds. This figure represents 35% of all calls with the remainder being 0300 numbers.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has received no revenue from higher rate telephone numbers for the period under review.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The following individual numbers are used for more than one court:</p><p>0844 892 4000 is used by Basildon, Bury St Edmonds, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich, Kings Lyn, Norwich, Peterborough, Southend County Courts, and by Basildon, Chelmsford, Colchester, Harlow, Southend Magistrates' Courts.</p><p> </p><p>0844 892 0550 is used by Bedford, Luton, Hertford, St Albans, Watford County Courts.</p><p> </p><p>0845 300 4239 is used by Aylesbury, Banbury, Bicester, East Berkshire (Bracknell), East Berkshire (Maidenhead), East Berkshire (Slough), High Wycombe, Milton Keynes, Oxford and South Oxfordshire, Reading, West Berkshire (Newbury) Magistrates' Courts.</p><p> </p><p>0845 200 2078 is used by Chester, South Cheshire (Crewe), Liverpool and Knowsley, Macclesfield, Runcorn (Halton), Sefton, St Helens, Warrington, Wirral Magistrates' Courts.</p><p> </p><p>0845 601 0485 is used by Harrogate, Northallerton, Shipton, York Magistrates' Courts.</p><p> </p><p>0845 310 0575 is used by Cambridge, Peterborough Magistrates' Courts.</p><p> </p><p>The following Magistrates' Courts have higher-rate numbers which are not shared:</p><p>Leamington Spa (0845 521 2300)</p><p>Nottingham (0845 408 3500)</p><p> </p><p>Pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2014 (191689), 19 higher rate numbers to the County Court Bulk Centre in Northampton are in the process of being replaced by 0300 numbers. The higher-rate number for Central London Combined Court Centre has been discontinued. Taking into account these further reductions in higher-rate numbers, the percentage fall in higher-rate numbers since 2009 is 79% compared to the 55% previously stated.</p><p>Magistrates' Courts' and County Courts use a total of ten higher-rate numbers, sharing them for queries about fines, family matters, etc. Twenty-one of the Magistrates' Courts' using higher rate numbers offer alternative 0300 numbers.</p><p>As stated in previous answers to parliamentary questions, the Department's approach is not to use higher rate numbers and instead, wherever possible, to assign 0300 numbers, for which the tariff is similar to calling an 01 or 02 (geographic) number, whether the caller is using a fixed line or a mobile phone —see: <a href="http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm131120/text/131120w0001.htm#131120113000070" target="_blank">http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm131120/text/131120w0001.htm#131120113000070</a></p><p>and</p><p><a href="http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130322/text/130322w0001.htm#13032267000050" target="_blank">http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130322/text/130322w0001.htm#13032267000050</a></p> answering member constituency North West Cambridgeshire answering member printed Mr Shailesh Vara question first answered 12/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1496 label Biography information for Shailesh Vara previous answer version 8218 answering member constituency North West Cambridgeshire answering member printed Mr Shailesh Vara answering member 1496 label Biography information for Shailesh Vara
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

48887

registered interest
date	28/04/2014
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of young people participating in the Youth Contract have been offered permanent employment by their employer once they have completed their placement since the commencement of that programme.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196903
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/05/2014 answer text <p /> <p /> From April 2012 to November 2013 there have been 99,640 18-24 year olds who have started a work experience placement and 41,360 18-24 year olds who have started Sector based work academy pre-employment training. [<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/283873/youth-contract-feb14.pdf" target="_blank">Youth Contract official statistics: February 2014</a>] <p> </p><p>Research found that 22% of WE participants who completed their placement were offered a job by placement organisers (from a base of 824 survey respondents who completed placement).</p><p> </p><p>42% of sbwa participants who had a placement and completed it were offered a job by their placement organiser (from a base of 126 who completed a placement).</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/284017/rr865-youth-contract-customer-experiences.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/284017/rr865-youth-contract-customer-experiences.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Wirral West answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 06/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

48892

registered interest
date	28/04/2014
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of single people who will be claiming universal credit in the first year of the roll-out of universal credit in the six boroughs of the Merseyside Jobcentre Plus district.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196916
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/05/2014 answer text <p>[Holding answer 1 May 2014]</p><p> </p><p>The Department announced on 5th December 2013 that Universal Credit would roll out in the North West in Summer 2014. The Department confirmed on 30 April that it is now in discussion with relevant Local Authorities in the North West on the detailed planning to make that happen.</p><p> </p><p>As with Jobseeker's Allowance, the Department does not hold forecasts of UC claimant numbers split by both borough, and then by marital status within that borough. Claimant numbers at this degree of detail will be influenced by a range of factors; these include likely local demographics and likely economic conditions within each borough. It is not possible to combine these in any meaningful way, and any such estimates might prove to be unreliable.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wirral West answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 06/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey previous answer version 8277 answering member constituency Wirral West answering member printed Esther McVey answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

48893

registered interest
date	28/04/2014
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many short-term benefit advances were made between April 2013 and March 2014.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196821
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/05/2014 answer text <p /> <p /> <p> </p><p /> <p>The total number of Short Term Benefit Advances made between April 2013 and March 2014 was 78,021.</p><p /> answering member constituency Wirral West answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 01/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

48301

registered interest
date	10/04/2014
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's total budget for assisted voluntary returns projects is for the current financial year, and what has been the total budget for such projects in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	196222
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p> </p><p>The information requested is shown below.<br><br></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Financial Year</p><p> </p><p> </p></td><td><p>Total spending on Assisted Voluntary Returns Programmes (£ million)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2009-10</p><p> </p></td><td><p>20.5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010-11</p><p> </p></td><td><p>17.4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011-12</p><p> </p></td><td><p>7.5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012-13</p><p> </p></td><td><p>8.9</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013-14</p><p> </p></td><td><p>8.6</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014-15</p><p> </p></td><td><p>10.8</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p>The figures quoted relate to the UK Assisted Voluntary Return Programme, and the Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration Programmes operated in Greece and Turkey. <br><br>The figures for years 2009/2010 to 2013/2014 relate to actual spend and the figures for 2014/2015 are projected spend.<br><br>The Home Office also receives funding from the European Union for the UK Assisted Voluntary Return programme. Due to a change in financial reporting the amounts for 2011/2012 onwards are shown net of the amounts received or expected from this source, whilst the amounts for 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 are shown gross although the yearly total budget allocation remains broadly the same. <br><br>The Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration Programmes in Greece and Turkey also receive funding from the British Government's Return and Reintegration Fund. The figures quoted incorporate this funding stream.<br>The figures provided are sourced from a Home Office management information system and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office which is not quality assured under National Statistics protocols and is subject to change due to internal data quality checking. Figures provided from this source do not constitute part of National Statistics and should be treated as provisional.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Old Bexley and Sidcup answering member printed James Brokenshire question first answered 23/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1530 label Biography information for James Brokenshire
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

47161

registered interest
date	07/04/2014
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of staff employed by (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) via his Department's sub-contractors are paid an hourly rate that is lower than the living wage in each site of employment in each parliamentary constituency.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	195542
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2014 answer text <p>99.81% of HMRC's staff are paid above the living wage.</p><p> </p><p>HM Treasury fully complies with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EU" target="_blank">EU</a> procurement directives and awards contracts on the basis of the best value for money for the taxpayer. Nevertheless, we have encouraged contractors to commit to paying a living wage and expect all employers to pay at least the national minimum wage.</p><p>The Government supports businesses that choose to pay the Living Wage however the Government's main policy on wages is the National Minimum Wage, which has continued to protect the relative wages of the low paid. This is independently set by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_Pay_Commission" target="_blank">Low Pay Commission</a> at a level that maximises their wages without reducing employment prospect. It is for workers and employers to decide the level of wages above the minimum wage based on current circumstances. This includes the Government as a procurer and an employer. Over 95%, around 20 million employees earn above the minimum wage and the <a title="The term &quot;majority&quot; is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government..." href="http://www.theyworkforyou.com/glossary/?gl=37" target="_blank">majority</a> of public sector workers currently earn above the Living Wage.</p><p> </p><p>Under the Data Protection Act we are unable to provide a full table breaking down the proportion of staff in each constituency being paid below the Living Wage.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke grouped question UIN 198151 question first answered 14/05/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

47364

registered interest
date	07/04/2014
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that jobs advertised on Universal Jobmatch do not breach his Department's terms and conditions.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	195431
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/04/2014 answer text <p /> <p /> <p>The vast majority of employers offer genuine vacancies for jobseekers to apply for - however, we don't hesitate to take action against anyone who tries to break the rules. Where we identify vacancies that may not comply with our terms and conditions we suspend the vacancy, investigate and remove if appropriate. If the employer is unable to provide assurance of compliance with terms and conditions, their account will also be suspended.</p> answering member constituency Wirral West answering member printed Esther McVey question first answered 10/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

46522

registered interest
date	02/04/2014
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will issue updated advice on the care of pets to address the issues of the welfare and abandonment of domestic rabbits.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	194893
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2014 answer text <p> </p><p>The poor welfare and abandonment of any animal is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 punishable by a fine of up to £5,000 or 6 months' imprisonment or both. The Government has no plans to issue specific advice on keeping pet rabbits but such advice is available from animal welfare organisations and some pet shops.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 09/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

46615

registered interest
date	02/04/2014
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the appropriate age at which people must renew their driving licence; and what evidence his Department took into account when so doing.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mr Frank Field
uin	194892
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2014 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>Increasing the driving licence renewal age was proposed as part of the recent review of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).</p><p> </p><p>No detailed assessment has yet been made about this proposal. Any such decision would not be taken until a full consultation had been carried out and supporting evidence considered.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wimbledon answering member printed Stephen Hammond question first answered 08/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1585 label Biography information for Stephen Hammond
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead