Written Ministerial Statements

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

Wednesday 8 February 2012

Freedom of Information

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Attorney-General (Mr Dominic Grieve)]

I have today given the Information Commissioner a certificate under section 53 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”). The certificate relates to the Decision Notices dated 12 September 2011 (ref. FS50347714) and 13 September 2011 (ref. FS50363603). It is my view, as an accountable person under the Act, that there was no failure by the Cabinet Office to comply with section 1(1 )(b) of the Act in these cases by withholding copies of the minutes of the Cabinet Ministerial Committee on Devolution to Scotland and Wales and the English Regions (DSWR) from 1997 and 1998.

The consequence of my giving the Information Commissioner this certificate is that the Commissioner’s Decision Notices, which ordered disclosure of most of the DSWR minutes, cease to have effect.

A copy of the certificate has been laid before each House of Parliament. I have additionally placed a copy of the certificate and a detailed statement of the reasons for my decision in the Libraries of both Houses, the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.

This is only the third time the power under section 53 (otherwise known as the “veto”) has been exercised since the Act came into force in 2005. In that time, central Government have released an enormous amount of information in response to FOI requests—including in October 2010 the minutes of the Cabinet discussion of the Westland affair.

My decision to exercise the veto in this case was not taken lightly, but in accordance with the Statement of Government Policy on the use of the executive override as it relates to information falling within the scope of section 35(1) of the Act. I have placed a copy of that policy in the Libraries of both Houses.

In line with that policy, I have both assessed the balance of the public interest in disclosure and non-disclosure of these minutes, and considered whether this case meets the criteria set out in the Statement of Government Policy for use of the veto.

I consider that the public interest falls in favour of non-disclosure and that disclosure would be damaging to the doctrine of collective responsibility and detrimental to the effective operation of Cabinet government. I have concluded, in light of the criteria set out in the Government’s policy, that this constitutes an exceptional case and that the exercise of the veto is warranted. A detailed explanation of the basis on which I arrived at the conclusion that the veto should be used is set out in my statement of reasons.

Parliamentary Questions

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Miss Chloe Smith)]

The Treasury has conducted its annual indexation exercise of the cost of oral and written parliamentary questions so as to ensure that these costs are increased in line with increases in underlying costs. The revised costs, which will apply from today, are:

Oral Questions £450

Written Questions £164

The disproportionate cost threshold (DCT) for written questions will increase to £850.

Terrorist Asset Freezing

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Mr Mark Hoban)]

Following consultation with other relevant Departments and agencies, the Treasury is today publishing the Government’s response to David Anderson’s first report on the operation of the Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010. This will be laid before the House today as a Command Paper.

Terrorist Asset Freezing

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Mr Mark Hoban)]

Under the Terror Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010 (“TAFA 2010”), the Treasury is required to report quarterly to Parliament on its operation of the UK’s asset-freezing regime mandated by UN Security Council Resolution 1373.

This is the fourth report under the Act and it covers the period from 1 October 2011 to 31 December 2011. This report also covers the UK implementation of the UN-Al-Qaeda asset freezing regime.

Follow up to independent reviewer’s report

Following recommendations made by David Anderson QC, the independent reviewer, in his report on the operation of the Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010 published on 15 December 2011, the Treasury has revised the content and format of the quarterly report to provide additional information.

This report has been revised to take account of the independent reviewer’s recommendation to publish more information about the operation of the domestic asset-freezing regime. This information can be found in the table and text below. In accordance with the recommendation at paragraph 11.5 of the independent reviewer’s report, the lists at the end of this statement provide a breakdown by name of all those designated by the UK and the EU in pursuance of UN Security Council Resolution 1373.

The Treasury has also decided to report more fully on the operation of the EU asset-freezing regime in the UK under the EU Regulation (EC) 2580/2001 which implements the UNSCR 1373 against external terrorist threats to the EU. Under this regime, the EU has responsibility for designations and the Treasury has responsibility for licensing and compliance with the regime in the UK under part 1 of TAFA 2010.

The Treasury has published its response to the independent reviewer’s report today (8 February 2012) and the next quarterly report will provide an update on implementation of other recommendations which impact on the operation of the asset-freezing regime in the UK.

Additional information, where available, is also provided for the al-Qaeda regime in the revised format adopted to meet the independent reviewer’s recommendation.

The following table sets out the key asset-freezing activity in the UK during the quarter ending 31 December 2011:

Armed Forces Pension Scheme

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Philip Hammond)]

Changes to the armed force compensation scheme introduced in May 2011, and armed forces redundancies as a result of the strategic defence and security review, have increased the resource annually managed expenditure (AME) and net cash requirements for the armed forces retired pay, pensions etc. estimate in a manner which could not have been foreseen at the time of the main estimate in April. Parliamentary approval for additional resource AME of £1,340,000,000 has been sought in the supplementary estimate for armed forces retired pay, pensions etc. laid before the House today.

However, the rate of spend under this vote has also been faster than anticipated at the start of the year, for example, because payment of the retrospective additional compensation payments as part of the implementation of Lord Boyce’s recommendations for reform of the AFCS, has proceeded more quickly than expected. The Department therefore needs to make arrangements to ensure the financial obligations of the armed forces pension scheme can continue to be met up until the supplementary estimate is approved. Parliamentary approval for additional resources of £1,340,000,000 is sought in the supplementary estimate for the armed forces retired pay, pensions etc. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure estimated at £340,000,000 will be met by repayable cash advances from the Contingencies Fund.

EU Energy Council

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Charles Hendry)]

In advance of the forthcoming Energy Council in Brussels on 14 February, I am writing to outline the agenda items to be discussed.

The first substantive item on the agenda will be a debate on the proposal for a regulation on guidelines for trans-European energy infrastructure. The UK welcomes proposals to reduce investment barriers for energy infrastructure development and to build on best practice to help streamline permitting processes across the Union, particularly for cross-border projects. We recognise that considerable investment in energy infrastructure will be needed between now and 2020 to meet the agreed EU and UK core objectives of competitiveness, sustainability and security of supply as well as meeting the 2020 targets on renewables, energy efficiency and CO₂ reduction. However, we have some concerns that in some areas the proposals and time-schedules appear overly prescriptive.

The council will also hold a debate on the Europe 2020 strategy, which will form the Energy Council’s contribution to the European semester exercise (the EU initiative to improve economic policy coordination). The council will consider the contribution of energy efficiency and renewable energy to growth and jobs.

The presidency will then report on the progress of negotiation of the draft directive on energy efficiency. Over lunch, Ministers will discuss the remaining potential areas of concern in the draft directive in terms of scope, requirements and implementation of the proposal and how they can be best addressed before negotiations begin with the European Parliament. We support the general level of ambition in the draft directive although we have concerns over the level of prescription. We are pleased with the direction of discussions in council, which reflects these concerns.

There will be reports by the presidency on the progress of negotiations on the draft decision on an information exchange mechanism on intergovernmental agreements and on preparations of the Rio+20 UN conference on sustainable development. The commission will report on the activities of the Electricity Co-ordination Group and on a number of international energy relations issues.

Agriculture and Fisheries Council

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mrs Caroline Spelman)]

My right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food (Jim Paice) represented the UK on agriculture matters at the Agricultural and Fisheries Council on Monday 23 January. Stewart Stevenson MSP and Alun Davies AM were also in attendance.

The meeting opened with a presentation of the Danish presidency’s priorities for the first half of 2012. Progress on CAP reform negotiations and political agreement on the common fisheries policy were the two main objectives, with simplification of food legislation, the technical alignment of legislation with the Lisbon treaty, and a focus on animal welfare also mentioned.

The main agenda item was a CAP reform discussion focusing on the Single Common Market Organisation (SCMO) proposal. The Commission stated that the proposal would refine existing market intervention measures, enabling the EU to react more effectively to agricultural crises, and introducing a new off-budget crisis reserve. The Commission called for Producer Organisations (PO) and Inter-Branch Organisations (IBO) to be allowed to benefit from clearer rules on competition law allowing them to plan effectively and adjust their production. The Commission also announced the creation of a high level group to examine the EU wine sector.

The UK acknowledged the requirement for a safety net but stressed the need to differentiate between market volatility and a genuine crisis; and disagreed that a crisis reserve should be off-budget. The UK welcomed the end of certain market measures such as the sugar quota, but restated the need for a balanced sugar market which allowed the EU sugar beet and cane refining industries to compete on a level playing field. Finally, the UK stated that the existing Producer Organisation model had been difficult to implement in member states and needed clarification.

Member states accepted the requirement for a safety net for farmers, but were split over the best ways to achieve this. The major wine producing member states regretted the proposed end to vine planting rights, but welcomed the formation of a high level group. A large group wanted to continue with sugar beet quotas. The Producer Organisations and Inter-Branch Organisations proposals were generally well-received, although many member states rejected the idea of compulsory recognition.

There were two items under any other business. The first saw a Commission presentation of its strategy for the protection and welfare of animals 2012-15. There was some reference to poor implementation of the ban on conventional cages for laying hens, and to the importance of maintaining the deadline for compliance with the sow stall ban in 2013.

The second any other business item was information from Holland on discovery of the Schmallenberg virus in Holland, Germany and Belgium. Holland called for a monitoring plan and EU funding to tackle the disease and for it be classified notifiable. The UK also reported discovery of four cases of Schmallenberg but stated that while EU-wide monitoring, research, and co-ordination was important there was not enough evidence to make the disease formally notifiable. The Commission stressed the need to act proportionately and avoid unnecessary disruptions to the market and trade.

Firearms

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mrs Theresa May)]

Today I am launching a consultation on whether we need to change existing legislation or sentencing powers in relation to importation and supply of illegal firearms. The consultation will run until 8 May 2012 and a consultation paper is available on the Home Office website. A copy of the consultation document will also be placed in the House Library.

The United Kingdom has some of the toughest firearms laws in the world, sending a clear message that society will not tolerate gun crime. However while gun crime represents only a small proportion of all recorded crime, it has a serious impact on the communities affected by it. We believe that individuals who, while not using the firearms themselves, are responsible for making them available to other criminals should face tough and appropriate sentences.

That is why in our “Ending Gang and Youth Violence” report, the Government committed to undertaking further work to assess whether it is necessary and proportionate to introduce new offences for the supply and importation of firearms. The Government want to ensure that appropriate offences and sentences are in place to address gun crime and support practitioners in their work. Before committing to any action we want to ensure we have correctly identified whether the existing legal framework is sufficient.

We are therefore seeking views on whether current laws are robust enough to ensure that those who import, or supply firearms to criminals face tough and appropriate sentences for their crime.

Supplementary Estimates 2011-12

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for International Development (Mr Andrew Mitchell)]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the Department for International Development’s departmental expenditure limit (DEL) will be reduced by £13.0 million from £7,880.3 million to £7,867.3 million.

Within the DEL change, the impact on resources and capital are as set out in the following table:

Supplementary Estimates 2011-12

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Scotland (Michael Moore)]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate the Scotland DEL will be increased by £361,773,000 from £27,987,779,000 to £28,349,552,000. Within the total DEL change, the impact on resources and capital is set out in the following table:

Search and Rescue Helicopters

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Mike Penning)]

On 13 July 2011 the Department for Transport commenced a procurement competition for search and rescue helicopter services to replace the existing contracted Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) capability. The procurement process has now concluded, and I wish to inform the House of the results.

A contract has been signed to operate search and rescue services from Stornoway and Shetland with Bristow Helicopters Ltd. A separate contract has been signed with CHC Scotia Bristow Helicopters Ltd to operate search and rescue services from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency bases at Portland and Lee-on-the-Solent. Operations under both contracts will commence by the time the existing MCA service contract expires, and will continue until June 2017. Both contracts will be managed by the MCA.

As I announced on 28 November, procurement is now under way for longer-term arrangements that will see search and rescue contracted nationally. Operations will commence under these longer-term arrangements during 2015 and the future contractor for the UK will assume responsibility for the MCA capability during 2017.

Supplementary Estimates 2011-12

Wednesday 8th February 2012 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Wales (Mrs Cheryl Gillan)]

Subject to parliamentary approval of any necessary supplementary estimate, the Welsh Government’s (WG) total departmental expenditure limit (DEL) will be increased by £123,401,000 from £14,688,541,000 to £14,811,942,000.

Within the total departmental expenditure limit (DEL) changes, the impact is set out in the following tables: