This publication contains the written answers to questions tabled by Members. The content of the responses is as received at the time from the relevant Minister or representative of the Assembly Commission and has not been subject to the official reporting process or changed in any way.

Friday 4 June 2010

Written Answers to Questions

Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
Agriculture and Rural Development
Culture, Arts and Leisure
Education
Employment and Learning
Enterprise, Trade and Investment
Environment
Finance and Personnel
Health, Social Services and Public Safety
Justice
Regional Development
Social Development
Revised Written Answers

OFFICE OF THE FIRST MINISTER AND DEPUTY FIRST MINISTER

Public Assemblies, Parades and Protests.

Dr S Farry asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister what consideration was given to compliance with Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights within the proposed restrictions of (i) a threshold of more than 50 people; and (ii) a 37 day notification period on public meetings in the current consultation on Public Assemblies, Parades and Protests in Northern Ireland.

(AQW 6745/10)

First Minister and deputy First Minister (Mr P Robinson and Mr M McGuinness): The European Convention on Human Rights and Equality legislation were important considerations during the drafting phase of the report of the Working Group on Parades, on which the draft Bill is based. Compliance with Article 11 was of particular concern and it is our view that the proposals contained in the draft Bill have been screened to a level which has ensured that they are compliant with the Convention and will in no way unfairly restrict the right of individuals or groups to freedom of peaceful assembly and association. The threshold of 50 people is intended as a workable trigger for the initiation of the formal consideration process for a proposed assembly of significant size and the 37 day notification period allows for consideration of all issues, in particular, objections relating to any proposed assembly, in a carefully managed and pro-active way.

Maze/Long Kesh Development Corporation

Mr P Butler asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister (i) to outline the legislation that will establish the Maze/Long Kesh Development Corporation; (ii) when the draft legislation will be introduced in the Assembly; and (iii) the likely composition of the Development Corporation.

(AQW 7030/10)

First Minister and deputy First Minister: The OFMDFM Committee approved the Statutory Rule to establish the MLK Development Corporation on 25 November 2009. That SR will be made pursuant to Article 15(1) and Article 15(3) of, and paragraph 2(1)(b) of Schedule 1 to, the Strategic Investment and Regeneration of Sites (Northern Ireland) Order 2003. A date has not yet been set to bring this SR to the Assembly for approval.

At this early stage the full composition of the Development Corporation has not been determined.

Community Safety Strategy for Older People

Mr A McQuillan asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister to outline any plans to introduce a community safety strategy for older people.

(AQW 7064/10)

First Minister and deputy First Minister: The Minister of Justice (DoJ) is responsible for implementing "Safer Ageing : A Strategy and Action Plan for ensuring the safety of older people", which was launched in November 2009. The Strategy sets out the actions and initiatives to help older people be safe and feel safe in their homes, neighbourhoods and communities.

Whilst OFMDFM has no plans to introduce a similar strategy document, Junior Ministers have asked the Older People's Advisory Panel, chaired by the Older People's Advocate, Dame Joan Harbison, to review the effectiveness of its existing Older People’s strategy ‘Ageing in an Inclusive Society’ and make recommendations to inform its revision.

In developing the revised Age Strategy, we will consider any recommendations made by the Panel, including any in relation to community safety. Any new strategy will, of course, be subject to a period of public consultation and will be brought before the OFMDFM Committee and the Executive for their consideration and approval.

Agencies and Bodies Funded by the Department

Mr J Craig asked the First Minister and deputy First Minister to detail (i) all the agencies and bodies funded by, and associated with, their Department; and (ii) the total running costs of each agency or body for each of the last five years.

(AQW 7144/10)

First Minister and deputy First Minister: The agencies and bodies funded by, and associated with OFMDFM, along with the total running costs of each body for each of the last five financial years, are detailed in the table below. It should be noted that as the Departmental Accounts for the financial year 2009/10 have yet to be published, the figures noted for this year are estimates and have not yet been confirmed.

(i) All the agencies and bodies funded by, and associated with OFMDFM	(ii) The total running costs of each agency or body for each of the last five years
	2005/06	2006/07	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10
NI Civic Forum*	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil	Nil
District Councils Community Relations Programme	1.85m	1.91m	1.97m	2.54m	2.76m
Equality Commission for Northern Ireland	6.656m	7.130m	7.294m	7.226m	6.980m
Community Relations Council (total funding by Sponsorship funding and Governance)	5.654m	5.986m	4.680m	7.399m	8.873m
Commission for Victims and Survivors	N/A	N/A	N/A	0.783m	1.264m
Children and Young Peoples Commissioner	1.897m	1.847m	1.722m	1.853m	1.838m
Economic Research Institute of NI	1.144m	0.84m	0.92m	0.924m	0.993m
Ilex Urban Regeneration Company	1.092m	1.233m	1.857m	2.274	3.721m
Planning and Water Appeals Commissions	1.905m	1.858m	1.914m	2.347m	2.642m
Commissioner for Public Appointments	0.116m	0.117m	0.138m	0.189m	0.250m
Strategic Investment Board	8.705m	8.475m	7.276m	6.978m	6.740m
Older People’s Advocate	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	0.150m**
Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Attorney General for Northern Ireland	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

* NI Civic Forum last sat in 2002. A Review of the Civic Forum commenced in May 2008. Options and recommendations are under consideration by the Review Project Board prior to final submission to Ministers.

** The Advocate was appointed in December 2008 but figures for the period from December 2008 to March 2009 cannot be disaggregated.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Countryside Management Scheme

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development how many people have availed of the Countryside Management Scheme in the Strangford constituency since its introduction; and how this compares with the uptake in other constituencies.

(AQW 6799/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (Ms M Gildernew): My Department does not hold constituency-based information for the number of farmers and landowners who are participating in the Countryside Management Scheme (CMS). However, I can provide you with information on a county basis.

Table 1 shows participation for both the previous CMS and the new CMS at 31 December 2009. The previous CMS was introduced in 2001. Agreements for the new CMS commenced in 2009.

Table 1: Participation in CMS at 31 December 2009

County	Previous CMS	New CMS	Total CMS
Antrim	1,796	165	1,961
Armagh	1,059	98	1,157
Derry	1,514	126	1,640
Down	1,179	90	1,269
Fermanagh	831	271	1,102
Tyrone	2,099	193	2,292
Total	8,478	943	9,421

Decommissioning of Fishing Boats

Mr T Elliott asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development if funding is currently available for the decommissioning of fishing boats.

(AQW 6825/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: There is no funding currently available for decommissioning fishing boats. Decommissioning of fishing boats has been included in the package of measures that the Fisheries Forum has recommended to address the long term sustainability of the fishing fleet. I expect to be in a position to respond to the recommendations of the Forum by the end of June 2010. Any decision to launch a decommissioning scheme will be dependent on being able to develop a robust business case which demonstrates value for money and takes into account impacts on all sectors of the fishing industry.

Free Range Chickens and Eggs

Mr D Hilditch asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development what action her Department is taking to encourage farmers to produce free range chickens and eggs.

(AQW 6852/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: My Department encourages the development of a thriving and sustainable agri-food industry and has a range of support measures in place for those farmers who choose to respond to market demands. This is also the case with regard to the production of free-range chickens and eggs, which have been increasing steadily here, due to farmers responding to that particular market demand.

My Department provides the sector with a range of training, advisory and technical support which is provided by CAFRE and AFBI. Support has also been provided towards events organised by the Poultry Association offering advice to producers on the recent legislation regarding conventional cages and requirements within the Broiler Welfare Directive legislation.

The Department also provides financial support to the University of Ulster through its Dunnhumby project to compile consumer food purchasing information which can be accessed by farmers to support future business development plans.

Free Range Chickens and Eggs

Mr D Hilditch asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development what action her Department is taking to encourage the public to buy free range chickens and eggs as opposed to cage or barn produced products.

(AQW 6853/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: The European Commission State Aid rules place severe constraints on the use of Government funds for the promotion of local agri-food products.

However, my Department has been proactive in promoting and administering the Regional Food Programme, which provides financial assistance to local agri-food groups to promote quality regional produce. This scheme is open to all parts of the food industry, including the poultry sector and would be an ideal revenue stream to help the poultry industry to promote its products.

I refer the member to my answer of his Assembly Written Question 6852/10 which outlines the support provided by my Department to producers of free-range poultry and eggs.

Rural Anti-poverty Strategy

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development how many projects have been funded through the rural anti-poverty strategy in the Upper Bann constituency in each of the last two years.

(AQW 6927/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: As you are aware the Programme for Government included a commitment to bring forward a £10.4m package of actions to address rural poverty and social exclusion across the budget years 08/09-10/11. Research and consultation during 2008/09 identified 5 priority areas (Childcare; Fuel Poverty; Transport and Access; Community Development; and, the Challenge programme) for intervention:

In 2008/09, DARD in conjunction with DSD funded (c£198,000) the installation of home heating systems in 41 properties in the Upper Bann constituency. In the same year DARD provided the Tyrone, Armagh, Down and Antrim (TADA) Rural Network with just under £67,000 to assist rural community development across an area inclusive of the Upper Bann constituency.

Community Development funding is also provided to the Rural Women’s Network (NIRWN) and the Rural Community Network (RCN) organisations to provide regional support services to community and voluntary groups.

During 2009/10 DARD in partnership with DSD and NIE funded (£14,000) installation of home insulation in 24 properties in the Upper Bann constituency. Two projects in the Upper Bann constituency were awarded the maximum grant (£5000) under the ‘Local’ Rural Challenge Programme in 2009/10 and one Super Output Area was included in the agreed target area for intervention through the Maximising Access to Grants Benefits and Services Project. The Tyrone, Armagh, Down and Antrim (TADA) Rural Network received just under £63,000 for Rural Community Development in 2009/10. Under the Assisted Rural Travel Scheme, in partnership with DRD, 352 individual journeys were funded by DARD in the Upper Bann constituency and delivered by Down and Armagh Rural Transport (DART) Partnership.

Imported Pork

Mr W Irwin asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development how much pork meat has been imported in the last twelve months.

(AQW 7183/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: There have been no imports of pork meat into the north of Ireland from outside the European Union in the last twelve months. DARD Veterinary Service portal controls inspectorate keep no record of pork imports within the single European market.

Supermarkets Ombudsman

Mr A Maginness asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development to outline the potential benefits to the agricultural industry of a Supermarkets Ombudsman.

(AQO 1320/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: For many years suppliers have been reluctant to voice their concerns about their relationship and dealings with the large supermarkets. They were concerned that being proactive in this way could result in them being de-listed. This would be totally unreasonable for those suppliers who have genuine issues to be addressed. It is therefore clear that without a Supermarket Ombudsman the new Groceries Supply Code of Practice introduced earlier this year would be of little value.

I also wish to say that whilst the appointment of an Ombudsman is a reserved matter, I do welcome the British Government’s acceptance in principle of the need for an Ombudsman. Also, the recent consultation on the nature of such a body and what powers it might have is a significant step forward. The aim of an Ombudsman would be to strike a right balance between farmers getting a fair deal and the aspirations of consumers.

I believe that all links in the food chain are dependant on each other and that it is important for retailers to recognise that in the long run it is in their interests, and their customers’ interests, to have a sustainable local based supply chain. The appointment of an Ombudsman should benefit everyone in the food chain and in particular help ensure that farmers receive a fair price for their produce

Bluetongue

Mr P Doherty asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development what action she can take to prevent Bluetongue disease, in the vector active period during the summer months.

(AQO 1322/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: The higher risk period for Bluetongue is the summer months when the midges that spread the disease are active. I am amazed therefore that despite the my warnings about the threat of Bluetongue, some importers and farmers are prepared to risk introducing the disease from Bluetongue affected countries. In mid May 11 individual farmers imported a total of 75 animals from Holland and Germany.

Be very clear, that while my Department will do all it can to protect the industry, the economic penalties if Bluetongue becomes established here will be paid by the whole of the farming community in lost production and trade.

I have been urging farmers now for more than two years to think carefully before they import susceptible animals from Bluetongue affected areas and I have reinforced that message through the media in recent weeks. I have the backing of industry representatives who fully support the position I have taken.

Any farmer who contacts my Department to notify that they intend to import animals from Bluetongue affected areas or who applies for an import licence is advised of the risk to their own herd and the national herd if they import animals from Bluetongue affected areas. They are also advised that any imported animal found to have Bluetongue will be slaughtered to prevent the spread of disease and no compensation will be paid.

My Department has a number of preventative measures in place to deal with the threat of Bluetongue.

For animals imported from Bluetongue zones, pre-import testing is one of the conditions laid down by EU regulations. In addition, any susceptible animals that are imported must be kept in isolation until they have been post import tested and my Department is content that they do not pose a threat.

My Department works closely with our key industry stakeholders and our joint Government Industry Working Group on Bluetongue is due to meet again shortly to consider the current situation.

We have provided advice to the industry regarding the clinical signs of this disease and information is also available on the DARD website.

My Department also continues to work closely with counterparts in Dublin to ensure all appropriate measures are taken to retain the island’s Bluetongue free status.

Our current veterinary risk assessment is that the preventative measures we already have in place continue to be appropriate to the risk from the disease being introduced through live animal imports.

European Fisheries Fund

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development whether she can confirm that European Fisheries Fund monies will be used to deliver a short-term aid programme to assist fishermen.

(AQO 1323/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: Short term aid for fishermen has been included in the package of measures that the Fisheries Forum has recommended to address the long term sustainability of the fishing fleet. I want to consider the Forum Report carefully and I expect to be in a position to respond to the recommendations of the Forum by the end of June 2010.

Dangerous Dogs Legislation

Mr G Robinson asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development when the Dangerous Dogs legislation will be introduced in the Assembly.

(AQO 1324/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: I introduced the Dogs (Amendment) Bill in the Assembly on 24 May 2010.

The Bill will strengthen and improve the existing arrangements to tackle dog control issues and promote responsible ownership.

The Bill will introduce compulsory microchipping, and will allow district council dog wardens to impose controls on dogs where there has been breach of dog control laws. The Bill will also make it an offence to allow a dog to attack and injure another person’s dog.

I am maintaining the prohibition on certain breeds of dangerous dogs and will bring forward subordinate legislation to introduce further strict exemption conditions aimed specifically at protecting children. In addition, new powers for dog wardens to impose control conditions recognise the importance of ‘deed’ as well as ‘breed’ and will allow dog wardens to take account of the dangerous or potentially dangerous behaviour of any individual dog whatever its breed.

When the Bill is enacted I believe that it will, taken in its entirety, mean that we have the strongest dog control legislation in these islands.

Balmoral Show

Ms A Lo asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for her assessment of the 2010 Balmoral Show.

(AQO 1325/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: As Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development I always look forward to Balmoral Show, which is staged by the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society. This prestigious event is one of the key highlights within the local agri-food industry’s calendar.

I attended this year’s Balmoral Show, which was my fourth as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, on each of its three days. In addition to touring the Showgrounds I also hosted the traditional DARD Breakfast event which was attended by my Special Guest, the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese and her husband Dr Martin McAleese along with a large number of agri-food industry and rural stakeholders. The Executive’s Exhibition at this year’s Balmoral Show, which was co-ordinated by my Department, incorporated a broad spectrum of government services provided by a total of eight departments. This exhibition, which included a large DARD exhibit, brings government closer to the citizen and was very popular over the 3 days of the show.

I was delighted to see at first hand another very successful Balmoral Show this year and I wish to convey congratulations to the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society for all of its achievements with the continued development and growth of the show.

Appeals

Mr D McClarty asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development whether she has any plans to review the appeals process available to farmers to challenge decisions made by her Department.

(AQO 1326/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: My Department has several Appeals and Review processes available to farmers who wish to challenge decisions made.

The Single Farm Payments scheme attracts most requests for reviews of decisions made and I previously informed Assembly colleagues that I had initiated an examination into this process.

My aim is to ensure farmers and rural dwellers have access to a fair, objective, transparent and independent review processes that delivers our obligations in adherence to EU and national Legislation.

In undertaking this examination of the Single Farm Payment Review of Decisions process I have asked that my officials to ensure that lessons learnt from it can be transferred to other review procedures in my Department.

My officials are working closely with representatives of the Ulster Farmers Union and NI Agricultural Producers Association in taking this review forward.

Forestry

Rev Dr R Coulter asked the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development to outline any progress made in meeting the Programme for Government targets in relation to forestry planting.

(AQO 1327/10)

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: The current forestry Programme for Government (PfG) target is to increase woodland cover by 1,650 hectares by March 2011, primarily through the conversion of agricultural land to woodland under the Woodland Grant Scheme. 502 hectares of new woodland have been created by farmers and landowners under the Scheme up to the end of March this year. This is less than I had planned, at this point of the target period, which is largely due to the difficult economic conditions in farming and business and also the strong commitment of landowners to continue to farm.

In order to encourage more farmers and landowners to create their own woodland and put us back on course for meeting the PfG woodland target, I announced increases in grant rates of up to 30 per cent in November 2009. Since then, there has been a 70% rise in the woodland area applied for, compared with the same period last year. Our aim is to ensure that this, and other initiatives, put us back on course to meet our woodland target.

DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE, ARTS AND LEISURE

Minutes of the Libraries NI Board Meetings

Mr D Bradley asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure when the minutes of the Libraries NI Board meetings for January 2010 through to April 2010 will be posted on the Libraries NI website.

(AQW 6877/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure (Mr N McCausland): The Libraries NI Board did not meet in January 2010.

The Minutes of the Board meetings held on 11 February 2010 and 11 March 2010 are available on the Libraries NI website.

The minutes of the April 2010 Board meeting will be posted on the website after they have been agreed by the Board and signed by the Chairperson at the next meeting on 27 May 2010.

Publicly Funded Museums

Mr G Campbell asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure, pursuant to AQW 5887/10, to list the current information available on the net cost to the public purse of each museum.

(AQW 7052/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: Pursuant to the answer given to your previous question AQW 5887/10, "To ask the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure (i) to list all the publicly funded museums; (ii) the number of visitors to each museum in each of the last three years; and (iii) the net cost of each facility in each of these years" the answer to the part of third part of the question that both the NMNI and NIMC do not routinely collect this information in the format required and the information provided in AQW 5887/10 remains current.

Sport Matters

Mr B McElduff asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure why there was no public launch of 'Sport Matters - The Northern Ireland Strategy for Sport and Physical Recreation 2009-2019'.

(AQO 1334/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: During the period when I was awaiting Northern Ireland Executive approval of Sport Matters: The Northern Ireland Strategy for Sport and Physical Recreation, 2009-2019, I had been considering different options for publicly launching the document. It was partly for this reason, that I had been pressing, and continued to press, for Sport Matters to be considered and agreed by the Executive as soon as possible.

However, by the time Sport Matters was finally approved, it was evident that a public launch was of much lower priority than commencing actual delivery of the Strategy. On this basis, I concluded that it was best, in the circumstances, to launch Sport Matters in a context where the Northern Ireland public could clearly see that the real work of delivery was at last under way. I therefore launched the document at the first meeting of my Sport Matters Monitoring Group which I have set up to oversee implementation and delivery of the actions and targets within the Strategy.

Libraries

Lord Browne asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure when he anticipates that Libraries NI will present the finalised report detailing the libraries proposed for closure.

(AQO 1336/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: On the 27 May the Libraries NI Board agreed the final outcome of the review of libraries in the Greater Belfast Area. The Board includes elected Councillors from my own party, the SDLP, Sinn Fein and the UUP.

At that meeting the Board confirmed the recommendations of the Services Committee which had previously met on 18 May.

At that earlier meeting the full report was presented, considered and agreed.

The final report included an Equality Impact Assessment and the findings of the public consultation.

Libraries NI intends to retain four libraries out of the original fourteen initially identified for closure. Ballyhackamore will remain open. Cloughfern, Tullycarnet and Woodstock will remain open pending further investigation into the delivery of library services in those areas.

Salmon Conservation

Mr T Burns asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure how many rivers are currently (i) meeting; and (ii) not meeting targets for salmon conservation.

(AQO 1337/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: The United Kingdom, through the European Union, is a party to the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO), which was established to conserve, restore, enhance and rationally manage wild salmon in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Parties to NASCO have agreed to adopt and apply a precautionary approach to the conservation, management and conservation of wild salmon. DCAL, in co-operation with the Loughs Agency, has developed a Salmon Management Plan for Northern Ireland and the cross border catchments. Conservation Limits have been established for some index salmon rivers, which define annual minimum numbers of adult salmon needed to spawn in each river to avoid decline of that river population.

Data for 2009 indicates that 2 rivers attained the conservation limits and 3 rivers failed to meet the limits.

World Police and Fire Games

Mr D Kennedy asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure what steps he has taken to help plan the World Police and Fire Games in 2013.

(AQO 1338/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: A Business Case which includes a recommended delivery mechanism for implementing the 2013 World Police and Fire Games has been commissioned and referred to DFP for approval.

In the interim a 2013 Stakeholder Group, chaired by DCAL and incorporating key stakeholders that include Police Service for Northern Ireland, NI Prison Service, NI Fire and Rescue Service, Belfast City Council and Sport NI, are managing the 2013 World Police and Fire Games project until such times as a permanent delivery vehicle is established.

The Stakeholder Group has identified and taken forward preparatory work on various workstreams including Volunteering, Tourism, Legacy, Transport and Logistics and Sport for the planning and organisation of the Games in conjunction with relevant external bodies.

My officials are also liaising with DFP in regard to the Business Case.

Windsor Park

Mr T Lunn asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure how the investment at Windsor Park will contribute to his Department’s commitment to a shared future.

(AQO 1339/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: Improving relationships between and within communities in Northern Ireland and building a shared and better future, based on equity, diversity and interdependence remains a high priority for my Department. In this regard sport has been widely acknowledged to play a major role in promoting inclusion, developing communities and enhancing cultural values in society.

I recently launched "Sport Matters": The Northern Ireland Strategy for Sport and Physical Recreation 2009-2019 which includes a series of targets to encourage greater participation and representation and formally commits Government to promote sport in the context of a "shared future".

Sport Matters also includes a target of developing, by 2014, major sports stadiums to meet the strategic needs of football, rugby and Gaelic games. We have been working closely with the Governing Bodies of these sports who have indicated that the development of three separate stadiums tailored to their sports’ individual requirements as the most practical and effective way forward.

The IFA has stated that, in principle, it is committed to the development of Windsor Park as its preferred option for meeting its long-terms strategic needs. It, together with the Governing Bodies of the other sports, already operate well-developed strategies and mechanisms to bring reconciliation and community cohesion benefits to their individual sports. In investing in the future of the sports I will be encouraging them all to further enhance those strategies and mechanisms in order to maximise the opportunities to promote the concept of a "shared future".

Casement Park

Mr A Maskey asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure for an update on his Department's discussions with the Gaelic Athletic Association regarding the development of Casement Park.

(AQO 1340/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: The Irish Football Association, the Ulster Gaelic Athletic Association and the Ulster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union have provided their preferred options for regional stadium development. The GAA’s preference is to redevelop Casement Park in Belfast to accommodate around 40,000 spectators. In practice this will mean demolishing the existing stadium and building a new fit-for-purpose facility on the site.

Consultants have been commissioned, through Sport NI, to produce an Outline Business Case which will include a review of the value for money, operational viability, sustainability and affordability of all the options presented by the Governing Bodies. As part of this process I have met jointly with the GAA, IFA and the IRFU to highlight key aspects of the process.

In addition, all the Governing Bodies have had considerable individual interaction with the consultants, my department and Sport NI throughout the assessment process. It is anticipated the consultants will report in the near future and make recommendations as to how the strategic needs of all three Governing Bodies can be delivered through the provision of new fit-for-purpose, sustainable stadiums.

Irish Language Strategy

Mr M Brady asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure for an update on his Department's proposals for a strategy to enhance and promote the Irish language.

(AQO 1341/10)

Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure: Since coming into office at the beginning of July 2009, I have given special attention to the development of a Minority Languages Strategy.

I am currently engaged in correspondence with the Minister for Education on this issue.

It is my intention to bring forward a draft Strategy to the Executive in the near future.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

I CAN Early Years Centre in Ballynahinch Primary School

Mr G Savage asked the Minister of Education to outline the reasons why her Department did not provide the £85,000 funding required to keep the I CAN Early Years Centre in Ballynahinch Primary school open.

(AQW 6481/10)

Minister of Education (Ms C Ruane): Ní thugann an Roinn Oideachais (RO) cistiú go díreach do sheirbhísí amhail Ionad Luathbhlianta I CAN. Leithdháileann an Roinn blocdheontas ar Bhoird Oideachais agus Leabharlainne gach bliain agus úsáideann siad é seo chun réimse seirbhísí, lena n-áirítear oideachas speisialta, a mhaoiniú. Leithdháiltear an cistiú seo ar bhonn cothrom ar Bhoird a bhfuil dualgas reachtúil acu soláthar a aithint agus a dhéanamh do pháistí a bhfuil riachtanais oideachais speisialta acu. Tá siad sa suíomh is fearr chun na cistí seo a dhíriú ar sholáthar áitiúil d’fhonn riachtanais oideachais speisialta na bpáistí a bhaint amach ina gcuid limistéar Boird ar an bhealach is éifeachtaí. Don bhliain airgeadais reatha, tá blocdheontas de £78.7m soláthraithe agam agus, ina theannta sin, tá cistiú leithdháilte agam ar Bhord Oideachais agus Leabharlainne an Oirdheiscirt (BOLOD) le haghaidh feidhmeanna sonracha, mar shampla, £300k le haghaidh soláthar oideachais speisialta i leith urlabhra agus teanga.

The Department of Education (DE) does not provide direct funding to services such as the I CAN Early Years Centre. The Department distributes to Education and Library Boards a block grant each year from which they fund a range of services, including special education. This funding is distributed on an equitable basis to Boards who have a statutory duty to identify and make provision for children with special educational needs. They are best placed to direct those funds to local provision that most effectively meets the special educational needs of children in their Board area. In the current financial year I have provided a block grant of £78.7m, and, in addition, I have provided funding for specific purposes such as £300k for speech and language special education provision to the South Eastern Education and Library Board (SEELB).

At a meeting with an all party delegation on Monday 17 May, I welcomed and encouraged a proposal from the delegation to convene a meeting of the South Eastern Education and Library Board, the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust and the Department for Social Development to bring about a resolution to this matter. I understand that the delegation met with the Chief Executive (CE) of the SEELB on Wednesday 19May. I am advised the SEELB Commissioners have confirmed the position that the Board is not in a position to prioritise funding for the continuation of the I CAN Centre.

When I made my announcement of the education budget for 2010-11 on 21 April, I made it clear that my priority was to protect as far as possible core services for children and youth. In line with other Education and Library Boards, the SEELB is required to submit a plan for approval by the Department detailing the services it will provide within the resources made available. In submitting its plan for 2010-11, the Board will be required to provide sufficient evidence to support its decisions in relation to the services it will provide and to demonstrate that it has taken all necessary steps to protect core frontline services. These plans will be received and considered by the Department in the coming weeks.

Pre-school Places

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of Education to detail the shortfall in pre-school places in each ward in the Upper Bann constituency in 2009/10 and 2010/11 and how she plans to address this shortfall.

(AQW 6865/10)

Minister of Education:

Ward	No. of funded pre-school places	Shortfall	No. of funded pre-school places	Shortfall in funded pre-school provision
Ward	2009/10		2010/11
Aghagallon	26	- 6	32	- 12
Ballydown	65	7	26	34
Ballyoran	113	-12	113	- 27
Corcrain	52	-12	52	3
Court	128	1	128	7
Derrytrasna	42	7	44	- 1
Donacloney	26	7	26	8
Drumgask	104	- 24	104	- 8
Drumgor	104	- 12	104	- 8
Drumnamoe	83	9	91	- 14
Edenderry	47	3	47	- 8
Fort	98	2	98	- 3
Gilford	26	- 4	26	4
Kernan	52	25	52	30
Killycomain	78	0	78	- 6
Knockshane	52	6	52	0
Laurencetown	50	- 17	58	- 14
Magheralin	39	2	44	8
Mourneview	26	- 7	26	4
Parklake	52	8	78	20
Seapatrick	52	11	52	13
Taghnevan	3	- 3	0	0
Tavanagh	52	45	52	44
The Birches	22	4	37	-3
The Cut	21	-18	21	-11
Woodville	26	23	26	7
TOTAL	1393	45	1467	67

Sa scoilbhliain 2009/10 leithdháileadh cistiú breise ar an SELB tar éis dheireadh an phróisis um iontrálacha réamhscoile d’fhonn cumasú dó tuilleadh áiteanna réamhscoile a mhaoiniú.

In the 2009/10 school year additional funding was allocated to the SELB after the end of the pre-school admissions process to enable more pre-school places to be funded.

I can confirm that I have made available up to £1.3m to increase the number of funded pre-school places in order to assist in meeting the demand for funded pre-school places for those children in their immediate pre-school year in 2010/11. I have also recently approved a Development Proposal for the creation of an additional nursery unit at Millington Nursery School. My Department, together with the Education and Library Boards, will continue to look at all avenues to address the current shortfall in places within the resources available.

Education and Library Boards Staff

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Education to detail the number of staff employed (i) on temporary contracts; and (ii) as agency staff as a percentage of the total number of employees in the Education and Library Boards.

(AQW 6935/10)

Minister of Education: Chuir na Príomhfheidhmeannaigh ar na Boird Oideachais agus Leabharlainne líonta agus céatadáin na foirne sealadaí agus na foirne gníomhaíochta a fhostaítear in iúl dom. Leagtar amach sa tábla thíos an staid i ngach limistéar Bhoird:

I have been advised by the Chief Executives of the Education and Library Boards of the numbers/percentages of temporary and agency staff employed. The table below outlines the position for each Board area:

Board Area	Temporary Staff	Agency Staff
BELB	59 (14%)	39 (9%)
NEELB	82 (15%)	18 (3.3%)
SELB	190 (22.76%)	22 (2.63%)
SEELB	92 (18.6%)	18 (3.6%)
WELB	136 (1.99%)	10 (0.147%)

The table below details the roles in which these individuals are employed.

Board Area	Temporary Staff	Number	Agency Staff	Number
BELB	Advisor/Assistant Advisory Officer	3	CAD Technician	2
	Parent Support Co-ordinator	1	Education Welfare Officer	4
	Curriculum Support Officer	1	Quantity Surveyor	3
	Achieving Belfast Teachers	11	Maintenance Officer	2
	Project Co-ordinator	1	Library Assistant	1
	Development Officer	1	Clerical Officer	20
	Quantity Surveyor	2	Senior Clerical Officer	6
	Clerk of Works	1	Security Attendant/Porter	1
	Maintenance Officer	3
	Security Advisor	1
	Implementation officer – Resourcelink Payroll Project	4
	Senior Executive Officer	1
	SEO – Nutritional standards	1
	Executive Officer	1
	Payroll Officer	3
	Senior Clerical Officer	14
	Clerical Officer	5
	Clerk Typist	2
	Asst Building Cleaning Supervisor	1
	Building Cleaning Area Officer	1
	Building Superintendant/Porter	1
NEELB	Admin Officer	1	Architectural Technician	2
	Asst Advisory Officer	3	Cleaner	1
	Behaviour Programmer	2	Clerical Officer	10
	Class Asst EOTAS	2	Contracts Officer	1
	Catering Asst	2	Education Welfare Officer	2
	Cleaner	5	Maintenance Officer	1
	Clerical Officer	9	Senior Clerical Officer	1
	Executive Officer	11
	Field Officer Inc&Diversity	8
	Interlinks officer mod lang	1
	Instrumental Tutor	3
	Project Co-ordinator	1
	Psychologist	2
	Physical Literacy Co-ord	1
	Snr Clerical Officer	29
	Snr Exec Officer	1
	Technician	1
SELB	Adolescent Partner Tutor	1	Clerical Officer	13
	Advisory Teacher	12	Clerical Officer with Word Processing Duties	3
	Architect	1	Senior Clerical Officer	3
	Area Youth Worker 2	3	Executive Officer	1
	Area Youth Worker 1	4	Financial Support Officer	1
	Assistant Adviser	16	Management Accountant	1
	Behavioural Asst	4
	Behavioural Team Leader	1
	Building Supervisor (No Supervision)	2
	Building Supervisor (With Supervision)	1
	Catering Assistant	4
	Classroom Asst - ASEN	11
	Cleaner	11
	Clerical Officer	19
	Caretaker/Driver	1
	Cook	2
	Dispute, Avoidance & Resolutions Service (Adviser)	1
	Educational Psychologist	2
	Education Transitions Co-ordinator	2
	Executive Officer	10
	Instrumental Tutor	22
	Lang & Comm Intervention Officer	2
	Library Assistant	4
	Moving Image Trainer	2
	Multi-media & Training Co-Coordinator	1
	Music Media Engineer	2
	Music Service Area Co-Coordinator	1
	Payroll Officer (Executive)	8
	Phonics Support Officer	1
	Physical Literacy Co-Coordinator	1
	Project Manager – European Studies	1
	Project Worker - EWO	1
	Psychology Assistant	4
	Regional Education Welfare Officer	1
	Secretary	1
	Senior Clerical Officer	24
	Sport Partnership Officer	1
	Teacher for Foreign Language	3
	Technician 4	1
	Traveller Youth Worker	1
SEELB	Asst Adviser	9	Capital Accountant	1
	Asst Principal Officer	4	Catering Assistants	2
	Asst Education Officer	1	Clerical Officers	12
	Catering Asst	1	Education Welfare Officer	1
	Cleaner	1	Executive Officer	1
	Clerical Officer	15	Storeman/Driver	1
	Education Officer	4
	Educational Psychologist	3
	Education Welfare Officer	2
	Executive Officer	10
	Field Officer	3
	Project Officer	1
	Seconded Teacher	3
	Senior Clerical Officer	25
	Senior Executive Officer	5
	Senior Principal Officer	1
	Solicitor	2
	Technician	1
WELB	Advisory Teacher	3	Technical Support Officer	2
	Asst Advisory Officers	8	Clerical Officer	8
	Advisor	1
	Communications Officer	1
	Research Development Officer	1
	Inter Schools Liaison Manager	1
	Sports Development Manager	1
	Musical Pathway to Learning Tutors	7
	Instrumental Tutors	4
	Senior Clerical Officers	37
	Clerical Officers	21
	Executive Officer	5
	Education Welfare Officers	4
	Special Needs Support Officer	1
	Psychologist	2
	Language & Communications Officer	3
	Autism Intervention Officer
	Early Years Primary Teacher	1
	Educational Transition Co-ordinator	1
	Senior Architect	1
	Building Maintenance Officer	1
	H&S Support Officer	1
	Student Awards Assessor	1
	PA/Office Manager	1
	Senior Youth Worker	1
	Web Development Officer	1
	Area Youth Worker	1
	Outreach Worker	2
	Youth Support Worker in Charge	3
	Curriculum Consultant	3
	Senior Support Officer	2
	Core & Curriculum Officer	6
	Technical Support Officer	4
	Support Officer	3

Education and Library Boards Staff

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Education to detail the number of staff employed (i) on temporary contracts; and (ii) as agency staff in each Education and Library Board; and to list the roles in which they are employed.

(AQW 6936/10)

Board Area	Temporary Staff	Agency Staff
BELB	59 (14%)	39 (9%)
NEELB	82 (15%)	18 (3.3%)
SELB	190 (22.76%)	22 (2.63%)
SEELB	92 (18.6%)	18 (3.6%)
WELB	136 (1.99%)	10 (0.147%)

The table below details the roles in which these individuals are employed.

Board Area	Temporary Staff	Number	Agency Staff	Number
BELB	Advisor/Assistant Advisory Officer	3	CAD Technician	2
	Parent Support Co-ordinator	1	Education Welfare Officer	4
	Curriculum Support Officer	1	Quantity Surveyor	3
	Achieving Belfast Teachers	11	Maintenance Officer	2
	Project Co-ordinator	1	Library Assistant	1
	Development Officer	1	Clerical Officer	20
	Quantity Surveyor	2	Senior Clerical Officer	6
	Clerk of Works	1	Security Attendant/Porter	1
	Maintenance Officer	3
	Security Advisor	1
	Implementation officer – Resourcelink Payroll Project	4
	Senior Executive Officer	1
	SEO – Nutritional standards	1
	Executive Officer	1
	Payroll Officer	3
	Senior Clerical Officer	14
	Clerical Officer	5
	Clerk Typist	2
	Asst Building Cleaning Supervisor	1
	Building Cleaning Area Officer	1
	Building Superintendant/Porter	1
NEELB	Admin Officer	1	Architectural Technician	2
	Asst Advisory Officer	3	Cleaner	1
	Behaviour Programmer	2	Clerical Officer	10
	Class Asst EOTAS	2	Contracts Officer	1
	Catering Asst	2	Education Welfare Officer	2
	Cleaner	5	Maintenance Officer	1
	Clerical Officer	9	Senior Clerical Officer	1
	Executive Officer	11
	Field Officer Inc&Diversity	8
	Interlinks officer mod lang	1
	Instrumental Tutor	3
	Project Co-ordinator	1
	Psychologist	2
	Physical Literacy Co-ord	1
	Snr Clerical Officer	29
	Snr Exec Officer	1
	Technician	1
SELB	Adolescent Partner Tutor	1	Clerical Officer	13
	Advisory Teacher	12	Clerical Officer with Word Processing Duties	3
	Architect	1	Senior Clerical Officer	3
	Area Youth Worker 2	3	Executive Officer	1
	Area Youth Worker 1	4	Financial Support Officer	1
	Assistant Adviser	16	Management Accountant	1
	Behavioural Asst	4
	Behavioural Team Leader	1
	Building Supervisor (No Supervision)	2
	Building Supervisor (With Supervision)	1
	Catering Assistant	4
	Classroom Asst - ASEN	11
	Cleaner	11
	Clerical Officer	19
	Caretaker/Driver	1
	Cook	2
	Dispute, Avoidance & Resolutions Service (Adviser)	1
	Educational Psychologist	2
	Education Transitions Co-ordinator	2
	Executive Officer	10
	Instrumental Tutor	22
	Lang & Comm Intervention Officer	2
	Library Assistant	4
	Moving Image Trainer	2
	Multi-media & Training Co-Coordinator	1
	Music Media Engineer	2
	Music Service Area Co-Coordinator	1
	Payroll Officer (Executive)	8
	Phonics Support Officer	1
	Physical Literacy Co-Coordinator	1
	Project Manager – European Studies	1
	Project Worker - EWO	1
	Psychology Assistant	4
	Regional Education Welfare Officer	1
	Secretary	1
	Senior Clerical Officer	24
	Sport Partnership Officer	1
	Teacher for Foreign Language	3
	Technician 4	1
	Traveller Youth Worker	1
SEELB	Asst Adviser	9	Capital Accountant	1
	Asst Principal Officer	4	Catering Assistants	2
	Asst Education Officer	1	Clerical Officers	12
	Catering Asst	1	Education Welfare Officer	1
	Cleaner	1	Executive Officer	1
	Clerical Officer	15	Storeman/Driver	1
	Education Officer	4
	Educational Psychologist	3
	Education Welfare Officer	2
	Executive Officer	10
	Field Officer	3
	Project Officer	1
	Seconded Teacher	3
	Senior Clerical Officer	25
	Senior Executive Officer	5
	Senior Principal Officer	1
	Solicitor	2
	Technician	1
WELB	Advisory Teacher	3	Technical Support Officer	2
	Asst Advisory Officers	8	Clerical Officer	8
	Advisor	1
	Communications Officer	1
	Research Development Officer	1
	Inter Schools Liaison Manager	1
	Sports Development Manager	1
	Musical Pathway to Learning Tutors	7
	Instrumental Tutors	4
	Senior Clerical Officers	37
	Clerical Officers	21
	Executive Officer	5
	Education Welfare Officers	4
	Special Needs Support Officer	1
	Psychologist	2
	Language & Communications Officer	3
	Autism Intervention Officer
	Early Years Primary Teacher	1
	Educational Transition Co-ordinator	1
	Senior Architect	1
	Building Maintenance Officer	1
	H&S Support Officer	1
	Student Awards Assessor	1
	PA/Office Manager	1
	Senior Youth Worker	1
	Web Development Officer	1
	Area Youth Worker	1
	Outreach Worker	2
	Youth Support Worker in Charge	3
	Curriculum Consultant	3
	Senior Support Officer	2
	Core & Curriculum Officer	6
	Technical Support Officer	4
	Support Officer	3

Pre-school Places

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education to detail the number of applications received for (i) pre-school places; and (ii) nursery school places in North Down, in each of the last five years; and how many of these applications were unsuccessful.

(AQW 6954/10)

Minister of Education: Chuir Bord Oideachais agus Leabharlainne an Oirdheiscirt go bhfuil líon na n-iarratas a fuarthas ar (i) áiteanna réamhscoile; agus ar (ii) áiteanna naíscoile i limistéar chomhairle baile an Dúin Thuaidh, i ngach ceann de na cúig bliana anuas; agus go bhfuil líon na n-iarratas seo ar éirigh leo, mar atá sonraithe sa tábla thíos.

The South Eastern Education and Library Board has advised that the number of applications received for (i) pre-school places; and (ii) nursery school places in North Down borough council area, in each of the last five years; and the number of these applications that were unsuccessful are as detailed in the table below.

Year	(i) Pre-school Places (voluntary/private sector)		(ii) Nursery School Places (Nursery Schools and Nursery Units)
Year	Number of Applications Received	Number of Unsuccessful Applications	Number of Applications Received	Number of Unsuccessful Applications
2006/07	281	5	679	20
2007/08	271	1	640	22
2008/09	264	2	575	18
2009/10	257	2	630	7
2010/11	283	7	630	40

I am aware that there has been an unprecedented demand for funded pre-school places for those children in their immediate pre-school year. I have made available up to £1.3m to assist in meeting this demand in 2010/11.

Classroom Assistant Jobs

Mr D Bradley asked the Minister of Education how many classroom assistant (i) jobs; and (ii) hours will be cut in the Southern Education and Library Board area, at the end of the 2009/10 academic year.

(AQW 6960/10)

Minister of Education: Each year the level of classroom assistance which is centrally funded by each Board varies depending on the number of pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Need. I have been advised by the Chief Executive of the Southern Education and Library Board that the number of jobs which will be adjusted or the number of hours which will either be reduced or increased cannot be accurately tallied until the end of the academic year. This is because there are a number of children currently going through the statementing process and the outcome of these will have to be factored into the overall figures for the Board area. I will write to you when this information is available.

Féadaim a dhearbhú gur roghnaigh roinnt scoileanna poist a mhaoiniú trína gcuid buiséad tarmligthe agus, ar an chuma seo, níl aon athrú ar sheasamh an Chúntóra Ranga.

I can however confirm that a number of schools have elected to fund posts out of their delegated budgets and in this regard, there is no change to the position of the Classroom Assistant.

New Builds for Irish-medium Schools

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister of Education (i) to detail the cost of the remaining new builds for Irish-medium schools; and (ii) to outline how she plans to spend the £2 million, announced in her recent budget, allocated for Irish-medium education.

(AQW 6977/10)

Minister of Education: There are two Irish Medium schools included in my Department’s current major capital programme. These are as follows:-

School	Project	Total Estimated Capital	Cost £m
Coláiste Feirste, Belfast	Extension/Refurb	13.1
Scoil na Fuiseoige, Twinbrook	New school		1.65

Tá an dá thionscadal fós á bpleanáil agus, mar is eol duit, tá athbhreithniú ar siúl faoi láthair ar gach tionscadal molta caipitil atá fós á bpleanáil atá in aghaidh chreat beartais mo Roinne mar gheall ar an bhuiséad atá ar fáil. Táthar ag súil le go gcuirfear an t-athbhreithniú ar thionscadail i gcrích roimh i bhfad.

Both projects are still in planning and as you are aware a review is currently ongoing of all proposed capital projects still in planning against my Department’s policy framework and in light of the budget available. It is hoped that work on the review of projects will be completed in the near future.

Pre-school Places

Dr A McDonnell asked the Minister of Education (i) what percentage of the £1.3 million funding for pre-school places will be allocated to the statutory sector; and (ii) how many additional pre-school places will be created, broken down by sector and Education and Library Board area.

(AQW 6994/10)

Minister of Education: (i) Agus iad ag leithdháileadh áiteanna breise, amharcfaidh na Boird Oideachais agus Leabharlainne ar an earnáil dheonach phríobháideach réamhscoile i dtosach mar soláthraíonn sí níos mó solúbthachta i dtaca le himoibriú ar luaineachtaí i líonta iomlána.

(i) In allocating additional places the Education and Library Boards will look initially to the voluntary and private pre-school sector as it provides more flexibility in terms of reacting to fluctuations in overall numbers.

It should be noted that roughly 2 out of every 3 existing funded pre-school places are in the statutory sector. Further, since May 2007 I have approved 12 new statutory nursery units, representing some 312 additional statutory nursery places.

Pre-school education is a genuine partnership between the statutory and the voluntary and private sectors. My Department, together with the Education and Library Boards, will, of course, look at all avenues to address the unprecedented shortfall in places.

(ii) The additional places will be allocated to each of the Education and Library Boards (ELB’s), based on the number of unplaced children in their area. The places will then be distributed to providers in the voluntary and private sectors. The breakdown of additional places allocated to each ELB area is as follows:-

BELB	246
WELB	165
NEELB	184
SEELB	308
SELB	299

Irish-medium Secondary Schools

Mr P Weir asked e Minister of Education how many Irish-medium secondary schools have had (i) newly appointed or re-appointed representatives from her Department appointed to their Boards of Governors; and (ii) how many had no such appointments, in the last twelve months.

(AQW 7003/10)

Minister of Education: Tá iarbhunscoil Ghaeilge amháin. Tá an Roinn freagrach as comhalta amháin a cheapadh ar an Bhord Gobharnóirí. Sa dá mhí dhéag a chuaigh thart, d’éirigh gobharnóir de chuid an RO as agus níor cuireadh gobharnóir ina áit go fóill.

There is one Irish medium post primary school. The Department is responsible for appointing one member to the Board of Governors. In the last twelve months the existing DE governor has resigned and has not yet been replaced.

Catholic Grammar Schools

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education how many Catholic grammar schools have had (i) newly appointed or re-appointed representatives from her Department appointed to their Boards of Governors; and (ii) how many have had no such appointments, in the last twelve months.

(AQW 7004/10)

Minister of Education: Tá 29 scoil Chaitliceach ghramadaí. Sa dá mhí dhéag anuas:-

Ceapadh nó athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar dhá scoil Chaitliceach ghramadaí;
Níor ceapadh ná níor athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar 27 scoil Chaitliceach Ghramadaí. Ní raibh trí cinn de na scoileanna seo le hathbhuanú ag an am seo.

There are 29 Catholic grammar schools. In the last twelve months:-

DE governors have been appointed or reappointed to two Catholic grammar schools;
no DE governors have been appointed or reappointed to 27 Catholic grammar schools. Three of these schools were not due to be reconstituted at this time.

Grant Maintained Integrated Schools

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education how many grant maintained integrated schools have had (i) newly appointed or re-appointed representatives from her Department appointed to their Boards of Governors; and (ii) how many have had no such appointments, in the last twelve months.

(AQW 7005/10)

Minister of Education: Tá 38 scoil chomhtháite faoi chothabháil stáit. Sa dá mhí dhéag anuas:-

Ceapadh nó athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar 21 scoil chomhtháite faoi chothabháil stáit; agus
Níor ceapadh ná níor athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar na 17 scoil chomhtháite eile atá faoi chothabháil. De na 17 scoil seo, níl 4 le hathbhuanú ag an am seo.

There are 38 grant maintained integrated schools. In the last twelve months:-

DE governors have been appointed or reappointed to 21 grant maintained integrated schools; and
no DE governors have been appointed or reappointed to the other 17 grant maintained integrated schools.

Boards of Governors

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education how many voluntary grammar schools have had (i) newly appointed or re-appointed representatives from her Department appointed to their Boards of Governors; and (ii) how many have had no such appointments, in the last twelve months.

(AQW 7006/10)

Minister of Education:

Tá 51 scoil dheonach ghramadaí. Sa dá mhí dhéag anuas:-

Ceapadh nó athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar thrí cinn de na scoileanna seo; agus
Níor ceapadh ná níor athcheapadh gobharnóirí an RO ar na 48 scoil eile. De na 48 scoil seo, níl poist ghobarnóra ag dhá scoil, agus ní raibh sé cinn le hathbhuanú ag an am seo.

There are 51 voluntary grammar schools. In the last twelve months:

DE governors have been appointed or reappointed to 3 of these schools; and
no DE governor appointments or reappointments have been made to the remaining 48 schools.

Boards of Governors

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education why she has not appointed the majority of her Department's representatives to the Boards of Governors of voluntary grammar and grant-maintained integrated schools.

(AQW 7007/10)

Minister of Education: Is éard atá in athbhuanú an Bhoird Ghobharnóirí scoile ná roinnt céimeanna agus féadfar 12 go 18 mí a thógáil chun na céimeanna ar fad a chríochnú. Tá an próiseas ceapacháin de gobharnóirí de chuid an RO ar leanúint agus tá sé mar aidhm agam ceapacháin a dhéanamh ag an dáta is luaithe is féidir.

The reconstitution of school Boards of Governors involves a number of stages and it can take some 12 to 18 months to complete all the stages. The appointment process for DE governors is continuing and I aim to make appointments at the earliest possible date.

Pre-school Places

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education for her assessment as to whether the additional £1.3 million for pre-school places will be sufficient to ensure a place for all children who have been unable to secure a place to date.

(AQW 7021/10)

Minister of Education: Cumhdóidh an cistiú breise de £1.3m an costas ar 1200 áit bhreise a sholáthar san earnáil phríobháideach/dheonach chun freastal ar na páistí sin a bhfuil ina mbliain dheireanach réamhscoile nach bhfuarthas áit don scoilbhliain 2010/11 ag an chéim seo de na Socruithe um Iontrálacha Réamhscoile.

The additional funding of £1.3m will cover the cost of providing an extra 1200 places in the private/voluntary sector to cater for those children in their final pre-school year who are unplaced at this stage of the Pre School Admissions Arrangements for the 2010/11 school year.

These additional places will be allocated to each of the Education and Library Boards (ELB’s), based on the number of unplaced children in their area. While the level of provision overall within the Pre-School Expansion Programme may then be sufficient, it may not exactly match demographic demand at any given time. There may be a number of reasons for this. There may be geographical areas which are over or under subscribed or the provision may not match exactly parental choice for particular settings and/or full-time provision.

I am confident, however, that the additional funding will largely address this year’s high demand for funded pre-school places and I can assure you that my Department will continue to work closely with the Education and Library Boards to ensure that, where possible, every child will be placed for the 2010/11 school year.

I CAN Centre in Ballynahinch Primary School

Ms M Ritchie asked the Minister of Education when she will provide funding to the South Eastern Education and Library Board for the I CAN Centre at Ballynahinch Primary School; and if she will make a statement on this matter.

(AQW 7032/10)

Minister of Education: Ní thugann an Roinn Oideachais (RO) cistiú go díreach do sheirbhísí amhail Ionad Luathbhlianta I CAN. Leithdháileann an Roinn blocdheontas ar Bhoird Oideachais agus Leabharlainne gach bliain agus úsáideann siad é seo chun réimse seirbhísí, lena n-áirítear oideachas speisialta, a mhaoiniú. Leithdháiltear an cistiú seo ar bhonn cothrom ar Bhoird a bhfuil dualgas reachtúil acu soláthar a aithint agus a dhéanamh do pháistí a bhfuil riachtanais oideachais speisialta acu. Tá siad sa suíomh is fearr chun na cistí seo a dhíriú ar sholáthar áitiúil d’fhonn riachtanais oideachais speisialta na bpáistí a bhaint amach ina gcuid limistéar Boird ar an bhealach is éifeachtaí. Don bhliain airgeadais reatha, tá blocdheontas de £78.7m soláthraithe agam agus, ina theannta sin, tá cistiú leithdháilte agam ar Bhord Oideachais agus Leabharlainne an Oirdheiscirt (BOLOD) le haghaidh feidhmeanna sonracha, mar shampla, £300k le haghaidh soláthar oideachais speisialta i leith urlabhra agus teanga.

At the meeting with the all party delegation on Monday 17 May, at which you were present, I welcomed and encouraged a proposal from the delegation to convene a meeting of the South Eastern Education and Library Board, the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust and the Department for Social Development to bring about a resolution to this matter. I understand that the delegation met with the Chief Executive (CE) of the SEELB on Wednesday 19May. I am advised the SEELB Commissioners have confirmed the position that the Board is not in a position to prioritise funding for the continuation of the I CAN Centre.

Viability Criteria for Integrated Schools

Dr S Farry asked the Minister of Education for an update on the review of the viability criteria for integrated schools commissioned in September 2008 to better reflect the diversity in the population.

(AQW 7039/10)

Minister of Education: Sa bhliain 2008 d’aontaigh mé ar athbhreithniú a dhéanamh sa Roinn ar inmharthanacht na gcritéar i leith scoileanna chomhtháite, laistigh de chomhthéacs an bheartais agus na reachtaíochta reatha. Mar gheall ar thosaíochtaí iomaíocha laistigh de mo Roinn, áfach, tá an t-athbhreithniú fós le cur i gcrích.

I agreed in 2008 to carry out a review of viability criteria for integrated schools in the Department, within the context of existing policy and legislation. However, due to competing priorities within my Department this review is still to be completed.

My Department is fully aware of its responsibilities under Section 75 and the issue of diversity will be central to the review of viability criteria for integrated schools.

I would emphasise that it is my intention that the review will be completed at the earliest opportunity.

Disability Discrimination Act

Dr S Farry asked the Minister of Education how many schools awaiting the outcome of the current departmental review of capital projects are able to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act.

(AQW 7043/10)

Minister of Education: Níl an t-eolas a iarradh éasca le teacht air. Bheadh sé ina chleachtadh am-íditheach don Roinn agus d’fheidhmeannaigh na mBord Oideachais agus Leabharlainne araon le fáil amach cá mhéad scoil, atá ag feitheamh le toradh athbreithniú reatha na roinne, a chloíonn leis an Acht um Idirdhealú Míchumais, agus bheadh costas díréireach i gceist leis an eolas seo a fháil.

The information requested is not readily available. To ascertain how many schools awaiting the outcome of the current departmental review comply with the Disability Discrimination Act would be a very time consuming exercise for both Departmental and Education and Library Board officials and would incur cost disproportionate to the information requested.

Review of Capital Projects

Ms C Ní Chuilín asked the Minister of Education if the review of capital projects has been completed and when the findings will be made public.

(AQW 7119/10)

Minister of Education: Níor cuireadh an t-athbhreithniú ar thionscadail caipitil i gcrích go fóill. Cé nach féidir liom dáta a dheimhniú do chur i gcrích an athbhreithnithe, cinnteoidh mé go gcuirfear i gcrích go gasta é. Cuirfear mo chinntí in iúl do gach scoil agus údarás bainistithe scoile ar ball.

The review of capital projects has not been completed. Whilst I am not able to provide a date for the conclusion of the review, I will ensure that it is carried out expeditiously. All schools and school managing authorities will be fully informed of my conclusions in the near future.

STEM Course Subjects

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Education what action her Department is taking to encourage pupils to study STEM course subjects at school.

(AQW 7128/10)

Minister of Education: Dhíreoinn aird an chomhalta ar an fhreagra a thug mé ar AQO 793/10 a chuir Mickey Brady, Iúr Cinn Trá & Ard Mhacha, síos. Tá sé ar fáil sa tuairisc fhoilsithe oifigiúil ar 22 Feabhra 2010.

I refer the member to my answer to AQO 793/10 tabled by Mickey Brady, Newry & Armagh. This appears in the published official report on 22 February 2010.

Free School Transport

Mr P J Bradley asked the Minister of Education whether she has any plans to offer free transport for children attending grammar schools in Newry which are three or more miles away from their home, and are (i) grammar schools of their parents choice; or (ii) not the nearest grammar school to their home.

(AQW 7185/10)

Minister of Education: In line with the normal rules, to be eligible for assistance with transport to a school of the parents’ choice, the Newry pupils must either:

live beyond three miles of their nearest suitable school; or,
have been refused a place in all nearer suitable schools within three miles of the parental home.

Tá cinneadh ar cháilitheacht, sa chás seo, de dhualgas ar Bhord Oideachais agus Leabharlainne an Deiscirt.

Determination of eligibility, in this instance, is entirely a matter for the Southern Education and Library Board.

Statements of Special Educational Needs

Mr J McCallister asked e Minister of Education how many statements of special educational needs have been issued containing, in error, information on a child to which the statement does not relate, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 7188/10)

Minister of Education: I have been advised by the Chief Executives (CEs) of the Education and Library Boards, with the exception of the Southern Education and Library Board (SELB), that they are not aware of any statements of special educational needs having been issued containing, in error, information on a child to which the statement does not relate in the calendar years 2007, 2008 and 2009. However in the case of the South Eastern Education and Library Board no records were maintained in 2007 or 2008.

Chuir an Príomhfheidhmeannach ar BOLD in iúl go raibh aon earráid chlóghrafach amháin laistigh d’aon fho-alt de ráiteas, agus nár athraigh sé seo oiriúnacht na moltaí ná an soláthar don dalta sin agus nach raibh aon sárú rúndachta i dtaca le dalta ar bith. Chomh luath is a sainaithníodh an earráid chlóghrafach, athraíodh agus atheisíodh an ráiteas.

The CE of the SELB has advised that there was one typographical error contained within one sub-section of a statement but that this did not alter the appropriateness of the recommendations or the provision for that pupil nor was there a breach of confidentiality in relation to any pupil. As soon as the typographical error was identified the statement was amended and reissued.

St. Peter's Primary School, Charlemont, Dungannon

Mr D Bradley asked the Minister of Education to outline the timescale for the minor works scheme to address the health and safety issues at St. Peter's Primary School, Charlemont, Dungannon.

(AQW 7216/10)

Minister of Education: With less capital funding available difficult decisions will have to be taken in regard to prioritising the minor works which can be taken forward this financial year. Steps are being taken to prioritise those applications currently with the Department and the priority must be inescapable statutory requirements such as Health & Safety, Fire Protection and our statutory obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act.

Tá an obair mholta um Shláinte & Shábháilteachta ar Bhunscoil Pheadair, Achadh an Dá Chora, Dún Geanainn, á meas mar chuid den chleactadh tosaíochta agus ,mar sin de, ní fhéadaim amscála maidir leis an tionscadal seo a thabhairt duit go dtí go gcuirfear an cleachtadh i gcrích.

The proposed Health & Safety work at St Peter’s Primary School, Charlemont, Dungannon is being considered as part of this prioritisation exercise, therefore I cannot provide you with a timescale for this project until this exercise is concluded.

My officials will of course liaise with the school authorities in the near future following the conclusion of the prioritisation exercise.

Education and Library Boards: Reconstitution

Mr T Buchanan asked the Minister of Education why her Department did not seek a legal opinion on the re-constitution of the transitional Education and Library Boards.

(AQO 1348/10)

Minister of Education: Tá athbhuanú na mBord á dhéanamh laistigh den reachtaíocht reatha – is é sin, an tOrd um Oideachas agus Leabharlanna sa bhliain 1986.

The reconstitution of the Boards is being carried out within the existing legislation - the Education and Libraries Order 1986.

The approach taken has been guided by legal advice and assistance and the arrangements being put in place have been agreed in consultation with the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

Devenish College

Mr T Elliott asked the Minister of Education for a progress report on the development of a new build for Devenish College, Fermanagh.

(AQO 1350/10)

Minister of Education: Cuireadh Breithmheas Eacnamaíochta (BE) le haghaidh soláthar iarbhunscoile rialaithe agus deonach i gContae Fhear Manach, lena n-áirítear Devenish College, faoi bhráid na Roinne i mí Eanáir sa bhliain 2010.

An Economic Appraisal (EA) for controlled and voluntary post-primary provision in Fermanagh, including Devenish College, was submitted to the Department in January 2010.

You will be aware that all major capital projects are being reviewed. Until this is complete I am unable to provide an indicative timetable for the progression and agreement of this EA.

I believe my message in relation to the capital review has been consistent; it is critically important that investment in the education estate is consistent with and supportive of the policy framework that I am putting in place and that it adheres to our statutory duties in relation to equality and targeting on the basis of objective need. At the heart of this is Every School a Good School, Revised Curriculum, Sustainable Schools, Irish Medium Review and the Entitlement Framework. As area based planning develops, these policies will drive the reshaping of our estate and the consequential investment plans.

Capital Projects

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of Education what is the current position on the review of capital projects and when it will be completed.

(AQO 1351/10)

Minister of Education: Tá m’fheidhmeannaigh ag obair chun an próiseas seo a chur i gcrích, a ghaiste agus is féidir. Mar gheall ar an tábhacht a bhaineann leis an tasc seo, thuigfeadh comhaltaí go bhfuil sé tábhachtach go mbailítear fianaise láidir agus go dtugtar lánbhreathnú do gach tionscadal, sula ndéanfar aon chinneadh.

My officials are working to complete the process, as quickly as possible. Given the importance of this task, Members will appreciate it is essential that robust evidence is collated and that full consideration is given to each project, before a decision is taken.

Whilst I am not able to provide a date for the conclusion of the review, I can assure the Assembly that I will ensure that it is carried out expeditiously. All schools and school managing authorities will be fully informed of my conclusions in due course.

Primary School Teachers

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Education how many primary school teachers, who have qualified in the last three years, are employed in a full-time teaching post; and how many are still seeking a full-time position.

(AQO 1352/10)

Minister of Education: Léirítear san eolas a fuarthas ón Chomhairle Ghinearálta Múinteoireachta go raibh 2,070 céimí ann, le 3 bliana anuas, a bhí incháilithe le bheith ag teagasc i ngach scoil.

Information provided from the General Teaching Council shows in the last 3 year there were 2,070 graduates eligible to teach in all schools.

As at 21 May 2010, 941 of these are employed in a full time teaching post and a further 71 employed pro rata - part time. The Department does not employ teachers therefore cannot advise whether the remaining graduates are still seeking full time positions

Cohesion, Sharing and Integration Strategy

Dr S Farry asked the Minister of Education what contribution her Department intends to make to the Cohesion, Sharing and Integration Strategy.

(AQO 1353/10)

Minister of Education: Tá an clár um Chomhtháthú, Chomhroinnt agus Imeascadh á fhorbairt faoi láthair, ach ag an am seo measaim go mbeidh mórthionchar ag an réimse polasaithe atá á thabhairt isteach agam ar an obair seo.

The programme for Cohesion, Sharing and Integration is in the process of being developed, but at this stage it is my assessment that the range of policies which I am bringing forward will make a significant contribution to this work.

The task for education is to prepare children and young people for living in a society that is increasingly diverse. I am therefore committed to encompassing a wider approach to improving relations for everyone by educating children and young people to develop self-respect and respect for others, where equality, inclusion and rights are the cornerstones of an education system which enables every learner to fulfil their potential.

Policies which will contribute to this work include Every School a Good School, which is my flagship policy for raising standards in our education system; the revised curriculum which includes a citizenship element to develop the capacity of all young people to participate positively and effectively in society; Supporting Newcomer Pupils policy; Irish Medium Review; Integrated Education which is a statutory duty; and a new Community Relations, Equality and Diversity policy which I plan to bring forward.

With all of the work which my Department is engaged in, I therefore am confident that education will continue to make a vital, meaningful and sustainable contribution to building good relations between young people and the emerging programme for Cohesion, Sharing and Integration.

Education and Skills Authority

Mr R McCartney asked the Minister of Education if she has received any alternative proposals from parties in the Assembly regarding the Education and Skills Authority.

(AQO 1354/10)

Minister of Education: Cuireadh deireadh le céim an Choiste den Bhille um Bunú an Údaráis um Oideachas agus Scileanna ar an 30 Meán Fómhair 2009. Ón am sin ar aghaidh, ní bhfuair mé aon tograí malartacha ar an ábhar seo ó pháirtithe sa Tionól.

The Committee stage of the Bill to establish the Education and Skills Authority ended on 30 September 2009. Since then I have not received any alternative proposals on the matter from parties in the Assembly.

The Review of Public Administration is the key to achieving the Executive’s stated objectives of raising standards and putting in place modern, fit-for-purpose administration arrangements. The current impasse is:-

hampering efforts to adopt a systematic approach to raising standards across all sectors;
delaying the modernisation of education inspection powers;
significantly reducing the potential to realise efficiencies through more streamlined management and administration. The Outline Business Case for the establishment of ESA had indicated £13 million of savings this year and £20 million per year in subsequent years.
delaying essential reforms of the General Teaching Council’s powers to ensure high professional standards within teaching.

I trust that members will agree that legislation to take forward the necessary reforms is needed urgently.

Granada Learning

Mr M McLaughlin asked the Minister of Education to outline the source of funding for Granada Learning Group tests and the implications, if any, for publicly-funded education.

(AQO 1355/10)

Minister of Education: Níl aon bhaint ag mo Roinn le scrúduithe neamhrialaithe iontrála a chistiú, agus níl aon teacht ag mo Roinn ar an eolas a bhaineann le cad é mar a mhaoinítear iad.

My Department has no involvement in funding unregulated entrance tests, nor does it have access to information about how they are funded.

I do however consider that it would be in the public interest for this information to be disclosed by the schools concerned. It would be entirely inappropriate if schools are using state funding to support any activity associated with unregulated entrance tests.

It is time for all post-primary schools to follow the lead shown by Commission for Catholic Education in bringing forward firm proposals for the ending of academic selection. All post-primary schools should focus their energies and resources on delivering the revised curriculum, and not divert scarce resources towards the provision of unregulated tests that serve no useful purpose in terms of meeting the real challenges in education - raising standards, tackling underachievement and reforming our education system – and serve only to discriminate against children from disadvantaged backgrounds whose parents can’t afford to coach their children for these tests.

Post-primary Transfer: School Principals

Mr M Brady asked e Minister of Education to outline the cost of providing cover for primary school principals to enable them to meet parents to discuss post-primary transfer arrangements during the 2009/10 academic year.

(AQO 1356/10)

Minister of Education: It is not possible to state an overall cost figure due to the fact that teacher substitute cover for this purpose is not clearly distinguishable from cover provided for other purposes. The costs incurred by individual schools will vary according to the number of pupils transferring to post-primary education. This is the basis upon which the Department sets the limits for assistance which schools can apply for.

Don bhliain 2009/10, cheadaigh an Roinn do scoileanna a raibh níos lú ná 11 dalta acu uas-leithdháileadh múinteoireachta breise sealadach de 2 lá múinteora ar costas a bhí sa réimse ó £216.44 go £271.74.

For 2009/10, the Department allowed schools with less than 11 pupils a maximum additional temporary teaching allocation of 2 teacher days at a cost ranging from £216.44 to £271.74.

Schools with 11-20 pupils were permitted a maximum additional temporary teaching allocation of 3 teacher days at a cost ranging from £324.66 to £407.61.

Schools with 21-30 pupils were permitted a maximum additional temporary teaching allocation of 4 teacher days at a cost ranging from £432.88 to £543.48.

For each additional group of up to 15 pupils, a temporary teaching allocation of 1 teacher day is permitted.

DEPARTMENT FOR EMPLOYMENT AND LEARNING

Russell Group of Universities

Ms A Lo asked the Minister for Employment and Learning for his assessment of the suggestion made by the Russell Group of Universities that graduates could pay back their loans earlier and at a higher interest rate.

(AQW 6769/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning (Sir Reg Empey): I am aware of the recent submission by the Russell Group to the Browne review in England and my Department welcomes the debate that needs to take place on the future funding of Higher Education. As you may be aware I am currently considering the final report of the Northern Ireland review of variable fees and student finance arrangements which I have received from the independent Chair, Joanne Stuart. It is intended that there will be a public consultation in the autumn on future student finance policy for Northern Ireland and this will enable any emerging findings from the Browne review to be considered.

Northern Regional College

Ms A Lo asked the Minister for Employment and Learning for his assessment of whether there will be any negative impact on access to education if the Northern Regional College's proposal to close seven campuses goes ahead.

(AQW 6770/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: The College’s proposal has been issued for public consultation following a strategic level review of the College estate needs. More evidence needs gathered on the impact of these proposals before any decision would be taken by the College Board of Governors to close a particular campus. The Department and the College will work closely to ensure that the College continues to provide a high quality learning experience to all its customers, whilst ensuring the long term stability and financial sustainability of its operations.

Educational Guidance Service

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Employment and Learning to detail the level of funding provided by his Department for the Educational Guidance Service for adults in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6777/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: Between 2007 and 2010, my Department has spent a total of £3,627,025 funding the Educational Guidance Service for Adults, as follows:

2007/2008 – £1,277,893
2008/2009 – £1,287,428
2009/2010 – £1,061,704

Apprenticeship Course

Mr D Simpson asked the Minister for Employment and Learning how many people have failed to complete an apprenticeship course in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6806/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: Training Suppliers have notified the Department of the following leavers from apprenticeship participations during each of the last three years:

2007/08 – 1543;

2008/09 – 2389; and

2009/10 – 2148.

Further Education Courses

Mr D Simpson asked the Minister for Employment and Learning to list the further education courses that have been withdrawn in the Upper Bann constituency, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6807/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: My Department does not hold this information. While I have a general responsibility for the performance of the College and its use of public funds, curriculum issues are a matter for the Director of the College and the Governing Body. I have asked the Director to write to the Member.

Grants for Post-compulsory Education Colleges

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister for Employment and Learning what criteria is used to assess how people on low incomes in post-compulsory education colleges qualify for grants.

(AQW 6816/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: Students attending Further Education Colleges and undertaking Further Education courses can avail of financial assistance as follows;

The Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) scheme is a UK wide means tested allowance administered using household gross income as its basis for determining entitlement. The following income banding was used to calculate EMA entitlement for academic year 2009/2010 using income from the previous financial year 2008/2009:

	£0 - £21,885	£21,886 - £26,840	£26,841 - £32,400	£32,401 or more
	Assessable household income
Regular payment	£30 per week	£20 per week	£10 per week	Ineligible
Bonus	£100	£100	£100	Ineligible

Further Education Awards are administered by the Western Education and Library Board on behalf of the Department. Students can claim for fee support, maintenance grant, and childcare. These funds are means tested using household income as the determinant (usually the parental income, unless the student is classified as being independent). Students whose household income is calculated as £21,330 or less will be in a position to receive the full eligible funding.

Support Funds (Discretionary) are means tested using the same methods as the Further Education Award and administered by the Further Education Colleges. It is a discretionary fund specifically earmarked for the purpose of providing assistance for students in particular financial hardship. Students can claim for assistance with living costs, fees, books, equipment and transport costs.

Russell Group of Universities

Mr D Hilditch asked the Minister for Employment and Learning for his assessment of the view of the Russell Group of Universities, which includes Queen's University, Belfast, that student loans should be paid back faster and at a higher rate than is currently applied.

(AQW 6872/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: I am aware of the recent submission by the Russell Group to the Browne review in England and my Department welcomes the debate that needs to take place on the future funding of Higher Education. As you may be aware I am currently considering the final report of the Northern Ireland review of variable fees and student finance arrangements which I have received from the independent Chair, Joanne Stuart. It is intended that there will be a public consultation in the autumn on future student finance policy for Northern Ireland and this will enable any emerging findings from the Browne review to be considered.

Engineering and Technology Board's Engineering Campaign

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Employment and Learning what support his Department is providing to the Engineering and Technology Board's engineering campaign.

(AQW 7123/10)

Minister for Employment and Learning: The Department funds the Engineering UKs Programme ‘Engineers make it happen’ for a range of activities. Under the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) agenda £11,500 has been provided to Engineering UK for a pilot programme to help school and Further Education engineering students and their parents gain a better understanding of engineering careers and the opportunities they bring.

The Department also contributes to ‘Engineers Make it Happen’ through SEMTA, the Sector Skills Council for this sector, for a range of projects which includes Young Innovators, visiting lectures and a careers pack. The programme cost in this case is £63k to which the Department makes available £40k. This is largely delivered on behalf of SEMTA through Engineering UK.

DEPARTMENT OF ENTERPRISE, TRADE AND INVESTMENT

Kelvin Project

Mr J Dallat asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment what steps Invest NI has taken to promote and maximise the benefits of the Kelvin project as a facility for creating new investment and jobs.

(AQW 6796/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (Mrs A Foster): The existing telecommunications infrastructure in Northern Ireland, enhanced by the new direct international link (Project Kelvin), is considered to be world class. Invest NI uses the benefits that the Northern Ireland telecoms infrastructure and the new direct international link delivers to position Northern Ireland as a location capable of providing solutions to the business needs of new and existing investors.

Northern Ireland's telecoms infrastructure is promoted to potential investors in overseas markets via a number of channels including Invest NI’s corporate website, through sector brochures, presentations to potential investors, during journalist visits to NI and during inward visits by potential investors. However it is important to note that whilst the telecommunications infrastructure is important to many potential investors, it remains only one area of consideration when choosing a location.

Renewable Energy Projects

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment how many staff in her Department are currently assigned to develop and deliver renewable energy projects; and how much of her budget is designated to assisting renewable energy projects.

(AQW 7026/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) has 9.5 full time equivalent staff working on sustainable energy policy covering renewable electricity, renewable heat, energy efficiency and grid development. DETI’s Sustainable Energy branch has a budget of £2.07million for the year 2010/11 (98% of which will be from the EU Sustainable Competitiveness Fund). This funding is primarily used to assist policy development in relation to sustainable energy.

Invest NI has no specific ring-fenced budget or staff for renewable energy projects as its support to this area cuts across a range of the agency's operational activities. As such, the agency's total budget for renewable energy projects during 2009/10 was £6.58 million and for 2010/11, a further £6.56 million has been allocated.

Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in the Irish Government

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment to outline any joint initiatives and co-operation between her Department and the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in the Irish Government to deliver renewable energy projects.

(AQW 7027/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: The strategic policy context under which my Department engages with the Irish Government on energy matters is set out in the 2004 All-island Energy Market Development Framework.

The two Departments undertook a joint cross border grid study that established the feasibility of transmitting 40% of electricity from renewable sources. This led to further work to strengthen the grid infrastructure and system controls, which is needed to absorb high levels of renewable power generation, especially in the west and northwest. It includes providing more North-South electricity interconnection as part of grid upgrading, which is critical to meeting the 40% target.

Both Departments also support the Regulatory Authorities’ work to develop the Single Electricity Market (SEM) as part of a regional wholesale market with the GB market. A key aim is to facilitate regional trading in renewable electricity.

In addition, my Department is working with both the Irish and the Scottish Governments on a feasibility study for an undersea grid to transmit marine renewable energy, as well as primary research into production of 3^rd generation bio-fuels from marine seaweeds and algae.

Inward Investment in Antrim, Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus

Mr D Kinahan asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (i) what action her Department has taken to promote inward investment in (a) Antrim; (b) Newtownabbey; and (c) Carrickfergus; and (ii) how many potential investors her Department is aware of having visited these areas since 2007.

(AQW 7048/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: Invest NI’s role is to promote Northern Ireland as an attractive and viable location for new inward investment opportunities. If an investor seeks information on specific areas within Northern Ireland, Invest NI will work with the local stakeholders to best promote the area. Ultimately the location decision rests with the investor.

In promoting all regions of Northern Ireland, Invest Northern Ireland’s sales message is based on skills, competitive costs and an excellent infrastructure. Since 2007 there have been a number of initiatives undertaken to attract inward investment, this includes the USNI Conference in May 2008, the Lord Mayor Breakfast event, the formation of the Declan Kelly working groups and the St Patrick’s Day events in Washington.

I have also participated in a number of trade and investment missions overseas to promote all areas of Northern Ireland.

Inward Visits

Between 2007 and 30 April 2010, Invest NI has facilitated a total of 6 potential inward investor visits to Antrim, 46 to Newtownabbey and 2 to Carrickfergus. These visits provide the means for potential investors to assess the opportunities and benefits of locating their businesses within Northern Ireland. Invest NI remains in contact with the visitors in order to pursue any investment opportunities.

Inward Investment

Inward investment activity covering the financial years 2006-07 to 2009-10:

Total		78	218	260	9,907,354	43,850,437
	Area	No. of Offers	Jobs Promoted	Jobs Safe-guarded	Assistance (£)	Planned Investment (£)
Employment Related	Antrim	6	127	19	1,392,649	9,967,240
	Newtownabbey	3	91	241	1,574,500	16,614,770
	Carrickfergus	-	-	-	-	-
Innovation Related	Antrim	28	-	-	2,298,361	6,506,352
	Newtownabbey	34	-	-	4,462,700	10,512,356
	Carrickfergus	7	-	-	179,144	249,719

Invest NI

Mr J O'Dowd asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment to detail (i) the number of existing companies which were financially assisted by Invest NI; and (ii) how much money was invested in each existing company by Invest NI, in the (a) Craigavon; and (b) Banbridge Council areas in each of the last three years.

(AQW 7053/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: Table 1 shows the number of offers approved and the associated assistance offered by Invest NI to existing businesses in each of the 3 years 2007/08 to 2009/10. This represents the value of support which is expected to be paid towards business-related investment during the life-time of assisted projects.

TABLE 1: Existing Businesses Assisted by Invest NI in Banbridge & Craigavon DCAs (2007/08 – 2009/10)

Financial Year	Banbridge DCA		Craigavon DCA
Financial Year	Number of Businesses	Assistance Offered (£)	Number of Businesses	Assistance Offered (£)
2007/08	26	627,783	68	2,486,312
2008/09	35	598,644	74	8,331,208
2009/10	32	1,010,110	92	17,997,606

NOTE: An existing business can be offered assistance in more than one year.

Table 2 provides details of the individual offers highlighted in the table above. Under data protection legislation, 55 of these offers cannot be disclosed as the businesses are registered as Sole Traders or Partnerships.

TABLE 2: Individual Details of Existing Businesses Assisted by Invest NI in Banbridge & Craigavon DCAs (2007/08 – 2009/10)

YEAR ASSISTANCE OFFERED	BUSINESS NAME	ASSISTANCE OFFERED (£)	DISTRICT COUNCIL
2007/08	AGRIHEALTH (N.I.) LIMITED	3,251	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	AIRNET WIFI LTD	987	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	ALAN LITTLE LIMITED	19,807	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ALAN R GRAHAM & ARG LIMITED	40	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ALMAC CLINICAL SERVICES LIMITED	38,400	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ALMAC DIAGNOSTICS LIMITED	728,085	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ARMAGHDOWN CREAMERIES LTD	115,370	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	BAILEY WASTE RECYCLING (NI) LTD	40	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	BIZTECH SOFTWARE (NI) LTD	5,530	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	BRM SYSTEMS LTD	1,320	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	CET LTD	2,000	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	CLASSIC CAREER CLOTHING LTD	250	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	CLEARHILL ENTERPRISES LIMITED	5,250	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	CRAFTSTONE 2000 LIMITED	10,431	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	CROSSBOWS OPTICAL LIMITED	99,551	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	D & M CAKES LIMITED	4,180	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	DANASD LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	DATOS PROFESSIONAL SOLUTIONS LTD	5,080	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	DELTA TRADING IRELAND LTD	53,504	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	DELUXE ART & THEME LIMITED	21,760	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	DOUGLAS ARCHITECTURAL SYSTEMS LIMITED	26,800	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	E. N. E. LIMITED	1,103	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	ECO-TEC TIMBER FRAME HOMES LTD	7,542	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ELLIOTT'S TRADITION LIMITED	2,200	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	EMBEDDED MONITORING SYSTEMS LIMITED	250	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	EVRON FOODS LTD	496,421	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	FIONN TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED	4,800	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	FLAMELILY FLOWERS LTD	3,120	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	GLENBANK NURSERY LTD	827	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	GOLDEN COW DAIRIES LTD	200	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	GROWMOOR HORTICULTURE LTD	18,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	HUHTAMAKI (LURGAN) LIMITED	63,208	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	I.M CREATIVE NI LTD	9,031	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	INTERFACE EUROPE LTD	30,172	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	J & G AGENCIES LTD	5,920	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	JACKSON REECE LTD	24,114	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	KESTREL FOODS LIMITED	54,175	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	KEVIN MURPHY ENGINEERING LIMITED	6,578	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	K-SPACE (NI) LTD	17,575	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	LAGANVALE ENTERPRISES LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	MAGOWAN ORIGINALS LTD	26,840	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	MIND ASSOCIATES LTD	53,964	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	MOY PARK LIMITED	259,131	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	MULTILIFT PARTS LTD	920	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	NORMAN EMERSON GROUP LIMITED	40	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	OPUS DIGITAL LTD	80	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	ORBY ENGINEERING LTD	995	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	PERCEPTUS LTD	29,929	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	PITCHLINE LIMITED	2,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	PORTADOWN LOCKSMITHS LIMITED	11,520	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	RADIUS PLASTICS LTD	144,066	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	REDUCTION PLASTICS LTD	3,803	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	REGAL PROCESSORS LIMITED	4,750	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	REPROGRAPHIC SYSTEMS (NI) LIMITED	4,180	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	SEAGOE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED	12,370	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	SMURFIT UK LTD	5,138	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	SPRINGCO (NI) LTD	1,250	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	SSC SYSTEMS LTD	5,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	SUCCESSFUL SECURITY LTD	33,880	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	TITAN ENVIRONMENTAL LTD	16,618	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	TRACEASSURED LIMITED	9,600	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	TRADITIONAL HEMP COMPANY LIMITED	6,060	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	TULLYHERRON TIMBER FRAMES LTD	2,526	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	TULLYRAINE QUARRIES LIMITED	67,464	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	TY-ROCK LTD	3,925	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ULSTER WEAVERS APPAREL LIMITED	2,500	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	VECTOR ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES LIMITED	250	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	VOGUE SURROUNDS LIMITED	56,064	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	W. D. IRWIN & SONS LIMITED	200,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	WILLIAM SPROTT (PORTADOWN) LTD	3,496	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	WILSON'S COUNTRY LTD	4,200	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	WOODWIN (CATERING) LIMITED	1,088	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	ZETEX CARPET TILES LTD	6,240	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	A&B DOORS LIMITED	16,022	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	A. J. POWER LIMITED	20,914	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	AGNEW GENERAL ENGINEERING LTD	5,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	AGRIHEALTH (N.I.) LIMITED	4,149	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	AIRNET WIFI LTD	1,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	ALAN LITTLE LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ALMAC CLINICAL TECHNOLOGIES LTD	147,951	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ALMAC DIAGNOSTICS LIMITED	4,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ALMAC GROUP LIMITED	6,108,234	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ALMAC PHARMA SERVICES LIMITED	5,400	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ALMAC SCIENCES LIMITED	4,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	BEVERAGE PLASTICS LTD	51,450	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	BIOIL LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	BLUESTONE BLANCHING COMPANY LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	BOWMAN ALUMINIUM SYSTEMS LTD	14,818	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	BRM SYSTEMS LTD	1,750	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	CET LTD	9,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	CIRRUS LIMITED	19,170	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	CLANCONNEL BREWING COMPANY LIMITED	11,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	CLASSIC MINERAL WATER COMPANY LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	CLEARHILL ENTERPRISES LIMITED	1,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	CMMT LTD	27,600	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	COLUSSI CONSULTANTS LTD	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	COTTAGE CATERING LIMITED	15,042	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	CRAFTSTONE 2000 LIMITED	4,250	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	D & M CAKES LIMITED	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	DANASD LTD	11,520	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	DASK TIMBER PRODUCTS LTD	1,862	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	DATOS PROFESSIONAL SOLUTIONS LTD	41,289	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	DAVADA LTD	18,600	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	DAWSON MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING LTD	14,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	DELTA TRADING IRELAND LTD	250	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	DELUXE ART & THEME LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	DOUGLAS ARCHITECTURAL SYSTEMS LIMITED	11,118	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	EMBEDDED MONITORING SYSTEMS LIMITED	35,600	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	ENTERPRISE STATIONERY LIMITED	2,400	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ENVIRONMENTAL FABRICATIONS LIMITED	4,850	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	ENVIRONMENTAL PACKAGING & RECYCLING LTD	1,120	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	EVRON FOODS LTD	158,944	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	FLAMELILY FLOWERS LTD	2,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	GLEN TENDER LIMITED	1,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	GLENBANK NURSERY LTD	22,540	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	GOLDEN COW DAIRIES LTD	20,927	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	HAMMER & TONGS (SERVICES) LIMITED	19,949	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	HUHTAMAKI (LURGAN) LIMITED	301,793	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	INDUSTRY TRAINING SERVICES LIMITED	2,650	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	INTERFACE EUROPE LTD	4,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	J W KANE PRECISION ENGINEERING LIMITED	8,233	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	JACKSON REECE LTD	6,198	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	JOHN GRAHAM (DROMORE) LTD	0	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	JOHN GRAHAM HOLDINGS LIMITED	15,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	KEDCO ENERGY (NI) LTD	83,901	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	KESTREL FOODS LIMITED	617,987	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	KEVIN MURPHY ENGINEERING LIMITED	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	K-SPACE (NI) LTD	1,600	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	LAGANVALE ENTERPRISES LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	LIR-MED LIMITED	21,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	MET-SEAM LIMITED	2,690	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	MOONEY MEDIA LIMITED	2,653	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	MOY PARK LIMITED	5,400	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	MULTILIFT PARTS LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	NACCO MATERIALS HANDLING LIMITED	193,755	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	NEW AGE WINES LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	NORMAN EMERSON GROUP LIMITED	20,493	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ODEL (IRL) LIMITED	1,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	OPUS DIGITAL LTD	2,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	ORBY ENGINEERING LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	ORCHESTRAL LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	PAUL MCALISTER ARCHITECTS LTD	5,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	PURIFRY LTD	8,775	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	RADIUS PLASTICS LTD	286,987	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	RATHBANNA LIMITED	250	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	REDUCTION PLASTICS LTD	5,760	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	REKTIFY LTD	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	REPROGRAPHIC SYSTEMS (NI) LIMITED	34,482	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	S B D EVENTS LIMITED	250	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	SALMOR INDUSTRIES LTD	4,200	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SAMUEL LAMONT & SONS LTD	8,033	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SEAGOE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED	16,702	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SILVERWOOD ENTERPRISE LTD	36,708	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SLURRYKAT LIMITED	1,950	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SMURFIT UK LTD	0	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SOLONGE KANE	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SPORTS MERCHANDISING IRELAND LTD	14,347	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SPRINGCO (NI) LTD	9,274	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	STRETCHPLAY CO. LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	TULLYRAINE QUARRIES LIMITED	9,250	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	ULSTER CARPET MILLS (HOLDINGS) LTD	44,500	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	W. D. IRWIN & SONS LIMITED	23,849	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	WARNER CHILCOTT UK LTD	75,691	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	WILSON'S COUNTRY LTD	57,023	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	A & B REFRIGERATION & AIR CONDITIONING LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	A&B DOORS LIMITED	26,210	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	A. J. POWER LIMITED	3,915	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	A.T.F. LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	AGRIHEALTH (N.I.) LIMITED	65,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ALFRED BRIGGS (ALWOOD) LTD	48,950	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ALMAC CLINICAL SERVICES LIMITED	8,862,032	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ALMAC GROUP LIMITED	109,013	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ALMAC PHARMA SERVICES LIMITED	1,777,112	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ALMAC SCIENCES LIMITED	267,114	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	AVONDALE FOODS (CRAIGAVON) LIMITED	78,300	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	BC SHUTTERS & DOORS LIMITED	1,000	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	BOWMAN ALUMINIUM SYSTEMS LTD	2,400	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CARN PLASTICS LIMITED	17,972	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CARPET TILE SOLUTIONS LIMITED	25,744	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CENTRAL CHEMICAL SUPPLIES LIMITED	65,580	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CET LTD	33,500	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CIRRUS LIMITED	15,600	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CLANCONNEL BREWING COMPANY LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CLASSIC CAREER CLOTHING LTD	35,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CLASSIC MINERAL WATER COMPANY LIMITED	45,761	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CLIVE HEAK ENGINEERING LTD	2,950	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CMMT LTD	126,222	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CMS GLOBAL LIMITED	4,196	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	COTTAGE CATERING LIMITED	192,000	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CRAFTSTONE 2000 LIMITED	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CROSSBOWS OPTICAL LIMITED	102,305	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	D & M CAKES LIMITED	44,824	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	DATOS PROFESSIONAL SOLUTIONS LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	DAWSON MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING LTD	26,700	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	DELUXE ART & THEME LIMITED	42,500	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	DOUGLAS ARCHITECTURAL SYSTEMS LIMITED	5,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	EMTEK PRODUCTS LIMITED	64,802	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ENTERPRISE STATIONERY LIMITED	195,416	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ENVIRONMENTAL FABRICATIONS LIMITED	48,098	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	ENVIROTRONICS NI LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	EUROSTOCK FOODS NI LTD	9,303	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	EVRON FOODS LTD	950,273	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	F.F. FOOD ENGINEERING LIMITED	5,950	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	FLAMELILY FLOWERS LTD	4,000	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	FMS (NI) LTD	12,242	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	FRANKLINS INTERNATIONAL LTD	40,418	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	GILBERT LOGAN LIMITED	6,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	GREEN ENERGY ENGINEERING LTD	22,036	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	GREEN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY LTD	2,545	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	GREENBEAN (N.I.) LIMITED	1,530	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	HERRON ENGINEERING LIMITED	84,366	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	HOMEWRAP LTD	20,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	HOY & DORMAN LTD	3,200	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	HPA ARCHITECTURE LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	HUHTAMAKI (LURGAN) LIMITED	136,171	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	I.M CREATIVE NI LTD	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	IQ BRANDS LIMITED	7,023	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	J & G AGENCIES LTD	24,900	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	J W KANE PRECISION ENGINEERING LIMITED	15,800	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	J. H. TURKINGTON & SONS LIMITED	17,500	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	JACKSON REECE LTD	20,603	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	JOHN GRAHAM (DROMORE) LTD	93	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	KEDCO ENERGY (NI) LTD	23,628	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	KESTREL FOODS LIMITED	856	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	KEVIN MURPHY ENGINEERING LIMITED	718	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	KINGSPAN ENVIRONMENTAL LIMITED	61,025	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	KINGSPAN RENEWABLES LIMITED	73,199	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	K-SPACE (NI) LTD	800	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	LAGANVALE ENTERPRISES LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	LIDDELL LTD	6,563	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	LIR-MED LIMITED	1,845	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	M.J.M. MARINE LIMITED	64,860	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	MET-SEAM LIMITED	17,750	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	MICRO COMPUTER SOLUTIONS LIMITED	250	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	MOY PARK LIMITED	105,563	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	NACCO MATERIALS HANDLING LIMITED	1,207,985	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	NORMAN EMERSON GROUP LIMITED	50,234	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	OPUS DIGITAL LTD	1,250	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	ORCHARD ORGANICS (NI) LIMITED	3,636	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ORCHESTRAL LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	PAUL MCALISTER ARCHITECTS LTD	205	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	PORTADOWN LOCKSMITHS LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	R.A. IRWIN & COMPANY LIMITED	82,900	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	RADIUS PLASTICS LTD	241,661	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	RATHBANNA LIMITED	1,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	REDUCTION PLASTICS LTD	35,546	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	REGAL PROCESSORS LIMITED	26,910	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	REPROGRAPHIC SYSTEMS (NI) LIMITED	50,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	ROY EDWARDS FINE ARTS LIMITED	37,154	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	S B D EVENTS LIMITED	5,800	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	SEAGOE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED	510,037	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SHANKILL (LURGAN) COMMUNITY PROJECTS LTD (SLCP)	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SLURRYKAT LIMITED	44,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SOLYPHONY LIMITED	45,292	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SPENCE BRYSON LTD	4,347	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SPORTS MERCHANDISING IRELAND LTD	4,800	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SPRINGCO (NI) LTD	14,900	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	SSC SYSTEMS LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	T & A LIMITED	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	TARAN SYSTEMS (NI) LTD	4,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	THE BALLYKELLY GROUP LTD	5,287	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	THE YELLOW DOOR (PORTADOWN) LTD	6,600	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	THOMAS FERGUSON & SON LTD	358	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	TRENAO LTD	5,000	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	TULLYRAINE QUARRIES LIMITED	84,644	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	ULSTER CARPET MILLS (HOLDINGS) LTD	165,348	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	UPU INDUSTRIES LTD	250	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	VECTOR ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES LIMITED	175,709	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	VOGUE SURROUNDS LIMITED	2,458	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	W. D. IRWIN & SONS LIMITED	45,456	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	WARNER CHILCOTT UK LTD	1,654,197	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	WILSON'S COUNTRY LTD	190,733	CRAIGAVON

Notes:

Under Data Protection legislation Sole Traders and Partnerships have been removed from Table 2.

An existing business can be offered assistance in more than one year.

Tourist Board

Mr J O'Dowd asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment how many businesses were financially or otherwise assisted by the Tourist Board in the (i) Banbridge; and (ii) Craigavon Council areas in each of the last three years; and how much money was contributed in each of these years.

(AQW 7054/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: The Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) has not provided financial assistance to any businesses in the Banbridge Council area in any of the last 3 financial years under the Tourism Development Scheme (TDS) or under the Tourism Innovation Fund (TIF).

NITB has not provided financial assistance to any businesses under TDS or TIF during 2007/08, 2008/09 in the Craigavon Borough Council area. However, during 2009/10 TDS financial assistance totalling £25,000 has been provided and a Letter of Offer (LoO) for £105,000 issued - both to Craigavon Borough Council for tourism projects.

NITB has not provided any other assistance to businesses in the Banbridge or Craigavon Council areas during 2007/08 or 2008/09. However, during 2009/10 assistance was provided by way of Welcome Host Plus training for 4 staff from The Outlet at Banbridge and for a member of staff from the Banbridge Tourist Information Centre. NITB also trained staff from The Outlet during 2009/10 to become Welcome Host Trainers.

In addition, NITB ran an IT Skills Course for accommodation providers during 2009/10 which included 2 participants from Banbridge and 2 from Craigavon.

Invest NI

Mr J O'Dowd asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (i) the number of new companies established as a result of Invest NI intervention; and (ii) how much money was invested in each new company by Invest NI, in the (a) Craigavon; and (b) Banbridge Council areas in each of the last three years.

(AQW 7062/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: During the period 2007/08 to 2009/10, 29 new businesses began trading with assistance offered directly by Invest NI. Table 1 shows the number of businesses and the associated assistance offered in each of these 3 years. This represents the value of support which is expected to be paid towards business-related investment during the life-time of assisted projects.

TABLE 1: New Businesses Directly Assisted by Invest NI in Banbridge & Craigavon DCAs (2007/08 – 2009/10)

Financial Year	Banbridge DCA		Craigavon DCA
Financial Year	Number of Businesses	Assistance Offered (£)	Number of Businesses	Assistance Offered (£)
2007/08	2	80,000	5	638,326
2008/09	3	45,032	8	396,233
2009/10	4	94,474	7	395,761
Total	9	219,506	20	1,430,320

Table 2 provides details of the individual offers highlighted in the table above. Under data protection legislation, 9 of these offers cannot be disclosed as the businesses are registered as Sole Traders or Partnerships.

TABLE 2: Individual Details of New Businesses Directly Assisted by Invest NI in Banbridge & Craigavon DCAs (2007/08 – 2009/10)

YEAR ASSISTANCE OFFERED	NAME	ASSISTANCE OFFERED (£)	DISTRICT COUNCIL AREA
2009/10	GLEN TENDER LTD	36,320	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	CMS GLOBAL LIMITED	28,522	BANBRIDGE
2008/09	PURIFRY LIMITED	18,232	BANBRIDGE
2009/10	SHINE FM	8,832	BANBRIDGE
2007/08	ALMAC CLINICAL TECHNOLOGIES LTD	513,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	CARPET TILE SOLUTIONS LIMITED	226,700	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	LIR-MED LTD	75,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	BIZTECH SOFTWARE (NI) LTD	64,480	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	MET-SEAM LIMITED	63,157	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	I.M. CREATIVE NI LIMITED	60,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	LAGANVALE ENTERPRISES LIMITED	55,500	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	JH LABEL SOLUTIONS LLP	48,096	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	GREEN ENERGY ENGINEERING LTD	47,120	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	DOOLOOP LIMITED	45,600	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	K-SPACE (NI) LTD	41,726	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	HOY & DORMAN LTD	35,000	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	REDUCTION PLASTICS LTD	33,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	SOLONGE KANE (now Portmore International Equestrian Centre)	25,000	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	T & A LIMITED	23,101	CRAIGAVON
2009/10	NAUTILUS (NI) LIMITED	9,640	CRAIGAVON
2007/08	STRETCH AND PLAY COMPANY LIMITED	5,000	CRAIGAVON
2008/09	MAGHERY RURAL ENTERPRISE CENTRE	5,000	CRAIGAVON

Note: Under Data Protection legislation Sole Traders and Partnerships have been removed from Table 2.

In addition, during the same period Invest NI also indirectly offered support to some 524 new business starts through the Enterprise Development Programme (formerly the Start a Business programme), delivered in conjunction with Enterprise Northern Ireland. Table 3 shows the number of businesses and the associated assistance offered to these projects.

TABLE 3: New Businesses Assisted Under the Enterprise Development Programme in Banbridge & Craigavon DCAs (2007/08 – 2009/10)

Financial Year	Banbridge DCA		Craigavon DCA
Financial Year	Number of Offers	Assistance Offered (£)	Number of Offers	Assistance Offered (£)
2007/08	100	35,200	115	43,200
2008/09	64	19,600	113	21,200
2009/10	53	-	79	-
Total	217	54,800	307	64,400

Note: The new Enterprise Development Programme established in 2009 does not offer financial support to establish a business but provides training, advice and guidance.

Review of Public Administration

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment to detail the cost, to date, to her Department and its agencies of the Review of Public Administration.

(AQW 7118/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: DETI and its Non-Departmental Public Bodies, Invest NI and NITB, have not incurred any external costs in relation to the Reform of Public Administration. Staff costs from April 2006 to date are estimated to be approximately £250,000.

Gaeltacht Quarter Conference in Belfast

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment why there was no representative from her Department at the recent Gaeltacht Quarter conference in Belfast.

(AQW 7291/10)

Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment: Competing departmental pressures and workloads mean that it is not always possible for me, or my senior officials, to attend every event for which invitations are received.

DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT

Craigmore Landfill Site

Mr J Dallat asked Minister of the Environment to detail (i) the number and nature of complaints received about the Craigmore landfill site since it opened; (ii) the number of site inspections carried out in the last six months, and the findings of these inspections; (iii) the reasons for (a) the partial removal of a boundary fence; (b) the removal of substantial vegetation and the creation of a large crater; and (iv) why these works are considered outside of the remit of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

(AQW 6714/10)

1. Minister of the Environment (Mr E Poots): NIEA has received 46 complaints since the site opened in October 2008. The nature of the complaints is as listed on Table 1 attached. Planning Service has received of 5 complaints about the Craigmore Landfill operation. These complaints relate to breaches of planning conditions and allegations of unauthorised extraction.

2. NIEA has carried out 26 site inspections on the Craigmore landfill site, in the last six months. The findings of the site inspections are listed in Table 2 attached.

Planning Service has carried out 2 site inspections of the Craigmore Landfill site in the last 6 months. Their findings have resulted in the opening of one enforcement case and further investigation of the creation of a large crater.

3. (a) The boundary fence was partially removed because the operator excavated clay for use as capping material on a closed cell to mitigate odour.

(b) The removal of vegetation and the creation of a large crater were also the result of the operator excavating clay for use as capping material on the closed cell.

4. These works took place beyond the area controlled by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency under the landfill site’s Pollution Prevention Control Permit. These incidents were referred to Planning Service to investigate potential breaches in planning law.

TABLE 1 - Craigmore Landfill - Complaints Made to NIEA since the site opened (to 17^th May 2010)

Date	Detail of Complaint
22/12/2008	Tear in netting system and out of hours activity
06/01/2009	Out of hours activity
28/01/2009	Letter alleging out of hours activity
28/01/2009	Letter from same complainant alleging litter and out of hours activity
17/02/2009	Type of waste accepted and litter on the roads
17/09/2009	Odour and out of hours activity
17/09/2009	Odour, flies, height of waste and litter on the roads
22/09/2009	Odour, holes in net and level of waste.
27/11/2009	Out of hours activity
08/12/2009	Odour
08/12/2009	Odour
16/12/2009	Odour
23/12/2009	Odour
04/01/2010	Odour
26/01/2010	Odour
26/01/2010	Odour
04/02/2010	Odour and helicopters landing at the site during the night
08/02/2010	Odour
10/02/2010	Odour
12/02/2010	Odour
15/02/2010	Odour
15/02/2010	Odour
15/02/2010	Odour
16/02/2010	Odour
16/02/2010	Odour
16/02/2010	Odour
16/02/2010	Odour
16/02/2010	Odour
22/02/2010	Odour
22/02/2010	Odour
22/02/2010	Odour
22/02/2010	Odour
23/02/2010	Odour
01/03/2010	Odour
04/03/2010	Odour
08/03/2010	Odour
09/03/2010	Odour, litter and out of hours activity
10/03/2010	Odour
15/03/2010	Odour
31/03/2010	Odour
06/04/2010	Odour and out of hours activity
16/04/2010	Lorries on the road after opening hours. Lorries speeding and wavering from side to side.
26/04/2010	Excavation of soil from area next to the site, outside the PPC boundary
28/04/2010	Odour
13/05/2010	Lorries speeding on Craigmore road and forcing road users off road.
13/05/2010	Lorry observed on Limavady to Ringsend road two weeks previously, containing possible animal bones at 8.20pm.

TABLE 2 - NIEA site inspections during the last 6 months (from 17^th May 2010)
Date	Non-Compliances Noted
23/11/2009	Odour detected on site. Operator instructed to apply more daily cover needed in operational cell.
11/12/2009	Advisory visit in relation to variation application.
14/01/2009	Odour detected on site, operator instructed to cover and cap Phase 2 Cell 1 and install gas infrastructure as soon as possible.
26/01/2009	Slight odour detected on site, operator instructed to submit capping and gas proposals urgently. Follow up letter issued.
02/02/2010	Odour detected off-site and more daily cover needed on operational cell. Operator instructed to provide NIEA with gas management plan for cell 1 by Friday 05/02/2010. Follow up letter issued. Also minor non-compliance in relation to daily cover of waste in new cell.
10/02/2010	Odour detected off site. Installation of gas extraction infrastructure due to commence in the following week.
22/02/2010	Odour detected on site and more cover needed on operational cell. Gas infrastructure being installed in Phase 2 cell 1.
26/02/2010	No non-compliances. Phase 2 cell 1 capped and gas system in operation.
02/03/2010	Odour detected off site and operational cell height too high to allow for effective application of daily cover. Operator instructed to investigate the efficiency of the gas extraction system in Phase 2 cell 1 and to get the system balanced. Operator to contact the NIEA daily with updates of the work until completion. Operator instructed to reduce the height of the operational face in Phase 2 cell 2.
08/03/2010	Odour detected on site and condensate build up noted in the gas extraction pipework. Odour getting through the cap and more daily cover need on operational cell. Operator acted immediately to clear the condensate build-up. Operator’s environmental consultants due on site 10/03/2010 to balance and monitor the gas system.
11/03/2010	Odour detected off site. Gas monitoring conducted by the NIEA at all monitoring points on site. Operator given one week to fully investigate the cause of the odour.
15/03/2010	Odour detected off site. Enforcement notice served requesting the submission of the methodology and results of the investigation into the source of the odour and a timescale for the completion of remedial works ensuring completion by the 22/03/2010. Additional capping material being applied at the time of inspection.
22/03/2010	Odour detected on site, only. Additional capping material being applied at the time of inspection, this is to continue until cell 1 has been capped with an additional min. 0.5m depth of clay. Additional gas extraction wells to be installed.
29/03/2010	No non-compliances, but a very slight odour detected on site in the area still to receive additional capping. 90% of capping completed.
12/04/2010	More cover required on working face. No odour detected
19/04/2010	Flare and gas system not operational due to site works, odour detected More cover needed on operational cell. Operator instructed to reinstate the gas system as soon as possible.
23/04/2010	Odour detected off site. Operator instructed to carry out a surface emissions survey with resultant remedial works urgently.
28/04/2010 morning	No non-compliances, very slight odour detected off site but not at a level to cause annoyance.
28/04/2010 afternoon	No non-compliances, very slight odour detected off site but not at a level to cause annoyance. Flare operating more effectively after maintenance of the filter. Surface emission survey due to be carried out 30/04/2010.
30/04/2010	No non-compliances, very slight odour detected off site but not at a level to cause annoyance. Enforcement notice served requesting a monitoring survey of gas surface emissions and appropriate remedial actions arising from survey. Report of survey and resultant actions to be supplied to NIEA by 04/05/2010. Surface emissions survey conducted daily until agreed by the chief inspector.
05/05/2010 morning	No non-compliances, enforcement notice has been complied with. One area of slight odour detected on site and the operator instructed to place additional capping material.
05/05/2010 afternoon	No non-compliances. Surface emissions survey being carried out and additional capping material being applied to the identified area.
07/05/2010	No non-compliances, only very slight odour detected on site. Surface emissions survey being carried at the time of inspection.
12/05/2010	No odour detected. More daily cover required on operational cell.
14/05/2010 morning	No odour detected. Security fence at the rear of the site is being replaced.
14/05/2010 afternoon	No odour detected. Security fence at the rear of the site is being replaced.

Note, PPC Permit condition in relation to odour states: "Emissions from the Activities shall be free from odour at levels likely to cause annoyance outside the Site, as perceived by the Chief Inspector"

Road Safety on the B66 Road

Mr B Leonard asked the Minister of the Environment (i) if his officials have discussed, with Roads Service and the PSNI, the issue of road safety on the B66 road, given the number of heavy lorries driving to and from the Craigmore Road landfill site; and (ii) how his officials plan to address the issue of road safety should other waste management sites become operational in this area.

(AQW 6776/10)

Minister of the Environment: As a matter of routine, the Planning Service consults DRD’s Roads Service on all applications which have a traffic/road safety dimension. Roads Service, in turn, may contact the PSNI.

My officials will consult with Roads Service on aspects of road safety should an application for other waste management sites in the area be received.

My executive colleague, Minister Connor Murphy, has advised that, apart from normal consultations with Planning Service on applications for waste management site in the area, Roads Service has had no specific discussions with my Department or the PSNI in relation to waste management operations at Craigmore Road. No operational issues have been raised by either body, directly with Roads Service, in relation to Craigmore Road.

Minister Murphy has also advised that Roads Service is consulted by Planning Service on applications for waste management sites, with the principle issues of road safety and convenience of road users being paramount in Road’s Service’s consideration of such applications.

Landfill Sites

Mr J Dallat asked the Minister of the Environment what penalties his Department can impose for persistent breaches of conditions relating to landfill sites; and whether these penalties are being imposed.

(AQW 6797/10)

Minister of the Environment: The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) can impose the following penalties for breaches of Pollution Prevention and Control Permits relating to landfill sites:

a) If it is the opinion of the NIEA that a landfill operator has contravened, is contravening or is likely to contravene any condition of his permit it may serve an enforcement notice on him. The notice shall specify the area(s) of contravention, steps to be taken to remedy the contravention and specify the time period.

b) If it is the opinion of the NIEA that there is risk of serious pollution resulting from operation of a landfill it may serve a suspension notice on the operator. The notice shall state the risk involved, the steps to be taken and the time period. The notice may cease to authorise the entire operation or any specified activities.

It is an offence for a person to fail to comply with or to contravene a condition of a permit, or, to fail to comply with the requirements of an enforcement notice or a suspension notice.

A person guilty of these offences shall be liable-

on summary conviction to a maximum fine of £30,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both.
on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for term not exceeding five years or to both.

The Department may also take proceedings in the High Court for the purpose of securing compliance with an enforcement notice or suspension notice.

The NIEA has served 13 enforcement notices and 4 suspension notices on landfill operators.

Planning Service has the following penalties in relation to breaches of planning conditions:

Article 76A of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 (as amended) allows the Department to issue a Notice where planning permission has been granted subject to conditions, but one or more of the conditions has not been complied with, requiring the recipient of the notice to secure compliance with the conditions specified in the notice. It is a ‘fast-track’ enforcement option with no right of appeal and is an alternative to an Enforcement Notice.

Anyone in contravention of a Breach of Condition Notice is guilty of an offence. Those found guilty of the offence may be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale. (£1,000) Where a recipient fails to comply with the Notice even after they have been prosecuted and fined, further prosecutions can be brought.

A Breach of Condition Notice may normally only be served within 10 years of the breach of planning control to which it relates having occurred.

Planning Service has issued Breach of Condition Notices and Enforcement Notices with subsequent summons action for non-compliance on a regular basis. These have related to breaches of planning control, including those relating to landfill sites.

Local Government Posts

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of the Environment when he plans to change the vacancy control measures currently in place for Local Government posts; and how this change will be managed in the best interests of the rate payer.

(AQW 6871/10)

Minister of the Environment: The current vacancy controls in district councils came into effect on 1 October 2009 following recommendation by the Local Government Reform Joint Forum. The Forum was set up to facilitate consultation and negotiation on a range of Human Resource issues associated with the local government reform programme.

I am aware that after initial smooth running there have been reports of some difficulty in operation of the vacancy controls. The Joint Forum is, with the assistance of the Local Government Staff Commission, assessing the extent of the apparent problem and will if necessary make recommendations. Any changes will be communicated and managed through the established systems.

Local Government Staff Commission

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of the Environment what guidance has been given to the Local Government Staff Commission in relation to the filling of senior posts in local councils.

(AQW 6937/10)

Minister of the Environment: The Local Government Staff Commission has a statutory role in which it exercises general oversight of matters connected with the appointment of district council staff and council Chief Executives in particular. A Recruitment and Selection Code applicable to all district council staff positions was issued by the Commission in February 2009 under its own statutory authority.

The Recruitment and Selection Code applies except where the vacancy controls referred to in my response to your related question (AQW 6871/10) are in operation; they came into effect on 1 October 2009. The Local Government Reform Joint Forum has been asked by the Strategic

Leadership Board to recommend how senior staff positions in Councils might be filled in the future.

Planning Service Staff

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of the Environment how many of the Planning Service Staff due to be redeployed are (i) administrative or support staff; and (ii) qualified planners, broken down by planning division.

(AQW 6953/10)

Minister of the Environment: The number of Planning Service staff due to be redeployed is shown in the table below -

Grade	B'mena	Belfast & HQ	C'avon	D'patrick	L'derry	Omagh	Total
PPTO	2	7	2	1	2	2	16
SPTO	2	12	5	1	2	3	25
HPTO	9	18	15	8	5	12	67
PTO	9	11	13	7	4	7	51
P&T Total	22	48	35	17	13	24	159
PS		1					1
Grade 7		0					0
DP	1	2	1	1	1	1	7
SO	1	3	1	1	1	1	8
EO1			1	2		1	4
EO2	2	5	2	2	2	2	15
AO	6	9	10	7	7	11	50
AA	4	3	8	5	3	4	27
Admin Total	14	23	23	18	14	20	112
Totals	36	71	58	35	27	44	271

Chief Executive Posts in Local Councils

Mrs D Kelly asked the Minister of the Environment to detail (i) the number of Chief Executive posts in local councils filled in each of the last three years, including the names of the councils; (ii) the type of recruitment process followed to fill each vacancy; (iii) the costs incurred, including salaries and expenses; and (iv) whether the methods used to fill the vacancies met with his Department's vacancy control policy.

(AQW 6976/10)

Minister of the Environment: The Local Government Staff Commission has a statutory role in which it exercises general oversight of matters connected with the appointment of district council staff and council Chief Executives in particular. The table below summarises the information requested in points (i) and (ii) of the question.

Summary: Council Chief Executives appointed 2007 to date
Date	No	Council Area	Method
April 2007	1	Banbridge DC	Public advertisement
Total 2007	1
February 2008	1	Armagh C&DC	Public advertisement
June 2008	1	Coleraine BC	Public advertisement
July 2008	1	Derry CC	Public advertisement
October 2008	1	Ballymena BC	Public advertisement
Total 2008	4
Total 2009	0

February 2010	1	Fermanagh DC	Internal trawl under vacancy controls
March 2010	1	Down DC	Internal trawl under vacancy controls
March 2010	1	Newtownabbey BC	Internal trawl under vacancy controls
Total 2010	3

(iii) The Local Government Staff Commission does not charge councils directly for matters connected with the appointment of Chief Executives or other staff.

(iv)The vacancy control procedure has only been in place from 1 October 2009. The method used to fill Chief Executive posts since then is consistent with that procedure and the related appointments are therefore temporary.

The Chief Executive position in Craigavon Council is not listed in the table as it is currently being covered through interim arrangements made necessary by exceptional circumstances. This is consistent with the Recruitment and Selection Code issued in February 2009 by the Local Government Staff Commission under its statutory authority.

Driving Licence Theory Test

Mr I McCrea asked the Minister of the Environment how the needs of people with reading and writing difficulties are provided for in the driving licence theory test.

(AQW 7046/10)

Minister of the Environment: Three different accommodations are available to theory test candidates with reading and writing difficulties to assist them with taking their theory tests. These are the provision of:

a reader who will sit with the candidate and read the questions and possible answers;
30 minutes of additional time or double time, depending upon the candidate’s needs, for the multiple-choice questions part of the test;
an English-language audio voiceover, which is listened to through headphones and activated by the candidate touching the text on the screen.

The first two require the candidate to provide written evidence from a doctor or educationalist. No additional evidence is required from those who wish to use the voiceover facility.

All candidates are asked, when they are booking their tests, if they require any of the available accommodations.

Drink-driving Limit

Mr A Easton asked the Minister of the Environment for an update on the proposal to reduce the drink-driving limit to 20 micrograms.

(AQW 7066/10)

Minister of the Environment: In April 2009 my Department issued a consultation paper on a range of measures to tackle drink driving in Northern Ireland. The paper included not only options to reduce the drink driving limit but also considered penalties, police powers to carry out random breath tests, changes to the High Risk Offenders Scheme and possible removal of the option to have a blood or urine test replace the breath test.

Specifically in relation to limits, the paper included four main options: (1) retain the current limit of 80mg/100ml (2) introduce a 50mg/100ml limit for all drivers (3) introduce a 20mg/100ml limit for all drivers or (4) introduce a limit of 50mg/100ml for most drivers and a lower limit of 20mg/100ml for all inexperienced and professional drivers only.

Overall, the consultation indicated strong support for lowering the legal alcohol limit for all drivers. In response, I have already confirmed that I am prepared to reduce the limit to 50mg for most drivers and 20mg for novice and professional drivers. This recognises the degree of driver impairment at a BAC limit of 50mg while also recognising the additional risk and responsibility associated with young, novice and professional drivers by establishing a more stringent limit of 20mg. The approach is in line with recommendations from the EU and with current limits in most European countries.

Following his appointment by the Secretary of State for Transport in December 2009, Sir Peter North is due to report within weeks on his independent review of drink and drug driving legislation in GB, including an assessment of whether the current drink drive should be lowered. This has obvious relevance to the ongoing work in Northern Ireland and it will be important to consider the outcome of the review and how this might impact on the way forward here.

As I move towards taking decisions on Northern Ireland’s future drink drive policy my aim is to look at the issue in its totality. This includes not only the limits, but also ways in which we further deter people from drinking and driving, powers of enforcement, a new penalty regime possibly with graduated penalties and the type-approval of new breath testing equipment capable of roadside testing and supporting lower legal BAC limits.

I appreciate that the introduction of such a comprehensive package of measures will take time and include the introduction of primary legislation. However, I believe these are the necessary measures required to address such a significant road safety issue.

High Hedges Bill

Mr W Irwin asked the Minister of the Environment for an update on the progress of the High Hedges Bill.

(AQW 7200/10)

Minister of the Environment: The High Hedges Bill was introduced in the Assembly on 26 April 2010. Second Stage was completed on 10 May, and the Bill is now at Committee Stage.

The aim is to have legislation enacted by March 2011 or earlier if possible.

DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND PERSONNEL

Vacancies in the Civil Service

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel how many vacancies exist, at the appropriate grades, within the Civil Service to accommodate the proposed redeployment of Planning Service staff.

(AQW 6668/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel (Mr S Wilson): The numbers of vacancies in the appropriate grades to redeploy surplus staff in the Planning Service are set out in the attached table. No specific vacant posts have been set aside to be filled by Planning Service staff as all vacancies are used to redeploy surplus staff across the NICS Departments and Agencies.

NUMBER OF VACANCIES IN THE APPROPRIATE GRADES TO REDEPLOY SURPLUS PLANNING STAFF AT 12 MAY 2010

Administrative Assistant	Administrative Officer	Executive Officer II	Executive Officer I	Staff Officer	Deputy Principal	Grade 7	Professional and Technical Officer	TOTAL
23	58.4	46	49.1	30.6	25	14	2	246.1

Figures are expressed as Full-time Equivalents (FTE)

Note: Overall number of vacancies may vary as departments finalise their budgetary plans

Reduction in Public Spending

Mr M Storey asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel, in light of the commitment by the new Westminster Government to cut spending, what assessment he has made of the likely reduction in public spending here; and how this will impact proportionally on each Department in this financial year.

(AQW 6785/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel: On 24 May 2010 the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced detailed plans to reduce the level of UK public spending by £6 billion in the 2010-11 financial year.

The NI Executive’s share of this reduction is £127.9 million as determined through the Barnett formula.

Although the Devolved Administrations have been provided with the option of deferring their contribution until next year, this needs to be considered in the context of the expected financial position for 2011-12.

I will urgently engage with my Executive colleagues on the most appropriate way forward once HM Treasury have provided clarification on some important technical issues in respect of the breakdown of the reduction in funding between current expenditure and capital investment.

Procurement of Goods, Services and Capital Works

Mr S Hamilton asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel to detail the thresholds above which Departments and other public bodies must enter into a tender process for the procurement of (i) goods; (ii) services; and (iii) capital works.

(AQW 6874/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel: Public procurement policy and best practice stipulates that a tender process is required for the acquisition of goods, services and capital works with a value of £1,500 or over.

Those tenders valued at between £1,500 and £30,000 require 4 or 5 selected tenders while those above £30,000 require public advertisement.

Pleural Plaques

Ms D Purvis asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel when he plans to introduce legislation to allow people with Pleural Plaques to pursue compensation.

(AQW 7002/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel: There are several steps which must be taken prior to the introduction of the proposed legislation, with a view to ensuring that it achieves the intended policy outcome. In addition to a public consultation on the substance of the Bill, the statutory committee and the Executive must also have an opportunity to comment on the detailed provisions and agree the Bill’s introduction. At this point it is not possible to say when each of the above stages will be completed. However, I hope to be in a position to introduce the Bill by the autumn.

Cuts in the Block Grant

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel to outline the proposals he made to the new Prime Minister regarding cuts in the block grant.

(AQW 7014/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel: The First Minister and deputy First Minister discussed the proposed reduction in the Northern Ireland Executive Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) when they met with the Prime Minister on 20 May 2010.

In addition, I have written to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury requesting early access to the NI Executive’s stock of End Year Flexibility (EYF) funding in order to offset the impact of the reduction in the NI Executive DEL.

Government Department Contact Section in the Phone Book

Ms M Anderson asked the Minister of Finance and Personnel whether the Executive has ended the practice of procuring a separate Government Department contact section in the phone book, as originally established by DFP in 2006.

(AQW 7169/10)

Minister of Finance and Personnel: My Department is committed to publishing a stand alone Government Department contact section in the telephone directory. In 2009, a stand alone entry was published in the Yellow Pages telephone directory. A procurement competition will be initiated in July to determine where the 2010 version of the stand alone Government Department contact section is published.

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, SOCIAL SERVICES AND PUBLIC SAFETY

Unallocated Cases with Family Intervention Teams

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many unallocated cases currently lie with family intervention teams in each Health and Social Care Trust.

(AQW 5524/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Mr M McGimpsey): HSC Trusts monitor unallocated cases across the whole of the Gateway and Family Intervention services. The Trusts report that there were 705 unallocated cases as at 31 January 2010 which can be broken down by Trust as follows:

Belfast	Northern	South Eastern	Southern	Western
103	179	253	77	93

The Department continues to monitor unallocated cases on a monthly basis. The number of unallocated cases has reduced by nearly half from 1398 as at 26 June 2009 to 705 as at 31 January 2010 – a reduction of 693.

Whilst I welcome this reduction I am not complacent and will continue to strive to strengthen children’s social service provision and safeguard our most vulnerable children.

Outreach Respite Service in Omagh for Children with Autism and Learning Disabilities

Dr S Farry asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (i) why the outreach respite service in Omagh for children with autism and learning disabilities was withdrawn without prior warning on 1 April 2010; and (ii) what alternative arrangement will be put in place to ensure that the carers of these children have access to respite services.

(AQW 6200/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The provision of services to meet local priorities is the responsibility of Health and Social Care Trusts, in the first instance.

(i) In relation to the withdrawal of the outreach respite service, the Western Trust regrets the short notice afforded to families and the inconvenience this may have caused but advises that confirmation of its funding position for 2010/11 was not available until the end of March.

(ii) The Health and Social Care Board and the Trust are working closely together to ensure that as much respite as possible is provided, including the provision of limited respite at Beltany House, pending the opening of the new facility.

Stroke Unit at Altnagelvin Hospital

Mr M Durkan asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (i) the reasons for the delay in the new Stroke Unit at Altnagelvin Hospital becoming fully operational; (ii) the current purpose and usage of the unit; and (iii) when the planned stroke services will be introduced.

(AQW 6332/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Construction of the new South Wing accommodation at Altnagelvin Hospital commenced in early 2009 and was completed in mid-February 2010. The facility was officially ‘handed over’ to the Trust on 19 February and is currently undergoing commissioning before being opened for patient use.

The Health and Social Care Board and the Western Trust are working to finalise the revenue funding required to support the new unit, with a view to ensuring this new accommodation becomes operational as soon as possible.

Public Health Authority

Mr M Durkan asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the number of posts in the Public Health Authority, broken down by (i) grade; and (ii) location.

(AQW 6389/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The requested information is provided in the tables below.

Posts within the Public Health Agency

GRADE	HC	WTE	LOCATION
Band 2	1	0.6	East
Band 3	2 2	2 1.12	East West
Band 4	20 4 6 1	19 4 5.33 0.78	East North South West
Band 5	14	13.68	East
Band 6	25 4 5 2	22 4 4.73 1.53	East North South West
Band 7	17 8 3 4	15.77 6.84 2.69 4	East North South West
Band 8a	6 4 2	5.4 3.95 2	East North West
Band 8b	7 1 2	6.81 1 2	East North West
Band 8c	1 2 1	1 1.2 1	East South West
Band 8d	3 1	2.8 1	East West
Chief Executive	1	1	East
Consultant	11 4 4 2	10.1 3.8 3.9 1.6	East North South West
Medical Technical Officer	1	0.8	East
Nurse Band 6	1	0.4	East
Nurse Band 7	2 1 5	2 0.8 1.5	East North West
Nurse Band 8b	1	1	North
Personal Secretary Band 3	5 5	5 4.75	North West
Director	3	3	East
Specialist Registrar	6 1 2 1	4.1 1 1.6 0.8	East North South West

Source: Public Health Agency.

Pre-paid Telephone and Television Service to Hospital Patients

Mr J Spratt asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail for each of the last five years (i) the number of (a) phone cards; and (b) television cards sold to hospital patients; and (ii) the cost of providing (a) a pre-paid telephone service; and (b) a pre-paid television service to patients in the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust area.

(AQW 6723/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Belfast Health and Social Care Trust has reported that information in relation to part (i) of this question is not available to them as this is a service operated by a third party provider and that, in relation to part (ii) of the question this is provided at no cost to the Trust.

Waiting Times for MRI Scans

Mr M Durkan asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the waiting times for an MRI scan in each Health and Social Care Trust area, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6724/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The information is not available in the format requested.

Waiting Times at the Regional Fertility Centre, Belfast

Mr M Durkan asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the current treatment waiting times at the Regional Fertility Centre, Belfast, including waiting times for a review appointment.

(AQW 6725/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: In line with my public commitment the current waiting time for publicly funded treatment is 12 months from the date of being placed on the waiting list. A letter of offer is sent to patients at 10 months with treatment usually commencing in the 12th month.

Waiting time from 1st consultation to review appointment varies dependant on which consultant the patient has been referred to, but ranges from 6 - 12 months.

Adoption Legislation

Mr T Clarke asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety for an update on his Department's new adoption legislation.

(AQW 6727/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I issued a draft paper to the Executive seeking agreement to the development of an Adoption and Children Bill on 17^th June 2009; this paper was agreed by the Executive on 13^th May 2010. The draft Bill is a complex and substantial piece of legislation containing in excess of a hundred clauses. As a result of the delay in securing Executive approval to develop the Bill, noting the size of the Bill and the lifetime of this Assembly I must now consider how best to progress with adoption law reform.

Regional Guidance on Police involvement in Residential Care Units and Children missing from Home and Foster Care

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety for an update on the current status of the 'Regional Guidance on Police involvement in Residential Care Units and Children missing from Home and Foster Care'

(AQW 6732/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The current guidance continues to be implemented.

A review of the guidance is ongoing and is taking account of changes in police operational procedures.

The revised draft guidance is expected in the autumn and once finalized the intention is that Trust/PSNI personnel will run an updated awareness raising and joint training programme.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety what assessment has been made of the potential increased pressure on the Antrim Area Hospital, in light of the recent announcement of the reduction in services at the Mid-Ulster Hospital, Magherafelt and Whiteabbey Hospital.

(AQW 6738/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has conducted an analysis of attendances at the Accident and Emergency departments at Whiteabbey and the Mid Ulster hospitals which shows that 70% of those attending could have their needs met by a minor injuries service on these sites. The Trust will open minor injuries services on both sites from 24^th May. In addition, the Trust is creating increased physical space within the A&E department at Antrim Area Hospital and providing a total of 20 additional beds to accommodate the anticipated increase in workload there. These additional facilities will be in place by 24^th May and the hospital’s A&E department will also be strengthened by a larger medical and nursing team.

The Trust will also continue to provide medical cover at the minor injuries units in Whiteabbey and Mid-Ulster for 2 months following the change in service to ensure the transition from one model of service to another is safe.

The changes to services at these hospitals has been signalled since the publication of Developing Better Services in 2002 and confirmed in a number of subsequent announcements. I regret the short period of consultation available with those directly affected. I understand that the Trust has been working closely with the unions and the Royal College of Nursing to support individual members of staff find their preferred choice of posting. I will ensure however that Trusts put in place arrangements to inform unions at the earliest possible stage of any urgent change required to health and social care services in the future.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many beds in the Antrim Area Hospital are positioned in bay windows or free space with no direct access to oxygen or fixed screens.

(AQW 6739/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has advised that there are no beds in Antrim Area Hospital positioned in bay widows or free space with no direct access to oxygen or fixed screens.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the number of trolley waits in the Antrim Area Hospital in each of the last 12 months.

(AQW 6741/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Data is published monthly and is available from: http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-activity_stats-2/emergency_care.htm.

Rapid Response Vehicle Call-outs

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many rapid response vehicle call-outs have (i) arrived within the required timescale; and (ii) failed to arrive within the required timescale, since their introduction in the Fermanagh and South Tyrone constituency.

(AQW 6782/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I propose to answer AQWs 6782/2010 and 6833/2010 together.

The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) does not record performance statistics for parliamentary constituencies.

Swine Flu

Mr J Craig asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the number of confirmed cases of Swine Flu in each month of 2010 to date.

(AQW 6786/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The number of laboratory confirmed cases in each month this year is detailed below. No positive cases have been detected since 25^th February.

Month	Number of new confirmed cases of swine flu
January 2010	10
February 2010	10
March 2010	0
April 2010	0
May 2010	0

Meeting with the Family of Janine Murtagh

Ms S Ramsey asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety why he cancelled a planned meeting with the family of Janine Murtagh.

(AQW 6789/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I was due to meet Murtagh family members on 15 December 2009 but unfortunately I was sick that day.

Debates in the Assembly

Ms S Ramsey asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety why he has been unable to attend a number of debates in the Assembly on health related issues.

(AQW 6790/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Since I took up my responsibilities as Minister in May 2007 I have responded to 65 health and social care debates.

During this time I have been unable to attend 4 debates, for which I have lead responsibility, due to other Ministerial business. I was also unable to attend 1 other debate for which I had been named to respond, but for which I did not have lead responsibility.

My unavailability on all occasions was notified to the Business Committee well in advance of each debate.

Fragility Fracture Working Group

Ms S Ramsey asked e Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety what steps he is taking to implement the nine recommendations of the Fragility Fracture Working Group.

(AQW 6791/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I would very much want to see this work taken forward quickly.

It is my expectation that notwithstanding the current financial position, much progress could be achieved within existing resources. To this end, Departmental officials have asked the Health and Social Care Board to explore what can be achieved and to develop proposals for implementing the reports recommendations.

National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence Appraisals 160 and 161

Ms S Ramsey asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety if he will develop an implementation schedule for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence appraisals 160 and 161 in relation to the prevention of osteoporosis fractures which includes (i) regional prescribing guidelines; and (ii) medicines management support to promote patient adherence to prescribed medicines.

(AQW 6792/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: In relation to appraisals 160 and 161, a focus on NICE guidance on osteoporosis has been agreed with the Health and Social Care Board as a priority for 2010/11 and work is ongoing to develop guidance on prescribing for osteoporosis. Work is also in progress to introduce a Medicines Management Service that, combined with patient education, will support people to continue taking prescribed medicines over a long period.

Minor Injuries Clinic in the South Tyrone Hospital

Mr F Molloy asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (i) how many patients attended the Minor Injuries Clinic in the South Tyrone Hospital in (a) 2008; (b) 2009; and (c) 2010 to date; and (ii) of these how many patients were referred to Craigavon Hospital to be treated.

(AQW 6814/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: (i) The number of patients that attended the Minor Injuries Clinic in the South Tyrone Hospital in (a) 2008; (b) 2009; and (c) 2010 to date, are given in the below table:

Calendar Year	Total Attendances
2010 (up to and including March 2010)	4,029
2009	16,929
2008	16,312

Source: KH09 Part 2 Departmental Return

(ii) Information on the number of patients attending the Minor Injuries Clinic in the South Tyrone Hospital who were referred to Craigavon Hospital for treatment is not collected centrally.

Metaformin

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety whether the PSNI has made his Department aware of the misuse of the drug, Metaformin; and what action his Department is taking to address this issue.

(AQW 6828/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Metformin is an oral anti-diabetic drug in the biguanide class, and it can be used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, particularly in overweight and obese people and those with normal kidney function. Metformin is a Prescription Only Medicine controlled under the Medicines Act 1968. As such, it is illegal to supply other than against a prescription and there is no offence for possession.

Metformin itself is not hallucinogenic. However, if taken at very high levels it can potentially cause a Vitamin B12 deficiency and/or low blood sugar when used by those who are not diabetic. In some cases, having low blood sugar or a B12 deficiency can cause hallucinations. It is therefore thought to be unlikely that Metformin would be used widely as a recreational drug – but there have been some cases where it has been misused by people who want to lose weight, including people with eating disorders such as anorexia.

The PSNI have informed me that they are not aware of any reported incidents of the misuse of Metformin. If evidence appears of the drug being misused recreationally on a wide scale, I will raise with officials within the Department and across the rest of the UK, as appropriate.

Rapid Response Vehicle Call-outs

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many rapid response vehicle call-outs (i) required an ambulance; and (ii) resulted in the cancellation of an ambulance, since their introduction in the Fermanagh and South Tyrone constituency.

(AQW 6833/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I propose to answer AQWs 6782/2010 and 6833/2010 together.

The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) does not record performance statistics for parliamentary constituencies.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the alleged problems which occurred in the Accident and Emergency unit at the Antrim Area Hospital on Sunday 16 May 2010.

(AQW 6847/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I am advised by the Northern Trust that activity at Antrim Area Hospital was higher than normal over the weekend of 15 and 16 May. There will always be occasions at both Antrim Area and Causeway hospitals where activity can be higher than normal and this can cause some delays. However, the Trust has assured me that the necessary measures to safely implement the recent acute service changes are in place and that Antrim Area Hospital is able to respond to the additional workload.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the exact location of the 20 extra beds within the Antrim Area Hospital.

(AQW 6848/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: As part of the implementation of service changes on Monday 24 May the Trust is creating increased physical space within the A&E department at Antrim Area Hospital and providing a total of 21 additional beds to accommodate the anticipated increase in workload.

These additional beds will be located as follows:

10 beds in the Clinical Decision Unit – integral part of A&E
4 previously uncommissioned beds will open in medical ward A1
7 previously decommissioned beds in general medical ward C3 will be opened and managed as part of general medical ward C4

Emergency Ambulance Call-outs

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the percentage of emergency ambulance call-outs which met the emergency response time in (i) the Northern Health and Social Care Trust area; and (ii) the catchment area of the Mid-Ulster Hospital in (a) 2007/08; and (b) 2009/09; and (c) 2009/10.

(AQW 6849/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: NIAS does not record performance statistics by Trust area or local hospital catchment.

Staff in the Health and Social Care Board

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail (i) the number of staff employed in the former Northern Health and Social Services Board prior to the establishment of the Health and Social Care Board; (ii) the number of staff currently employed by the Health and Social Care Board in the former Northern Health and Social Services Board area; and (iii) the staffing complement for the Health and Social Care Board in the former Northern Health and Social Services Board under current proposals, broken down by (a) grade; and (b) location.

(AQW 6858/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The table below sets out the information requested for parts (i) & (ii).

	Northern HSSB		HSC Board ( in the Northern area)
	Headcount	WTE	Headcount	WTE
31/03/09	208	141
31/03/10			88	70

Notes: WTE = Whole-time Equivalent. It should be noted that staff in the former NHSSB on 31 March 2009 transferred to either the Health & Social Care Board, Public Health Agency or Business Services Organisation. The headcount and WTE at 31 March 2010 reflect those who transferred to HSC Board only.

(iii) The new HSC organisations, including the HSC Board, have all commenced early work to examine in particular, the realignment and location of legacy HSS Board functions. This work is still under consideration and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment on the staffing complement for the Health and Social Care Board in the northern area until such times as this process is complete. I remain committed however to ensuring, that a strong local presence continues to be a feature of our health and social care system.

Eating Disorders

Mrs M O'Neill asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety for each of the last three years (i) how many people have been diagnosed with an eating disorder; (ii) for an outline of the services and treatments available for people with eating disorders; and (iii) how many people have been referred out of Northern Ireland for treatment for an eating disorder, including (a) the reason for the referral; and (b) the average cost of this treatment.

(AQW 6860/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The table below outlines the number of people diagnosed with an Eating Disorder and Number of Extra Contractual Referrals (ECRs).

	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10
Number of people diagnosed with an Eating Disorder	261	269	317
Number of Extra Contractual Referrals (ECRs)	17	33	28

The average cost of an ECR is in the region of £82k:

Treatment available for people suffering from an eating disorder in Northern Ireland include physical health monitoring; motivational work; structured psychological therapies e.g., CBT, CBTe, Interpersonal Therapy and systemic approaches; Dietetic Support; Outreach Clinics; Review Clinics and Carer Support.

Referrals outside Northern Ireland are due to the complexity of the eating disorder, which in some cases is accompanied with a severe mental health issue. Details on individual referrals cannot be disclosed due to patient confidentially.

Hospital Toilets

Ms S Ramsey asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, in relation to the toilets in the Accident and Emergency unit of (i) the Royal Victoria Hospital; (ii) The Royal Hospital for Sick Children; (iii) the Mater; and (iv) the City Hospital, how many times each day (a) the toilets are cleaned and inspected; (b) the toilets are inspected by senior staff; (c) the toilet bins are emptied; and (c) how many cleaning staff are on duty after 17.00 each day.

(AQW 6863/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: This information is summarised in the table below.

	Royal Victoria	RBHSC	Mater	City
Daily frequency of toilet cleaning and inspection	6 full cleans plus 5 check cleans*. 3 supervisor inspections	3 full cleans plus 4 check cleans. 3 supervisor inspections	3 full cleans plus 3 check cleans.	6 full cleans plus 6 check cleans. 3 supervisor inspections
Daily frequency of inspection of toilets by managers or senior staff	At least 2	At least 2	At least 2	Varies
Daily frequency of emptying of toilet bins	6 plus as required	3 plus as required	3 plus as required	6 plus as required
Number of cleaning staff on duty after 17.00 each day	4 until 9 p.m. 1 nightshift	1 until 9 p.m. 1 nightshift	1 until 10 p.m.	2 until 9 p.m. 2 nightshift (not just A&E)

* A check clean is an inspection when cleaning will be undertaken if required.

Whiteabbey Hospital

Mr D Hilditch asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety why public representatives were not informed, before Thursday 13 May 2010, that Whiteabbey Accident and Emergency unit would be moved to the Antrim Area Hospital.

(AQW 6864/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The changes to services at these hospitals has been signalled since the publication of Developing Better Services in 2002 and confirmed in a number of subsequent announcements. I regret the short period of consultation available with those directly affected and local public representatives. Patient safety must however be the utmost priority in the delivery of health and social care services, and in that respect, the advice given by senior clinicians with responsibility for unscheduled care in the Northern Trust was that the need for change was pressing.

I will however ensure that Trusts inform public representatives and other stakeholders at the earliest possible stage of any urgent change required to health and social care services in the future.

Whiteabbey Hospital

Mr D Hilditch asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety why there are no security personnel at the Whiteabbey Hospital.

(AQW 6866/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has advised that there are no security staff employed at Whiteabbey hospital. Any security issues during the daytime are addressed by the Support Services Department who ensure that the PSNI are contacted. From 8pm until 8am, security duties are performed by a night porter who is paid the appropriate rate for this responsibility.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr T Burns asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety what new resources will be allocated to accident and emergency services in the Antrim Area Hospital when services are transferred from the Whiteabbey and Mid-Ulster hospitals.

(AQW 6868/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: I refer the member to the answer provided for AQW 6775 2010

Child Protection Register

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many children from migrant families and minority ethnic groups are currently on the child protection register, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust area.

(AQW 6881/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Figures for children on the Child Protection Register at 31 March 2009, by Category of Abuse for Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland are published in the statistical bulletin, ‘Children Order Statistical Tables for Northern Ireland 2008/09’. This bulletin is available on the DHSSPS website at:

http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-cib-3/statistics_and_research-cib-pub/children_statistics/stats-cib-children_order.htm

The remaining information is not available centrally or is not available in the format requested.

Child Protection Register

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many children currently on the child protection register have a parent with a learning disability.

(AQW 6882/10)

http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-cib-3/statistics_and_research-cib-pub/children_statistics/stats-cib-children_order.htm

The remaining information is not available centrally or is not available in the format requested.

Child Protection Register

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many children with disabilities are currently (i) on the child protection register; and (ii) looked after, broken down by type of disability.

(AQW 6883/10)

http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-cib-3/statistics_and_research-cib-pub/children_statistics/stats-cib-children_order.htm

The remaining information is not available centrally or is not available in the format requested.

Child Protection Register

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many children are currently on the child protection register, broken down by (i) category; and (ii) Health and Social Care Trust area.

(AQW 6884/10)

http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-cib-3/statistics_and_research-cib-pub/children_statistics/stats-cib-children_order.htm

The remaining information is not available centrally or is not available in the format requested.

Antrim Area Hospital

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many breakfasts were served to patients in the Accident and Emergency unit in the Antrim Area Hospital on the morning of 18 May 2010.

(AQW 6909/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has advised that 35 breakfasts were delivered to the Accident and Emergency Department at Antrim Area Hospital on the morning of 18 May 2010.

Child Protection Register

Miss M McIlveen asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety how many children currently on the child protection register are in the categories of (i) sexual abuse; (ii) physical neglect; or (iii) other, broken down by Health and Social Care Trust.

(AQW 6910/10)

http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-cib-3/statistics_and_research-cib-pub/children_statistics/stats-cib-children_order.htm

The remaining information is not available centrally or is not available in the format requested.

Hospital Beds

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (i) how many hospital beds were in (a) the Northern Health and Social Care Trust area; and (b) the Antrim Area Hospital on 18 May 2010; and (ii) how many beds are planned to be in each on 25 May 2010.

(AQW 6912/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Information on the number of beds available in the Antrim Area Hospital and the Northern Health and Social Trust area is shown in the table below;

	Number of available beds on 18^th May 2010	Planned number of available beds on 25^th May 2010
Antrim Area Hospital	440	454
Northern HSC Trust	838	831

Source: Northern HSC Trust

Available beds are the number of beds in wards that are open overnight, measured at midnight. Hospitals may also have a number of beds in wards that are only open during the day. Beds reserved for day care admission or regular day admission are not included.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Mrs M O'Neill asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety whether his Department has investigated the link between retrovirus XMRV and the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis disease.

(AQW 6918/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: In Northern Ireland we ensure that our services to the population and patients are informed by the best research evidence, regardless of where the research has been undertaken. Biomedical and health research are global activities providing the best facilities for scientists and clinicians with significant research expertise and knowledge to undertake their study. The findings and results of research are communicated effectively through many various media and other published routes so that others may be aware of, and benefit from them.

Publications referring to work on XMRV and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) have been scrutinised by local scientists and clinicians. A major challenge now being taken up by researchers in the United States is to develop an effective diagnostic test for XMRV. Once that is available, we will be able to get more reliable knowledge about who is carrying the virus, how it is transmitted and what diseases it is associated with.

All of these developments are welcome. So while this research is at an early stage and at present has not established if XMRV is a cause of ME, or how the virus is transmitted, we will continue to assess developments to ensure future educational and clinical practice are influenced by any emerging evidence in this area.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Mrs M O'Neill asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail what support is available for people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.

(AQW 6919/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) have access to a wide range of treatment and support services in secondary, primary and community care settings, including neurology services and mental health services. In addition patients may be referred for assessment and treatment to a variety of specialists depending on their assessed individual needs.

In addition, my Department, in collaboration with the Regional Health and Social Care Board, the Public Health Agency, Trusts and patient representative groups, is currently engaged in work to explore how access to services might be improved for this client group.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Mr T Clarke asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety what extra resources his Department has provided to Antrim Area Hospital's Accident and Emergency Department in the wake of the decision to close both Whiteabbey and Mid-Ulster Accident and Emergency Departments.

(AQW 6928/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has assured me that the necessary measures to safely implement these changes are in place and that Antrim Area Hospital is able to respond to the additional workload.

The consolidation of A&E services across two acute hospitals instead of four means that a larger team of doctors and nurses are available to provide care at the Antrim Area Hospital A&E. Additional physical space has been provided within the emergency department at Antrim Area Hospital and an additional 21 beds have been provided.

The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service has also increased ambulance cover in the Northern Trust area to support these changes to service delivery

X-ray Services at the Mid-Ulster Hospital

Mrs M O'Neill asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety if he can confirm that there will be no change to the X-ray services at the Mid-Ulster Hospital, in light of the accident and emergency services transferring to the Antrim Area Hospital.

(AQW 6959/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The Northern Trust has advised that the radiology service at Mid-Ulster hospital is not closing and that there will be no immediate change to X-ray services.

Out-of-hours Service

Mr G Robinson asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to outline the criteria used by the Western Health and Social Care Trust when deciding to cut the number of GPs operating the out-of-hours service.

(AQW 7100/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Out of Hours services in the Western area are commissioned by the Health and Social Care Board and provided by Western Urgent Care.

The criteria used by the western office of the HSCB in realigning OOH services was the workload experienced by GPs in each of the 5 centres.

Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Units

Ms M Anderson asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to detail the number and location of drug and alcohol rehabilitation units that are currently operational.

(AQW 7137/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: Based on the National Treatment Agency definition which identified Tier 4 interventions as Drug and Alcohol rehabilitation programmes providing accommodation in a drug free environment with a range of structured interventions, provision in Northern Ireland is as follows:

Services commissioned by the HSCB and/or the PHA and provided by the local Trusts

Carrick-one, Holywell Hospital, Antrim – specialist in-patient drug and alcohol service/Ward 15, Shimna House, Downshire Hospital, Downpatrick – specialist in-patient drug and alcohol service.

Addiction Unit, St Lukes Hospital Armagh - specialist in-patient drug and alcohol service.

Addictions Treatment Unit, Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital, Omagh - specialist in-patient drug and alcohol service.

Voluntary and community sector provision

Beach House, Ballymena – supported accommodation and rehabilitation for those recovering from drug and alcohol problems – accepts referrals from within the Northern area.

Carlisle House Residential Treatment Centre, Belfast - open to people from any location.

Cuan Mhuire, Newry - offering residential rehabilitation for Alcohol Misusers. Open to people from any location.

Stauros Foundation; Armagh, residential alcohol and drug rehabilitation programmes - open to people from any location.

Northlands Centre, Londonderry, residential alcohol and drug rehabilitation programmes - open to people from any location.

RoeDoc Out-of-Hours GP Service

Mr B Leonard asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (i) to explain the rationale behind the decision to cut the RoeDoc Out-of-Hours GP service in the Western Health and Social Care Trust from 1 July 2010; and (ii) for his assessment of the impact of this decision on night-time services in Limavady and on the workloads of A&E Departments in the Altnagelvin and Causeway Hospitals.

(AQW 7142/10)

Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety: The out-of-hours service in the western area has been provided by Western Urgent Care (WUC) since 2004.

The decision to reduce the number of GPs in WUC between midnight and 8.30am was based on the low numbers of patients contacting the service after midnight. In the Limavady area an average of 5 patients contact WUC after midnight and of those 2 or 3 would require a face-to-face consultation with a GP.

Patients from the Limavady area who require a face-face consultation with an OOHs GP will receive a home visit, if appropriate, or attend the Limavady OOHs centre. All patients will continue to be seen within the timescales specified in the NI Quality Standards.

WUC provides urgent GP OOHs services; medical emergencies are dealt with by A&E departments in Altnagelvin and Causeway Hospitals. It is not envisaged that there will be any impact on the workload of A&E Departments due to the reconfiguration of the out-of-hours service after midnight.

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Legal Aid

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice, prior to the £150 an hour maximum fee proposal, how much was paid from Legal Aid to barristers for case preparation work in the last two years; and what the average fee charged by barristers was during this time.

(AQW 6754/10)

Minister of Justice (Mr D Ford): The amount paid to barristers in respect of Very High Cost Cases (VHCCs) for 2008/09 was £11.91m with an average payment of £50,709; the amount paid in 2009/10 was £21.07m with an average payment of £63,680. It is not possible to provide figures solely for preparation as the amount assessed by the Taxing Master for any legal representative will be a single amount covering both preparation and advocacy. The average fee claimed by barristers for 2008/09 was £94,963. For 2009/10 it was £107,567. Again it is not possible to provide separate figures for preparation, as the fee claimed by barristers included both preparation and advocacy and the amount assessed by the Taxing Master will be a single amount covering both.

Until the new rates of remuneration for VHCCs came into operation in September 2009, the rates of remuneration for VHCCs were as follows:

Rates for preparation

	Range per hour
Counsel type	From	To
Queen’s Counsel	£110	£180
Leading Junior	£90	£140
Led Junior	£70	£100
Sole Junior	£80	£110

Solicitor advocate
Certified	£80	£110
Uncertified	£40	£55

Staff Childcare Vouchers

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister of Justice if staff in his Department are eligible to receive childcare vouchers; and if all the qualifying staff are receiving these vouchers.

(AQW 6756/10)

Minister of Justice: All staff within the Department of Justice are eligible for the NICS Salary Sacrifice Scheme. Details of the Scheme are available to all staff. The eligibility of the scheme is based on personal circumstances of staff members. As the DOJ would not be aware of such personal details it is not possible to determine whether all qualifying staff are participating in the scheme. It is, however, estimated that there are approximately 60 staff within the DOJ who are currently in receipt of Salary Sacrifice.

As staff in the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service only became eligible for Salary Sacrifice from 12 April 2010, the NICTS are urgently working on a process of implementing such a scheme into their payroll. It is anticipated that the scheme will be launched in August 2010. Twenty three staff have registered an interest in participating.

Preliminary Enquiries or Preliminary Investigations at Magistrates Court

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice if he will introduce legislation in line with the rest of the UK that will dispense with the need for Preliminary Enquiries or Preliminary Investigations at Magistrates Court in cases destined for trial at Crown Court.

(AQW 6812/10)

Minister of Justice: The Northern Ireland Office previously consulted on reforming committal procedures which included proposals for developing a replacement system for sending cases from the Magistrates’ Court to the Crown Court. I understand, however, that there were a number of technical issues with the proposed new procedures which proved difficult to resolve.

A new programme of work to enhance the speed of cases through the criminal justice system has recently been initiated by the Criminal Justice Board. One of the work strands within that programme is focussing on case preparation. Proposals for legislative changes, including the abolition of committals, will be considered in that context.

I will be considering the need to reform committals procedures, including the need for new legislation, when I have had an opportunity to consider the outcome of the Criminal Justice Board’s programme of work.

Fines for Road Traffic Offences

Mr R McCartney asked the Minister of Justice to detail the revenue obtained from the payment of fines for road traffic offences in each of the last five years; and which Departments or agencies benefit from this revenue.

(AQW 6819/10)

Minister of Justice: Fines for road traffic offences can either be as a result of a court imposed fine or a Fixed Penalty Notice.

Information on court imposed fines for road traffic offences is set out in Table 1 for 2007-09.

Table 1

Court Imposed Fines for Road Traffic Offences

Year*	Fines Paid
2007	£4,060,809
2008	£3,725,457
2009	£3,254,081

* Information is only available in this format for the last 3 years

All payments for court imposed fines are treated as Consolidated Fund Extra Receipts (CFERS) and are passed to HM Treasury.

Information on Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN) and Conditional Offer Fixed Penalty Notices (COFPN) (for offences that have been detected by fixed or mobile safety cameras) are set out in Table 2.

The payments received for Conditional Offer Fixed Penalty Notices are apportioned between the PSNI and the Northern Ireland Courts to fund the use of safety cameras. All other payments are treated as CFERS and passed to HM Treasury.

Table 2

Fixed Penalty Notices and Conditional Fixed Penalty Notices

YEAR	All FPN Payments £	Transferred to HM Treasury £	COFPN (Safety Cameras) £	Retained by PSNI £	Retained by NICTS £
2005	3,968,909	3,329,665	639,244	578,232	61,012
2006	3,691,283	3,139,166	552,117	470,387	81,730
2007	2,780,988	2,089,923	691,065	578,672	112,393
2008	2,790,574	2,057,245	733,329	611,557	121,772
2009	3,182,345	2,158,611	1,023,734	924,592	99,142

Fixed Penalty Notices

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice what plans he has to increase the powers of the PSNI in issuing fixed penalty notices.

(AQW 6827/10)

Minister of Justice: I propose bringing forward legislative provisions within the forthcoming Justice Bill for an extension of police fixed penalty notice powers for a prescribed range of low level criminal offences. These would be targeted at mainly disorder type offences committed by first time or non-habitual offenders. The proposal is currently the subject of discussion with the Justice Committee.

Such powers would provide an effective response to minor offending whilst allowing police officers to devote more time to front-line policing duties and free up time for prosecutors to concentrate on dealing with more serious cases.

Personal Injury Claims

Mr R Beggs asked the Minister of Justice (i) why compensation levels for personal injury claims are significantly higher than in England and Wales; (ii) what guidance is given by the Committee of the Judicial Studies Board for Northern Ireland on this issue; (iii) what plans he has to ensure that wider society has a role to play in setting compensation levels; and (iv) for his assessment of the claim that the current level of compensation is a major factor in the high insurance premiums resulting in car insurance being out of reach for many citizens.

(AQW 6837/10)

Minister of Justice: (i) Until 1987 compensation for personal injury claims in Northern Ireland were determined by a jury. Compensation awards are now set by the judiciary. The level of damages fixed by juries pre 1987 continues to be reflected in current awards.

(ii) The Judicial Studies Board for Northern Ireland publishes "Guidelines for the Assessment of General Damages in Personal Injury Cases in Northern Ireland". The most recent publication was in 2008 and is available from SLS Legal Publications.

(iii) The issue of determining compensation in a personal injury case is a matter for the judiciary.

(iv) The level of compensation payable in personal injury claims, arising out of road traffic accidents, is likely to be one of several factors for insurance companies in determining insurance premiums. I have no evidence to suggest how significant it is.

County Court Legal Fees

Mr R Beggs asked the Minister of Justice why the level of County Court legal fees has increased by four times the rate of inflation in the last ten years; and what plans he has to ensure that wider society has a role in setting legal fees.

(AQW 6838/10)

Minister of Justice: Fees for solicitors and barristers, in county court cases in Northern Ireland are determined by the County Court Rules Committee and prescribed in the County Court Rules. The fees were substantially restructured in 2002 and there were further inflation-based increases in 2006 and 2007. Any future changes to the fees must be allowed by my Department and I will take into account the need for consultation before approving any further increase.

Road Traffic Accidents

Mr T Burns asked Minister of Justice to outline which twenty roads have resulted in the largest number of (i) road traffic accidents; and (ii) fatalities as a result of road traffic accidents, in each of the last five years.

(AQW 6879/10)

Minister of Justice: My Department is responsible for neither roads nor road safety.

Road safety is a matter for the Department of Environment who will be better placed to answer this question.

Access NI Vetting Application

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice (i) to detail the average time taken to process an Access NI vetting application; and (ii) what action he is taking to reduce the time taken to process vetting applications.

(AQW 6887/10)

Minister of Justice: : The average time for delivery of a disclosure during 2009/10, is as set out below;

Basic disclosure	8.33 days
Standard disclosure	8.33 days
Enhanced disclosure	15.41 days

This information is available on the AccessNI web-site.

AccessNI met all of its published service standards for the delivery of certificates in 2009/10. This is a significant improvement on performance during 2008/09. AccessNI continually reviews it processes to determine whether any improvements can be made to reduce the time taken for processing of applications. A customer survey in 2009/10 indicated that 87% of all customers were satisfied with the service provided.

Payment Rates to Barristers

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice to outline his proposals for the restructuring of payment rates to barristers.

(AQW 6901/10)

Minister of Justice: In September 2009 the Court Service published a proposal for the introduction of a Graduated Fee Scheme in Northern Ireland similar to that in place in England and Wales. This would bring the levels of remuneration in criminal cases into line with England and Wales, in all cases other than Very High Cost Cases (VHCCs). Remuneration in VHCCs was reduced in September 2009. My officials continue to discuss the issue with the Bar Council.

Legal Aid

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice if he will consider restricting Legal Aid for repeat offenders or building the fees into any subsequent fine they receive.

(AQW 6920/10)

Minister of Justice: Restricting legal aid on the grounds that the defendant has previous convictions would almost certainly be in breach of Art 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Proposed legal aid reform will ensure that only those who cannot afford representation will have it paid from the public purse.

Shoplifting Offences

Mr T Burns asked the Minister of Justice (i) how many offences of shoplifting were recorded in each of the last 5 years; (ii) for the number of convictions secured for shoplifting in this time; (iii) for a summary of the range of sanctions which were imposed; and (iv) to provide this information broken down by (a) male; and (b) female.

(AQW 6940/10)

Minister of Justice: Table 1 gives the number of recorded shoplifting offences for the financial years 2005/06 to 2009/10. Information on the gender breakdown of these figures is not available as gender is only recorded if an offender is made accountable for the crime.

Table 2 documents the disposals given to those convicted. Data cover the calendar years 2002 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available) and are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Table 1: Shoplifting - number recorded 2005/06-2009/10

Year	Number recorded
2005/06	5,738
2006/07	5,745
2007/08	5,257
2008/09	6,214
2009/10	6,754

Source: PSNI

Table 2: Shoplifting - disposals given to those convicted 2002-2006

Immediate custody
	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006
Male	79	75	69	63	49
Female	6	7	5	10	9
Total	85	82	74	73	58
Suspended custody
Male	37	63	70	50	51
Female	13	23	40	37	26
Total	50	86	110	87	77
Supervision in the community
Male	107	93	92	71	69
Female	52	53	33	44	34
Total	159	146	125	115	103
Fine
Male	101	102	90	109	102
Female	36	33	37	52	44
Total	137	135	127	161	146
Conditional discharge
Male	82	82	66	56	58
Female	53	63	55	56	29
Total	135	145	121	112	87
Other
Male	3	2	5	5	20
Female	2	4	0	4	4
Total	5	6	5	9	24
Total number convicted
Male	409	417	392	354	349
Female	162	183	170	203	146
Total	571	600	562	557	495

Source: Department of Justice

It is not possible to reconcile PSNI data on the number of offences recorded directly with conviction data, as the former are offence-based whereas conviction data are offender-based. In addition, PSNI denote the offence as it has been initially recorded and this may differ from the offence for which a suspect (or suspects) is subsequently proceeded against.

Keep Safe Drug Program

Mr A Easton asked the Minister of Justice if he intends to role out the Keep Safe Drug Program in Kilcooley, Bangor to other areas of North Down.

(AQW 6946/10)

Minister of Justice: The PSNI has been operationally involved in the Keep Safe Drug Program in Kilcooley and a response to this question is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable, who will respond directly.

Ban on the New Drug NRG1

Mr A Easton asked the Minister of Justice if he has had contact with the new Home Secretary regarding a ban on the new drug NRG1.

(AQW 6948/10)

Minister of Justice: I understand that the drug in question is NRG-1 and in response to the Member’s question, I have not been in direct contact with the new Home Secretary about this issue. My officials continue to liaise with both Home Office and the Secretariat to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to ensure that I am fully informed of developments relating to any emerging substances which may be considered for banning in future.

Capital Works Plans

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice what capital works plans his Department has for (i) the Prison Service; and (ii) the Court Service for (a) 2010/11; and (b) 2011/12.

(AQW 6951/10)

Minister of Justice:

2010/11

(i) The Prison Service

The Prison Service has a capital budget in 2010/11 of £25.816m. The planned expenditure is detailed below.

CAPITAL PLANS 2010/11	2010/11 £'000
Maghaberry 120 cell block	7,550
Maghaberry - Special Protection Unit	3,900
Maghaberry - Various Projects	4,920
Replacement Prison	2,857
Maintenance and Minor Works	4,278
IT Projects/Equipment	2,311
Total	25,816

(ii) The NI Courts and Tribunals Service

The NI Courts and Tribunals Service has a capital budget in 2010/11 of £8.8m. The planned expenditure is detailed below.

CAPITAL PLANS 2010/11	2010/11 £'000
Ballymena Courthouse new roof	1,500
Maintenance and Minor Works	4,300
Security measures	404
Information systems upgrade	1,656
Modernisation programme	1,040
Total	8,800

2011/12

Some of the above projects will roll into the next financial year but capital plans for 2011/12 will not be finalised until the capital allocation has been agreed.

Policing in Stoneyford Village

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Justice how many PSNI officers have been disciplined in connection with policing in Stoneyford village in the last three years; and what action was taken against these officers.

(AQW 6966/10)

Minister of Justice: The conduct and discipline of police officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable who will respond to you directly.

Religious Composition of the Prison Service Workforce

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Justice (i) to detail the religious composition of the Prison Service workforce; and (ii) what steps he is taking to address any religious imbalance in the workforce.

(AQW 6968/10)

Minister of Justice: The information provided was the position at 1 January 2010 when the Prison Service was a separate entity and responsible for collecting and monitoring its own data and reporting to the Equality Commission. Following the creation of the Department of Justice, staff in my department will now be included in the corporate NICS returns and in future, information will not be available in the format provided below.

Prison Service Workforce at 1 January 2010
Protestant	77.6%
Roman Catholic	13.1%
Non Determined	9.3%

One of my key aims is to enhance diversity when taking forward the development of the Prison Service. A key part of the strategy is the training of existing staff to equip them to undertake their work better, with a culture which treats inmates as individuals and assists them in addressing offending behaviour. I intend to drive this forward through a comprehensive Workforce Reform Programme.

The Prison Service Diversity Strategy contains targets for job applicants of 35% Roman Catholic by 2011, though recruitment opportunities are limited. I have approved an action plan which sets out a range of positive measures including partnership working with organisations and representatives from the voluntary and community sectors, affirmative action on advertising campaigns, a programme of school visits, offering summer work experience and representation at recruitment and careers exhibitions across Northern Ireland.

Convictions for Car Crimes

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Justice how many convictions for car crimes have been secured in each policing district in each of the last five years.

(AQW 6969/10)

Minister of Justice: The table below gives the number convicted for car crimes by police District Command Unit.

Data cover the calendar years 2002 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available) and are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Number convicted for car crimes¹ by police District Command Unit (DCU)² 2002-2006

Total	326	381	381	323	375
	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006
Antrim	10	6	10	1	20
Ards	7	6	10	5	11
Armagh	11	15	8	4	11
Banbridge	8	4	9	7	6
Belfast East	7	11	12	15	11
Belfast North	24	39	32	23	29
Belfast South	10	13	14	9	8
Belfast West	49	71	54	40	44
Ballymena	8	13	12	6	10
Ballymoney	3	6	1	3	5
Carrickfergus	4	6	4	6	3
Coleraine	9	6	7	11	8
Cookstown	7	8	5	7	6
Craigavon	12	23	21	13	13
Castlereagh	4	6	6	6	9
Dungannon & South Tyrone	11	12	6	10	19
Down	12	8	7	11	10
Fermanagh	5	4	12	4	6
Foyle	20	22	26	37	19
Larne	7	4	5	1	6
Limavady	5	2	9	8	15
Lisburn	29	26	31	35	21
Magherafelt	5	4	2	5	15
Moyle	2	5	3	3	4
Newtownabbey	8	5	9	7	7
North Down	14	12	11	9	12
Newry & Mourne	18	24	32	23	20
Omagh	8	9	13	6	14
Strabane	4	7	8	5	10
Missing³	5	4	2	3	3

1. The majority of convictions are for the offence ‘taking a motor vehicle without owner’s consent’ and other offences related to vehicle taking. The remainder of convictions are for other car crime offences such as theft from a vehicle, vehicle tampering/interference and driving a motor vehicle knowing it to be stolen.

2. Based on the DCU in which the offender’s address falls.

3. Missing data relate to those offenders for whom DCU information is not available.

Prisoners in Magheraberry

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Justice if he can confirm that relatives of prisoners in Magheraberry will not be denied their visiting rights.

(AQW 6970/10)

Minister of Justice: I can confirm that relatives of prisoners in Maghaberry will not be denied their visiting rights. As Members will understand, visitors and prisoners are subject to proportionate search procedures to minimise the scope for illegal items to be trafficked. If prisoners refuse to comply, they are either offered a visit in closed conditions or the visit is suspended.

Prisoners in Magheraberry

Mr D McKay asked e Minister of Justice if he will ensure that all prisoners in Magheraberry receive their entitlement to an hour of exercise every day without conditionality.

(AQW 6971/10)

Minister of Justice: While all prisoners should be offered their entitlement of a minimum of 1 hours exercise every day, there may be exceptional operational factors that occasionally prevent this. In practice, periods of exercise usually considerably exceed one hour.

There is no set amount of time allocated each day for prisoners to eat in the canteen. The majority of prisoners in Maghaberry eat meals in their cells, although some do use canteen facilities where these are available.

All prisoners are offered at least one two hour gymnasium sessions per week, although those on the higher regime levels may attend up to five or more sessions per week.

Prisoners in Magheraberry

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Justice to outline how much time prisoners in Magheraberry are allocated each day to (i) eat meals in the canteen; (ii) exercise in the yard; and (iii) use the gym.

(AQW 6972/10)

All prisoners are offered at least one two hour gymnasium sessions per week, although those on the higher regime levels may attend up to five or more sessions per week.

Prison Service Staff

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Justice to outline the (i) religious; and (ii) gender composition of Prison Service staff.

(AQW 6973/10)

Prison Service Staff at 1 January 2010
Protestant	77.6%
Roman Catholic	13.1%
Non Determined	9.3%
Male	68.9%
Female	31.1%

Court Service Staff

Mr D McKay asked e Minister of Justice to outline the (i) religious; and (ii) gender composition of staff in the Court Service.

(AQW 6974/10)

Minister of Justice: The information provided is at 1 January 2010 when the NI Court Service was a separate entity and responsible for collecting and monitoring its own data and reporting on it to the Equality Commission. Following the creation of the Department of Justice, staff in my department will now be included in the corporate NICS returns and will not be available in this format in the future.

Religion:

As at 1 January 2010 the breakdown of employees by religion in the NI Court Service was:

Protestant 57% (494)
Roman Catholic 40% (348)
Non determined 3% (22)

Gender:

As at 1 January 2010 the breakdown of employees by gender in the NI Court Service was:

Male 32% (275)
Female 68% (589)

Prisoners

Mr T Burns asked the Minister of Justice how many prisoners released from custody on compassionate grounds and on licence had their licence revoked in each of the last five years; and for what reasons.

(AQW 6981/10)

Minister of Justice: Over the last five years no prisoner released on licence on compassionate grounds has had that licence revoked.

During the same period the number of persons released from custody on one of a range of Prison Service licences and who have had that licence revoked is as follows:

Year	Number #
2005	7
2006	9
2007	7
2008	12
2009	13
2010*	10
Total:	58

(* as at 23 May 2010)

# These figures include 7 people who have had their licences revoked on more than one occasion over the five year period. The total number of persons involved is 51.

All persons who had their licences revoked were deemed to be in breach of the conditions of their release and to present a risk to the public.

Offences Relating to Computer Crime and Software Piracy

Mr T Burns asked Minister of Justice (i) how many offences relating to computer crime and software piracy were recorded in each of the last five years; (ii) for a breakdown of the specific types of offences; (iii) the number of cases which resulted in a conviction; (iv) the sum total of any fines which were imposed; and (v) for a summary of any other sanctions which were imposed.

(AQW 6982/10)

Minister of Justice: The table below gives the number of recorded computer related offences for the financial years 2005/06 to 2009/10.

These offences are those notifiable offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 and include ‘unauthorised alteration to computer system’, ‘unauthorised access to computer material’ and ‘unauthorised modification of computer material’.

There were no convictions for these computer related offences for the calendar years 2002 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available). Conviction data are based on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Computer related offences¹ – number recorded 2005/06-2009/10

Year	Number recorded
2005/06	0
2006/07	2
2007/08	1
2008/09	1
2009/10	1

Source: PSNI

1. Counterfeiting/piracy of goods such as DVDs are not included.

Conviction Rates for Rape and Other Sexual Offences

Mr T Burns asked the Minister of Justice for a summary of the conviction rates for (i) rape; and (ii) other sexual offences, in each of the last five years.

(AQW 6983/10)

Minister of Justice: The table below gives the number prosecuted, number convicted and the conviction rate for rape and other sexual offences. Conviction rates are based on the proportion of those prosecuted who are found guilty of the offence.

Data in the table cover the calendar years 2002 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available) and are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Number prosecuted, number convicted and the conviction rate (%)¹ for rape (including attempts) and other sexual offences² 2002-2006

Rape
	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006
Number prosecuted	30	31	37	30	37
Number convicted	10	10	18	8	11
Conviction rate (%)	33	32	49	27	30
Other sexual offences
Number prosecuted	116	153	174	190	217
Number convicted	74	98	119	128	150
Conviction rate (%)	64	64	68	67	69
All sexual offences
Number prosecuted	146	184	211	220	254
Number convicted	84	108	137	136	161
Conviction rate (%)	58	59	65	62	63

1. Conviction rates have been rounded to the nearest whole number.

2. Includes buggery, gross indecency, unlawful carnal knowledge, incest, indecent assault, indecent exposure, indecent photographs of children, bigamy and sex offender failing to notify police of change of address offences.

Sexual violence has a devastating impact on its victims. I am committed to working with Ministerial colleagues on the implementation of the 5 year Regional Strategy on Sexual Violence and Abuse which has prevention strategies, enhanced support for victims and an effective justice response as its key cornerstones. The planned opening of Northern Ireland’s first Sexual Assault Referral Centre at Antrim Area Hospital in 2011 will be one of its key achievements delivering coordinated aftercare services for victims and acting as a supportive gateway to the justice system where enhanced support services can start to reduce levels of victim withdrawal and improve conviction rates by helping victims to give their best evidence in court.

Equal Pay Settlement

Mr D O'Loan asked e Minister of Justice if the civilian staff in the PSNI, on equivalent grades to staff in the Civil Service who received the equal pay settlement, will receive an identical settlement including back pay; and when the back pay will be formally offered and paid.

(AQW 7011/10)

Minister of Justice: From October 2008, civilian staff in the PSNI have been employed by the Chief Constable on behalf of the Policing Board and he has lead responsibility for dealing with the equal pay claims.

On 9 April 2010 the NIO gave approval to the new Northern Ireland Civil Service pay scales to be applied to the relevant grades in PSNI; however this approval was without prejudice to the wider question of whether the terms of the equal pay settlement should be applied.

As my Department has an approval role under the corporate governance arrangements for the PSNI, my officials continue in discussion with the PSNI and Policing Board officials about the legal liability in respect of equal pay and the case for applying the equal pay settlement negotiated by DFP to police staff.

Policy Under Which Drugs are Banned

Mr P Weir asked e Minister of Justice what discussions his Department has had with the new Home Secretary regarding a change in the policy under which drugs are banned.

(AQW 7013/10)

Minister of Justice: I have not been in direct contact with the new Home Secretary about this issue. My officials continue to liaise with both Home Office and the Secretariat to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to ensure that I am informed of any proposed changes.

Cost of Housing a Prisoner

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Justice to outline the average cost of housing a prisoner and how this compares to the average costs in Britain and the Republic of Ireland.

(AQW 7028/10)

Minister of Justice: The table below shows the last year full year for which the Cost per Prisoner Place (CPPP) are available for the following Prison Services.

Country	2008/09
Northern Ireland	£81,340
England and Wales	£45,000
Scotland	£44,447
Republic of Ireland (year end 31 December)	€92,717

The provisional outturn for Northern Ireland for 2009/10 is £77,773, a sign of the commitment to reducing costs.

Each Prison Service is unique. HMPS is a very large organisation with almost 150 prison establishments. With only three sites, NIPS faces significant challenges in dealing effectively and economically with the diverse population of prisoners. It is also difficult to make direct comparisons as not all of the costs included in the Northern Ireland cost per place are included in CPPP for England & Wales and Scotland.

Budget for Running the Prison Service

Mr P Butler asked the Minister of Justice how much of his Department's budget is dedicated to running the Prison Service; and how much of this is spent on Prison Service staffing costs.

(AQW 7029/10)

Minister of Justice: The Assembly approved a resource DEL budget for 2010/11 for the Department of Justice of £1,223,721,000.

The Northern Ireland Prison Service resource DEL allocation is £131,686,000 which represents 10.8% of the overall Departmental Budget.

The Service has allocated £92,852,000 to cover staffing costs in 2010/11. This includes operational staff, support staff and administrative staff at Prison Establishments, the Prison Service College and Headquarters.

Police Staff Records

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Justice if the PSNI will record previous service in the RUC on new police staff records.

(AQW 7035/10)

Minister of Justice: Police staff records are a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable, who will respond directly.

Test Results for Illegal Substances

Mr D McKay asked the Minister of Justice for his assessment of the fact that only 21% of test results for illegal substances are being reported back to the PSNI within eighty days of submission to the Forensic Science Service compared to the target of 60%; and what steps he is taking to address this problem.

(AQW 7037/10)

Minister of Justice: The timeframes referred to relate to the targets agreed between Forensic Science Northern Ireland (FSNI) and PSNI in the 09-10 Service Level Agreement and specifically the performance against the targets for cannabis and powder analysis. The SLA also agrees the submission levels at which FSNI can meet the agreed timeframes. In 09-10 PSNI heavily over submitted (by 147% for cannabis and 130% for powder) against the agreed capacity and hence the timeliness targets were adversely affected. A revised SLA with PSNI is currently being developed to better align the PSNI demand with FSNI capacity. FSNI have also recently agreed with PSNI a submission management model whereby cases are prioritised to allow FSNI to concentrate on those cases where their input provides most benefit. In addition FSNI are also considering the staffing levels within the team that provides this service to ensure that future demands are met. I am confident that the introduction of these measures will ensure an improvement in the FSNI performance against the 10-11 targets.

Test Results on Illegal Substances

Mr D McKay asked e Minister of Justice for his assessment of the fact that that 22% of test results on illegal substances being reported back to the PSNI are taking longer than 140 days to complete by the Forensic Science Service.

(AQW 7041/10)

Minister of Justice: The figures referred to relate to the performance targets agreed between Forensic Science Northern Ireland (FSNI) and PSNI in the Service Level Agreement for 09-10. The SLA also agrees the submission levels at which FSNI can meet the agreed timeframes. In 09-10 PSNI heavily over submitted (by 147% for cannabis cases and 130% for powder cases) against the agreed capacity for drugs cases and hence the timeliness targets were adversely affected. The majority of cases are reported prior to 140 days.

Fixed Penalty Scheme Against Speeding Motorists

Mr G Campbell asked the Minister of Justice what was the total revenue raised by the use of the Fixed Penalty scheme against speeding motorists in each police division in 2009.

(AQW 7051/10)

Minister of Justice: The issue of a fixed penalty notice can require payment to be made to the Fixed Penalty Office or, in the case of non-payment, by way of a fine subsequently imposed through the courts.

Payments to the Fixed Penalty Office include those where the offence was detected either by mobile or fixed camera, and a Conditional Offer Fixed Penalty Notice (COFPN) has been issued. While the greater proportion of COFPN’s are detections for excess speed, these notices also include detections of red light running by fixed cameras. A Fixed Penalty Notice is also issued for offences detected by hand held laser devices; this type of Fixed Penalty Notice is known as an ‘endorseable’ ticket.

There are a number of other offences for which a fixed penalty is issued. The total sum received by the Fixed Penalty Office in 2009 was £3,182,345 of which £1,023,734 was in respect of COFPNs. It is not possible to differentiate these amounts further by the type of fixed penalty or by police district.

However the police have provided information on the number of speeding tickets (Table 1) and red light tickets (Table 2) issued in each police district for 2009.

Table 1

SPEEDING DETECTIONS BY DISTRICT - 2009
DCU/RPCU SPEEDING OFFENCES	‘A’District	‘B’District	‘C’District	‘D’District	‘E’District	‘F’District	‘G’District	‘H’District	TOTAL
DCU POLICE	33	87	414	1126	554	158	574	626	3594
FIXED SITE CAMERAS	336	578	1568	-	-	-	-	-	2482
ROADS POLICING	199	563	1931	3568	8050	4382	4421	4738	27887

Table 2
DETECTIONS FOR RUNNING A RED LIGHT BY DISTRICT - 2009
DISTRICT LOCATIONS		TOTAL
‘A’ DISTRICT	COLLEGE AVENUE, BELFAST	72
	MILLFIELD, BELFAST	206
	YORK LINK, BELFAST	91
	YORK STREET, BELFAST	30
‘B’ DISTRICT	MIDDLEPATH STREET, BELFAST	279
‘C’ DISTRICT	-	-
‘D’ DISTRICT	-	-
‘E’ DISTRICT	-	-
‘F’ DISTRICT	-	-
‘G’DISTRICT	GLENSHANE ROAD, LONDONDERRY	164
‘H’DISTRICT	-	-
TOTAL		842

Table 3 sets out the information on amounts paid in 2009 for court imposed fines; this arises where a fixed penalty for excess speed has not been paid and as a result the matter has been registered with the court for enforcement.

Table 3

COURT OFFICE	TOTAL PAID £
ANTRIM	1620.00
ARMAGH	990.00
BALLYMENA	1560.00
BANBRIDGE	810.00
BANGOR	850.00
COLERAINE	2610.00
CRAIGAVON	1440.00
DOWNPATRICK	720.00
DUNGANNON	1890.00
ENNISKILLEN	1020.00
LAGANSIDE	5050.00
LARNE	630.00
LIMAVADY	1170.00
LISBURN	1740.00
LONDONDERRY	2740.00
MAGHERAFELT	1530.00
NEWRY	1680.00
NEWTOWNARDS	2660.00
OMAGH	1980.00
STRABANE	1470.00
TOTAL	£34,160.00

Drug Seizures

Mr A McQuillan asked the Minister of Justice how many drug seizures have taken place in each policing district since the appointment of the current Chief Constable; and for the estimated monetary value of seizures in each district.

(AQW 7063/10)

Minister of Justice: The recording of the number of drug seizures conducted by the PSNI is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable, who will respond directly.

Front-line Duties

Mr A McQuillan asked the Minister of Justice how many officers have been assigned front-line duties since the appointment of the current Chief Constable; and what percentage of these have been reserve constables.

(AQW 7077/10)

Minister of Justice: The deployment of officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable, who will respond directly.

Legal Aid

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice if he intends to review the policy of automatically granting legal aid to foreign nationals, because of language barriers, regardless of their financial status.

(AQW 7088/10)

Minister of Justice: There is no policy of automatically granting legal aid to foreign nationals, because of language barriers, regardless of their financial status. This applies in respect of both civil and criminal legal aid. I have no plans for review.

Civil legal aid is granted to applicants, including foreign nationals, regardless of their financial status, only in prescribed circumstances.

For criminal proceedings, all applicants are means tested for criminal legal aid. Legal advice is provided at police stations to all persons without an assessment of means, including foreign nationals.

Community Safety Plans

Mr A McQuillan asked the Minister of Justice what he is doing to ensure that the voice of older people is heard during the development and implementation of community safety plans.

(AQW 7089/10)

Minister of Justice: The ‘Safer Ageing’ Strategy, published in November 2009, was developed working in close partnership with older people’s representatives including the Older Person’s Advocate, Age Sector Platform and Centre for Intergenerational Practice.

These groups are also key to the implementation of the Strategy, and sit on the ‘Safer Ageing’ Steering Group. This close partnership ensures that older people’s representatives have a strong voice in the delivery of the actions set out in the Strategy’s Action Plan.

Access NI Checks

Mr A Ross asked e Minister of Justice what plans he has to reduce the time taken to process Access NI checks.

(AQW 7107/10)

Minister of Justice: AccessNI met all of its published service standards for the delivery of certificates in 2009/10. This was a significant improvement over 2008/09. The average time for delivery of a disclosure during 2009/10, was as set out below;

Basic disclosure	8.33 days
Standard disclosure	8.33 days
Enhanced disclosure	15.41 days

AccessNI continually reviews it processes to determine whether any improvements can be made to reduce the time taken for processing of applications. A customer survey in 2009/10 indicated that 87% of all customers were satisfied with the service provided.

Driving Without Insurance

Mr A Ross asked e Minister of Justice how many motorists have been convicted of driving without insurance in the East Antrim constituency, in each of the last 3 years.

(AQW 7108/10)

Minister of Justice: The table below gives the number in the East Antrim constituency convicted of the offence ‘no insurance’.

Data cover the calendar years 2004 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available) and are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Number convicted of the offence ‘no insurance’ - East Antrim constituency¹ 2004-2006

Year	East Antrim constituency
2004	168
2005	141
2006	105

1. Based on the constituency in which the offender’s address falls.

Youth Justice Agency

Mr J O'Dowd asked e Minister of Justice how many children and young people in the (i) Craigavon Council; and (ii) Banbridge Council areas are currently engaged in youth conferencing with the Youth Justice Agency.

(AQW 7125/10)

Minister of Justice: At end of April 2010 (i) 67 young people in the Craigavon Council area and (ii) 18 young people in the Banbridge Council area were engaged in youth conferencing with the Youth Justice Agency. These young people have met with their victims at a youth conference, and having agreed a reparative action plan are subject to youth conference orders / plans.

Security Provision for Judges

Lord Morrow asked the Minister of Justice to detail the annual cost to his Department of security provision for (i) District Judges; (ii) Crown Court Judges; and (iii) High Court Judges.

(AQW 7131/10)

Minister of Justice: The annual cost to the Department of Justice for security provision for (i) District Judges: (ii) Crown Court Judges; and (iii) High Court Judges is presented in the table below;

Total	£7,690,820
	2009/10 £
District Judges	3,205,194
Crown Court Judges	2,763,638
High Court Judges	1,723,988

Criminal Justice Inspectorate

Mr A Maskey asked the Minister of Justice if he has any plans to collate, analyse or take forward any outstanding recommendations made by the Criminal Justice Inspectorate.

(AQW 7148/10)

Minister of Justice: Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJINI) carries out a wide range of inspections across the criminal justice system and organisations prepare action plans in response to recommendations made by CJINI. Those plans are published along with the inspection report, where possible, to demonstrate how it is proposed to take the recommendations forward.

After a period of time has elapsed, CJINI revisits the organisation(s) and undertakes a follow-up review. A report is published on the findings.

It is the responsibility of individual organisations to monitor progress against action plans to ensure that recommendations made by CJINI are implemented as appropriate. I am, however, exploring what further mechanisms might help ensure the delivery of strategic recommendations.

Personality Disorder Assessment

Ms C Ní Chuilín asked the Minister of Justice how many prisoners are currently awaiting a personality disorder assessment.

(AQW 7175/10)

Minister of Justice: There are currently six prisoners in Northern Ireland awaiting a Personality Disorder Assessment.

Legal Aid

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice to outline the projected spend on legal aid for (i) 2010/11; and (ii) 2011/12.

(AQW 7192/10)

Minister of Justice: Projected Legal Aid Expenditure for 2010/11 and 2011/12

Financial Year 2010/11 2011/12

Projected Legal Aid Expenditure £'m
95.7

82.3

The expenditure figures provided above reflect projected programme expenditure and exclude the administrative costs of running the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission.

Legal Aid

Mr P Weir asked the Minister of Justice how much was spent on legal aid in each of the last five years.

(AQW 7193/10)

Minister of Justice: Legal Aid Expenditure from 2005/06 - 2009/10

Financial Year	2005/06	2006/07	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10
Legal Aid Expenditure £'m	57.5	69	72.4	83.3	96.8

The expenditure figures provided above exclude the administrative costs of running the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission.

Sexual Offences Against Children

Mr T Burns asked e Minister of Justice to detail (i) the number of sexual offences against children, by sports teachers or coaches in a position of trust, recorded by the PSNI in each of the last five years; and (ii) the number of convictions secured.

(AQW 7210/10)

Minister of Justice: I regret that the information is not held in the format requested. It is possible only to provide figures for those sexual offences, which in their definition, refer to abuse of position of trust. The table below gives the number of these offences recorded for the financial years 2005/06 to 2009/10.

There were no convictions for abuse of position of trust offences for the calendar years 2002 to 2006 (the latest year for which figures are currently available). Conviction data are based on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence for which an offender is convicted is included.

Sexual offences which refer to abuse of position of trust¹ – number recorded 2005/06-2009/10

Year	Number recorded
2005/06	0
2006/07	2
2007/08	2
2008/09	3
2009/10	2

Source: PSNI

1. Abuse of position of trust relates to those offences where a person aged 18 or over intentionally behaves in certain sexual ways in relation to a child aged under 18, where the adult is in a position of trust in respect of the child. Position of trust covers persons age under 18 looked after in a range of situations including institutions, residential homes, hospital accommodation and those enrolled at educational establishments. The figures provided above cover all offences occurring in any relevant situation.

Calls Made by the Public to the Police

Mr P Butler asked e Minister of Justice what measures and procedures the PSNI has in place to record all calls made by the public to the police.

(AQW 7280/10)

Minister of Justice: This handling of calls to the PSNI is a matter for the Chief Constable, who is accountable to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. I am committed to respecting the operational independence of the Chief Constable and the role of the Policing Board, and I have forwarded this Question to the Chief Constable, who will respond directly.

DEPARTMENT FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Water Meters

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail (i) how many water meters installed by NI Water have been reclassified from trial meters; (ii) how many of these have been installed to connections which serve domestic properties; (iii) the cost of installing these meters; and (iv) how many bills have been sent out with no domestic allowance included since the re-classification of these meters.

(AQW 6737/10)

Minister for Regional Development (Mr C Murphy): I am advised by Northern Ireland Water (NIW) that it has installed no meters classified as ‘test meters’ since it became water and sewerage undertaker on 1 April 2007. However, around 11,000 ‘test meters’ installed by the Department for Regional Development’s Water Service have been identified and are being reviewed to determine their correct meter status. To date around 8,000 ‘test meters’ have been reclassified to other categories including billed and domestic or been removed. This work is scheduled for completion by end of September 2010.

Of the ‘test meters’ identified it has been confirmed that around 2,900 serve a domestic property and a similar number are awaiting confirmation that they serve a domestic property. NIW has no record of the cost of installing these ‘test meters’ and is unable to provide this detail. Over 1,000 ‘test meters’ have been reclassified as billed but the rateable allowance is not automatically included in non domestic bills and must be applied for by customers with proof of eligibility.

River Closket

Mr J O'Dowd asked the Minister for Regional Development, pursuant to AQW 6028/10, (i) whether any of the harmful substances found in the River Closket were at a higher level than expected in such a watercourse; and (ii) whether the environment of the river or surrounding land has been damaged by high concentrations of harmful substances.

(AQW 6749/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I have been advised by Northern Ireland Water (NIW) that the survey undertaken on its behalf by the Water Research Centre (WRc) analysed sediment samples but did not sample river water. The survey found that the Closet River sediments should be treated as non-hazardous and were not harmful but indicated elevated levels of Copper and Zinc. However, the quality of river sediments will vary greatly depending on the inputs to the river including run off or discharges from industrial sites, and a typical level of substances in sediments could not be defined.

WRc did not comment on the wider environmental impact of the elevated Copper and Zinc concentrations in the sediments but indicated that they posed a minimal risk to cattle through ingestion and that that there was no significant contamination by the other substances determined.

Translink

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development whether he intends to review Translink's policy on concessionary fares.

(AQW 6778/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I have no plans to review the Concessionary Fares Scheme which offers fare concessions to members of the public who hold valid Smartpasses.

With regards to the Scheme operated by Translink in respect of Travel Concessions for Employees’ Spouses / Civil Partners / Partners and Dependants, Translink has advised me that the policy is reviewed on an ongoing basis, with the involvement of staff representatives. Translink have told me the scheme is similar to that operated by other Irish transport operators, those based in Britain and has been in place for a number of decades in respect of employees and spouses since 2001 and for dependants since 2006.

In recent years I have required Translink to take account of Department of Finance and Personnel pay guidance in negotiating pay and conditions annually. This guidance sets out general pay limits and refers to the need to take account of the overall remuneration package as well as the constraints imposed by ‘legally’ binding terms and conditions negotiated by employers. I will continue to monitor the situation in light of the general pay and remuneration guidelines as they apply to Translink and understand that this issue could form part of the next round of negotiations between Translink and staff representations. I will be raising this issue at the next Bi-Annual review meeting with Translink on 16 June.

Translink

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development how many spouses and dependants of Translink employees benefit from concessionary or free fares; and (ii) to detail the cost of these fares in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6779/10)

Minister for Regional Development: (i) Translink has advised that there are 2,404 ‘spouse’ passes and 1,449 ‘dependants’ passes in circulation at May 2010. It should be noted 162 of these passes will cease to be valid at the end of June 2010.

(ii) There is a nominal cost to the organisation for the production of these travel passes similar to the Senior Smartpass 60+ Pass or the Education and Library Board pass for school children. Unfortunately, Translink have informed me that it is unable to provide me with any costings in relation to the cost of travel made using these cards to the organisation, as the company does not extract this specific data from its’ information management systems. The number of individual journeys made using such passes is recorded as part of its overall passenger journey information, but Translink argue it is difficult to accurately estimate an opportunity cost to this benefit. The essential difficulty is the assumption that can be made about likely take up of public transport tickets if the concession for spouses/dependants was not in place and the cost of the journeys undertaken. It is acknowledged, however, that this will be material.

Translink

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development to outline Translink's policy on free or concessionary fares for spouses or dependants of employees.

(AQW 6780/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Translink argue that the practice of operating a scheme of this nature is considered to be common practice in the public transport sector. The scheme has been in place for decades but the extention of the scheme for spouses and partners was introduced in June 2001 and extended to dependants with effect from September 2006. These concessions appear to have formed an integral part of the general remuneration negotiation with staff. Such passes are viewed, by Translink, as a vital measure in attracting and retaining staff.

Translink has advised me that a travel pass for a spouse/civil partner/partner or child will be issued if the employee has successfully completed his or her probationary period and upon receipt of an application with supporting legal documentation and a passport sized photograph which has been endorsed by the proposed holder (in the case of a child the photograph will be endorsed by the employee).

Free travel will be granted on presentation of the travel pass on any NIR Railways, Ulsterbus or Metro scheduled services within the appropriate network. This does not include tours, cross channel services, private hire, cross border, special services or events. Passes will be withdrawn on the termination of the employee’s employment with the company or where there has been misuse of a travel pass. A child photo-personalised pass is programmed for a 5 year validity term or will expire on 30 June following the dependant child’s 16th birthday, or earlier when the employee’s service ends.

Disruption to the Water Supply Because of Flooding

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister for Regional Development if she would consider providing extra bowsers in areas that have suffered in recent years from disruption to the water supply because of flooding.

(AQW 6805/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I have been advised by Northern Ireland Water (NIW) that in line with its Customer Charter commitment it will provide alternative water supplies, including the use of bowsers and bottled water, to customers without water for more than 24 hours.

Customers who are dependant, for health reasons, on equipment that requires water can apply for inclusion on NIW’s Critical Care Register. Customers accepted on the Register will receive priority during the distribution of alternative water supplies and can apply for inclusion on this register by contacting Waterline on 08457 440088.

Pay and Display Car Parks

Lord Morrow asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the revenue raised from the Pay and Display car parks in Scotch Street North and Scotch Street South, Dungannon, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6832/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that the amount of revenue raised from the Scotch Street North car park in each of the last three financial years is as follows:-

Revenue Raised From Scotch Street North Car Park
Year	Amount
2007/08	£48,519.00
2008/09	£46,569.00
2009/10*	£38,758.00

* For 2009/10 there was a reduction in the number of charged spaces in the car park.

The Scotch Street South car park is not a charged car park.

All revenue generated from car parking charges, as well as income from parking Penalty Charge Notices, is used to supplement the overall financing of Roads Service, by Central Government. The cost of managing off-street car parks and enforcing the on-street parking restrictions exceeds the total revenue received.

Pay and Display Car Parks

Lord Morrow asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the revenue raised from the Pay and Display car parks in Ann Street East and Ann Street West, Dungannon, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6834/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that the amount of revenue raised from the Ann Street East car park in each of the last three financial years is as follows:-

Revenue Raised From Ann Street East Car Park
Year	Amount
2007/08	£14,600.00
2008/09	£12,727.00
2009/10*	£11,358.00

The Ann Street West car park is not a charged car park.

Key Transport Corridors

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister for Regional Development the percentage by which journey times in key transport corridors have been reduced since 2003.

(AQW 6842/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that it is in the process of preparing its latest biennial report on journey times, based on the most recent surveys carried out in November 2009. The last surveys, for which results are available, were carried out in 2007 and indicated an overall rise of around 19% in journey times on the key transport corridors against a base line position established in 2003.

It is envisaged that a reduction in journey times on the key transport corridors will be achieved, largely through the implementation of the Strategic Road Improvement (SRI) Programme. With typical lead in times of 6 years and construction periods of up to 2 - 3 years for major road schemes, the benefits to be realised by the network as a whole, cannot be expected to materialise until around the end of the Regional Strategic Transport Network Transport Plan period in 2015.

In the intervening period, an increase in car ownership and construction of major schemes will have an adverse effect on journey times.

Strategic Road Improvement Schemes

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister for Regional Development for an update on the completion of all the Strategic Road Improvement Schemes identified in the objective 1 of Public Service Agreement 13 within the 2008 budget period.

(AQW 6843/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I am pleased to report that excellent progress has been made to date on those Strategic Road Improvement schemes indentified in the Public Service Agreement (PSA) target 13 for completion within the Budget 2008 period. The current position is summarised in the table below:-

PSA 13 Improving the Transport infrastructure

Objective:- Improve the Strategic Road Network by the advancement/completion of a range of major works schemes.
Action:- Complete the following Strategic Road Improvement Schemes within the Budget 2008 period (i.e. during the period to 31 March 2011).
Scheme	Status
M1/Westlink upgrade	Completed in March 2009.
M2 widening	Completed in June 2009.
A1 Beech Hill to Cloghogue dualling	Under construction.
A1 Junction Improvements	Two completed in September 2009. Two completed in December 2009.
A4 Dungannon to Ballygawley dualling	Under construction.
A4/A5 Improvements (A4 Annaghilla and A5 Tullyvar)	Completed in February 2010.
A26/M2 Ballee Road East	Under construction.
A4 Henry Street/Sligo Road	Completed December 2008.
A32 Cherrymount Link, Enniskillen	Advance ground consolidation works undertaken 2009/2010.
A32 Dromore – Irvinestown – Enniskillen realignments	Schemes under development.
A29 Carland Bridge Improvement	Under construction.
A20 Newtownards Southern Distributor	Completed in July 2009.
A20 Newtownards Frederick Street Link	Completed in November 2008.

It is anticipated that all schemes currently under construction will be completed within this financial year.

It is also anticipated that the ground consolidation measures taking effect at Cherrymount Link, Enniskillen, will be followed by the main construction works next year, and that further improvements to the A32 will be completed, before the opening of the new hospital in Enniskillen in 2012.

Speed Humps

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development to outline the criteria used in deciding to install speed humps as opposed to other traffic calming methods.

(AQW 6854/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service’s traffic calming policy aims to manage vehicle speed and driver behaviour, primarily in order to reduce collisions, especially those involving vulnerable road users. Traffic calming measures are normally considered for residential and other urban areas.

During the design of traffic calming schemes, Roads Service considers different types of traffic calming measures. These include vertical measures, such as road humps, speed cushions and tables. A range of measures without vertical deflections, which include kerb build-outs and central refuge islands (to create pinch points), mini roundabouts and other forms of priority control are also considered. Signing and lining features, such as road markings, rumble strips and coloured surfacing are sometimes used on their own, or in combination with other physical measures, for example, to highlight ‘gateway’ entrances to villages.

When deciding upon the final measures that can be introduced onto a road, account is taken of various factors. Within residential areas, these factors include, for instance, the proximity of private driveways, forward sight distances and the impact such measures may have on on-street parking. Research indicates that features, such as pinch points, work best when there is high two-way traffic flow and where forward sight lines are good. This however, would not be the case in the majority of residential housing developments.

Vertical features, such as road humps, speed cushions and tables are used in many cases because they are recognised as being the most effective in terms of reducing traffic speeds and collisions.

Ultimately, engineering judgement has to be applied to ensure that the features to be implemented are appropriate and likely to be effective.

Speed Humps

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development what is the average cost of (i) installing; and (ii) removing a speed hump.

(AQW 6855/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that there are many different factors that impact upon the cost of implementing traffic calming measures. Primarily, the size and shape of speed humps will differ, depending on the location and characteristics of the site. In addition, the cost of setting up traffic management, to ensure the appropriate site safety measures are implemented must be taken into consideration, as will the number of advisory signs that have to be erected following the completion of the scheme.

Given the various factors that have to be considered, it is not possible for Roads Service to provide a definitive indication of the cost of installing and removing a speed hump. However, it has been estimated that the installation of a single road hump in a traffic calmed street, without the expense of implementing traffic management measures, will cost roughly £260. To remove a similar hump will cost approximately £120.

Speed Humps

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Regional Development how many speed humps have been installed in each of the last five years; and how many of these have been subsequently removed.

(AQW 6856/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service does not specifically record the total number of road humps installed in the North, as the business target for this area of work focuses on the number of traffic calming schemes implemented. However, these schemes can include one or more streets and may also be comprised of other traffic calming measures, such as kerb build outs and chicanes.

The number of traffic calming schemes implemented over the last five years is as follows:

2005 – 2006: 50 projects

2006 – 2007: 36 projects

2007 – 2008: 44 projects

2008 – 2009: 52 projects

2009 – 2010: 52 projects

Of these 234 projects undertaken over the last five years, only 18 individual road humps have been removed.

Ferry Service

Mr T Burns asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the number of (i) passengers; (ii) cars; and (iii) commercial vehicles carried on each ferry service, in each of the last five years.

(AQW 6869/10)

Minister for Regional Development: (i) Statistics on passengers carried on ferry services through the North’s ports are set out in the Department for Regional Development’s Annual Transport Statistics publication 2008-2009. The table below provides this information for the last six available years (2003-2008):

Domestic Sea Passengers at Northern Ireland Ports 2003-2008

NI PORT	GB PORT	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
NI PORT	GB PORT	Thousands
Belfast	Heysham	6	6	6	5	4	3
Belfast	Liverpool	150	158	167	171	187	190
Belfast	Stranraer	1,363	1,319	1,235	1,212	1,217	1,104
Belfast	Troon*	368	303	-	-	-	-
Larne	Cairnryan	599	595	602	595	646	628
Larne	Fleetwood	67	72	62	59	61	58
Larne	Troon	100	120	214	208	231	206
Warrenpoint	Heysham	6	4	7	7	5	6
All NI Ports		2,657	2,576	2,292	2,257	2,351	2,194

NI PORT	IOM PORT	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
NI PORT	IOM PORT	Thousands
Belfast	Douglas	30	29	18	18	22	21

Source: Maritime Statistics DfT

*Belfast – Troon route closed in December 2004.

(ii) Statistics on the number of cars travelling through the ports at Larne and Belfast between 2005 and 2009 are compiled by NITB and are set out in the table below:

Number of cars travelling through the Ports of Belfast and Larne 2005-2009

	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
LARNE CARS	212,552	205,310	239,268	227,630	230,014
BELFAST CARS	315,233	308,686	316,260	292,053	288,712

Figures for ‘Cars’ may include other non-commercial vehicles. Figures relate to the total number of cars travelling through each port i.e. inbound and outbound combined.

Source: Northern Ireland Tourist Board

(iii) Information on the number of commercial vehicles carried on each ferry service is not available. However, the number of freight units passing through each port is available from the Department for Enterprise, Trade and Investment’s Northern Ireland Ports Traffic publication. The table below provides this information for the last five available years.

Number of freight units¹ passing through the North’s ports, 2004-2008

	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
BELFAST	399,894	397,124	403,564	412,613	390,583
LARNE	342,760	359,427	360,140	371,547	353,402
WARRENPOINT	57,917	79,150	98,144	97,431	92,967

Figures relate to the total number of freight units¹ travelling through each port i.e. inbound and outbound combined.

Freight units are defined as containers, road goods vehicles, unaccompanied trailers, rail wagons, shipborne port-to-port trailers and shipborne barges.

Source: NI Ports Traffic publication, DETI

Pay and Display Car Parking

Lord Morrow asked the Minister for Regional Development if he plans to extend Pay and Display car parking to other towns within the Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council area.

(AQW 6889/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that it currently has no plans to extend Pay and Display Parking to other towns in the Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council area.

NI Water

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister for Regional Development how many complaints, per constituency, his Department received in the last year in relation to the customer service of NI Water.

(AQW 6895/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Most complaints about customer service will be raised initially with Northern Ireland Water (NIW). If the complainant is not satisfied with NIW’s response they will either contact my Department or the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland.

Between 1 May 2009 and 19 May 2010 my Department received 24 complaints about the customer service of NIW. The Department passes all complaints it receives to the Consumer Council for appropriate action.

My Department does not maintain an analysis of complaints on a constituency basis, it does, however, keep a record of all complaints forwarded to the Consumer Council. The nature of these complaints is detailed in the table below:

No.	Date Received	Issue	Location
1	27/07/09	Wayleave compensation	Dungiven
2	27/07/09	NIW Charges for Church properities	Belleek/Garrison
3	28/07/09	Poor Customer Service	Bangor
4	10/08/09	Billing Dispute	Ballymena
5	24/08/09	NIW Manhole Flooding	Belfast
6	27/08/09	Sewerage and Flooding	Larne
7	11/09/09	Proposed connection work	Rasharkin
8	17/09/09	Water Leak	Comber
9	23/09/09	Delay of bill	Comber
10	23/09/09	Flooding	Belfast
11	25/09/09	New Pipe – poor customer service	Larne
12	27/10/09	Breaks in Water Supply	Newtownards
13	22/12/09	Provision of Water Meters	Newtownards
14	25/03/10	Delayed water connection	Lisburn
15	31/03/10	Lack of water connection	Magherafelt
16	31/03/10	Procurement for Small sewerage schemes	Newry
17	31/03/10	Leakage costs	Belfast
18	31/03/10	Lack of response to query	Fivemiletown
19	08/04/10	Notice of disconnection	Email No Address
20	09/04/10	NIW data inaccuracies	Mayobridge/Newry
21	27/04/10	Sewer flooding	Belfast
22	28/04/10	Water meter installation	Belfast
23	04/05/10	Raw sewerage	Greyabbey
24	12/05/10	Cost of upgraded water supply	Randalstown

Road Works

Mr D McKay asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail (i) the location; and (ii) the timescale of any road works due to be carried out by Roads Service or NI Water in the North Antrim constituency in 2010/11.

(AQW 6899/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I refer the member to my Department’s Roads Service’s Spring and Autumn Reports to Moyle, Ballymoney and Ballymena Councils. These contain details of road schemes proposed and completed in the North Antrim constituency and the latest reports can be accessed from the Roads Service internet site, at the following web address:

http://www.roadsni.gov.uk/index/publications/publications-council_reports.htm

Northern Ireland Water (NIW) has advised that it does not hold details of capital infrastructure projects on a parliamentary constituency basis. However, NIW projects, to be undertaken in the North Antrim area in the 2010/11 financial year, which will require road works, are detailed in the following table:-

Location	Timing (note, dependent on outcome of detailed design and contract procurement)
Portglenone Drainage Area Plan	On-going
Tardree Zonal Watermain Improvements. Depending on the outcome of more detailed surveys, there may be an impact on the following roads:-	Summer 2010.
Carnalbanagh Road
Cloneytrace Road/Tullymore Road
Craigdoo Road
Moorefields Road
Moorefields Rd/Scottstown Rd
Rargkeel Road
Speerstown Road
Tully Road
Ballycastle Zonal Watermain Improvements. Depending on the outcome of more detailed surveys, there may be an impact on the following roads:-	Spring 2011. The majority of this work is likely to be undertaken in the 2011/12 financial year.
Ballinlea Road
Cabragh Rd/Fivey Rd/Moyan Rd/Toberdoney Rd
Carrowreagh Road
Coolkeeran Road
Dun-a-mallaght Rd and Crescent
Glensesk Road
Hillside Road
Knockmore Road
Lagavara Road
Moyan Road
Moycraig Road
Pharis Road
Straid Road
Stroan Road
Urbal Road
Railway Terrace, Armoy, storm sewer and watermain	Development driven
Storm Sewer at Giant's Causeway Centre	Development driven

Traffic Calming Schemes

Mr D McKay asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the traffic calming schemes (i) implemented since 2009; (ii) currently underway; and (iii) at the planning or consultation stage in the North Antrim constituency.

(AQW 6900/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Details of traffic calming schemes completed by my Department’s Roads Service in the North Antrim constituency, since 2009, are set out in the table below:

Traffic Calming Schemes completed since 2009
Name of Scheme	Streets included in scheme
St Patrick's and St Bridget’s Primary School	Moyle Road, Ballycastle
Straidbilly Primary School, Liscolman	Carnbore Road
William Pinkerton Primary School, Dervock	Knock Road
Martinstown village	Glenravel Road and Lisnamanny Road
St Mary’s Primary School, Portglenone	Ballymena Road

Roads Service has advised that there are no traffic calming schemes currently underway.

Details of traffic calming schemes currently at the planning or consultation stage in the North Antrim constituency, are set out in the table below:

Traffic Calming Schemes currently at the planning or consultation stage
Bushmills Primary School, Bushmills	Priestland Road (Safer routes to Schools)
Ballycastle	Whitehill Estate (Pilot 20 mph zones)
Dunloy	Bridge Road

I would remind the Member that information on completed and proposed roads schemes can be found in Roads Service’s Spring and Autumn Reports to Councils. These reports can be accessed from the Roads Service internet site at the following web address:

www.roadsni.gov.uk/index/publications/publications-council_reports.htm

Public Service Agreement 13

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister for Regional Development what percentage of the motorway and trunk road network was in satisfactory structural condition at March 2010, in accordance with objective 2 of Public Service Agreement 13.

(AQW 6905/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that, at March 2010, 72.4% of the Motorway and Trunk Road Network was in satisfactory structural condition.

Junction Between the A57 and the M2

Mr D Kinahan asked the Minister for Regional Development what plans his Department has to realign the junction between the A57 and the M2.

(AQW 6913/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that it currently has no plans to carry out any realignment work at the junction between the A57 and the M2.

However, I can advise that Translink is taking forward a project to provide Park and Ride facilities at Ballymartin. This project will be completed over several phases and in the first phase, over 400 bus-based spaces will be provided. Translink has advised that Phase 1 was scheduled for completion in 2010, but following alterations to the project, the current target date for Phase 1 is now 2012, subject to the necessary approvals and the availability of funding at the time.

The Phase 2 of the project will provide for a rail halt with an island platform and terminal building, with an ultimate target of 650 parking spaces, including 28 disabled parking spaces. This phase is planned for 2016/17. However, this will be dependent on the successful completion of other rail-based projects, including dualling of the track between Bleach Green and Ballymena, the dualling of a section of the Dargan Bridge, the availability of additional rolling stock, and the availability of the necessary funding at the time.

Junction 5 of the M2

Mr D Kinahan asked the Minister for Regional Development for his assessment of the safety of the layout of junction 5 of the M2.

(AQW 6915/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that junction 5 of the M2, which services the A57 Ballyclare Road, is known as a "half clover leaf junction". This design of junction requires motorists to make right turns into and out of the slip roads, by crossing the lanes for oncoming traffic. At the time of its design, the close proximity of the railway line and its bridge over the M2 influenced the choice of junction.

Roads Service has implemented a number of improvements in recent years, including a Collision Remedial Scheme in 2003 that reduced the dual carriageway to a single lane carriageway, to improve the safety of crossing vehicles. At the same time, the width of the central reservation was also increased to help accommodate larger vehicles. Following the completion of this scheme, there has been a reduction in the number of accidents at this location from ten in the three years preceding the scheme, to seven in the three years after.

In addition, Translink currently has an application with Planning Service (T/2009/0042/F) for the development of a major Park and Ride facility at this location, to be known as Ballymartin Park and Ride. The successful operation of the facility will require significant changes to the road network on the A57 Ballyclare Road.

As part of the planning application process for this proposal, officials from Roads Service’s Development Control and Consultancy Sections have been working with Translink’s agents to agree a satisfactory road layout. I understand that this consultation is nearing an agreed conclusion, which will allow Planning Service to determine the application.

Telemetry Validation Project

Mr G Savage asked the Minister for Regional Development, in light of the restructuring of NI Water's mechanical engineering function in 2008, which management level(s) identified the skill and experience of staff employed under CO 71 as suitable for the Telemetry Validation Project.

(AQW 6916/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I am advised by Northern Ireland Water (NIW) that employees of contractors engaged under a tendered contract arrangement are not deemed to be NIW employees.

In the case of contract C071, the allocation of staff to work on the Telemetry Validation Project was undertaken by the contractor, Williams Industrial Services.

Speed Bumps

Mr D McKay asked the Minister for Regional Development to list all the 'A' roads in each division which have had speed bumps installed on them in the past ten years.

(AQW 6923/10)

Minister for Regional Development: The table below lists the ‘A’ class roads in each of my Department’s Roads Service divisions, on which speed bumps have been installed in the last ten years:

‘A’ class roads on which speed bumps have been installed
Southern Division	A2 Main Street, Newcastle
	A25 Newry Street, Rathfriland
	A26 Bridge Street, Banbridge
Western Division	A29 Carland Road, Dungannon

No speed bumps have been installed on A class roads in Roads Service’s Eastern Division and Northern Division, in the last ten years.

Parking on Clearways

Mr C McDevitt asked the Minister for Regional Development how many people have been penalised for parking their vehicles on clearways after 18.00, between Monday to Friday, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6944/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has advised that, at almost all locations, urban clearway restrictions terminate at 18.00 Monday to Friday. Therefore, Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) cannot be issued to vehicles parked on this type of carriageway after 18.00.

Urban clearway restrictions in Portadown and Banbridge terminate at 18.15, however, no PCNs have been issued after 18.00 at these locations.

Speed Humps

Mr A Easton asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the cost of installing speed humps in North Down, in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6952/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Details of expenditure by Roads Service on traffic calming schemes, which include the provision of road humps, in the North Down Borough Council area, in each of the last three years is provided in the table below.

Traffic Calming Schemes in North Down Borough Council
Financial Year	Name of Scheme	Cost of scheme
2007/2008	Ballyholme Road, Bangor	£49,688
	Rathmore Road, Bangor	£21,633
	Victoria Road / Clifton Road, Bangor	£67,986
	Broadway, Bangor	£20,000
2008/2009	Grays Hill, Bangor	£14,645
2008/2009	Drumhirk Drive, Bangor	£51,544
2009/2010	Castle Park Road, Bangor	£36,780

Review of Public Administration

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the cost to date of the Review of Public Administration to his Department and its agencies.

(AQW 6993/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service has incurred costs of £2,500 for consultant’s fees for the Review of Public Administration. In addition, Roads Service has incurred the following staff costs to 31 March 2010 as a result of the Review:

05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10

£59,000

£59,000

£72,000

£72,000

£103,000

Minor Capital Spend by Roads Service

Mr G Campbell asked the Minister for Regional Development to detail the Minor Capital Spend by Roads Service in each Council area in (i) 2008; and (ii) 2009.

(AQW 7050/10)

Minister for Regional Development: My Department’s Roads Service does not maintain records on a calendar year basis. It does, however, hold records by financial year, which covers the period from 1 April to 31 March.

Details of actual spend on Minor Capital activities, in all District Council areas, for the years 2007/08 and 2008/09, is shown in the table below:

District Council	Minor Capital Spend
District Council	Year 2007/08	Year 2008/09
Antrim	£476,000	£444,000
Coleraine	£1,289,000	£315,000
Limavady	£581,000	£702,000
Moyle	£142,000	£386,000
Ballymoney	£251,000	£494,000
Derry	£618,000	£1,337,000
Ballymena	£992,000	£2,472,000
Larne	£806,000	£810,000
Belfast	£1,245,000	£3,177,000
Castlereagh	£811,000	£252,000
Newtownabbey	£354,000	£492,000
Carrickfergus	£54,000	£248,000
North Down	£1,098,000	£553,000
Lisburn	£853,000	£1,297,000
Ards	£439,000	£784,000
Armagh	£1,719,000	£1,432,000
Newry & Mourne	£1,751,000	£1,258,000
Banbridge	£318,000	£596,000
Craigavon	£943,000	£1,331,000
Down	£523,000	£512,000
Magherafelt	£946,000	£1,130,000
Omagh	£1,326,000	£1,506,000
Strabane	£611,000	£410,000
Cookstown	£380,000	£168,000
Fermanagh	£2,501,000	£1,847,000
Dungannon	£524,000	£986,000
Totals	£21,551,000	£24,939,000

CCTV Cameras in NI Railway Stations

Mr A Ross asked the Minister for Regional Development how many CCTV cameras there are currently on each section of the NI Railway network.

(AQW 7073/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Translink have provided details of CCTV provision on the NIR rail network by section, as outlined in the table below:

Area	Location	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast	Great Victoria Street	23	4		27
	Central Station	48	11		59
	Botanic Station	16	0		16
	TOTAL	87	15	0	102

Area	Location	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast to Border	Lisburn	3	6		9
	Moira	3	8		11
	Lurgan	11	8		19
	Portadown	5	17		22
	Newry	25	12		37
	TOTAL	47	51	8	106

Area	Location	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast to Bangor	Bangor Rail/ Bus Station	19	0		19
Belfast to Bangor	TOTAL	19	0	0	19

Area	Location	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast to Larne	Yorkgate	27	0		27
	Whiteabbey Park & Ride		11		11
	Greenisland	7	9		16
	Carrickfergus	15	1		16
	Whitehead	6	10		16
	TOTAL	55	31	2	88

Area	Location	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast to L/Derry	Antrim	15	2		17
	Ballymena	8	6		14
	Ballymoney	8	5		13
	Coleraine Rail/Bus Station	27	0		27
	Waterside	4	0		4
	TOTAL	62	13	21	96

CCTV Cameras in NI Railway Stations

Mr A Ross asked the Minister for Regional Development how many CCTV cameras are located in NI Railway stations and if there are any plans for additional cameras.

(AQW 7074/10)

Minister for Regional Development: The details of current CCTV provision on the NIR rail network are outlined in the table below:

Area	Stations	Car Park/ Park & Ride	Crossings	Total
Belfast	87	15	0	102
Belfast to Border	47	51	8	106
Belfast to Bangor	19	0	0	19
Belfast to Larne	55	31	2	88
Belfast to Derry*	62	13	21	96
Grand Totals	270	110	31	411

Translink advise that they have a rolling programme of CCTV installations and renewals. There are plans to install additional camera systems, however, the timing and scope of this work is dependent on operating experience, prioritisation and approval for funding.

(*includes Portrush)

CCTV Cameras in NI Railway Trains

Mr A Ross asked the Minister for Regional Development how many NI Railway trains have CCTV cameras on board.

(AQW 7075/10)

Minister for Regional Development: Translink advise that they have 38 operational train sets available and CCTV cameras are installed on all 23 CAF Class 3000 trains, with 8 cameras on each. The CCTV system was not rolled out to other vehicles in the fleet because of plans to replace most of these.

Door-to-Door Transport Scheme

Mr A McQuillan asked the Minister for Regional Development if he plans to review the Door-to-Door Transport Scheme in order to identify areas for improvement.

(AQW 7097/10)

Minister for Regional Development: I have no plans to carry out a formal review of the Door-to-Door Transport Scheme at this time.

However, in line with commitments contained in the Accessible Transport Strategy, the Department will continue to monitor the performance of the Scheme by analysing the usage data and customer feedback that is collected on an on-going basis

Additionally, my Department recently engaged the services of Community Evaluation Northern Ireland (CENI) to carry out an evaluation of the social benefits of the Scheme. The results of this work will help the Department shape the future direction of the Scheme.

DEPARTMENT FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Housing Executive

Mr J Shannon asked the Minister for Social Development how many complaints were made to the Housing Executive by tenants because of (i) noise; (ii) physical abuse; and (iii) violence by neighbours in each of the last three years.

(AQW 6802/10)

Minister for Social Development (Ms M Ritchie): The information is not available in the format requested as the Housing Executive does not record complaints regarding physical abuse or violence by neighbours. The Housing Executive records complaints of anti-social behaviour under 22 categories. In relevant or related categories to the terms of the question details for the last three years are:-

	07/08	08/09	09/10
Criminal Behaviour	107	96	158
Damage to Property	226	271	271
Domestic Violence	7	6	5
Harassment	264	280	295
Homophobic Abuse	4	5	1
Intimidation	30	30	20
Multiple	761	646	646
Noise	1081	1196	1366
Nuisance from business use	5	5	9
Nuisance from vehicles	100	82	90
Nuisance in a public space	328	229	282
Racial Abuse	6	14	23
Sectarian Abuse	4	3	5
Verbal Abuse	102	120	153

New Build Social Housing Units

Mr D McKay asked the Minister for Social Development how many new build social housing units are planned for the 2010/11 financial year in North Antrim.

(AQW 6875/10)

Minister for Social Development: There are currently 127 dwellings (8 schemes) programmed to start during 2010/11 within the North Antrim Parliamentary constituency.

Employment Support Allowance

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Social Development to detail (i) the number of (a) written appeals; and (b) oral tribunals processed by her Department in relation to Employment Support Allowance in each of the last three years; and (ii) the number of appeals in each case that were successful.

(AQW 6890/10)

Minister for Social Development: Employment Support Allowance replaced Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid on the grounds of incapacity for new customers from 27 October 2008. No Employment Support Allowance appeals were determined until 2009/10 financial year therefore there is no data relating to 07/08 and 08/09.

The table below details the number of (a) written appeals and (b) oral appeals processed by the Department in relation to Employment Support Allowance during the 2009/10 financial year; and (ii) the number of appeals in each case that were successful:

	Number Appeals Processed	Number Appeals Successful
Paper	511	22
Oral	1062	402

Social Security Appeals Commissioners

Mr P Weir asked the Minister for Social Development how many Social Security appeals have been referred to the Social Security Appeals Commissioners in each of the last three years; and how many cases were upheld.

(AQW 6893/10)

Minister for Social Development: The Appeals Service provides advice to appellants on the right of appeal to Office of Social Security Commissioners. Appellants may submit an appeal directly to the Commissioner therefore the Appeal Service does not hold information on all appeals referred. This information is held by the Office of Social Security Commissioners.

Magherafelt Social Security Office Staff

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister for Social Development, pursuant to AQW 6568/10, what consultation took place with (i) Standards Assurance Unit staff; and (ii) the Debt Referral Team, in the Magherafelt Social Security Office.

(AQW 6914/10)

Minister for Social Development: The staff from Standards Assurance Unit and the Debt Referral Team was engaged with throughout the Strategic Business Review and Customer First consultation period. This engagement increased in recent months as the position as to whether they were required to relocate, and options as to future location, became clearer. The Agency also engaged with the Trade Union throughout this period.

Employment Support Allowance Application

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister for Social Development to detail (i) the target time; and (ii) the average actual time taken to process an Employment Support Allowance application.

(AQW 6986/10)

Minister for Social Development: (i) The 2010/11 target for processing an Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) application is 17 days.

(ii) The average actual time to process an ESA application during April 2010 was 15.9 days.

Applications for Housing Cost Claims

Mr P McGlone asked the Minister for Social Development how many applications for housing cost claims from people on Income Related Employment Support Allowance are currently outstanding.

(AQW 6987/10)

Minister for Social Development: The Employment and Support Allowance Centre currently has 213 customers with outstanding applications for assistance with mortgage interest costs. Of these, 184 customers have been written to and the Centre is awaiting further information in order to process these applications. The remaining 29 applications have been received within the last five days and are awaiting action.

Royal Exchange Development

Mr F McCann asked the Minister for Social Development to clarify the situation in relation to the decision to put the Royal Exchange Development proposals on hold; and if he will now consider abandoning the approach of sequencing city centre development plans in Belfast and giving priority to the West Side Regeneration proposals.

(AQW 7330/10)

Minister for Social Development: The Royal Exchange scheme is not on hold. My Department has entered into a Development Agreement with the developer consortium for the scheme which sets out the legal and contractual context for the scheme moving forward. The Agreement provides that the developer must submit a planning application, approved by DSD, to the Department of the Environment’s Planning Service by 31 October 2010.

The scheme is therefore on track and will be ready to take advantage of the upturn in the retail sector when this arrives. By moving the scheme through statutory planning we will ensure that Belfast is ready to compete for a share of the future retail market rather than lagging behind other city centres. My Department will be bringing forward proposals to move forward the West Side Regeneration Masterplan in the near future. The Westside Plan is not a retail-laid plan and therefore is not in competition with Royal Exchange in terms of priority or sequencing. It covers the Greater Castle Street (South West Quarter) area known as the Westside. The sequencing policy only applies to Victoria Square (South East Quarter), Royal Exchange (North East Quarter) and Castlecourt (North West Quarter) in this order of sequence for regeneration.

REVISED WRITTEN ANSWERS

Friday 4 June 2010

(AQW 5132/10)

i) In line with advice from senior counsel briefed on behalf of the Department, interim Guidance was issued on the Termination of Pregnancy. It is clear when reading the interim Guidance that its effect is temporary and that it is the intention of the Department to publish a further and final version which will contain sections dealing with counselling and conscientious objection in order to fully comply with the Order of the Court of Appeal in the Family Planning Association Case. However, I can inform you that the Family Planning Association has welcomed the issue of this interim guidance while the Department works towards issuing full guidance as soon as possible.

(ii) The law on the termination of pregnancy is the responsibility of the Department of Justice. My Department is producing Guidance on the law and therefore the removal of the section on conscientious objection was not subjected to an equality impact assessment before the interim Guidance was issued. However, in order to be inclusive the two adverse sections will be revised and then subjected to full public consultation. Following consultation they will then be submitted to the Executive Committee for consideration.