17/03/2008 - Answers issued to Members on 17 March 2008

Answers issued to Members on 17 March 2008

[R] signifies that the Member has declared an interest.
[W] signifies that the question was tabled in Welsh.

Contents

Questions to the First Minister

Questions to the Deputy First Minister and Minister for the Economy and Transport

Questions to the Minister for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills

Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services

Questions to the First Minister

Nick Ramsay (Monmouth): How many official visits to Wales from foreign countries has the First Minister received over the last 12 months? (WAQ51267)

Nick Ramsay (Monmouth): How many requests from foreign countries for official visits to Wales has the Minister received over the last 12 months? (WAQ51268)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The First Minister (Rhodri Morgan): I make every effort to meet all requests for meeting from overseas representatives. Information on requests where that has not been possible is not readily available. Details of my meetings with representatives of overseas countries are set out below.

VISITS TO WALES BY FOREIGN COUNTRIES RECEIVED BY THE FIRST MINISTER

February 2007—February 2008

Questions to the Deputy First Minister and Minister for the Economy and Transport

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): Will the Minister provide an update on the establishment of a WAG match-funding budget to support the 2007-2013 EU Convergence Programme? (WAQ50848)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister and Minister for the Economy and Transport (Ieuan Wyn Jones): A budget of £105 million has been provided as match funding for Capital and Revenue expenditure, for 2008-09 to 2010-11 financial years, to assist in developing and delivering projects in the Convergence, Regional Competitiveness and Territorial Co-operation Structural Fund Programmes.

Officials are currently engaged with external stakeholders in developing the detailed approach to the grant application programme.

Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister outline his vision for Community Rail Partnerships in Wales? (WAQ51138)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister The Welsh Assembly Government will look to the regional consortia to establish the future role for the Community Rail Partnerships in drawing up their Regional Transport Plans.

There are a number of CRPs across Wales and I was delighted to meet most of their development officers at the Association of Community Rail Partnerships’ national conference on tourism and the railway at Llandudno last November. I pay tribute to their work, in particular the joint promotion 'Scenic Wales by Rail’, which now has an excellent website (http://www.scenicwales.co.uk selected as the need/).

My officials regularly meet each of the CRPs, which were instrumental in bringing forward our concessionary fares rail pilot scheme, and the current evaluation. They have been most constructive in this important initiative and I look forward to this continuing.

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): What assessment has the Minister made of the average journey time by a) car and b) rail between Holyhead and Cardiff in each year since 1999 and will he provide details of those times? (WAQ51180)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister An assessment of journey times was made in 2007, although comparable information is not available from 1999. This was 5 hours 29 minutes by car and 5 hours 10 minutes by train.

I have made it clear that I intend to reduce the current average journey times from Holyhead to Cardiff. 'One Wales’ commits this Government to developing and implementing a programme for improved north-south links, including travel by road and rail, to reduce rail travel time and improve major road links between north, west and south Wales.

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): Will the Minister provide details of the number of passengers who have used the minibus shuttle link between Cardiff International Airport and Rhoose station in each year since the Vale of Glamorgan line re-opened to rail passengers? (WAQ51182)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister I do not have this information since this shuttle bus service is funded and provided by Cardiff International Airport, with support from the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): What is the average number of passengers on an individual journey on the minibus shuttle link between Cardiff International Airport and Rhoose station? (WAQ51183)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: I do not have this information since the shuttle bus service is funded and provided by Cardiff International Airport, with support from the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): When did the Minister last meet management at First Great Western to discuss rail services between south Wales and London? (WAQ51184)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: I met the management of FGW on 25 October 2007.

Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): When did the Minister last meet management at Arriva Trains Wales to discuss issues relating to rail services in Wales? (WAQ51185)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: I met with the management of ATW on 2 October 2007.

Peter Black (South Wales West): What is the expenditure on the technium network across Wales for each of the financial years since 2003-04, how much has been budgeted in 2008-09 and what is the income from the projects for each of these financial years? (WAQ51201)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: Total expenditure for each of the technium for each of the financial years up to and including 2007-08, excluding initial EU and P2P funding and construction costs, equates to an average of approximately £126,000. This covers revenue costs, telecomm infrastructure and all-Wales programmes. Total income from the network project for each of the financial years up to and including 2007-08 equates to an average of approximately £495,739. Budget for 2008-09 is currently under review, taking into account the current convergence bid being undertaken by officials within DE&T.

Peter Black (South Wales West): What building works are scheduled to start in SA1 (Swansea Waterfront Development) in the financial year 2008-09? (WAQ51203)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: We are anticipating that the following building works will commence in our financial year April 2008 to March 2009 as:

• Circa 300 apartments

• Multi-Storey Car Park—circa 500 spaces

• Office Development—30,000 sq ft R&D facility

Peter Black (South Wales West): What is the total cost to the Welsh Assembly Government budget of the railway line to Ebbw Vale and what will be the subsidy on the line once it is operational? (WAQ51204)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: The capital cost is £20.3m, which excludes the amount funded by Objective 1 and the Corus Steelworks Regeneration Fund. I am unable to release information about the ongoing subsidy for ATW as it is commercially sensitive.

Nick Ramsay (Monmouth): What assessment has the Minister made of the impact that the proposed closure of HM Revenue and Customs’ Valuation Office in Newport will have on the economy? (WAG51206)

Nick Ramsay (Monmouth): What representations has the Minister received from HM Revenue and Customs regarding the proposed closure of the Newport Valuation Office? (WAQ51207)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Deputy First Minister: The proposal in relation to the possible closure of the Newport Valuation Office is part of consultation on a UK-wide restructuring of the Valuation Office Agency to achieve improved customer service and increased efficiency. These are not matters for the Assembly Government, but Ministers have been kept informed of the VOA’s plans, including proposals for the possible closure of the Newport office. The VOA has given assurances that standards of customer service would not be affected by its proposals.

Questions to the Minister for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills

Andrew R.T. Davies: Has the minister given any consideration to providing further funding for the Welsh Scout Association? (WAQ51443)

Substantive answer following holding reply issued on 4 March.

The Minister for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills (Jane Hutt): The Welsh Assembly Government recognises the important contribution made to the lives of children and young people in Wales by the scouting movement. The Welsh Scout Council is one of the largest national voluntary youth organisations in Wales, providing a wide range of developmental, non-formal educational opportunities for young people. The work of the Scouts in Wales both complements and contributes to Welsh Assembly Government’s policies for young people.

In recognition and in support of its work with young people in Wales, the Welsh Assembly Government has provided long-term funding support towards the organisation’s central running costs, costs which such organisations find the most difficult to fund, via the National Voluntary Youth Organisations grant scheme. This funding underpins the support provided to Scout groups across Wales and the delivery of services to its members across Wales. In 2007-08 the organisation received a grant of £62,572, which will increase to £64,908 in 2008-09. National voluntary youth organisations, including the Welsh Scout Council, will be invited to make applications for grant aid for the 2009-2012 funding round this summer.

Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services

Jonathan Morgan (Cardiff North): What is the financial value of projects delivered in the health department where PFI has been used, will the Minister provide a breakdown of the public/private money used for each project and will she detail these figures over the last 8 years? (WAQ51524)

The Minister for Health and Social Services (Edwina Hart): The Welsh Assembly Government is not a party to these contracts and therefore is not in a position to know or collect commercially sensitive private sector financial data. The public contribution was provided in WAQ51293.