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65W
Written Answers
26 OCTOBER 2009
Written Answers
66W
(b) In June 2008, the UK Government made a
commitment to spend £6 billion on strengthening health
systems and services over seven years to 2015 (plus
£1 billion to the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria
(GFATM). The United Nations General Assembly
(UNGA) event on 23 September highlighted the importance
of providing health services free at the point of delivery.
The UK-initiated Global Consensus on Maternal, Newborn
and Child Health was also widely endorsed. It seeks to
make health systems and investments work better for
women and children, thus driving up standards. Leaders
from Nepal, Malawi, Ghana, Liberia, Burundi and
Sierra Leone announced historic shifts towards free
health care. Removing the financial barriers to health
services and providing services free at the point of use
for women and children will ensure that the poorest
people, especially women and girls, can access a trained
health worker in the right place at the right time with
the right infrastructure, equipment and drugs.
India: Tuberculosis
Dr. Naysmith: To ask the Secretary of State for
International Development what recent assessment he
has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s
support for the national tuberculosis programme in
India in reducing the incidence of tuberculosis in that
country. [294276]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International
Development’s (DFID) support to India’s National
Tuberculosis Control Programme has been highly effective.
The programme has averted an estimated 180,000 deaths
a year since 2005. That is around 500 lives saved in
India every day. DFID’s support has helped put 1.5 million
TB patients on treatment every year in India.
Our support has ensured that India has faced no drug
shortage, despite having the most rapidly expanding TB
programme in the world. By March 2006, the programme
had been scaled up to cover the entire country. Since
1997, the success rate for TB treatment has tripled from
25 per cent. to 86 per cent. and TB deaths rates have
been cut seven-fold from 29 per cent. to 4 per cent.
WOMEN AND EQUALITY
Equality and Human Rights Commission: Vacancies
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and
Equality how many full-time equivalent posts are
currently vacant in the Equality and Human Rights
Commission. [294052]
Maria Eagle: None.
Training: Sight Impaired
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister for Women
and Equality how much the Government have spent to
support Braille literacy courses in each of the last four
years; and if she will make a statement. [293053]
Michael Jabez Foster: My Department, the Government
Equalities Office, was established in October 2007. It
has not spent any money on Braille literacy courses
since then.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
Anguilla: Energy
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much funding
the Government has contributed to the establishment
of the Anguilla Renewable Energy Office. [293464]
Chris Bryant: The Anguilla Renewable Energy Office
is being established by the Anguilla National Trust in
conjunction with the government of Anguilla, as part
of a project entitled “Implementation of the Anguilla
Energy Policy 2008-20. Phase One: Building a Broad
Community Movement”. The Foreign and Commonwealth
Office and Department for International Development
funded Overseas Territories Environment Programme
(OTEP) has committed £100,000 over two years in
support of the overall project. OTEP has to date contributed
£3,805 to the establishment of the Anguilla Renewable
Energy Office.
British Council: Manpower
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign
and Commonwealth Affairs how many British Council
posts in the UK are being outsourced; what the
cost-savings involved are; and if he will make a
statement. [295187]
Chris Bryant: The British Council is undertaking an
investment and transformation programme across its
network to increase the scale and impact of its global
activities.
This includes a proposal to consolidate the organisation’s
finance functions from five global centres into one
overseas centre and one in the UK. As a result, the total
number of UK finance posts would reduce from 98 to
approximately 40. Around 40 posts would transfer to
the overseas finance centre. Consultation on the proposals
is ongoing and no final decision has yet been made.
Proposed changes to the finance function do not include
any plans to outsource to other companies.
The overall savings from this reduction in staffing
will be approximately £12 million per year.
British Council: Redundancy
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign
and Commonwealth Affairs for what reasons the terms
of the redundancy agreement for British Council
employees are being changed for existing staff; and if
he will make a statement. [295186]
Chris Bryant: The British Council’s Redundancy
Procedures Agreement was agreed and signed by the
organisation and its local trade union on 12 June 2008.
The agreement is based on relevant UK legislation and
employment relations best practice. No changes to its
terms are planned.
British Overseas Territories: Police
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many police
officers have been arrested for criminal activity in each
of the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean in the
last five years. [293451]