DECC officials intend to issue an invitation to tender shortly, in order to appoint acoustics experts to review the evidence on wind turbine amplitude modulation (AM) with a view to providing advice on how appropriate AM thresholds might be set in planning conditions.

The Government takes seriously the impact of noise from wind turbines. Potential noise impacts are considered within the planning process in accordance with ETSU-R-97, and taking into account any guidance on good or best practice that the Government has published or endorsed, before any decision is taken whether or not to grant consent to a project. The Government believes that wind farms built in accordance with current guidance should not have significant impacts on those living or working within the vicinity of these sites, and has no plans to revise ETSU-R-97.

I am certainly happy for either I or the Immigration Minister to meet my right hon. Friend and representatives of the industry. We are aware of this issue, and we are looking to introduce an improved ability to identify people in lorries when they pass through our juxtaposed controls in Calais, but as my right hon. Friend has said, the problem is that those people are often getting into the lorries further afield. Also, even if we find them at Calais, the load is still considered to have been damaged and contaminated.

Whilst we do not centrally hold detailed information on local authorities’ duplicate payments, in my Department's publication “50 ways to save”, we observed that councils could save money by conducting audits of potential duplicate payments and reforming accounts payable processes.

This was based on research by Experian of both local and central government bodies, suggesting duplicate payments could cost taxpayers up to £147 million a year.

As stated in my answer of 3 September 2014, Official Report, Column 265W, my own Department has put this best practice into action and delivered savings of £100,000 by recovering duplicate payments made since 2006.

My right hon. Friend will be aware of the seasonal agricultural workers scheme, which was a very particular scheme that ensured that people were brought across to do work in the agricultural sector. However, as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs made clear in his

speech to the Oxford Farming Conference recently, we need to look at ensuring that people here in the United Kingdom are able to take on the jobs that are available to them, and at the moment we have no intention of reintroducing the seasonal agricultural workers scheme.

I refer my right hon. Friend to my answer of 3 February 2014, Official Report, columns 7-8W.

I refer my right hon. Friend to my answer of 3 February 2014, Official Report, columns 7-8W.

The Department liaises regularly with National Roads Policing on the details of the new drug driving offence. We are confident that they understand the new offence and that the National Roads Policing lead will, jointly with the Crown Prosecution Service, be issuing an enforcement process for the use of operational officers at the appropriate time.

The Road Traffic Act 1988 stipulates that drug testing devices must be of a type approved by the Secretary of State. The type approval testing process involves detailed laboratory evaluation to ensure that devices meet the stringent technical requirements laid out in published specifications. These specifications define the requirements for the construction of Preliminary Drug Testing Devices for both station-based and mobile drug testing devices.

In 2012, a device was type approved for use in police stations for the detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, one of the psychoactive components of cannabis). In 2013, a specification for mobile drug testing devices was released, and manufacturers were invited to submit mobile devices for consideration for type approval. Work is ongoing towards type approval of mobile drug testing devices that will test for cannabis, cocaine and the main metabolite of cocaine, benzoylecgonine. It is anticipated that laboratory testing of devices will commence in the next three months. This is to ensure that a

recommendation for type approval of mobile drug testing devices can be made as close as possible to the introduction of the new drug driving offence planned for summer 2014.

The Road Traffic Act 1988 stipulates that drug testing devices must be of a type approved by the Secretary of State. The type approval testing process involves detailed laboratory evaluation to ensure that devices meet the stringent technical requirements laid out in published specifications. These specifications define the requirements for the construction of Preliminary Drug Testing Devices for both station-based and mobile drug testing devices.

In 2012, a device was type approved for use in police stations for the detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, one of the psychoactive components of cannabis). In 2013, a specification for mobile drug testing devices was released, and manufacturers were invited to submit mobile devices for consideration for type approval. Work is ongoing towards type approval of mobile drug testing devices that will test for cannabis, cocaine and the main metabolite of cocaine, benzoylecgonine. It is anticipated that laboratory testing of devices will commence in the next three months. This is to ensure that a

recommendation for type approval of mobile drug testing devices can be made as close as possible to the introduction of the new drug driving offence planned for summer 2014.

My right hon. Friend makes a sensible point. The point of setting tax rates is to raise revenue, not to make a political point. What the Opposition want to do is make a political point because they believe in the politics of envy, not in raising money for public services. In the end the truth is this: the top 1% of taxpayers in our country are now paying 30% of the total income tax take. As I said, the richest taxpayers are actually going to be paying more in every year of this Government than when those two on the Opposition Front Bench sat in the Treasury and made such a mess of our economy.

[holding answer 25 October 2013]: The table detailing Tier 5 Certificate of Sponsorship Used by Top 20 Sponsors period 1 January 2010-31 December 2012 will be placed in the House Library.

[holding answer 25 October 2013]: There were a total of 39,349 certificates of sponsorship by the top 20 Tier 5 sponsoring organisations used between 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2012.

A full list containing the duration of each certificate used will be placed in the House Library.

[holding answer 25 October 2013]: The information you have requested is not available in the format requested and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

However, as part of its commitment to transparency, the Home Office publishes immigration statistics annually and quarterly on both Tier 5 visas issued and extensions.

You may find the quarterly Home Office Immigration Statistics April to June 2013 helpful, and in particular the before entry table ‘be 04 q’ and extensions table ‘ex 01 q’, which can be found at the following website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2013/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2013#work-1

Guidance on identifying and supporting pupils with special educational needs (SEN), including those with dyslexia, is set out in the statutory SEN code of practice.

The Department for Education will publish a new SEN code of practice for consultation this autumn. It will include guidance for identifying, assessing and supporting children and young people with SEN including those with dyslexia. Subject to the passage of the Children and Families Bill, the new code will be laid before Parliament in early 2014 with the aim of it being approved by spring 2014.

The Department for Education funds the Dyslexia-SpLD Trust to support schools, professionals and local authorities to improve the support available to dyslexic pupils, drawing on the evidence of effective programmes. This includes a professional development framework to help teachers of all levels assess their skills and knowledge and access training and support materials. Information is available at:

www.thedyslexia-spldtrust.org.uk

[holding answer 10 June 2013]: We are unable to provide the data regarding all tier 5 sponsors as the low volume of certificates issued by a third of them would make it possible to identify individuals or personal data.

The following table shows how many certificates of sponsorship (CoS) for tier 5 visas have been issued by the top 50 sponsors in each of the last three years. This information has also been placed in the House Library.

There were 7,757, 8,018 and 8,772 visas issued under the Creative and Sporting category of Tier 5 of the Points Based System in 2010, 2011 and 2012 respectively. Corresponding information relating to different categories of sport is not collated centrally.

The latest Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas issued are published in the release Immigration Statistics October-December 2012, which is available from the Library of the House and on the Department's website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2012

I refer my right hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 20 May 2013, Official Report, column 465W.

There are currently only six crop anaerobic digestion (AD) plants in the UK, requiring crops grown on roughly 3,300 ha of land. This is less than 0.02% of the available agricultural land in the UK.

Other AD plants may use crops as part of a crop/waste mix although the split between the amounts of crops/waste used may vary from week to week.

The Government would prefer to see all animals stunned before slaughter but recognises the right of members of religious communities to eat meat prepared in accordance with their religious beliefs. The Government has therefore confirmed that it does not intend to ban religious slaughter without stunning at this stage. Nonetheless, it intends to continue discussions on possible further improvements in animal welfare with members of the Jewish and Muslim communities once the new EU Regulation 1099/2009 on the protection of animals at the time of killing has been implemented.