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Column 504
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the present situation in Cyprus.
Mr. Garel-Jones : The United Nations Secretary-General held a formal meeting with the leaders of the two Cypriot communities in New York on 30 March. The two leaders expressed their willingness to resume talks in New York on 24 May and to use the "Set of Ideas" for the purpose of reaching a mutually acceptable ote for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Turkish Government, and when this was last done, regarding the number of settlers from mainland Turkey now moving to northern Cyprus ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Goodlad : The questions of settlement and property rights in Cyprus are intrinsic to the UN "Set of Ideas", endorsed by the Security Council as the basis of a settlement. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs last urged Turkey at the highest level to support the "Set of Ideas" when he met Mr. Demirel and Mr. Cetin on 23 November. We keep in close touch with the Turkish Government, and make our views clear, through Her Majesty's ambassadors in Ankara and elsewhere.
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when ministers or officials of his Department last met opposition leaders of political parties operating in northern Cyprus ; when such meetings took place ; and what issues were discussed.
Mr. Goodlad : There have been 13 meetings between officials and Turkish Cypriot "opposition" leaders in the last three months, including a guest of Government visit by Mustafa Akinci in London on 24 March. Discussions included the negotiations towards a settlement of the Cyprus problem and the situation in north Cyprus.
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his Department's estimate of the number of people who have migrated from Turkey to northern Cyprus in each of the last 10 years.
Mr. Goodlad : We do not compile such statistics.
Russia
33. Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation to discuss the current political situation in Europe.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs discussed European political issues with Mr. Kozyrev when he met him in Moscow in April. They have since discussed these issues by telephone.
UN Peace Operations
38. Mrs. Lait : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in how many countries, and in which, there are currently United Nations peacekeeping or peace monitoring operations.
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39. Mrs. Angela Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in how many countries United Nations peacekeeping or peace monitoring units are operating.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : There are 12 current United Nations peacekeeping or monitoring missions :
UNTSO--The UN Truce Supervision Organisation
UNDOF--The UN Disengagement Observer Force
UNIFIL--The UN Interim Force in Lebanon
UNMOGIP--The UN Monitoring Organisation India/ Pakistan UNFICYP--The UN Force in Cyprus
ONUSAL--The UN Missions in El Salvador
UNAVEM--The UN Angola Verification Mission
MINURSO--The UN Referendum Monitory Mission in Western Sahara UNIKOM--The UN Iraq/Kuwait Observer Mission
UNTAC--The UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia
UNPROFOR--The UN Protection Force (Former Yugoslavia)
ONUMOZ--The UN Operation in Mozambique
A deployment is also underway to UNOSOM II which will take over from UNITAF --the Unified Task Force--in Somalia.
Angola
Mr. Loyden : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the present situation in Angola.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Talks between the Government of Angola and UNITA continue under United Nations auspices in Abidjan. We continue to support the UN in its efforts to bring the two parties to agreement on a ceasefire, full implementation of the Bicesse peace accords, and free access throughout the country for much-needed humanitarian aid.
Brazil
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Brazilian Government about their 1988 constitutional commitment to demarcate lands for their Indian population within a five-year period.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We are in regular touch with the Brazilian authorities about the rights of the indigenous peoples of Brazil. They are fully aware of our concern. In February this year, the Brazilian Minister of Justice publicly reconfirmed his intention to complete the demarcation of the lands of Brazil's indigenous peoples by October 1993 in compliance with Brazil's 1988 constitution.
Human Rights
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy to raise the rights of indigenous peoples in Brazil at the United Nations conference on human rights in Vienna.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The aims of the United Kingdom delegation at the United Nations conference on human rights in Vienna will be to promote universal adherence to existing standards, to explore ways to improve their implementation and to examine the relationship between human rights, democracy and development. The rights of the indigenous peoples in Brazil will be for consideration
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under item 11 of the agenda : "Consideration of contemporary trends in and new challenges to the full realisation of all human rights of women and men, including those of persons belonging to vulnerable groups".European Treaties
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are the proposed names for the treaties comprising (a) the current treaty of Rome, as amended, with the contents of titles II, III and IV of the treaty on European union signed at Maastricht and (b) titles I, V, VI and VII of the treaty on European union signed at Maastricht.
Mr. Garel-Jones : Following the entry into force of the treaty on European union, four treaties will be in force :
(a) the treaty establishing the European Community ("The EC Treaty") i.e., the present treaty of Rome as amended by title II of the treaty on European union ;
(b) the treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community ("The ECSC Treaty") as amended by title III of the treaty on European union ;
(c) the treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community ("The EURATOM treaty") as amended by title IV of the treaty on European union ;
(d) the treaty on European union itself, in its entirety.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Disabled People
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what liaison has taken place between the Benefits Agency and organisations representing the disabled in (a) Wales and (b) England.
Mr. Scott : The operation of the Benefits Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Mr. Michael Bichard. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Llew Smith, dated 11 May 1993 : As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking what liaison has taken place between the Benefits Agency and organisations representing the disabled in (a) Wales and (b) England.
The Agency is committed to an equal opportunities policy. For our customers with disabilities, this means that wherever possible we will ensure that their dealings with us should not be limited by reason of their disabilities.
In Wales, our staff have had a good deal of contact with organisations representing people with disabilities, much of it at local level. A review of our customer service across Wales was held in October 1992, attended by many organisations (including several representing the needs of people with disabilities in Wales). We have also run a one day seminar jointly with the Wales Council for the Blind, aimed at carers and people with disabilities. With the introduction of the new disability benefits last year, a bilingual English/Welsh cassette was produced for blind customers, and was distributed through talking newspapers and to all Social Service Departments in Wales.
A series of "roadshows" using our own Benefit Bus and the Wales Council for the Disabled WCD advice and information bus took place during February of this year, at 10 locations throughout Wales. Following this, a series of one day seminars, organised jointly by the Agency and by the council,
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have been held. They were attended by our own customer service staff in Wales, and by representatives from relevant organisations. A member of our staff was seconded to the council last year for 10 months.Nationally, we liaise and meet regularly with a number of organisations representing the needs of people with disabilities. These include the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, the Royal National Institute for the Blind, People First, and the National Schizophrenia Society. We are looking at a number of their services with a view to publicising them through our network of District Information Officers and Customer Service Managers in local benefit offices. We also liaise regularly with a number of other customer organisations, including the National Association of Citizen's Advice Bureau (NACAB).
I meet senior staff from NACAB six monthly.
As the Agency's customer charter makes clear, we are committed to providing a service which is accessible for all our customers. We recognise that disabled people may have particular needs and we will continue to look for ways to make our services easier to use. One way in which we intend to meet this commitment is through a national forum to enable organisations representing or comprising people with disabilities to contribute to the Agency's ongoing work to improve services for disabled customers. The first meeting took place last September. That first, very informal meeting, was mainly, but not exclusively, about the disability benefits. A second meeting took place on 5 May this year. The forum will continue twice yearly whilst there is the demand.
A small group of organisations have also met with the Agency to discuss how to improve access to our public areas. The outcome is that we are redrafting and improving accommodation guidance for District and Unit Managers.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.
Young People, Durham
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many 16 and 17-year-olds living in the Durham area are not in full-time education and are not entitled to benefit.
Mr. Burt : The administration of social security benefits is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Mr. M. Bichard to Mr. Gerry Steinberg, dated 11 May 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security how many 16 and 17 year olds living in the Durham area are not in full-time education and are not entitled to benefit.
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This information is not available in the format requested except at a disproportionate cost. This is because the Benefits Agency does not keep statistics relating to disallowed claims by age of applicant. However, I have appended information relating to the number of successful applications for Severe Hardship payments made in the Benefits Agency's North Durham and South Durham Districts during February and March 1993. This information does not equate exactly to the number of individuals in receipt of a Severe Hardship payment, since an individual may have made more than one application during the period. Additionally, directions to make Severe Hardship payments normally last eight weeks, so some of these directions may not now be current.I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.
Successful Severe Hardship claims in the Benefits
Agency's North
and South Durham districts; February and March 1993
|February 1993|March 1993
--------------------------------------------------------
North Durham |32 |43
South Durham |34 |32
Mobility Allowance
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security in what circumstances compensation is payable in respect of delays in handling claims for mobility allowance ; and how many times these have arisen between 31 October 1992 and 31 March 1993.
Mr. Scott : I refer the hon. Member to the reply to the hon. Member for Fulham (Mr. Carrington) on Tuesday 4May, at column 10. Between 31 October 1992 and 31 March 1993, around 50 cases have been dealt with as a result of the delays in handling mobility allowance claims.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Maternity Services
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the hospitals in Northern Ireland which had consultant obstetric and/or general practitioner maternity beds in 1991-92 and 1992- 93, with the numbers of beds of each type in each hospital in each year.
Mr. Hanley : The average numbers of available beds in the obstetrics and general practitioner maternity specialities in Northern Ireland in 1991 -92 and the period from 1April 1992 to 31 December 1992 are as follows :
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1991-92 April 1992 to 31
December 1992
Hospital |OBS |GP Maternity|OBS |GB Maternity
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ards |25 |- |20 |-
Belfast City |64 |- |64 |-
Downe |20 |- |20 |-
Lagan Valley |33 |- |27 |-
Mater |24 |- |23 |-
Royal Maternity |74 |- |72 |-
Ulster |44 |- |43 |-
Ballymena Cottage |20 |16 |10 |16
Robinson Memorial |- |14 |- |14
Mid Ulster |26 |- |26 |-
Moyle |19 |- |19 |-
Route |19 |- |18 |-
Waveney |25 |- |25 |-
Craigavon Area |61 |- |61 |-
Daisy Hill |52 |- |52 |-
South Tyrone |31 |- |29 |-
Altnagelvin |68 |- |61 |-
Erne |30 |- |25 |-
Tyrone Co. |31 |- |31 |-
|------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |666 |30 |626 |30
Housing Construction, Newtownards
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when planning application No. X/92/0120 by Braemar Construction for seven dwellings at the rear of Beverley Court, Newtownards was received ; when neighbour notification notices were issued ; why no neighbour notification notice was issued to the occupier of 3 Beverley Court ; what opinion Ards borough council expressed ; when planning approval was issued ; when work commenced on site ; when the planning officer received a letter of 24 February from Mr. Robert Groves of 3 Beverley Court about this ; and when a full reply to the letter will be issued.
Mr. Atkins : The application was received on 13 February 1992. Neighbour notification notices were issued on 18 February 1992 and the Department's records show that a notice was sent to "The Occupier of No. 3 Beverley Court". The application was presented to Ards borough council at its meeting of 22 June 1992 with an opinion to approve. The council agreed with this opinion and approval issued on 19 July 1992 ; the divisional planning office has no record of when work started. Mr. Groves' letter of 24 February 1993 was received by the divisional planning office on 26 February 1993. The matters raised required a site survey and a reply was issued on 6 May 1993.
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Equal Opportunities
Mr. Trimble : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the actions under (a) fair employment legislation and (b) equal opportunities legislation, which have been successfully defended by (i) Government Departments, (ii) education boards, (iii) health boards, (iv) local authorities and (v) other public bodies, indicating in each case whether the unsuccessful applicant was supported by the Fair Employment Agency or Fair Employment Commission or Equal Opportunities Commission and the costs incurred by the successful respondent in cases where there was such support.
Mr. Atkins : Information on actions under sex discrimination legislation prior to 1 January 1990 is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Individual complaints of religious discrimination before 1 January 1990 were brought under the procedure in the Fair Employment (NI) Act 1976 and were not defended as such or prosecuted by either party ; instead the Fair Employment Agency acted as an impartial investigator. Under the 1976 Act a total of 593 findings were made on foot of individual complaints, of which 496 were findings of no unlawful discrimination. Details as to the respondent in these cases could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information relating to actions brought since 1 January 1990 under the Fair Employment (NI) Act and the Sex Discrimination (NI) Order 1976 is as follows :
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Actions successfully defended under Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Act 1976
Applicant Respondent EOC supported
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(i) |Government Departments
|Burnim |Northern Ireland Civil Service |No
|Cowley |Inland Revenue |No
(ii) |Education and library boards
|Fenton |Belfast education and library board |Yes
|Beattie |Belfast education and library board |Yes
|Lisk |North Eastern education and library board|Yes
|Hood |South Eastern education and library board|No
(iii) |Health and social services boards
|McNearney |Eastern health and social services board |No
|Young |Eastern health and social services board |No
|Jess |Eastern health and social services board |Yes
(iv) |Local authorities
|McKinney |Belfast city council |Yes
|McDonald |Newtownabbey borough council |Yes
|Moore |Lisburn borough council |No
|Kemp |Belfast county council |No
(v) |Other public bodies
|Devlin |Northern Ireland Electricity |No
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Actions successfully defended under Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Act 1976
Applicant Respondent EOC supported
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(i) |Government Departments
|Burnim |Northern Ireland Civil Service |No
|Cowley |Inland Revenue |No
(ii) |Education and library boards
|Fenton |Belfast education and library board |Yes
|Beattie |Belfast education and library board |Yes
|Lisk |North Eastern education and library board|Yes
|Hood |South Eastern education and library board|No
(iii) |Health and social services boards
|McNearney |Eastern health and social services board |No
|Young |Eastern health and social services board |No
|Jess |Eastern health and social services board |Yes
(iv) |Local authorities
|McKinney |Belfast city council |Yes
|McDonald |Newtownabbey borough council |Yes
|Moore |Lisburn borough council |No
|Kemp |Belfast county council |No
(v) |Other public bodies
|Devlin |Northern Ireland Electricity |No
No information is available about the costs incurred by respondents in successfully defending cases.
Civil Servants
Mr. Trimble : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many civil servants currently in the Northern Ireland Office have been seconded or transferred from (a) the Foreign Office, (b) the Home Office and (c) the Ministry of Defence ; and what their rank was before such move and their current rank.
Mr. Mates : Four have been seconded on loan or transferred from the Foreign Office, 18 from the Home Office and 10 from the Ministry of Defence.
Their grades are as follows :
Current Grade |Grade before joining
|Northern Ireland
|Office
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Grade 1 |1 Grade 2
2 Grade 2 |2 Grade 3
2 Grade 3 |1 Grade 3, 1 Grade 5
1 Grade 4 |1 Chief Information Officer
4 Grade 5 |3 Grade 5, 1 Administration Trainee
1 Grade 6 |1 Grade 6
9 Grade 7 |6 Grade 7, 1 Senior Executive Officer
|1 Higher Executive Officer,
|1 Executive Officer
5 Higher Executive Officer |3 Higher Executive Officer,
|1 Executive Officer,
|1 Administration Officer
1 Information Officer |1 Information Officer
1 Administrative Officer |1 Photo-printer
1 Senior Personal Secretary |1 Personal Secretary
3 Personal Secretary |3 Personal Secretary
1 Typist |1 Typist
Transport Holding Company
Mr. David Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he has any plans to privatise the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company ; what estimate of asset proceeds he has made ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 512
Mr. Atkins : There are no plans to privatise the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company.
School Pupils
Mr. Peter Robinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the number of pupils at each of (a) maintained primary schools, (b) maintained secondary schools, (c) maintained grammar schools, (d) controlled primary schools, (e) controlled secondary schools and (f) controlled grammar schools, in each of the education and library board areas in Northern Ireland for the last five years.
Mr. Hanley : The information requested is as follows :
1992
Area board |Primary |Secondary |Grammar
----------------------------------------------------------
Belfast
Controlled |13,857 |5,130 |1,736
Maintained |17,818 |9,614 |-
Voluntary |- |- |14,326
Western
Controlled |10,435 |4,750 |2,307
Maintained |26,019 |12,257 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,818
North-eastern
Controlled |26,171 |12,137 |4,199
Maintained |13,604 |7,034 |-
Voluntary |- |- |8,866
South-eastern
Controlled |23,717 |10,245 |3,214
Maintained |11,899 |5,155 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,181
Southern
Controlled |15,841 |8,683 |2,012
Maintained |26,447 |12,520 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,784
Column 513
1992
Area board |Primary |Secondary |Grammar
----------------------------------------------------------
Belfast
Controlled |13,857 |5,130 |1,736
Maintained |17,818 |9,614 |-
Voluntary |- |- |14,326
Western
Controlled |10,435 |4,750 |2,307
Maintained |26,019 |12,257 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,818
North-eastern
Controlled |26,171 |12,137 |4,199
Maintained |13,604 |7,034 |-
Voluntary |- |- |8,866
South-eastern
Controlled |23,717 |10,245 |3,214
Maintained |11,899 |5,155 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,181
Southern
Controlled |15,841 |8,683 |2,012
Maintained |26,447 |12,520 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,784
1992
Area board |Primary |Secondary |Grammar
----------------------------------------------------------
Belfast
Controlled |13,857 |5,130 |1,736
Maintained |17,818 |9,614 |-
Voluntary |- |- |14,326
Western
Controlled |10,435 |4,750 |2,307
Maintained |26,019 |12,257 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,818
North-eastern
Controlled |26,171 |12,137 |4,199
Maintained |13,604 |7,034 |-
Voluntary |- |- |8,866
South-eastern
Controlled |23,717 |10,245 |3,214
Maintained |11,899 |5,155 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,181
Southern
Controlled |15,841 |8,683 |2,012
Maintained |26,447 |12,520 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,784
1992
Area board |Primary |Secondary |Grammar
----------------------------------------------------------
Belfast
Controlled |13,857 |5,130 |1,736
Maintained |17,818 |9,614 |-
Voluntary |- |- |14,326
Western
Controlled |10,435 |4,750 |2,307
Maintained |26,019 |12,257 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,818
North-eastern
Controlled |26,171 |12,137 |4,199
Maintained |13,604 |7,034 |-
Voluntary |- |- |8,866
South-eastern
Controlled |23,717 |10,245 |3,214
Maintained |11,899 |5,155 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,181
Southern
Controlled |15,841 |8,683 |2,012
Maintained |26,447 |12,520 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,784
1992
Area board |Primary |Secondary |Grammar
----------------------------------------------------------
Belfast
Controlled |13,857 |5,130 |1,736
Maintained |17,818 |9,614 |-
Voluntary |- |- |14,326
Western
Controlled |10,435 |4,750 |2,307
Maintained |26,019 |12,257 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,818
North-eastern
Controlled |26,171 |12,137 |4,199
Maintained |13,604 |7,034 |-
Voluntary |- |- |8,866
South-eastern
Controlled |23,717 |10,245 |3,214
Maintained |11,899 |5,155 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,181
Southern
Controlled |15,841 |8,683 |2,012
Maintained |26,447 |12,520 |-
Voluntary |- |- |7,784
Ulster Young Militants
Mr. Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will proscribe the Ulster Young Militants ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Patrick Mayhew : The question of whether certain organisations should be proscribed is kept under review. The fact that a particular organisation may not be proscribed confers no immunity from prosecution in respect of substantive criminal acts which it or its members may commit.
DEFENCE
Nuclear Weapons Transport
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the truck cargo heavy duty II vehicles used by his Department comply with the International Atomic Energy Agency Safety Series No. 6 Regulations 1985, as amended in 1990.
Mr. Aitken : The International Atomic Energy Agency Safety Series No. 6 Regulations 1985, as amended in 1990, apply primarily to the containers or packaging used for the safe transport of radioactive material. In formulating safety procedures for nuclear warhead transport, full account is taken of national and international civil regulations on transport of radioactive materials, where relevant.
Column 515
Biological and Chemical Weapons
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what prior warnings of the hazard and effects of the incapacitating agent BZ were given to service personnel who were tested with this agent by his Department ; in which years these tests were carried out ; how many service personnel were tested with the agent ; and which regiments or branches of the United Kingdom armed services these personnel were from ;
(2) on what date information about CR gas was first passed from the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence to the United States Department of Defense ; in what form this information was passed ; and if this information was passed under the terms of the technical co-operation programme ;
(3) on what date the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence received the last quantity of nerve agent VX from the United States Department of Defense ; which United States Department of Defense establishment supplied the quantity of nerve gas ; what safety precautions were taken during the transfer of the nerve agent ; and which United States safety authorities, British safety authorities and British local councils were informed beforehand of the transfer of this nerve agent ;
(4) how the workings of the basic standardisation agreement between the British, American and Canadian armies were affected by the British decision to give up offensive work on chemical and biological weapons ;
(5) how often the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada have met under the terms of the 1980 memorandum of understanding on chemical and biological defence ; and what were the dates and locations of each of these meetings ;
(6) what tific activity were exchanged with the United States of America, Canada or Australia ;
(7) how many scientific papers co-authored by scientists from the chemical and biological establishment at Porton Down and their counterparts in the United States of America military have been published since 1979 ; what were the dates of these papers ; and in which scientific journals they were published ;
(8) what experiments his Department has carried out on the chemical agent phencyclidine ; when and where the experiments were carried out ; and if the results of the experiments were exchanged with the United States of America, Canada or Australia ;
(9) what stocks of toxins have been transferred from the United States of America Department of Defence to the Ministry of Defence or British scientific research institutions since 1979 ; from which United States of America Department of Defence establishments these toxins have been transferred ; and under which international defence agreements these toxins have been transferred.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : These are matters for the Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment (CBDE) under its framework document. I have asked the chief executive of CBDE to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from G. Pearson to Mr. Harry Cohen, dated 12 May 1993 :
Column 516
1. Your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Defence asking him what prior warnings of the hazard and effects of the incapacitating agent BZ were given to service personnel who were tested with this agent by his Department ; in which years these tests were carried out ; how many service personnel were tested with the agent ; and which regiments or branches of the United Kingdom armed services these personnel were from (Question 2, Order Paper 4 May 1993) has been passed to me to reply as Chief Executive of the Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment.2. The role of the Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment at Porton Down is to ensure that the UK Armed Forces have effective protective measures against the threat that chemical or biological weapons may be used against them. This work includes the evaluation of the potential hazard of possible agents such as the incapacitating agent BZ.
3. The Service volunteers in the studies involving BZ came from all branches of the Armed Services in response to a request for volunteers to participate in studies at the then Chemical Defence Experimental Establishment. The volunteers were informed that the purpose of the tests was to assess the effects of a potential agent which might affect their behaviour. Volunteers were screened for normality by a resident Army Psychiatrist on arrival at Porton Down and checked again after the study. These studies were carried out in the mid 1960s. It would involve a disproportionate amount of effort to determine which regiments or branches of the Armed Forces these personnel were from.
Letter from G. Pearson to Mr. Harry Cohen, dated 12 May 1993 : 1. Your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Defence asking him on what date information about CR gas was first passed from the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence to the United States Department of Defense ; in what form this information was passed ; and if this information was passed under the terms of The Technical Co-operation Programme (Question 5, Order Paper 4 May 1993) has been passed to me to reply as Chief Executive of the Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment.
2. The role of the Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment is to carry out research to ensure that the UK Armed Forces are provided with effective protective measures against the threat that chemical or biological weapons may be used against them. As part of that programme evaluation is carried out of chemicals that may be used by an aggressor. Research into CR gas at the then Chemical Defence Establishment at Porton Down commenced in 1962. The information gained in the research programme during the subsequent years has formed part of the chemical and biological defence programme which has been the subject of information exchange and collaboration with the United States Department of Defense on a continuing basis. This information was exchanged under the aegis of the defence agreements referred to by the Minister of State for the Armed Forces, the Rt. Hon. Archie Hamilton, MP, in his reply of 21 May 1992, Official Report, Columns 255-256 which include the Technical Co-operation Programme. A report written in 1962 was provided to the United States Department of Defense under the terms of this Programme. It is not possible to be more precise about the form in which the information was exchanged and when as we do not maintain records in a way that enables us to readily access this information.
Letter from G. Pearson to Mr. Harry Cohen, dated 12 May 1993 : 1. Your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Defence asking him on what date the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence received the last quantity of nerve agent VX from the United States Department of Defense, which United States Department of Defense establishment supplied the quantity of nerve gas ; what safety precautions were taken during the transfer of the nerve agent : and which United States safety authorities, British safety authorities and British local councils were informed beforehand of the transfer of this
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