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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 12 April 1994
LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
Magistrates Courts Service Inspectorate
Mr. Luff : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he proposes to publish the first annual report of the magistrates courts service inspectorate.
Mr. John M. Taylor : I have done so today.
Matrimonial Cases
Mr. Boateng : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, pursuant to his answer of 29 March, Official Report, column 608, concerning matrimonial cases, if he will list the measures he has taken to prevent any future arrangements being established similar to those mentioned in his answer.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The following measures have been taken : New written instructions have been issued, requiring that : all plans or proposals of this sort be referred to a senior official before any action is taken ;
any item intended for publication in the departmental journal Court Business'--through which instructions to courts are promulgated--be approved by a senior official.
New arrangements have also been introduced requring that the final draft of "Court Business" be submitted to a senior official for approval, before publication.
Care Centres
Mr. Madden : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he expects the national review of the designation of care centres to be completed ; why the national review has been delayed ; what representations he has received to designate the Bradford combined court centre as a case centre ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The background work and consultation on the review of care centres is expected to be completed this month. A report to Ministers will follow thereafter. The commencement date of the review was put back because the level of work taken at the care centres under the Children Act 1989 has only recently stabilised. Representations have been received at the local circuit office or by my Department to designate Bradford combined court centre as a care centre from the local authority, local legal practitioners, the local panel of guardians ad litem and some local Members of Parliament.
Small Claims Court
Mr. French : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what is the average cost to his Department of processing a small claim which receives a preliminary hearing and final hearing in the small claims court.
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Mr. John M. Taylor : The information requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. French : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what expenditure his Department has allocated in its 1994-95 budget for the provision of information relating to personal injury claims for the small claims court.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The Lord Chancellor published a consultation paper on 29 October 1993, setting out a proposed new procedure which would bring small personal injury claims into the small claims court. This would be likely to involve the provision of both new standard forms and leaflets providing information to litigants. The Lord Chancellor is currently evaluating the large number of responses received to the consultation. The precise costs of providing information to litigants cannot be assessed until the details of the procedure have been finalised.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Criminal Injuries (Compensation)
Mr. Gunnell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of (a) applications to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, (b) payments by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board and (c) those crimes of robbery with violence, rape and others which gave rise to compensation payments in 1992-93 as a percentage of the figures for 1987-88.
Mr. Maclean : In 1987-88 there were 43,054 applications to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board and the amount of compensation paid totalled £52.043 million. The corresponding figures for 1992-93 were 65,977 applications and £152.218 million, increases of 53 per cent. and 192 per cent. respectively.
The board does not collate information about compensation payments in respect of crimes of robbery with violence, rape or other categories.
Racial Hatred
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a table showing the number of prosecutions for incitement to racial hatred under section 5A of the Public Order Act 1936 and sections 17 to 23 of the Public Order Act 1986, and the number of convictions in each year since 1979 ; and if he will list the penalties for those convicted in each case.
Mr. Maclean : I refer the hon. Member to my letter of 17 March 1994, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.
Animal Experiments
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the laboratories licensed under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 to use non-purpose-bred greyhounds in research between 1979 to 1992 ;
(2) if he will list the number of project licences issued from 1979 to 1992 under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which are still valid to use non-purpose-bred greyhounds in research.
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Mr. Charles Wardle : To list the laboratories would be in breach of the requirement of section 24(1) of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which provides for the protection of confidential information.
No project licences were issued prior to the implementation of the 1986 Act on 1 January 1987. Of those issued since that date, only one is still valid for the use of non-purpose-bred greyhounds in research.
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give the number of scientific procedures performed on non-purpose- bred cats and dogs in 1993.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The information collected from project licence holders and published annually in the "Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals, Great Britain" does not distinguish between purpose-bred and non-purpose-bred cats and dogs. In 1992, the latest year for which figures are available, 3,692 regulated procedures were performed upon cats and 9,085 upon dogs.
Blakenhurst Prison
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 30 March, Official Report, column 843, if he will give the reason why an appropriate financial remedy is to be taken under the terms of the contract for Blakenhurst prison in connection with the incident on 24 February.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated 12 April 1994 : The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about Blakenhurst prison.
It is intended that an appropriate financial remedy under the terms of the contract be taken for the month of February as, in the light of the incident on 24 February, the Prison Service does not consider that UKDS fully delivered the required service during that month. In particular, during the incident, some parts of the prison were not fully in control, with consequent effects on regime delivery ; and public relations and contingency arrangements were not satisfactory. Following the incident, the population was reduced to enable essential repairs to be carried out.
Hunger Strikes
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now publish details of the status of people held in detention centres under immigration law who are engaged in hunger strikes.
Mr. Charles Wardle : On 11 April, 20 people detained under Immigration Act powers were refusing meals. Eight were detained in Immigration Service detention and 12 in Prison Service accommodation, including Haslar. Of these 20, 16 were illegal entrants, and four were passengers subject to removal following refusal of leave to enter. Seventeen of the 20 had applied for asylum at some stage and their position was as follows :
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|Number
Asylum application under consideration |5
Appeals outstanding against refusal of asylum |10
Awaiting travel documents for removal |2
Of the remaining three non-asylum cases, two were subject to continuing inquiries and one was awaiting travel documentation to enable removal to be arranged.
Wheel Clamping
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made on the Home Office consultation exercise into wheel clamping by private companies ; what is the timetable for the report ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : The Government are still considering what action, if any, it would be appropriate to take in respect of wheel clamping on private land. We will make our conclusions known as soon as possible.
Offences, London
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was (a) the total number of recorded offences, (b) the number of offences resulting in a caution and (c) the number of offences resulting in a conviction in the Metropolitan district for 1992.
Mr. Maclean : Information on the number of notifiable offences and the number of offenders cautioned and convicted in the Metropolitan police district during 1992 is published in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales, Supplementary tables 1992, Volume 3". A copy of this publication is available in the Library.
Safer Cities Programme
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list those cities which are currently receiving, or which have in the past received, funding under the safer cities programme giving (a) the dates of commencement of the safer cities programme in each city, (b) the original planned completion date of each project as first announced and (c) the current planned or actual completion date of the programme for each city ; and if he will show the amount of funding received by each city in each year since 1989 to the present date under the programme for (i) running costs, (ii) grants and (iii) other costs.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Twenty projects have been funded under phase 1 of the safer cities programme and 10 more have recently commenced under phase 2. A list of the projects with their start dates is shown in table A. When the phase 1 projects were set up, funding was guaranteed for a period of three years, after which decisions on alternatives, such as locally derived funding, would be made. Government funding for 16 of the phase 1 projects ceased in March 1994. The more recently established projects in Derby, Hammersmith and Fulham, Leicester and Middlesbrough will continue to receive funding until September 1995. The contracts with the managing agencies for the phase 2 projects run for three years.
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The amounts of funding for each project in each year since 1989 are set out in tables B, C and D. The figures for running and other costs are not readily available and are only approximate based on estimates.
Table A
|Date project
|commenced
Phase 1
Birmingham |July 1989
Bradford |November 1988
Bristol |January 1990
Coventry |October 1989
Derby |October 1991
Hammersmith and Fulham |December 1991
Hartlepool |September 1989
Hull |October 1989
Islington |January 1990
Leicester |September 1991
Lewisham |July 1989
Middlesbrough |October 1991
Nottingham |April 1989
Rochdale |August 1989
Salford |February 1990
Sunderland |August 1989
Tower Hamlets |December 1989
Wandsworth |January 1990
Wirral |September 1989
Wolverhampton |February 1989
Phase 2
Blackburn<1> |1 April 1994
Burnley<1> |1 February 1994
Greenwich<1> |1 February 1994
Lambeth<1> |1 February 1994
Leeds<1> |1 February 1994
Manchester<1> |1 April 1994
Merthyr Tydfil |1 February 1994
Newcastle<1> |1 February 1994
Plymouth<1> |1 February 1994
Sheffield<1> |1 February 1994
<1> Funding for these projects is included in the single regeneration budget, administered by the Department of the Environment, from 1
April 1994.
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Table B
Running costs (£'000)
|1989-90|1990-91|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Birmingham |17 |27 |25 |30 |34
Bradford |18 |27 |25 |30 |27
Bristol |8 |27 |25 |30 |34
Coventry |15 |27 |25 |30 |33
Derby |- |- |12 |30 |34
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |12 |30 |33
Hartlepool |16 |27 |25 |30 |35
Hull |15 |27 |25 |30 |34
Islington |8 |27 |25 |30 |33
Leicester |- |- |12 |30 |34
Lewisham |16 |27 |25 |30 |25
Middlesbrough |- |- |12 |30 |35
Nottingham |18 |27 |25 |30 |34
Rochdale |17 |27 |25 |30 |34
Salford |8 |27 |25 |30 |34
Sunderland |17 |27 |25 |30 |35
Tower Hamlets |8 |27 |25 |30 |32
Wandsworth |8 |27 |25 |30 |25
Wirral |16 |27 |25 |30 |34
Wolverhampton |18 |27 |25 |30 |34
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Table C
Grants (£'000)
|1989-90|1990-91|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Birmingham |133 |287 |291 |242 |135
Bradford |290 |265 |295 |291 |131
Bristol |90 |321 |406 |270 |170
Coventry |133 |337 |385 |318 |240
Derby |- |- |2 |257 |270
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |- |258 |280
Hartlepool |122 |266 |309 |273 |186
Hull |74 |268 |290 |286 |145
Islington |88 |293 |362 |293 |169
Leicester |- |- |10 |267 |275
Lewisham |308 |375 |413 |287 |171
Middlesbrough |- |- |- |291 |272
Nottingham |264 |268 |305 |236 |170
Rochdale |101 |276 |315 |242 |175
Salford |100 |264 |315 |269 |169
Sunderland |172 |268 |264 |215 |183
Tower Hamlets |64 |270 |367 |250 |177
Wandsworth |67 |203 |249 |241 |116
Wirral |152 |320 |320 |248 |165
Wolverhampton |241 |275 |276 |207 |170
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Table D
Other costs (£'000)
|1989-90|1990-91|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Birmingham |40 |85 |80 |95 |80
Bradford |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Bristol |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Coventry |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Derby |- |- |80 |95 |80
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |80 |95 |80
Hartlepool |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Hull |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Islington |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Leicester |- |- |80 |95 |80
Lewisham |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Middlesbrough |- |- |80 |95 |80
Nottingham |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Rochdale |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Salford |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Sunderland |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Tower Hamlets |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Wandsworth |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Wirral |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Wolverhampton |45 |85 |80 |95 |80
Iran (Arms Sale Trial)
Mr. David Young : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what connection Mr. William Harper, Mr. John Taylor and their co -defendants, tried in 1988 in relation to the sale of arms to Iran, had with the intelligence services ; and what public interest immunity certificates were signed in respect of their trial.
Mr. Howard : From time to time Mr. Taylor provided helpful information to the security and intelligence services between 1978 and 1985 on matters unrelated to the charges brought against him in 1988. His co- defendants have had no connection with the security and intelligence services. As far as can be ascertained, no public interest immunity certificates were signed in respect of their trial.
Remand Statistics
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for the number, at the latest available date, of residents of each county in Wales who were held in remand centres in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) elsewhere.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from A. J. Butler to Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones, dated 12 April 1994 :
The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question asking how many residents of each county in Wales were held in remand centres at the latest available date in (a) England or (b) Wales and (c) elsewhere.
The available provisional information is for 31 December 1993 and is given in the attached table. It relates to the population in remand centres in England and Wales who were first committed to custody by a Welsh court.
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Population in remand centres in England
and Wales on 31 December
1993 committed by courts in Wales<1>
County of Welsh Numbers held in
court first remand
committing centres from a
Welsh Court
|England|Wales
----------------------------------------
Clwyd |25 |0
Dyfed |0 |9
Gwent |0 |11
Gwynedd |16 |0
Mid Glamorgan |1 |37
South Glamorgan |0 |24
West Glamorgan |0 |31
Powys |2 |23
|-------|-------
Total |44 |135
<1> Provisional figures
Road Tax Offenders
Mr. Gerrard : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were imprisoned in each of the last three years for non- payment of fines imposed for not having paid road tax on a motor vehicle.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from A. J. Butler to Mr. Neil Gerrard, dated 12 April 1994 :
The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question asking how many people were imprisoned in each of the last three years for non-payment of fines imposed for not having paid road tax on a motor vehicle.
I am afraid that the information you have requested is not available centrally since the offence of non-payment of road tax is recorded under the general category of "other motoring offences".
Police (Drug-related Incidents)
Mr. Mike O'Brien : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers have been (i) injured and (ii) killed in drug-related incidents in each of the last 10 years.
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Mr. Maclean : The information requested is not available centrally.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Local Government Legislation
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will list the Acts of Parliament and Consolidation Acts affecting local government that have been introduced by her Department since 1990.
Mr. Jack : Only one Act introduced by the Ministry since 1990 affects local government--the Food Safety Act 1990.
Eggs
Sir Teddy Taylor : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information is available on the average consumption per person per week of eggs in each of the past 10 years ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Jack : Estimates of household consumption of eggs in Great Britain are provided by the Ministry's national food survey. The estimates, which are expressed in terms of average number of eggs per person per week, exclude eggs used in manufacturing or in catering and institutions.
Number per person per week
|Egg
|consumption
------------------------------------
1984 |3.21
1985 |3.15
1986 |3.01
1987 |2.89
1988 |2.67
1989 |2.29
1990 |2.20
1991 |2.25
1992 |2.08
1993 |1.92
The long-term decline in the consumption of shell eggs in households reflects a number of factors. Some of these--more eating out, lower energy requirements due to the switch to more sedentary occupations--affect total household food consumption while others, such as reductions in cooked breakfasts, home baking and high teas, will have particularly affected household consumption of eggs. The use of eggs within processed food products is, however, increasing.
Fisheries Guidance
Dr. John Cunningham : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on what date she expects to announce which parts of the new regulation relating to the financial instrument for fisheries guidance will be implemented in the United Kingdom.
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Mr. Jack : We shall make an announcement when we have drawn conclusions, in the light of our consultations with all interested parties, on what range of measures will represent the best use of taxpayers' money in this area.
Official Entertainment
Mr. Boyes : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the total cost of official entertaining in her Department in each year since 1990-91 ; if she will list the receptions held each year at her Department's expense ; and what was the cost of each reception.
Mr. Jack : The following amounts have been spent on official hospitality in each year since 1990-91 :
|£
-------------------------------
1990-91 |65,229.48
1991-92 |89,014.54
1992-93 |80,314.80
1993-94<1> |76,401.59
<1> To end of February 1994.
The total cost of official entertainment is included in the running cost expenditure for my Department, which is published every year in the annual report ; the entertainment budget is used for a variety of functions, including receptions. Separate figures are not kept for individual functions.
The principal items included in this expenditure were given on 27 October, Official Report, column 659.
Farming Incomes
Mr. Morley : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the average net annual income of farm owners in the United Kingdom in real and cash terms in each year since 1983.
Mr. Jack [holding answer 23 March 1994] : Information is not available on the total income of farm owners. However, in the farm business survey conducted in each country of the United Kingdom, data on incomes of farm businesses are collected from a sample of 3,900 farms which are classified as full-time holdings. Results are not readily available for the United Kingdom as a whole, but the table provides information on occupier's net income for wholly owner-occupied farms in each of our four home countries. Year-to-year comparisons can best be made by reference to the indices shown in the tables in both current prices and real terms. These are based on constant samples of farms between consecutive years. The method of farm classification has been changed and results are available only on the new classification from 1986-87 onwards.
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Occupier's net income on wholly owner-occupied farms<1>
Year<2> England Wales
Indices<4> Indices<4>
|£'000 |Current prices|Real terms<5> |£'000 |Current prices|Real terms<5>
|per farm |per farm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |12.0 |96 |123 |5.4 |69 |88
1987-88 |12.5 |100 |123 |8.2 |105 |128
1988-89 |12.6 |99 |114 |14.7 |158 |183
1989-90 |14.1 |105 |113 |10.2 |113 |121
1990-91 |12.9 |93 |92 |7.4 |81 |79
1991-92 |14.4 |102 |95 |11.4 |107 |100
1992-93 |19.1 |121 |110 |14.6 |146 |132
Scotland<3> Northern Ireland
1986-87 |7.2 |59 |75 |3.1 |65 |81
1987-88 |11.6 |95 |117 |9.1 |192 |231
1988-89 |12.3 |98 |113 |9.2 |188 |215
1989-90 |13.0 |108 |116 |7.2 |149 |158
1990-91 |14.0 |108 |106 |3.0 |64 |62
1991-92 |10.1 |84 |78 |4.9 |87 |80
1992-93 |16.7 |146 |131 |9.1 |165 |147
Brixham and South Devon Inshore Fishing Fleet
Mr. Steen : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will publish the name, size, type and home port of all the Brixham and south-west Devon inshore fishing vessels accepted to date as being eligible for decommissioning.
Mr. Jack : I am not able to publish information on individual vessels. However, of the 135 vessels decommissioned under the 1993 scheme, five were from Brixham and four from Plymouth. They ranged from 10 to 20 m in length and from nine to 42 gross registered tonnes. The majority were demersal trawlers.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will make a statement setting out the view of Her Majesty's Government on enlargement of the European Union and its consequences for the Brixham and south Devon inshore fishing fleet.
Mr. Jack : I set out the satisfactory outcome of the negotiations on fisheries between the European Union and Norway in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for St. Ives (Mr. Harris) on 22 March, Official Report, column 120 . In that reply I explained that the common fisheries policy rules applying within the waters of the Twelve generally, and the special rules applying to Spain and Portugal under their accession treaty are unchanged by the agreement. With reference to access for in-shore fishing, the Norwegian treaty will make no changes, but it will contain a joint EU- Norway declaration undertaking to pay special attention to the interests of coastal communities when the Council decides the arrangements on access to waters within the 12-mile limit which are to apply after the year 2002.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government on access by the Spanish fleet to the English channel ; and what assessments she has made of its consequences for the Brixham and south Devon inshore fishing fleet.
Mr. Jack : Adjustments to the current restrictions on Spanish and Portuguese access to the waters and fisheries of the other 10 member states are for decision by the
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Council of Ministers. A proposal setting out the broad principles for the adjustment of Spanish and Portuguese fishing arrangements is before the Fisheries Council meeting on 12 April. Subsequently, detailed proposals are expected from the Commission within the next few months. In negotiations on them, I shall continue to promote United Kingdom fishing interests, including those of Brixham and south Devon fishermen.FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Nuclear Non-proliferation
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his United States counterpart made available to Her Majesty's Government the United States proposals to enhance nuclear non-proliferation on the Indian sub-continent before they were put to India in March.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We are in frequent contact with the United States Government on a range of non-proliferation issues, including nuclear non- proliferation in south Asia.
Malta
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 23 March, Official Report, column 478, what are the institutional problems which were identified in respect of Malta's application to join the EC.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I refer my hon. Friend to page 19 of the Commission opinion on Malta's application for membership, a copy of which is in the House of Commons Library. This lists the institutional problems in respect of Malta's application to join the EC as : the small number of Maltese officials with sufficient international experience to play a full part in the decision-making and operational processes of the Community institutions ; the small size of the diplomatic corps and its inexperience in co-operating with other European countries ; the difficulties Malta might have in taking on the Presidency ; and the more general institutional problems that would be posed by the accession of Malta or any other applicant of a similar size. The Council endorsed the opinion in October 1993.
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EU Qualified Majority Voting
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consideration was given, before Her Majesty's Government agreed to the Maastricht treaty, to the implications of that treaty for qualified majority voting ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : Before agreeing to the Maastricht treaty, we considered in detail the implications of the treaty for the use of qualified majority voting. In particular, we satisfied ourselves that in areas such as foreign policy, where supreme national interests are at stake, unanimity would continue to apply.
East Timor
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he and the European Union have been making to the Indonesian Government about the future of East Timor leader Xanana Gusmao.
Mr. Goodlad : We have made representations to the Indonesian Government about the importance of International Committee of the Red Cross access to Gusmao, and his humane treatment while in detention.
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Clydebank and Milngavie (Mr. Worthington) of 28 March, Official Report, column 544, if he will set out the criteria he adopts to evaluate the reliability of information sources on the number of deaths that have taken place in East Timor since the Indonesian takeover.
Mr. Goodlad : We understand that none of those who have quoted figures for the numbers killed in East Timor support their estimates with detailed recorded statistics.
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Lewisham, East of 29 March, Official Report, column 617, what considerations led him to conclude that sanctions against Indonesia over East Timor's occupation will not be either (a) appropriate or (b) effective.
Mr. Goodlad : Sanctions would not, in our view, bring about a change in the circumstances of East Timor. We believe that the current dialogue between Indonesia and Portugal under the United Nations Secretary-General's auspices offers the best prospect for reaching agreement on a just, comprehensive and internationally acceptable settlement on the future of the territory.
North Korea
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy on moves to bring the North Korean nuclear weapon issue to the United Nations Security Council ; and what is the likely timetable in respect of such moves.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 24 March, the International Atomic Energy Agency director general reported on the most recent round of IAEA inspections in North Korea to
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the United Nations Security Council. After subsequent discussions, the President of the Security Council issued a statement on 31 March in which he called upon North Korea to allow IAEA inspectors full access to all of its declared nuclear facilities. The President also declared that further Security Council consideration of the issue would take place, if necessary, in order to achieve full implementation of North Korea's safeguards agreement.Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the outcome of the United Nations Security Council meeting on 31 March in connection with nuclear matters and North Korea ; and what stance he took.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 31 March the President of the United Nations Security Council made a statement on North Korea, in which he called upon North Korea to allow IAEA inspectors access to all of its declared nuclear facilities, as previously agreed by North Korea on 15 February. The President also declared that further Security Council consideration of the matter would take place, if necessary, in order to achieve full implementation of North Korea's safeguards agreement. All members of the Security Council supported the statement.
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