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Sea Empress Incident

Mr. Tony Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his latest estimate of costs arising from efforts to control oil pollution originating from the Sea Empress. [17074]

Mr. Norris: As at midday Friday 23 February, the known costs to the marine pollution control unit exceeded £2 million, excluding some significant costs where information is not yet available. We would seek to recover these costs from the ship's insurers or from the international oil pollution compensation fund. Estimates of costs incurred by others is not currently available.

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what quantity of oil-dispersant chemicals have so far been used on oil slicks originating from the Sea Empress.[17077]

Mr. Norris: By midday Friday 23 February, 444 tonnes of dispersants had been used.

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many crew were on the Sea Empress at the time it ran aground; and what was their nationality. [17076]

Mr. Norris: Twenty-seven Russian crew members and a local pilot were on board.

26 Feb 1996 : Column: 321

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many oil-retaining sea booms have been used to control oil coming from the Sea Empress. [17078]

Mr. Norris: As at 10:00 on Monday 26 February, some 2,250 metres of boom were in place.

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what tests were carried out on the captain of the Sea Empress following the ship running aground. [17125]

Mr. Norris: Drug and alcohol tests were carried out on all 27 crew of the Sea Empress. None were found to be positive.

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consideration is being given to bringing criminal charges against (a) the owner and (b) the captain of the Sea Empress. [17126]

Mr. Norris: Whether it is appropriate to consider criminal proceedings against any party in respect of the Sea Empress will depend on the findings of the investigations that are being undertaken into the incident.

Mr. Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his latest estimate of sea birds affected by oil originating from the Sea Empress. [17075]

Mr. Norris: As at 10:00 on Monday 26 February, it was reported that 1,640 birds had been affected.

Land Compensation Act 1973

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to amend the Land Compensation Act 1973 to allow tenants to claim compensation for disturbance to carpets and curtains, without being relocated to another property. [16042]

Sir Paul Beresford: I have been asked to reply.

Under the 1973 Act, tenants are entitled to certain categories of compensation, such as a fixed amount of £1,500 as a home loss payment. Tenants may claim some disturbance compensation for incidental losses such as removal expenses, the cost of altering soft furnishings and moveable fixtures and fittings. Tenants who need professional help in preparing and negotiating a claim may also claim for the fee of a surveyor or solicitor, but there is no power, and there are no plans to introduce a power, to pay compensation to tenants where they do not have to move.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Know-how Funds (Tourism)

Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the tourism projects which have been supported by the know-how funds. [16336]

Sir Nicholas Bonsor: The know-how fund has supported 19 tourism projects since 1989 at a total cost of approximately £1.63 million. The projects are listed in the table.

26 Feb 1996 : Column: 322

Country	Project title	Financial year	Approved costs £
Bulgaria	Tourism Management Development	1994-98	500,000
	Pirin and Rila Eco and Sustainable Tourism Project	1993-97	378,400
Estonia	Tourism Training Course	1993-94	12,289
Hungary	Sustainable Tourism National Park Project	1995-97	234,000
Latvia	Seminar on Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas	1993-94	1,095
	Transport/Tourism Minister Visit	1992-93	5,095
	Tourism Training	1994-95	12,768
Lithuania	Tourism Training	1993-94	13,032
Pan Baltic	Baltic Tourism--UK Visit	1992-93	2,379
	Project Identification Visits	1993-94	6,157
	Tourist Information Centre	1994-95	23,557
Poland	Cracow Tourism Study	1989-90	37,000
	Wiekiczka Salt Mine	1995-96	110,000
	Strategic Cultural Plan Gdansk	1992-94	35,000
Russia	Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas Seminar	1995-96	2,500
Slovakia	SME Tourism Development Poprad	1994-95	34,000
	Rural Tourism Development--Gemer Region	1995-96	198,800
Slovenia	Sustainable Tourism	1993-94	1,500
	Timeshare Legislation	1994-95	20,700

Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what small business projects have been supported by the know-how funds; of these which related to tourism; and if she will list them. [16326]

Sir Nicholas Bonsor: The know-how fund has supported more than 650 small business projects. Of these, the following four related directly to tourism:

Poland
Cracow Tourism Study, 1989-90: Approved costs £37,000
Slovakia
SME Tourism Development Poprad, 1994-95: Approved costs £34,000
Slovenia
Timeshare Legislation, 1994-95: Approved costs £20,700 Sustainable Tourism, 1993-94: Approved costs £1,500

26 Feb 1996 : Column: 323

Indonesia

Miss Lestor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans (a) he has and (b) other Ministers in his Department have to visit Indonesia. [16395]

Mr. Hanley: We have no immediate plans to do so.

Italian Constitution

Mr. Elletson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions HM ambassador to Rome has had with Italian political parties about proposals to reform the Italian constitution; and if he will make a statement. [16308]

Mr. David Davis: In the course of normal contacts, HM ambassador to Rome and colleagues have discussed proposals to reform the Italian constitution with representatives of parties across the Italian political spectrum.

Ministerial Visit (Cyprus)

Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he (a) has had and (b) will have with the leader of the British delegation to the Council of Europe following his visit to the Karpass area of occupied northern Cyprus; and if he will make a statement. [16310]

Mr. David Davis: My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary has not been in contact with Lord Finsberg following his recent visit to Cyprus. The British high commissioner in Nicosia spoke with Lord Finsberg during his visit.

We support efforts to uphold the human rights of Cypriots in whatever part of the island they live. We welcome the recent announcement by the Turkish Cypriots of measures to improve the living conditions for Greek Cypriots and Maronites living in northern Cyprus. There is no reason why the remaining restrictions on basic freedoms for minorities should not be lifted.

United Nations Special Commission on Iraq

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current United Kingdom financial commitment to the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq. [16303]

Mr. David Davis: We have made a significant contribution to the work of the United Nations Special Commission since its inception in 1991 through the provision of specialist personnel and equipment. In the current financial year this has had a value of some £1 million, which is broadly in line with the support provided in previous years. We do not make a direct financial contribution.

Social Welfare Provision (Germany)

Mr. Elletson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment Her Majesty's ambassador to Bonn has made of Germany's ability to maintain its current level of social welfare provision over the next 20 years; and if he will make a statement. [16307]

26 Feb 1996 : Column: 324

Mr. David Davis: Due to the many factors which have to be taken into consideration, such an assessment is impossible to make. It is up to individual states to establish their economic priorities.

Sri Lanka

Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations with Sri Lanka; and what plans he has to visit the country. [16511]

Mr. Hanley: Relations with Sri Lanka are good. We support the Sri Lankan Government's efforts to secure a lasting and peaceful settlement and urge all who are concerned to make every effort to persuade the Liberation Tamil Tigers Eelam to respond positively to the constitutional opportunities on offer. I visited Sri Lanka last October and have no immediate plans to visit again.

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