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Sir John Wheeler: I shall reply very briefly to the hon. Member for Clydebank and Milngavie (Mr. Worthington) and tell him this about the codes. No decision has yet been made to commence work on codes of practice in respect of the part II powers. As he will know, those powers have been used much less frequently than when terrorist activity was at its height.

If, however, the security situation deteriorates and the use of the powers increases significantly, the Government would give careful consideration to the drawing up of such codes of practice as an additional safeguard for the public and for members of the security forces.

As I have said elsewhere, the Lloyd review will be published in October and will be available for scrutiny by the hon. Member for Clydebank and Milngavie and by all others with an interest in this matter.

Lords amendment agreed to.

Lords amendment No. 2 agreed to.

Clause 62

Commencement, duration, expiry and revival of provisions of this Act


Lords amendment: No. 3, in page 39, line 27, after ("it") insert
(", or a corresponding earlier enactment,")

Sir John Wheeler: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said amendment.

The amendment seeks to address a gap in the Bill as drafted. Clause 15 restricts the remission granted under prison rules in respect of those convicted of scheduled offences and sentenced to a term of imprisonment of five years or more; in such cases, remission is restricted to one third of the sentence. Clause 16 requires the court to order that a person imprisoned for a scheduled offence during a

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period of remission must serve the unexpired portion of the sentence for his previous offence in addition to the sentence for the subsequent offence.

These two provisions are temporary. Clause 62 provides that in the event of the expiry--or cesser--of either provision, its operational effect shall continue in relation to an offence committed while the provision was in force. However, in the event of the expiry or cesser of clause 15 or 16, the intention would be that the expiry or cesser should affect only offences committed after that event. In other words, offences committed before the expiry or cesser of clause 15 or 16 should continue to be subject to those provisions. The clause does not quite achieve that result because it omits a reference to offences committed before the enactment of the provision--in other words, offences committed during the lifetime of a predecessor provision.

The current wording of clause 62 omits any reference to predecessor provisions. The amendment corrects that.

Dr. Joe Hendron (Belfast, West): I should like to speak to the Lords amendments on clause 52 and clause 54. My original intention was--

Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order. This Lords amendment deals with clause 62; we have already discussed Lords amendments to clause 52 and clause 54. The hon. Gentleman must confine his remarks to the Lords amendments to clause 62.

Lords amendment agreed to.

Clause 63

Savings, amendments and repeals


Lords amendment: No. 4, in page 39, line 46, at end insert--
("( ) Schedule (Scheduled offences: transitional provisions) (which makes transitional provisions in relation to scheduled offences) shall have effect.")

Sir John Wheeler: I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said amendment.

Mr. Deputy Speaker: With this, it will be convenient to discuss Lords amendment No. 5.

Sir John Wheeler: Because the Bill has the effect of removing certain offences from the current list of scheduled offences--that is, offences that merit special treatment under the emergency legislation--it is necessary to spell out precisely how cases involving such offences, whether committed or alleged to have been committed at the time of the Bill's enactment, should continue to be dealt with after that date.

The amendments would add a new schedule to the Bill which would set out the transitional arrangements for each case, taking into account its individual stage in the criminal justice process at the time of the Bill's enactment.

Lords amendment agreed to.

Lords amendment No. 5 agreed to.

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Appropriation (Northern Ireland)

4.59 pm

The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Sir John Wheeler): I beg to move,


The draft order, which covers the main estimates for Northern Ireland departments, authorises expenditure of £3,617 million for the current financial year. Taken together with the sum voted on account in February, this brings total estimates provision for Northern Ireland departments to £6,438 million, an increase of 6.2 per cent. on 1995-96 provisional outturn. The sums sought for individual services are set out in the estimates booklet, which is, as usual, available from the Vote Office. I remind the House that the estimates for the Northern Ireland Office covering law and order services are not covered by the order before us.

As is customary on these occasions, I shall highlight the main items in the estimates, starting with the Department of Agriculture. The net provision in the two agriculture votes amounts to some £164 million. In vote 1, net provision of some £20 million is to fund European Union and national agriculture and fishery support measures which apply throughout the United Kingdom.

The net provision covers the various pre-funded market support measures under the common agricultural policy, which total £135 million. The vote includes some£6 million to assist structural improvements, by way of various capital, environmental and other grants. Some£14 million is to provide support for farming in special areas by means of headage payments on hill cattle and sheep, while £6 million is in respect of processing, marketing and fishing projects, which are wholly funded by the European Union.

In vote 2, some £140 million is for on-going regional services and support measures. This includes £60 million for the development of the agriculture and agricultural products industries and for scientific and veterinary services. Some £27 million is for farm support, enhancement of the countryside and fisheries and forestry services; £24 million is for central administration, including information technology and specialist accommodation services; and £5 million is for the rural development programme. Some £18.4 million is for watercourse management, which is due to become a next steps agency with effect from 1 October 1996.

This vote also contains net provision of £9.3 million in respect of the EU peace and reconciliation programme which incorporates agricultural, rural and water-based projects.

In the Department of Economic Development's vote 1, some £134 million is required for the Industrial Development Board. This will enable the board to continue to attract and support industrial development in Northern Ireland, mainly through the provision of factory buildings and selective financial assistance to both new and existing companies. In 1995-96, the board supported some 35 inward investment projects offering 4,869 jobs.

In vote 2, some £115 million is required. Thirty-two million pounds is for the local enterprise development unit, Northern Ireland's small business agency. This will allow the agency to maintain its excellent record in

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developing, strengthening and improving the competitiveness of the important small firms sector in Northern Ireland.

Rev. William McCrea (Mid-Ulster): I am sure that the Minister will join me in welcoming the excellent news that 300 new jobs are coming to Cookstown in my constituency. I wish to put on record our appreciation for all the efforts made by the Industrial Development Board and for Baroness Denton's help in getting those jobs for Mid-Ulster.

Northern Ireland's major industry is agriculture. Does the Minister accept that, as we have heard this afternoon, Northern Ireland is practically bovine spongiform encephalopathy free? Will he encourage the Secretary of State, the Cabinet and the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to try to get the European ban lifted and allow Northern Ireland to lead the United Kingdom out of the present awful situation, bearing in mind the quality of our produce, which is respected across the world?

Sir John Wheeler: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his opening remarks in which he thanked my noble Friend for her enthusiastic and sterling work on behalf of his constituency and the whole of Northern Ireland. She will be much sustained and encouraged by his observations. I know that the hon. Gentleman works unceasingly to support his constituents by sustaining the business environment and he is aware that he is appreciated for doing so.

As for the BSE problem, it is simply not acceptable that the UK should have been placed in the present position. It is the Government's policy that the ban should be lifted not only for Northern Ireland but for the UK as a whole. The hon. Gentleman's specific remarks about Northern Ireland's excellent record are, of course, well understood and will undoubtedly form part of the Government's case in Europe to see that the ban is lifted as soon as possible. I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his remarks.

I was giving the House some financial information.A total of £15.5 million is for the industrial research and technology unit, primarily to promote the competitiveness of local companies by encouraging innovation, industrially relevant research and development and by technology transfer. This underlines the importance that the Government attach to helping Northern Ireland industry to grasp the technological opportunities that underpin successful economic development.

Finally in this vote, £14.6 million is for the Northern Ireland tourist board to support the tourist industry in Northern Ireland. This coming year will be an important challenge for tourism in Northern Ireland. In 1995 we saw the seventh consecutive rise in visitor numbers: a record number of almost 1.6 million people came to Northern Ireland, a 20 per cent. increase on 1994. Investment in tourism remains healthy with a number of major development projects announced in recent months.

In vote 3, £212 million is for the Training and Employment Agency. This will enable the agency to continue to provide a range of comprehensive training and support measures, and includes £73 million to fund 16,000 training places under the jobskills training programme. Some £45.6 million is for the action for community employment and community work

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programmes, which will provide some 8,000 places for long-term unemployed adults in projects of community benefit. Furthermore, £23.7 million is to assist companies to improve their competitiveness by developing the skills of their work force and to provide training for those intending to pursue management careers in industry.

I deal now with the Department of the Environment. In vote 1, £180 million is for roads, transport and ports. This includes some £147 million for the development, operation and maintenance of Northern Ireland's public road system.


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