House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 16 Oct 1996 (pt 6)

Acts of Parliament (Updating)

Mr. Spearing: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by what means a citizen of the United Kingdom can refer to any Act of Parliament in force to which is added, or incorporated, the texts of amendments to current law occasioned by regulations of the European Economic Community, stating by whom such updating is maintained, where it is done, what is its cost and which vote of the estimates defrays this expenditure. [40797]

Mr. David Davis: I shall write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Li Langing (Visit)

Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are the dates and purpose of the visit planned by the Chinese Vice-Premier Li Langing to the United Kingdom. [41062]

Dr. Liam Fox: The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley), shall write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Tibet

Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what considerations led him not to raise the issue of Tibet at his recent meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister; and if he will make a statement. [41064]

16 Oct 1996 : Column: 919

Dr. Liam Fox: The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley), shall write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Unidentified Flying Objects

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what consultation has taken place in each of the last five years by his Department with the French Service de Documentation Exterieur et de Contre-Espionnage in respect of unidentified flying objects; and if he will make a statement; [40970]

(3) if he will list by month for each of the last 10 years and this year to date the number of occasions on which the Government Communications headquarters has monitored unidentified flying object investigations; and if he will make a statement. [40922]

Mr. David Davis: I shall write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Consultants

Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are his latest estimates of the expenditure on all external consultants, including management consultants, for each year since 1992, in 1996 prices, for his Department and its agencies; and what are the quantified annual cost savings which such expenditure has resulted in. [41178]

New Buildings and Premises

Mrs. Bridget Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total expenditure on new buildings and premises by his Department and its agencies; and if he will indicate the square footage of new office space purchased or newly rented in each of the last five years. [41144]

Telephone Interceptions

Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list for each of the last 12 months the number of (a) interceptions and (b) monitorings of telephone calls (i) entering or (ii) leaving the United Kingdom, through the joint

16 Oct 1996 : Column: 920

Government Communications headquarters--National Security Agency agreement; and if he will make a statement. [40972]

Nuclear Weapons

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the implications for United Kingdom policy on the use of nuclear weapons of the decision of the International Court of Justice on nuclear weapons. [41224]

Mr. David Davis: I shall write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Combined Heat and Power

Mr. Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what capacity of electricity used in his Department's buildings is generated in a combined heat and power plant; and what plans he has to increase that capacity. [41321]

Dr. Liam Fox: The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley), will write to the hon. Member shortly. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

DEFENCE

Religious Discrimination (Caterick Camp)

Mr. Gabraith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what reports he has received of religious discrimination at Catterick camp during June and July; and if he will make a statement. [40766]

Mr. Soames: There have been no reported incidents of religious discrimination at Catterick Camp during June and July. However, we treat any allegations of discrimination extremely seriously and if the hon. Member can provide any information which suggests that religious discrimination has taken place at Catterick Camp it will, of course, be fully investigated.

Suicides

Mr. Galbraith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 16 May to the hon. Member for South Shields (Dr Clark), Official Report, column 559, if he will break down the number of suicides in the armed forces by (a) year and (b) service for each year since 1991. [40767]

Mr. Soames: Since January 1991 the total number of service personnel who have been confirmed as committing suicide is 130, which is broken down as follows:

16 Oct 1996 : Column: 921

Year Army Royal Navy(2) RAF

1991 22 5 7

1992 19 6 5

1993 18 1 4

1994 17 6 5

1995 12 1 2

Year	Army	Royal Navy(2)	RAF
1991	22	5	7
1992	19	6	5
1993	18	1	4
1994	17	6	5
1995	12	1	2

(2) Includes the Royal Marines.

Figures are not yet available for 1996.

The total figure given in the answer to the hon. Member for South Shields of 16 May, Official Report, column 559, was 135. This original figure has subsequently been amended to reflect the rulings of coroners courts.

Beef Purchases

Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of beef supplied to service personnel in the British armed forces in the last year and purchased by his Department was purchased (a) from United Kingdom sources, (b) from other European Union sources and (c) from the rest of the world; and if he will make a statement. [40440]

Mr. Arbuthnot: Since 1 October 1994 the supply of food for the armed services has been the responsibility of the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes, NAAFI. My Department does not specify sources from which meat should be obtained, but NAAFI is required to meet the specification and achieve best value for money. The majority of our requirements are, however, for frozen beef which is not readily available from the British market and on cost grounds the majority of meat is sourced from south America and eastern Europe. Nevertheless, some beef including sirloin, foreribs, minced and diced and a range of manufactured products are normally procured from UK sources.

Prior to 1994, beef was purchased directly by my Department, but no records were kept of the quantities sourced by a particular country, although the majority was imported from south America.

Gulf War Syndrome

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will now make it his policy to investigate media allegations of cases of the Gulf war syndrome if invited to do so in parliamentary questions from hon. Members. [40734]

Mr. Soames: Our first duty, and prime concern, is to the health of those veterans who served in the Gulf, and we will of course explore any information made available which may have affected the health of those veterans. The proper means for the medical examination of Gulf veterans who are concerned about their health is the medical assessment programme which we established in 1993. I urge any veteran who has such concerns and has not yet been seen by the MAP to come forward as soon as possible.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what new assessment his Department has made of the possible effects of fluorine on Gulf war military and medical veterans since the reply of 24 October 1994, Official Report, column 500. [40750]

16 Oct 1996 : Column: 922

Mr. Soames: No assessment has been made of the possible effects of fluorine on Gulf war veterans. No evidence of the effects of fluorine has been found among any of the UK Gulf war veterans examined under my Department's medical assessment programme.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the memorandum on the discovery of mustard gas during the Gulf war by the commander of the 54 Chemical Troop, dated 4 January 1994, has now been discovered and assessed. [40751]

Mr. Soames: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information on the environmental effects of organophosphates his Department has received from the United States Government in regard to the joint research being conducted on the implications of organophosphate use in Operation Granby in the Gulf war. [40736]

Mr. Soames: My Department is liaising closely with the United States Government on all aspects of research into the health of Gulf war veterans. It has received information on the United States Government's assessment of the health effects on US forces of organophosphate use during the Gulf war, and on associated work being conducted as part of their research programme into Gulf war illnesses. No joint US-UK research is being conducted into organophosphate use during the Gulf war.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what quality control was conducted on the organophosphate pesticides purchased by his Department to combat fly-borne diseases in the Gulf war; and what post-war assessment has been made on the effect on the local environment in Kuwait and southern Iraq of the use of pesticides during Operation Granby. [40738]

Mr. Soames: The organophosphate pesticides, malathion and fenitrothion, were approved for use at the time of Operation Granby under the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986. ALFACRON, containing the organophosphate azamathiphos, and purchased locally in the Gulf, was also approved for use under these regulations. SNIP, a similar product purchased locally containing azamathiphos, was licensed for use in the United States, but it is understood that no application has been made for approval in the UK. A further organophosphate pesticide purchased locally, neocidal, is understood to have been supplied in error in response to an order for a non-organophosphate pesticide.

My Department is not aware of any post-war assessment of the effect of the use of pesticides on the local environment in Kuwait and southern Iraq during Operation Granby.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Gulf war veteran service people and medical support staff have been found to suffer from brainstem encephalitis; and what assessment has been made of the relationship between incidences of brainstem encephalitis in Gulf war veterans and the environment of the Gulf war. [40746]

16 Oct 1996 : Column: 923

Mr. Soames [holding answer 15 October 1996]: There have been no reported cases of Gulf war veterans suffering from brainstem encephahlitis. No assessment has therefore been made of a possible link between brainstem encephalitis and the environment of the Gulf.

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what medical studies have been conducted by his Department on the effects on human health and the environment of the organophosphate pesticides malathion, diazinon, azamathiphos and dimethyl phosphorothionate prior to their use in Operation Granby in the Gulf war.[40745]

Mr. Soames [holding answer 15 October 1996]: No medical studies on the organophosphate pesticides malathion, diazinon, azamathiphos and dimethyl phosphorothionate were conducted by my Department prior to the Gulf war.

Next Section

Index

Home Page