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IRA
Mr. Robert McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the implications for his policies on peace and reconciliation of the IRA's continuing activities. [2628]
Mr. Ancram: The Government's declared aim is to achieve peace, prosperity and reconciliation in Northern Ireland by pursuing a range of complementary policies, including the search for a comprehensive political settlement which can command widespread support. This has been and will continue to be the Government's policy, irrespective of the level of IRA activity.
Stormont Talks
Mr. Robert McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the progress of the talks at Castle buildings, Stormont. [2637]
Mr. Ancram: The participants have all made clear their total and absolute commitment to the principles of democracy and non-violence set out in paragraph 20 of the report of the international body; they have agreed rules of procedure, established a business committee and settled the agenda for the remainder of the opening plenary. They are currently addressing proposals regarding the decommissioning of illegal weapons.
The talks process provides the best opportunity for a generation of reaching a comprehensive and widely acceptable political settlement which could underpin lasting peace in Northern Ireland.
Agriculture and Rural Development
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applications were made in respect of the special programme for agriculture and rural development--SPARD--from 22 March 1995 to 24 March 1995; how many have been approved; and of these how many have received payments. [2708]
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Mr. Ancram: A total of 5,380 applications were received under the sub-programme for agriculture and rural development on 23 and 24 March 1995; 4,760 have been approved to date and, of these, 610 farmers have received payment of grant.
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to expedite outstanding payments in respect of the special programme for agriculture and rural development in respect of applications which were forwarded between 22 March and 24 March. [2706]
Mr. Ancram: Claims for grant based on applications received on 23 or 24 March 1995 have, since 1 April 1996, been held in date order of receipt and will be paid in this order as financial resources permit. Nevertheless, the Department will make a special effort to make early payments in cases where there are exceptional circumstances. The expenditure on the SPARD schemes is monitored on a monthly basis, and if it becomes clear that the funds available are in excess of that required to pay all of the claims based on applications received prior
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to 23 March 1995, the balance will be used to pay the outstanding claims arising from applications received on 23 or 24 March 1995.
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applications were made in respect of the special programme for agriculture and rural development from 1 April 1994 to its suspension on 22 March 1995; of these how many were approved; and what was the total cost of the approved schemes. [2707]
Mr. Ancram: Some 5,635 applications were received under the sub-programme for agriculture and rural development from the date the scheme opened on 14 November 1994 up to 22 March 1995; 5,586 applications have been approved and the total cost of the approved applications is £31.5 million.
Neonatal and Perinatal Mortality
Mr. Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the (a) neonatal and (b) perinatal mortality rates for the last four years by each health and social services board. [2669]
Sir John Wheeler: The information is as follows:
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| 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995(40) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neonatal | Perinatal | Neonatal | Perinatal | Neonatal | Perinatal | Neonatal | Perinatal | ||
| Eastern health and social services board | 3.8 | 8.7 | 3.9 | 7.3 | 5.1 | 10.7 | 7.6 | 12.3 | |
| Northern health and social services board | 3.5 | 7.6 | 3.5 | 9.4 | 4.6 | 9.6 | 4.0 | 8.5 | |
| Southern health and social services board | 3.8 | 8.5 | 6.2 | 8.8 | 3.7 | 10.0 | 3.8 | 8.6 | |
| Western health and social services board | 5.6 | 7.8 | 7.5 | 10.9 | 2.1 | 7.1 | 5.0 | 11.0 | |
Neonatal rate per 1,000 live births. Perinatal rates per 1,000 live and still-births.
(40) Provisional.
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Dementia
Mr. Maginnis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the status of the report "Dementia in Northern Ireland", to what extent it reflects Government policy on the matter; and what resources have been allocated to deal with the problem of dementia in each of the years 1993-94 to 1996-97. [3323]
Mr. Moss: "Dementia in Northern Ireland" is the report of a team brought together by the Department of Health and Social Services in 1994 to examine policy and make recommendations on the development of services. The report has been accepted by the Department and its recommendations have been adopted as the basis for its policy in this area.
Financial provision for dementia is subsumed within overall allocations to health and social services boards, and it is a matter for each board to allocate resources within its area on the basis of assessed need and competing priorities.
Mr. Maginnis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the incidence of dementia within each of the board areas in Northern Ireland; and what the average per capita funding has been for (a) residential care and (b) respite care in each board area during the years 1993-94 to 1995-96 in respect of dementia. [3325]
Mr. Moss:
Precise information about the incidence of dementia is not available as many sufferers are not in contact with services. However, it is estimated that in
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1994 there were 12,500 people in Northern Ireland suffering from the disease. The information requested on funding is not available.
Mr. Maginnis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what resources have been allocated towards a public awareness campaign relating to dementia. [3326]
Mr. Moss:
Since 1991, the Department of Health and Social Services has provided funding for the Alzheimer's Disease Society in Northern Ireland, one of whose main aims is to raise public awareness of the disease.
Mr. Maginnis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what are the respective roles of (a) his Department, (b) the boards and (c) health trusts in dealing with the problem of dementia. [3324]
Mr. Moss:
The Department of Health and Social Services sets and monitors strategic plans for implementation of its policy on dementia. In drawing up the regional strategy for health and social well-being 1997 to 2002, the Department has asked boards and trusts to conduct a detailed audit during 1997 of the needs of people with dementia and the services available to meet those needs. Building on this baseline, the Department intends to establish quantifiable targets for the remainder of the strategy period.
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Mr. Martyn Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the changes in farmers' income in real terms for each month since January 1990; and if he will make a statement. [1583]
Mr. Ancram:
Estimates of farm incomes in Northern Ireland are obtained on an annual basis from the farm business survey and are published each year in "Agriculture in the United Kingdom", "Farm Incomes in the United Kingdom", the "Statistical Review of Northern Ireland Agriculture" and "Farm Incomes in Northern Ireland", copies of which are available in the Library.
Mr. William Ross:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many recommendations have been made by the Government of the Irish Republic under article 6 of the Anglo-Irish Agreement in each year since it was signed; how many persons were appointed in each year as a result of those recommendations; and of these how many are still serving in each body. [1964]
| Year | Number of recommendations | Number of appointments resulting from recommendations |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 45 | 5 |
| 1987 | 21 | 3 |
| 1988 | 15 | 4 |
| 1989 | 6 | 4 |
| 1990 | 1 | 0 |
| 1991 | 21 | 3 |
| 1992 | 34 | 8 |
| 1993 | 30 | 7 |
| 1994 | 17 | 2 |
| 1995 | 53 | 13 |
| 1996(41) | 41 | 6 |
(41) Up to 30 October 1996.
Thirty-three of those appointments were still current as at 30 October 1996.
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