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Scottish Devolution

Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his oral answer of 27

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October 1997, Official Report, column 574, which department will be responsible for the campaign against drug misuse in Scotland. [15764]

Mr. Galbraith: I have been asked to reply.

As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department indicated in his reply of 27 October, the Scottish Executive will assume the current responsibilities of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Lord Advocate. The reply made it clear that these responsibilities would include drug misuse issues such as health, treatment and education and enforcement of drug misuse legislation in Scotland. Responsibilities on education would cover advertising and prevention campaigns on drug misuse.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

India

Ms Jenny Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many applications for visitors' visas to the United Kingdom have been received at the New Delhi embassy since January; and how many of the applications were refused. [15930]

Mr. Fatchett: Between 1 January and 31 October 1997, 46,799 applications to visit the United Kingdom were received at the British High Commission in New Delhi of which 6,064--13 per cent.--have been refused.

Ms Jenny Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will review the geographical location of the United Kingdom's embassies in India with particular reference to giving adequate coverage to the northern states. [15931]

Mr. Fatchett: We regularly keep under review the size and location of diplomatic posts around the world. We have no current plans to open further posts in India. Our present Missions in India are the High Commission in New Delhi, the Deputy High Commissions in Bombay, Calcutta and Madras and the British Trade Office in Bangalore.

Export Promotion

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the initiatives taken by his Department to improve export promotion. [16357]

Mr. Fatchett: This Department and the Department of Trade and Industry launched the Export Forum in June to look at ways to enhance the effectiveness of current government support for UK exporters. The Forum met between July and October, and my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade welcomed its recommendations in her written announcement to the House on 4 November 1997, Official Report, columns 127-28.

In July we also announced a rolling programme of attachments of business men and women to work on specific promotions or projects overseas for periods of a few months.

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Human Rights

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what obstacles remain to the United Kingdom indicating its adherence to the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials adopted by the 8th UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders in September 1990; [15888]

(2) what obstacles remain to the United Kingdom indicating its adherence to the UN Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty adopted by the General Assembly Resolution 45/113 of 14 December 1990; [15889]

(3) what obstacles remain to the United Kingdom indicating its adherence to the United Nations Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions recommended by the Economic and Social Council Resolution of 24 May 1989; [15890]

(4) what obstacles remain to the United Kingdom indicating its adherence to the United Nations Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment adopted by the General Assembly Resolution of 9 December 1988; [15891]

(5) what obstacles remain to the United Kingdom indicating its adherence to the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, approved by the Economic and Social Council of 13 May 1977. [15892]

Mr. Doug Henderson: We support the broad intentions of the important human rights standards contained in these United Nations texts. The United Kingdom joined consensus on their adoption. However, these instruments are not legally binding. As their wording shows, they are recommendatory in nature. There is therefore no mechanism by which States can become party to them.

Indonesia

Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he made of the human rights situation in Indonesia when deciding to continue to export arms to Indonesia; and in what circumstances he would ban arms sales. [16420]

Mr. Fatchett: We will not issue an export licence if the arguments for doing so are outweighed by the need to comply with the UK's international obligations and commitments, or by concern that the goods might be used for internal repression or international aggression, or by the risks of regional stability, or other considerations as described in the new criteria for defence sales announced by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary on 28 July 1997, Official Report, columns 26-29. These factors will be taken into account when considering an export licence for any country, including Indonesia.

MI6

Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the present terms of reference for MI6. [15707]

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Mr. Robin Cook [holding answer 17 November 1997]: The principle role of the Secret Intelligence Service is the production of secret intelligence in support of the security, defence, foreign and economic policies within the framework of requirements laid upon us by the JIC and approved by Ministers. The functions of SIS are set out in section 1 of the Intelligence Services Act 1994.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Overseas Travel

Mr. Malcolm Bruce: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if she will list each of the overseas trips made by herself and other members of her ministerial team since 2 May, specifying in each case (a) the participating Minister of Ministers, (b) the destination of the trip, (c) the purpose of the trip and (d) the cost of the trip; and if she will make a statement. [15212]

Mrs. Beckett [holding answer 11 November 1997]: DTI Ministers have undertaken the following visits since taking office on 2 May. In respect of the cost estimates, those relating to more recent visits may incur some additional charges which have not yet been booked to the Department.

		£
	President of the Board of Trade
25-28 May Japan	Inward Investment and Trade Promotion	29,150
15-16 June Paris	Attend Airbus Ministerial Meeting and Paris Airshow	830
01 July Brussels	Meeting with EU Commissioner Van Miert	850
10-11 September Washington DC	Trade Policy	15,320
13 October Brussels	Meetings with Commissioners Wulf-Mathies and Bangemann	960
12-13 November Brussels	Attend Industry Council	1,170
	Minister for Trade and Competitiveness in Europe: Lord Simon of Highbury
20-21 May Brussels	Attend Internal Market Council	750
25-26 May Amsterdam	European Round Table	710
3-5 September Germany and Austria	Series of bilaterals with European Counterparts	1,320
3-4 October Luxembourg	Attend Internal Market Council	860
	Minister for Small Firms Trade and Industry: Barbara Roche
5-6 June Munich, Germany	Attend Bavarian Innovation and Research Fair	1,160
15-20 June Brazil	Trade Promotion	12,780
26-27 June Luxembourg and Brussels	Attend Telecoms Council	810
17 July Brussels	Meeting with EU Commissioner for Small Firms	430
10-11 September Hanover, Germany	Speak at Machine Tools and Technologies Exhibition	1,170
	Minister for Trade: Lord Clinton-Davis
16-19 May	New York and Trade Promotion Washington DC	11,480
25-26 May Paris	OECD Ministerial	1,830
14-19 June South Africa	Trade Promotion	9,570
21-27 June Thailand and Malaysia	Trade Promotion	11,650
20-21 July France	Trade Promotion and Trade Policy	1,040
24-25 July Ireland	Trade Promotion and Trade Policy	560
9-17 September Argentina and Chile	Trade Promotion	15,050
21-29 September Korea/Japan	Trade Promotion and ASEM	18,760
15 October Paris	Trade Promotion	(7)300
17-22 October Indonesia	Trade Promotion	13,320
Minister for Science Energy and Industry: John Battle
15 May Brussels	EU Research Council	850
26 May Brussels	Energy Council	980
31 May Azerbaijan	Caspian Oil and Gas Show	3,500
17 June Paris	Air Show	770
7 July Bonn	Information Society Conference	960
27 October Luxembourg	Energy Council	1,020
9 November Brussels	Research Council	1,030
	Minister of State: Ian McCartney
26-27 June Luxembourg	Social Affairs Council	1,280
4-6 July Luxembourg	EC Business (Informal Social Affairs Council)	850
7 October Luxembourg	Social Affairs Council	1,110
9-10 November Austria	UK Presidency Bilateral	1,310
	Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs: Nigel Griffiths
22-29 June Antwerp and Athens	Attend Institute of Trading Standards Conference	1,800
24-27 September Luxembourg and Paris	Attend UK Industry Travel and Tour Conference	1,220
16-19 October Stockholm	Meetings with EU Consumer Ministers	1,080
30 October-4 November Madrid La Palma Tenerife Brussels	Visiting EU Consumer MinistersVisiting Observatory Attending ABTA Convention Attending EU Consumer Council	1,920

(7) A notional cost representing a share of the cost the Department paid for a train to Paris for the whole UK business delegation.

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