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Welsh Economy
Mr. Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what new proposals he has to promote innovation in the Welsh economy. [14791]
Mr. Hain: In our recently published Economic Strategy Statement we are consulting on various measures to realise the potential of new technology and are meanwhile taking forward our Wales Information Society and Regional Technology Plan initiative.
PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL
Fair Trade (Coffee and Tea)
Mr. MacShane:
To ask the President of the Council, pursuant to the oral Statement by the Secretary of State for International Development, Official Report,
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5 November, column 332, if she will instruct officials to serve coffee and tea furnished by suppliers who adhere to fair trade standards in her Department. [15496]
Mrs. Ann Taylor:
The Privy Council Office has no official catering facilities of its own. Beverages served at meetings are supplied under Cabinet Office arrangements.
Students
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if the Department for Education plans to fund all four years of study by students from Northern Ireland at Scottish Universities; how many students from Northern Ireland are currently in the fourth year of a degree course at a Scottish University; and what assessment he has made of the cost of funding this fourth year. [16093]
Mr. Worthington [holding answer 14 November 1997]: The issue is the subject of Ministerial discussion. In 1996-97 there were around 900 Northern Ireland domiciled students on the fourth year of a full-time first degree course at Scottish Higher Education Institutions. The estimate of costs is currently being examined.
Springvale University
Mr. Maginnis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans there are to develop the Springvale University campus project; what have been the main determining factors underlying the project's development; and if she will make a statement about revenue funding implications for higher education provision in Northern Ireland over the next decade. [16450]
Mr. Worthington [holding answer 17 November 1997]: Discussions, including consideration of new style further and higher education provision at Springvale, are currently taking place between the Belfast Institute of Further and Higher Education and the University of Ulster. Proposals arising from these discussions, including the revenue funding implications, are subject to economic appraisal.
Jury Trials
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate she has made of the increase in the number of jury trials formerly held by Diplock courts as a result of the proposed changes to the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Acts. [15902]
Mr. Ingram: It is not possible to predict the number of cases which will be heard before a jury as a result of the proposed changes to the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1996. It will be for my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General to determine, on the merits of each individual case before him, whether or not to certify it out.
May 1974 Bomb Attacks
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what co-operation she will offer the Irish Government to assist investigation into allegations
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of the unlawful involvement of British military intelligence in bomb attacks in Dublin and Monaghan in May 1974. [15908]
Mr. Ingram:
If the Irish Government have any evidence to substantiate allegations about the bomb attacks in Dublin and Monaghan in May 1974 the Government will support investigations to establish the validity of such evidence.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will place the initial report of the International Decommissioning Commission in the Library. [15895]
Mr. Ingram:
The International Decommissioning Commission is an independent body established jointly by the British and Irish Governments. It has not yet finalised its initial report. The Governments will keep under review in consultation with the Commission and the other participants in the political negotiations, the handling of reports produced by the Commission on the difficult and sensitive issues entrusted to it.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what are the terms of reference of the Commission established to look at ways of recognising the suffering of victims of violence in Northern Ireland. [15909]
Mr. Paul Murphy:
The terms of reference for the Commission are to look at ways of recognising the suffering of victims of violence in Northern Ireland and:
to examine the feasibility of providing greater recognition for those who have become victims in the last thirty years as a consequence of events in Northern Ireland, recognising that those events have also had appalling repercussions for many people not living in Northern Ireland,
to consult the various organisations concerned with Welfare of the bereaved and disabled,
to consult community groups, churches, political parties; and
to make recommendations to the Secretary of State.
TREASURY
Computers (Century Date Change)
Mr. Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on what funding provision has been made to accommodate the expenditure needed to resolve the computer millennium problem; and if he expects to have sufficient funding to pay for the work necessary to achieve complete millennium compliance by 1 January 2000. [13564]
Mrs. Liddell
[holding answer 4 November 1997]: Within the Treasury, most of the required compliance can be achieved by upgrading proprietary software or hardware, which would have formed part of the normal development of the department's IT systems. Costs will largely be related to time spent by staff testing their systems. Any costs associated with this work will be met from within existing plans.
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Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what allocations from the Contingency Reserve have been made for (a) 1997-98 and (b) 1998-99; what is the value of the remaining unallocated component of the Contingency Reserve in (1) 1997-98 and (2) 1998-99; and if he will make a statement. [13284]
Mr. Darling
[holding answer 6 November 1997]: The Reserve announced in November 1996 for 1997-98 was £2,5 billion. The main Estimates included allocations of £200 million from the Reserve to departments and the summer Supplementary Estimates included allocations of a further £52 million. The winter Supplementary Estimates to be presented on 13 November will include allocations of a further £234 million. The Reserve for 1998-99 will be £2.8 billion reflecting the allocations in my reply to the hon. Member of 30 July Official Report, column 347.
Mr. Gibb:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations his Department has received from United States (a) Government bodies, (b) trade associations and (c) major corporations regarding the reduction of the tax credit on dividends. [14689]
Mr. Geoffrey Robinson
[holding answer 6 November 1997]: Full details of the changes to tax credits were given immediately after the Budget, as a matter of course, to treaty partners concerned, including the United States Government. In that regard, we have responded to a small number of requests for technical clarification, and received a few representations from trade associations and major corporations.
Mr. Flight:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the number of people of pensionable age who have retired but who have not purchased an annuity with the accumulated capital from their pension fund. [14757]
Mr. Geoffrey Robinson:
The information is not available.
Mr. Flight:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to mitigate the impact of the abolition of ACT recovery on pension funds, in respect of people of pensionable age who have not purchased an annuity.[14756]
Mr. Stunell:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list (a) his Department's policies and initiatives designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and (b) the departmental policies and initiatives designed to reduce other greenhouse gases; if he will estimate for each the annual reduction in tonnage of greenhouse gas emissions
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achieved in the most recent year for which figures are available compared to those for 1990; and what estimate he has made of further reductions, or increases, predicted from 2000 and 2010, assuming continuation of current policies. [15548]
Dawn Primarolo:
I refer the hon. Member to the United Kingdom's Second Report under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change which was published in February 1997. It reports the UK's progress in implementing its programme for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and gives a projection of what the programme is expected to deliver by 2000. The report projects forward what the current program is expected to achieve to 2020.
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