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Ethnic Monitoring

Mr. McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to include Irish as a category in his Department's ethnic monitoring of staff recruitment. [63872]

Mr. Tony Lloyd: The overriding principle of Civil Service recruitment procedures is that they should be fair, and selection should be on merit at each stage.

Monitoring in this area is based on ethnic origin, and not nationality. The nine ethnic origin categories monitored by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are those used in the 1991 census, which did not include an Irish category. They will be reviewed in the light of any suggested changes for the 2001 Population Census.

Dalit Community

Mr. McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Indian Government on human rights issues in relation to the Dalit community. [63867]

Mr. Fatchett: During my visit to India in November I raised human rights issues with the Indian authorities, including attacks on minority communities. I also mentioned our concerns about religious freedom and tolerance. We will continue to make clear to the Government of India our commitment to human rights.

Abdullah Ocalan

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consultations he has held with EU ministers over the arrest of Abdullah Ocalan in Italy. [63861]

Ms Quin: Prime Minister D'Alema of Italy raised the issue of the arrest of Abdullah Ocalan during his talks in London with my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 30 November.

European Union Foreign Ministers also discussed the issue briefly at the General Affairs Council in Brussels on 7 December.

Turkey

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the United Kingdom's relations with Turkey. [63896]

Ms Quin: We attach great importance to our relations with Turkey and value our dialogue on a wide range of issues.

16 Dec 1998 : Column: 601

We have been working with the Austrian Presidency of the European Union and our EU Partners to develop the European Strategy for Turkey to enhance relations between Turkey and the Union.

Prime Ministerial Visits

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what occasions British prime ministers have visited (a) Poland, (b) Hungary, (c) the Czech Republic, (d) Slovenia and (e) Estonia in the last 10 years. [63562]

Mr. Tony Lloyd: In the last 10 years, British Prime Ministers made the following visits:















No visits were made, in the last 10 years, to Slovenia or Estonia.

Heads of Government Visits

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received from United Kingdom embassies about the numbers and occasions of visits of heads of Government of other EU countries to (a) Poland, (b) Hungary, (c) the Czech Republic, (d) Slovenia and (e) Estonia since each of these countries submitted their formal applications for membership of the EU. [63561]

Ms Quin: British Embassies in Central Europe keep the FCO regularly informed of significant events in their host countries, including major inward visits. I am listing indicative details of visits made by heads of government of other European Union member states to the five Central European countries currently engaged in accession negotiations. The list for each applicant country covers the period since it formally applied for EU membership. Although careful efforts were made in compiling the lists to include all visits for which the FCO has records, it is possible some visits were made that are not reflected in the materials available to the FCO.

My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary place importance on developing strong bilateral relations between Britain and the countries of Central Europe. Visits at all levels play an important part in fostering these relationships. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has visited seven of the ten Central European countries that have applied for membership. He has met all his opposite numbers and has hosted all but the most recently appointed Central European Foreign Ministers.

16 Dec 1998 : Column: 602


European Parliament (Elections)

Mr. Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 1 December 1998, Official Report, column 161, on European elections, if he will list the terms of the mandate

16 Dec 1998 : Column: 603

given to the General Affairs Group by the Committee of Permanent Representatives; by whom that mandate was approved; and what is Her Majesty's Government's policy towards the European Parliament's proposed common principles. [64095]

Ms Quin: The Committee of Permanent Representatives made the procedural decision to ask the General Affairs Group to examine the European Parliament's proposal for common principles for European elections with a view to making recommendations to the General Affairs Council. The principle of proportional representation is in line wit the Government's plan for changes to the system for European parliamentary elections in Great Britain. The Government therefore supports the broad aim of the proposal, thought the detailed issues remain to be resolved.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Justice and Home Affairs Council

Mr. Rammell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the outcome of the Justice and Home Affairs Council held in Brussels on 3 and 4 December; and if he will make a statement. [63165]

Kate Hoey: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and I represented the United Kingdom at the Council. As the details of the main matters dealt with are lengthy, they have been placed in the Library.

Child Curfews

Mr. Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of local child curfews which will be introduced in the next year; and if he will make a statement. [63686]

Mr. Boateng: Local child curfews are a permissive rather than a mandatory power. The decision to apply for a local child curfew scheme is one for an individual local authority. A curfew notice would be applied only where a local authority identifies a problem involving disruptive children and decides to intervene. The number of curfew notices imposed annually will therefore reflect the nature of youth crime problems as identified locally.

Local child curfews should be seen within the context of a general community safety strategy. The aim of such curfews is two fold. They will address the need to protect young children from being drawn into anti-social or criminal behaviour, and they will protect communities from the misery and distress which can be caused by groups of unsupervised children.

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