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NORTHERN IRELAND
Press Releases
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will set out the conventions governing the propriety and cost of press releases issued by her Department, its agencies and non-departmental bodies; and what is the total cost of the press releases issued since May 1997. [71467]
Mr. Paul Murphy [holding answer 16 February 1999]: The cost of Information Services issuing press releases from May 1997 to date is as follows:
- Paper £63.75
- Post £44,032.40
- Total £44,096.15.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many press releases have been issued by her Department, its agencies and non-departmental bodies in each of the years 1990 to 1998. [71452]
Mr. Paul Murphy [holding answer 16 February 1999]: The Information Services have issued the following press releases:
| Year | |
|---|---|
| 1990 | (approx) 1,380 |
| 1991 | (approx) 1,400 |
| 1992 | (approx) 1,250 |
| 1993 | 1,355 |
| 1994 | 1,080 |
| 1995 | 1,223 |
| 1996 | 1,117 |
| 1997 | 1,180 |
| 1998 | 1,313 |
Special Advisers
Mr. Tyrie:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list the total number of occasions when (a) departmental and (b) non-departmental special advisers have travelled abroad in an official capacity since 2 May 1997. [76825]
29 Mar 1999 : Column: 478
Marjorie Mowlam:
There have been 5 occasions when a departmental special adviser has accompanied me aborad in an official capacity since 2 May 1997. There are no non-departmental special advisers. All travel complied with the requirements of the Ministerial Code and Civil Service Management Code.
Mr. William Ross:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list the (i) dates, (ii) times, and (iii) location of each bomb alert in Northern Ireland since 1 September 1998, of which the RUC are aware. [77749]
Mr. Ingram:
The information requested has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what involvement fleet managers have had in drawing up her Department's Green Transport Plan. [77973]
Mr. Paul Murphy
[holding answer 22 March 1999]: Northern Ireland Departments are pursuing the target for having Green Transport Plans for all headquarters buildings and main buildings occupied by Government Departments and Executive Agencies by March 1999 and for all other key buildings by March 2000. There are no fleets associated with these buildings.
Mr. John M. Taylor:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list all Public Records Act 1958 instruments that have prescribed periods of (a) extended retention or (b) extended closure of decennial census returns for Northern Ireland; and if she will list the class numbers, census years and periods mentioned in the schedules. [78444]
Mr. Paul Murphy:
The Public Records Act 1958 does not apply to Northern Ireland in respect of access.
Mr. John M. Taylor:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what are the total annual storage and maintenance costs for all 1841 to 1991 decennial census returns in Northern Ireland. [78436]
Mr. Paul Murphy:
The Public Record Office holds census records for 1937, 1951, 1961, 1966, 1971, 1981 and 1991. The annual storage and maintenance costs are £39,495.
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many visits and of what length the Chairman of the Parades Commission has made to Northern Ireland since the inception of the Parades Commission. [79178]
Mr. Ingram:
The Chairman of the Parades Commission has paid 100 visits to Northern Ireland, 69 of which have involved one or more overnight stays.
29 Mar 1999 : Column: 479
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many authorised officers of the Parades Commission have been remunerated over the past 12 months; how they are appointed; and under what terms. [79177]
Mr. Ingram:
Since 1 April 1998, a total of 13 persons have been remunerated as Authorised Officers of the Parades Commission. The Authorised Officers are contracted to the Parades Commission by the Mediation Network for Northern Ireland, which is responsible for their appointment and terms of employment.
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Parades Commission has budgeted for in the coming year for (a) Chairman and Parades Commissioner remuneration, (b) the costs for civil servants seconded to the Parades Commission, (c) the remuneration of authorised officers of the Parades Commission, (d) travelling expenses and (e) office rent. [79173]
Mr. Ingram:
The answers are as follows:
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Parades Commission has (a) spent to date on and (b) budgeted for consultancy, broken down by spending on (i) training of monitors, (ii) monitoring of parades, (iii) opinion surveys, (iv) project planning, (v) recruitment campaigns, (vi) media advice and (vii) legal costs in the coming 12 months. [79172]
Mr. Ingram:
(a) I would refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Miss Kirkbride) on 17 March 1999, Official Report, columns 697-98. Unfortunately the figure given in my reply was incorrect. The total amount paid for consultancy and related services since the inception of the Parades Commission is £267,000. A breakdown of the expenditure is given here.
(a) £180,000 (£30,000 pay costs for Chairman + 6 x £25,000 for Members)
(b) £254,000 (pay costs for civil servants)
(c) £84,000 (pay costs for Authorised Officers)
(d) £35,000 (travelling expenses for Chairman, Members and Secretariat)
(e) £64,000 (office rent).
| £ | |
|---|---|
| Training for Stewards/Monitors | 42,000 |
| Monitoring research | 20,000 |
| Opinion surveys | 4,000 |
| Project planning | 2,000 |
| Recruitment campaign | 10,000 |
| Media and publicity advice and services | 122,000 |
| Legal Advice and services | 6,000 |
| Surveys, research, other training etc. | 31000 |
| Associated costs (advertising, printing etc.) | 30,000 |
(b) The budgeted figure for Consultancy and related services in 1999-2000 is £230,000. This budget is not broken down at this stage into the lower level detail outlined for expenditure to date.
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will break down the (a) running costs and (b) programme expenditure of the Parades Commission for the coming year by main spending items. [79171]
29 Mar 1999 : Column: 480
Mr. Ingram:
The information is as follows:
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when she expects to publish the Parades Commission's Annual report. [79176]
Mr. Ingram:
The Parades Commission expects to publish its Annual Report towards the end of April 1999.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will place in the Library a copy of the Parades Commission's consultation document on its proposed changes to its Procedural Rules, the Code of Conduct and Guidelines. [79175]
Mr. Ingram:
Copies of the consultation document containing proposed changes to the Code of Conduct, Procedural Rules and Guidelines were placed in the Library of the House on 26 March 1999.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list the (a) persons and (b) organisations to whom the Parades Commission has issued for consultation its proposed changes to its Procedural Rules, the Code of Conduct and Guidelines; and if she will (i) provide a list of those who have responded formally to the Parades Commission's consultation document and (ii) make a statement on the further consultation the Parades Commission is undertaking. [79174]
Mr. Ingram:
The Parades Commission has consulted a wide range of individuals and organisations about the proposed changes to its statutory documents. These include loyal orders, residents and community groups, business organisations, churches, academics, voluntary bodies, and political representatives. In addition, the Commission placed public notices in the daily newspapers drawing attention to the consultative process, and posted full details on the Commission's website. Respondents to the consultation have not been advised that their response or identity could be made public. It would therefore be inappropriate to list their names here.
(a) Running costs--£329,000: £254,000 pay and £75,000 general administrative expenditure (travel and subsistence, office equipment, telecommunications etc.).
(b) Programme costs--£818,000: £64,000 rent, £20,000 publications/printing; £246,000 Mediation Network for Northern Ireland charges, including Authorised Officer costs and related expenditure; £229,000 Commission Members' and Chairman's total costs; £160,000 professional advisers' costs; £50,000 education and monitoring costs; and £49,000 telecommunications, courier charges etc.
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