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Millennium Compliance
Mr. Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress is being made by UK offshore oil and gas producers and oil companies to deal with the millennium bug; and what measures have been taken by his Department to ensure the security of concessionary coal supplies over this period. [81700]
Mr. Wills: I can now report the findings of the independent assessment process established by the DTI which confirms that UK oil companies and offshore gas producers are on track to ensure that there will be no major disruption to supplies due to the Year 2000 threat to computer systems. The DTI has taken on the role of "responsible body" reporting to the ACTION 2000 National Infrastructure Forum on the Year 2000 preparations being made by the oil industry and UK's offshore oil and gas producers.
The DTI has approached this task in a systematic way, making full use of the industry's own resources. It has engaged W. S. Atkins Consultants Limited--an internationally known and highly respected engineering consultancy with extensive experience within the oil and gas industry--to independently validate the process adopted and its results. The industry has fully supported this important work and provided full and frank access to all the relevant information and staff.
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The independent verification approach adopted by DTI has been agreed with ACTION 2000 and designed to build on the work already in hand by offshore and onshore companies to avoid duplication of effort. It has been closely supported by the relevant trade associations (UKOOA--UK Offshore Oil Operators Association, UKPIA--UK Petroleum Industry Association and AUKOI--Association of UK Oil Independents).
For the offshore sector, DTI arranged for companies to conduct a stringent assessment process supported by UKOOA, which involved preparation of a report on each operator's state of readiness and its independent confirmation by, either a "peer group assessor" or an external consultant.
To further enhance the independent element in this process, W. S. Atkins carried out a programme of visits to review the process adopted, the supporting data and its conclusions. The format and extent of the visit programme was determined by W. S. Atkins. It covered all the key elements of the offshore oil and gas industry including production and onshore terminal/pipeline facilities, and was designed to ensure they could reach a fair view on the overall status of the upstream industry.
For the downstream oil sector covering the supply and distribution of refined oil products, W. S. Atkins were engaged to carry out a more intensive role. They prepared and issued on behalf of DTI a detailed and closely targeted questionnaire to all the main downstream players. Following a detailed analysis of the responses W. S. Atkins conducted a series of detailed on-site follow-up visits designed to validate the questionnaire responses. Officials from DTI and other interested Government Departments also participated in some of the visits.
Again the visit programme was determined by W. S. Atkins and designed to ensure that they were able to form a fair view of the overall status of the downstream industry. The programme was carefully planned to cover all aspects of the industry. It looked vertically through the supply chain and covered refining, pipelines, distribution terminals, and retail outlets. It embraced all sectors of the industry from the majors, and hypermarkets through mid- size players to smaller retailers. It extended throughout the UK covering locations in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Throughout the process, DTI has worked closely with Action 2000, other responsible bodies and the various trade bodies to ensure nothing was overlooked and ensure that the process adopted reflected good Year 2000 practice.
At the National Infrastructure Forum meeting in January 1999, the industry attracted an overall "amber" assessment against the standard colour code adopted by ACTION 2000. I am pleased to report that W. S. Atkins have confirmed that the industry has since then made substantial progress both onshore and offshore. Copies of their summary reports have been placed in the Libraries of the House, and copies made available on the DTI internet site. W. S. Atkins have also confirmed that the validation process adopted by DTI provides an effective means of independently validating the industry's state of
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progress, both in terms of its suitability to the offshore/ onshore sector, and general good practice in relation to Year 2000 risk assessment.
In detail W. S. Atkins found that more than half of the offshore operators and almost two thirds of the downstream industry now merit a blue assessment (no identified risks of material disruption), and that the remainder were on track to attain that rating once work scheduled during the normal summer shutdown period has been completed, and residual contingency planning and external dependency issues had been finalised.
The DTI has agreed a follow up plan with W. S. Atkins, to monitor progress on the outstanding issues and carry out a further programme of independent check visits to confirm that the scheduled work has been completed successfully. DTI will report on this work at the National Infrastructure Forum meeting in October 1999, and will continue to monitor the industry's progress throughout the millennium period.
Regarding coal, the Department is responsible for supplying concessionary fuel to some 90,000 former employees of British Coal. This accounts for 20-25 per cent. of all solid fuel for domestic use. Currently, two large coal companies are under contract to DTI for the supply and distribution of concessionary fuel (CPL Distribution Ltd. and T. H. Fergusson).
The Department appointed Aon Risk Services Ltd. (risk management consultants) to assess the security of supply of concessionary fuel over the millennium period. This covered the fuel distributors as well as a number of major producers. In addition, Aon was asked to advise on the position in the wider retail market for household coal in so far that the same systems are used by the companies under contract to DTI for distributing concessionary supplies. Aon's conclusions are very encouraging with all the main operators achieving blue rating. The remaining 5 per cent. merit amber rating but are on course to achieve blue rating by October. Aon will be involved in continued monitoring of the position.
Dr. Kumar:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the extent of world-wide over-production in (a) steel, (b) petrochemicals and (c) other manufacturing industries; and if he will make a statement. [80892]
Mr. Wilson:
My Department has not made such assessments.
Mr. Cotter:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the value of trading over the internet in the United Kingdom in each of the last three years. [81060]
Mr. Wills:
Commercially available surveys suggest that in 1998 some £350 million was spent on-line in the UK, which is expected to grow to around £5 billion in 2002.
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Mr. Truswell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what environmental appraisals of policy his Department has (a) completed, (b) started and (c) planned. [79629]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, my hon. Friend the Member for Mansfield (Mr. Meale), on 13 April 1999, Official Report, column 66.
Mr. Bruce George:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the initiatives taken since 1 May 1997 to help those over 50 years obtain employment. [80790]
Mr. Andrew Smith:
Since 1 May 1997, we have introduced a wide range of new measures to help people over 50 to find work. These contribute to our policy of "Better Government for Older People".
In November 1998, I launched for public consultation the draft Code of Practice on Age Diversity in Employment. This was well received and the final version of the Code will be published in May together with case studies and guidance for employers.
The New Deal for people over 50 was announced by the Chancellor in last month's Budget. This will help people over 50 who have been out of work and on income replacement benefits for more than 6 months, and their dependent partners. It introduces an Employment Credit of £60 a week, £40 for those working part time, for those with incomes of less than £15,000 a year. There will also be learning support of up to £750; guidance from a personal adviser wand extra jobsearch help. This will start in selected pathfinder areas in October and be extended to all parts of the country early in 2000. A consultative document on the detail of this New Deal will be issued shortly.
People aged over 50 also benefit from the steps we have taken to strengthen services for unemployed people generally. Some of the prototype Employment Zones have been developing new approaches to tackling the barriers faced by people over 50. Elsewhere pilots under the New Deal for people over 25 have also been offering special help for people over 50. This New Deal offers a range of help and advice, including a subsidy of £75 a week for employers who recruit people who have been without work for 2 years. The total number of 50+ clients invited to attend an initial interview for the New Deal 25+ pilots is around 2,000. The total number of 50+ clients joining Gateway is just under 2,000. For the New Deal 25+ (June measures) to the end of January 1999, 26,550 people aged 50+ had been invited to attend an initial interview.
The New Deal for Disabled People is piloting a personal adviser service in 12 areas and innovative projects to help disabled people and those with long standing illnesses, many of whom are over 50.
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