| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Historic Aircraft
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if historic military aircraft restoration projects are eligible for lottery funding; and if he will make a statement. [107374]
Mr. Alan Howarth
[holding answer 28 January 2000]: The Heritage Lottery Fund can support a wide variety of projects relating to aviation heritage, including
2 Feb 2000 : Column: 621W
the restoration of historic military aircraft. The Trustees are willing to consider projects involving the long-term conservation, housing and interpretation of important aircraft. However, they do not expect to fund projects which restore aircraft to flying condition, given the risk of accident.
Mr. Stephen Twigg:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the percentage of (a) registered disabled people, (b) women, (c) people from ethnic minorities and (d) people from (i) independent schools, (ii) grammar schools and (iii) other schools that worked for English Heritage in each of the years (i) 1970, (ii) 1979, (iii) 1989 and (iv) 1999. [107010]
Mr. Chris Smith
[holding answer 27 January 2000]: English Heritage, which is sponsored by this Department, has provided the following statistics for 1999 from information held on employees:
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Registered disabled | 0.37 |
| Women | 53.88 |
| Ethnic minorities | 2.32 |
Historic data for the earlier years are not readily available. English Heritage was not established until 1984 and in 1989 it did not have a computer system which could record this information. English Heritage does not maintain a record of the schools attended by employees.
Football Regulator
Mr. Faber: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to introduce a Football Regulator; and what recent representations he has received from the (a) Football Association and (b) Premier League on this matter. [107298]
Kate Hoey [holding answer 28 January 2000]: A number of the recommendations contained in the final report of the Football Task Force, which was published on 22 December, relate to the future regulation of football. The Task Force was divided on the merits of different kinds of regulator with some recommending a "Football Audit Commission" and others an "Independent Scrutiny Panel". The Government are now considering all the Task Force's recommendations and will respond in due course. The Department has received no recent representations from either the Football Association or the FA Premier League on this matter.
Sport England
Mr. Faber: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he last met the Chairman and Chief Executive of Sport England; and what matters were discussed. [107297]
Kate Hoey
[holding answer 28 January 2000]: My right hon. Friend and I last met the Chairman and Chief Executive of Sport England on 26 January 2000 to discuss the possible location for a venue for major international athletics events.
2 Feb 2000 : Column: 622W
Mr. Cohen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the reasons for (a) cancelled and (b) halted performances at The Royal Opera House indicating the action taken by the board of management in relation to faulty construction work in each case; and if he will make a statement. [107064]
Mr. Alan Howarth:
In December 1999, the Royal Opera House cancelled six performances of a Ligeti production scheduled for December and a further five performances of other productions scheduled to take place between January and April. Technical rehearsal time for these productions, which had been planned for Autumn 1999, was spent commissioning the new stage equipment. The cancellation freed time in November and December to enable the Opening Celebration, Falstaff, A Celebration of International Choreography and The Nutcracker to open on schedule and be performed as planned.
The matinee performance of Gawain on 19 January was cancelled as the Royal Opera House management felt it was inappropriate to risk having to make last minute changes to the performance schedule because of unforeseen problems with the stage machinery that could have resulted in delays to the beginning of the performance, and therefore to the schools' return journeys.
The final ballet in a mixed programme of ballets was cancelled on 20 January because problems with the scene shifting equipment had been encountered earlier during the day which delayed the starting time of the performance, threatening the possibility of completing the full programme for the evening within a reasonable time.
The manufacturers of the stage equipment and the Royal Opera House's technical staff are working with the new equipment to debug the system, and all possible measures have been taken to ensure performances take place as planned. To date there have been approximately 40 performances in the main auditorium, and a full programme of performances in the Linbury Studio Theatre and Clore Studio Upstairs, as well as free concerts in the Vilar Floral Hall.
Mr. Robathan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if his Department instructs British diplomatic staff overseas not to communicate with individual UK nationals. [107566]
Mr. Hain:
Staff overseas are instructed not to send substantive replies to letters on official matters received directly form Members of Parliament but to refer such letters to the Department for answer by the appropriate Minister. There are no such instructions in relation to correspondence with members of the public.
Mr. Rowe:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received concerning the use of child soldiers in southern Sudan. [107601]
2 Feb 2000 : Column: 623W
Mr. Hain:
We have received many reports of the use of child soldiers in the ongoing conflict in southern Sudan. The EU sponsored resolution on the Sudan at last year's Commission on Human Rights urges all parties to the conflict not to use children as soldiers. This is a message we repeat regularly.
Mr. Rowe:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received concerning the attack on the relief workers of Norwegian Church Aid, Africa Inolanol Church and the Sudanese Episcopal churches in southern Sudan. [107602]
Mr. Hain:
I understand that on the morning of 14 January, a Norwegian Church Aid mission looking at displacement and food shortages near Parajok, Eastern Equatoria, was attacked. Two Norwegian Church Aid, one African Inland Church, two Episcopal Church and three Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Association workers were killed; three others survived.
Mr. Wigley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the UNICEF estimate of the number of children who have died in Iraq during the period for which sanctions have been imposed; and if he will make a statement. [107591]
Mr. Hain:
We are very concerned about UNICEF's preliminary report into Child and Maternal Mortality in Iraq and continue to support efforts to target the humanitarian effort there towards the most vulnerable. We are discussing with UNICEF how they propose to adjust their programme in Iraq in light of the survey and are considering opportunities for working with them.
Meanwhile, the comprehensive resolution on Iraq, SCR 1284, which was drafted and piloted through the Security Council by the UK, includes a raft of measures providing for a bigger and better "oil for food" programme. It also calls on the Government of Iraq at last to prioritise its spending under "oil for food" more effectively and address the needs of vulnerable groups.
In this respect we oppose the present plan prepared by Iraq which allocates just $10 million out of an available sum of $3.5 billion to targeted feeding programmes for malnourished children.
If the Iraqi Government had chosen to prioritise genuinely the humanitarian assistance which has been made available since the implementation of UNSCR 986 in 1996, the suffering of the Iraqi people would have been hugely reduced.
Mr. Robathan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance he has given to INDICT. [108038]
Mr. Hain:
We continue to support the INDICT campaign. I made this clear when I spoke at an INDICT function in the margins of last year's Labour
2 Feb 2000 : Column: 624W
party conference. FCO officials remain in regular contact with INDICT representatives, offering advice and support as appropriate.
Mrs. Spelman:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received regarding the findings of the Egyptian Government's inquiry into the recent killings in the village of Al-Kosheh. [107984]
Mr. Hain:
The Egyptian authorities have pledged to carry out a thorough investigation in to the recent events in and around Al-Kosheh and that investigation is ongoing. Our Embassy in Cairo has been following events and has discussed them with the Egyptian authorities.
Mr. Reed:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Egyptian Government regarding the security of the Christian community following the recent killings in the village of Al-Kosheh. [107656]
Mr. Hain:
We were concerned to hear of reports of violence in early January in and around Al-Kosheh. Our embassy in Cairo has been following the events and has discussed them with the Egyptian authorities. The Egyptian authorities have pledged to carry out a thorough investigation. That investigation continues.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |