House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 13 Mar 2000 (pt 1)

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Written Answers to Questions

Monday 13 March 2000

CABINET OFFICE

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Ms Southworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will list those Regulatory Impact Assessments published during the latest six month period. [114551]

Marjorie Mowlam: The Government are committed to ensuring that regulations are necessary, give effective protection, balance cost and risk, are fair and command public confidence. In accordance with this, we require Departments to produce and publish Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) for all regulatory proposals likely to have an impact on business.

I have presented to Parliament today a Command Paper listing 78 RIAs published between 1 July and 31 December 1999. Copies of those listed have been placed in the Libraries of the House. Please note that this Command Paper entitled "Regulatory Impact Assessments" has replaced the previous series entitled "Compliance Cost Assessment". This is the twelfth such Command Paper.

Rat Infestations

Ms Walley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what was the total expenditure for each of the past three years for treating and controlling rat infestations in buildings and land occupied by Government Departments. [113045]

Mr. Stringer: Individual Government Departments are responsible for managing and maintaining the land and property they occupy. The information requested is not held centrally, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

The approximate costs (exclusive of value added tax) incurred by the Cabinet Office on pest control in each of the past three financial years in the buildings in which it is the main or sole occupier (including No. 10 Downing Street and the premises occupied by the Cabinet Office agencies) are set out in the table. The specific costs of treating and controlling rat infestations are not recorded separately.

Year £

1997-98 13,600

1998-99 14,350

1999-2000 (to date) 14,050

Year	£
1997-98	13,600
1998-99	14,350
1999-2000 (to date)	14,050

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Non-Departmental Public Bodies

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans she has to increase the accountability to Parliament of (a) non-departmental public bodies and (b) task forces. [113305]

Mr. Ian McCartney: None. NDPBs are accountable direct to Parliament through their sponsoring Department. Task Forces, not classified as NDPBs, are accountable to Ministers who in turn are accountable to Parliament.

Global Cultural Diversity Congress

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement about the involvement of the Central Office of Information with the Global Cultural Diversity Congress and Global Cultural Diversity Congress 2000 Ltd. [112736]

Mr. Ian McCartney: The Central Office of Information (COI) was commissioned by Global Cultural Diversity Congress 2000 Ltd., to provide technical and management support for the Global Cultural Diversity Congress.

In addition, at the request of the Chairman of the CRE, a member of COI staff was appointed as an unpaid director of Global Cultural Diversity Congress 2000 Ltd. to provide events and technical service expertise and knowledge.

Anti-drugs Strategy

Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what is the nature of the co-operation between the United Kingdom Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator and the United States Office of National Drug Control Policy; in what ways the United Kingdom Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator co-operates with the United States Office of National Drug Control Policy; and what agreements the United Kingdom Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator has signed with the United States Office of National Drug Control Policy. [113088]

Mr. Ian McCartney: The UK and US Governments maintain a wide-ranging dialogue on drugs issues. There are regular exchanges of information and expertise on all aspects of anti-drugs work. The relationship is excellent.

General Barry McCaffrey, the Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy visited the UK from 24-26 October 1999 for discussions with Ministers--including myself--and officials. During this visit the UK Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator Keith Hellawell met General McCaffrey and held discussions on drug control policies and initiatives. UK and US officials also held bilateral meetings to discuss a number of drug related topics at this time. The following areas were covered:

drug prevention/research programmes;

drug treatment programmes;

drugs and criminal offenders;

trends in drug availability and drug markets;

performance measures in national strategies;

doping in sports.

At the end of this visit, the United Kingdom Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator and the Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy issued a Joint

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Communique noting satisfaction with their discussions and pledging continued co-operation between the two countries on drugs policy.

Civil Service

Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff have been dismissed from the Civil Service in each of the last five years; and what proportion of the total staff in post this represented in each year. [113608]

Mr. Stringer: The numbers of staff dismissed from the non-industrial Civil Service over the last five years and the proportions of total staff are as follows. The figures cover dismissals and discharges on inefficiency or disciplinary grounds.

Year of staff Number of staff dismissed/discharged Proportion (percentage)

1994-95 880 0.2

1995-96 750 0.2

1996-97 870 0.2

1997-98 650 0.1

1998-99 594 0.1

Year of staff	Number of staff dismissed/discharged	Proportion (percentage)
1994-95	880	0.2
1995-96	750	0.2
1996-97	870	0.2
1997-98	650	0.1
1998-99	594	0.1

PRIME MINISTER

World Education Forum

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Prime Minister what objectives Her Majesty's Government will seek to attain at the World Education Forum in Dakar in April. [114210]

The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the Answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for East Carmarthen and Dinefwr (Mr. Williams) by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development on 1 March 2000, Official Report, columns 296-97W.

NORTHERN IRELAND

News Releases

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for the period 2 May 1997 to 29 February 2000 what was (a) the number of occasions on which couriers were used to distribute news releases from his Department and (b) the total cost of using couriers to distribute news releases. [113976]

Mr. Ingram [holding answer 10 March 2000]: During the period an external courier was used twice daily, excluding weekends, at a cost of £54,113.07.

Decommissioning Commission

Mr. William Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for each year since it was established up to the latest available date what has been (a) the total cost and (b) the cost to United Kingdom funds of the International Commission under General de Chastelain; and under what main headings the sums were paid. [102157]

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Mr. Ingram: The Independent International Decommissioning Commission is jointly funded by the British and Irish Governments. The total costs associated with the Commission from September 1997 to December 1999 are as set out.

(a) Total costs--IR£3,153,332.65

(b) Total costs to United Kingdom government--£1,339,571.43

The costs are divided into three main headings.

	IR£
Salaries/subsistence	1,009,310.09
Travel/accommodation	1,570,881.70
Other(1)	573,150.86

(1) Other includes set up costs for the Commission offices as well as on-going running expenses.

It was not possible to give precise costs on an annual basis since the two Governments work to different annual accounting periods.

Departmental Contracts

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list for the financial year 1998-99 (a) the number and (b) the total value of contracts let by his Department with external consultants and advisers that (i) were put out to competitive tender, (ii) were not put out to competitive tender and (iii) were let on a non-commercial basis, stating in each case the names of the individuals or organisations that have carried out the work. [109268]

Mr. Ingram [holding answer 9 February 2000]: The figures requested are as follows:

(i) Put out to competitive tender

(a) 520

(b) £9,523,828.15

Individuals/organisations

Admiral

Advanced Learning Systems

AMT SYBEX

Anderson Spratt Group Holdings

Ase Ltd.

BDP

BIC Systems Ltd.