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Written Answers to Questions

Monday 5 June 2000

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Internal Mailbags

Mr. Baker: To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee what the total cost was of the recent replacement of the House of Commons's internal mailbags; and for what reasons the former mailbags were replaced. [124179]

Mrs. Roe: This is a matter for the Serjeant at Arms, I have asked him to reply to the hon. Member.

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

Special Advisers

Mr. Tyrie: To ask the President of the Council on how many occasions since 31 March 1999 (a) departmental and (b) non-departmental special advisers have travelled abroad in an official capacity. [124121]

Mrs. Beckett: During the period 31 March 1999 to the end of March 2000, Special Advisers in this Department travelled overseas on one occasion.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Human Rights

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will set out the response of the Government to concerns over human rights protection in the UK identified by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of the Judiciary in his report to the April 2000 session of the UN Human Rights Commission; and if he will place the relevant documentation in the Library. [121868]

Mr. Mandelson: The UN Special Rapporteur's oral statement to the 56th session of the UN Commission on Human Rights focused on Northern Ireland and therefore my hon. Friend's question has been passed to this Department.

A copy of the UN Special Rapporteur's oral statement is now available on the Internet at www.unhchr.ch.

The UK Government's response will be placed in the House of Commons Library once it has been completed.

Military Complaints Procedures

Ms Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he plans to lay before Parliament Mr. Jim McDonald's annual report as Independent Assessor of Military Complaints Procedures in Northern Ireland. [124534]

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Mr. Ingram: Mr. McDonald's report is being published today and copies are being placed in the Library.

I note that Mr. McDonald has said that the military authorities have continued to respond constructively to his independently developed assessment of their role in the complaints system, and that the renewed priority given to training in the specific areas of complaint handling and complaint avoidance produced good results in 1999.

The Report of the Independent Assessor continues to provide valuable reassurances to both Government and the public that the army's complaints procedures stand scrutiny. The Government attach importance to this role and its statutory basis is to be continued through the Terrorism Bill, currently before the House of Lords.

Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions)

Act 1996

Ms Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will publish the report by Mr. J. J. Rowe QC on the operation during 1999 of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1996. [124533]

Mr. Ingram: Mr. Rowe's Report is being published today and copies are being placed in the Library.

Mr. Rowe recommends the continuance of the EPA powers.

A continuance Order has been laid to continue in force the EPA until 24 August, the date on which the Act will expire.

Before 24 August, the EPA will be replaced by the Terrorism Bill, currently before the House of Lords.

Under the Terrorism Bill, temporary emergency provisions for Northern Ireland will be set in the context of permanent UK-wide counter-terrorism powers.

Special Advisers

Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions since 31 March 1999 (a) departmental and (b) non-departmental special advisers have travelled abroad in an official capacity. [124116]

Mr. Mandelson: During the period 31 March 1999 to the end of March 2000, Special Advisers in this Department travelled overseas on one occasion.

There has been no Special Adviser in post since my appointment on 11 October 1999.

DEFENCE

Regular Army

18. Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the net inflow was into the Regular Army in the last financial year. [122657]

Mr. Spellar: In the financial year just ended, there was a net inflow of 175 in the trained strength of the Regular Army. This is the first time since 1986 that there has been such an inflow, which represents a significant and welcome improvement.

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Zimbabwe

19. Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on British military involvement in Zimbabwe. [122658]

Mr. Spellar: Nine British Army and two RAF UK military personnel currently serve in Zimbabwe as part of the British Military Advisory and Training Team (BMATT) Southern Africa. The BMATT's main role is to provide regional peacekeeping training in countries throughout the Southern Africa region. We are keeping the situation under review.

In addition, two Army personnel, the UK Defence Adviser and his assistant, provide advice to the British High Commissioner in Harare on defence issues.

Joint Force 2000

20. Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in establishing the Joint Force 2000. [122659]

Mr. Hoon: I am pleased to confirm that Joint Force Harrier was formed, under the command of Rear Admiral Iain Henderson, on 1 April this year. My hon. Friend the Minister for the Armed Forces had the pleasure of attending the launch ceremonies at RAF Strike Command and RAF Wittering on 31 March.

Joint Force Harrier combines the Royal Navy's Sea Harrier and RAF Harrier squadrons in a single force which is able to operate from land bases or carriers, as the recent operation off Sierra Leone has demonstrated. In 2003 both fleets will be co-located at RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering to fully realise the significant operational benefits that the creation of Joint Force Harrier will bring.

Iraq

22. Mr. Ernie Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many sorties RAF personnel made in patrolling no-fly zones in northern and southern Iraq in the last year. [122661]

Mr. Spellar: Between April 1999 and March 2000 RAF aircraft flew a total of 2,683 sorties in the no-fly zones; 450 in the Northern no-fly zone and 2,233 in the Southern no-fly zone.

Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 10 April 2000, Official Report, column 19W, on Iraq, what role tanks play in the Iraqi Integrated Air Defence System. [120804]

Mr. Hoon: Iraqi Main Battle Tanks play no part in the Iraqi Integrated Air Defence System.

Radioactive Materials

23. Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on the destruction of radioactive materials held by his Department. [122662]

Dr. Moonie: The primary legislation controlling the holding and disposal of radioactive materials is the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 and its associated Exemption Orders. Although the Act does not apply to Ministry of Defence activities, my Department's policy is

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to apply standards and arrangements which, so far as is reasonably practicable, are at least as good as those required by the Act. This policy is promulgated in the Departmental Environmental Manual, Joint Services Publication 418, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

Vacant Homes (Hendon)

24. Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of his Department's former homes in Hendon are vacant; and if he will make a statement. [122663]

Dr. Moonie: We have sold former married quarters in Hendon to the Notting Hill Housing Trust and in Mill Hill to Annington Homes as part of the sale of all married quarters in England and Wales in 1996. We do not know how many of these are empty once they are no longer our responsibility.

Nuclear Proliferation

25. Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with Foreign Office Ministers about the proposals by the New Agenda Coalition to the current nuclear proliferation treaty review conference. [122664]

Mr. Hoon: I have kept closely in touch with the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Mr. Hain), during the course of the Review Conference.

AWE Aldermaston

26. Mr. Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Environment Agency following the decision to refer for judicial review the activities carried out at AWE Aldermaston. [122665]

Mr. Spellar: Ministers have had no discussions with the Environment Agency on this matter since the EA granted a licence to AWE plc to operate at Aldermaston. However, officials of the Ministry of Defence and of the Environment Agency hold regular discussions as part of the normal course of business and these have included the judicial review of the Environment Agency's recent discharge authorisations for the Aldermaston site.

Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of procedures adopted by the private operators of the Aldermaston site to give his Department temporary ownership of radioactive substances; and if he will make a statement. [122573]

Mr. Spellar: I presume that the question refers to erroneous reports that the Ministry of Defence sought to avoid public scrutiny of measures to dispose of some slightly radioactive material at its DERA Shoeburyness site. In fact, the transfer of material was carried out only after the Environment Agency (EA), following a period for consultation with local authorities, had granted approval on the basis that the environmental impact of disposal in this fashion is minimal. The material in question is conventional high explosive removed from obsolete nuclear weapons, dismantled by the Atomic Weapons Establishment, and only contains small traces of

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radioactive tritium. The EA provides independent monitoring at the Shoeburyness facility to ensure that there is no risk to staff or the public from these activities.

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