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Staff Secondments

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Mr. Willis) of 8 February 2000, Official Report, column 119W, on secondments, if he will give the names, grades and job titles of the staff seconded into his Department from each organisation mentioned, stating in each case the name of the section they were seconded to and a summary of the work that they were involved with. [128253]

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Ms Stuart [holding answer 29 June 2000]: Secondments and attachments are part of the interchange initiative which promotes the exchange of people and good practice between the Civil Service and other organisations. Before an interchange can occur all parties must be satisfied that no conflict of interest arises.

Details of secondments from the private sector commencing in the years shown are set out in the tables.

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May 1997-April 1998

Companies seconded from:	Civil service grade	Business unit seconded to:	Summary of work undertaken
Rawlings Ophthalmic Opticians	IP4	Health Services Directorate	Developing policy on general ophthalmic services
Private Finance Panel Executive (2)	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
Tarmac Plc	SCS	Finance and Performance Directorate	Advising NHS trusts on legal and
Nabarro Nathanson	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate	financial aspects of PFI contracts
Pinsent Curtis	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate

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May 1998-April 1999

Companies seconded from:	Civil service grade	Section seconded to:	Summary of work undertaken
Hempsons	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
PriceWaterhouseCoopers	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
Ward Hadaway	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate	Advising NHS trusts on legal
Beachcroft Stanleys	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate	and financial aspects of PFI contracts
Dickinson Dees	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
Lloyds Bank	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate

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May 1999-April 2000

Companies seconded from:	Civil service grade	Business unit seconded to:	Summary of work undertaken
British Airways	SCS	Corporate Management Directorate	Developing the Department's capacity to change in order to deliver Minister's priorities.
Addleshaw Booth & Co.	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
Berwin Leighton	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate
Taylor Woodrow	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate	Advising NHS trusts on legal and
Deloitte & Touche	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate	financial aspects of PFI contracts
Herbert Smith	IP4	Finance and Performance Directorate

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GM Feed

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to fund research into the health effects of GM animal feeds. [127052]

Ms Stuart [holding answer 29 June 2000]: I am informed by the Food Standards Agency that all genetically modified animal feed has been rigorously assessed by United Kingdom and European Union experts for possible effects on the health of consumers of the resulting animal products. Research to date has concentrated on the effects of processing on animal feed materials and the ability of DNA to survive processing and passage through an animal's gut. No incidental ill-effects have been detected in countries where GM crops have been grown and they and their by-products have been fed to animals for a number of years.

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The agency is funding a study to investigate whether, and under what circumstances, antibiotic resistance marker genes from GM feed materials might transfer into the genomes of gut bacteria in the buccal cavities and gastro-intestinal tracts of ruminant animals.

Mileage Allowances

Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to increase the Whitley Council mileage allowance for NHS staff using their own transport. [128282]

Mr. Denham: Mileage and travelling entitlements for National Health Service staff on national contracts are determined by an agreement of the General Whitley Council. A working group of the Council which includes representatives from trade unions and employers is reviewing existing provisions with the aim of

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recommending new arrangements which are fair to staff, meet service needs and reflect our wider environmental policies. We are aiming to complete these negotiations shortly.

Teenage Pregnancies

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the link between personal, social and health education and targets to reduce teenage pregnancy rates. [126110]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 20 June 2000]: I have been asked to reply.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 27 June 2000, Official Report, columns 473-74W.

DEFENCE

Procurement

13. Mr. St. Aubyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Government's defence procurement policies. [127269]

Mr. Hoon: The Government's procurement policy is based on delivering value for money through competition and prime contracting. Our Smart Procurement reforms focus on improving procurement effectiveness by introducing commercial best practice and working more closely with all our suppliers, at both project and policy level.

The benefits of smart procurement are beginning to work through, and I am confident that this forward- looking approach will lack the legacy of cost overruns and slippage that have bedevilled equipment procurement in the past.

23. Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what meetings he has had with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to discuss defence procurement; and if he will make a statement. [127279]

Mr. Hoon: I have had frequent meetings with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury where we have discussed a wide range of issues, including defence procurement.

UN Operations

14. Sir Sydney Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British armed forces personnel are allocated to UN operations; and in how many places. [127270]

Mr. Spellar: The UK currently contributes 356 military personnel to six UN-commanded operations. These operations are in Cyprus, Georgia, Sierra Leone, East Timor, the Democratic Republic of Congo and on the Iraq/Kuwait border. Some 6,000 further troops are deployed with NATO on UN mandated operations mostly in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo. Fifty-six MOD police personnel are deployed with UNMIK in Kosovo.

Eurofighter

15. Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with what weaponry the Eurofighter will be armed when it first enters service with the RAF. [127271]

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24. Mr. Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with what weaponry the Eurofighter will be armed when it first enters squadron service with the RAF. [127280]

Mr. Spellar: Eurofighter will be armed with the Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM) and the Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) when it first enters service.

SA80

16. Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make an announcement on the SA80 modification programme. [127272]

Mr. Hoon: My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State announced on Friday 23 June that we intend to award a contract to Heckler and Koch, a subsidiary of Royal Ordnance, to modify some 200,000 SA80 weapons, including both the Individual Weapon and the Light Support Weapon. The SA80 is a generally effective weapon system. But we now know that it can be improved. Our Service men and women deserve a reliable weapon in which they have confidence. The modification programme will make the SA80 among the best in the world. And it demonstrates our willingness to take quick and decisive procurement action when required.

Iraq

17. Mr. Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what operations Her Majesty's armed forces have been engaged in over Iraq in the last month; and if he will make a statement. [127273]

Mr. Hoon: In the month to 30 June, coalition aircraft have continued to patrol the no-fly zones over Iraq in support of UN Security Council Resolution 688, which demanded an immediate end to Saddam's brutal repression of his people. During that time, the Iraqi air defence system attacked or threatened coalition aircraft carrying out their legitimate duties on 18 occasions. Acting entirely in self-defence, RAF aircraft took part in eight operations against those military facilities threatening or attacking our aircraft.

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