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Benefit Agency Standards Committee
Barbara Follett: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if the appointment of members of the Benefits Agency Standards Committee has been completed. [102907]
Angela Eagle: I am pleased to announce that membership of the Committee under the chairmanship of Dr. Peter Lehmann has been agreed.
The Committee's independence has been assured by the appointment of seven independent non-executive members alongside two operational executives from the Benefits Agency. The membership reflects a diversity of background and experience. The full list of members together with short pen pictures of each has been placed in the Library.
The Committee will report directly to the Benefits Agency Chief Executive providing him with independent assurance on standards of decision making in the Agency, as well as making recommendations for continuous improvement in the quality of that decision making.
Mr. Worthington:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 29 November 1999, Official Report, column 58W, on asbestos-related disease, if he will publish the advice he received from the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council on awards for bilateral diffuse pleural thickening. [101621]
Mr. Bayley:
The Industrial Injuries Advisory Council Report "Asbestos Related Diseases" (Cm 3467), was published in November 1996. A copy is in the Library.
Airport Police
Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what responsibilities he retains in relation to the oversight of (a) security of airports in Northern Ireland and (b) management of the Northern Ireland Airport Police; and what responsibilities are devolved. [102440]
Mr. Ingram:
As policing and security are reserved matters for administration by this Government, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
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has retained all of his current responsibilities for the oversight of security at Northern Ireland airports and management of the Northern Ireland Airport Police. None of these responsibilities are being devolved at this time to the new Northern Ireland Assembly.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what undertakings were given by the purchasers at the time of the privatisation of the Northern Ireland International Airport in relation to the future management and independence of the Northern Ireland Airport Police; and what scrutiny has been conducted since as to the performance of these undertakings. [102441]
Mr. Mandelson:
Responsibility for this subject has been devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly and is therefore no longer a matter for the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
British Diplomatic Posts (Costs)
Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what were the annual running costs in the last year for which figures are available of (a) the United Kingdom's embassies in the EU, (b) the British Embassy in Washington DC, (c) the British Consulate General in San Francisco and (d) the British embassies and consulates in the USA in total. [102444]
Mr. Hain: The running costs (in pounds sterling) for 1998-99 are as follows:
| Countries | £ |
|---|---|
| (a) Embassies in the EU | |
| Austria | 1,624,989 |
| Belgium | 1,613,336 |
| Denmark | 1,979,145 |
| Eire | 2,021,151 |
| Finland | 1,622,182 |
| France | 8,311,896 |
| Germany | 5,334,710 |
| Greece | 3,020,542 |
| Italy | 5,689,673 |
| Luxembourg | 904,600 |
| Netherlands | 2,377,494 |
| Portugal | 2,223,375 |
| Spain | 5,850,231 |
| Sweden | 1,917,642 |
| Total | 44,490,966 |
| (b) British Embassy | |
| Washington DC | 14,288,628 |
| (c) Consulate General | |
| San Francisco | 634,434 |
| (d) USA in Total | |
| USA Total | 20,720,979 |
The costs of the Embassies include spend, incurred at post, on behalf of their subordinate posts.The figures given are purely the cash element charged to the posts in question.
No support costs have been included.
14 Dec 1999 : Column: 110W
Correspondence
Mr. Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the Under-Secretary of State for Home Department, the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien) will reply to the hon. Member for New Forest, West's letter of 7 October regarding Mr. Dahunsi. [102423]
Mr. Vaz [holding answer 13 December 1999]: The hon. Member for New Forest, West's letter of 7 October, addressed to Mr. O'Brien at the Home Office, was forwarded to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for reply and was received in the Visa Correspondence Unit on 25 October. The Unit replied to the hon. Member on 8 December.
Hong Kong
Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what will be the status of the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration on the question of Hong Kong after the Joint Liaison Group ceases to meet on 1 January; and if he will make a statement. [102905]
Mr. Battle: The Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong is a treaty registered at the United Nations which creates international rights and obligations for both parties to it. The Joint Declaration has no termination date, although China has made an explicit commitment that its basic policies on Hong Kong, which include maintaining Hong Kong's capitalist system and way of life, will remain unchanged for 50 years from 1 July 1997. Under paragraph 7 of the Joint Declaration, China committed herself to abide by all her commitments in the Joint Declaration.
Her Majesty's Government will continue to take a close interest in developments in Hong Kong and to report to Parliament on the implementation of the Joint Declaration.
Kosovo
Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about the proposed export of electrical firing cable to the HALO Trust in Kosovo. [102906]
Mr. Vaz: The Government have granted a licence for the export to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) of 7 x 500m lengths of electrical firing cable for use by the HALO Trust, an organisation engaged in humanitarian demining activities in Kosovo on behalf of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). These goods are on the UK's Military List.
UN Security Council resolution (UNSCR) 1160 imposed an arms embargo on the FRY. The only exception to this embargo is that in UNSCR 1244, which provides that prohibitions imposed by UNSCR 1160 shall not apply to the sale or supply of arms and related material for use by the international civil and security presence in Kosovo. We have notified the UN Sanctions Committee of this export and they have raised no objection. The export of the equipment required for demining purposes is not prohibited by the EU arms embargo.
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Mr. Blunt:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is his policy to encourage the Government of Russia to negotiate with the Government of Chechnya; and if he will list the names of those who are able to represent Chechnya. [102258]
Mr. Vaz:
In all our contacts with the Russian Government we have pressed them to pursue a negotiated solution with the elected Chechen authorities, including Chechen President Maskhadov, and to use the good offices of the OSCE.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to Spain about the incident on 29 November when a Gibraltarian was prevented entry into Spain on the basis that as a British passport holder he could not drive a Gibraltar-registered car; what undertakings have been received from Spain that similar actions will not occur again; and if he will make a statement. [102434]
Mr. Vaz:
We are aware of the incident at the border on 29 November and understand that a report was made to the Royal Gibraltar Police. We understand that the individual concerned was able to cross the border into Spain.
We regularly make clear to the Spanish authorities their obligations to operate the border in a way consistent with their EC obligations on free movement of persons.
Mr. Sanders:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the changes in charges since 1997 for visas for orphans visiting the UK for holidays from the former Republic of Yugoslavia; and if he will make a statement. [102464]
Mr. Vaz:
The fee for a single entry visitor's visa has remained unchanged since 1995 when it was set at its current level of £33.
There are no special charging arrangements for visitors from the former Republic of Yugoslavia.
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