Order Book Part 1

House of Commons

Session 2000-01
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The Order Book

Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on Wednesday 7 March 2001

Here you can browse the Written Questions for answer on Wednesday 7 March, of which previous notice has been given in the Notices of Questions paper. They are arranged in alphabetical order of answering Department.

Notes:
* Indicates a Question for Oral Answer.
+ Indicates a Question not included in the random selection process but accepted because the quota for that day had not been filled.
[N] Indicates a Question for Written Answer on a named day, i.e. the Member has indicated under S.O. No. 22(4) the day on which he wishes the Question to be answered.
[R] Indicates that a relevant interest has been declared.

WEDNESDAY 7th MARCH

1
   Mr John Bercow (Buckingham):    To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what assessment he has made of the effect of European Community law on the spread of foot and mouth disease.

(152663)

2
   Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):    To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, who pays the cost of inspection of imported meats from (a) EU and (b) other countries; and if he will make a statement.

(152805)

3
   Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar):    To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, when the risk assessment for the spread of foot and mouth disease on herds of wild deer will be published.

(152686)

4
N   Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington):    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress has been made by her Department in ensuring that departments of state charged with the payment of benefits comply with the Government's E-Strategy.

(152422)

5
   Mr David Maclean (Penrith and The Border):    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the oral statement by the Minister for the Arts of 26th February, Official Report, column 572, on spending on arts administration, how operating costs are defined.

(152769)

6
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if it is the Government's policy that it remains premature to make any judgement on a proposal for National Missile Defense until such a proposal has been made.

(151857)

7
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list by specialty and rank the number of Defence Medical Services personnel on operational duty in Sierra Leone in September 2000; and if he will make a statement.

(151799)

8
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what length of tour and interval between deployments his Department assesses to be optimal for Defence Medical Services personnel; and if he will make a statement.

(151800)

9
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what research facilities exist at the Centre for Defence Medicine; how much money has been earmarked for the development of research facilities; and if he will make statement.

(151801)

10
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average interval between tours and the average length of operational tour was for (a) Army field ambulance units and (b) Army field hospital units in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

(151802)

11
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average (a) length of operational tour and (b) interval between tours was for Defence Medical Services personnel in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

(151803)

12
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many occasions (a) coalition aircraft and (b) UK aircraft patrolling the southern no-fly-zone in Iraq have released ordnance in response to violations from 12th January to date, stating in percentage terms (i) the nature of the threat, (ii) the category of the target attacked and the tonnage of ordnance released on each category of target in proportion to the overall tonnage released; and if he will make a statement.

(151804)

13
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on the state of security at his Department's bases and headquarters in the UK and the steps taken to deter unwanted intrusion; what review of security procedures at his Department's bases and headquarters he plans to undertake; what the remit of the investigations will be; which bases and headquarters will be investigated; when he expects investigations to be completed; and if he will make a statement.

(151805)

14
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many breaches of security were reported at his Department's bases and headquarters in each of the last five years; how many arrests and prosecutions have resulted; and if he will make a statement.

(151806)

15
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his Answer of 15th February, Official Report, column 192W, on Defence Medical Services, if he will list each level of medical downgrading used in the medical downgrading categorisation system stating in each case (a) the nature of duty restriction, (b) the nature of geographical restriction and (c) the level of deployability; and if he will make a statement.

(151807)

16
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list by specialty the number of Defence Medical Services personnel who will be deployed as part of Exercise Saif Sareea 2 stating in each case how many are (a) regular and (b) reserves; and if he will make a statement.

(151808)

17
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the establishment strength is of (a) Warrior variants, (b) Challenger 1, (c) Challenger 2, (d) Saxon variants, (e) AVF 430 variants, (f) Sabre, (g) Striker, (h) Scimitar, (i) Spartan, (j) Sultan, (k) Samaritan and (l) Samson; what percentage of establishment strength in each catagory are serviceable for immediate availability; and if he will make a statement.

(152461)

18
N   Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, under what legal powers recent international military intervention took place in Iraqi no-fly zones.

(152460)

19
   Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will review the decision to withdraw the Ministry of Defence Police from policed sites.

(152745)

20
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what funding has been made available to the London Borough of Wandsworth in each year since 1997 for improving school buildings.

(152680)

21
N   Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):    To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what action he is taking to reduce paperwork for teachers.

(151697)

22
   Mr William Ross (East Londonderry):    To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what guidance he provides to (a) head teachers, (b) school governors and (c) local education authorities on choosing the suppliers of ingredients for school dinners.

(152768)

23
N   Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, what progress his Department has made in implementing the policy objective of the increased use of electronic signatures in communications (a) between officials, (b) from officials to persons and organisations outside and (c) from persons and organisations outside to officials in his Department.

(152423)

24
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will list the local and regional authorities with which he has had discussions regarding the transporting of nuclear waste by train through Wandsworth; and if he will make a statement.

(152677)

25
   Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere):    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he will answer the Question from the honourable Member for Hertsmere, Reference Number 150049, regarding national insurance contributions, tabled for answer on 12th February.

(152744)

26
   Mr John Bercow (Buckingham):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his Answer of 12th February, Official Report, column 47W, on Europe Houses, if he will make a statement on the cause of the error in counting Europe Houses in the United Kingdom; what links his Department has with the organisations; and what the role of his Department was in assessing their value for money at the time of the most recent European Community budget deliberations.

(152664)

27
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what meetings he has had with representatives of the Commonwealth regarding the situation in Zanzibar.

(151693)

28
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to ensure that the Government of Tanzania discontinues the harassment of opposition politicians on the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba.

(151694)

29
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is in respect of the elections held in Zanzibar in 2000; and if he will press for a re-run of the elections.

(151695)

30
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to prevent human rights abuses on the islands of (a) Zanzibar and (b) Pemba, following the arrests and deaths of political opponents of the Government of Tanzania.

(151696)

31
N   Helen Jones (Warrington North):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he will reply to a letter dated 7th November 2000 concerning Mrs Ingrid Chare, a constituent, whose address has been supplied to him.

(152457)

32
N   Helen Jones (Warrington North):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with representatives of the Saudi Arabian Government on the efforts of Mrs Ingrid Chare to obtain compensation following the death of her husband, Mr John Bernard Chare.

(152459)

33
N   Mr John Swinney (North Tayside):    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many technical committees and working parties of the EU Council of Ministers have been (a) attended and (b) led by Scottish Executive officials in a UK capacity since 1st July 1999.

(152354)

34
   Mr David Borrow (South Ribble):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the NHS purchasing and supply agency will publish its framework document.

(152682)

35
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, in respect of how many NHS specialist health services a person's health authority affects the type of treatment that is available.

(152684)

36
   Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will introduce a national strategy for substance misuse in place of separate strategies for alcohol, drug and tobacco misuse.

(152666)

37
   Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the consultation document on a national strategy for alcohol abuse will be published.

(152665)

38
   Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GPs left practice in 2000-01; and how many of these were (a) part-time and (b) full-time equivalents.

(152803)

39
   Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many new GPs were appointed in the financial year 2000-01; and how many of these were (a) part-time and (b) full-time equivalents.

(152802)

40
   Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the net change in the number of full-time equivalent GPs was between 1999-2000 and 2000-01.

(152804)

41
   Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was of producing the document 'Make Your Voice Heard'.

(152662)

42
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions he has had with Mayor of London about the recruitment of police officers for the Metropolitan Police Force.

(152683)

43
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the detention centres being used for holding asylum seekers

(152678)

44
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the prisons being built in England and Wales; when each is expected to open; and how many inmate places there will be at each.

(152679)

45
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Prime Minister, if his joint communique� with the President of the United States and his subsequent statement to the press represent a change in the Government's policy towards potential US plans for National Missile Defense.

(151856)

46
N   Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):    To ask the Prime Minister, if he discussed strategies for reducing and elminating the threat from weapons of mass destruction through arms control and disarmament during his recent meetings at Camp David with the President of the United States.

(151858)

47
N   Dr Norman A. Godman (Greenock and Inverclyde):    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if the winter fuel payments for the winter of 2000-01 have been made to all those eligible in Renfrewshire; and if he will make a statement.

(152420)

48
N   Mr John Swinney (North Tayside):    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the running costs of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and Advocate General for Scotland were in each year since 1999-2000; how much of the budget in each year was allocated to (a) staff costs, (b) maintenance, (c) travel costs and (d) other expenditure; and if he will make a statement.

(152351)

49
N   Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington):    To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, if the (a) Benefits Agency and (b) Benefits Fraud Inspectorate will accept the use of electronic signatures by claimants as valid.

(152421)

50
   Tom Cox (Tooting):    To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, how many complaints were made against decisions of the Child Support Agency in 2000.

(152681)

51
N   Paul Flynn (Newport West):    To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, if (a) a British pensioner living in France and (b) a French pensioner living in Britain is entitled to the winter fuel payment.

(152352)

52
N   Paul Flynn (Newport West):    To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, how many people requesting copies of the Pension Credit consultation paper have been told that it was out of stock; for what periods it was not available; and if he will extend the consultation period to take account of such periods.

(152353)

53
N   Helen Jones (Warrington North):    To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many former miners in Warrington North have (a) claimed and (b) received payments in compensation for (i) chronic bronchitis and emphysema and (ii) vibration white finger.

(152458)

54
   Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will make a statement on the long-term strategy for the storage of waste arising from the decommissioning of nuclear reactors.

[Transferred] (152687)

55
   Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar):    To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will make a statement on liaison between the emergency services and local authorities and BNFL on the transportation of nuclear materials by (a) road and (b) rail.

[Transferred] (152685)

WEDNESDAY 7th MARCH
1	Mr John Bercow (Buckingham): To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what assessment he has made of the effect of European Community law on the spread of foot and mouth disease.
	(152663)
2	Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, who pays the cost of inspection of imported meats from (a) EU and (b) other countries; and if he will make a statement.
	(152805)
3	Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar): To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, when the risk assessment for the spread of foot and mouth disease on herds of wild deer will be published.
	(152686)
4 N	Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington): To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress has been made by her Department in ensuring that departments of state charged with the payment of benefits comply with the Government's E-Strategy.
	(152422)
5	Mr David Maclean (Penrith and The Border): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the oral statement by the Minister for the Arts of 26th February, Official Report, column 572, on spending on arts administration, how operating costs are defined.
	(152769)
6 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if it is the Government's policy that it remains premature to make any judgement on a proposal for National Missile Defense until such a proposal has been made.
	(151857)
7 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list by specialty and rank the number of Defence Medical Services personnel on operational duty in Sierra Leone in September 2000; and if he will make a statement.
	(151799)
8 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what length of tour and interval between deployments his Department assesses to be optimal for Defence Medical Services personnel; and if he will make a statement.
	(151800)
9 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what research facilities exist at the Centre for Defence Medicine; how much money has been earmarked for the development of research facilities; and if he will make statement.
	(151801)
10 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average interval between tours and the average length of operational tour was for (a) Army field ambulance units and (b) Army field hospital units in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
	(151802)
11 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average (a) length of operational tour and (b) interval between tours was for Defence Medical Services personnel in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
	(151803)
12 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many occasions (a) coalition aircraft and (b) UK aircraft patrolling the southern no-fly-zone in Iraq have released ordnance in response to violations from 12th January to date, stating in percentage terms (i) the nature of the threat, (ii) the category of the target attacked and the tonnage of ordnance released on each category of target in proportion to the overall tonnage released; and if he will make a statement.
	(151804)
13 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on the state of security at his Department's bases and headquarters in the UK and the steps taken to deter unwanted intrusion; what review of security procedures at his Department's bases and headquarters he plans to undertake; what the remit of the investigations will be; which bases and headquarters will be investigated; when he expects investigations to be completed; and if he will make a statement.
	(151805)
14 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many breaches of security were reported at his Department's bases and headquarters in each of the last five years; how many arrests and prosecutions have resulted; and if he will make a statement.
	(151806)
15 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his Answer of 15th February, Official Report, column 192W, on Defence Medical Services, if he will list each level of medical downgrading used in the medical downgrading categorisation system stating in each case (a) the nature of duty restriction, (b) the nature of geographical restriction and (c) the level of deployability; and if he will make a statement.
	(151807)
16 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list by specialty the number of Defence Medical Services personnel who will be deployed as part of Exercise Saif Sareea 2 stating in each case how many are (a) regular and (b) reserves; and if he will make a statement.
	(151808)
17 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the establishment strength is of (a) Warrior variants, (b) Challenger 1, (c) Challenger 2, (d) Saxon variants, (e) AVF 430 variants, (f) Sabre, (g) Striker, (h) Scimitar, (i) Spartan, (j) Sultan, (k) Samaritan and (l) Samson; what percentage of establishment strength in each catagory are serviceable for immediate availability; and if he will make a statement.
	(152461)
18 N	Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, under what legal powers recent international military intervention took place in Iraqi no-fly zones.
	(152460)
19	Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will review the decision to withdraw the Ministry of Defence Police from policed sites.
	(152745)
20	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what funding has been made available to the London Borough of Wandsworth in each year since 1997 for improving school buildings.
	(152680)
21 N	Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what action he is taking to reduce paperwork for teachers.
	(151697)
22	Mr William Ross (East Londonderry): To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, what guidance he provides to (a) head teachers, (b) school governors and (c) local education authorities on choosing the suppliers of ingredients for school dinners.
	(152768)
23 N	Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington): To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, what progress his Department has made in implementing the policy objective of the increased use of electronic signatures in communications (a) between officials, (b) from officials to persons and organisations outside and (c) from persons and organisations outside to officials in his Department.
	(152423)
24	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will list the local and regional authorities with which he has had discussions regarding the transporting of nuclear waste by train through Wandsworth; and if he will make a statement.
	(152677)
25	Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he will answer the Question from the honourable Member for Hertsmere, Reference Number 150049, regarding national insurance contributions, tabled for answer on 12th February.
	(152744)
26	Mr John Bercow (Buckingham): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his Answer of 12th February, Official Report, column 47W, on Europe Houses, if he will make a statement on the cause of the error in counting Europe Houses in the United Kingdom; what links his Department has with the organisations; and what the role of his Department was in assessing their value for money at the time of the most recent European Community budget deliberations.
	(152664)
27 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what meetings he has had with representatives of the Commonwealth regarding the situation in Zanzibar.
	(151693)
28 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to ensure that the Government of Tanzania discontinues the harassment of opposition politicians on the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba.
	(151694)
29 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is in respect of the elections held in Zanzibar in 2000; and if he will press for a re-run of the elections.
	(151695)
30 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to prevent human rights abuses on the islands of (a) Zanzibar and (b) Pemba, following the arrests and deaths of political opponents of the Government of Tanzania.
	(151696)
31 N	Helen Jones (Warrington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he will reply to a letter dated 7th November 2000 concerning Mrs Ingrid Chare, a constituent, whose address has been supplied to him.
	(152457)
32 N	Helen Jones (Warrington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with representatives of the Saudi Arabian Government on the efforts of Mrs Ingrid Chare to obtain compensation following the death of her husband, Mr John Bernard Chare.
	(152459)
33 N	Mr John Swinney (North Tayside): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many technical committees and working parties of the EU Council of Ministers have been (a) attended and (b) led by Scottish Executive officials in a UK capacity since 1st July 1999.
	(152354)
34	Mr David Borrow (South Ribble): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the NHS purchasing and supply agency will publish its framework document.
	(152682)
35	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, in respect of how many NHS specialist health services a person's health authority affects the type of treatment that is available.
	(152684)
36	Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will introduce a national strategy for substance misuse in place of separate strategies for alcohol, drug and tobacco misuse.
	(152666)
37	Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the consultation document on a national strategy for alcohol abuse will be published.
	(152665)
38	Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GPs left practice in 2000-01; and how many of these were (a) part-time and (b) full-time equivalents.
	(152803)
39	Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many new GPs were appointed in the financial year 2000-01; and how many of these were (a) part-time and (b) full-time equivalents.
	(152802)
40	Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the net change in the number of full-time equivalent GPs was between 1999-2000 and 2000-01.
	(152804)
41	Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was of producing the document 'Make Your Voice Heard'.
	(152662)
42	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions he has had with Mayor of London about the recruitment of police officers for the Metropolitan Police Force.
	(152683)
43	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the detention centres being used for holding asylum seekers
	(152678)
44	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the prisons being built in England and Wales; when each is expected to open; and how many inmate places there will be at each.
	(152679)
45 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Prime Minister, if his joint communique� with the President of the United States and his subsequent statement to the press represent a change in the Government's policy towards potential US plans for National Missile Defense.
	(151856)
46 N	Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask the Prime Minister, if he discussed strategies for reducing and elminating the threat from weapons of mass destruction through arms control and disarmament during his recent meetings at Camp David with the President of the United States.
	(151858)
47 N	Dr Norman A. Godman (Greenock and Inverclyde): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if the winter fuel payments for the winter of 2000-01 have been made to all those eligible in Renfrewshire; and if he will make a statement.
	(152420)
48 N	Mr John Swinney (North Tayside): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the running costs of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and Advocate General for Scotland were in each year since 1999-2000; how much of the budget in each year was allocated to (a) staff costs, (b) maintenance, (c) travel costs and (d) other expenditure; and if he will make a statement.
	(152351)
49 N	Mr Dale Campbell-Savours (Workington): To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, if the (a) Benefits Agency and (b) Benefits Fraud Inspectorate will accept the use of electronic signatures by claimants as valid.
	(152421)
50	Tom Cox (Tooting): To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, how many complaints were made against decisions of the Child Support Agency in 2000.
	(152681)
51 N	Paul Flynn (Newport West): To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, if (a) a British pensioner living in France and (b) a French pensioner living in Britain is entitled to the winter fuel payment.
	(152352)
52 N	Paul Flynn (Newport West): To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, how many people requesting copies of the Pension Credit consultation paper have been told that it was out of stock; for what periods it was not available; and if he will extend the consultation period to take account of such periods.
	(152353)
53 N	Helen Jones (Warrington North): To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many former miners in Warrington North have (a) claimed and (b) received payments in compensation for (i) chronic bronchitis and emphysema and (ii) vibration white finger.
	(152458)
54	Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will make a statement on the long-term strategy for the storage of waste arising from the decommissioning of nuclear reactors.
	[Transferred] (152687)
55	Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood and Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, if he will make a statement on liaison between the emergency services and local authorities and BNFL on the transportation of nuclear materials by (a) road and (b) rail.
	[Transferred] (152685)



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