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Victims of Homicide

Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps UK posts abroad are taking to ensure that copies of the Home Office pack for Victims of Homicide, 3rd edition, are being made available to families of UK subjects murdered abroad. [23386]

Mr. Bradshaw: The FCO does all it can to help the families of British nationals murdered overseas. The needs of each family are different. We will usually give the families leaflets published by the FCO on "Victims of Crime Abroad" and "Death Overseas" and put them in touch with relevant agencies in the UK who may be able to help them (such as the local police and victim support). The Home Office pack Victims of Homicide, 3rd edition is designed for the relatives of those murdered in the UK and is handed out at the discretion of the police.

Entry Applications

Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will investigate the application for entrance to the UK made by an individual whose name has been communicated to him, to the Istanbul Embassy; and if he will make a statement. [23328]

Mr. Bradshaw: I will investigate the circumstances of this application and write to the hon. Member.

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries (a) hold

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and (b) are suspected of holding stocks of (i) chemical weapons, (ii) biological weapons and (iii) nuclear weapons. [22865]

Mr. Bradshaw: There are four states parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (the US, Russia, India and another state party) that have declared possession of chemical weapons, to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). They are currently in the process of destroying them, in accordance with their obligations under the Convention. Information received in confidence from Foreign Governments is exempt under Exemption 1c of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

The development, production and stockpiling of biological weapons was prohibited by the Biological Weapons Convention of 1972.

The UK recognises five nuclear weapon states as defined by the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT-1968) (UK, US, France, Russia, China). India and Pakistan have announced that they have a nuclear weapons capability. The UK continues to encourage Israel to resolve concerns about its nuclear programme by acceding to the NPT as a non-Nuclear Weapon State. We have also encouraged Israel to sign a full scope safeguards agreement and supported United Nations General Assembly Resolutions on a Middle East nuclear weapons' free zone. A large number of other states have the technical capacity to produce nuclear weapons, but have committed themselves not to do so by adhering to the NPT.

It has been the policy of successive Governments not to comment on specific intelligence matters or assessments.

Public Service Agreements

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress towards the use of a scorecard approach in pursuit of the Public Service Agreement target for building a modern NATO. [22586]

Mr. Bradshaw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has been using the current set of scorecard targets since the start of the Spending Review 2000 triennial.

We have made good progress towards our target of a modernised NATO to improve Europe's security. This year's scorecard measure is to re-engage Russia in the full range of PJC co-operation. The UK has been proactive in transforming the new NATO/Russia relationship and on 6 December the North Atlantic Council launched a process to establish new mechanisms for working with Russia at 20.

We have continued to press the case for NATO modernisation and have actively supported Lord Robertson's NATO Plus initiative. NATO Plus is a programme for reform of working methods at NATO HQ and bringing them in line with best practice in the public and private sectors elsewhere.

Zimbabwe

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the present relationship between the Zimbabwean Government and the Southern African Development Community. [23092]

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Mr. Bradshaw: Mindful of the economic damage that Zimbabwe is inflicting on the region, the countries of the Southern African Development Community have set clear benchmarks against which they will measure the Zimbabwe Government's conduct. We welcome SADC's efforts to encourage stability in Zimbabwe and a change of direction in Zimbabwe Government policy.

Mrs. Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking in conjunction with the international community to ensure those engaged in violence and murder in Zimbabwe are brought to justice. [23533]

Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 17 December 2001]: We and other members of the international community regularly remind the Zimbabwe Government of their obligations under the Harare Commonwealth Declaration, the Cotonou Agreement, the Abuja Agreement and other international instruments to uphold the rule of law and protect the rights of the individual.

Moluccas

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation of Christians in the Moluccas Islands. [23142]

Mr. Bradshaw: We continue to monitor events in the province closely. The United Nations has made several assessment visits to Maluku since 1999. They have found concrete evidence of only a small number of forced conversions, including the most highly reported cases in Kasiui and Tior. Many of the Christians evacuated from the province in January are now reported to be voluntarily returning to their homes. Also, many Muslims and Christians who fled their villages to escape the violence are returning, and Muslim leaders in some villages have asked for help in encouraging Christians to return.

The Department for International Development (DFID) has pledged more than £4 million to help establish the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Conflict Prevention and Recovery Unit in Jakarta. The unit will build up capacity in conflict reduction and recovery in the provinces torn apart by ethnic conflict, particularly in North Maluku. These new initiatives will complement DFID-supported humanitarian relief programmes by addressing the causes underlying conflict, abuse of power, alienation and loss of access to and control of resources essential for everyday life. The embassy in Jakarta has also recently funded a series of conflict reporting training workshops for journalists in various provinces in Indonesia, including North Maluku. We will continue to work with the Indonesian authorities and UNDP to promote reconciliation, begin wider reconstruction work and to offer practical assistance where appropriate.

The UK's message to the Indonesian Government has been consistently clear: a long-term solution to regional conflicts can only be achieved through political negotiation and consultation with the people. On 29 November, the British Chargé d'Affaires in Jakarta raised our concerns about recent violence in Maluku with Manuel Kaisiepo, the Minister for Eastern Indonesia.

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European Journalism

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on UK participation in (a) the European Journalism Centre Maastricht, (b) l'Association pour la Formation au Journalisme Européenne, Bordeaux, (c) la Foundation Journalisme en Europe, Paris and (d) the European Journalists' Association. [22936]

Peter Hain: We are not aware of any recent FCO participation in these organisations.

Association Jean Monnet

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his policy towards European Community (a) financial and (b) other support towards the Association Jean Monnet; and if he will deposit a list of Community- funded material published by this body in the Library. [22888]

Peter Hain: I understand that the Association Jean Monnet has received community funding in the past. For further details I suggest the hon. Member contact the Commission directly.

EU Info-Points

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the locations of (a) EU Info-Points and (b) Rural Information and Promotion Carrefour in the UK; what (i) EU and (ii) UK funding they receive; and if he will make a statement on their activities. [22937]

Peter Hain: There are no EU Info-Points in the UK. There are six Carrefours in the UK, in Preston, Cirencester, Inverness, Clogher (Northern Ireland), Llangefini (Anglesey, North Wales) and Carmarthen (West Wales).

The EU has provided 20,000 euros to each Carrefour for the financial year 2000–01. The centres do not receive UK Government funding.

Carrefours are rural advice and information centres, supported by the European Commission. Their activities are outlined in the European Commission Representation to the UK's website at www.cec.org.uk.

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