House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 14 Jan 2002 (pt 1)

14 Jan 2002 : Column 1W

Written Answers to Questions

Monday 14 January 2002

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Recycling (Norman Shaw North)

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee what steps are taken to ensure that the contents of the recycling bags in Norman Shaw North are recycled. [26347]

Mrs. Roe [holding answer 11 January 2002]: The authorised contractor is obligated to separate and remove wastepaper for recycling. From 12 March, the contract specification will be strengthened to ensure that these procedures are monitored and reported regularly to the House authorities. If the hon. Member has any specific concerns about paper recycling, I hope he will raise them with the Serjeant at Arms.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Saville Inquiry

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the amounts paid to (a) senior counsel, (b) junior counsel, (c) judges and (d) secretarial and administrative support in respect of the Bloody Sunday inquiry in Londonderry. [23566]

Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will provide details of the cost of the Saville inquiry in respect of (a) fees paid to junior and senior counsel, (b) fees paid to solicitors and (c) fees, expenses and other payments made to the chairman; and what is the total cost of the inquiry to date. [19988]

Mr. Browne: The cost of the Bloody Sunday inquiry to the Northern Ireland Office, as at 4 December 2001, is £52 million. This figure does not include costs to other Departments such as the Ministry of Defence.

The costs to the Northern Ireland Office can be broken down as follows:

NIO expenditure on Bloody Sunday inquiry from 1997–98 to December 2001

£000

1. Tribunal members

Salaries⁽¹⁾; allowances⁽²⁾; rental of London accommodation for non-UK members 907

2. Inquiry Secretariat

Salary costs 3,206

of which:

solicitors and paralegals: 1,400

administrative staff (including witness liaison and press office): 1,806

3. Inquiry Counsel

Fees and minor expenses 3,970

4. Counsel for the families

Fees and expenses 3,743

of the payments at items three and four:

to senior counsel: 4,093

to junior counsel: 3,620

5. Eversheds, solicitors⁽³⁾

Fees and expenses 10,814

6. Solicitors for the families

Fees and expenses 6,294

7. Other lawyers

(Between them acting for a range of other clients, including soldiers not represented by one of the MOD-funded legal teams) 522

8. Inquiry experts⁽⁴⁾

Fees and expenses 359

9. Information technology⁽⁵⁾ 13,313

10. Accommodation

(Rental of office accommodation in London and office and hearings accommodation in Londonderry) 3,690

11. Travel and Subsistence

(For tribunal, and inquiry counsel and staff members) 1,344

12. Other

(Including office services; security; construction work; tracing of witnesses; costs assessment of lawyers' bills) 3,838

Total 52,000

	£000
1. Tribunal members
Salaries⁽¹⁾; allowances⁽²⁾; rental of London accommodation for non-UK members	907

2. Inquiry Secretariat
Salary costs	3,206
of which:
solicitors and paralegals:	1,400
administrative staff (including witness liaison and press office):	1,806

3. Inquiry Counsel
Fees and minor expenses	3,970
4. Counsel for the families
Fees and expenses	3,743
of the payments at items three and four:
to senior counsel:	4,093
to junior counsel:	3,620

5. Eversheds, solicitors⁽³⁾
Fees and expenses	10,814

6. Solicitors for the families
Fees and expenses	6,294

7. Other lawyers
(Between them acting for a range of other clients, including soldiers not represented by one of the MOD-funded legal teams)	522

8. Inquiry experts⁽⁴⁾
Fees and expenses	359

9. Information technology⁽⁵⁾	13,313

10. Accommodation
(Rental of office accommodation in London and office and hearings accommodation in Londonderry)	3,690

11. Travel and Subsistence
(For tribunal, and inquiry counsel and staff members)	1,344

12. Other
(Including office services; security; construction work; tracing of witnesses; costs assessment of lawyers' bills)	3,838

Total	52,000

⁽¹⁾ Lord Saville continues to receive his salary as a Law Lord, currently £157,699 a year. He receives no salary from the NIO and so it is not included in the figure quoted at item one.

⁽²⁾ The non-UK members of the tribunal are paid daily allowances of £50 (net) while in Londonderry and £75 (net) while in London. In addition these members are paid an allowance of £500 (net) for every month in which they spend at least a fortnight in the UK. Lord Saville is paid the daily Londonderry allowance, but neither of the other allowances. As at 4 December 2001 he had been paid a total of £7,400 in respect of this allowance. In addition the reasonable expenses incurred by members on tribunal business, and for travel to and from their home countries for the non-UK members, are met by the inquiry: the sums are included at item 11 in the table.

⁽³⁾ Eversheds are the solicitors contracted by the inquiry to take witness statements. They have also provided professional support to inquiry counsel and solicitors.

⁽⁴⁾ The experts concerned are in the fields of pathology, ballistics and explosives, sound, and history. The expenditure shown also includes that on the Peer Review Panel which has overseen the work of the pathology, ballistics, and sound experts.

⁽⁵⁾ Expenditure includes that on real-time transcription of the hearings, and on the evidence display system.

Notes:

1. The table displays the expenditure position as at 4 December 2001. The late submission of some bills means that the figures shown for certain expenditure components, notably four, do not fully reflect the scale on which expenditure had been incurred by December 2001. In addition, a prospective Judicial Review could affect the position at four, and a prospective judgment of the Senior Costs Judge the position at six.

2. The expenditure figures include VAT where that is paid.

3. The Ministry of Defence meets nearly all the costs of the four legal teams which between them represent most of the soldiers.

14 Jan 2002 : Column 2W

Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the cost to date of the Saville inquiry; and what he expects the final cost to be. [24438]

Mr. Ingram: I have been asked to reply.

14 Jan 2002 : Column 3W

The cost to date to the Ministry of Defence of the Saville inquiry is £14,454,453. This figure does not include costs to other Government Departments. It is not possible to provide an estimate of final cost, which is dependent on a number of factors beyond our control such as number of days in court and the number of witnesses called.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Temporary Contracts

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people he expects to employ in (a) his Department and (b) executive agencies for which he is responsible on temporary contracts of (i) 51 weeks and (ii) less than 51 weeks duration in the next four years in each case specifying the number of employees who had previously been employed in a similar position on the same contract. [25173]

Mr. Bradshaw: None.

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) executive agencies for which his Department is responsible who have been employed on temporary contracts of (i) 51 weeks and (ii) less than 51 weeks duration have been reemployed in the same or similar positions at a later date in each year since 1997. [25172]

Mr. Bradshaw: None.

EU Military Staff

Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many (a) military and (b) civilian staff will be (i) employed by and (ii) seconded by member states to the EU military staff in Brussels; and how much this will cost per annum. [24987]

Mr. Bradshaw: The EU military staff has 135 permanent members. Within the EU military staff, there are 121 military personnel and 14 civilian personnel. All personnel are seconded and their salaries are paid by national Governments. Their operational expenses and allowances are met by the Council Secretariat and are included in the estimate of ESDP costs in the current financial year provided in answer to the hon. Member's previous question on 9 January 2002, Official Report, column 913W.

Kosovo

Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Parliamentary Secretary's letter of 8 July, what continuing action has been taken to protect Serbian churches in Kosovo. [25950]

Mr. MacShane: As part of their mandate to provide a safe and secure environment in Kosovo, NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) troops continue to guard Serbian churches in Kosovo. The protection of the remaining religious buildings and patrimonial sites is an important part of the international community's strategy of maintaining Kosovo as a multi-ethnic society. UK troops take an active part in this process.

14 Jan 2002 : Column 4W

Iran

Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whom he has named as the new UK ambassador to Iran; when this matter was last discussed with Iran; and if he will make a statement. [27134]

Mr. Bradshaw: It is not normal practice to comment on discussions about ambassadorial appointments before they have been agreed with the host Government. I can however confirm that we have nominated a new ambassador to Tehran and are awaiting agreement from the Iranian authorities.

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