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Community Transport Schemes

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he plans to announce the funding arrangements that will apply to community transport schemes in south Gloucestershire for April 2002. [31258]

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Ms Keeble: South Gloucestershire council is able to bid for Government funding to support community transport schemes under either the urban or rural bus challenge competitions. In addition, funding allocated to it from the rural bus subsidy grant scheme may be used for continuing support of a project initially supported by a rural bus challenge award.

The results of the latest round of the Rural Bus Challenge, including an award of £578,827 to the authority for the continuation of the Vale Link and Yate and Sobbury community transport schemes in south Gloucestershire, were announced on 25 January.

We will be introducing shortly arrangements under which for the first time a wide range of community transport services will become eligible for the receipt of fuel duty rebate.

Highways Agency

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Highways Agency Business Plan for 2002–03 will be published; and what targets he has set. [31848]

Mr. Jamieson: The Highways Agency's Business Plan, which contains the targets set for 2002–03, will be published tomorrow. A copy will be placed in the House Library.

These targets are:

In order to deliver best value for money, maintain the network so that the proportion requiring maintenance within the next year is held between 7 per cent. and 8 per cent.


98 per cent. of lanes available at all times.


90 per cent. of routine maintenance done outside of peak hours.


complete the remaining congestion Early Action schemes in the programme.


Achieve at least 48 of 51 major scheme milestones.


Reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on trunk roads in 2002–03 by at least 555 to 4,436 (compared with the 1994–98 average of 4,991).


Reduce the slight casualty rate to no more than 21.41 slight casualties per hundred million vehicle kilometres (compared with the 1994–98 average of 22.14).


Complete the remaining safety Early Action schemes in the programme.


Introduce a national HA Traffic Control Centre.


Achieve an average score of no less than 7.5 on the agency's Road User Satisfaction survey (on a scale of 1–10 with one being extremely poor and 10 being extremely good).


Install automatic hold up warning systems on at least 200 km of motorway length.


Achieve an average of at least 95 per cent. across four environmental sub-indicators.


Percentage of residential properties owned that are vacant not to exceed 15 per cent. of the residential portfolio.


Percentage of vacant habitable properties empty for more than six months at the end of the year not to exceed 3 per cent. of the residential portfolio.

Town and Country Planning

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many notifications the Environment Agency has received from (a) Buckinghamshire county council and (b) Aylesbury

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Vale district council under the requirements of the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995. [30060]

Mr. Meacher: I have been asked to reply.

In the period from 1 January to 31 December 2001 the Environment Agency has been consulted under the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 21 times by Buckinghamshire county council, and 87 times by Aylesbury Vale district council.

PRIME MINISTER

Data Privacy and Sharing

Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Prime Minister when he intends to publish the PIU report on data privacy and sharing. [31503]

The Prime Minister: The Performance and Innovation Unit's report on privacy and data sharing will be published in due course.

Crime Reduction

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer to the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr. Duncan Smith) of 9 January 2002, Official Report, column 539, if he will publish the text of the letter to which he referred and state whether it had been (a) drafted, (b) signed and (c) sent at the time of his answer. [31267]

The Prime Minister: The letter from my right hon. Friend the Member for Manchester, Withington (Mr. Bradley), the Minister of State, Home Office, to which I referred on 9 January, had been written, signed personally by the Minister and a copy sent to the newspaper concerned at the time of my answer. A copy of the letter is being placed in the Library.

Whittington Hospital

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer to the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr. Duncan Green) of 23 January 2002, Official Report, column 880, if he will (a) give the name and title of the author or authors of the letter to which he refers, (b) publish the text and (c) state what assistance in the drafting of the letter was (i) offered by and (ii) received from Government officials, including special advisers and NHS press officers. [31266]

The Prime Minister: The letter referred to is the property of the Whittington hospital NHS trust. I note that the letter sent by the trust to the Evening Standard was published on 24 January.

No Government officials, including special advisers, gave any assistance in the drafting of this letter. NHS press officers are employed, and report to, the trusts themselves.

Saville Inquiry

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Macclesfield (Mr. Winterton) of 16 January 2002, Official Report, column 289, if the cost he quoted of the inquiry

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included (a) the cost to the Ministry of Defence, (b) the anticipated future costs to the Northern Ireland Office, (c) the cost of Lord Saville's salary and (d) the cost of legal aid; and if he will make a statement of the total cost (i) to date and (ii) which is anticipated. [31268]

The Prime Minister: The figure of £52 million in my previous answer was the expenditure by the inquiry to 7 January 2002. That cost is met by the Northern Ireland Office. For the anticipated future cost, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to the hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt) on 17 December 2001, Official Report, column 40W.

For details of the cost to the Ministry of Defence, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State for the armed forces to the hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt) on 14 January 2002, Official Report, columns 2–3W. Other Departments have incurred some costs as a result of a relatively small amount of staff time being deployed on these issues.

Lord Saville continues to receive his salary as a Law Lord, which is met from the Consolidated Fund.

No expenditure has fallen to the budget of the Legal Aid scheme in Northern Ireland as a result of the Bloody Sunday inquiry.

Golden Jubilee

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on plans for celebrating the 50th anniversary of Her Majesty the Queen's Accession to the Throne. [31611]

The Prime Minister: I welcome this opportunity, on behalf of the whole nation, to offer the warmest congratulations to the Queen on the 50th anniversary of her Accession, and to express gratitude for half a century of devoted service to the people of the United Kingdom.

I announced on 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 294W, that Her Majesty will attend a National Thanksgiving Service in St. Paul's Cathedral on Tuesday 4 June 2002. That day will be a bank holiday in place of the spring bank holiday, which would otherwise fall on 27 May. Monday 3 June will be an additional bank holiday for the Golden Jubilee.

On 22 June 2001, Official Report, column 7W, I announced the main features of the Queen's United Kingdom programme of Golden Jubilee visits and on 3 August my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport announced in a news release the main celebrations planned in central London over the Golden Jubilee weekend of 1 to 4 June 2002.

I am pleased to be able to announce the programme of visits and other events throughout the United Kingdom from May to August this year, which will be undertaken by Her Majesty and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, to mark the Golden Jubilee.

As I announced on 22 June 2001, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will be travelling as widely as possible around the United Kingdom during this year, including visits to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, although

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they will not be able to visit all cities and counties. However, their itinerary will enable them to meet as many people as possible throughout the country.

The programme is as follows:

29 April—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend a Dinner at No. 10 Downing street


30 April—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a Session of the Joint Houses of Parliament in Westminster Hall at which Her Majesty will address both Houses


South West of England (Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Bath)

1 May—Falmouth; Trelissick; Truro; Exeter

2 May—Taunton; Wells; Bath

North East of England (Tyne and Wear and County Durham)

7 May—Sunderland; Gateshead; Newcastle

8 May—Durham; Darlington; Stockton (the Duke of Edinburgh)

9 May—East London

South East of England (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire)

10 May—Aylesbury; Marlow; Bisham Abbey

16–17 May—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend the Royal Windsor Horse Show

18 May—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will take the Salute at "All the Queen's Horses", Royal Windsor Horse Show

20 May—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend the Chelsea Flower Show

21 May—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will open the new Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace

22 May—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend an Arts Reception at the Royal Academy, London

Scotland

23 May—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a Scottish Service of Thanksgiving at Glasgow Cathedral

24 May—Falkirk; Edinburgh (including a Reception in the Palace of Holyroodhouse)

25 May—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will open the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Edinburgh; the Queen will also host a Garden Party at the Palace of Holyroodhouse

26 May—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend the General Assembly Service, St. Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh

27 May—Isle of Skye; Isle of Lewis; Wick

28 May—Aberdeen (including a visit to the Scottish Parliament, sitting at King's College Conference Centre, Aberdeen University); Dundee

29 May—Lauder Melrose

Jubilee Weekend

1 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will host the Queen's Concert (Classical Concert) in the Gardens at Buckingham Palace

2 June—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a Jubilee Church Service, St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle

3 June—Windsor and Slough

3 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will host the Queen's Concert (Pop Concert) in the Gardens at Buckingham Palace, after which Her Majesty will light a National Beacon in the Mall and view a fireworks display

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4 June—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a National Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul's Cathedral, after a Ceremonial Procession from Buckingham Palace

4 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend a lunch hosted by the Lord Mayor and the Corporation of London at Guildhall in the City of London

4 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend the Golden Jubilee Festival in the Mall

4 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will make a Balcony Appearance at Buckingham Palace and watch a Royal Air Force Fly Past

6 June—North London, followed by a Garden Party at Lambeth Palace

South East of England (West Sussex)

7 June—South of England Show, Ardingly

10 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Reception for Representatives of Different Faiths at Buckingham Palace

Wales

11 June—Anglesey; Colwyn Bay

the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a Welsh Service of Thanksgiving at Bangor Cathedral

12 June—Dolau; Llanelli; Margam Park

13 June—Bridgend; Rhondda Valley; Newport; Cardiff (including a visit to the National Assembly for Wales)

15 June—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will take the Salute at Her Majesty's Birthday Parade, Horseguards

17 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend the Service of the Order of the Garter at St. George's Chapel, Windsor

17 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Dinner for European Sovereigns, Windsor Castle

18–22 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend Royal Ascot

25 June—West London

26 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Dinner for Representatives of the Armed Forces, Windsor Castle

27 June—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will visit the Armed Forces, Portsmouth and visit Portsmouth

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West Midlands (West Midlands, Staffordshire and Warwickshire)

2 July—Solihull; Birmingham

3 July—Burton upon Trent; Stoneleigh

4 July—South London

5 July—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will attend a Parade in the Gardens of Buckingham Palace for all Her Majesty's Body Guards and the In-Pensioners of the Royal Hospital Chelsea

9 July—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will present Medals to the winners of the Queen's Golden Jubilee Poetry Competition for Schools, at Buckingham Palace

9 July—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Garden Party in the Gardens of Buckingham Palace, when guests will include those born on Accession Day

Yorkshire (West Yorkshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire)

11 July—Leeds; Wakefield (the Duke of Edinburgh); Bradford (the Duke of Edinburgh); Harewood House (Festival)

12 July—Beverley

16 July—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Garden Party in the Gardens of Buckingham Palace, when guests will include young people born since the 1977 Silver Jubilee

East Anglia (Suffolk and Norfolk)

17 July—Ipswich; Stowmarket; Bury St. Edmund's

18 July—Great Yarmouth (the Duke of Edinburgh); Norwich

18 July—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Garden Party for Norfolk at Sandringham House

23 July—the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, will open the new Greater London Authority building

23 July—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend a Gala at Covent Garden

North West of England (Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and opening the Commonwealth Games in Manchester)

24 July—Macclesfield; Greater Manchester

25 July—Liverpool; open Commonwealth Games, Greater Manchester

26 July—Visit Commonwealth Games venues, Greater Manchester

30 July—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Garden Party in the Gardens of Buckingham Palace, when guests will include representatives of charities of which Her Majesty and His Royal Highness are Patron

East Midlands (Lincolnshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire)

31 July—Scunthorpe; Nottingham

1 August—Leicester; Derby

4 August—Close Commonwealth Games in Manchester

North West of England (Lancashire and Cumbria)

5 August—Preston; Carlisle

5 August—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will attend the Edinburgh Tattoo, Edinburgh Castle

7 August—the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will give a Garden Party at Balmoral Castle.

These details, together with further information about other confirmed Golden Jubilee celebrations and events can be found on the searchable calendar of events being launched today on the official Golden Jubilee website at http://www.goldenjubilee.gov.uk/. The British Monarchy website at http://www.royal/gov.uk/ also has details of the Queen's programme and other royal engagements. These will be updated throughout the year as confirmation of events is received.

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