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Children (Court Proceedings)

Ian Lucas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) under what statutory powers a court can prevent publication of the identity of children concerned in court proceedings by e-mail; [32162]

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(2) if he will introduce proposals to improve the protection of the identities of children concerned in court proceedings, with particular reference to electronic communications; [32164]

(3) under what statutory powers a court can prevent publication of the identity of children concerned in court proceedings in messages on an electronic bulletin board system; [32163]

(4) under what powers courts can prevent publication of the identity of children concerned in court proceedings in messages on a web page. [32224]

Beverley Hughes: I have been asked to reply.

Sections 39 and 49 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 restrict publication of the identity of under-18s involved in criminal court proceedings. They apply to print and broadcast media: we do not believe they cover electronic communications.

We are due to implement further restrictions in the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999. We believe they will cover electronic communications which can be shown to be addressed to the public or a section of the public.

Coroners

Harry Cohen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many coroners there are; and how many are women. [34895]

Beverley Hughes: I have been asked to reply.

There are 124 coroners in England and Wales, including 11 women.

Correspondence

Mr. George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what guidance his office has provided to Government Departments on dealing with hon. Members' correspondence. [33286]

Mr. Leslie: I have been asked to reply.

In July 2000, my Department published "Handling Correspondence from Members of Parliament: Guidance for Departments", which set out the general principles which Departments should follow when replying to correspondence from hon. Members. In 2001, my Department also published "Handling Correspondence from Members of Parliament: Good Practice Guidance" to promote the sharing of good practice between Departments and agencies and to help raise standards.

Copies of both publications are available in the Library of the House.

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FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Theft and Fraud

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what additional security measures are planned by his Department to deter and detect theft and fraud. [31795]

Mr. MacShane: The FCO's fraud investigation team carry out a programme of visits to overseas posts and Departments in the UK to detect, deter and investigate fraud and financial malpractice. They also train staff in fraud awareness and issue anti-fraud guidance. Our internal auditors also follow a demanding schedule of audits both overseas and in the UK.

The FCO have also introduced new schemes for beating fraud including "whistleblowing" guidance, additional self-audit packages and fraud/malpractice hotline details in pay-slips.

Departmental Secondments

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff in his Department have been seconded to jobs in the (a) private and (b) public sector in each of the last four years. [31775]

Mr. Bradshaw: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office gave him on 7 February 2002, Official Report, column 1130W.

Gibraltar

Mr. George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the significance of Gibraltar as a UK trading partner. [32020]

Peter Hain: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to him on 6 February 2002, Official Report, column 953W.

Liberia

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Liberia, with specific regard to human rights abuses. [34427]

Mr. MacShane: We are very concerned by the worsening conflict between Government forces and the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy dissidents, the resultant humanitarian crisis and the serious human rights situation. We are working hard to resolve instability in the Mano River sub-region and promote greater respect for human rights. We have called on the Presidents of Guinea and Liberia to stop supporting rebel groups which are destabilising each other's countries.

We are concerned at reports of Liberian forces committing serious human rights abuses against civilians, in particular, internally displaced persons. There is an increasing flow of refugees into Sierra Leone. The EU opened Article 96 talks with Liberia in November 2001, demanding greater respect for human rights before resuming EU development funding. The UK and EU have called for legal investigations to be launched into all

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human rights abuses, more human rights training for security personnel and the creation of an independent human rights commission.

We are continuing to provide humanitarian assistance to Liberia. Over the past 18 months we have contributed £1 million to the Consolidated Appeal for West Africa, some of which is allocated to Liberia. All of this assistance is channelled through NGOs, not the Government of Liberia.

HIV/AIDS

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what provision he is making to respond to the forthcoming request from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights for a report on the UK's implementation of the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights. [34133]

Peter Hain: The HIV/AIDS pandemic is one of the most serious threats to health in modern times. Globally, over 40 million people live with HIV/AIDS. Tackling this crisis, both in the United Kingdom and overseas, is a major priority for this Government.

The Government fully support the UN's efforts to highlight the importance of the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights. We stand ready to contribute to the planned 2003 report to the UN Commission on Human Rights on implementation of the guidelines, once a request has been received.

FCO Telecommunications Network

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in how many embassies the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Telecommunications Network hardware has been installed in each of the last six months; in how many he expects it to be installed in the next six months; and if he will make a statement. [34623]

Mr. MacShane: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Telecommunications Network (FTN) provides two main services for our diplomatic missions overseas. One is connection to a telecommunications network; the second is the provision of a telephone system (PBX). Provision of these services entails installation of hardware at our missions. In each of the last six months FTN hardware has been installed as shown.

Month	Telephone systems	Network connections	Total installations
August 2001	5	4	9
September 2001	5	12	17
October 2001	9	8	17
November 2001	8	5	13
December 2001	7	17	24
January 2002	7	9	16
Total	41	55	96

Work planned for the next six months should see FTN hardware installed as shown.

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Month	Telephone systems	Network connections	Total installations
February 2002	7	13	20
March 2002	7	18	25
April 2002	4	18	22
May 2002	10	20	30
June 2002	9	11	20
July 2002	4	10	14
Total	41	90	131

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place the contract for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Telecommunications Network in the Library; and if he will make a statement [34622]

Mr. MacShane: Under exemption 13 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information we are unable to deposit the document.

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the date upon which the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Telecommunications Network will be fully operational; and if he will make a statement. [34621]

Mr. MacShane: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Telecommunications Network (FTN) provides two main services for our diplomatic missions overseas. One is connection to a telecommunications network; the second is the provision of a telephone system (PBX). These services are being provided under a 10-year PFI contract, signed in May 2000, at which time it was envisaged that the network would cover 136 missions by May 2002. The scope of the network has now increased to cover 210 missions, with work due for completion before the end of 2002. It will be 2004 before the target for PBX replacement is reached. In the interim period, reliable telephone connectivity between our missions and UK offices will be achieved by using a mix of new and legacy PBXs.

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