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No-fly Zones
Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the no fly-zones in preventing Saddam Hussein from repressing the Iraqi people. [50972]
Rachel Squire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the continuing need for the no-fly zones over Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [50939]
Mr. Bradshaw: The no-fly zones were established in support of UNSCR 688. This called on Iraq to end its brutal repression of Kurds and other minority groups in the north and of the Shia community in the south. The
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no-fly zones were set up in response to a grave humanitarian crisis and they prevent Saddam Hussein from once again using his air power against the civilian population in those areas.
Terrorism
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take steps to ensure greater consistency in the Government's treatment of terrorism in regard to (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Afghanistan, (c) Iraq and (d) Israel; and if he will make a statement. [49824]
Mr. Bradshaw: Government policy towards terrorism is entirely consistent. We condemn all acts of terrorism wherever they occur.
Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the US Administration regarding military action against terrorism in the Middle East. [50967]
Mr. Bradshaw: We regularly discuss all aspects of the campaign against terrorism with the US administration. The Prime Minister spoke to President Bush about this when they met earlier this month.
Weapons of Mass Destruction
Mr. Savidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will publish the Green Paper on strengthening the Biological and Toxic Weapons Convention and countering the threat from biological weapons. [53246]
Mr. Straw: I am today publishing the Green Paper. Copies will be placed in the Library and it can also be accessed on the FCO website at www.fco.gov.uk.
The Green Paper sets out the work that has been undertaken over many years to develop measures to make the 1972 Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention more effective. The Foreign Affairs Committee, and Parliament in general, have supported these efforts, for which the Government are grateful.
The paper expresses our disappointment at the failure of the States Parties to agree on the text of a Protocol to the Convention last year, despite all our efforts. It also explains why, despite this disappointment, it is still essential that efforts continue to find ways in which the convention can be strengthened and to counter the threat from biological weapons.
The Green Paper identifies possible measures that States Parties might now consider to strengthen the convention. It discusses UK priorities and the next steps ahead of the reconvened BTWC Fifth Review Conference, in Geneva, on 11 November. It also invites comments on these proposals and seeks views from hon. Members, NGOs and other organisations and individuals with an interest in this subject.
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TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Staff
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will set out for each civil service grade within her (a) Department and (b) Department's executive agencies the (i) total number of staff employed, (ii) number aged (A) 16 to 25, (B) 26 to 35, (C) 36 to 45, (D) 46 to 60 and (E) over the age of 60 years, (iii) number of registered disabled and (iv) number of ethnic minorities. [39176]
Ms Hewitt: I am placing the details requested for staff within DTI headquarters and the Department's executive agencies (Radiocommunications Agency, Insolvency Service, National Weights and Measures Laboratory, Employment Tribunal Service, Small Business Service, Patent Office and British Trade International) in the Libraries of the House.
I have asked the chief executive of Companies House which do not use our database to write with similar information.
Letter from John Holden to Mr. Paul Burstow:
- In response to your PQ2001/3055 on numbers employed by age range, the following are the figures for Companies House.
- (i) Total employed: 1,186
- (ii)
- A. Age 16–25: 192
- B. Age 26–35: 265
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- C. Age 36–45: 411
- D. Age 46–60: 284
- E. Over 60: 34
- (iii) Registered disabled: 48
- (iv) Ethnic minorities: 46
Sizewell B Inquiry
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the cost of the Sizewell B Inquiry was. [48028]
Mr. Wilson: The costs of the public inquiry completed in 1985 and attributed to the then Department of Energy, or recoverable from the Central Electricity Generating Board, totalled some £2.5 million. However the full costs of the inquiry would be several times that amount and would include the costs of CEGB applying for consent for the power station and the costs of other parties that participated in the inquiry. As the information is not held centrally within my Department, and the length of time since the inquiry, an estimate of the full costs cannot now be obtained without disproportionate costs.
Non-departmental Public Bodies
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what have been the total salary costs of each of the non-departmental public bodies for which she is responsible in each of the last five years. [50303]
Ms Hewitt: Following is the information requested:
| 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service | 16,170 | 17,156 | 18,627 | 21,442 | 24,819 |
| Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council | 82,800 | 85,600 | 82,100 | 84,600 | 86,700 |
| Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils | 45,700 | 47,900 | 48,400 | 49,900 | 53,100 |
| Economic and Social Research Council | 2,100 | 2,300 | 2,200 | 2,200 | 2,500 |
| Engineering and Physical Science Research Council | 7,100 | 7,100 | 7,000 | 7,300 | 7,900 |
| Medical Research Council | 76,000 | 78,000 | 82,000 | 87,000 | 92,000 |
| Natural Environment Research Council | 76,300 | 79,300 | 78,300 | 77,600 | 80,200 |
| Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council | 12,300 | 10,900 | 8,300 | 8,600 | 9,500 |
| Advantage West Midland | — | — | 4,058 | 5,493 | 6,714 |
| East of England Development Agency(18) | — | — | 2,284 | 3,289 | 4,028 |
| East Midlands Development Agency(18) | — | — | 3,771 | 4,284 | 4,814 |
| North West Development Agency(18) | — | — | 6,317 | 7,742 | 8,538 |
| One North East(18) | — | — | 6,273 | 7,135 | 7,344 |
| South East England Development Agency(18) | — | — | 3,438 | 4,680 | 5,649 |
| South West of England Development Agency(18) | — | — | 4,737 | 5,637 | 6,337 |
| Yorkshire Forward(18) | — | — | 5,645 | 6,278 | 7,708 |
| Coal Authority | 2,544 | 2,535 | 2,693 | 2,811 | 3,098 |
| Competition Commission | 3,837 | 3,767 | 4,302 | 5,032 | 5,355 |
| Consumer Council for Postal Services (Postwatch)(19) | — | — | — | — | 1,744 |
| Design Council | 1,333 | 1,324 | 1,601 | 1,856 | 1,978 |
| Gas and Electricity Consumer Council (Energywatch)(20) | — | — | — | — | 5,800 |
| United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority | 62,800 | 66,100 | 73,000 | 76,300 | 84,600 |
(18) The Regional Development Agencies were established in 1999
(19) The Consumer Council for Postal Services was established on 1 January 2001
(20) The Gas and Electricity Consumer Council was established on 1 November 2000
Notes:
1. The figures include ERNIC and superannuation costs
2. The 2001–02 figures are provisional
The information in respect of the National Consumer Council and SITPRO Ltd. can be found in their respective annual reports. Copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.
Voluntary Sector
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South-West Bedfordshire (Andrew Selous) of
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25 January 2002, Official Report, columns 1183–85W, on Government funding of the voluntary sector, if she will list the grant schemes and other mechanisms by which her Department distributes funding to voluntary sector organisations. [51410]
Ms Hewitt [holding answer 19 April 2002]: Information on my Department's funding sources and initiatives can be found in table C1 and in the text of my Department's 2001 expenditure plans report (Cm 5112), a copy of which is in the Libraries of the House.
Many of my Department's programmes are not sector specific and providing further information on take-up of these programmes by the voluntary sector would entail disproportionate cost. However, my Department directly funded the following voluntary organisations in 2000–01:
| Organisation | Funding |
|---|---|
| National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux (£ million) | 16.9 |
| Citizens Advice, Scotland (£ million) | 2.225 |
| Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (£) | 180,000 |
| Child Accident Prevention Trust (£) | 25,000 |
| Business Volunteer Mentoring Association (£ million) | 1 |
| Other (£) | 25,015 |
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