House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 18 Jun 2002 (pt 30)

MOX Shipments

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what communications Her Majesty's Government have received from the New Zealand Government in respect of the return shipment of substandard MOX plutonium fuel from Japan to BNFL Sellafield. [61966]

Mr. MacShane: No communications have been received from the New Zealand Government on this issue.

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations Her Majesty's Government have received from (a) other states and (b) non-governmental organisations in respect of the shipment of rejected MOX plutonium fuel from Japan back to Sellafield. [61972]

Mr. MacShane: Her Majesty's Government have received representations from Chile and the Republic of Mauritius, and from Greenpeace.

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Greece

Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which members of the Greek Government have visited the United Kingdom in the past two months in an official capacity; and what discussions the Government have had with visiting members of the Greek Government. [61991]

Peter Hain: The Greek Minister for Defence, Mr. Papantoniou, visited the UK on 8 and 9 May. He met my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence. They discussed a number of bilateral and multilateral issues. The Greek Deputy Minister for Transport, Dr. Spyros Vougias, visited the UK from 28 to 31 May, but his programme did not involve Ministers.

Mrs. Sonia Gandhi

Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his discussions with Mrs. Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi. [62191]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met Sonia Gandhi (leader of the Indian Congress Party in opposition) during his India visit on 29 May. They had a constructive and useful discussion focusing on the current high tensions between India and Pakistan.

Human Rights

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries the UK delegation to the Human Rights Commission in Geneva has (a) voted for and (b) voted against with regard to a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [62419]

Mr. MacShane: In accordance with her mandate established by the UN General Assembly, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, has a central role to play in ensuring that human rights are fully integrated in the work of the UN. Mrs. Robinson determines her own travel programme. Since she took office in 1997, she has visited a large number of countries in all regions of the world at the invitation of their Governments or other organisations (eg to attend a conference). It is rare for country resolutions at the Commission on Human Rights to include provision for a visit by the high commissioner. When that is the case, the UK voting position is determined by the merit of the resolution.

Self-government

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the status accorded by the United Nations to (a) Ceuta, (b) Melilla and (c) Gibraltar. [62361]

Mr. MacShane: For the purposes of Article 73 of the United Nations Charter, Gibraltar appears on the list of territories which have not yet attained a full measure of self-government. Ceuta and Melilla do not appear on this list, and have not been considered by the UN to be non-self-governing territories.

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General Affairs Council

Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the prospects for reform of the common agricultural policy in the light of the conclusions reached at the General Affairs Council at Luxembourg on 10 June. [61877]

Peter Hain [holding answer 17 June 2002]: The General Affairs Council on 10 June discussed the enlargement of the European Union. It did not reach any formal conclusions.

Along with Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden, the UK wants to put to one side the question of extending direct payments to the candidates for farming until later in the enlargement negotiations. Most European Union member states are content with this proposal.

Reform of the common agricultural policy was not on the agenda at the General Affairs Council. Her Majesty's Government consider that the Commission's on the mid-term review of the common agricultural policy, due in mid-July, should make a substantive contribution to the process of reform of the common agricultural policy. Our objectives for reform are well known and are shared with a growing number of EU member states. We believe that the reform of the common agricultural policy should take place in parallel with, but not be a pre-condition for, enlargement.

Visitors' Liaison Officers

Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visitors' liaison officers were dismissed from their posts in each year since 1990. [62784]

Mr. MacShane: As stated in my reply to the hon. Member on 26 March 2002, Official Report, column 815W, liaison officers are employed freelance, therefore the question of dismissal does not arise.

Iraq

Mr. Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what goods on the Military List have recently been approved for export to Iraq. [63320]

Mr. MacShane: Following consultation with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence, the Department for Trade and Industry recently approved two licences for the export to Iraq of protective de-mining vests, which appear on the Military List, for use by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) de-mining team in Iraq.

The UN Iraq Sanctions Committee approved this export to Iraq under the Oil for Food programme (OFF). Under OFF, Iraq is allowed to export unlimited quantities of oil to fund the purchase of humanitarian goods. The export is consistent with the consolidated EU and national arms export licensing criteria.

Mr. Wareing: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has collated on the prevention of medical supplies and medical journals from entering Iraq by the United Nations Sanctions Committee. [61598R]

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Mr. Mike O'Brien: Medical journals and medicines are not prevented from entering Iraq by the UN Sanctions Committee. Other medical supplies are only very rarely denied where there is real concern that they will be abused for military-related purposes.

European Youth Convention

Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who will represent the United Kingdom at the Youth Convention on the Future of Europe. [63321]

Peter Hain: The Youth Convention is an initiative proposed by Valery Giscard d'Estaing, President of the European Convention, to involve young people in the 'Future of Europe' debate. Representatives nominated by member states and accession countries, and the European Parliament, will hold a plenary session on 9–10 July, before reporting to the convention on 11–12 July.

The UK's delegation has six members. Three were selected by a national essay competition, for which there was over 80 entries, organised jointly by the Foreign and

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Commonwealth Office and The Independent: Claire McCarthy, Miles Kemp and Carina Dunkerly. Three others were appointed by the main UK political parties represented at the convention. They are Blair McDougall (Labour); Sam Dobbyn (Conservative); and Alison Goldsworthy (Liberal Democrat).

Special Advisers

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 10 June 2001, to the hon. Member for Chichester (Mr. Tyne), Official Report, column 816W, on special advisers, what the accommodation and subsistence costs were for each trip; if those costs are included in the figures in the answer; and what the (a) starting point, (b) means of transport, (c) destination, (d) overnight accommodation and (e) point of return were of his predecessor's special adviser's trip to Montenegro on 24/25 April 2001. [62628]

Mr. Straw: The Montenegro visit started and ended in London; Dr. Williams flew by RAF aircraft and was accommodated by British forces. The full breakdown for trips listed in my answer of 10 June is:

£

Destination Means of transport Cost of transport (£) Accommodation cost (£) Subsistence cost (£) Total (£)

Michael Williams

4–5 April 2001 Belgrade and Skopje RAF flight — 150.06 32.00 182.06

24–25 April 2001 Montenegro RAF flight — ⁽³⁴⁾— 6.37 6.37

30 August 2001 Macedonia (day trip) RAF flight — n/a n/a —

5–6 September 2001 Abuja RAF flight — 314.29 78.00 392.29

17–18 October 2001 Luxembourg and Turkey RAF flight — ⁽³⁵⁾— 33.74 33.74

9–14 November 2001 New York Flight 2,645.50 c.670.00 c.300.00 c.3,615.50

22–23 November 2001 Iran and Pakistan RAF flight — 115.58 19.52 135.00

21–23 January 2002 Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi Flight⁽³⁶⁾ — 197.90 99.06 296.96

26–28 February 2002 India Flight 3,352.81 c.50.00 22.36 3,425.17

Ed Owen

11 June 2001 Luxembourg (day trip) RAF flight — n/a 12.43 12.43

9 July 2001 Paris (day trip) RAF flight — n/a n/a —

11–12 July 2001 Washington Flight 4,346.80 151.82 129.90 4,628.52

17–18 July 2001 Brussels Eurostar 380.00 ⁽³⁷⁾— n/a 380.00

24–27 September 2001 Jordan, Iran, Israel, Palestinian Authority and Egypt RAF flight — 200.66 97.18 297.84

23–24 October 2001 Washington Flight 3,048.70 149.17 79.00 3,276.87

19–20 November 2001 Brussels and Barcelona RAF flight — 52.00 74.19 126.19

6–7 December 2001 Gibraltar Flight 852.40 ⁽³⁸⁾— 20.00 872.40

31 January to 2 February 2002 Washington Flight 4,095.90 307.14 132.32 4,537.36

12–16 February 2002 Turkey, Israel, Palestinian Authority and Afghanistan RAF and charter flights — 391.36 71.00 462.36

21 February 2002 The Hague (day trip) RAF flight — n/a n/a —

	Destination	Means of transport	Cost of transport (£)	Accommodation cost (£)	Subsistence cost (£)	Total (£)
Michael Williams
4–5 April 2001	Belgrade and Skopje	RAF flight	—	150.06	32.00	182.06
24–25 April 2001	Montenegro	RAF flight	—	⁽³⁴⁾—	6.37	6.37
30 August 2001	Macedonia (day trip)	RAF flight	—	n/a	n/a	—
5–6 September 2001	Abuja	RAF flight	—	314.29	78.00	392.29
17–18 October 2001	Luxembourg and Turkey	RAF flight	—	⁽³⁵⁾—	33.74	33.74
9–14 November 2001	New York	Flight	2,645.50	c.670.00	c.300.00	c.3,615.50
22–23 November 2001	Iran and Pakistan	RAF flight	—	115.58	19.52	135.00
21–23 January 2002	Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi	Flight⁽³⁶⁾	—	197.90	99.06	296.96
26–28 February 2002	India	Flight	3,352.81	c.50.00	22.36	3,425.17

Ed Owen
11 June 2001	Luxembourg (day trip)	RAF flight	—	n/a	12.43	12.43
9 July 2001	Paris (day trip)	RAF flight	—	n/a	n/a	—
11–12 July 2001	Washington	Flight	4,346.80	151.82	129.90	4,628.52
17–18 July 2001	Brussels	Eurostar	380.00	⁽³⁷⁾—	n/a	380.00
24–27 September 2001	Jordan, Iran, Israel, Palestinian Authority and Egypt	RAF flight	—	200.66	97.18	297.84
23–24 October 2001	Washington	Flight	3,048.70	149.17	79.00	3,276.87
19–20 November 2001	Brussels and Barcelona	RAF flight	—	52.00	74.19	126.19
6–7 December 2001	Gibraltar	Flight	852.40	⁽³⁸⁾—	20.00	872.40
31 January to 2 February 2002	Washington	Flight	4,095.90	307.14	132.32	4,537.36
12–16 February 2002	Turkey, Israel, Palestinian Authority and Afghanistan	RAF and charter flights	—	391.36	71.00	462.36
21 February 2002	The Hague (day trip)	RAF flight	—	n/a	n/a	—

⁽³⁴⁾ British Forces accommodation

⁽³⁵⁾ Ambassador's residence

⁽³⁶⁾ French Foreign Minister's official aircraft

⁽³⁷⁾ Counsellor, UK Representative

⁽³⁸⁾ Governor's residence

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