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Asia

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what UK diplomatic representation there is in the five central Asian republics; what plans are in hand to improve this representation; and if he will make a statement. [62325]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Government have embassies in four of the five central Asian countries. We opened an embassy in Dushanbe in December 2001 and a drugs liaison officer will be posted there shortly. We also plan to open an embassy in Bishkek in 2003, and a diplomat will be posted to Bishkek to supervise the setting up of the mission. The embassy in Tashkent has been reinforced with a defence attache. We have recently reinforced the embassy in Ashgabat with a drugs liaison officer, and a regional defence attache has been posted to Almaty. These additional resources reflect the importance HMG attaches to relations with the five central Asian republics.

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to visit the five central Asian republics; and if he will make a statement. [62324]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary had planned a tour of the region in November 2001, but had to postpone his visit owing to essential operational requirements. The Foreign Secretary hopes to visit the region in due course.

Richard Ward

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) for what reason the Government have not petitioned for conditional bail in the case of Richard Ward; [62952]

(2) when he expects legal proceedings against Richard Ward in Dubai to be completed; [62949]

(3) on how many occasions since his arrest consular officials in Abu Dhabi and Dubai have visited Richard Ward; [62950]

(4) what representations his Department has made to the Government of Dubai about the length of time that Richard Ward has been held in custody without the completion of legal proceedings against him; [62955]

(5) when his Department will release Richard Ward's file to his representatives in the UK; [62956]

(6) if he will make a statement on the legal position of Richard Ward in Dubai; and if he remains liable for retransfer from prison in Dubai to Abu Dhabi; [62951]

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(7) for what reason his Department informed Dr. Paul Meconi that Richard Ward's case had been attached to another case and did not give him access to the file of Mr. Ward's case on 13 June; [62953]

(8) what steps his Department has taken to secure full legal representation for Richard Ward. [62954]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: As agreed with the hon. Member, a detailed letter addressing his concerns will be sent to him, and be made available in the Commons Library, by 27 June 2002.

Surjit Kaur Athwal

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the support provided to the family of Surjit Kaur Athwal in the search for her as a missing person in India. [62616]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We continue to offer Surjit Athwal's family consular assistance. The family of Mrs. Athwal met with Baroness Scotland, then Foreign Office Minister responsible for consular matters, on 5 February 2001 to discuss the case. We have expressed our concerns about Mrs. Athwal's disappearance to the Indian authorities on numerous occasions and at high level. Sadly, even with the help of a British police team the Indian authorities' investigation has yet to reach a satisfactory conclusion.

We will continue to remind the authorities about this case at every appropriate opportunity.

EU Enlargement

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consideration is given to resolutions from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in shaping Government policy on enlargement of the EU. [62691]

Peter Hain: The key consideration for EU accession is the fulfilment of the Copenhagen political and economic criteria, and the adoption of requisite EU legislation (acquis communautaires). In assessing candidates' readiness for accession, HMG takes into account the candidates' alignment with the acquis and the Copenhagen criteria as well as other relevant sources of information. Some of the Copenhagen criteria cover similar ground to key COE principles: human rights, rule of law and pluralist democracy. All Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) resolutions are brought to the attention of the Governments of all the Council of Europe member states. The resolutions play an important role in ensuring COE member states meet core COE Standards.

Nepal

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Nepal concerning the

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Maoist rebellion; what advice his Department has offered; if he has offered to mediate between the two sides; and if he will make a statement. [62891]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We are very concerned about the situation in Nepal. This brutal insurgency by the Maoists is undermining Nepal's young democracy and fragile economy.

During his visit to the United Kingdom last month, the Nepalese Prime Minister held meetings with my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for International Development and my predecessor my hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr. Bradshaw), at which these matters were discussed. We reassured the Nepalese Prime Minister of our full support, while making clear the need for effective action by them on reform and development. We reiterated our commitment to continuing our developmental, political and military assistance to Nepal.

We are hosting an international conference in London on 19/20 June with the Nepalese Government and representatives from other countries who share our concerns, to discuss how the international community can best co-ordinate its efforts in supporting the people of Nepal.

We would support the resumption of peaceful negotiations between the two parties and are prepared to lend assistance should the opportunity arise.

Pakistan

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what purpose money was allocated to Luton borough council by the European Union, which is now to be spent in Pakistan; and what criteria his Department will use to authorise the spending of this money in this way. [62892]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The EC-funded 'Asia Urbs' programme is available for local borough councils to spend on urban development projects in Asia. We understand that Luton borough council is currently considering bidding for £300,000 to spend in 2002–03 on a water treatment engineering project in Peshawar, Pakistan, and that it proposes to fund £50,000 of technical assistance from its own resources. If Luton borough council decides to proceed with its bid and is successful, it will be for the European Commission and Luton borough council to agree upon the detail of the project.

Correspondence

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reason he has not yet replied to the letter from the hon. Member for Yeovil dated 27 May, regarding visa arrangements for constituents in relation to travel from Pakistan; and if he will make a statement. [62670]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: My officials at UK visas wrote to the hon. Member for Yeovil on 11 June, within their published target of responding to correspondence from Members within 15 working days. I will ensure that a further copy of the letter is forwarded to him urgently.

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HOME DEPARTMENT

Land Sales

Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the land that his Department is (a) offering for sale and (b) plans to offer in the next 12 months, giving its (i) location and (ii) size. [59057]

Beverley Hughes: The Home Department is currently offering the following land for sale:

Ashwell, Oakham, Rutland—approximately 0.03 hectares


Bullwood Hall, Hockley, Essex—approximately 0.25 hectares


Guysmarsh, Shaftesbury, Dorset—approximately 1 hectare


Shepton Mallet, Somerset—approximately 2 hectares


Leyhill, Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire—approximately 6 hectares


Lincoln—approximately 0.10 hectares


Long Lartin, Evesham, Worcestershire—approximately 0.4 hectares


Erlestoke, Devizes, Wiltshire—approximately 0.6 hectares


Swinfen Hall, Lichfield, Staffordshire—approximately 40 hectares


Blundeston, Lowestoft, Suffolk—approximately 30 hectares.

The Department has plans to dispose of the following sites over the next 12 months:

Wandsworth, London SW18—approximately 1 hectare


Branston, Burton-on-Trent—approximately 30 hectares


Feltham, Middlesex—approximately 1.5 hectares


Northallerton, North Yorkshire—approximately 2.5 hectares


Onley, Willoughby, Warwickshire—approximately 40 hectares


Littlehey, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire—approximately 30 hectares


Gartree, Market Harborough, Leicestershire—approximately 2.5 hectares


Grendon, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire—approximately 0.4 hectares


Channings Wood, Newton Abbott, Devon—approximately 5 hectares.

The Department is currently offering for sale the following freehold properties which comprise both land and buildings:

8 Derby Street, Prescot, Merseyside


Carlisle Workshop, Stanley Way, off Botchergate, Cumbria


Coalpit Lane, Atherton, Greater Manchester—building floor area 449 sq metres


Kennedy Way, Yate, Gloucestershire—building floor area 226 sq metres


Winckley Square, Lancaster—building floor area 300 sq metres.

The Department plans to dispose of the following freehold land and buildings over the next 12 months:

Gringley on the Hill, Nottinghamshire—approximately 2.36 hectares


2a Blake Street, Bridgewater, Somerset—building floor area 820 sq metres


11a Church Street, Highbridge, Somerset—building floor area 155 sq metres


31–45 Lower Ashley Rd, St. Pauls, Bridewell, Somerset—building floor area 259 sq metres

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Devon House, 123 Whitehall Road, Easton, Somerset—building floor area 259 sq metres


1 Stanley Place, Chester, Cheshire—building floor area 650 sq metres


Lime House, Penrith, Wetheral, Cumbria


18 Brunswood Road, Matlock Bath, Derbyshire—building floor area 456 sq metres


2 Siddals Road, Derby, Derbyshire—building floor area 312 sq metres


Heather House, 11 and 14 Gibbon Lane, Plymouth, Devon—building floor area 1,140 sq metres


3 Kings Avenue, St. Austell, Bodmin, Cornwall—building floor area 331 sq metres


57–59 Commercial Road, Parkstone, Poole, Dorset—building floor area 525 sq metres


23 Grays Inn Road, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion—building floor area 227 sq metres


Francis Thompson Drive, Ashton-Under-Lyne, Greater Manchester—building floor area 412 sq metres


12 Minshull Street, Manchester—building floor area 1,334 sq metres


19–20 Gold Tops, Newport, Gwent—building floor area 606 sq metres


76 Oswald Road, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire—building floor area 230 sq metres


12–14 Raymond Street, Thetford, Norfolk—building floor area 286 sq metres


Warwick Street, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear—building floor area 726 sq metres


11 Appleton, Newark, Nottingham—building floor area 262 sq metres


46 Nottingham Road, Mansfield, Nottingham—building floor area 491 sq metres


11 Newcastle Street and Watson Road, Nottingham—building floor area 172 sq metres


10–12 Salisbury Street, Shotton, Flintshire—building floor area 221 sq metres


Abeerhondda Road, Rhonda, Cynon Taff, South Wales—building floor area 756 sq metres


1–3 Ock Street, Abingdon, Oxfordshire—building floor area 370 sq metres


Langholme, 50 Albert Road North, Malvern, Worcestershire—building floor area 523 sq metres


Abbeydale House, Abbey Forgate, Shrewsbury, Shropshire—building floor area 469 sq metres


16 Church Square, Oldbury, West Bromwich, West Midlands—building floor area 284 sq metres


High Street, West Bromwich, West Midlands—building floor area 250 sq metres


1–2 Commercial Road, Swindon, Wiltshire—building floor area 593 sq metres


15 Milton Road, Swindon, Wiltshire—building floor area 570 sq metres.

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