| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
22 Oct 2002 : Column 195W—continued
Bushmeat Trade
Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what direct assistance is given to customs officers in (a) South American and (b) West African countries to prevent the illegal trade in bushmeat. [75925]
Clare Short: DFID is not giving direct assistance to customs officers in South America or West Africa to prevent the illegal trade in bushmeat. DEFRA and HMCE ensure that importation to the UK complies with CITES controls on endangered species. DEFRA is carrying out an awareness-raising campaign in these regions aimed at reducing the illegal trade of meat into the UK. My Department's primary role is to support poverty reduction, which we see as key to ensuring the sustainable management of natural resources, including wildlife, in poor countries.
Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many endangered wild animal species are classified as bushmeat. [75924]
Clare Short: There is no formal classification of which endangered species constitute bushmeat within the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. However, a recent review of commercially valuable bushmeat species in Africa (CITES Document 11.44) concluded that of forty-two primary species caught and traded, eight species are ''endangered'' (i.e. listed on CITES Appendix 1) and one species (elephant) has some ''endangered'' populations. The 8 ''endangered'' species are Leopard, Chimpanzee, Bonobo, Gorilla, Mandrill, Drill, Diana guenon/monkey and Jentink's duiker.
22 Oct 2002 : Column 196W
Famine (Africa)
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the impact that the spread of HIV/AIDS is having on the famine in Africa. [76102]
Clare Short: The HIV/AIDS epidemic poses a major threat to food security in Sub Saharan Africa, and has served to contribute to, and greatly exacerbate southern Africa's growing famine.
HIV/AIDS is hitting agricultural productivity hard. In just two decades AIDS has killed seven million farmers in Africa and in some countries, households and villages are losing from 10–50 per cent. of agricultural productivity due to the disease.
HIV/AIDS impacts on reduced food availability as workers become too ill to work the land, care for livestock and maintain essential machinery. At a family level food production has fallen by as much as 80 per cent. when the main producer is affected. This is especially true in areas such as Southern Africa, which uses labour-intensive farming methods.
Goals to eradicate hunger and poverty must therefore include plans to combat the spread and the impact of the HIV epidemic through multi-sectoral HIV/AIDS prevention and care interventions.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the Government intends to make additional resources available to support the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS in the light of its contribution to the current famine in Africa. [76099]
Clare Short: DFID's overall programme in Africa is set to increase from 640 million pounds sterling this year to one billion pounds sterling by 2006 and HIV/AIDS will remain one of our highest priorities in the region. We will be focusing efforts on mainstreaming our response to HIV/AIDS across sectors, such as agriculture, education, health etc, to ensure that the impact of HIV/AIDS is better addressed.
DFID spent over 55 million pounds in Africa on HIV/AIDS programmes and related health systems strengthening in the financial year 2000–2001. Reflecting our increased commitment to addressing HIV/AIDS, so far this year (2001–2002), we have committed an additional 180 million pounds to tackle HIV/AIDS in Africa. A further $200 million dollars (#140 million pounds approximately) has been pledged by the UK to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Ilois People
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what expenditure BIOT has undertaken on democratic representation of the Ilois people; and what is the current level of welfare spending. [74656]
22 Oct 2002 : Column 197W
Mike O'Brien: Although there has been no specific expenditure on welfare and democratic representation of the Chagossians (Ilois), the BIOT Government has funded the various stages of the recent feasibility study into the resettlement of the Chagos Archipelago, and had estimated #300,000 expenditure this year for the visit to the outer islands of the archipelago by the Chagossians in October 2002 which fell through due to the withdrawal of the vessel by the shipping company.
Indonesia
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) pursuant to his answer of 21 June 2002, Official Report, column 633W, on Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters, when the families of Brian Peters and Malcolm Rennie were informed of the report by HM Vice-Consul in Jakarta on the men's funeral service; [73422]
- (2) pursuant to his answer of 21 June, 2002, Official Report, column 633W, on Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters, whether information from interviews conducted by James Dunn in 1977 regarding the deaths of Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters has been passed to the families. [73421]
Mike O'Brien: Foreign Office consular files are handled differently to other FCO records. Because of the transient nature of consular cases, papers on them are usually only kept for 7 years. Unlike most other Foreign Office papers, they are not part of the public record, and so are then destroyed.
We therefore cannot confirm whether the information from the interviews conducted by James Dunn was passed to the families at the time. Nor are we able to confirm when the families were first informed of the report by the Vice Consul in Jakarta on the men's funeral service. Copies of the 1975 and 1976 political files on this subject hove now been passed to the families. The 1977 political files will be released under normal terms of the thirty year rule in 2008.
Platon Obukhov
Mr. David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in the case of Platon Obukhov, arrested in Russia in 1996 on charges of spying for Britain; what recent representations he has made for his release; and if he will make a statement. [74920]
Mike O'Brien: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has followed the case of Mr. Obukhov from a humanitarian point of view. Following his re-trial, on 17 May 2002 the Moscow City Court reaffirmed his conviction, but ruled that he could not be held criminally responsible for his actions, and that he should be sent to a psychiatric hospital for treatment.
Istanbul
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many telephone lines are dedicated to dealing with queries from the general public in the British Consulate-General in Istanbul. [75049]
22 Oct 2002 : Column 198W
Mike O'Brien: There are two telephone lines. One is dedicated to the visa section only and the other deals with visa enquiries as well as all other enquiries to the British Consulate General.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what checks are made on the response times of the Consultate-General in Istanbul to queries left through the visa inquiry line. [75048]
Mike O'Brien: The Visa Section managers monitor this regularly to ensure that all telephone calls are answered quickly and helpfully. In accordance with UKvisas best practice guidelines, and with the published Service Standards for Central Government and its agencies.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations his Department has received regarding poor response times from queries left with the Consultate-General in Istanbul through the visa inquiry line. [75051]
Mike O'Brien: I am advised that this Department has not received any representations recently regarding poor response times.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the average response time of the Consultate-General in Istanbul for messages left by members of the public through the visa inquiry line was in the most recent available year. [75050]
Mike O'Brien: All telephone enquiries are responded to in accordance with Best Practice guidelines. The facilities available do not enable the average response time to be measured.
Lebanon
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which nation's troops were stationed in the UN base in the Lebanon on the border with Israel near Mount Dov on 7 October 2000 near to the site of the kidnap of Benny Avraham, Adi Avitan and Umar Souad. [74875]
Mike O'Brien: An Indian battalion, assigned to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, was stationed there at that time.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |