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Jamaica

Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many additional staff are being posted to Kingston, Jamaica to deal with applications for visas to visit the UK from Jamaican nationals. [91341]

Mr. Rammell: Five additional staff members have been posted to Kingston.

Job Sharing

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the extent of job sharing in his Department. [90861]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: Over 20 staff are currently job sharing. All Foreign and Commonwealth Office jobs are, in principle, open to job share unless the nature of the work prevents this. To aid placement a register is held on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Intranet, containing details of staff looking to job share.

Job sharing is only one of a number of alternative and flexible working patterns in use at present. Other arrangements include staggered hours, flexi-time, home working, school working hours, term-time working and time off in lieu. We currently have 142 part timers—an increase of 35 per cent. since last year.

Organised Crime

Mr. Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to advance co-operation between the UK and Italy on combating organised crime. [91538]

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Mr. Mike O'Brien: In addition to regular and ongoing contacts with Italian partners the UK has appointed law enforcement liaison officers to our Embassy in Rome. These liaison officers work closely with the Italian law enforcement agencies and similar agencies in the region to disrupt and dismantle organised crime gangs involved in the illicit drugs trade, people trafficking and tobacco smuggling into the EU, particularly the UK.

Italy is leading on judicial reform in Afghanistan. The UK, which leads on counter narcotics, is working closely with them on updating Afghanistan's drug laws.

Sickness Absence

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many days were lost due to sickness absence in the Department in 2002. [90546]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The number of days per employee lost due to illness in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2002 and each of the five preceding years is as follows.

	Number of days per employee
2002	5.7
2001	6.6
2000	6.3
1999	N/A
1998	8.0
1997	8.9

Notes:

1. Figures for 1997 to 1998 have been uplifted to account for different recording practices in different parts of the Department and its overseas posts.

2. Figures for 1999 could be provided only at disproportionate costs, as the method of recording changed part way through 1999.

3. FCO figures are recorded as total days (not working days).

Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many working days have been lost due to illness in his Department in (a) 2002 and (b) each of the preceding five years. [90968]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow) today (UIN 90546).

UK Prisoners (Saudi Arabia)

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to Saudi Arabia concerning the seven United Kingdom citizens recently imprisoned on alcohol charges. [92055]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, and Ministerial colleagues have raised the cases of the British men detained in Saudi Arabia at the highest levels with the Saudi authorities. We remain deeply concerned about these cases. The men's welfare is our paramount concern. We continue to work tirelessly to resolve these cases. We are in close contact with the Saudi authorities and the men's lawyers. We also continue to make consular visits to the men.

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UN Resolutions

Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which UN resolutions relating to (a) Turkey, and (b) Israel remain to be enforced; and what action the Government have taken to ensure their enforcement. [91344]

Mr. Rammell: Several UN Security Council resolutions (for example 365 (1974) and 367 (1975)) have called for Turkey's withdrawal from Cyprus since the invasion in 1974. The Government support the ongoing, UN-led process to resolve the Cyprus problem.

Israel has not complied in full with UN Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), 1397 (2002), 1402 (2002) and 1435 (2002). But these resolutions also contain provisions calling on parties other than Israel to take certain action (for example agreeing a cease-fire, recognising Israel's sovereignty). We continue to support all efforts to resume the Middle East Peace Process, including through the work of the Quartet, of which the UN is a member.

UN Security Council

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions the UK has exercised its veto in the UN Security Council in each year since 1990; and on what issues. [91605]

Mr. Rammell: The UK has not exercised its veto in any of the years in question.

Women's Rights (Afghanistan)

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Afghanistan concerning women's rights in that country; [90906]

(2) what discussions he has had with the interim Government of Afghanistan concerning the abuse of women's rights in that country. [91119]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We are in regular contact with the Afghan Transitional Administration about a range of human rights-related issues, including the need to ensure full respect for women's rights. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary highlighted the importance of progress in these areas at the Petersberg Conference in December 2002, which was attended by President Karzai. I raised our concerns with the Afghan Foreign Minister Dr. Abdullah, Minister for Rural Reconstruction Hanif Atmar, and Chair of the Afghan Human Rights Commission Dr. Sima Samar when they visited the UK in October 2002.

The Afghan Minister for Women, Habiba Surabi, will visit the UK in February for talks with Ministers and officials on how to improve the situation for women in

Afghanistan.

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PRIME MINISTER

EU Reform

Keith Vaz: To ask the Prime Minister what measures he plans to take in relation to his proposals for European Union institutional reform, to strengthen the contacts between national parliaments of the EU. [91003]

The Prime Minister: The Government have made a range of proposals in the Convention on the Future of Europe to strengthen the role of national parliaments in the EU, including on considering EU legislative proposals for compliance with subsidiarity. Such an increased role should help to strengthen contacts between national parliaments of the EU.

Iraq

Harry Cohen: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his oral answer of 18 December 2002, Official Report, column 835, what rules he is applying in respect of the release of the names of UK companies named in Iraq's declaration to the United Nations as supplying arms or weapon-making technology or material to Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [91330]

The Prime Minister: Information provided to us by UNMOVIC is done so in confidence, for the UK authorities to take appropriate action.

The task of analysing the Iraqi declaration is continuing. It would be wrong to conclude without such further analysis that companies whose names appear may have acted wrongfully. The premature publication of the names of individuals or companies that may appear in the declaration could therefore unjustifiably damage the reputations of such individuals or companies. Any evidence of wrongdoing disclosed by the Iraqi declaration will be vigorously investigated by the relevant authority and, where appropriate, further announcements may be made.

Mr. Blunt: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his oral Answer of 15 January 2003, Official Report, column 680, to the hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt), what the evidential basis was for his statement that the decision to seek an injunction is one for the Attorney General rather than the Government. [91864]

The Prime Minister: The Attorney General has the power to apply to the courts for an injunction to prevent threatened criminal offences taking place. Under the common law, only the Attorney General can make such an application, because the courts have recognised that he represents the public interest before them. The power

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is exercised in his independent judgment in that role rather than as a member of the Government. This is the long-established position in relation to functions the Attorney General exercises in the public interest. In 1951 the then Attorney-General, Sir Hartley Shawcross, said:

"The responsibility for the eventual decision rests with the Attorney General, and he is not to be put, and is not put, under pressure by his colleagues in the matter. Nor, of course, can the Attorney General shift his responsibility for making the decision on to the shoulders of his colleagues. If political considerations which in the broad sense that I have indicated affect Government in the abstract arise it is the Attorney General, applying his judicial mind, who has to be the sole judge of those considerations". [Hansard, 29 January 1951, volume 483, column 683].

Although that was said in the context of prosecutions for criminal offences, it has been accepted by successive Governments ever since, that the same applies to the power to apply for an injunction.

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