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26 Feb 2003 : Column 590W—continued
Robert Mugabe
Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what representations Her Majesty's Government have made to the French Government and to President Chirac regarding Robert Mugabe's possible visit to a Franco-African summit in Paris; and if he will make a statement; [94905]
- (2) what the policy is of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the attendance by Robert Mugabe at a Franco-African summit in Paris to be held on 19 February 2003; and if he will make a statement. [94906]
Mr. Straw [holding answer 3 February 2003]: We did not want Robert Mugabe at the France/Africa summit in Paris on 20 to 21 February 2003. We made this clear to the French Government, at various levels as well as to other EU partners. The meeting took place two days after the EU sanctions on Zimbabwe were due to expire. Our priority then was to ensure a roll-over of those sanctions. The roll-over required a consensus among EU member states. This was achieved on 18 February 2003.
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Romania (People Trafficking)
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Romanian authorities regarding the trafficking of women. [98822]
Mr. MacShane: We talk regularly to the Romanians about the problem of organised crime, including the trafficking of women. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office, (Mr. Bob Ainsworth), visited Romania last week to sign a bilateral Readmission Agreement, part of a wider programme of co-operation between the UK and Romania on tackling illegal immigration and people trafficking across Europe. He also discussed this issue with Ministers and officials at the Romanian Ministry of the Interior.
Surjit Kaur Athwal
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what representations the British Government have made to the Indian Government in the case of Surjit Kaur Athwal; [98457]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the delay between the disappearance of Surjit Kaur Athwal and the first representations by the UK Government to the Indian Government on her case. [98459]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Our Consular Division in London were informed of Mrs. Athwal's disappearance on 22 December 1998. The next day, our High Commission in New Delhi made inquiries with the Indian police and immigration authorities. The Indian authorities confirmed, on 22 January 1999, that, according to their records, Mrs. Athwal was still in India. Since February 1999, we have liaised regularly with the UK police and the Punjabi police to facilitate the investigation into Mrs. Athwal's disappearance. On 15 March 1999 our Consul in Delhi met the Director for Consular Matters in the Indian Ministry of External Affairs to discuss the case. We have raised the case with the Indian authorities on a number of occasions since then, most recently on 13 January 2003, when we sent an official note to the Ministry of External Affairs asking for Mrs. Athwal's case to be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation. We remain in regular contact with the Indian authorities and will continue to offer Mrs. Athwal's family all the consular assistance that we properly can.
UK Citizens (Disappearance Overseas)
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many cases dealt with by his Department of UK citizens who have disappeared abroad since 1997 were (a) white UK citizens and (b) non-white UK citizens. [98454]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: We do not compile these consular statistics on the basis of ethnicity.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the standard procedure followed by his Department is in dealing with cases of UK citizens who have (a) disappeared and (b) been murdered abroad. [98455]
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: Enquirers concerned about the whereabouts of British Nationals abroad are advised to contact the police in the country concerned, and also to report the missing person to their local UK Police. Consular staff in the UK and overseas keep relatives informed of progress and liaise with local authorities, including to consider institution of a search. When a British National is murdered overseas we would normally liaise with the UK police who would inform the next of kin and appoint a Family Liaison Officer. In the country concerned, we can act as liaison between local authorities and the deceased's relatives, friends and/or legal representatives. Any investigation would be conducted by the local authorities.
United Nations
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his estimate is of the UK's total net financial contribution to the United Nations in each of the last 15 years; and if he will make a statement. [98499]
Mr. Rammell: The UK is fully supportive of the UN and the work it does, and we recognise the need for the organisation to have adequate funding to perform its role. Accordingly, we choose to supplement our annual assessed contributions to the UN regular and peacekeeping budgets and its Specialised Agencies by a significant number of voluntary contributions targeted at a range of UN activities.
The UK has contributed the following amounts to the United Nations in each calendar year since 1992.
| Year | £ |
|---|---|
| 1992 | 291,770,697 |
| 1993 | 312,116,430 |
| 1994 | 304,969,947 |
| 1995 | 328,855,981 |
| 1996 | 304,577,521 |
| 1997 | 309,260,413 |
| 1998 | 330,058,906 |
| 1999 | 324,407,457 |
| 2000 | 32,500,000 |
| 2001 | 427,458,550 |
These figures represent both assessed and voluntary contributions, except for 2000, which only represents our assessed contributions to the UN Regular Budget: total figures were not collated for that year.
These figures are taken from the FCO Annual Report, which collates the data on contributions to the UN from all Government Departments. We do not have collated figures prior to 1992, and to obtain them would incur disproportionate cost.
Work Placements
Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many university students his Department and associated agencies has supported or sponsored with a work placement in the last year; what his policy is on work placements; what plans he has to develop such schemes; and what his policy is on paying their university fees. [98545]
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Foreign and Commonwealth currently employs three students for 12 months, as part of their four-year economics degree sandwich course. This gives them the opportunity to work for one year in the Economic Policy or European Union Department. We support work placements as part of our policy to encourage more students to apply for economist jobs. We also have two unpaid work experience schemes for school pupils and undergraduates. 21 pupils and 40 undergraduates had unpaid work placements in 2002. We do not pay any university fees.
Zimbabwe
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what powers the EU ambassadors meeting has to extend sanctions against Zimbabwe on behalf of the EU. [94729]
Mr. Rammell: Common positions, including the targeted measures against the ZANU-PF regime, have to be agreed by the Council of Ministers, prepared by the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper). When consensus is reached at Coreper, the decision is formally passed to the Council, but not discussed there.
In the Zimbabwe case, Coreper reached consensus for a 12-month continuation of sanctions on 14 February 2003, and the Council formally agreed this on 18 February 2003, from which date the sanctions rolled over. The UK had argued strongly for such a result, and therefore welcomed it.
CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
English National Opera
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Arts Council about the future of English National Opera. [98373]
Dr. Howells: My right hon Friend the Secretary of State and my right hon and Noble Friend the Minister of State for the Arts hold regular meetings with the Arts Council of England where they discuss all issues relating to bodies funded by the Arts Council of which, the English National Opera is one.
IT Contracts
Mr. Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list IT contracts in her Department and its predecessors above £50 million in each of the last 10 years; what the inception date for each system was; when it became fully functional; when it became fully debugged; and what the cost of over-runs has been. [98996]
Dr. Howells: My Department has had no IT contracts of £50 million or above in the last 10 years.
Lee Valley Authority
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received from local authorities regarding the funding of
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the Lee Valley Authority; what recent discussions she has had with the authority; and if she will make a statement. [98207]
Mr. Caborn: This Department has received no representations from local authorities regarding the funding of the Lee Valley Authority and has held no recent discussions with the Authority.
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