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Work Force Statistics

Mr. Wray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the working population is in (a) part-time and (b) full-time jobs. [100479]

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Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. James Wray, dated 3 March 2003:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about part-time and full-time employment. (100479)

The estimates from the Labour Force Survey for the three month period ending December 2002 are 74.5 per cent of people in employment are employed full-time and 25.5 per cent are employed part-time. These estimates are seasonally adjusted.

Written Questions

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many named day written questions were tabled to the Department between 15 October 2002 and 24 February 2003; how many that received a holding answer were given a substantive answer (a) within three days, (b) within seven days, (c) within 14 days, (d) within 28 days and (e) over 28 days later; and what procedures the Department has in place to monitor performance on answering (i) Parliamentary Questions and (ii) ministerial letters. [99426]

John Healey: 273 of the 369 Named Day questions tabled to Treasury Ministers in the period concerned (74 per cent.) received replies on the nominated day for answering. Of the 96 remaining questions, 23 received replies within three days of the nominated day, 46 within a week, 19 within 28 days, and eight over 28 days.

Treasury Ministers attach a high importance to parliamentary questions on time. Performance is monitored continually by officials and reported regularly to Minister. Ministers also receive regular reports on correspondence: 78 per cent. of letters to Ministers are currently being answered within 15 working days, an increase from 44 per cent. in 1999.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Anti-personnel Mines

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has taken to promote the Convention on the prohibition of the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines. [99666]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has lead responsibility within government for humanitarian demining issues, including the Ottawa Convention. This involves playing a full role in the follow-up process to the Convention, including participation in the annual Meeting of States Parties, the most recent of which was held in September 2002. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has also recently assumed the chair of the Sponsorship Committee, a Geneva-based body responsible for determining levels of assistance to States Parties and aspirant countries which would otherwise be financially unable to attend, and has contributed £25,000 to the Committee's funds. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has also recently funded an exploratory visit to the Russian Federation by a UK ordnance expert in connection with

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the possible establishment of a trust fund for the destruction of stockpiled PFM anti-personnel landmines.

Balbir Singh Bonnis

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress of the application for a visa to return to the UK by Mr. Balbir Singh Bonnis; and on what grounds the processing of this visa application has been delayed. [98460]

Mr. Rammell: The case was referred to the Immigration and Nationality Directorate of the Home Office by the High Commission in New Delhi on 10 September 2002. The Home Office are considering the case and will make a decision shortly.

Biochemical Weapons

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 13 February 2003 to my hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham, South (Alan Simpson), Official Report, column 107W, what the biochemical weapons referred to by US Defence Secretary Rumsfeld on 5 February 2003 in his testimony before the House Armed Services Committee are. [99673]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: I understand US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, in his evidence on 5 February to the US House Armed Services Committee, was referring to non-lethal Riot Control Agents. He went on to acknowledge that the United States has undertaken not to use any such Agents as a method of warfare. This prohibition applies to all States Parties to the CWC. Riot Control Agents are defined under the CWC as any chemical not listed in a Schedule which can produce rapidly in humans sensory irritation or disabling physical effects which disappear within a short time following termination of exposure.

Broadcast Services (Funding)

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his estimate is of the net cost to his Department of (a) the London Radio Service and (b) the British Satellite News, in each year from 1996–97 to 2003–04 (planned); what the purpose is of these two services; and if he will make a statement. [99122]

Mr. MacShane [holding answer 26 February 2003]: LRS and BSN were established in order to promote Britain and HMG's policies overseas.

The net cost of London Radio Service (LRS) was as follows:

1 August 1997 to 31 July 1998: £1.400 million


1 August 1998 to 31 July 1999: £1.426 million


1 August 1999 to 31 July 2000: £1.458 million


1 August 2000 to 30 September 2001: £1.820 million


1 October 2001 to 30 September 2002: £1.573 million at which point the service was terminated.

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The net cost of British Satellite News is as follows:

1 October 1997 to 30 September 1998: £1.676 million


1 October 1998 to 30 September 1999: £1.703 million


1 October 1999 to 30 September 2000: £1.718 million


1 October 2000 to 30 September 2001: £2.182 million


1 October 2001 to 30 September 2002: £2.221 million


1 October 2002 to 30 September 2003: £1.25 million at which point BSN was streamlined from a global service to one that focused primarily on the Islamic and Arab world.

Planned BSN cost for 2003–04 is £1.25 million.

Catholic Priests

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations his Department has made to the Chinese Government regarding the imprisonment of Catholic priests. [99990]

Mr. Rammell: The cases of Catholic Bishops Su Zhimin, Jiang Shurang and Shi Enxiang were included on our list of individual cases of concern which was handed over to the Chinese authorities at the most recent UK/China Human Rights Dialogue in November 2002. We shall continue to press the Chinese for a full explanation of their arrest and their early release.

We raise freedom of religion in general with the Chinese, both in the context of the biannual UK/China Human Rights Dialogue and at other appropriate official and ministerial meetings.

Correspondence

Mr. Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 16 January from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. Mohammad Arshad. [99365]

Mr. Straw: I did reply to my right hon. Friend's letter of 16 January, on 30 January. I am sorry however that my right hon. Friend did not for some reason receive this reply. I forwarded him a copy of that letter on 26 February, in response to this question.

European Union

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department has achieved its Public Service Agreement target to ensure increasing public support for EU activities; and if he will make a statement. [98429]

Mr. MacShane: The FCO's Public Service Agreement for 2001–04, agreed under the 2000 Spending Review, sets out our aim to achieve 'Increased support for, and better understanding of, merits of EU membership'. We work towards achieving this objective through our EU Public Diplomacy strategy. Progress can be measured through Eurobarometer, the European Commission's regular survey of pan-European public opinion.

According to Eurobarometer, support for EU membership in the UK has increased recently. In the Eurobarometer spring 2000 survey, only 25 per cent. of those polled in the UK said that our EU membership was a 'good thing'. By the autumn of 2002, this figure had risen to 31 per cent. Eurobarometer showed that

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levels of perceived knowledge about the EU in the UK also rose between the spring 2000 and spring 2002 surveys.

Gibraltar

Mr. Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to promote agreement with the Government of Spain regarding (a) better access to Gibraltar and (b) improved communications for the Territory. [100557]

Mr. MacShane: The Government secured through the Brussels Process talks better access from Spain to Gibraltar through the opening in March 2002 of a second customs lane at the border. It remains our view that dialogue with Spain and Gibraltar is the only way to resolve such problems.

David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the responsibilities of the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission in respect of regulation of financial services in Gibraltar. [100560]

Mr. MacShane: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) on 17 December 2002, Official Report, column 761W.

David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the Government of Spain about (a) up-rating of the pension paid to Spanish pensioners who worked in Gibraltar prior to 1969, (b) payment of the household cost allowance to Spanish pensioners who worked in Gibraltar prior to 1969 and (c) reform of the household cost allowance scheme operating in Gibraltar. [100559]

Mr. MacShane: Her Majesty's Government have received a number of representations from the Government of Spain on these issues.

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