House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 11 Apr 2003 (pt 7)

11 Apr 2003 : Column 437W—continued

DynCorp Aerospace Ltd.

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will make a statement on the storage of landmines in the Gulf region by DynCorp Aerospace Ltd.; [107172]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is not aware that any investigation has been launched into the activities of DynCorp Aerospace Ltd. or that any of its employees have been prosecuted for breaches of the 1998 Landmines Act. The Department has not come into the possession of any relevant evidence, though naturally, if it were to do so, it would pass this to the police for investigation.

Moldova

Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what efforts the Goverment are making to combat the trafficking in women from Moldova to the EU; and if he will make a statement. [108125]

Mr. MacShane [holding answer 10 April 2003]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister of State at the Home Office (Beverley Hughes) gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Andrew MacKinley) on 5 March 2003, Official Report, column 1086W.

Trafficking of women is one of the key areas which Reflex, the multi-agency response to organised immigration crime, seeks to address. Reflex targets organised criminal groups, who have in the past been involved with the trafficking of Moldovan women. However, trafficking is a key problem for Moldova that cannot be solved by one Government working alone. The London conference on Organised Crime in South

11 Apr 2003 : Column 438W

Eastern Europe, which my right hon. Friends the Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary co-hosted on 25 November 2002, and which Moldova attended, identified illegal immigration and human trafficking as key priorities for the international community to tackle. The UK is actively working with international partners, particularly the EU, but also the OSCE and loM for example, to ensure commitments made at the conference are fully implemented. The UK's own programmes, such as Reflex, will continue to form an integral element of these international efforts.

North Korea

Mr. Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his European counterparts on North Korea. [107692]

Mr. Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has had regular discussions with EU partners about North Korea's nuclear programmes, including at the General Affairs and External Relations Council, since the issue arose in October last year. The EU has clearly stated its willingness to contribute to a durable and lasting settlement for peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Turks and Caicos

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports his Department has received from the government of the Turks and Caicos regarding the presence of Tontons Macoutes among Haitian refugees to the Turks and Caicos. [107997]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) Government authorities have no evidence of any presence of Tontons Macoutes among the immigrant community from Haiti.

War Crimes Tribunal

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to establish judicial tribunals to consider whether war crimes have been committed by (a) regular and (b) irregular fighters in Iraq. [107522]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We will investigate any allegation of war crimes against UK forces in the present conflict. If we find evidence to justify prosecution, we will seek to bring those responsible to justice. As regards allegations of war crimes committed by members of the Saddam regime prior to this conflict, the Government is assessing, in conjunction with coalition partners, how these can best be investigated and those responsible brought to justice.

HEALTH

Cannabis

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the percentage of boys aged 14 and 15 years using cannabis in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [108061]

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Ms Blears: Since 1982, the Department of Health has commissioned a series of national surveys of secondary school children in England. The information available is shown in the tables.

Percentage of pupils who have used cannabis in the last year: EnglandBoys

All aged 11–15 Age 14 Age 15

1998 11 15 28

1999 11 15 29

2000 13 18 30

2001⁽¹⁾ 14 19 32

2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾ 14 ⁽³⁾n/a ⁽³⁾n/a

Girls

All aged 11–15 Age 14 Age 15

1998 9 13 24

1999 10 14 25

2000 11 16 25

2001⁽¹⁾ 12 19 30

2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾ 12 ⁽³⁾n/a ⁽³⁾n/a

Boys and Girls

All aged 11–15 Age 14 Age 15

1998 10 14 26

1999 11 15 28

2000 12 17 28

2001⁽¹⁾ 13 19 31

2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾ 13 20 31

	All aged 11–15	Age 14	Age 15
1998	11	15	28
1999	11	15	29
2000	13	18	30
2001⁽¹⁾	14	19	32
2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾	14	⁽³⁾n/a	⁽³⁾n/a

	All aged 11–15	Age 14	Age 15
1998	9	13	24
1999	10	14	25
2000	11	16	25
2001⁽¹⁾	12	19	30
2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾	12	⁽³⁾n/a	⁽³⁾n/a

	All aged 11–15	Age 14	Age 15
1998	10	14	26
1999	11	15	28
2000	12	17	28
2001⁽¹⁾	13	19	31
2002⁽¹⁾^,⁽²⁾	13	20	31

⁽¹⁾ Estimates from 2001 onwards are not comparable with estimates from previous years because of the change in the way that drug use were measured.

⁽²⁾ 2002 estimates are preliminary results. Final estimates for 2002 are planned to be published in summer 2003.

⁽³⁾ The percentage of pupils who have used cannabis in 2002 are not yet available by age group for boys and girls separately.

Sources:

1. "Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2000"—(Department of Health) published by The Stationery Office

ISBN 0 11 322562 8 http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/englandsmoking.pdf.

2. "Drug use, smoking and drinking among young people in England in 2001"— (Department of Health) published by The Stationery Office

ISBN 0 11 322591 1 http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/sddsurvey01.pdf

3. The Department of Health Statistical Press Notice "Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2002: Provisional Results" http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/spnmar03-smoking.pdf

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Accident and Emergency Services

Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of patients waited over four hours in accident and emergency departments in acute care hospitals in Suffolk in each of the last four years. [108627]

Mr. Lammy: Information on the total time patients spend in accident and emergency from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge has been collected for publication by the Department of Health since July 2002. This information is now published quarterly. Figures for West Suffolk and Ipswich Hospitals are shown in the tables.

Total time spent in major A&E departments, NHS Trusts in England, 2002–03 October to December (Q3)

Year Quarter STHA OrgID Name Total attendances atmajor A&E Percentage of patientswho spent less thanfour hours in A&E

2002–03 3 — — England 2,882,500 78

2002–03 3 Q01 RGQ Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 13,357 80

2002–03 3 Q01 RGR West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust 8,945 81

Year	Quarter	STHA	OrgID	Name	Total attendances atmajor A&E	Percentage of patientswho spent less thanfour hours in A&E
2002–03	3	—	—	England	2,882,500	78

2002–03	3	Q01	RGQ	Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust	13,357	80
2002–03	3	Q01	RGR	West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust	8,945	81

Source:

Department of Health dataset QMAE

Status:

Published 12 March 2003

Total time spent in major A&E departments, NHS Trusts in England, 2002–03 July to September (Q2)

Year Quarter Dataset STHA OrgID Name Total attendances at major A&E Percentage of patients who spent less than four hours in A&E

2002–03 2 QMAE — — England 3,095,650 77

2002–03 2 QMAE Q01 RGQ Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 14,083 81

2002–03 2 QMAE Q01 RGR West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust 10,246 83

Year	Quarter	Dataset	STHA	OrgID	Name	Total attendances at major A&E	Percentage of patients who spent less than four hours in A&E
2002–03	2	QMAE	—	—	England	3,095,650	77

2002–03	2	QMAE	Q01	RGQ	Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust	14,083	81
2002–03	2	QMAE	Q01	RGR	West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust	10,246	83

Source:

Department of Health dataset QMAE

Status:

New dataset

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Administration Costs

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the total gross administration costs of his Department in each year from 2002–03 to 2005–06 (planned); and if he will make a statement. [103701]

Mr. Lammy: Estimated costs for the Department for 2002–03 are £351 million. Estimated costs for the years to 2005–06 will be included in the Departmental Report, to be published shortly, a copy of which will be placed in the Library.

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