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NORTHERN IRELAND

Accountancy Services

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total cost to his Department was for accountancy services in 2002. [101564]

Mr. Paul Murphy: Within the Northern Ireland Office, including its Agencies but excluding NDPBs, the total cost for accountancy services in the financial year 2001–02 was £25,730.56.

Within the Northern Ireland administration, excluding Agencies and NDPBs, the total cost for accountancy services in 2002 was £833,344.

Administrative Costs

Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the administrative costs were of the Northern Ireland Office as a percentage of total spending since 1999. [103810]

Mr. Paul Murphy: Full details of the administrative costs and total annual expenditure for the Northern Ireland Office from 1999 were set out in the NIO 2002 Departmental Report, which is available in the Parliamentary Library. Copies of the relevant pages from the Report are as follows. The 2003 Departmental Report will be published in May.

The percentages of the administrative costs against the Resource Budget, using the figures from the 2003 report, are as follows (approximately):

	Percentage
1998–99	16.5
1999–2000	15.4
2000–01	15.9
2001–02	12.5
2002–03	18.8

Table 1.2: NIO Resource Budget£000

	1998–99	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02	2002- 03	2003–04
Consumption of resources by activity	Outturn	Outturn	Outturn	Estimated Outturn	Plans	Plans
Police	608	608	685	847	848	777
of which
Ongoing operational costs	608	608	656	733	691	752
Patten Report reforms and Civilianisation	0	0	4	18	11	11
Patten Report downsizing	0	0	25	97	146	14
Criminal Justice	32	31	28	36	46	78
Public Prosecution Service	11	11	12	13	10	10
Prisons	146	253	-2	110	108	112
Compensation Agency	109	73	77	73	94	66
Bloody Sunday Inquiry/Weston Park Inquiry	7	12	16	19	5	0
Other	17	55	43	58	67	57
Total Northern Ireland Resource Budget	929	1,043	859	1,157	1,179	1,101
of which
NIO departmental expenditure limit (DEL)	964	956	916	1,057	1,092	984
Non-cash items in AME	54	179	-60	52	51	66
of which
Depreciation	26	28	29	30	33	39
Cost of capital charges	28	28	29	29	35	40
Changes in provisions and other changes	0	123	-119	-6	-18	-13

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Table 1.4: NIO Administration£000

	1998–99	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02	2002- 03	2003–04
	Outturn	Outturn	Outturn	Estimated Outturn	Plans	Plans
Gross Administration Costs
Paybill	137	133	115	120	—	—
Other	23	37	30	39	—	—
Total Gross Administration Costs	160	171	146	159	152	154
Related Administration Cost Receipts	-7	-8	-8	-9	-7	-8
Total net administration costs	154	162	138	151	145	146
of which
Departmental expenditure limit (DEL)	154	162	138	151	145	146
Non-cash AME
Total net administration costs by activity:
Police	5	4	4	4	4	4
Criminal Justice	4	3	5	6	11	11
Public Prosecution Service	7	6	6	7	6	6
Prison	123	114	97	95	90	91
Compensation Agency	5	3	3	3	4	3
Bloody Sunday Inquiry/Weston Park Talks	1	1	1	1	1	—
Other	9	31	23	33	29	31
Total Net Administration Costs	154	162	138	151	145	146
Controls and limits:
Administration costs limits for gross controlled areas
NIO	154	165	139	151	145	—
Total administration costs limits for gross controlled areas	154	165	139	151	145	—

Anglo-Irish Secretariat

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will ensure that all information and documentation relating to staff and security staff who worked at the former Anglo-Irish secretariat at Maryfield in Belfast is removed from site prior to its closure. [91391]

Mr. Paul Murphy: All information and documentation relating to staff and security who worked at the former Anglo-Irish Secretariat at Maryfield was removed prior to its closure in December 1998.

Antisocial Behaviour

Rev. Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to introduce new measures to deal with anti-social behaviour in Northern Ireland. [103344]

Mr. Paul Murphy: I am considering measures to deal with anti-social behaviour, and in particular, whether something similar to an Anti-Social Behaviour Order could be developed that could operate within the different local government structures which exist in Northern Ireland. In doing so I will be informed by current developments in England and Wales.

Assets Recovery Agency

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on progress in bringing the new Assets Recovery Agency within the remit of the Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice. [110908]

Mr. Browne: I am currently considering whether or not it would be appropriate for the Assets Recovery Agency to come within the remit of the Criminal Justice

8 May 2003 : Column 876W

Inspector and am seeking the views of the Director of the Agency and the Home Office. I will write to the hon. Lady when a decision has been reached.

Autism

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what respite care is available for young people suffering from autistic spectrum disorders aged (a) 15 years and (b) 16 years. [111409]

Mr. Browne: There are no specific respite care services for children with autistic spectrum disorders in that age group. They have access to respite services available for children with disabilities including residential provision, domiciliary care, host family and fostering services, holiday schemes and day care. In recognition of a need to increase the volume of respite care places, additional funding has been made available in the current financial year for this purpose. In addition, Health and Social Services Boards have been asked to bring forward costed proposals for enhancing autism services, particularly diagnostic and assessment services.

Civil Contingencies

Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on his Department's (a) responsibilities and (b) assets with regard to civil contingency planning; what funds are committed; what action he is taking within his Department to improve such planning; and what action he is taking in collaboration with other departments. [102631]

Mr. Paul Murphy: I refer the hon. Member to the Cabinet Office response to this question on 21 March 2003. In Northern Ireland all government departments are responsible for ensuring that they have contingency

8 May 2003 : Column 877W

planning arrangements in place to deal with any emergency falling within the areas for which they have responsibility.

The Northern Ireland Office contributes (currently 5.7 per cent.) to the costs of the Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear (CBRN) Police Training Centre at Winterbourne Gunner where a cadre of officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland has been trained in CBRN response.

The Department is collaborating with the Civil Contingencies Secretariat (CCS) in the Central Co-ordinated Exercise Programme to develop and promote resilience, and, along with the Central Emergency Planning Unit (CEPU) of the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister, is liaising with CCS on Northern Ireland aspects of the Civil Contingencies Bill.

CEPU seeks to promote and encourage the development of effective civil protection across Northern Ireland Departments and their agencies. It does so by:

encouraging them to develop their emergency planning capabilities;


helping them set priorities in the field of emergency planning;


assisting them in the writing, review and exercise of their plans;


providing emergency planning training to meet identified needs.

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CEPU is a small Unit, which includes a dedicated Emergency Planning Development Officer who works closely with Northern Ireland Departments to establish structured development programmes across all departments.

To ensure that contingency planning arrangements in Northern Ireland are on a par with those in the rest of the UK CEPU monitors developments within the Cabinet Office to ensure that:

Northern Ireland interests are taken into account in the work being taken forward in GB;


Northern Ireland Departments are kept informed of these developments, which may impact on their contingency planning arrangements.

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