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Export Credits Guarantee Department

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many times a case has (a) been progressed and (b) approved under the ECGD's sensitive cases mechanism. [111418]

Ms Hewitt: The information is as follows:

(a) Of the high potential impact cases considered so far, six have been, or are being, progressed under the sensitive case mechanism

(b) Two of these cases have so far been approved.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in how many high potential impact cases the Export Credits Guarantee Department has

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required (a) an environmental impact assessment, (b) a social impact assessment, (c) a resettlement action plan and (d) independent external advice or report. [111419]

Ms Hewitt: (a) Environmental Impact Assessments have been required and received for nine high potential impact projects.

(b) Social Impact Assessments have been required and received for three high potential impact projects.

(c) Resettlement Action Plans have been required and received for three high potential impact projects.

(d) Independent external advice has been engaged for four high potential impact projects.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in how many cases covenants and other conditions relating to post issue implementation have been included in an ECGD contract, project or investment; how many times relevant monitoring reports have indicated that remedial action is required; and if she will make a statement. [111420]

Ms Hewitt: Covenants and conditions are regularly included in ECGD loan agreements and usually relate to financial or legal undertakings. Since the introduction of ECGD business principles in December 2000 covenants and conditions related to environmental or social impacts have been included in three issued guarantees. These guarantees have only been recently issued and no monitoring reports are due yet.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many applications identified as having high potential impact have been (a) submitted to the ECGD's Underwriting Committee and (b) approved by the ECGD. [111421]

Ms Hewitt: Since the introduction of ECGD's Business Principles in December 2000, Underwriting Committee has considered nine high potential impact cases. For most of these cases either ECGD's assessment is still on-going or the case did not proceed (e.g. because the UK company did not win the contract).

Two high potential impact cases have received final approval from the Underwriting Committee.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much of the renewable energy initiative of the ECGD has been allocated to projects; and if she will make a statement. [111422]

Ms Hewitt: None of the support available under the renewable energy initiative has so far been allocated but three applications are currently outstanding.

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Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 27 February 2003, Official Report, column 654W, on the renewable energy initiative of the ECGD, if she will make a statement on the initiative's minimum risk standards. [111556]

Ms Hewitt: ECGD's minimum financial risk standards for renewable energy cases are the same as for the rest of the energy sector.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 27 February 2003, Official Report, column 654W, on the renewable energy initiative of the ECGD, which of the listed renewable energy technologies had applications which were considered to have (a) low potential impact, (b) medium potential impact and (c) high potential impact; and which applications were successful. [111557]

Ms Hewitt: All of the cases referred to in the answer of 27 February have been classified as medium potential impact and all three are still outstanding.

In addition to the technology being proposed, the potential impact classification depends on the project's location, scale and social and other impacts.

Export Licences

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what licences were granted for equipment on the military and dual lists to (a) Congo, (b) Benin, (c) Burkina Faso, (d) Burundi, (e) Cameroon, (f) Chad, (g) Comoros, (h) Central African Republic, (i) Cote d'Ivoire, (j) Ethiopia, (k) Gambia, (l) Ghana, (m) Guinea, (n) Kenya, (o) Madagascar, (p) Malawi, (q) Mali, (r) Mauritania, (s) Mozambique, (t) Niger, (u) Rwanda, (v) Senegal, (w) Tanzania, (x) Uganda, (y) Zambia, (z) Bolivia, (aa) Honduras, (bb) Nicaragua, (cc) Yemen, (dd) Laos, (ee) Myanmar and (ff) Vietnam, in each month since January 2002; what the military and dual use ratings were; and if she will make a statement. [112296]

Nigel Griffiths: The details of all export licences granted are published by destination in the Government's Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls, copies of which are available from the Libraries of the House.

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what mechanisms are in place for independent assessment of the Government's exemptions to its export control policy. [112326]

Nigel Griffiths: I refer the right hon. and learned Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Hereford (Mr. Keetch) on 1 May 2003, Official Report, column 455W.

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her evidence before the Quadripartite Committee on 3 April, what assessment she has made of the problems with the end-use monitoring of arms licences in the United States of America, other than with enforcement; and if she will make a statement on the reasons underlying her assessment that the end-use monitoring of arms licences in the US is less effective than that proposed for the UK. [112380]

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Nigel Griffiths: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry gave no assessment of the effectiveness of end-use monitoring of arms licences in the US in her evidence before the Quadripartite Committee on 3 April 2003.

Funeral Industry

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will refer the funeral director industry to the Office of Fair Trading to investigate charging policy. [109737]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Under UK competition law, it is the responsibility of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to investigate allegations of anti-competitive behaviour or possible abuses of a dominant position. The OFT published its latest report on the funeral industry on 27 July 2001 and recommended that consumers be given better information about prices and choices. The OFT has also named the industry as one of its priority sectors under its Consumer Codes Approval Scheme. The OFT is currently holding discussions regarding this scheme with a number of industry bodies. Under the Competition Act 1998, the OFT can act if pricing levels appear to be the result of anti-competitive practices. Anyone with evidence of such behaviour should forward that information to the OFT.

The funeral services industry has a system of self regulation. The National Association of Funeral Directors, the Funeral Standards Council and the National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors all have codes of practice that require funeral directors to provide a professional service and not to exploit consumers. The codes require members to make a basic funeral available with its price clearly indicated. Funeral directors have a duty to treat consumers fairly at what is a time of considerable emotional stress. Adherence to the Code is monitored by each of the respective trade associations.

Iraq (Reconstruction Contracts)

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to ensure that British companies have an equal opportunity to bid for contracts in the reconstruction of post-war Iraq. [110331]

Ms Hewitt: We expect UK companies to make a significant contribution to the redevelopment of Iraq's essential infrastructure. At my request British Trade International have set up a working group of companies representing the main industrial sectors, chaired by a senior businessman, to advise on this. It is clearly important that there is a level playing field for all companies who are interested in contracts in Iraq. I have discussed this with the US authorities and have received positive feedback. When conditions allow, the working group will hope to visit Iraq.

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