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1 Jul 2003 : Column 202W—continued
British Council
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British born ethnic minority members there are in senior posts of the British Council abroad, indicating the grade and the percentage this represents of all posts. [119230]
Mr. Mullin [holding answer 30 June 2003]: There are three ethnic minority members of staff in senior British Council posts overseas who are British passport holders. All three are at Band 9, and this represents 3.4 per cent. of all British Council senior posts abroad.
Cyprus
Mr. Lyons: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Cyprus. [117393]
Mr. MacShane: I refer my hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement made by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary on 4 June 2003, Official Report, column 22WS.
EU Constitution
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the areas of decision-making by unanimity under the present European Community and Union Treaties which transfer to qualified majority voting in the Convention on the draft EU constitution, broken down by article of the draft constitution; what his policy is on the acceptability of each; and if he will make a statement. [121470]
Mr. MacShane: Annex VIII of document number CONV 727/03 of the Convention on the Future of Europe provides a complete list of the legal bases for which the draft EU constitutional treaty proposes changing the adoption procedure. That document is available on the Convention's website (www.european-convention.eu.int) in the "Documents" section. This Government believe that more QMV is essential to push through our solutions to Europe-wide problems in key areas, such as immigration and asylum. But there are areas in which we would not be prepared to move away from unanimity. Our amendments to the draft Treaty, which indicate our policy, are displayed under the "Future of Europe" section of the FCO website (www.fco.gov.uk).
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Denzil Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list EU policy items which can now be vetoed by member states and which under the draft EU constitution are made subject to qualified majority voting. [122047]
Mr. MacShane: Annex VIII of document number CONV 727/03 of the Convention on the Future of Europe provides a complete list of the legal bases for which the draft EU constitutional treaty proposes changing the adoption procedure. That document is available on the Convention's website (www.european-convention.eu.int) in the "Documents" section.
G8 Declaration (Nuclear Non-proliferation)
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on North Korea's breach of its nuclear safeguards agreement, as mentioned in paragraph 7 of the Evian G8 Declaration on Non Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction, of 3 June. [120799]
Mr. MacShane: Under the terms of its safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), North Korea is obliged to allow access by IAEA inspectors to its nuclear facilities.
In October 2002 North Korea announced that it would restart nuclear activities at its Yongbyon reactor, which had been stopped under the terms of the 1994 Agreed Framework. Subsequent to this announcement North Korea expelled IAEA inspectors who had been in the country to monitor North Korea's compliance with its international obligations and to verify its declarations on past nuclear activity. By restarting activity at Yongbyon without IAEA monitors being present, North Korea is in clear breach of its obligations under the IAEA safeguards agreement and the Agreed Framework.
Government Hospitality
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the budget was for the Government Hospitality Section of the Conference and Visits Group in each of the last 10 years. [122845]
Mr. Rammell: The Government Hospitality Section (GHS) of Conference and Visits Group (CVG) managed a budget of approximately £0.6 million for the year 2002–03. This figure has been consistent (ie. between £0.8 million and £0.6 million) since the formation of CVG in 1999. Prior to 1999 the work of the GHS was carried out by the former Government Hospitality Fund; the budget was similar to the current figure.
Guantanamo Bay
Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the US about British nationals held in Guantanamo Bay; when he expects them to be charged; what he expects them to be charged with; and what maximum penalty he expects will apply. [121848]
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Mr. Mullin: Ministers and officials have regular discussions with the United States authorities about the British detainees held at Guantanamo Bay.
We have been informed that the United States authorities have not yet made a decision to charge or release any of the British nationals detained at Guantanamo Bay.
Iraq
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures are being taken in Iraq to establish (a) security, (b) effective policing and (c) the rule of law. [110973]
Mr. Ingram: I have been asked to reply.
Improving the security environment across Iraq remains a key priority for the Coalition Provisional Authority. Coalition forces continue to conduct up to 2,500 daily patrols, about 10 per cent. of which are joint patrols with the Iraqi police, arresting or detaining those suspected of criminal activities, including looting.
There are now 30,000 operational Iraqi police officers across the country, and the number continues to increase. The Coalition continues its efforts to prepare them for their role in a self-governed Iraq.
Courts and prisons are beginning to function. On 17 June, the Coalition Provisional Authority opened a new Iraqi Judicial College and announced the creation of a Judicial Review Committee and the establishment of a Central Criminal Court.
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the (a) locations and (b) dates of visits by the survey group in Iraq searching for weapons of mass destruction. [120099]
Mr. Hoon: I have been asked to reply.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 April 2003, Official Report, columns 315–16W, to the Member for Southport (Mr. Pugh).
The Coalition has several hundred sites we wish to examine and further sites are being identified as investigations develop. Investigations may require more than one visit to certain sites. The process of visiting and examining the sites and other evidence will not be quick, and the number of sites visited or left to visit is not an indication of the success of the task at hand.
As the government has already made clear, we will aim to make public our findings where appropriate.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the International Atomic Energy Agency invited the Government to provide evidence to counter the International Atomic Energy Agency conclusion in its 7 March Report to the UN Security Council that the allegations that Iraq sought to procure uranium from Africa were unfounded. [121670]
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Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the women's organisations which have been invited by the Coalition Provisional Authority to take part in the women's conference in Baghdad in early July. [122214]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer of 30 June 2003]: The women's conference in early July is being organised by a steering group of Iraqi women. They are leading the event, which the Coalition Provisional Authority is helping to facilitate. Saddam Hussein proscribed, after 1991, all women's NGOs (although those in the Kurdish areas continued to function). Therefore it is predominantly individual women who will participate in this conference, as it will take time for women's groups to emerge in Iraq following the collapse of the former regime.
Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the terms of reference are of the women's conference organised by the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad in early July. [122215]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer 30 June 2003]: The one-day women's conference in Baghdad in early July is being organised by a steering group of seven Iraqi women, who were elected by a group of 40 women at a meeting in May to take forward the process. The steering group comprises women from different backgrounds and with varied skills. The Coalition Provisional Authority is helping to facilitate the event. Workshops will focus on gender-related issues for the writing of a new Constitution and legal reform, plus education, health policy and the economy and employment.
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