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2 Jul 2003 : Column 335W—continued
Driving Offences
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been convicted of (a) dangerous driving and (b) drink driving in Northern Ireland since January; and what the average penalty has been for these offences. [121921]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The table sets out the number of convictions and resulting court disposals in 2000 for the offences of dangerous driving and drink driving. The statistics are based on a principal offence rule, that is, where proceedings involve more than one offence dealt with at the same time, the offence recorded is that for which the greatest penalty is imposed. Where more than one disposal is given for the principal offence, only that disposal which is considered the most severe, is recorded. Thus, while both dangerous driving and drink driving are both punishable by mandatory disqualification under the Road Traffic (NI) Order 1995, the figures reflect that this is often in conjunction with a more severe penalty.
2 Jul 2003 : Column 336W
Employment Opportunities
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to his answer of 19 May 2003, Official Report, column 594W, on manufacturing, what percentage of the jobs created in Northern Ireland since the signing of the Belfast Agreement were in (a) manufacturing industry, (b) agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing, (c) electricity, gas and water supply, (d) mining, quarrying and construction, (e) wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles, (f) hotels and catering, (g) transport, storage and communications, (h) financial intermediation, (i) real estate, renting and business activities, (j) public administration and defence, (k) education, (l) health and social work and (m) other sectors. [117071]
Mr. Pearson: The most reliable information available for which it is possible to provide a breakdown by industrial section refers to the period March 1998 to December 2002 and relates to employee jobs not employment levels to which the earlier reply referred (113501). The net change in employee jobs in Northern Ireland by industrial sector over that period as estimated by the Quarterly Employment Survey 1 (QES) is provided in Table 1.
Energy Policy
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will bring forward legislation on the cost of borrowing in the Northern Ireland energy market; and if he will make a statement. [122585]
Mr. Pearson: A working group of economists drawn from the Department of Finance and Personnel, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and the Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation (the Authority) has been examining a legislative low cost borrowing mechanism and other options for the refinancing of energy assets and contracts, with a view to energy cost reductions for the consumer. It is expected to report shortly.
The findings of the working group and the outcomes of the consultation papers "Competition and Customer Empowerment" published by the Regulator on 4 March 2003 and "Towards a New Energy Strategy for Northern Ireland" published by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment on 17 April 2003 will shape future arrangements in this area.
Euro
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has received from business leaders in Northern Ireland concerning preparations for the euro; and if he will make a statement. [121920]
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Mr. Pearson: The Secretary of State has not received any direct representations from Northern Ireland business leaders concerning preparations for the euro. However, he has had opportunities to discuss this issue with business leaders and others at various events that he has attended.
Also, in a recent meeting with the Northern Ireland Branch of the Confederation of British Industry I have offered a further meeting to specifically discuss the euro.
Health Trust Expenditure
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much each health trust in Northern Ireland spent on security in each of the last five years. [122573]
Angela Smith: Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Housing Executive
Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints he has received from tenants regarding sub-standard work carried out by contractors employed by the Housing Executive for the parliamentary constituency of Belfast, East. [122540]
Mr. Spellar: The Housing Executive's Belfast District 2 corresponds most closely to the constituency of Belfast, East and, during 2002–03, three complaints about sub-standard work by contractors were investigated under the Housing Executive's Formal Complaints Procedure.
International Commission on Decommissioning
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many full days the head of the International Commission on Decommissioning has spent in Northern Ireland since 1 January. [116980]
Jane Kennedy: From January 2003 to date General de Chastelain has spent at total of 36 days in Northern Ireland on Independent International Commission on Decommissioning business.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate the costs incurred by the International Commission on Decommissioning since its inception. [116981]
Jane Kennedy: The Commission's running costs are shared equally between the British and Irish Governments. Her Majesty's Government's share of the costs since the establishment of the Commission to date has been £3,256,377.
Invest NI
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the Invest NI contracts awarded to PricewaterhouseCoopers, giving the value of each (a) in 2002–03 and (b) to date 2003–04. [121530]
Mr. Pearson: The following table lists those consultancy contracts which have been awarded by Invest NI during the years 2002–03 and to date in 2003–04.
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| Value of contract | ||
|---|---|---|
| Description of contract | 2002–03 | To date 2003–04 |
| Development of operating guidelines | 49,000 | |
| Review of support for trade exhibitions | 26,790 | |
| Economic appraisal | 44,000 | |
| Recruitment exercises for staff for Invest NI | 37,308 | |
| Recruitment exercises for staff for Invest NI | 34,260 | |
| Review of Invest NI recruitment and selection process | 25,000 | |
| Lead advisors for the Invest NI HQ project(31) | 446,500 | |
| Consultancy fees for review of NI egg industry | 8,695 | |
| Advice on company business plan | 5,875 | |
| Furniture sector review | 22,038 | |
| Economic appraisal | 17,413 | |
| Scoping exercise for internal customer relations management project | 36,500 | |
(31) A number of sub contractors will be paid fees from this total amount.
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of Invest NI's accountancy and consultancy contracts have been awarded to PricewaterhouseCoopers (a) in 2002–03 and (b) to date in 2003–04. [121531]
Mr. Pearson: The percentage of Invest NI's total accountancy and consultancy contracts awarded to PricewaterhouseCoopers during the year 2002–03 was 6 per cent. in terms of number of contracts and 20.5 per cent. in terms of value. To date in 2003–04 the percentage in terms of numbers is 7.3 per cent. and 10.6 per cent. in value terms.
Inward Investment
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many visits have been made by inward investors to (a) Down district council, (b) Newry and Mourne district council and (c) Banbridge district council in each of the last five years; how many were repeat visits; and how many of these inward investors have located enterprises in each area. [122348]
Mr. Pearson: The following tables give details of Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI)/Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland (IDB) arranged visits and assisted inward investments in the Down, Newry and Mourne and Banbridge district council areas in the period April 1998 to March 2003.
| District council area/Visit | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Down | |||||
| First | 2 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
| Repeat | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Total | 5 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 3 |
| Newry and Mourne | |||||
| First | 5 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 6 |
| Repeat | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Total | 7 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 7 |
| Banbridge | |||||
| First | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Repeat | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Note:
Repeat visits are identified as repeat visits by the potential investor to Northern Ireland and may not necessarily represent a second or subsequent visit to a particular area.
2 Jul 2003 : Column 339W
| District councilarea | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Down | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Newry and Mourne | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Banbridge | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Note:
Due to the time lag between visits and investment decisions, investments in a year may not necessarily match with visits in that year.
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