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Liberia

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the health situation in Monrovia, Liberia. [123662]

Hilary Benn: Our information on the health situation in Monrovia is provided by the UN, and international agencies maintaining a presence there, and the current assessment is that the situation is critical. In those areas that can be reached by humanitarian agencies, conditions are very poor. It is likely to be far worse in those areas of the country that cannot be reached. Only one hospital is functioning in Monrovia, currently run by ICRC, and a few additional clinics have been set up there following a lull in the fighting this week. Sanitation is virtually non-existent and water supplies are inadequate. A major cholera outbreak is likely in these conditions; health NGOs that remain operational are preparing to respond to this. Their activities have been hampered by looting of vehicles, fuel, drugs and medical supplies.

We have committed a total of £2.5 million for humanitarian activity in Liberia this year, including £1.5 million in response to the recent upsurge in fighting. We have provided £1,050,000 to support ICRC and £450,000 to Medecins Sans Frontieres for secondary health care. These are the only two agencies maintaining expatriate medical teams in the country. We have also recently provided £374,000 to support a MERLIN emergency health programme in Monrovia. We still have available a balance of £626,000 for humanitarian interventions in Liberia which we intend

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to allocate to strengthen the geographical and sectoral coverage of the relief programme. We are in close touch with the UN and other agencies working in Liberia. We will meet with them on 8 July 2003 to review the position.

Uganda

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation and recent actions by the Lord's Resistance Army in Teso, Uganda. [123731]

Hilary Benn: We are concerned by the impact of the recent LRA attacks. We remain in close contact with agencies operating in this area and in conjunction with them have been carefully monitoring the situation. We have indicated to these agencies our willingness to assist, and are considering a number of requests for humanitarian assistance.

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the abduction of children by the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda; and what steps his Department is taking to prevent this from happening. [123724]

Hilary Benn: It is estimated that over 20,000 children have been abducted by the LRA since the conflict began some 17 years ago. Of these, approximately 8,000 have been abducted in the past 12 months. DFID continues to provide support to UNICEF and other agencies involved in the reintegration of returning abductees and to provide shelter for those displaced by the LRA's activities. We continue to lobby the Ugandan Government to use all means to bring this conflict to a peaceful end and to protect those most vulnerable to LRA attacks.

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development how many internally displaced people there are in northern Uganda; and how much aid his Department is giving to help them. [123725]

Hilary Benn: It has been estimated that there are around one million internally displaced people in Uganda. Over the past 12 months, we have allocated £2.5 million towards their needs and will shortly be releasing a further £1 million through the Uganda Red Cross and UNICEF to help with the deteriorating situation in northern Uganda.

Street Children (Central America)

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development how many street children there are in Central America, broken down by country; and how many street children there are in each country. [123740]

Mr. Rammell: I have been asked to reply.

The Government fully share the hon. Member's concern about the plight of street children in Central America. The rights of children worldwide are a central part of our human rights policy. We maintain a constant dialogue with the Central American authorities and NGOs on this issue; as does the EU. However, the

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nature of the problem is such that it is very difficult to know precisely how many street children there are in the individual Central America countries.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Civil Servants

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many new entrants to the civil service were employed in his Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 or over. [119829]

Mr. Charles Clarke: I would refer the hon. Member to the reply provided by Cabinet Office on 24 June 2003, Official Report, column 658W.

Departmental Employment Costs

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average cost of an employee working in his Department has been in each year since 1997. [119434]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The average cost of an employee in my Department based on mean basic pay, superannuation and employer's national insurance contributions since 1997 is given in the table.

	£
2002–03	30,500
2001–02	29,000
2000–01	26,800
1999–2000	25,900
1998–99	25,300
1997–98	24,700
1996–97	24,000

For the period 1996–97 to 2000–01 (the period for which comparisons are available), this shows a 12 per cent. increase in average cost for the Department. This compares to a 21 per cent. increase in average salary for the labour market as a whole over the period and a 19 per cent. increase in average salary for teachers in London over the same period.

Mental Health

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many of his staff retired on medical grounds due to mental health problems in the last year. [111966]

Mr. Charles Clarke: I would refer the hon. Member to the reply provided by Cabinet Office on 24 June 2003, Official Report, column 662W.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Employers' Liability Insurance

Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate her Department has made of the annual cost to business of employers'

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liability compulsory insurance in the last five years; by how much it has increased since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [120387]

Mr. Browne: I have been asked to reply.

It is possible to estimate the annual cost to business of employers' liability compulsory insurance by looking at the total premiums written by insurers.

	Gross written premiums earned (£ million)
1997	1,151
1998	993
1999	906
2000	821
2001	1,093

It is important to note that the amount raised in premiums will depend on a range of factors including number of staff employed and average earnings.

Figures are not yet available for 2002. However, it is clear that insurance premiums have risen significantly over the last two years.

I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement that was given on 3 June 2003, Official Report, columns 1–2WS, announcing the publication of the report that looked at the issue.

Renewable Energy

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what price control mechanisms will be necessary to ensure the Government's renewable energy targets for 2010 are met. [122575]

Mr. Timms: Ofgem sets price controls for all transmission and distribution companies, usually every five years. A review is currently in progress to reset the price controls on electricity distribution businesses from April 2005.

The price controls for the two Scottish transmission licensees are due to be reviewed from April 2005, and NGC's electricity transmission price control is due for review from April 2006. These price controls will need to encourage the investment in the transmission and distribution infrastructure necessary to achieve the Government's 10 per cent. renewable energy target by 2010.

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what improvements to the National Grid will need to be made to ensure the Government meets its renewable energy target of 10 per cent. by 2010; and how these improvements will be financed. [122576]

Mr. Timms: Improvements will have to be made to the transmission grid by all of the Transmission Asset Owners (National Grid Transco, Scottish Power, and Scottish & Southern) for new renewable generation stations. The Transmission Issues Working Report published in June 2003 estimated the costs of these works.

Planning works for the initial upgrades have been started by both Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern, following agreements made with Ofgem earlier this year. This was in response to requests from

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renewable energy generators (wind farms) to be connected to the transmission system. These upgrades will be treated as additions to the Regulatory Asset Base, with appropriate charges made to the generators according to the connection agreements offered.

The Transmission Issues Working Group will continue to monitor the progress of this work.

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