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10 Jul 2003 : Column 986W—continued

Kenya (Security Risk)

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on (a) the security and political situation in Kenya and (b) the implications of that situation for UK visitors to Kenya. [124138]

Mr. Mullin: Kenya is a democratic country and enjoys political stability. In recent months we have been concerned about terrorist activity in Kenya, especially following attacks in Mombasa on 28 November 2002. We last updated our Travel Advice for Kenya on 26 June and are currently advising British nationals to exercise vigilance when visiting the country. The Advice remains under constant review.

British airlines have resumed flights to Nairobi, but not to Mombasa.

Kosovo

Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many ethnic

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Albanians have been (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) convicted for the destruction of Orthodox churches in Kosovo since 20 March. [124423]

Mr. MacShane: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, West Derby (Mr. Wareing) on 20 March 2003, Official Report, column 879W. There have been no further developments since this time.

Mexico

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which British registered companies have been awarded contracts to work on the Plan Puebla-Panama development in Mexico. [124001]

Mr. Rammell: We are not aware of any British registered companies having been awarded contracts under this initiative.

Nicaragua

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reasons he has proposed the closure of the British Embassy in Nicaragua. [123560]

Mr. Rammell: Changing strategic priorities require the Foreign and Commonwealth Office constantly to adapt and amend its pattern of representation overseas. In order to free up resources to strengthen the UK's diplomatic network in other parts of the world now more critical for UK interests, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has agreed that over the next three years the FCO should restructure its global diplomatic representation.

In the Americas, this will be achieved through a small number of post closures, chiefly in Central America. The Foreign Secretary made a written ministerial statement on 21 March 2003, Official Report, column 57WS, announcing the changes. Early next year, our ambassador and his staff in Managua will be withdrawn. We propose to appoint the senior representative from the Department for International Development in Managua as Chargé d'Affaires together with an honorary consul. Our ambassador in San Jose will be accredited to Managua.

Pakistan

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what investigation he has made of the conditions in which British prisoners in Pakistan are being held. [123464]

Mr. Mullin: At present there are nine British prisoners in Pakistan. Our consular staff in Islamabad and Karachi aim to visit British prisoners in Pakistan quarterly to check on their welfare. We do all that we properly can to ensure that detained British nationals are treated in accordance with agreed international human rights standards.

Palestine

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures the

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Government are taking to ensure that humanitarian organisations have access to the Occupied Territories of Palestine. [123637]

Mr. Rammell: There have been acute access difficulties in recent months. Our Missions in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv work closely with humanitarian agencies on resolving these. We hope that recent positive developments, including the transfer of security responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority in parts of Gaza and in Bethlehem, will ease access for humanitarian organisations. But we continue to press Israel to take steps to ensure unfettered access for humanitarian aid. Israel has clear obligations, as an occupying power under the Fourth Geneva Convention, to facilitate access to the Occupied Territories for organisations providing aid to those in need.

Uganda

Mr. Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government are taking to initiate and assist international peacekeeping efforts in North East Uganda. [123855]

Mr. Mullin: We deplore the violence perpetrated against innocent civilians by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in the north of Uganda. We sympathise with the Ugandan government's aim of combating the LRA militarily, but we have, through our High Commission in Kampala, encouraged them to consider all alternative methods of bringing the conflict to an end. We are providing humanitarian aid to the people of the north and support to a number of civil society groups engaged on peace issues, including Acholi traditional and religious leaders. We do not believe that the conditions are right for external mediation at this stage.

Private Office Costs

Mr. Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the running costs have been of Ministers' private offices in his Department in each year since 1997. [123105]

Mr. Straw: The cost in cash terms of running the Ministerial Private Offices (Five prior to FY 2001–02 and six since) are laid out in the following table:

Financial year	Costs (£)
1997–98	1,920,246
1998–99	1,791,783
1999–2000	2,360,535
2000–01	2,341,747
2001–02	2,268,543
2002–03	2,333,481
2003–04	(15)438,096

⁽¹⁵⁾ As of 7 July

Sierra Leone

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many nurses from Sierra Leone have been granted visas to take up NHS posts in the UK (a) in 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03. [124606]

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Mr. Mullin [holding answer 9 July 2003]: The visa section at the British High Commission in Freetown received no applications from Sierra Leoneans seeking to take up employment with the national health service in the United Kingdom in either 2001–02 or 2002–03.

In the year 2002–03, one student nurse was issued with entry clearance out of a total of two applications received.

Small Arms

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what issues will be raised by the UK delegation to the UN First Biennial Meeting of States on the Implementation of the UN Programme of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons; who will be representing the UK; and if he will make a statement. [123811]

Mr. MacShane: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by my hon. Friend the then Under-Secretary of State (Mr. Mike O'Brien) on 6 March 2003, Official Report, column 1188W and on 11 June 2003, Official Report, column 864W.

The UK delegation will be led by Edward Oakden, Director of International Security at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and David Broucher, UK Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmanent: Geneva.

Solomon Islands

Mr. Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the United Kingdom is taking to support the implementation of the Townsville Peace Agreement in the Solomon Islands. [124265]

Mr. Rammell: The UK continues to work closely with the Commonwealth, EU partners and other governments in the region to support reconciliation and reconstruction in the Solomon Islands. We have contributed to the International Peace Monitoring Team, monitoring of the elections in 2001, and the law and order sector. We have supported external appointments to strengthen the judiciary and, at the request of the Solomon Islands Prime Minister, the secondment of a Police Commissioner and support staff from Britain to the Royal Solomon Islands Police.

We remain concerned by the chronic lawlessness which continues to obstruct all efforts towards economic recovery and development. We welcome the proposal for a major new regional initiative, comprising a police contingent with military support, led by Australia and New Zealand, to assist recovery of the Solomon Islands. This initiative has the support of regional governments and has been welcomed by the UN. The Solomon Islands parliament is now considering the proposals. We are considering what further assistance we could provide as part of a coordinated donor effort.

Sudan

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement

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on the Sudanese Government's adherence to civil and human rights, with special reference to the recent confiscation of the Al Sahafa newspaper. [124750]

Mr. Mullin: We are concerned about many aspects of human rights in Sudan and monitor the situation closely. Our embassy regularly lobbies the Government of Sudan on human rights, including on press freedom. Most recently, the embassy raised press freedom, including seizures and censorship, with the Director for Human Rights at the Ministry of Justice on 8 July 2003. Press freedom was also raised at the last EU/Sudan dialogue meeting on 19 June 2003.

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