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6 Oct 2003 : Column 1072W—continued
Copyright Law
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to review copyright law in relation to publication of research. [131169]
Ms Hewitt: I have no plans to review copyright law in relation to publication of research. The law clearly defines a copyright owner's exclusive rights under which he is, among other things, able to decide whether or not, and if so how, copies of his copyright work are issued to the public.
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to review intellectual property rights as they apply to those working in institutes of higher education. [131170]
Ms Hewitt: My Department maintains a close relationship with higher education institutions and has published guidance on managing intellectual property in higher education in co-operation with these institutions. I have no plans to review these matters specifically, but there may be recommendations from current reviews under way that impact on this area.
E-Working
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of how many (a) businesses in the UK and (b) businesses regulated by the Financial Services Authority do not have access to (a) email and (b) the internet. [131259]
Mr. Timms: The information is as follows:
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(a) The DTI's International Benchmarking Study 2002 shows that of UK businesses, 12 per cent. do not have access to email and 9 per cent. do not have access to the internet. These figures are weighted by number of employees.
(b) Unfortunately, no statistical information of this type is available for businesses regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
EU Copyright Directive
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what evidence she has taken on the implementation of EU Directive 2001/29/EC (May 2001). [131171]
Ms Hewitt: We have received representations, both in person and in writing, from a very large number of organisations and individuals, including over 300 written responses to the consultation paper on UK implementation of EU Copyright Directive 2001/29/EC issued last year. These representations covered the views of a very wide range of interests and dealt with a great number of issues ranging from general concerns to detailed drafting points.
Export Credits Guarantee Department
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment is made of the environmental impact of products, goods and services for which ECGD guarantees are given; who makes that assessment; and whether such assessments are published. [129933]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The nature of the environmental assessment varies with the size, sector and location of the project in question, but it includes consideration of the impact on water, air quality and atmospheric emissions, wildlife and habitats, degradation of land, unsustainable consumption of natural resources, use of hazardous substances, waste generation and noise.
For low and medium potential impact cases the assessments are carried out by ECGD's in-house specialists. These assessments are not published.
For high potential impact cases ECGD requires an in-depth Environmental Impact Assessment. These are normally produced by environmental consultants and are generally made publicly available by the project developer.
Further details of ECGD's environmental assessment procedures are given in the 'Case Handling Process—Information Note' and in the guidance notes to ECGD's Impact Questionnaire, both of which are available from the Department's website (www.ecgd.gov.uk).
Fair Trade
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 14 July 2003, Official Report, column 17W, on the Everything But Arms Agreement, how many people in sub-Saharan Africa (a) have lived and (b) are predicted to live, on less that $1 a day between 1990 and 2015; and if she will assess the impact of the Everything But Arms Agreement on the number of people. [130694]
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: Figures for sub-Saharan Africa, given in the World Development Indicators Report (World Bank) show the number of people who have lived or are predicted to live on less than $1 a day between 1990 and 2015 as follows:
| Million people | |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 241 |
| 1999 | 315 |
| 2015 | 404 |
These figures, as a percentage of the total population, are:
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 47.4 |
| 1999 | 49.0 |
| 2015 | 46.0 |
There are as yet no estimates of the impact of the Everything But Arms Agreement.
Export Licences
Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 16 May 2003, Official Report, column 463W, what account was taken of the Home Office guidelines that extra-territorial jurisdiction is permissible in cases where it is likely that the crime would otherwise not be judiciable. [130185]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 16 September 2003]: The Government took the guidelines set out in the Home Office Review of Extra-Territorial jurisdiction into consideration when deciding on the extra-territorial scope of the controls to be introduced under the Act. The proposed new controls are consistent with these guidelines.
Inward Investment
Mr. Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many jobs have been (a) created and (b) protected in the North East region by inward investment projects since 1997. [131319]
Jacqui Smith: The number of jobs that have (a) been created is 20,947 and (b) protected is 31,495 in the North East region by inward investment projects since 1997. This is based on information provided by companies at the time of announcement of the decision to invest in the UK. These figures include only those projects where Invest-UK and its regional partners were involved or, which have come to their notice.
Mr. Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many inward investment projects there have been in the North East region since 1997; what the value of each project was; and what plans she has to attract future inward investment into the region. [131320]
Jacqui Smith: Invest-UK recorded 288 inward investment decisions in the North East region since 1997. This is based on information provided by companies at the time of announcement of the decision
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to invest in the UK. These figures include only those projects where Invest-UK and its regional partners were involved or, which have come to their notice.
Invest-UK does not have a value figure, as many companies do not notify this.
With regard to attracting future inward investment into the region, Invest-UK works in partnership with all of the UK's Development Agencies including One North East Development Agency, to attract the maximum level of inward investment and to market the UK's attractions for high quality investment.
Mobile Phone Charges
Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from consumer organisations on simplifying the charging structures of mobile phone companies. [131123]
Modern Languages
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what (a) assessment she has made and (b) research she has commissioned on the commercial impact of (i) the declining uptake of modern languages courses at GCSE, A level and undergraduate level and (ii) the change in status of modern foreign languages from a mandatory to an optional subject at Key Stage 4. [130710]
Ms Hewitt: Although the DTI has not commissioned any specific research on the commercial effects of the decline in the uptake of modern languages, We continue to monitor the situation for example making a point of asking established inward investors about the issues that concern them (currently they do not raise foreign language skills as such an area of concern).
We were of course party to the work carried out by the DfES Steering Group which met under the Chair of Baroness Ashton (and included representation from the Nuffield Foundation, FCO, British Chambers of Commerce and Trade Partners UK) tasked with developing a strategy for improving foreign language teaching. While the study of modern foreign languages will no longer be compulsory at Key Stage 4 from September 2004, any pupil wishing to do will have an entitlement to do so. This statutory entitlement is to be welcomed as a way of strengthening of the work done at key stages 2 and 3 and of encouraging greater take-up of modern foreign languages during the 14–16 phase and beyond.
We will of course be continuing to work with the DfES and others to monitor the situation.
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