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Russia

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects his Department is supporting to (a) measure poverty in Russia and (b) promote public access to the data; and if he will make a statement. [133278]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID is supporting two projects to measure poverty in Russia and promote public access to data:

(a) "Poverty statistics and monitoring" project in partnership with the World Bank, the Russian Ministry of Labour and Social Development and State Statistics Committee. The project purpose is to establish an improved information base and analysis for policy makers. The overall budget is £1.5 million over the period from April 2002 to December 2005.


(b) "Review of poverty issues in Russia" project implemented by London School of Economics. The overall budget is £90,000 for four years (February 2002 to February 2005). The project purpose is to inform the Russia programme on poverty measurements with particular respect to two oblasts, Leningrad and Nizhniy Novgorod, where DFID is supporting partnership programmes.

Both projects pursue the following goals:

To develop improved poverty measurement methodology for Russia, based on international experience;


To identify a system of indicators for on-line poverty monitoring and poverty level forecast and establish a poverty monitoring system;


To provide open access for external users to the State Statistics Committee's Household Budgeting Survey data;


To prepare poverty reduction recommendations in the form of an official report containing a detailed analysis of poverty level, profile, sources and socioeconomic policy efficiency.

Understanding the extent and depth of poverty in Russia and monitoring its trend is a key part of DFID's Russia Programme and the Government of Russia's long-term social-economic modernization plan (the Gref plan). Current estimates of the number of poor people in Russia vary widely from 20 per cent. to 40 per cent. of population, depending on the source of data, the methodology used and the definition of poverty. Accurate data and proper poverty analysis will help the Government of Russia to target resources to poor people more efficiently.

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Southern African Development Community

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 14 October 2003, reference 131644, if he will list the programmes run by the Southern African Development Community in (a) Botswana, (b) Namibia, (c) Lesotho and (d) Swaziland, with specific reference to national projects undertaken under the auspices of the Southern African Development Community's HIV/AIDS Programme and including an outline of each programme's methods; and if he will make a statement. [132908]

Hilary Benn: The SADC Regional HIV/AIDS programme aims to promote improved effectiveness and co-ordination of HIV/AIDS programmes in Botswana,

Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland. It operates five programmes in each of the four countries:

Improved management of sexually transmitted infections, focused particularly on cross border sites;


Support to strengthen and co-ordinate the work of National AIDS Commissions;


Condom social marketing;


Support to people living with HIV and AIDS;


Support for behaviour change communication campaigns.

More detail on the individual national components and their methods is available from the SADC HIV/AIDS Programme at Private Bag X828, Pretoria 0001, South Africa. SADC's website is at www.sadc.int

Uganda

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 4 July 2003, Official Report, column 512W, (1) which humanitarian requests they have decided to respond to in Teso, Uganda; [133545]

(2) what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation in Teso, Uganda. [133546]

Hilary Benn: It has been estimated by the World Food Programme that 305,899 people are currently displaced in the Teso region.

A public health expert funded by DFID Uganda recently visited Teso to assess the humanitarian situation. She reported that the most pressing immediate needs are food for the displaced, and maintenance of adequate water and sanitation services in areas of high population density.

DFID has therefore made available a further £1.87 million to the World Food Programme for the purchase and distribution of food, and is currently discussing further humanitarian support requirements with UNICEF and the Red Cross.

UN Greater Darfur Initiative

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the structure, aims and methods of the UN Greater Darfur Initiative are; what the projected total funding needs for the UNGDI are; how much of this has already been pledged, and by whom; how much of the pledged UK funding has

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already been contributed; how far the setting up of the UNGDI has progressed since its launch; and if he will make a statement. [133339]

Hilary Benn: On 3 September, the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Liberation Army agreed a ceasefire for Darfur in western Sudan. The UN estimates that some 500,000 people have been displaced in Darfur; 300,000 of which as a result of the recent conflict. It is estimated that there are about 70,000 refugees in Chad. High rates of malnutrition have been reported in Darfur. The UN responded with an Initiative to mobilise funds for the region.

The objectives of the UN Greater Darfur Special Initiative (GDSI) are: to help the most seriously affected populations; defuse local tensions; and begin to address the underlying causes of the conflicts in the Greater Darfur region of Sudan. The Initiative includes accelerated humanitarian relief and longer-term assistance. The GDSI has not only raised the profile of the situation in Darfur, but also improved access to vulnerable groups in the region.

The total funding requirement for the UN GDSI is $22.8 million (approximately £15 million). The UK responded to the Initiative with a pledge of £1 million. We are currently in the process of committing this pledge against specific proposals recently circulated by the various UN agencies, the Red Cross and non-governmental organisations. We stand ready to respond further, as the situation in Darfur determines. We have already committed £0.5 million to Save the Children UK to provide humanitarian assistance to displaced people and other vulnerable groups in North Darfur. Norway has pledged $0.75 million (approximately £0.5 million) to the GDSI. Others donors, including US Agency for International Development and the Humanitarian Aid Office of the European Commission (ECHO), are also contributing to the provision of humanitarian assistance in the region.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Asbestos

Mr. Hume: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many deaths in Northern Ireland resulting from asbestos-related illnesses there were in each of the last 10 years, broken down by specific illnesses diagnosed. [133005]

Mr. Pearson: The following table gives the number of deaths resulting from asbestos-related illness, registered in Northern Ireland from 1992 to 2002. Separate figures are given for the two main primary causes of death, mesothelioma and 'asbestosis'.

Table: Number of registered deaths by year in Northern Ireland resulting from asbestos related illnesses (mesothelioma and 'asbestosis')

	Mesothelioma	'Asbestosis'	Total
1992	47	4	51
1993	43	4	47
1994	29	4	33
1995	34	5	39
1996	32	4	36
1997	42	0	42
1998	40	6	46
1999	46	4	50
2000	37	6	43
2001	54	9	63
2002	42	12	54

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Cardiac Care

Mr. Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people are waiting (a) to see a cardiologist and (b) for cardiac surgery in Northern Ireland. [133871]

Angela Smith: The number of people waiting for a first out-patient appointment and for in-patient admission by specialty is returned to the Department on a quarterly basis by Trusts. The returns provide information about the number of people waiting for a first out-patient appointment and in-patient admission on the last day of each quarter. Information in this answer is provided for Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery specialties. The information in this answer relates to the position at 30 June 2003 (the most recent information available):

(a) At 30 June 2003 there were 4,181 patients awaiting a first out-patient appointment in the cardiology specialty and 139 patients awaiting a first out-patient appointment at a Cardiac Surgery clinic.


(b) At 30 June 2003, 430 patients were awaiting admission to the Cardiac Surgery specialty in Northern Ireland, while 1,363 patients were awaiting admission to the Cardiology specialty.

Decommissioning Commission

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total costs were of the International Independent Commission on Decommissioning for the last full year of its operation; and what proportion was borne by (a) Her Majesty's Government and (b) the Irish Government. [131676]

Jane Kennedy: The Commission's running costs are shared equally between the British and Irish Governments. The British Government's share of the costs, for the financial year 2002–03, is £309,600.

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