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Nuclear Non-proliferation

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 12 May 2003, Official Report, column 85W, to the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Llew Smith), on nuclear non-proliferation, what further actions his Department will pursue to implement the disarmament measures identified at the end of the 2000 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference; and if he will make a statement. [135824]

Mr. Straw: The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is the cornerstone of the nuclear non-proliferation regime. The United Kingdom fully supports the Final Document of the 2000 NPT Review Conference and the 13 practical steps towards disarmament that it identified. We intend to continue our close co-operation with other NPT members to strengthen the effectiveness of measures against nuclear proliferation.

To that end, we will participate actively in the NPT review process, including the next Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) in April and May 2004 and the subsequent Review Conference in 2005. We will continue to provide reports at those meetings on our progress on all actions agreed in the 2000 Final Document. The UK is currently working on research into the verification of nuclear disarmament, and we will be presenting a second interim report on our studies at the next PrepCom. We intend to issue a consolidated report on this research at the 2005 Review Conference. This will contribute significantly towards one of the 13 practical steps towards disarmament identified in the Final Document of the 2000 Review Conference.

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made since 11 September 2001 to the Israeli Government to persuade it (a) to sign and ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, (b) to ratify the Chemical Weapons Convention and (c) to sign and ratify the Biological Weapons Convention. [135825]

Mr. Straw: We have a regular dialogue with Israel on the full range of counter-proliferation issues as an integral part of our diplomatic relationship. This

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dialogue includes an annual senior official-level meeting specifically on the subject. The last such meeting took place in March this year, with the previous one having taken place in March 2002.

Oil and Gas Reserves

Sir Robert Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the amendments the UK Government wish to see to the draft EU constitution where it impacts on Government policy for the exploitation of oil and gas reserves from the UK continental shelf. [R] [135326]

Mr. MacShane [holding answer 30 October 2003]: Article III-130(2)(c) of the draft EU Constitutional Treaty, which is based on Article 175(2)(c) of the TEC, sets out the Union competence to adopt

"measures significantly affecting a member state's choice between different energy sources and the general structure of its energy supply"

by unanimity. Article III-157 of the draft EU Constitutional Treaty states the policy on energy shall aim to:

(a) ensure the functioning of the energy market,


(b) ensure security of energy supply in the Union, and


(c) promote energy efficiency and saving and the development of new and renewable forms of energy and states that this policy shall not affect a member state's choice between different energy sources and the general structure of its energy supply.

Under the Treaty establishing the European Community, there is already Union activity in energy matters. We believe there is a strong case for making the legal base for policy in this area more transparent.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Adoption

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) for what reasons adoptive parents are not entitled to the same financial assistance as biological parents; [136501]

(2) what plans she has to review the level of adoptive pay; [136503]

(3) what estimate she has made of the number of claims for adoptive leave made in each of the last three years. [136504]

Mr. Sutcliffe: New statutory rights to leave and pay for parents adopting a child came into effect on 6 April this year. Eligible employees are able to take up to 52 weeks adoption leave and receive Statutory Adoption Pay for up to 26 weeks paid at the same standard rate as Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)—£100 per week or 90 per cent. of average earnings if this is less than £100.

SMP is paid for the first six weeks at 90 per cent. of average earnings. This reflects the legal requirement that women take a period of compulsory maternity leave following the birth of a child. This is for their health and safety and that of their child. Offering a higher rate of SMP for the first six weeks recognises this and helps mothers to take that time off.

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The adopter's partner may be able to benefit from the new rights to paternity leave and pay. Statutory Paternity Pay is paid at the same standard rate as SMP. This rate applies for all fathers, not just adoptive parents.

We are already gathering evidence on how the new rights for adoptive parents are working in practice, as part of a wider monitoring strategy for all the new laws relating to working parents introduced in April 2003, and will continue to do so as an ongoing process. The Government will begin a review of the right to request flexible working in 2006 and we aim to look at how effective the other laws have been at the same time.

The new rights have only been in place for seven months so as yet we do not have any figures on how many parents have taken adoption leave. However, it is estimated that in 2003 there will be 3,850 adoptions per year and we hope that most of these adopters will be able to benefit. We will be looking at the level of take up as part of our monitoring strategy.

Broadband

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action she is taking to bring high speed broadband internet connections to those areas where British Telecom has deemed enablement of the telephone exchange unviable. [136438]

Mr. Timms: The Government intends spending £1 billion on broadband connectivity for the public sector between 2003–06. The Broadband Aggregation Project will set up 9 Regional Aggregation Bodies (RABs), which will aggregate and procure public sector demand for broadband. Each RAB will work closely with stakeholders in their region to develop an appropriate regional strategy that will offer best value for money and the widest availability to surrounding communities.

Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) are committed to improving the availability of broadband in their region and are involved in a range of regional and local partnerships with both the public and private sector. RDAs administer the £30 million UK Broadband Fund which carries out pilot projects, to build awareness and understanding of the benefits of broadband in areas which are not currently served by the market.

A joint DTI/Defra Rural Broadband Team has been set up to address the issue of availability of broadband in rural areas. It aims to support local community action to secure affordable access to broadband, to ensure rural communities derive the maximum benefit from the deployment of broadband and promote rural access and take up of broadband to those in a position to effect positive change.

Competitiveness Council

Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry who will represent the Government at the EU Competitiveness Council of Ministers on 10 November. [136201]

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Jacqui Smith: I will be representing the Government at the EU Competitiveness Council of Ministers on 10 November 2003.

Computer Viruses

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her most recent annual estimate is of the cost to UK business of virus infection of business computers and networks. [136428]

Mr. Timms: The DTI works with business to produce a biennial survey of Information Security Breaches, the latest of which was published in April 2002. The Survey is intended to raise awareness of the importance of effective information security management. The 2002 Survey did not set out to survey or measure the costs of specific security breaches such as virus infections, but surveyed the costs of all forms of information security breach. Based on the information gathered, the figures indicated that serious security incidents cost on average some £30, 000 per incident in 2001. The survey does not contain a figure for the total number of incidents. Work on the 2004 Survey is under way, and the results will be published in April 2004.

Consumer Credit

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to set maximum (a) charging structures and (b) interest rates for (i) personal loans, (ii) credit cards, (iii) store cards and (iv) sub-prime loans. [136288]

Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department has considered the issue of interest rate ceilings for the consumer credit market in the context of its review of the Consumer Credit Act. We are not persuaded of the case for introducing such ceilings. However, we have commissioned research into the way interest ceilings work in other EU countries.

Proposals in these areas and others, will be included in the forthcoming Consumer Credit White Paper, due for publication in December.

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