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20 Jan 2004 : Column 1133Wcontinued
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many applications for lottery grant funding have been received in the last year from applicants in the Billericay constituency; what the total value was of these applications; how many were successful; what the total value of grants was; how many applications were received in the United Kingdom; what the total value was of these applications; how many applications were successful; and what the total value of grants was. [149381]
Estelle Morris: The Department does not collect information concerning the number and value of applications for lottery funding received by the distributing bodies.
In the last full financial year (200203), 22 awards worth a total of £495,535 have been granted in the constituency of Billericay.
In the same period across the UK, over £1.6 billion was awarded to 26,841 awards.
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These numbers are derived from the Department's database of lottery awards, which is based on information supplied by the distributing bodies.
Mr. Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what provisions are included in the Horserace Betting and Olympic Lottery Bill for (a) veterinary care at racecourses, (b) support for the re-housing of retired racehorses, (c) support for the improvement of the breeds of horses and (d) support for veterinary science and education. [148777]
Mr. Caborn: Clause 16(6)b of the Bill provides that Levy Board assets may be transferred to a third party only where the Secretary of State is satisfied that they would be used for one of the following purposes: the improvement of breeds of horses; the advancement or encouragement of veterinary science or veterinary education; the improvement of horse racing.
Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what role Ofcom has in maintaining levels of regional television broadcasting output in (a) the East Midlands and (b) other regions. [148670]
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Estelle Morris: Under the Communications Act 2003 all public service broadcasters will have to agree targets with Ofcom for regional programming and/or regional production.
Every Channel 3 licensee will agree targets with Ofcom for regional production and investment in programme-making for Channel 3.
Within these targets, regional Channel 3 services will also have requirements for programme production and investment in programme-making for Channel 3 regional programmes on a regional or national Channel 3 service, and local programmes on any local Channel 3 service. These regional programmes should be of high quality and a sufficient proportion must be shown at or around peak time.
Ofcom will also agree targets with Channel 4 and Channel 5 for programme production and investment in the regions.
Obligations similar to those for Channel 3 will be applied by Ofcom to the BBC by way of the BBC Agreement.
Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how levels of regional television output have changed since the adoption of the Charter for the nations and the regions in (a) the East Midlands and (b) other regions. [148675]
Estelle Morris: The Charter for Broadcasting in the Nations and Regions is an agreement between the ITV companies and the ITC setting out a broad range of measures designed to provide a common benchmark for regional activity. It was adopted in May 2002. The weekly average regional hours for the ITV regions, provided by Ofcom, are shown in the following table. Carlton Central is the licensee for the East Midlands area.
Broadcast hours, weekly averages | |||
---|---|---|---|
(6)2001 | (6)2002 | (6),(7)2003 | |
Anglia | 9:41 | 9:08 | 9:12 |
Border | 5:58 | 5:57 | 6:45 |
Carlton | 8:59 | 7:43 | 6:15 |
Carlton Central | 8:29 | 8:08 | 9:01 |
Channel | 5:33 | 5:46 | 5:44 |
Grampian | 7:30 | 7:43 | 7:30 |
Granada | 9:15 | 9:09 | 9:16 |
HTV Wales | 10:53 | 10:33 | 10:11 |
HTV West | 10:50 | 9:45 | 8:56 |
LWT | 3:33 | 3:20 | 2:42 |
Meridian | 10:44 | 9:55 | 9:13 |
STV | 14:51 | 13:21 | 12:19 |
Tyne Tees | 10:24 | 9:35 | 9:24 |
UTV | 11:07 | 10:44 | 10:13 |
Carlton Westcountry | 10:53 | 10:08 | 8:55 |
Yorkshire | 9:21 | 8:54 | 9:17 |
(6) Calendar years
(7) January to September 2003, final figures for 2003 are not yet available.
Note:
These figures exclude repeats and all programmes transmitted after 12.30am to allow comparison.
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Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her policy on the use of sunset clauses in legislation; and which Acts containing such clauses relevant to her Department were passed in each year since 1997. [149327]
Mr. Caborn: None of the Bills the Department has introduced since 1997 have contained sunset clauses. Decisions on the future use of such clauses will be made on a case by case basis and will be communicated to the House in the usual way.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the number of displaced Burmese people; and how many of them are in refugee camps. [148120]
Hilary Benn: DFID uses estimates of displaced Burmese people made by UN agencies. According to the latest figures obtained from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, there are 19,500 Burmese in refugee camps in Bangladesh and 116,711 in refugee camps in Thailand. There are no accurate figures for the number of displaced Burmese people in other locations.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people have been prosecuted for breaches of human rights in Burundi since January 1994. [148117]
Hilary Benn: As a result of political instability, widespread insecurity and fighting between rebel groups and the Government of Burundi army since 1993,there has been internal displacement of over 281,000 people with over 800,000 refugees living in neighbouring countries, mainly in Tanzania. The majority of the remaining population in the country continued to be victims of human rights violations caused by the rebels or undisciplined regular soldiers. Torture, cruelty and inhuman degradation and punishment were everyday burdens for the ordinary citizen who could not get effective recourse because of a poor justice system. About 8,300 Burundians are in prison but only 44 per cent. have been sentenced.
It remains difficult to get a clear distinction between ordinary crimes and violations of human rights. We assume that most prisoners' offences fall into the category of human rights violations.
Six people (including a headmaster) were executed in July 1997 for their direct involvement in crimes on ethnic grounds.
About 700 people were sentenced to life imprisonment.
There are currently about 400 soldiers accused of violating fundamental rights.
Two civil servants (members of the judicial police) were prosecuted for violating human rights.
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Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions his Department has had with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees regarding Sudanese refugees in Chad. [149163]
Hilary Benn: Since the latest movement of refugees into Chad we have been in regular contact with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees in Geneva and their field teams in eastern Chad.
Our Humanitarian Adviser will be visiting eastern Chad in two weeks' time to assess the refugee situation there; the visit will be hosted by the UNHCR.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how his Department will respond to the appeal for $11 million by the World Food Organisation for the Sudanese refugees in Chad. [149178]
Hilary Benn: I refer the hon. Member to my response of 19 January 2004 to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, West (John Barrett), Official Report, column 929W.
Mr. Chidgey: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of Chad's ability to cope with the influx of refugees fleeing war in Sudan and the Central African Republic. [149217]
Hilary Benn: Chad is making efforts to address this situation, but it lacks the resources properly to meet the needs of the refugees: the UN and international NGOs are therefore assisting them in this task.
We appreciate the efforts the Chad Government are making to help bring about a peaceful end to the fighting in Darfur.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what the total financial contribution made by the United Kingdom is for the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project; [148119]
Hilary Benn: The UK Government are not providing any direct financing for the Chad/Cameroon Oil Pipeline Project, nor is it directly engaged in other way e.g. provision of technical assistance. Our interest is indirect through the World Bank and the European Investment Bank.
DFID is confident that the World Bank's systems for monitoring and implementing this project are appropriate. In relation to the quality of auditing and fiscal accountability, Bank policy identifies two sets of appropriate auditing standards: the International standards on Auditing published by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the Auditing Standards published by the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions. Project arrangements provide for regular audits, on the Chad/Cameroon pipeline projects' accounts, plus independent opinions from the International Advisory Group (IAG) and the External Compliance and Monitoring Group (ECMG) who carry out regular independent supervisions of the technical and environmental aspects of the project and from the Inspection Panel who respond to requests from private individuals.
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Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) for what reason the external independent quality assurance and quality control audits relating to the Chad/Cameroon project have been circumvented; [148521]
(3) if he will make a statement on the standard of fiscal accountability and transparency measures since the commissioning of the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project; [148715]
(4) for what reason quality assurance and quality control audits of the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project have not been conducted by the World Bank; [148522]
(5) for what reason internal audits of the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project have not been conducted; [148523]
(6) for what reason bills of quantities in relation to the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project have been approved in the absence of packages for quality assurance and quality control; [148716]
(7) for what reason work on the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project continued without procedures for quality assurance and quality control; [148524]
(8) for what reason the project design change orders on the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project were negotiated and approved without plans for quality assurance and quality control; [148525]
(9) what assessment has been made by international aid agencies of the adequacy of compliance with quality assurance and quality control in relation to the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project; [148526]
(10) for what reason the World Bank has employed contractors who are not fully I.S.O. 9000 series accredited; [148527]
(11) whether project completion certificates for the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project have been approved; [148700]
(12) if he will make a statement on levels of insurance cover relating to the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project; [148713]
(13) for what reason bills of quantities for the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project have been approved without packages for front end engineering design. [148717]
Hilary Benn: DFID is not directly involved in funding or implementing this project. DFID therefore does not have first-hand information on detailed implementation issues concerning quality assurance and control audits, internal audits, quality assurance and quality control, project design change orders, accreditation of contractors, project completion certificates, levels of insurance, fiscal accountability and transparency measures, and bills of quantities.
However, DFID is confident that the World Bank's systems for the monitoring and implementation of this project, and for the investigation of any warranted complaints are appropriate.
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Since the project was approved in June 2000, exceptional resources have been allocated by the Bank and the International Finance Corporation, to monitor and support the project's implementation against Internationally agreed standards. This includes the establishment of the Independent Inspection Panel (IIP) and the External Compliance Monitoring Group (ECMG).
In relation to the quality of auditing and fiscal accountability, Bank policy identifies two sets of appropriate auditing standards: the International Standards on Auditing published by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the Auditing Standards published by the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions. Project arrangements provide for regular audits of the Chad/Cameroon pipeline projects accounts, plus independent opinions from the International Advisory Group (IAG) and the External Compliance and Monitoring Group (ECMG), which carries out regular independent supervisions of the technical and environmental aspects of the project, and from the Inspection Panel which may investigate complaints from people who believe they have been negatively affected by a World Bank project.
The Chad/Cameroon pipeline is subject to a number of monitoring and supervision controls to ensure quality control, application of environmental regulations, design and implementation adhere to International rules and regulations. The Environmental Management Plan (EMP) has strict requirements and specifications, and compliance with these by all parties is spelled out in legally binding agreements. Strong remedies are provided in legal agreements with all parties in case they fail to comply with this obligation. The EMP represents an extensive analysis of the potential environmental and social impacts of the project.
The World Bank are being advised by the ECMG in monitoring the implementation of the Environmental Management Plan, and by an International Advisory Group on broader implementation issues, including those that need to be addressed to achieve the project's developmental objectives. Both the ECMG and IAG make regular site visits. These third party reviews supplement the Bank's own monitoring and supervision of the project which includes site visits, internal reporting and continual discussions with the project sponsors.
The above measures are additional to on-going monitoring by the Consortium and by the Governments of Chad and Cameroon. The Consortium provide quarterly reports which are publicly available.
DFID's interest is as a member of the Executive Board of the World Bank. We do and will continue to take our role on the Executive Board seriously, ensuring that issues identified by the Independent Inspection Panel and External Compliance Monitoring Group are raised, monitored and rectified.
The investigation reports mentioned are available in the public domain and can be found on http://www.worldbank.org/afr/ccproi/index.htm.
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