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20 Jan 2004 : Column 1162W—continued
Robert Ellis
Mr. Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations on behalf of Mr. Robert Ellis were made by the Minister of State when he visited Turkey this month. [149392]
Mr. MacShane: The case of Mr. Robert Ellis was discussed during my meeting with the Head of the Turkish European Secretariat General (equivalent to the European Secretariat) in Ankara on 13 January. As the right hon. Member is already aware from my letter to him of 7 January 2004, the Ambassador and his staff have made vigorous efforts on behalf of Mr. Ellis during the last six years.
Departmental Relocation
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assessment his Department has made of the benefits of re-location of staff to North Staffordshire; and if he will make a statement; [146865]
- (2) what assessment he has made of the effect of proposals to relocate Government jobs on the Department's ability to meet (a) departmental policy objectives and (b) departmental public service agreements; [146881]
(3) what assessment his Department has made of the effect of possible relocation of staff in his Department to North Staffordshire on (a) job creation, (b) sustainable development, (c) the local economy and (d) tackling regional economic disparities; and if he will make a statement; [146894]
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(4) what plans he has to establish procedures for assessing the impact of possible re-location of staff in his Department to the regions; and if he will make a statement. [146925]
Mr. Straw: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury gave on 12 January 2003, Official Report, column 516W.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff in his Department work in (a) the West Midlands and (b) North Staffordshire. [146910]
Mr. Straw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office do not employ staff in the West Midlands or North Staffordshire. UKTI (jointly responsible to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and me) fund the delivery of services through a Regional UKTI Team and staff employed by the Business Link/Chamber network in the region.
In the West Midlands the total number of staff working on the UKTI agenda is 41 of which 19 are civil servants (employed by the Government Office on UKTIs behalf). The Staffordshire UKTI Team consists of eight (two civil servants) and of these five are based in North Staffordshire (one civil servant).
Entry Clearance
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many entry clearance applications were (a) made and (b) refused worldwide in each of the last six years. [147064]
Mr. Mullin: The following table shows the number of entry clearance applications received and refused worldwide during each year from 1998. Since 2001, statistics have been collated by financial year (1 April to 31 March) rather than calendar year.
| Year | Received | Refused |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 1,462,599 | 85,041 |
| 1999 | 1,514,764 | 100,616 |
| 2000 | 1,674,110 | 117,142 |
| FY 2001–2002 | 1,750,459 | 176,217 |
| FY 2002–2003 | 1,941,910 | 249,830 |
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many entry clearance applications were (a) received and (b) refused in (i) India, (ii) Pakistan, (iii) China, (iv) Nigeria, (v) Ghana, (vi) Russia, (vii) Poland, (viii) Ukraine, (ix) Zimbabwe and (x) the Philippines in each of the last six years. [147065]
Mr. Mullin: The following table shows the numbers of entry clearance applications received in the countries specified during each year from 1998. Since 2001, statistics have been collated by financial year (1 April to 31 March) rather than by calendar year.
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The following table shows the numbers of entry clearance applications refused in the countries specified during each year from 1998.
| Country | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | FY 2001–02 | FY 2002–03 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | 14,261 | 18,187 | 20,622 | 24,136 | 39,642 |
| Pakistan | 10,493 | 15,214 | 15,989 | 32,324 | 10,173 |
| China | 2,602 | 3,727 | 6,363 | 10,399 | 14,210 |
| Nigeria | 10,073 | 10,044 | 12,139 | 16,711 | 33,221 |
| Ghana | 5,078 | 5,355 | 7,783 | 21,016 | 33,985 |
| Russia | 2,105 | 1,248 | 1,421 | 2,552 | 2,331 |
| Poland | 116 | 115 | 213 | 109 | 178 |
| Ukraine | 2,580 | 2,843 | 3,121 | 3,794 | 3,862 |
| Zimbabwe | 254 | 222 | 444 | 555 | 4,240 |
| Philippines | 1,584 | 1,274 | 1,161 | 1,761 | 4,074 |
The significant increase in figures for received and refused applications in Zimbabwe during the financial year 2002–2003 is the result of the implementation of the Visa regime in Zimbabwe on 8 November 2002 coupled with the increased demand for visas because of the unstable political situation in Zimbabwe during this period.
Ethiopia/Eritrea
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what involvement the Government's representative had in promoting acceptance of the Boundary Commission Report on the border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea; and if he will make a statement. [148301]
Mr. Mullin: I, together with our Ambassadors in Addis Ababa and Asmara, take every opportunity to emphasise to both parties that the Boundary Commission's decision is final and binding; that both should avoid any return to war; and that dialogue is essential to address all the issues separating Ethiopia and Eritrea. I visited Eritrea and Ethiopia between 13 and 19 January during which time I had extensive discussions on the border with a range of interested parties including President Isaias of Eritrea and Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia.
Ghana
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that Ghana adheres to international standards on human rights. [148157]
Mr. Mullin: Ghana generally performs well on human rights issues. We welcome the fact that Ghana has signed up to and ratified the six major UN treaties on human rights. Ghana also volunteered to be one of the
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first countries to participate in the African Peer Review Mechanism (a voluntary process to monitor and raise governance standards in Africa).
We regularly meet with the Government of Ghana to discuss a range of governance issues and raise concerns on human rights in this context. We regularly lobby the Ghanaians on the removal of the death penalty from their statute book.
Lockerbie
Mr. David Marshall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government will seek to recoup any of the costs incurred in (a) investigations into the Lockerbie bombing and (b) holding the (i) trial and (ii) appeal by the accused; and if he will make a statement. [143009]
Mr. Rammell: There are arrangements in place for the US Government to contribute to the overall costs of the Lockerbie trial and appeal. There is no power in Scottish criminal procedure to make awards of expenses against the accused.
Mr. David Marshall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total cost to the UK taxpayer was of the (a) investigations into the Lockerbie bombing, (b) trial of those accused of the bombing and (c) appeal by the accused. [143010]
Mr. Rammell: Responsibility for the accounting of all costs of the Lockerbie trial and its aftermath is a matter for the Scottish Executive. They calculate that the total costs of holding the trial in the Netherlands, including pre-trial and appeal costs, amounted to £75.8 million.
Middle East
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of progress in the implementation of the Middle East roadmap proposals. [148467]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer 19 January 2004]: Despite the welcome undertakings made at the Aqaba Summit, there has been a disappointing lack of progress on the roadmap's Phase One requirements. Israel has implemented neither the settlement freeze nor the dismantling of settlement outposts erected since March 2001. The Palestinian Authority has not begun sustained, targeted and effective operations against terrorists. Both sides should now simultaneously fulfil the obligations they have both accepted under Phase One of the roadmap.
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