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Pre-School Places

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on what basis SEELB provides a greater number of funded pre-school places to the statutory nursery school sector than to the private/voluntary sector in Newtownards; and for what reason the playschool at Londonderry Primary School has not attracted any funded places. [149612]

Jane Kennedy: In Newtownards there are currently 234 pre-school places in statutory nurseries and 136 in settings in the voluntary and private sector. Of these, 52 statutory places and all of the voluntary and private places were created by the Pre-school Education Expansion Programme. The planning of pre-school provision and the allocation of voluntary/private sector places is a matter for each Board's Pre-School Education Advisory Group (PEAG), which identifies shortfalls in funded pre-school provision at local area level. The intention was that new places created under the programme for Northern Ireland as a whole would be broadly on a 50:50 basis between the statutory and voluntary/private sectors, though at local level the ratio varies considerably, depending mainly on the level of provision prior to the programme. In Newtownards, most of the statutory provision pre-dated the expansion programme.

The number of pre-school places which the South Eastern Education and Library Board's PEAG is funding in Newtownards is already sufficient to satisfy the demand from the parents of children in their

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immediate pre-school year. It is not necessary, therefore, for the PEAG to introduce additional providers such as the playschool at Londonderry Primary school.

Pulmonary Disease

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate the cost of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the NHS in 2003. [150742]

Angela Smith: Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be compiled only at disproportionate cost.

Racism

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what evidence he has received of paramilitary group involvement in racist acts of vandalism carried out on peace walls between Protestant and Catholic communities; and if he will make a statement. [151138]

Jane Kennedy: I am not aware of any racist acts of vandalism that have taken place on peacelines between Protestant and Catholic communities by paramilitary groups however racist graffiti was removed from the gable wall of the home of a Chinese family living in the Donegal Road area. This graffiti was removed at the request of the PSNI.

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on swastika-style graffiti on peace walls in Belfast. [151139]

Jane Kennedy: It is a fact that in Northern Ireland many peacelines have become the canvas for a wide range of social and political comment, some of which many would find offensive.

The Government will seek to remove graffiti that is considered likely to cause a breach of the peace.

SARS

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on preparations to deal with cases of SARS in Northern Ireland. [151213]

Angela Smith: In June 2003 the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety set up a Northern Ireland SARS Taskforce charged, inter alia, with preparing a contingency Plan for SARS in Northern Ireland. This in turn led to the establishment of eight sub-groups drawn from the HPSS to take forward various aspects of SARS preparation and these groups reported to a Conference in Belfast on 8 December at which the Contingency Plan was also launched. A tabletop exercise, to test the Plan, was held the following day and the lessons learned from that will be incorporated into the Plan at the next reprint.

The Contingency Plan includes arrangements for any one (or all) of three acute hospitals to be designated to deal with SARS patients. Plans for upgrading work at these, and other hospitals with A&E Departments, are in preparation, while steps to provide personal protection equipment (PPE) for health care workers, including GPs, in contact with suspected SARS cases

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are also well advanced. A training package video/CD Rom covering a number of issues including infection control and the use of PPE has also been prepared for distribution to the service.

The Department has also opened a special SARS website with information both for health professionals and members of the public.

School Funding

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much funding (a) integrated and (b) Irish Language schools have received in each of the last five years. [148769]

Jane Kennedy: The total funding allocated directly to (a) integrated and (b) Irish Language schools in each of the last five years is as follows:

£000

	Integrated	Irish Language
1998–99	46,146	5,533
1999–2000	53,587	5,216
2000–01	52,510	5,154
2001–02	51,257	4,759
2002–03	58,841	5,946

Notes:

1. The figures include (a) recurrent and capital funding awarded directly to both grant maintained and controlled integrated schools and Irish Language schools, (b) EU Peace I and Peace II funding awarded directly to both grant maintained and controlled integrated schools, and (c) funding provided to integrated and Irish Language schools through the Londonderry Regeneration Initiative and the Belfast Regeneration Office.

2. The above figures exclude services provided by the Education and Library Boards for schools, which are not disaggregated by individual sector or school (for example: services such as school meals, school transport and the Curriculum Advisory and Support Services).

School Travel

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the overall cost was of free travel to schools in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [148763]

Jane Kennedy: In the 2002–03 financial year the Education and Library Boards provided home to school transport assistance to almost 100,000 pupils. The cost of providing this service was £57.2 million.

Schoolchildren (Back Injuries)

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what measures are in place in Northern Ireland to protect children from sustaining back injuries from carrying excessively heavy schoolbags to, in and from school; and if he will make a statement. [148813]

Jane Kennedy: School boards of governors have a duty to safeguard the welfare of registered pupils on the school premises. The Department of Education provides funding for lockers for pupils' learning materials in post-primary schools with the agreement of the school authorities. Pupils share the responsibility for ensuring that they only carry to and from school those materials and equipment essential for homework or school activities for that day. Parents are generally

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responsible for making arrangements to protect the health and welfare of the children outside the school premises.

Sexual Health

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to promote sexual health among young people in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [151324]

Angela Smith: The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety is working with other interested Departments and organisations to promote sexual health and wellbeing. A draft Sexual Health Promotion Strategy and Action Plan, which aims to improve, protect and promote the sexual health and wellbeing of the population of Northern Ireland, was issued for three months consultation in December 2003. It sets a target to reduce the number of sexually transmitted infections and identifies those aged under 20 as a priority group. It also proposes actions in the areas of prevention, education and training, services and data collection and research.

A Teenage Pregnancy and Parenthood Strategy and Action Plan was also published at the beginning of 2003 and it contains challenging targets to reduce teenage pregnancies. A multi-agency Implementation Group has been established to take the Strategy forward. The Group has identified education support, confidentiality, services and parent/child communication as priority areas for action.

Solectron

Mr. Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what grants have been paid to Solectron Northern Ireland towards the cost of establishing factories in Northern Ireland. [151003]

Mr. Pearson: None. Although Solectron accepted an offer of grant assistance from Invest NI dated 10 May 2001, the company did not seek to draw down any of the grants offered.

Special Educational Needs

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average time between referral of pupils for statutory assessment and receiving the required assistance for (a) learning difficulties, (b) speech and language, (c) autism, (d) behavioural difficulties and (e) medical needs within the South Eastern Education and Library Board was in the last year for which figures are available. [149784]

Jane Kennedy: The information requested is not readily available and could be provided by the South-Eastern Education Library Board only at disproportionate cost.

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