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11 Feb 2004 : Column 1465W—continued
Sport England
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the (a) technical and financial contracts, (b) technical consultants used
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on a call-off basis and (c) financial consultants used on a call-off basis by Sport England since 1 January 2003; what the nature of the assignment for each consultant was; and what the value of work done by each consultant was. [154122]
Mr. Caborn: Details of contracted consultants for Sport England in the calendar year starting on 1 January 2003 are as follows.
| Name | Service | Type of service | Cost (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| PriceWaterhouseCoopers | Tax/VAT Advice | Regular, ongoing technical advice | 72,479.63 |
| PriceWaterhouseCoopers | Communications; Electronic Document Records; Cash Management and Procurement Strategy | One off consultancies; financial | 76,069.50 |
| PriceWaterhouseCoopers | Internal Audit Advice/Services | Regular, ongoing financial | 17,841.90 |
| Mazars | Internal Audit Advice/Services | Regular, ongoing financial | 67,945.00 |
| Baker Mallett | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 24,200.00 |
| Capita Property Management | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 91,878.50 |
| EC Harris | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 167,180.21 |
| JR Knowles Capital | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 239,414.59 |
| Pick Everard | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 65,921.50 |
| Turner & Townsend | Quantity Surveying and Project Management | Regular, ongoing financial | 160,250.47 |
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
British Indian Ocean Territory
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the income expected this year is from fishing licences in the British Indian Ocean Territories; and what it was in each of the past five years. [153941]
Mr. Rammell: Income this year (financial year 2003–04) to 31 December 2003 from fishing licences was £534,309. We cannot predict the expected income for the final quarter, but it is unlikely that revenue will reach that of previous years.
Income from fishing licences in the past five years in the British Indian Ocean Territory was as follows:
| Financial year | Income (£) |
|---|---|
| 1998–99 | 2,271,595 |
| 1999–2000 | 744,042 |
| 2000–01 | 1,108,072 |
| 2001–02 | 822,497 |
| 2002–03 | 613,060 |
Iraq
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the evidential basis was for the comment by the Minister for State, the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. Mike O'Brien), on Newsnight on 3 February that Iraq is the only country to use weapons of mass destruction. [153927]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: As my hon. Friend knows, Iraq under Saddam Hussein is the only country to have used weapons of mass destruction against both neighbours and its own people. This is a fact that neither my hon. Friend nor any other hon. Member has disputed in the past.
It was this point that I was attempting to make in the discussion when I was interrupted by the presenter of the programme.
Passports/Visas
Mr. Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of the United States on their policy that all visitors from the United Kingdom travelling on passports issued after 16 October without a biometric chip will require a visa; and if he will make a statement. [154470]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary wrote to the US Secretary of State on 16 December 2003 to express concern at the US legislation and suggest that a joint FCO/UK Passport Service delegation visit Washington to discuss ways forward. The team visited Washington from 21–23 January. It asked the US to extend its deadline of 26 October 2004 for visitors' new UK passports to contain either a biometric identifier or a US visa. The US noted the UK position, and a formal response is awaited.
The scale of the technical challenge currently makes the US requirement unachievable for the UK, and most other countries, before the end of 2005.
British citizens visiting the US with machine-readable passports issued before 26 October 2004 are not affected by the new US requirement.
Tristan da Cunha
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visits the Governor of Tristan da Cunha has made to (a) Tristan da Cunha and (b) the Ascension Islands in the last five years. [154198]
Mr. Rammell: The Governor has made four visits to Tristan da Cunha since 2001, the latest of which was in January this year.
The Governor has made 14 visits to Ascension Island in the last five years.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many ministerial visits have been made to (a) Tristan da Cunha and (b) the Ascension Islands in the last five years. [154199]
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Mr. Rammell: There have been no ministerial visits to Tristan da Cunha in the last five years. I visited Ascension Island in November 2003 and took the opportunity to meet with Island Councillors at their Chamber. Ministers also regularly transit the Island on their way to and from the Falkland Islands.
UK Businesses (Exports)
Mr. Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how his Department (a) encourages and (b) assists UK businesses to export. [153866]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: A key role of UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) (formerly British Trade International)—a joint Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department of Trade and Industry department—is to present the benefits of internationalising business as well as equipping firms with the information and capabilities to fulfil their export potential. UKTI encourages and assists business by offering a range of services to companies, details of which are contained in its current Departmental Report issued in May 2003 (Cm 5915). UKTI's Departmental Report for 2003–04 will issue in April 2004. Copies of Departmental Reports are laid in the Library of the House.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Afghanistan
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the extent of the clearing of landmines in Afghanistan in each of the last two years; and what the contribution of the United Kingdom has been. [148115]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: According to figures produced by Landmine Monitor and the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), clearance of landmines and associated activities in Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002, the last years for which reports are available, have been as follows:
| 2001 | 2002 | |
|---|---|---|
| Minefield clearance (sq km) | 15.6 | 19.0 |
| Battle area clearance (sq km) | 81.2 | 92.6 |
| Minefield survey (sq km) | 14.7 | 25.2 |
| Battle area survey (sq km) | 80.8 | 92.5 |
| Mine awareness training (people) | 730,000 | 2,448,151 |
DFID has provided the following sums for mine action in Afghanistan: £3 million in 2001–02 and £1.8 million in 2002–03.
We are currently considering further support for UNMAS in Afghanistan.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the number of Afghan refugees in (a) Pakistan and (b) Iran. [149972]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: The most recent estimate by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), of Afghan refugees in Pakistan is 1.6 million
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individuals. The number, however, is difficult to assess accurately as there has not been a registration since 1995. In addition, there are significant numbers of Afghans in Pakistan who are not refugees. In Iran UNHCR's estimate is 1.9 million. Here most of the Afghan refugees are registered, although there may be a significant margin of error.
Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance
Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what plans his Department has to assist African governments with the implementation of the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Ministerial Declaration; [153151]
- (2) what plans he has to discuss the implementation of the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Ministerial Declaration with the Government of Cameroon; and what steps he is taking to assist the implementation of the indicative actions relating to bushmeat; [153154]
(3) what plans his Department has to combat illegal logging in (a) Ghana and (b) Cameroon in the next 12 months; [153210]
(4) what discussions he has had with the World Bank concerning the implementation of the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Ministerial Declaration; [153212]
(5) if he will discuss the implementation of the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Ministerial Declaration with the Government of Ghana; and what plans he has to assist the implementation of the indicative actions relating to the issue of bushmeat. [153214]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: The Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (AFLEG) Conference was held in Cameroon in October 2003. The Declaration commits timber producing and consuming countries to tackle illegal logging and associated trade. It includes an extensive list of "indicative actions". The Declaration suggested that the World Bank finance a meeting of regional representatives of the AFLEG process and decide on the next steps and the next meeting of the United Nations Forum on Forests, in Geneva in May, is the most suitable occasion for this follow-up and we are in discussion with the World Bank about this. We have also discussed with the World Bank a review of the effects of economic reform programmes on forest law enforcement and governance, as called for in the Declaration.
The UK's support to the AFLEG declaration will be delivered through the EU and through the programmes of the Department for International Development (DFID). The UK is working with the European Commission and member states on the EU Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade. The Action Plan provides for Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) between the EU and timber producing countries. Initial discussions with Cameroon and Ghana on VPAs took place in London in December. Further discussions will be organised by the European Commission and member states with these and other African countries in the coming months.
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At the London meeting in December officials from Cameroon explained that they would incorporate AFLEG follow-up actions within their sector reform programme (the Forest and Environment Sector Programme). This Programme spans forest and wildlife management. It aims to improve governance and will emphasise the involvement of local communities in management. DFID has, with other development agencies, supported the development of this Programme and is currently in discussion with the Government of Cameroon about their future support. Our support will be to the programme as a whole and not to any particular elements of it. In addition to this, over the next twelve months we will continue our support to independent monitoring of timber harvesting by Global Witness.
In Ghana DFID has been supporting a broad programme of forest and wildlife sector reform over many years. This has radically changed the institutions and the way natural resources are managed, promoting better governance and greater accountability. Over the next 12 months the new timber concession system will be implemented which includes better environmental standards and social responsibility agreements with forest fringe communities. In addition, DFID is supporting two new initiatives to improve the involvement and oversight of civil society and Parliament in forest and wildlife management.
The list of "indicative actions" included in the AFLEG Declaration is not a plan of action. We have not singled out support to any "indicative actions" related to bushmeat. Our support to sector reforms in both Ghana and Cameroon does, however, aim to strengthen the capacity of those countries to deal with wildlife and poverty issues. It is for the governments concerned to prioritise actions within their sector reform programmes.
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