| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
2 Mar 2004 : Column 836W—continued
Libya
Mr. Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on developing British relations with Libya. [157015]
Mr. Rammell: Libya's announcement, on 19 December 2003, that it would dismantle its Weapons of Mass Destruction programmes opened the way to Libya's reintegration into the international community.
The visit of the Libyan Foreign Minister, Abdul Rahman Shalgam, to the UK from 9 to 10 February was tangible proof of the improving relations between Libya and the UK. Discussions covered a broad range of bilateral and regional issues.
The UK and Libya will now seek to build on these contacts to develop further our political, cultural and commercial ties, helping Libya in its aim of restructuring its economy and co-operating in tackling terrorism.
The Government will continue to seek progress on the difficulties that remain between the United Kingdom and Libya. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has had an assurance from Foreign Minister Shalgam that Libya stands by the commitments it has given on the Lockerbie bombing and on the investigation into the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher.
Non-military Overseas Sites
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the overseas sites which are owned by the Government for non-military purposes; and if he will make a statement on the Government's disposals policy for them. [157164]
Mr. Rammell: The National Asset Register lists overseas properties (over a book value of £3,000) owned by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. All such assets are held for diplomatic use. The latest edition of the register, published in July 2001 (Cm5221), can be found at: www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/mediastore/otherfiles/218.pdf
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has an on-going programme of estate modernisation. Under an agreement with the Treasury, land or buildings that are surplus, not operationally effective or not providing value for money, are sold and the proceeds are then reinvested.
North Korea
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to promote cultural and sporting exchanges between the United Kingdom and North Korea. [157539]
2 Mar 2004 : Column 837W
Mr. Rammell: We are not specifically promoting any cultural or sporting events between the UK and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the (a) size and (b) value of heroin exports from North Korea in each of the last five years. [157543]
Mr. Rammell: There is no evidence that heroin has been trafficked through North Korea to the UK in significant quantities during the period in question.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) the UNHCR in Geneva and (b) his counterparts in the European Union about possible visits by international inspection teams to assess prison conditions in North Korea. [157537]
Mr. Rammell: UNHCR's responsibility is for the welfare of refugees and, as such, it has no mandate to inspect prisons in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
In the EU, the issue has been discussed by member states regularly. The resolution on DPRK at the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2003, tabled by the EU, included a specific request for the North Korean authorities to allow inspection visits by international independent monitors.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the size of the prison population in North Korea. [157538]
Mr. Rammell: The US Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, in a report dated October 2003, estimated the prison population of North Korea to be around two hundred thousand.
We have no access to any more accurate and reliable figures.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the nature and extent of the United Kingdom's diplomatic ties with North Korea are. [157542]
Mr. Rammell: The UK and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) established full diplomatic relations on 12 December 2000. The British Embassy in Pyongyang was established in July 2001, and the DPRK Embassy in London was established in November 2002.
Through both Embassies we ensure that we take regular opportunities to emphasise to the DPRK authorities our strong concerns on human rights and on the nuclear issue. We make clear that the scope of our co-operation with the DPRK will remain severely limited until progress is made on meeting these concerns.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his estimate is of per capita income in (a) North Korea and (b) South Korea in 2004. [157544]
Mr. Rammell: South Korea's average income per capita in 2002 (latest year for which actual figures are available) was US$9,979. This year, the figure is expected to reach around US$12,000, owing to economic growth and appreciation of the Korean won against the US dollar.
2 Mar 2004 : Column 838W
The North Korean government does not publish economic statistics. Reliable figures for per capita incomes are therefore unavailable. However, the Bank of Korea (South Korea's central bank) estimate average per capita incomes in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in 2002 was US$760. The figure is unlikely to have changed significantly since then.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect of trade sanctions by the United States on the economy of North Korea. [157556]
Mr. Rammell: The US lifted trade sanctions on North Korea in 2000, although US exports of arms and certain products with possible military use remain banned. Despite the lifting of sanctions, trade flows are small—IMF figures for 2002 show the US exporting only US$25 million worth of goods to North Korea in 2002 and importing less than US$l million.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the incidence of (a) infanticide and (b) torture in prisons in North Korea. [157568]
Mr. Rammell: We are appalled by the reports of infanticide, torture and other inhumane treatment carried out in North Korean prisons. We have expressed our concerns regularly to the North Korean government at both ministerial and official levels, and have called for access by international monitors to verify the conditions in North Korean prisons. I recently called in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea Ambassador to register my strong concerns.
Parliamentary Questions
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many parliamentary questions have been tabled to his Department since 1 January 2003, broken down by (a) ordinary written and (b) named day; what percentage in respect of (a) were answered within 10 working days; and what percentage in respect of (b) were answered by the specified date. [157744]
Mr. Straw: As of 27 February 2004, 3,668 written parliamentary questions (PQs) had been tabled to my Department since 1 January 2003, of which 3031 were for ordinary written answer and 637 for answer on named day.
Since 1 January 2003, 94 per cent. of ordinary written PQs have been answered within 10 working days and 74 per cent. of named day PQs answered on time.
Russia
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Russian Foreign Minister about EU enlargement. [157397]
Mr. Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary maintains regular dialogue with his Russian counterpart on a range of issues, including EU enlargement and EU/Russia relations.
2 Mar 2004 : Column 839W
Scholarships
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost of Foreign Office scholarships for each year from 1996–97 to 2005–06 (planned); what value for money assessment has been made of the scheme; and if he will make a statement. [156605]
Mr. Mullin: Annual costs of Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) scholarships during the period are:
| Number of scholars | Cost (£ million) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 | 2,198 | 34 |
| 1997–98 | 2,259 | 36 |
| 1998–99 | 2,196 | 39 |
| 1999–2000 | 2,300 | 40 |
| 2000–01 | 2,470 | 45 |
| 2001–02 | 2,510 | 46 |
| 2002–03 | 2,568 | 48 |
| 2003–04 | (15)2,487 | (16)49 |
| 2004–05 | n/k | (16)49 |
| 2005–06 | n/k | (16)49 |
(15) estimated
(16) planned
n/k = not known
FCO scholarships include Chevening Scholarships, Marshall Scholarships, Atlantic Fellowships and the FCO contribution to the UK input into the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan.
An external review of FCO scholarships in 2003 examined value for money issues and recommended some reprioritisation within the Chevening scholarships scheme in particular. I will place a copy in the Library of the House.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |