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Cyprus

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress with the Kofi Annan plan for Cyprus. [157903]

Mr. MacShane: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Mr. Hawkins) on 27 February 2004, Official Report, column 580W, and also to the reply my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary gave to the hon. Member for Taunton (Mr. Flook) in the House on 2 March 2004, Official Report, column 748. We will keep the House informed as matters progress.

Gibraltar

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will next visit Gibraltar; and how he will celebrate the 300th anniversary of British rule in Gibraltar. [157986]

Mr. MacShane: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Poole (Mr. Syms) in the House on 2 March 2004, Official Report, column 749. Foreign engagements for my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and other Ministers are kept under constant review. It is not the practice to announce such visits until they are firm. Because of the unpredictable nature of world events, final decisions on overseas visits are often not possible until very shortly before the day of travel and occasionally not until they are under way.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the future of Gibraltar. [159087]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) on 16 December 2003, Official Report, column 1417.

Iran

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what new information has been (a) made available by the Iranian authorities and (b) discovered by the International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors in respect of Iran's nuclear programme since the trilateral agreement with Iran, France and Germany, concluded in 2003. [158237]

Mr. MacShane: Since the signing of the trilateral agreement, Iran has made a declaration to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) covering its nuclear programmes. The IAEA Director-General presented a report of the Agency's findings to the IAEA Board of Governors' meeting in November 2003 and

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will present a further report at the next meeting, scheduled for the week beginning 8 March. The text of the November report is available on the IAEA's internet website at www.iaea.org.

Iraq

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the United Kingdom experts working as part of the Iraq Survey Group have full access to the Iraqi declaration to the United Nations Security Council on its weapons of mass destruction programmes dated 8 December 2002. [157155]

Mr. MacShane: UK experts on the ground in Iraq do not have direct access to the declaration.

They are, however, supported by analysts in the Ministry of Defence, by whom they were briefed before departing for Iraq and whom they are able to consult at any time about any aspect of Iraq's WMD programmes.

Legal Aid

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to partners in the EU concerning provision of legal aid to UK citizens arrested on civil or criminal charges. [156227]

Mr. Mullin: There is no EU directive in force concerning the provision of legal aid to EU nationals in other member states who have been arrested on civil or criminal charges. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made no representations on this issue. The provision of legal aid is subject to each member state's domestic law or bilateral agreements with the UK. If a British national detained in an EU country is denied legal aid when that British national believes they have an entitlement, under local law or bilateral agreement, our consular staff stand ready to raise that individual's concerns with the local authorities. Although not affecting the types of cases raised in this question, a new directive concerning legal aid in cross-border civil or commercial disputes will come into effect in November 2004.

Turkey

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Turkish Government regarding (a) the imprisonment of Mr. Abdullah Ocalan and (b) visits to Mr. Ocalan by the Red Cross. [158301]

Mr. MacShane: We have not made representations to the Turkish Government regarding the imprisonment of Mr. Ocalan or on visits to Mr. Ocalan by the Red Cross/Crescent. However, we monitor Mr. Ocalan's imprisonment closely and officials from the British embassy in Turkey have discussed the situation with Mr. Ocalan's lawyers. We continue to make frequent representations on human rights reform, including the rights and conditions for all prisoners, for example, during the ongoing bilateral human rights dialogue, the next round of which will be in late spring 2004.

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Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the (a) EU and (b) Turkish Government on language and broadcasting rights in Turkey. [158302]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary frequently discusses this issue at the European Councils—the Council Conclusions in December referred to the need for further efforts regarding cultural rights. Our strong support for Turkey's EU candidature means we are always looking for ways to help Turkey meet the Copenhagen political criteria, which include cultural rights. The Foreign Secretary reiterated our position during his visit to Istanbul on 3 March.

During my visit to Turkey in January this year, I raised the need for prompt implementation of all reforms with ambassador Sungar, Head of the European Secretariat General and Foreign Minister Gul. At official level, monthly EU working groups discuss progress on reforms, including those mentioned by the hon. Member. Officials in the British embassy in Turkey follow the situation closely by means of their contacts with all levels of Turkish civil society and Government.

Zelimkhan Yanderbiyev

Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on (a) the arrest by Russian authorities of two Qatari sportsmen and (b) the arrest of two Russians in Qatar following the assassination of Zelimkhan Yanderbiyev. [158587]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We understand that three Russian citizens were arrested in Qatar following the murder of Zelimkhan Yanderbiyev. We support the authorities in Qatar in their continuing investigations, and expect Russia to co-operate fully. We also understand that two men with connections to Qatar were detained by the Russian authorities in Moscow on 26 February.

Zimbabwe

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take harsher measures against the Zimbabwe Government. [159086]

Mr. Mullin: We agree on the need for tough measures against the Mugabe Government. With our strong support, the European Union decided on 19 February to increase the number of senior Zimbabwean figures on its travel ban and assets freeze from 79 to 95 and to extend those measures for a further 12 months. The measures are specifically targeted on the ZANU-PF leadership and others with direct responsibility for human rights abuses, eroding press freedoms, and harassing civil society.

We do not want to impose harsher measures such as trade and economic sanctions which would hurt the Zimbabwean people. They are already suffering enough as a result of ZANU-PF's ruinous policies.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Estonia

Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for

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Education and Skills what joint projects he has undertaken with the Estonian Government to (a) support the education systems in Estonia and (b) share best practice from the UK education sector; and if he will make a statement. [157438]

Alan Johnson: Our programme of co-operation with the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research includes a School Leadership skills project for young Estonian Headteachers, help with further development of Estonian vocational education and training policies and with strategic planning and quality assurance approaches.

Estonian Headteachers have visited UK schools, LEAs and the National College for School Leadership and British teachers have visited Estonia to look at effective use of ICT in schools. UK and Estonian teachers will be able to share best practice in education through the Global Gateway, a new international website to facilitate school partnerships. There is an ongoing programme of joint seminars, conferences and working groups on topics such as lifelong learning and skills, the role of parents in school governing bodies, ICT in education, education—business links and higher education reform. We are also encouraging and facilitating links between Estonian and UK universities.

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