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Burundi

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action his Department is taking to support the Arusha Accord, with particular reference to the stipulation within the Accord for elections to take place before the end of October. [160081]

Mr. Mullin: The UK strongly supports the Arusha accord and has provided political and financial support to Burundi since the Accord was signed in 2000. In financial year 2003–04, the UK has made £11.6 million available for Burundi. We provided £3.7 million to supply equipment to the Mozambican contingent of the African Mission in Burundi.

We recognise that there are many issues which need addressing before elections can be held satisfactorily and continue to encourage the government of Burundi to work to resolve them.

Butler Committee

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many individuals have expressed an interest in submitting evidence to the Butler Committee on intelligence; and how many independent submissions have been received to date. [159942]

Mr. Rammell: This is a matter for the Butler Review Committee.

Chad

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Chad over the level of forced migration into Chad from the Sudan. [160185]

Mr. Mullin: Our embassy in Khartoum has discussed the conflict in Darfur with the Chadian embassy in Khartoum. We are also in close contact with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva and their field teams in eastern Chad. The Department for International Development is one of the largest donors to UNHCR operations in Chad for

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Sudanese refugees, having provided £1 million in October 2003 in response to the initial US$16 million appeal.

Colombia

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the EU Commissioner for external relations regarding the Colombian Government's democratic security policies and Colombia's compliance with UN human rights recommendations; and if he will make a statement on areas of disagreement between the UK Government and the Commissioner. [159606]

Mr. Rammell: We followed closely the recent visit to Colombia of the EU Commissioner for External Relations which took place in January. We have no differences in view with the Commissioner about Colombia. The EU's latest position on Colombia—with which the UK is fully aligned—was set out in Conclusions of the General Affairs and External Relations Council of 26 January, following the Commissioner's visit.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government will take in response to non-compliance of the Colombian Government with UN human rights recommendations. [159646]

Mr. Rammell: The British Government keep in close touch with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Colombia and we take careful note of the matters raised in relevant UN reports on the situation in Colombia. The recommendations of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights remain a key issue for follow up to the London Declaration of July 2003. The UK and its EU partners have made clear to the Colombian Government the importance of progress on these areas. We await the next Report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Colombia which is due to be published shortly. Its conclusions will assist the UK, the EU and the rest of the international community to focus on priority areas where further progress is needed.

Correspondence

Mr. Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 10 November 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to M. Sam. [159983]

Mr. Mullin: I refer my right hon. Friend to my answers of 18 December 2003, Official Report, column 1107W, and 6 January 2004, Official Report, columns 240–41W. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary replied to my right hon. Friend's letter on 16 December 2003.

Environmentally Sustainable Procurement

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in what ways environmentally sustainable procurement strategies within the Department have driven innovation in the design and supply of products. [159103]

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Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has a Sustainable Procurement policy which promotes the purchase of recycled products (such as paper and toner cartridges); sustainably grown timber for construction and office furniture; and fair trade goods (such as coffee, tea and chocolate) for sale in the FCO restaurants and shop. We ensure that FCO contracts include environmental requirements. We are for example currently considering with potential suppliers if our existing computer printers, photocopiers and fax equipment can be replaced with more energy-efficient multifunctional devices. We also buy "green electricity" which supports the development of renewable energy sources.

European Union

Mr. Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had on reform of the EU's institutions to make enlargement work. [160254]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and I have regular discussions with our European Colleagues on developments in the European Union, including on institutional issues. The Irish Presidency will report back to the European Council on 25–26 March 2004 on its assessment of the prospects for progress in the Intergovernmental Conference, on the basis of its consultations with member states.

Mr. Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures are being considered in the context of the Intergovernmental Conference to reform the working of the EU to make it more (a) effective and (b) accountable. [160265]

Mr. MacShane: I refer my hon. Friend to Cm5934, the Government's White Paper on their approach to the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC). Chapter IV ("The Convention Outcome and Detailed Issues of the IGC", especially paragraph 42) sets out details of a number of measures under consideration in the IGC designed to make the EU more effective and accountable. Copies of the paper are available in the Library of the House.

Falkland Islands

Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the sustainability of the economy of the Falkland Islands. [159873]

Mr. Rammell: Through careful management of its fishery industry, the Falkland Island Government generates over £20 million per annum in licence fees. Other sectors such as agricultural production also remain important. The Falklands economy has grown rapidly since 1982 and the Falkland Island Government continues to work to ensure that it remains diverse and sustainable for the future. This includes the continued development of sectors such as tourism and mineral resources. With the exception of defence costs, the Falkland Islands receive no grant in aid from Her Majesty's Government.

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Gibraltar

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much money his Department has spent on the tercentenary celebrations in Gibraltar. [160694]

Mr. MacShane: At this early stage in Gibraltar's tercentenary year, Foreign and Commonwealth Office expenditure on tercentenary events has been limited to the cost of Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff time devoted to the issue.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what role he has agreed with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will play in the tercentenary celebrations. [160695]

Mr. MacShane: This is a matter for the Gibraltar Government.

International Criminal Court

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the operation to date of the International Criminal Court. [159936]

Mr. Rammell: The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established by the Rome Statute, which entered into force on 1 July 2002. Work began shortly afterwards to prepare for the appointment of officials to the court's three main organs; the chambers (comprising 18 judges), the Office of the Prosecutor and the Registry.

The judges were subsequently elected in February 2003, the Prosecutor (Luis Moreno Ocampo, Argentina) was elected in April 2003 and the Registrar (Bruno Cathala, France) was elected in June 2003. The court opened for business with the swearing in of the prosecutor on 16 June 2003 followed by the swearing in of a Deputy Prosecutor (Serge Brammertz, Belgium) on 3 November 2003.

The prosecutor has yet to start his first formal investigation. He has been conducting preliminary examinations into the situations in Ituri (Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo) and northern Uganda. In December 2003, the Ugandan Government referred the situation in northern Uganda to the ICC. The prosecutor then announced in January 2004 that he would consider that situation further in order to determine whether to proceed with a formal investigation.

The UK is fully committed to supporting the ICC and is engaged in dialogue with the court at official level to consider ways of providing effective practical support.

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