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Iraq

Mr. Ancram: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 17 May 2004, Official Report, columns 748–49W, on Iraq, prior to the Prime Minister reading the International Committee of the Red Cross report on 10 May, what the first date was on which an official working in No. 10 Downing Street saw the report; and what action was taken concerning the report between it first being received at No. 10 Downing Street and 10 May. [175568]

 
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The Prime Minister: The report was first received in No. 10 Downing Street by an official on the evening of 9 May. Officials investigated what action had been taken and were made aware that action into the allegations of abuse in respect of UK forces was already in hand. As I have already made clear, I first saw the report on 10 May.

People's Peers Road Shows

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister whether the practice of people's peers road shows to solicit applications has been discontinued. [175304]

The Prime Minister: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 13 November 2003, Official Report, column 430W.

World Environment Day

Sue Doughty: To ask the Prime Minister if he will take steps to mark World Environment Day on 5 June; and if he will make a statement. [175104]

The Prime Minister: The Government and the Environment Agency are working together on a campaign to mark World Environment Day. This will include asking the public to sign the "Pledge to the Future" to identify ways they can improve their local environment, and a publicity campaign by the Environment Agency on how businesses can make their organisations more sustainable.

TRANSPORT

Flight Security (Northern Ireland)

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether a senior citizen's pass with photographic image is an acceptable form of identity for security purposes when flying between Great Britain   and Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [173600]

Mr. McNulty: While passengers on international flights are required to carry appropriate travel documentation in the form of passports, visas etc., there is no requirement for passengers to carry identification on domestic flights. We are aware that a number of carriers have instituted such a rule. This measure, and determination of what types of identification are acceptable, is part of the aircraft operator's own conditions of carriage. They usually provide clear indications to would-be passengers on their websites etc. of such requirements but in case of doubt or dispute, queries should be addressed directly to the airline concerned.

Blue Badges

Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what percentage of people in Great Britain are in receipt of a Blue Badge for disabled drivers. [175866]

Mr. McNulty: The Blue Badge scheme provides a national arrangement of parking concessions for severely disabled people who travel either as drivers or
 
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passengers. Approximately 2.41 million people in Great Britain are currently in receipt of a Blue Badge. This equates to about 4 per cent. of the population.

Civil Servants

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many civil servants in his Department are employed to deal with local transport plans and annual progress reports submitted to his Department by local authorities. [174169]

Mr. McNulty: The Department employs five civil servants to deal with Local Transport Plans and Annual Progress Reports alongside their other duties. As well as the five officials currently employed by DfT, four to six staff in each of the eight regional Government offices also deal with LTPs and APRs alongside their other duties.

Computer File Formats

Mr. Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's policy is in respect of the computer file formats used for the (a) distribution and (b) archiving of publicly available documents. [173364]

Mr. McNulty: The DfT website (http://www.dft.gov.uk) provides access to publicly available documents in a range of formats. The majority of content is made available in Hypertext Mark Up Language (HTML), Portable Document Format (PDF) and Microsoft WORD. All images contained within documents are made available in Graphic Interchange Format (GIF) or Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) formats depending on the complexity of the image. Statistical data tables are provided in Excel, Comma separated values (CSV) and PDF format.

The same formats apply for documents held in archive areas of the website.

Crime (Public Transport)

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many assaults were committed on buses in each year since 1997; [175454]

(2) how many bus drivers were assaulted on duty in each year since 1997. [175455]

Mr. McNulty: The following table shows the number of bus-related assaults reported to this Department by Transport for London and, for outside London, by a panel of PSV operators.

	Total number of assaults on bus crews and passengers in Great Britain	Total number of assaults on bus crews in Great Britain
1997	2,556	1,899
1998	2,195	1,594
1999	2,369	1,680
2000(9)	1,988	1,036
2001	n/a	2,592
2002	n/a	2,874

⁽⁹⁾ Figures for 2000 exclude assaults on bus crews in London.

The Safer Travel on Buses and Coaches Panel (STOP) has been established to look at ways to combat assaults, anti-social behaviour and vandalism at stops and
 
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stations and on vehicles and property. The panel brings together those involved in dealing with the issue of safety and security, and includes operators, local authorities, police and unions. It is charged with the important task of facilitating the exchange of ideas and spreading best practice and is considering how the collection of accurate bus and coach crime data can be improved.

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many crimes of a sexual nature were committed (a) on buses and (b) at bus stops in each year since 1997. [175456]

Mr. McNulty: There were 60 sexual assaults on bus passengers in 1997 and 90 in 1998. It is not possible to distinguish between crimes of a sexual nature committed on buses and at bus stops. No data are held centrally for subsequent years.

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many acts of vandalism were committed on buses in each year since 1997. [175458]

Mr. McNulty: No data are held centrally on the number of acts of vandalism committed on buses in each year since 1997. However, it is estimated that the average annual cost per operator outside London resulting from acts of vandalism was £31,459 in 2002.

Ministerial Travel

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many coach journeys Ministers have   taken on departmental business in each year since 1997. [175072]

Mr. McNulty: The Department for Transport was formed on 29 May 2002. Information about the mode of transport used by Ministers on departmental business is not held centrally. Ministers frequently use a variety of    public transport services when undertaking departmental business.

Nuclear Installations (Air Exclusion Zones)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on how many occasions since 2000 the Civil Aviation Authority has investigated alleged breaches of the air exclusion zones around nuclear installations. [175080]

Mr. McNulty: Since 2000, the CAA has received 72 reports of breaches of the air exclusion zones around nuclear installations. 12 formal investigations have been carried out resulting in two prosecutions, one formal caution, three warning letters and two dismissed by the courts for insufficient evidence. The remaining four are in progress and may result in prosecution.

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