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Professional Qualifications Directive

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the proposed European Directive on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications, with particular reference to the impact in Northern Ireland of free movement of health professionals. [175169]

Angela Smith: The proposed European Directive on mutual recognition of professional qualifications aims to consolidate and rationalise existing rules. The Government welcome the simplification of rules and particularly welcomes new provisions for temporary and occasional supply of services. However, free movement must be balanced by a due regard for public health and safety, especially in the field of health. The proposal as it now stands reflects the view, shared by the Commission and the Council, that prior checks are necessary for health professions, before services can be provided on a temporary basis. The rules for prior checking of credentials before permanent practice are unchanged.

Queen's University Belfast

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the costs were of (a) setting up and (b) maintaining in each year since establishment the (i) Omagh and (ii) Armagh campuses of Queen's University Belfast. [175214]

Mr. Gardiner: Queen's University Belfast, like all other UK universities, is an autonomous institution entirely responsible for its own policies and procedures, including decisions relating to the establishment of outreach campuses in Northern Ireland. The costs of setting up and maintaining the campus at Armagh is a matter internal to Queen's University and I am not able to provide details of these costs.

Queen's University does not have a physical campus at Omagh. However, Queen's and Omagh College have, for many years, collaborated to provide a range of joint academic awards in the Omagh region.

Sean O'Cealleogh

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has made to the US Administration about the decision of a US court not to deport Sean O'Cealleogh. [169927]

Mr. Leslie: I have been asked to reply.

The information sought is not readily available, but is presently being collated, and will be provided as soon as possible.

Smoking

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to ban smoking in public places in Northern Ireland. [175213]

Angela Smith: Substantial progress on the provision of smoke-free facilities can be made through the "Five Year Tobacco Action Plan for Northern Ireland", which was published in June 2003. The plan, which was prepared by an inter-sectoral working group, does not propose an outright ban on smoking in public places;
 
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rather it stresses the importance of building on changes in public attitudes towards tobacco use, if the overall aim of creating a tobacco-free society is to be met. With this in mind, the plan includes a series of actions designed to promote the provision of smoke-free premises and facilities.

A copy of the plan is available in the Library of the House.
 
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Teenage Pregnancies

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many conceptions there were in females aged 11 to 19 years in Northern Ireland in each year since 2000, broken down by age. [175225]

Angela Smith: Information on the number of conceptions is not available. However, information on the number of registered live and still births to mothers in Northern Ireland, by age, for the years 2000–02, is available and is detailed in the table.
Number of live and still births to Northern Ireland resident mothers, 2000 to 2002

	Age of mother
Registration year	(a) 14 years and under	(b) 15 years	(c) 16 years	(d) 17 years	(e) 18 years	(f) 19 years
2000	11	47	165	312	484	601
2001	5	37	129	280	493	588
2002	5	32	113	304	494	566

Source:
Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

Teenage Pregnancies

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many attendances at sexual health clinics there were by those aged 11 to 19 years in Northern Ireland in each year since 2000, broken down by (a) age and (b) sex. [175223]

Angela Smith: Information on the total number of attendances at sexual health clinics is not collected centrally according to age and gender. Information is, however, available on the number of initial contacts with Genito-Urinary Medicine clinics each year, broken down by age and gender, in respect of persons with various sexually transmitted infections. This information is shown for the financial years ending March 2000, March 2001, March 2002 and March 2003 in the following table.
Initial contacts

	Under 15	15	16–19	Total
1 April 1999–31 March 2000
Male	1	0	169	170
Female	9	16	397	422
Total	10	16	566	592
1 April 2000–31 March 2001
Male	5	2	219	226
Female	8	15	475	498
Total	13	17	694	724
1 April 2001–31 March 2002
Male	1	0	201	202
Female	6	15	440	461
Total	7	15	641	663
1 April 2002–31 March 2003
Male	3	3	195	201
Female	6	21	464	491
Total	9	24	659	692

Note:
Figures refer to the total number of initial contacts in respect of primary and secondary infectious syphilis, uncomplicated gonorrhoea, uncomplicated chlamydial infection, anogenital herpes simplex (first attack), anogenital warts (first attack), and HIV antibody counselling with testing.

Ulster Hospital (Shuttle Bus)

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of a shuttle bus service between the Ulster hospital and Belfast city centre. [175210]

Mr. Spellar: There has been no assessment made of the potential benefits of a shuttle bus service from Belfast city centre to the Ulster hospital.

Unmanned Railway Crossings

Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the safety risks associated with unmanned railway crossings in Northern Ireland since the accident at Woodtown Crossing, Co. Londonderry on 11 May. [175525]

Mr. Spellar: Safety on the Northern Ireland railway network is the responsibility of Northern Ireland Railways. Translink have advised that an inquiry is under way into the cause and circumstances surrounding the tragic accident at Woodtown crossing. Furthermore a review of all accommodation crossings by independent consultants is nearing completion and will result in a re-evaluation of the categorisation of over 200 user worked crossings throughout the network.

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Free Television Licences

Colin Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pensioner households in the Elmet constituency receive a free TV licence. [174874]

Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, 2001 Census data for parliamentary constituencies identifies 7,131 people aged 75 or over living in the Elmet constituency.
 
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Audio-description Technology

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how she is working with interested parties to encourage the development of audio-description technology adapted for (a) museum and heritage collections and (b) visual arts work. [175016]

Estelle Morris: DCMS and its sponsored bodies have undertaken a range of initiatives aimed at increasing the use of audio description, which, through visual information and interpretive commentary, can greatly enhance appreciation of cultural exhibits and sites by visually-impaired people. Some of the key initiatives are as follows.

Arts Council England (ACE) and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), with support from English Heritage, funded the "Talking Images" project managed by the Royal National Institute for the Blind, which resulted in extensive guidance for museums, galleries and heritage sites on how to provide audio description and venue access, including a technical specification for user-friendly audio-guide equipment.

MLA has produced further guidance on inclusive technology, distributed to more than 3,000 museums, libraries and archives, and is also promoting technical web-accessibility for online cultural collections, so that new services such as audio description can be easily accessed. An example of innovation in this area is the Tate Modern's imap website, which uses audio description and images adapted for the partially-sighted through heightened colour contrast.

English Heritage has audio guides at over 50 of its properties and is looking to increase this number. Many sites also have set tours for the visually-impaired and interactive audio tours. English Heritage has also produced a guide on improving access for blind and partially-sighted people.

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