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Public Service Reform

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff have been seconded by Deloitte to advise the Government on public service reform; and on how many contracts arising from that work Deloitte have been designated as a preferred bidder. [175102]

Mr. Alexander: Three staff were seconded from Deloitte to work in public service reform units. Two of these staff were seconded to the Department while working for Arthur Andersen, but subsequently became Deloitte employees, following a corporate take-over in August 2002. No contracts have been awarded to Deloitte as a result of those secondments.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidelines his Department has issued in relation to Ministers signing off regulatory impact assessments in which the estimated benefits do not outweigh the estimated costs. [178662]

 
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Mr. Alexander: The guidelines on ministerial sign-off of regulatory impact assessments are set out in the Cabinet Office guidance, 'Better Policy Making: A Guide to Regulatory Impact Assessment'. This is available in the Library or on the Cabinet Office's website at www.cabinet-Office.gov.uk/regulation/ria-guidance/

Web Accessibility

Mr. Berry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment has been made of the percentage of disabled people who will be able to access all Government services electronically by 2005. [177024]

Mr. Alexander: There are currently no figures on the number of disabled people using online services. The Government recognise that basic access to technology is a problem for many disabled people and the importance of not excluding any citizens who wish to use our online services.

A number of initiatives have been established like the 6,000 UK Online centres, with 25 per cent., of these having practical equipment to assist the disabled in getting online.

By implementing the World Wide Web Consortiums (W3C), Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and standard usability practices, we are endeavouring to make our online services as accessible and usable as currently practical. A copy of the "Web Accessibility Guidelines" has been placed in the Library.

Mr. Berry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what Government guidelines cover the provision of information in (a) British Sign Language and (b) Easy Read for people with learning disabilities on Government Departments' and agencies' websites. [177022]

Mr. Alexander: The Government published "Let's make it accessible: Improving Government information for disabled people" in 2001 to help Government Departments and agencies to develop strategies to meet the information needs of their disabled customers. It recommends that Departments and agencies should adopt a good practice approach and that information should be user-friendly and accessible to disabled people. The guidance covers the potential needs of people with a range of impairments, including people who are learning disabled or who are profoundly deaf and use British Sign Language as their first language. It also suggests a range of methods for making information accessible to disabled people.

The Guidelines for UK Government websites (published 2002) and the Quality Framework for UK Government Website Design (published 2003) require government websites to implement the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative. We are not aware of a standard meaning for the term Easy Read and no recognised guidance on how to implement it on websites. We are currently reviewing a number of commercial applications that may improve website access to users with learning difficulties.

Mr. Berry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans his Department has to raise awareness in the public and private sectors and in the relevant
 
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professional groups of (a) the web accessibility needs of disabled people and (b) the cost of meeting those needs. [177023]

Mr. Alexander: The Cabinet Office has published the 'Guidelines for UK Government Websites', which provides extensive guidance to government web managers and their contractors on making websites accessible to people with disabilities. Copies are available in the Library. We work closely with external organisations such as the RNIB and RNID.

Following the publication of the Disability Rights Commission report on web accessibility in April 2004 officials have been in discussion with the Commission on the issues of raising awareness and associated costs.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Butler Inquiry

Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 17 May 2004, Official Report, columns 748–49W, on Iraq, how many infringements of section 30, points 2 and 13, of Coalition Provisional Authority memorandum No. 2 (CPA/ORD/30 May 2003/09) have been reported to the CPA; and what action has been taken. [175772]

Mr. Rammell: The Iraqi Correction Service (ICS) has had difficulties in the past with informing family members of the location of criminal detainees. The CPA Senior Advisor for Prisons has facilitated the provision of information to detainees' families. The ICS now requires that prisoners are only accepted with judicial orders that make the prisoner's status clear and then action is taken in accordance with Point 13.

Advisers/Consultants

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department and its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultants and advisers in each of the last three years. [172433]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) expenditure on consultants is published annually in our departmental report. The latest available figures are as follows:
£000

	FCO	British Council	Wilton Park Executive Agency
2000–01	17,900	2,397	4
2001–02	20,100	2,280	4
2002–03	23,700	1,959	12

These figures cover consulting roles e.g. advice on major estate and ICT projects and management consultancy. The increase in 2002–03 over the previous year is accounted for by expenditure on improving the efficiency of our internal service providers.
 
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Our target for these efficiency savings is to reduce direct costs by £7 million over the next two years, and to enable an extra £8 million to £10 million worth of benefits for the FCO more widely from improved procurement from the year 2005–06 onwards.

Colombia

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has received about the role of the Colombian armed forces in the killing of civilians in the communities of Flor Amarillo and Cravo Charo in the Colombian department of Araunca on 21 May 2004; and if he will make a statement. [177693]

Mr. Rammell: We are aware of the allegations of involvement by the Colombian armed forces in these incidents. Our embassy in Bogota has raised our concerns with the Colombian authorities and is pressing them to provide further details. We consistently urge the Colombian authorities to crack down on any reported cases of human rights abuses by the security forces or of collusion with the illegal armed groups.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on human rights abuses in Colombia, with particular reference to the treatment of trade unionists. [178000]

Mr. Rammell: Human rights abuses in Colombia remain unacceptably high, although we have seen a decline in recent years in the numbers of cases. We are very concerned about abuses against all vulnerable groups, including trades unionists. We are engaged in an on-going dialogue with the Government of Colombia, the UN, EU and other international partners and civil society groups on how to improve the human rights situation in Colombia. As I made clear to the House on 23 March 2004, Official Report, columns 237–41WH, human rights are at the heart of our policy towards Colombia. The issue will be at the top of the agenda for discussion with the Colombians when I visit the country later this month. Rory Murphy of the TUC is due to be with me during that visit.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the level of kidnapping occurring in Colombia; and what discussions he has had with the Colombian authorities on this. [178001]

Mr. Rammell: The level of kidnapping in Colombia, a serious human rights abuse, remains alarmingly and unacceptably high, even though 2003 saw an estimated decrease to 2,200 from 2,986 in 2002. Illegal armed groups and criminal gangs are largely responsible for the kidnaps, presenting a huge challenge for the Colombian security forces. We have worked closely with the Colombian authorities in individual cases of kidnapped British nationals. We support the Colombian Government in the efforts they are making to bring peace and security to the country, while urging them to do so in full observance of international human rights standards.

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