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Urban Sprawl

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what process his Department uses to monitor urban sprawl; [183461]

(2) how his Department defines urban sprawl. [183464]

 
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Keith Hill: Urban sprawl is not a term which is defined in legislation or Government guidance. However, it is generally understood to be the unplanned expansion of an urban area as opposed to planned, sustainable urban growth.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister monitors, through Land Use Change Statistics (LUCS), the extent of, and the changes between, urban and rural land uses. The most recent LUCS Release was published in May as "Land Use Change in England: Residential Development to 2003".

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Bosnia

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the role of British peacekeeping forces in Bosnia in relation to the hunt for war crime suspects, with particular reference to (a) Radovan Karadzic and (b) General Ratko Mladic. [181485]

Mr. MacShane: The UK remains fully committed to bringing Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic to trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia. Their continued presence at large is an obstacle to justice and reconciliation, and to the region's political and economic development.

UK troops have been involved in the detention of 21 indictees, of the total of 46 apprehended by NATO SFOR. The UK Government remains committed to diplomatic, political and operational efforts to bring about the detention and transfer to The Hague of all fugitive indictees.

Ukraine

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Ukrainian Government on possible advice and assistance to them in the presidential election in October; and if he will make a statement. [183758]

Mr. MacShane: The British embassy in Kiev is in regular contact with the Ukrainian authorities and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) project office in Kiev about advice and assistance in regard to the elections. Some OSCE assistance is part-funded by the Government. I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to him today (UIN 183755).

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the British ambassador to the Ukraine on the forthcoming presidential election in the Ukraine; and if he will make a statement. [183754]

Mr. MacShane: The British ambassador reports regularly from Kiev to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary in writing, including on matters connected with the Presidential election.
 
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Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what financial assistance the Government will give the Ukrainian Government to assist them in the presidential election in October; and if he will make a statement. [183755]

Mr. MacShane: The Government have committed more than £3 million to create an environment in which Ukrainian elections can be more democratic, improve candidates' media access and enable independent Ukrainian media to expose electoral malpractice. In addition to direct assistance to the Ukrainian Government through the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, many of these projects are delivered by NGOs in Ukraine.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what observer personnel will be sent by the Government to the presidential election in the Ukraine in October; and if he will make a statement. [183756]

Mr. MacShane: The Government are committed to providing 10 per cent. of the personnel for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe's (OSCE) election observation missions. This will include the deployment of a substantial number of British observers to Ukraine for the Presidential elections. Precise arrangements have yet to be finalised.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the President of the Ukraine on the conduct of the presidential election in October; and if he will make a statement. [183759]

Mr. MacShane: At the NATO-Ukraine summit in Istanbul in June, attended by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, NATO Heads of Government drew President Kuchma's attention to the need for free and fair elections. The elections were also discussed at the EU-Ukraine summit in The Hague on 8 July, which President Kuchma attended.

Border Movements (Iran)

Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department is monitoring the number of persons moving over the border from Iran into Iraq; what assessment he has made of the purposes of their migration; and what representations he has made to the Iranian Government concerning this issue. [183816]

Mr. Straw: The Iraqi Interim Government is responsible for Iraq's border security and has announced that it will use advanced technology to intercept terrorists, smugglers, illegal immigrants and contraband. We are working to help the Iraqis with this.

Migration between Iran and Iraq is a bilateral matter for those two countries. But we have made very clear to the Iranian authorities that we expect them not to take actions that would undermine Iraq's stability.

Cyprus

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Turkish Government on the reopening of
 
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discussions with the Government of the Republic of Cyprus to seek to resolve the issue of missing people following the events of 1974 in Cyprus. [183926]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not had any recent discussions with the Turkish Government about this. But we take very seriously the issue of missing persons in Cyprus. We urge all sides to co-operate in reactivating the Committee of Missing Persons in order to resolve this painful question once and for all.

The staff of the British High Commission in Nicosia work closely with the United Nations' Acting Third Member of the Committee on Missing Persons in order to identify areas where the UK can assist in taking the issue forward.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the President of the Republic of Cyprus since the referendum result on the Annan Plan proposals. [183927]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has spoken to President Papadopoulos and other members of the Republic of Cyprus Government in the margins of meetings of the European Council and the General Affairs Council on a number of occasions since the 24 April referendums.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Turkish Cypriot administration in Northern Cyprus on steps to ensure that land and properties belonging to Greek Cypriots in Northern Cyprus are not sold to non-Cypriots; and if he will make a statement. [183963]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I met the leader of the Turkish Cypriot community on 1 July. They discussed the current situation in Cyprus and how best to take forward efforts to reach a settlement.

Satisfactorily resolving the issue of property remains central to achieving a comprehensive and sustainable settlement. It is a matter of deep regret that the UN Secretary-General's settlement plan, which set out a way to resolve these property questions, based in part on Greek Cypriot ideas, was rejected by the Greek Cypriots on 24 April.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Greek Cypriot Government on (a) how financial help can be given to the Turkish Cypriot community living in Northern Cyprus and (b) for what projects this money will be spent. [183964]

Mr. MacShane: The EU General Affairs Council on 26 April agreed that, notwithstanding the rejection of the settlement plan by the Greek Cypriots, €259 million previously earmarked for northern Cyprus in the event of a settlement should still be used for that purpose.

Following the publication on 7 July of the Commission's proposals for financial aid to the Turkish Cypriots, EU member states are working to reach final agreement on these measures. It is envisaged that the funds will be used to encourage the economic
 
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integration of the island, through alignment with the EU acquis, to improve contacts between the two communities and with the EU, and to develop the infrastructure.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Greek Cypriot Government on bilateral relations following the referendum vote in Cyprus. [183965]

Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I regularly meet the Cypriot Foreign Minister George Iacovou. Most recently I spoke to Mr. Iacovou at the General Affairs and External Relations Council in Brussels on 12 July. We discussed UK-Cyprus relations and the need to reach a Cyprus settlement. I told Mr. Iacovou that I hoped to visit Cyprus soon.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representation the British High Commissioner and senior members of his staff in Cyprus have at joint meetings of Greek and Turkish Cypriots; and if he will make a statement. [183966]

Mr. MacShane: The ambassador of Slovakia organises and hosts regular bi-communal meetings at the Ledra Palace in Nicosia. Non-Cypriots are not usually invited.

The British High Commissioner separately organises and hosts events to which members of both communities are invited.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimates were made of the number of Greek Cypriots who would have been able to return to their former properties in Northern Cyprus under the Annan Plan proposals; and if he will make a statement. [183967]

Mr. MacShane: As a result of the proposed territorial adjustment set out in the Annan Plan, the UN estimated that more than 86,000 (around 120,000 with offspring) displaced Greek Cypriots would have been able to return to their former homes under Greek Cypriot administration.

In addition, after the end of the transitional period, the UN estimated that some further 100,000 Greek Cypriots would have been able to take up permanent residence in the territory under Turkish Cypriot administration.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the further developments that the Turkish Government have indicated are required on the issue of Cyprus; and if he will make a statement. [183968]

Mr. MacShane: Prime Minister Erdogan's Government have adopted a positive and constructive approach, fully in support of the UN's efforts to reach a Cyprus settlement. I commend them for that. Any positive steps that either side might take in order to give a renewed boost to settlement efforts would of course be most welcome.
 
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Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he discussed at his recent meeting with Mr. Mehmet Ali Talat the de-mining of land in the Turkish Cypriot area in Northern Cyprus. [183969]

Mr. MacShane: When my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I met Mr. Talat on 1 July the issue of de-mining was not discussed.

However, the Government are supportive of efforts to address this important issue and in our contacts with the Turkish Cypriot authorities we have urged them to move forward.

It should also be noted that the European Commission is funding a de-mining project in Cyprus. This project is drawing on UK expertise and is partly funded by a UK contribution.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the British representative to the United Nations in New York last met the Greek Cypriot representative; what subjects were discussed; and if he will make a statement. [183970]

Mr. MacShane: The UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations meets his Greek Cypriot counterpart on a regular basis—including at the weekly meetings of EU ambassadors.

The most recent detailed discussions between the UK and Cypriot missions in New York took place on 29 June when the UK Deputy Permanent Representative called on ambassador Mavroyiannis.

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