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21 Oct 2004 : Column 895W—continued
Civil Service Pension
Nick Harvey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will estimate the total cost of amending the civil service pension regulations so as to provide full widows' pensions to all widows and widowers who married the scheme member post-retirement. [192122]
Ruth Kelly: The civil service pension scheme rules reflect the requirements of social security legislation. The estimated additional cost of extending the civil service pension scheme rules to provide full widows/widowers' pensions to all widows and widowers who married the scheme member post-retirement is £170 million.
Departmental Responsibilities
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what percentage of his time he has spent on his duties as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in each working week since 9 September. [193141]
Mr. Milburn: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided to the right hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Mr. Forth) on 11 October 2004, Official Report, column 59W.
Information and Communications Specialists
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many information and communication technology specialists there are in full-time employment in the Office. [189579]
Ruth Kelly: This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate costs.
Ministerial Salaries
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the ministerial salary total for her Department was in the financial year 2003–04; and what it is expected to be in the financial year 2004–05. [189701]
Ruth Kelly: Details of salaries payable to Ministers are available on the Cabinet Office website at: www.civilservice.gov.uk/management information/parliamentary/parliamentary pay/
I have also placed a copy of this information in the Library.
Party Conferences
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidelines are in place regarding the attendance of (a) civil servants and (b) special advisers at political party conferences in the course of their employment; whether payment is made from public funds to political parties for the attendance of special advisers at party conferences; how many special advisers attended the 2004 Labour Party conference; and what the cost was to public funds of their attendance. [191504]
Ruth Kelly:
Guidance on the attendance of civil servants and special advisers at party political conferences is set out in the "Civil Service Management Code", the "Code of Conduct for Special Advisers", the "Ministerial Code" and the "Directory of Civil Service
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Guidance (Volume 2)". Information on the numbers of special advisers who attended the 2004 Labour Party conference is not a matter for Government. The cost of special advisers attending party conferences is not met from public funds.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Brazil (IAEA Inspection)
Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place with the Government of Brazil on its dispute with the International Atomic Energy Agency over inspections of uranium enrichment facilities. [192058]
Mr. MacShane: The Government regularly discuss a wide range of counter-proliferation issues with Brazilian interlocutors including Brazil's current discussions with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). These concern the adoption of an Additional Protocol to Brazil's Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, given Brazilian concerns regarding access to its commercial uranium enrichment facility. We believe that the IAEA's inspection arrangements adequately protect commercial confidence and have urged Brazil to conclude an Additional Protocol at the earliest opportunity.
Craig Murray
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what directions he gave concerning disciplinary charges laid against Mr. Craig Murray; and if he will make a statement. [192968]
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he took the decision to recall HM ambassador to Uzbekistan. [192969]
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he was first made aware that disciplinary charges were to be laid against Mr. Craig Murray; and if he will make a statement. [192970]
Mr. Alexander: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary was briefed at the end of August 2003.
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the disciplinary charges laid against Mr. Craig Murray in August 2003; which of them were subsequently dropped; for what reason they were dropped; and if he will make a statement. [192971]
Mr. Alexander:
We do not comment on the detail of individual cases. I am therefore withholding this information under Exemptions 8(a) and 12 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
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Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what directions he gave concerning Mr. Craig Murray's withdrawal as HM ambassador to Uzbekistan; and if he will make a statement. [192972]
EU Applicant Countries
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Governments of the EU applicant countries regarding their accession to the European Union. [191583]
Mr. MacShane: Macedonia is currently the only applicant country. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met Macedonian Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva in March. I met Deputy Prime Minister Xhaferri in January, and Foreign Minister Mitreva and European Integration Minister Sekerinska (among others) during a visit to Skopje in April and since at meetings elsewhere in Europe. EU accession and related issues were discussed at all these meetings.
The Foreign Secretary and I have regular accession-related discussions with Ministers from the four candidate countries, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Turkey.
European Constitution Treaty
Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether public funds will be made available for appeals on the grounds of disproportionate severity of sentence, as defined on page 32 of the proposed European Constitutional Treaty, Cm 6289. [190660]
Mr. MacShane: It is already possible in the UK to appeal against sentences on the grounds that they are disproportionate. Incorporation of the Charter into the EU Constitutional Treat) will have no effect on this.
Gibraltar
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Spanish counterparts concerning the actions of Spanish border guards in respect of the carriage of tobacco products from Gibraltar to Spain. [192561]
Mr. MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has had no specific discussions with his Spanish counterparts on this issue.
Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the potential (a) military and (b) economic strategic nature of Gibraltar. [192575]
Mr. MacShane:
I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister for the armed forces (Mr. Ingram) gave him on 12 July 2004, Official Report, column 991W.
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Questions regarding Gibraltar's economy should be directed to the Gibraltar Government.
Iraq
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what discussions (a) he, (b) members of his Department and (c) UK representatives in Vienna have had with officials of the International Atomic Energy Agency concerning the alleged removal of dual use material and equipment from Iraq; when these discussions took place; and if he will make a statement; [191575]
(2) what discussions (a) he, (b) members of his Department and (c) UK representatives in Washington DC have had with officials of the US Administration concerning the removal of dual use material and equipment from Iraq; and if he will make a statement; [191576]
(3) what discussions (a) he, (b) members of his Department and (c) UK representatives in Baghdad have had with officials of the Iraqi Administration concerning the removal of dual use material and equipment from Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [191578]
Mr. MacShane: To date there have been no formal discussions of this issue with the US Administration, the Iraq Interim Government or the International Atomic Energy Agency.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary said in reply to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Carmichael) on 12 October 2004, Official Report, columns 142–43, that he would seek further details concerning the reports of the removal of dual-use goods and equipment from Iraq. Discussions with a range of interlocutors will form a part of that investigation.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the process of authorisation is for the removal of dual use material and equipment from Iraq; what communication with the (a) UK Government and (b) US Administration this process requires; and if he will make a statement. [191577]
Mr. MacShane: The issue of removal of dual-use equipment and materials is a matter for the Iraqi Interim Government.
Following recent revelations of the discovery of dual-use goods and missile parts at scrap-yards in Europe and elsewhere, the Iraqi Interim Government have introduced strict controls on the export of scrap materials.
Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Iraqi Interim Administration regarding materials that could be used to make nuclear weapons that have disappeared from Iraq. [192701]
Mr. MacShane:
I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson) today.
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