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Women's Rights (Africa)

Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many countries in Africa have adopted the Protocol on the Rights of Women; and whether the protocol will by addressed by the Africa Commission. [195148]

Mr. Straw: 31 countries in Africa have signed, and four ratified, the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa. This is a Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights.

The Commission for Africa has identified gender and the rights of women and girls as an important issue for its work across a broad range of themes. The Commission is actively considering how Africa and the international community working together can best address these issues to maximum effect.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Post Mortems

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the eligibility for compensation is of individuals in the Province whose deceased relatives underwent a coroner's post mortem without appropriate consent. [194640]

Mr. Leslie: The Coroner does not require the consent of the family members to direct that a pathologist should carry out a post-mortem to assist him in the determination of the cause of death. His authority is found in Section 28 of the Coroners Act (Northern Ireland) 1959 therefore the issue of compensation does not arise.

Civil Servants (Criminal Records)

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what procedures are in place (a) to check the criminal records of civil servants in the Department and agencies responsible to the Department who have access to computer databases containing confidential information on the public and (b) to ensure that there can be no improper use of computer databases containing confidential information on the public; and if he will make a statement. [194607]

Mr. Lammy: The majority of computer databases held by my Department and the agencies responsible to my Department do not contain confidential information on the public. Names, addresses and in some cases dates of birth may be held, but this information is personal, not necessarily confidential. All staff working for my Department and its agencies have a character check carried out prior to commencing employment. This
 
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includes completion of a criminal records declaration. This does not involve checks with either the Criminal Records Bureau or the Police National Computer, as these checks are only carried out for staff who work in posts where individuals deal with children or vulnerable adults or where staff require national security clearance. All of the databases held by my Department and its agencies have access restricted to those who work with or need access to the information.

The Public Guardianship Office (PGO) hold confidential information on computer database. As a result, these databases have very restricted access and password and user accounts are only issued to staff who have undergone the character check upon appointment (as is standard) and provided proof of identity in the presence of their line manager. Further to this, the systems have comprehensive auditing facilities and all changes to personal data are added to an audit trail to which only the system administrator has access.

The Official Solicitor and Public Trustee Office (OSPT) hold confidential information on internal systems. As with all staff in my Department and its agencies, OSPT staff must undertake a character check prior to commencing employment. Thereafter, this information can only be viewed over the computer network in the building, as there is no remote access. There are differing levels of access control incorporated to ensure that staff can only view information relevant to their area of work.

More generally, existing staff are under an obligation to report any change of circumstances, including any criminal convictions to their line manager, who in turn should contact the Human Resources Directorate for advice and guidance. There are specific disciplinary procedures in place to deal with any misconduct that may impact on the reputation of my Department or the civil service as a whole and these are in accordance with the Civil Service Management Code.

In addition to this, all staff have been recently informed of my Department's procedures on IT misuse in an IT awareness guide. On logging on to systems, staff are required to confirm they have read and understood the Department's policy on misuse.

Court of Protection

Paul Holmes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what checks are undertaken by the Court of Protection on an individual who has applied to be a receiver. [195233]

Mr. Leslie: All applicants are required to complete a receiver's declaration. The declaration is designed to make the applicant aware of the duties they will be undertaking as receiver, and is also used by the Court of Protection and Public Guardianship Office to assess the applicant's suitability to act as receiver. The declaration requires the applicant to confirm he has no outstanding judgment debts and is not an undischarged bankrupt.

It is open to the Court to request that a check on the applicant should be made with the Criminal Records Bureau.
 
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Paul Holmes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what checks are undertaken by the Court of Protection to ascertain whether the person for whom there is an application for receivership lacks the capacity to manage his or her financial affairs. [195234]

Mr. Leslie: All applications for receivership must be accompanied by a medical certificate, completed by a doctor, as the jurisdiction of the Court of Protection is established by such evidence. The medical certificate should specify the mental incapacity suffered and the reasons why the person is unable to manage his or her financial affairs.

Data Protection

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what estimate he has made of the annual cost of compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 to local authorities. [194745]

Mr. Leslie: The Regulatory Impact Assessment prepared at the time of the introduction of the Data Protection Bill (now the Data Protection Act 1998) estimated the compliance costs to local authorities (including schools) at a non-recurring cost of £104 million, with on-going cost of £29 million per year.

Disclosure of Convictions

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs in how many cases since 1991 judges have disclosed to juries the conviction for similar offences of a defendant. [195291]

Mr. Leslie: The information requested is not collected centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Franchise (Non-UK Nationals)

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on allowing non-UK nationals to vote in (a) general elections and (b) referendums. [195260]

Mr. Leslie: The Representation of the People Act 1983 provides that, in addition to British citizens, qualifying Commonwealth citizens and citizens of the Republic of Ireland are entitled to vote in UK parliamentary elections. The position of Commonwealth and Irish citizens in the United Kingdom reflects the traditionally close ties that exist between our countries, and other non-UK nationals are not entitled to vote in UK parliamentary elections. The franchise for referendums is determined on an individual basis and is set out explicitly in the relevant dedicated enabling legislation.

Freedom of Information

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what estimate he has made of the annual cost to local authorities of Freedom of Information Act 2000 (a) compliance and (b) information requests. [194746]

 
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Mr. Leslie: The cost of compliance will vary from authority to authority according to the efficiency of their procedures and the effectiveness of their records and information management. The volume and complexity of FOI requests will vary according to the functions of the authorities and the nature of their current business. The more contentious an authority's business the greater the volume of the requests it receives is likely to be.

The Department is working with the LGA to estimate the additional overall cost for local authorities. For local government, we will reimburse councils for any additional costs, in 2005–06 and beyond, falling on them as a result of the FOI Act.

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