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10 Nov 2004 : Column 721W—continued
Satanism
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the policy of allowing members of the (a) Royal Navy and (b) armed forces to register their religion as satanist. [196739R]
Mr. Caplin: There is no provision allowing members of the armed forces to record their religion as satanist.
Territorial Army
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Territorial Army personnel have resigned within 12 months of returning from a six-month tour of overseas duty in each of the last three years. [196214]
Mr. Caplin: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Aegis Defence Services
Harry Cohen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the value is of contracts agreed with Aegis Defence Services by the (a) UK, (b) Coalition and (c) Iraqi administration;
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what the contracts are for; what other contracts the UK Government has awarded to the company; in what countries; and if he will make a statement. [197041]
Mr. Rammell: The UK Government have no contracts with Aegis Defence Services in Iraq or elsewhere.
The US Department of Defense has awarded Aegis Defence Services a contract worth $293 million over three years to provide security support to its Project Management and Contracting Office in Iraq. Her Majesty's Government is not a party to the contract, nor was it involved in any way in its negotiation.
We are not aware of any contracts between the Government of Iraq and Aegis Defence Services.
Afghanistan
Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government are taking to facilitate the admission of Afghanistan to the World Trade Organisation; and if he will make a statement. [196263]
Mr. Alexander: The Government supports the accession of Afghanistan to the World Trade Organisation on the right terms.
Afghanistan applied to accede to the WTO in April 2003 but their application for WTO membership has yet to be considered.
Following the successful conclusion of elections in Afghanistan the UK will consult with the European Commission and other European partners on how to facilitate Afghanistan's accession request. The European Commission has sole competence to negotiate WTO accession applications on behalf of the EU.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what strategy his Department plans to use to tackle opium in Afghanistan. [196445]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer 9 November 2004]: The UK, as lead nation, is committed to supporting the Afghan Government in the implementation of their comprehensive National Drug Control Strategy. As well as co-ordinating the activity of international partners, we are providing substantial—spending more than £70 million over three years in support of the strategy as well as providing significant funding for alternative livelihoods. Our work is focusing on: providing poppy farmers with alternative livelihoods; targeted eradication campaigns; law enforcement and interdiction; a fast track counter narcotics element in the developing criminal justice system; drug demand reduction and an information campaign to alert farmers to the illegality and risks of poppy cultivation and to raise drug awareness.
British Indian Ocean Territory
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what dates discussions have taken place with the Department for International Development on resettlement costs for the Chagos Islands in the last year. [183930]
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Mr. Rammell: Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development officials were in contact on various occasions in late June and early July this year on the issue of possible resettlement costs relating to outer Islands in the British Indian Ocean Territory.
China
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the level of economic growth in China in the last 10 years. [196768]
Mr. Rammell: The level of economic growth in China over the last 10 years has been, by any measure, astounding: GDP has averaged 9 per cent. growth over the last decade, according to official figures. It has helped lift millions out of poverty. We welcome the Chinese Government's desire to encourage more balanced development across the country and between urban and rural regions. We hope that the Chinese Government will now try to implement political reform to support China's further economic development.
Commencement of Legislation
Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what pieces of legislation passed in the last 30 years that the Department is responsible for remain to be brought into force, broken down by year of enactment. [195624]
Mr. Straw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is responsible for the following primary legislation enacted in the last 30 years which has not yet been brought into force.
Antarctic Minerals Act 1989 (to the extent that it has not been repealed). This was an Act to implement the Antarctic Minerals Convention. That convention never came into force. The Act was mainly repealed by the Antarctic Act 1994, which implemented the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty. The remaining provisions of the 1989 Act are jurisdictional provisions, which supported the Minerals Convention, but go wider. They would allow UK courts to deal with offences committed on British Antarctic Territory. It has not been thought necessary so far to bring them into force.
Arms Control and Disarmament (Inspections) Act 2003. This is an Act to implement an amendment to the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty (1991); that amendment has itself not yet come into force and can only do so when the treaty change has been ratified by all the states parties to the 1991 treaty.
Departmental Disciplinary Procedures
Mr. Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the disciplinary complaints procedure used in relation to senior officials in his Department. [195795]
Mr. Alexander: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Misconduct Procedure applies to all FCO UK-based staff regardless of grade and includes the following stages:
the officer who is subject to the allegation has the right to be represented by a work colleague or trade union representative at both hearing and appeal stage;
if dismissed, the officer has a further external right of appeal to the Diplomatic Service Appeal Board or the Civil Service Appeal Board, as appropriate, as well as to the Employment Tribunal under the appropriate act.
The FCO Misconduct Procedure is consistent with best practice and statutory obligations. A copy of the Procedure has been placed in the Library of the House.
Departmental Staff
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people in his Department earn more than a whole-time equivalent salary of £57,485 per year. [195327]
Mr. Alexander: There are currently 409 full-time Foreign and Commonwealth Office employees with a salary of £57,485 or more.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of the staff of the Department in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003 were people with disabilities. [196132]
Mr. Alexander: The percentage of staff in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office who declared themselves disabled were 2.2 per cent. in 2002 and 2.02 per cent. in 2003.
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