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Questions for Oral or Written Answer
beginning on Wednesday 3 December 2003
(the 'Questions Book')
Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on
Wednesday 3 December 2003
This paper contains only Written Questions for answer on Wednesday 3 December of which previous notice has been given in the Notices of Questions paper. They are arranged in alphabetical order of answering Department. For other Written Questions for answer on Wednesday 3 December of which no previous notice has been given, see the Order Paper. For Written and Oral Questions for answer after Wednesday 3 December see Part 2 of this paper.
Questions to Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer 1
N | Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the harmonised index of consumer prices will apply to index- linked pay in (a) central government employment, (b) the National Health Service and (c) independent statutory agencies and regulators. | | (141727) | 2
N | Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to link index-linked public sector (a) pay and (b) pensions to the harmonised index of consumer prices; and what estimate he has made of the change in annual public sector annuities which would result. | | (141728) | 3
N | Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the interest paid on index-linked government securities was in each year since 1997; and what the interest payments would have been if the harmonised index of consumer prices had been applied. | | (141729) | 4
N | Dr Vincent Cable (Twickenham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to link index-linked government securities to the harmonised index of consumer prices; and what estimate he has made of the change in debt servicing obligations which would result. | | (141730) | 5
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans his Department has for tax relief on investment made by retailers in specified security equipment for stores under 3,000 square feet. | | (140863) | 6
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much would be raised by increasing the basic rate of income tax by one pence on the residents of (a) Portsmouth Unitary Authority and (b) Southampton Unitary Authority. | | (141735) | 7
| Mr John McFall (Dumbarton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make a statement on the EU aid budget for developing countries. | | (141930) | 8
N | Mr Michael Meacher (Oldham West & Royton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has completed the further work and analysis on the design of a possible pesticides tax or other economic instrument to minimise the adverse effects of pesticide use as referred to in the Pre-Budget Report presented in Autumn 2002. | | (141741) | Questions to the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs 9
| Mr Graham Allen (Nottingham North):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what plans he has to introduce (a) training programmes and (b) examinations for judges, with particular reference to shorthand for use during court proceedings. | | (141873) | 10
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, when he plans to release the 1911 decennial population census for England and Wales. | | (141913) | 11
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what action his Department has taken to raise awareness of the need for accessibility to polling stations. | | (140866) | 12
| Denzil Davies (Llanelli):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, how many persons were interviewed for the position of Chair of the Electoral Commission when it was first established. | | (141901) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 13
| Mr Tim Boswell (Daventry):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what action she is taking to encourage BBC, ITV and Channel 4 to broadcast their audio-described programmes on digital satellite as soon as possible. | | (141994) | 14
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the number of pensioners over 75 who will be charged for the new viewing card. | | (141914) | 15
| Mr Mark Field (Cities of London & Westminster):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will meet representatives of the licensed trade to discuss fee rates following Royal Assent of the Licensing Act 2003. | | (141792) | 16
| Mr Nigel Waterson (Eastbourne):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the regulator on Meridian TV's intention of moving its Maidstone operations to Southampton. | | (141932) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Defence 17
N | Brian Cotter (Weston-Super-Mare):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the outcome was of recent discussions between his Department and the Forces Pension Society on remedying the effects of the pensions trough affecting service personnel between 1976 and 1978. | | (141640) | 18
N | Brian Cotter (Weston-Super-Mare):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what action he is taking to ensure that members of the armed forces are not affected by future pension troughs. | | (141641) | 19
| Mr Gerald Howarth (Aldershot):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress is being made in finalising the contractual arrangements between his Department and BAe Systems in respect of the acquisition of Hawk 128 Advanced Jet Trainers. | | (141990) | 20
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to introduce a system to enable equipment and stocks to be tracked throughout the Armed Forces supply train. | | (141811) | 21
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many bearskins the Army has purchased in each of the last five years; and whether these bears are (a) killed in the wild and (b) farmed for their skins. | | (141855) | 22
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many contracts valued at £1 million or more were let by his Department during the financial year 2002-03 without competition; and if he will make a statement. | | (141842) | 23
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list the industrial members of the National Defence Industries Council; what the criteria are for their appointment; and if he will make a statement. | | (141843) | 24
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on the planned interchangeability of weapons between the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft ordered by the four partner nations. | | (141978) | 25
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether gun safety indicators will be fitted to the RAF's operational Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. | | (141979) | 26
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment has been made of the speed limitations caused by the external carriage of weapons on the
Eurofighter Typhoon; and whether the merits of an internal weapons bay in this respect have been assessed. | | (141980) | 27
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, why new shoulder weapons pylons were not procured for the upgrade of Tornado GR1 aircraft to GR4 standard; and if he will make a statement. | | (141981) | 28
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the weapons suspension points on the RAF's operational Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft will be compatible with Military Standard 1760; and if he will make a statement. | | (141982) | 29
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether a competition process is intended between bidders for a mid-life update to the RAF's Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft; and if he will make a statement. | | (141983) | 30
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many claims for payment for visa support and visa-related services by the Saudi Government have been endorsed since 1st January 1997 by staff of his Department's Director General of the Saudi Armed Forces project regarding the Al-Yamamah programme; and what the value has been of claims for visa support and visa-related services since then. | | (141987) | 31
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the value was of the management fee received by the Ministry of Defence from the Saudi Arabian Government for its management of the Saudi Armed Forces Project in each year since 1997. | | (141988) | 32
N | Mr David Laws (Yeovil):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on Royal representation at the D-Day commemoration events in Normandy in 2004. | | (141207) | 33
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many deaths of service personnel were due to road traffic accidents in each year since 1990; and how many and what proportion of deaths occurred (a) as part of a combat mission, (b) on military exercises, (c) inside barracks or military premises and (d) in civilian vehicles. | | (141800) | 34
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Irish citizens have joined (a) the Royal Irish Regiment and (b) the Irish Guards in each of the last five years for which figures are available. | | (141844) | 35
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total value is of assets belonging to his Department, broken down by United Kingdom region; and if he will break down the assets by (a) estates, (b) kit, (c) plant, machinery and vehicles, (d) capital spares, (e) information technology and communications and (f) assets in course of construction for the same areas for the most recent financial year. | | (142028) | 36
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will estimate the current value of investments held by the (a) Army, (b) Navy and (c) RAF; and if he will make a statement. | | (142029) | 37
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's budget was in (a) cash terms and (b) at 2002-03 prices for each year from 1997-98 to 2002-03; what his estimates are for each year from 2003-04 to 2005-06; and if he will make a statement .
| | (142030) | 38
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many MoD (a) civilian and (b) service jobs there were at each (i) Navy, (ii) Army, (iii) Royal Air Force and (iv) Reserves defence installation in Scotland for the year ended 1st April; and if he will make a statement. | | (142031) | Questions to the Deputy Prime Minister 39
| Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, in relation to the proposed seller's packs what the Government's estimate is of the (a) average cost, (b) number of properties that will be involved, (c) total cost, (d) number of surveyors required, (e) number of transactions accelerated and (f) number of transactions that would otherwise be aborted in a calendar year. | | (142008) | 40
N | Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what the capital allocation to the London Borough of Islington is in (a) 2002-03 and (b) 2003-04 for the construction of houses for rent by (i) the local authority and (ii) Housing Associations through the Housing Corporation; and if he will make a statement. | | (141647) | 41
N | Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assistance his Department plans to provide to the London Borough of Islington to meet the Decent Homes Standard by 2010; and if he will make a statement. | | (141648) | 42
N | Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what representations he has received concerning the conduct of the Arm's Length Management organisation ballot by the London Borough of Islington; and if he will make a statement. | | (141649) | 43
N | Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what monitoring is being undertaken by his Department into the sale of houses and commercial properties by the London Borough of Islington. | | (141650) | 44
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what plans his Department has to revise his proposed all-postal ballots to include additional voting systems for the benefit of disabled people. | | (140864) | 45
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what representations have been made to his Department regarding coercion and secrecy issues in relation to his proposed postal voting systems. | | (140865) | 46
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what his estimate is of the net cost to Fire Authority employers of meeting the firefighters' pay settlement in (a) 2003-04, (b) 2004-05 and (c) 2005-06, taking account of financial savings from modernisation under the June agreement. | | (141896) | 47
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will list visits by Ministers in his Department since January 2002, broken down by (a) region and (b) county and unitary authority. | | (141897) | 48
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, whether the post of Head of Land and Property in his Department has been filled. | | (141906) | 49
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of the withdrawal of local authority social housing grant on the rate of completion of affordable homes by Runnymede Borough Council. | | (141907) | 50
| Sir George Young (North West Hampshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many excess winter deaths he estimates could be avoided by bringing homes of vulnerable households up to minimum legislative standards; and what his estimate is of the cost of such work. | | (142005) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 51
| Mr Brian H. Donohoe (Cunninghame South):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many people from Cunninghame South enrolled to study at a university in (a) 2001, (b) 2002 and (c) 2003; and how many failed to complete their course. | | (141929) | 52
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what percentage of the school day, is accounted for by sports activities in each county. | | (141918) | 53
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what provisions are in place to ensure that school meals are balanced and follow the guidelines set down by the Department of Health for healthy eating. | | (141920) | 54
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many school playing fields have been (a) sold and (b) acquired in each year since 1997. | | (141921) | 55
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many and what proportion of (a) technology, (b) sports, (c) arts, (d) languages, (e) engineering, (f) science, (g) mathematics and computing and (h) business and enterprise specialist schools achieved less than 25 per cent. A* to C grades at GCSE in the last year for which figures are available. | | (141793) | 56
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, in how many specialist (a) technology, (b) sports, (c) arts and (d) languages colleges the proportion of selective admissions exceeds 10 per cent. of their pupil intake. | | (141795) | 57
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, when he will publish the findings of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority investigation into the standard attainment tests at age 7, 11 and 14. | | (141797) | 58
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many schools gained specialist status in (a) technology, (b) sports, (c) arts, (d) languages, (e) engineering, (f) science, (g) mathematics and computing and (h) business and enterprise (i) before and (ii) after September 2002. | | (141798) | 59
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what new teaching methods are being introduced geared to each child's ability. | | (141799) | 60
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, whether aptitude selection by specialist schools is permitted under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 in the (a) engineering, (b) mathematics and computing and (c) business and enterprise specialisms. | | (141823) | 61
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will make a statement on the change in the number of pupils achieving (a) five A*to C grades at GCSE only and (b) five A* to C grades with the addition of a GNVQ between 2000-03. | | (141834) | 62
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what boundaries were set by the Oxford, Cambridge and RSA awarding body for GCSE grades A* to U in (a) English literature, (b) English language and (c) mathematics in each year from 1988 to 2002. | | (141900) | 63
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what he estimates the annual cost will be of means-testing students from mainland Europe for liability to pay university tuition fees. | | (142009) | 64
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many students have started foundation degrees since they were introduced; and what proportion have completed the courses. | | (142032) | 65
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the total cost has been of introducing foundation degrees. | | (142033) | 66
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many civil servants were employed in the (a) schools, (b) lifelong learning and (c) youth policy directorates in each year since 1997. | | (141731) | 67
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how much has been spent by his Department on pupil behavioural programmes in each year since 1997. | | (141732) | 68
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will make a statement on (a) the total cost of, (b) the cost to his Department of and (c) the revenue to be raised by the proposed new television channel for teachers. | | (141733) | 69
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will make a statement on how the effectiveness of the proposed new television channel for teachers will be measured; and what targets will be set. | | (141734) | 70
| Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many half days have been lost owing to unauthorised absence of pupils in each year since 1997 (a) in absolute terms and (b) as a proportion of the total number of half days. | | (141895) | 71
| Mr Michael Jack (Fylde):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the average cost per graduate of an open university degree was in the last year for which figures are available. | | (141902) | 72
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what plans he has to introduce value added data into secondary school performance tables for England which take account of external influences on performance, with particular reference to pupils' economic, social and cultural backgrounds. | | (141809) | 73
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what plans he has to introduce a national incident reporting system for recording physical assaults on (a) teachers and (b) other local education authority staff. | | (141810) | 74
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many schools in (a) the North East and (b) each local authority area (i) have been designated and (ii) are being considered for status as a specialist technology college. | | (141868) | 75
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many schools in each region have been awarded specialist status; for what subjects; and if he will make a statement. | | (141869) | 76
| Mr Tony McWalter (Hemel Hempstead):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what steps he is taking to ensure that there is provision for life-long learning in the Hemel Hempstead area following the closure of courses at the Dacorum campus of West Herts College. | | (141908) | 77
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what measures his Department has taken to promote healthy eating in schools; and if he will list the funding commitment for each measure. | | (141784) | 78
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what assessment he has made of the impact of the proposed top up fees on the number of students entering Post Graduate Certificate in Education courses after 2006; and if he will make a statement. | | (141785) | 79
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what plans his Department has to contribute towards the cost of tuition fees for students entering Post Graduate Certificate in Education courses after 2006; and if he will make a statement. | | (141786) | 80
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the cost is of (a) establishing and (b) maintaining the recently launched benchmarking website; and if he will make a statement. | | (141787) | 81
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many lessons in (a) mathematics, (b) science and (c) English in each Key Stage were identified in the 2003 Curriculum and Staffing Survey as being taught by teachers without a subject-specific qualification in the subject being taught. | | (141788) | 82
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how much the Government has spent centrally on administering the National School Fruit Scheme in (a) 2001-02 and (b) 2002-03; and if he will make a statement. | | (141789) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 83
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations she has received from (a) the Department of Health, (b) the Health Protection Agency and (c) the Countryside Agency regarding the consultation documents (i) Plans for greater access to information about crop spraying and (ii) Proposals for buffer zones between spraying areas and residential properties in England and Wales. | | (141961) | 84
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to obtain Land Cover Map information from the Centre of Ecology and Hydrology in order to calculate the number of people in England and Wales living directly adjacent to fields sprayed with pesticides. | | (141962) | 85
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has for a formal public consultation on greater access to information on crop spraying. | | (141963) | 86
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many submissions her Department has received to the consultation on Plans for greater access to information about crop spraying; and how many favoured proposals to oblige pesticide users to (a) keep a public register of what pesticides they have used and (b) notify surrounding households when they are going to spray a pesticide, identifying the pesticide. | | (141964) | 87
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many submissions her Department has received to the consultation on Plans for greater access to information about crop spraying which are in favour of disclosure of the records of pesticide use (a) directly to members of the public and (b) to parties acting on their behalf. | | (141965) | 88
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to implement (a) a mandatory and (b) a voluntary pilot for proposals in the consultation paper, Plans for greater access to information about crop spraying. | | (141966) | 89
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans are in place for the provision of water supplies to homes and businesses if low rainfall continues. | | (141852) | 90
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on her Department's strategy for the stretch of coastline from Happisburgh to Winterton in North Norfolk; and what the cost of implementing this strategy is. | | (141989) | 91
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the projected expenditure is by her Department for the next five years on developing vaccines for protecting (a) bovine animals and (b) badgers against TB infection. | | (141967) | 92
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how long the current TB skin test on cattle as a preliminary diagnostic aid has been in use. | | (141968) | 93
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to replace the TB skin test used on cattle as a preliminary diagnostic aid with a more accurate and sensitive test. | | (141969) | 94
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what examples there have been of reactive badger culling programmes in England where the work was successful in controlling TB in cattle; and where and when those programmes were carried out. | | (141970) | 95
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in how many cases badger traps laid by or on behalf of the Department in TB culling trials have been interfered with or removed without authorisation. | | (141971) | 96
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what action is taken by the Department when its badger traps are found to be removed or otherwise interfered with. | | (141972) | 97
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people, since 1998, have been arrested for interfering with Government badger traps; and how many have been prosecuted. | | (141973) | 98
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many field staff, as full-time equivalents, are employed by her Department both directly and on contract, on randomised badger culling trials; and how many were employed in (a) 2002 and (b) 2001. | | (141974) | 99
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of shortages of large animal vets for successful control of TB in cattle. | | (141975) | 100
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the current status is of research on vaccines suitable for application to (a) badgers and (b) bovine animals to protect against TB infection; and when she expects commercial vaccines will become available. | | (141976) | 101
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the total expenditure since 1973 by her Department and its predecessors has been on developing vaccines for protecting (a) bovine animals and (b) badgers against TB infection. | | (141977) | 102
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what deleterious effects on wildlife arising from the current badger population level have been recorded by her Department and other UK public bodies. | | (141992) | 103
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what predictions were made, in explanatory material made available to farmers by her Department as to the percentage of badgers which were to be killed by culling teams engaged in the Krebs trials. | | (141993) | 104
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations have been made by her Department to insurance providers and underwriters on the funding of a joint venture to top up compensation paid for TB reactor cattle above the proposed cut to average market value. | | (141999) | 105
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the implications are for the UK beef and dairy industries should the UK lose its Organisation International des Epizooties TB-free status. | | (142000) | 106
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to fund average cull-price for TB-infected animals and reactors with an industry levy on (a) milk and (b) beef. | | (142001) | 107
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research she has undertaken on whether effective control of bovine TB can be achieved solely by means of herd bio-security and good animal husbandry. | | (142002) | 108
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how maintenance of closed dairy herds protects cattle from TB infection. | | (142003) | 109
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what advice is given to farmers by her Department on bio-security measures aimed at preventing infection of cattle by TB. | | (142004) | 110
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department is making in designating Shell Flat, Liverpool Bay as a special protection area; and if she will make a statement. | | (141942) | 111
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what work her Department is doing to establish the size and distribution of offshore bird populations; and if she will make a statement. | | (141943) | 112
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what work her Department is doing to establish the size and distribution of offshore populations of the common scoter; and if she will make a statement. | | (141944) | 113
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the US ships intended for decommissioning by Able UK contain chemicals banned in the US. | | (142022) | 114
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether UK companies met the Government's targets for the purchase of renewable energy in 2002. | | (142024) | 115
N | Mr Anthony Steen (Totnes):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she last met representatives of the National Farmers Union to discuss the farm-gate price of milk; and what steps she is taking to safeguard the future of the British dairy farming industry. | | (140727) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 116
N | Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the revenues which derived from sales of Iraqi oil in each month since April; and if he will make a statement. | | (141175) | 117
N | Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the (a) income and (b) expenditure of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq was in each month since April; how much was spent by (i) amount and (ii) percentage in each sector; and if he will make a statement. | | (141176) | 118
N | Mr Menzies Campbell (North East Fife):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, who is responsible for preparing the accounts of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq; to whom it reports; and if he will make a statement. | | (141177) | 119
N | Ann Clwyd (Cynon Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with its US counterparts about the US Blue Lantern end-use monitoring programme; and if he will make a statement. | | (140725) | 120
N | Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions have been held with the governments of (a) Morocco and (b) the United Nations concerning resolution of the problems faced by the Saharwi people. | | (141646) | 121
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what action allied troops in Afghanistan are taking to (a) counter opium production and (b) interdict opium trade. | | (141899) | 122
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government expects to deploy additional British troops to Afghanistan during 2004. | | (141903) | 123
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the impact on the political situation in Zimbabwe of that country's suspension from the Commonwealth. | | (141904) | 124
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the (a) Ivory Coast Government and (b) other involved parties with regard to honouring commitments set out in the January peace accord. | | (141813) | 125
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will support the implementation of the Geneva agreement between representatives of Israel and the Palestinian territories. | | (141814) | 126
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 6th October from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr Usman Ilyas. | | (141894) | 127
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what role the Government is playing in the process of awarding contracts for the provision of mobile telecommunications services in Iraq; how this process is being managed; and if he will make a statement. | | (142018) | 128
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether (a) Ministers and (b) officials from (i) his Department and (ii) other departments have had contact with Mr Nadhmi Auchi since the conflict in Iraq; and if he will make a statement. | | (142019) | 129
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make a statement on the extent of the involvement of Mr Nadhmi Auchi in the process for awarding contracts for the provision of mobile telecommunications services in Iraq. | | (142020) | 130
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether Mr Nadhmi Auchi has advised the Government on aspects of post-conflict Iraq on an (a) informal and (b) formal basis; and if he will make a statement. | | (142021) | 131
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his Department's guidance is to UK citizens planning to travel to the Manipur region in north east India; what assessment his Department has made of the security situation in Manipur; when this assessment was last updated; and if he will make a statement. | | (142027) | 132
N | Mr Anthony Steen (Totnes):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many acres of land are occupied by the United States on (a) Wide Awake airfield and (b) Ascension Island; and how many acres of land the United States lease in addition to Wide Awake airfield from (i) the UK Government and (ii) the Ascension Island Government for their exclusive use and at no rent. | | (141551) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Health 133
N | Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether it is his Department's policy to pay for the top-up university fees charged to student nurses; and if he will make a statement. | | (141639) | 134
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the arrangements for offering adults vaccination against whooping cough; how many adults have been vaccinated in each of the last five years; how many cases of whooping cough in adults have been reported in the last five years; and how many deaths have been recorded. | | (141845) | 135
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) 20-29 year olds and (b) 30-39 year olds were diagnosed with (i) HIV, (ii) chlamydia, (iii) gonorrhoea and (iv) syphilis per 100,000 population in each year since 1986. | | (141997) | 136
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many unwanted pregnancies were terminated in each year since 1986 per 100,000 population. | | (141998) | 137
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the timescale is for the introduction of a national incident reporting system for recording physical assaults on NHS staff. | | (141812) | 138
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what action the Department is taking to tackle the rise in skin cancer cases in England. | | (141815) | 139
| Lynne Jones (Birmingham, Selly Oak):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the omission of (a) community health councils and (b) patient forums from the list of patient organisations who were sent the consultation document, Choice, Responsiveness and Equity. | | (141936) | 140
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps are being taken to (a) identify and (b) treat different classifications of mental illness in (i) women, (ii) people from black and ethnic minority groups and (iii) the general population in each Government Office of the Regions area. | | (141867) | 141
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects the Government's strategy document on alcohol treatment to be published; what the reason for the delay is; and if he will make a statement. | | (141984) | 142
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much money has been directed towards alcohol treatment programmes by the Government in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement. | | (141985) | 143
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the Government's future plans for alcohol treatment strategies. | | (141986) | 144
N | Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many reports of MRSA there were in (a) England, (b) each region and (c) each strategic health authority in each of the last six years. | | (140859) | 145
N | Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will publish the statistics for England for quarter 1 and quarter 2 of the 2003-04 on MRSA collated in the mandatory MRSA bacteraemia surveillance scheme; and if he will make a statement. | | (140860) | 146
| Mr Tony McWalter (Hemel Hempstead):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his estimate is of (a) the number of people suffering from (i) severe dementia and (ii) moderate to severe dementia in Hertfordshire and (b) the number of residential places within the county which might accommodate those with (i) severe dementia and (ii) moderate to severe dementia. | | (141915) | 147
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff are employed within each strategic health authority in England broken down by staff group. | | (141916) | 148
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS staff, employed within the central function, are employed in (a) personnel, (b) finance, (c) information technology, (d) legal services, (e) library services, (f) health education and (g) general management support services. | | (141917) | 149
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the health implications for (a) ramblers and (b) their children of frequenting country areas in which infective material has been deposited by TB-infected badgers. | | (141991) | 150
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what percentage of people in nursing homes are in each costings band; what determines which band people are placed in; and if he will make a statement. | | (141945) | 151
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much money has been spent on palliative care in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. | | (141946) | 152
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what advice Government is providing for women on hormone replacement therapy regarding the risk of breast cancer; and if he will make a statement. | | (141847) | Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department 153
| Colin Burgon (Elmet):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what studies have been carried out to estimate the future level of investment needed by the Forensic Science Service in the years 2004 to 2007. | | (141933) | 154
| Colin Burgon (Elmet):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what legislation is required to alter the status of the Forensic Science Service in line with the proposed Government plans for the service. | | (141934) | 155
| Colin Burgon (Elmet):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the terms of reference are for the Development and Remuneration Committee of the Forensic Science Service. | | (141935) | 156
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what unplanned expenditure has been incurred in each financial year by (a) his Department and (b) the Criminal Records Bureau since the commencement of the Criminal Records Project. | | (141822) | 157
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions his Department has had with the Treasury on measures to aid retailers' investment in specified security equipment for stores under 3,000 square feet. | | (140862) | 158
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the change in (a) criminal convictions and (b) the custodial population between 1980 and 2000. | | (141794) | 159
| Lynne Jones (Birmingham, Selly Oak):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what additional budgetary resources have been redirected and allocated to cover operating costs relating to section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 since 8th January. | | (141791) | 160
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to (a) identify and (b) match project-specific funding within each police area in the United Kingdom. | | (141859) | 161
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what use is being made of geographic information systems to match police project funding to area-specific problems (a) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (b) by Government Office of the Regions area and (c) in England. | | (141860) | 162
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make a statement about the proposed privatisation of the Forensic Science Service. | | (141861) | 163
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many anti-social behaviour orders have been granted for (a) juveniles and (b) adults (i) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (ii) in the Teesside region and (iii) in England. | | (141864) | 164
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what academic and vocational education and training is available to young people serving custodial sentences. | | (141865) | 165
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what health services and support are available to young people (a) sentenced and (b) remanded to custody; and what specialist mental health services are available to repeat young offenders. | | (141866) | 166
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many referrals to the Royal Courts of Justice Citizens Advice Bureau Miscarriage of Justice Project have been made by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; and what the working policies and practices of the Commission are for a referral to the project. | | (141807) | 167
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for permission to judicially review a decision not to refer have been made against the Criminal Cases Review Commission; and of those how many (a) were refused leave by a single judge on the papers, (b) refused leave by the court at oral hearings and (c) were granted leave by either the single judge or the court. | | (141808) | 168
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for review of alleged wrongful conviction upon indictment have been received during each of the last eight years by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; and how many cases in each year have been (a) ruled ineligible, (b) investigated with a decision of not to refer where the decision-maker was (i) a case review manager, (ii) a single commissioner and (iii) a panel of three Commissioners and (c) investigated with a decision to refer. | | (141816) | 169
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many re-applications for review of alleged wrongful conviction upon indictment have been received by the Criminal Cases Review Commission in each of the last six years; how many of those have been reinvestigated and completed; and of those how many have (a) resulted in a decision not to refer and (b) been referred. | | (141817) | 170
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for review of alleged wrongful conviction upon indictment have been received to date by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; how many (a) were ruled ineligible, (b) were completed with a decision not to refer and (c) were completed with a decision to refer; and how many applications in each case were from (i) unassisted applicants and (ii) legally assisted applicants. | | (141818) | 171
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many complaints have been received by the Complaints Manager at the Criminal Cases Review Commission in each of the last eight years; and of those complaints how many were (a) resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant and (b) upheld. | | (141819) | 172
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for review of alleged wrongful convictions in Northern Ireland have been received by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; and of those how many (a) were ruled ineligible, (b) were reviewed and a decision not to refer made and (c) were reviewed and referred. | | (141820) | 173
N | Mr Gordon Marsden (Blackpool South):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions his Department has had with chief constables on the use of stop and search powers to tackle the carrying of knives. | | (141549) | 174
| Mr Jim Marshall (Leicester South):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the outcome of the Justice and Home Affairs Council held on 27th to 28th November was; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement. | | (142007) | 175
N | Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average daily cost of holding a prisoner in a police cell is. | | (141642) | 176
N | Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was of holding prisoners in police cells in 2002. | | (141643) | 177
N | Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many prisoners have been held in police cells so far in 2003. | | (141644) | 178
N | Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many offenders were jailed in (a) 2001 and (b) 2002 under section 111 of the provisions of the Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000, for a third offence of burglary. | | (141645) | 179
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the percentage change will be in (a) the National Probation Service and (b) the National Probation Directorate financial settlement for 2004-05. | | (141801) | 180
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the probation areas in England and Wales will receive less in real terms under the financial settlement for 2004-05, after central recharging and performance-linked penalties are taken into account. | | (141802) | 181
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the (a) Warwickshire, (b) Dorset, (c) Suffolk, (d) Norfolk and (e) Gloucestershire probation areas will receive less money in real terms during 2004-05 after performance-linked penalties and central recharging are taken into account. | | (141803) | 182
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much has been spent on failed IT projects in the Probation Service in each year since 1994. | | (141804) | 183
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list (a) organisations which are proscribed by law and (b) the Acts of Parliament under which they are proscribed. | | (141805) | 184
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance he has issued to police forces in relation to police officers' membership of or affiliation to (a) political parties and (b) other political organisations; and if he will place copies in the Library. | | (141806) | 185
| Angus Robertson (Moray):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he intends to respond to the letter of 23rd July, from the honourable Member for Moray, with Home Office acknowledgement reference number PO11706/3; and if he will make a statement. | | (142026) | Questions to the Secretary of State for International Development 186
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what expert advisers, other than on gender, he intends to send to Iraq for strategic advice; and on which subjects. | | (141824) | 187
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, to which countries other than Iraq his Department has assigned gender advisers since 1997. | | (141825) | 188
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what security considerations led his predecessors to refuse to reveal the salaries of the gender advisers he assigned to Iraq. | | (141826) | 189
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the sexual balance is of the team of gender advisers he has assigned to Iraq. | | (141828) | 190
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what guidance his Department sought in the appointment of two gender experts in Iraq from (a) recognised Muslim experts and (b) those with detailed understanding of Iraq. | | (141829) | 191
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what salaries are paid to the two gender experts who have been assigned by his Department to Iraq. | | (141830) | 192
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what experience of Muslim attitudes the two gender experts who have been assigned from his Department to Iraq have. | | (141831) | 193
| Mr John Gummer (Suffolk Coastal):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what arrangements he has made to ensure the co-ordination of gender advice to the Government of Iraq between (a) secondees he has assigned and (b) those of other countries. | | (141832) | 194
| Ms Oona King (Bethnal Green & Bow):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when his Department will publish a joint strategy paper on the Great Lakes Region; what assessment he has made of the most recent report of the UN panel of experts on the exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if he will make a statement. | | (141833) | 195
| Mr John McFall (Dumbarton):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will make a statement on his discussions regarding HIV and retro-viral drugs for developing countries. | | (141931) | 196
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions he is holding with the Ethiopian government about the border dispute with Eritrea; and if he will make a statement. | | (141947) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 197
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will list the amendments made to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Action Plan as a result of proposals made by his staff. | | (141856) | 198
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will place in the Library copies of e-mail exchanges between his office and the offices of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission that relate to the preparation of the Human Rights Commission Action Plan. | | (141857) | 199
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what provisions of the Paris Principles govern relations between his officials and members of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. | | (141858) | 200
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to formulate a Northern Ireland arthritis strategy; and if he will make a statement. | | (141846) | 201
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what action he has taken to increase the number of rheumatologists in Northern Ireland. | | (141848) | 202
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what action he has taken to tackle prescription fraud in the NHS in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. | | (141849) | 203
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what action is being taken to tackle benefit fraud; and if he will make a statement. | | (141850) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 204
| Mr Graham Allen (Nottingham North):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will introduce regulations requiring the providers of mobile telephone-related services to obtain documentary proof of purchase, ownership and identity from clients before taking the item into their temporary possession. | | (141871) | 205
| Mr Graham Allen (Nottingham North):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will introduce regulations for the purchase of second-hand mobile telephones placing the onus upon the buyer to obtain documentary proof of purchase, ownership and identity from the seller. | | (141872) | 206
N | Richard Burden (Birmingham, Northfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what assurances have been received from Post Office Ltd that there will be consultation with local communities on the strategic issues associated with area plans produced under the Network Reinvention programme as well as on individual closure proposals. | | (140723) | 207
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what discussions her Department has held with representatives of the shipping industry in connection with the expansion of offshore wind farms. | | (141910) | 208
N | Ann Clwyd (Cynon Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many export control licences have been revoked for each year since 1997; and on what grounds. | | (140724) | 209
N | Ann Clwyd (Cynon Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what export licence applications have been refused on the basis of Criterion 8 of the Consolidated Criteria since 2000. | | (140726) | 210
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what responsibility (a) the Government, (b) the regulator and (c) electricity suppliers have for maintaining electricity supplies in the event of severe winter weather. | | (141851) | 211
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many times in the last five years electricity supplies have been cut to more than 1,000 homes owing to severe winter weather. | | (141853) | 212
| Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what plans are in place to ensure that electricity supplies to homes and industry are maintained in the event of severe winter weather. | | (141854) | 213
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many businesses, and of what type, have received assistance in starting-up from government schemes and initiatives in each year from 2001 to 2003 (a) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (b) in Teesside and (c) nationally. | | (141862) | 214
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many Government schemes, and how much state funding, have assisted business start-ups in
2001 to 2003 (a) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (b) in Teesside and (c) in the United Kingdom. | | (141863) | 215
| Dr Ashok Kumar (Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what recent representations she has received from trade unions regarding the future of employment in the steel industry concerning the United States imposition of tariffs on steel imports. | | (141870) | 216
| Mr Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North & Leith):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what assessment she has made of the effect of current EU proposals for software patenting on the small and medium sized enterprise sector. | | (142016) | 217
| Mr Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North & Leith):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the policy is of the UK Government regarding the EU proposals for software patenting. | | (142017) | 218
N | Mr Gordon Marsden (Blackpool South):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, on how many occasions the Post Office has decided not to close a sub-post office in an urban area following consultation in each of the last three years. | | (141550) | 219
N | Sir Teddy Taylor (Rochford & Southend East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will make a statement on the procedures adopted by the Insolvency Service for dealing with members of staff believed to be inefficient; and whether there have been recent changes in these procedures. | | (141258) | 220
N | Sir Teddy Taylor (Rochford & Southend East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many Insolvency Service staff have had inefficiency proceedings initiated against them in each of the past five years; and what the ethnic background of the individuals concerned was in each year. | | (141259) | 221
N | Sir Teddy Taylor (Rochford & Southend East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will publish the outcomes of inefficiency proceedings initiated against members of staff in each of the past five years; how many involved (a) office transfers, (b) resignations and (c) dismissals; and what the ethnic background of the individuals concerned was in each year. | | (141260) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport 222
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to limit the possibility of ships colliding with offshore wind turbines. | | (141909) | 223
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to comply with the International Ship and Port Facility Code; how many ships and ports have reached the required standard; and what estimate he has made of the date by which the UK will have met these obligations. | | (141911) | 224
| Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney & Shetland):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much the Government has spent on UK port infrastructure in each of the past 10 years; what estimates have been made of future expenditure; and what steps are being taken to increase capacity. | | (141912) | 225
| Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what research the Government has undertaken into the (a) cost and (b) safety-effectiveness of different types of crash barriers to prevent cross-over accidents. | | (142010) | 226
| Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what accidents have taken place in the last 10 years on the A419 between (a) Cirencester and Swindon and (b) Cirencester and Nettleton Bottom due to cross-over accidents; and what plans he has to review the types of central reservation. | | (142011) | 227
| Mr John Randall (Uxbridge):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding is allocated to the Cleanup project operated by the Energy Saving Trust in the current financial year; and how much has been spent in this financial year. | | (141790) | 228
| John Thurso (Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Coastguard calls relating to (a) commercial shipping, (b) leisure craft, (c) fishing vessels and (d) passenger ferries there were in each of the last five years; and what the cost was in each case. | | (141821) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 229
| Mr Brian H. Donohoe (Cunninghame South):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people were found to be fraudulently claiming the disability living allowance in (a) 2000, (b) 2001 and (c) 2002. | | (141928) | 230
| Mr Brian H. Donohoe (Cunninghame South):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what checks the Government has in place continually to assess a person's eligibility for the disability living allowance in order to protect the system against fraudulent claims. | | (141960) | 231
| Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the finding of the National Audit Office report on the New Deal for Young People of 28th February 2002 on the average annual cost per additional person of any age in employment. | | (141796) | 232
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what rules apply to the payment of state pensions to pensioners who retire to Commonwealth countries; and whether they differ according to country. | | (141841) | 233
| Mr Jimmy Hood (Clydesdale):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the outcome of the Employment and Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council was on 1st December; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement. | | (142006) | 234
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what account the Child Support Agency takes of court orders when assessing the level of maintenance to be paid by non-resident parents; and if he will make a statement. | | (141937) | Questions to Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer 235
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many pregnancies in females under the age of 20 there were in each year since 1986 per 100,000 population. | | [Transferred] (141995) | 236
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people aged (a) 30-39, (b) 40-49, (c) 50-59 and (d) 60-69 were diagnosed with cervical cancer per 100,000 population in each year since 1986. | | [Transferred] (141996) | 237
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research has been undertaken into the reasons for differences in the average cost of answering parliamentary questions between government departments. | | [Transferred] (141905) | 238
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what amount of child benefit he estimates was saved as a result of children being in local authority care in the last 12 months for which figures are available. | | [Transferred] (141836) | 239
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the take-up of child benefit as a percentage of those eligible was in the last 12 months for which figures are available. | | [Transferred] (141839) | 240
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the annual cost would be of providing child benefit for children in local authority care. | | [Transferred] (141840) | Questions to the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs 241
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, if he will introduce measures to strengthen the ability of property and land owners to take legal action against persons entering their land or premises without permission; and if he will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (141939) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 242
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children aged up to three months entered local authority care in the last 12 months for which figures are available. | | [Transferred] (141835) | 243
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children are in local authority care. | | [Transferred] (141837) | 244
| Mr George Osborne (Tatton):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the average age of a child entering local authority care was in the last 12 months for which figures are available. | | [Transferred] (141838) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 245
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with other EU ministers about the international transportation of horses; and if she will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (141938) | 246
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will list the companies used to supply equipment to homes under the Warm Front initiative; and if she will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (141940) | 247
| Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average length of time taken to supply equipment to households under the Warm Front initiative has been; and if she will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (141941) | 248
| Tony Wright (Cannock Chase):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what provisions exist for the police to take action against motorists who emit loud noise from car stereos. | | [Transferred] (141919) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 249
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, when the Environment and Heritage Service report, The Status of Strangford Lough Modiolus Communities will be published. | | [Transferred] (142023) | Questions to the Prime Minister 250
| David Winnick (Walsall North):To ask the Prime Minister, what representations he has received on the renaming of the honours OBE, CBE and MBE; and if he will make a statement. | | [Notice originally given on 4th December 2003] (141958) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 251
| Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede & Weybridge):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, whether the closure of Abingdon Street in front of the Palace of Westminster on the day of the State Opening of Parliament for six hours after Her Majesty the Queen had left the building was determined on security grounds. | | [Transferred] (141898) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport 252
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the counter proposal for a second runway produced by Birmingham International Airport is formally being considered as part of the consultation process on the future of aviation; and if he will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (142025) |
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