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Questions for Oral or Written Answer
beginning on Monday 26 January 2004
(the 'Questions Book')
Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on
Monday 26 January 2004
This paper contains only Written Questions for answer on Monday 26 January 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 Monday 26 January of which no previous notice has been given, see the Order Paper. For Written and Oral Questions for answer after Monday 26 January see Part 2 of this paper.
Questions to the Minister for the Cabinet Office 1
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150929) | 2
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what cost savings have been made in the Office since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151041) | 3
N | Mr Paul Goodman (Wycombe):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what remit the Strategy Unit has in relation to its work relating to people with disabilities; and if he will make a statement. | | (150530) | 4
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how the recommendations that (a) policy makers should ensure that consultation is clear, concise and widely accessible and (b) policy makers should give feedback regarding the responses received and how the consultation process influenced the policy will be enacted in relation to the Draft Mental Health Bill, with reference to the Code of Practice on Government consultations. | | (151294) | 5
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of official Government vehicles are fitted to run on liquid petroleum gas. | | (151292) | Questions to Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer 6
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the extent to which information technology procurement has improved as a result of the Gateway review process. | | (150927) | 7
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150931) | 8
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151044) | 9
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what work his Department's Green Minister has undertaken in the last three months. | | (150874) | 10
| Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications of taxing currency speculation. | | (150783) | 11
| Mr Howard Flight (Arundel & South Downs):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer to the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham of 14th January, Official Report, column 816W, on the Financial Services Authority, for which firms the Financial Services Authority has reduced fees; by how much; which fees these were; and when. | | (151090) | 12
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what (a) budgets have been agreed and (b) costs have been incurred in fulfilling HM Customs and Excise obligations in respect of ports and airports (i) in the South East of England and (ii) elsewhere for each of the last six years for which records are available. | | (150983) | 13
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much HM Customs and Excise has spent on (a) travel, (b) accommodation, (c) subsistence and (d) other costs in respect of the establishment of mobile teams to support its work at ports and airports in (i) the South East of England and (ii) elsewhere for each of the last six years for which records are available. | | (150984) | 14
N | Andrew George (St Ives):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what budget has been agreed for the creation of mobile Customs and Excise teams to cover ports and airports; and how much has been budgeted for (a) travel costs, (b) accommodation, (c) subsistence allowance and (d) other costs related to the expense of establishing the service and re-deploying staff. | | (150987) | 15
| Mr James Gray (North Wiltshire):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his Answer of 15th January, Official Report, columns 868-9W, on taxation adjustment, whether performance related pay has been paid as a consequence of adjustments in (a) the whole and (b) part of the Large Business Office's Compliance performance in the years 1999-2000 to 2001-02. | | (151095) | 16
| Mr James Gray (North Wiltshire):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what compliance performance targets were set for the (a) Large Business Office (CT) and (b) Inland Revenue in each of the years 1998-99 to 2002-03; and on what dates these targets were set. | | (151096) | 17
| Mr Martyn Jones (Clwyd South):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the paper, Reforming Transport Taxes, published by the European Conference of Ministers of Transport. | | (150883) | 18
| Mr Martyn Jones (Clwyd South):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the paper, Economic Survey - United Kingdom 2004, published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. | | (150884) | 19
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 16th October 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr J. Miah. | | (151236) | 20
| Mr Bob Laxton (Derby North):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress has been made in the inquiry led by Mr Alan Wood into the awarding of public service contracts in the EU; whether its remit includes awarding train franchises; and when he expects the inquiry to report. | | (150992) | 21
| Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much money is being awarded to Wales above the Barnett block to cover the costs of Objective One projects in 2003-04. | | (150654) | 22
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many children under the age of one year have died suddenly in each of the last 10 years; and what main reasons have been attributed to those deaths in the most recent of those years. | | (151094) | 23
| Mr Peter Luff (Mid Worcestershire):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason the Office of National Statistics does not release (a) New Earnings Survey micro-data since 2000, (b) details of the sensitivity of regression results, (c) alternative estimates using Labour Force Survey data and (d) disaggregated Labour Force Survey data to researchers investigating area cost adjustment calculations; and if he will make a statement. | | (151128) | 24
N | Rob Marris (Wolverhampton South West):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of complaints to (a) the Inland Revenue, (b) HM Customs and Excise and (c) district valuers' offices receive a substantive response within 30 working days. | | (146853) | 25
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will list the (a) measures introduced and (b) events taking place as part of the US-UK enterprise agreement. | | (150763) | 26
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, who the speakers are at the Advancing Enterprise summit. | | (150764) | 27
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings officials from his Department had with representatives of the United States Administration regarding the US-UK enterprise agreement. | | (150765) | 28
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the sources of funding were for the Advancing Enterprise summit. | | (150766) | 29
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) total cost and (b) cost to the United Kingdom Government is of the Advancing Enterprise summit. | | (150767) | 30
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will list the representatives of (a) the United Kingdom Government, (b) the United States Administration and (c) business and other representatives attending the Advancing Enterprise summit. | | (150768) | 31
| Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) total cost and (b) cost to the United Kingdom Government is of the US-UK enterprise agreement. | | (150769) | 32
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the habitual residence test in regard to child and working tax credits will apply to nationals of the EU accession states if they come to live in the United Kingdom. | | (151070) | 33
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many complaints have been received concerning banking supervision in each of the last three years. | | (151063) | 34
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he last met the Governor of the Bank of England. | | (151064) | 35
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, who the members of National Savings and Investments were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151308) | 36
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, who the members of the (a) Financial Services Authority and (b) VAT and Duties Tribunal were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151459) | 37
N | Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the child elements of jobseeker's allowance and income support will transfer to child tax credit payments; and whether modifications to the new tax credits IT system will be needed to facilitate the transfer. | | (150532) | 38
N | Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what elements of the new tax credits IT system will require systems testing before April; and when that systems testing will (a) commence and (b) conclude. | | (150533) | 39
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff in his Department have been (a) investigated, (b) suspended, (c) dismissed, (d) prosecuted and (e) convicted for involvement in benefit fraud in each of the last six years; and what the amounts involved were in each of these categories listed. | | (151461) | Questions to the honourable Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners 40
| Mr Ben Chapman (Wirral South):To ask the honourable Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, if he will make a statement on the first report of the McClean Review on clergy terms of service. | | (151117) | Questions to the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs 41
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150935) | 42
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what cost savings have been made in the Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151052) | 43
| Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 18th December 2003, Official Report, column 1112W, on the 1911 Census, if the Lord Chancellor will amend Instrument No. 12 (1966) to reduce the period of closure of decennial records to 50 years. | | (150830) | 44
| Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what recent changes have been made to the provision of public funding to suspects before charge. | | (150792) | 45
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 15th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to W. Stewart. | | (151235) | 46
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what the implications of the Courts Act 2003 are for the remuneration of undersheriffs. | | (151133) | 47
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what steps he has taken to make up shortfalls in undersheriffs' remuneration arising from changes introduced in the Courts Act 2003. | | (151134) | 48
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, who the members of the (a) Imperial College Governing Body, (b) Court of UMIST, (c) Court of the University of Hull, (d) Court of the University of Sussex and (e) Court of the University of Ulster were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151342) | 49
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, who the members of the (a) Court of Victoria University of Manchester, (b) General Medical Council, (c) Royal Council of Veterinary Surgeons and (d) Royal College of Court were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151457) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 50
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in her Department. | | (150937) | 51
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what cost savings have been made in her Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151053) | 52
| Mr Tim Boswell (Daventry):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to increase the availability of audio-described services on digital cable television. | | (151115) | 53
| Mr Tim Boswell (Daventry):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make a statement on progress in developing access to digital television for users with (a) sensory disabilities and (b) other special needs. | | (151116) | 54
| Mr Graham Brady (Altrincham & Sale West):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much Heritage Lottery funding has been awarded in the Trafford Metropolitan Council area in each of the last five years. | | (151125) | 55
N | Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to provide further support to the Sportsmatch scheme. | | (150638) | 56
N | Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to appoint a new long-term full-time chairman of UK Sport. | | (150639) | 57
N | Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to re-appoint Michele Verroken to a position dealing with the campaigns against the misuse of drugs in sport in the United Kingdom. | | (150640) | 58
N | Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make a statement on the recent decisions made by UK Sport concerning (a) the departure of leading officials in sports administration and (b) sports funding. | | (150641) | 59
N | Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what additional funding the Government will provide for UK rowing, to enable the UK to host the (a) 2005 Rowing World Cup and (b) 2006 Rowing World Championships. | | (150778) | 60
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to meet representatives from the BBC in Northern Ireland in relation to the BBC Charter Review. | | (151331) | 61
N | Mr Robert Key (Salisbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions (a) her Department and (b) English Heritage have had with the proposers of the Parker Plan for road construction near Stonehenge. | | (149882) | 62
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within her Department since 1997. | | (149625) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Defence 63
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150936) | 64
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151039) | 65
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10th December, Official Report, column 463W, on bearskins, what species of bear's pelt is used to make the bearskin caps; whether this species is classified as endangered within the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species; what steps the Department takes to ensure the taking of bears is a sustainable practice; and if he will make a statement. | | (150147) | 66
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his Answer of 12th January, Official Report, column 1124W, on overseas deployments, if he will list the countries where personnel are deployed other than those where they are stationed; and how many are deployed in each case. | | (151097) | 67
| Mr Ian Davidson (Glasgow Pollok):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he will write to the honourable Member for Glasgow, Pollok with the answer he undertook to provide on 20th November 2003, his ref. 5353N. | | (151197) | 68
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assistance was (a) sought and (b) given by his Department's personnel following the distress alert recorded from the Bugaled Breizh on the afternoon of 15th January. | | (150985) | 69
N | Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what military vessel manoevures took place in the vicinity of the Bugaled Briezh between 12.00 noon and 14.00 on 15th January. | | (150989) | 70
N | Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the report on the accident involving two Royal Navy Sea King helicopters in Iraq in March 2003 will be published. | | (150990) | 71
N | Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Royal Navy Sea King helicopters engaged in military action in the Gulf in March 2003 were supplied with (a) night vision equipment and (b) night flying aids. | | (150991) | 72
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the Armed Forces based in Northern Ireland were found to be driving without a valid (a) driving licence or (b) insurance in each of the last five years; and how many of these cases resulted in a conviction.
| | (151328) | 73
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many reservists mobilised for operational service under (a) Operation TELIC 1 and (b) Operation TELIC 2 under the provisions of the Reserve Forces Act 1996 have lost their jobs since returning from service; what his Department did to support them in retaining their employment rights; and if he will make a statement. | | (151426) | 74
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what provision is being made to ensure that life insurance and other financial services made available to reservists being mobilised for operational service in Iraq are of a similar standard and as affordable as those offered to reservists mobilised under Operation TELIC 1; and if he will make a statement. | | (151427) | 75
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has for changes in (a) manning levels and (b) overall structure of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment; and if he will make a statement. | | (151188) | 76
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the current strength of each regimental band in the Armed Forces is; and if he will make a statement. | | (151189) | 77
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what elements of the propulsion system of HMS Enterprise have been transferred to HMS Echo; and whether his Department is seeking compensation from the contractor following technical problems with HMS Enterprise. | | (150859) | 78
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many mine countermeasures vessels have been in service with the Royal Navy in each year since 1997. | | (150860) | 79
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Lieutenant Lewis Page was given authorisation whilst a serving officer to publish an article in Prospect magazine. | | (150861) | 80
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the Royal Naval Reserve have (a) been called up and (b) served in Operation Telic; and how many have served for more than one tour. | | (150862) | 81
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what restrictions apply to the renewed call-up of a reservist who has completed a six-month operational deployment; and what time must elapse before he or she can be called up again. | | (150863) | 82
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what delays have occurred in the construction of RFA Largs Bay; and if he will make a statement. | | (150864) | 83
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for how long HMS Bridport was laid up; and for what reason. | | (150865) | 84
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what repair work needed to be done to HMS Bridport in the 12 months before she was withdrawn from service. | | (150866) | 85
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his assessment is of the cost of bringing HMS Bridport into operational service. | | (150867) | 86
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the requirement for nine countermeasures vessels has changed since the Strategic Defence Review. | | (150868) | 87
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on what date the first Type 45 destroyer will be delivered to the Royal Navy; and whether this is the date originally specified. | | (150869) | 88
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) current and (b) planned requirements are for the number of air defence destroyers. | | (150870) | 89
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned paying-off dates are for each of the fleet's aircraft carriers. | | (150871) | 90
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many operational days have been spent at sea by each (a) Invincible class aircraft carrier, (b) Type 42 destroyer, (c) Type 23 frigate, (d) Type 22 frigate and (e) fleet submarine in each of the past five years. | | (150872) | 91
| Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy for troops engaged in (a) expeditionary and (b) peacekeeping operations to be issued with sets of enhanced body armour as part of their personal equipment. | | (151358) | 92
N | Mr John Lyons (Strathkelvin & Bearsden):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many British troops are deployed in Iraq. | | (150149) | 93
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when Jonathan Russell of the Royal Irish Regiment was arrested by the Police Service of Northern Ireland; when he was charged with offences arising from the protests in Portadown in July 2002; what rank of officer made representations on his behalf connected with the bail application; what rank of officer was responsible for overseeing his behaviour while on bail; and what internal disciplinary action has been taken following conviction. | | (150607) | 94
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment has been made of weapons used for the first time in battlefield conditions in the war on Iraq. | | (151373) | 95
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether troops serving in Iraq who have purchased winter footwear at their own expense will be reimbursed by the Ministry of Defence. | | (150891) | 96
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether all British troops serving in winter conditions during the winter of 2004-05 in Iraq will be issued with appropriate winter footwear. | | (150892) | 97
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether sufficient winter footwear is in stock to ensure that all troops serving in winter conditions in Iraq are issued with a pair. | | (150911) | 98
N | Mr Gordon Prentice (Pendle):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) frigates and (b) destroyers are in service with the Royal Navy. | | (150165) | 99
| Mr Richard Spring (West Suffolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on the appointment of the head of the European Armaments Agency. | | (150784) | 100
N | Mr Desmond Swayne (New Forest West):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) exercises and (b) training course places involving reservists have been (i) cancelled and (ii) withdrawn in each of the three armed services in the last two years. | | (149305) | 101
N | Mr Desmond Swayne (New Forest West):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many man training days were available to reserve forces in each of the last five years. | | [R] (149407) | 102
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has produced written guidelines for how staff in the Ministry and in the Defence Export Services Organisation should deal with allegations of overseas bribery and corruption. | | (151375) | 103
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) ministers and (b) officials from his Department met the former South African Defence Minister, Mr Joe Modise, when he visited the UK during 1998; and whether his Department was informed of the visit by Mr Modise to the UK and of the purpose of his visit. | | (151396) | 104
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many allegations of overseas bribery the MoD Police has received since November 1997; how many of these allegations resulted in investigations; and what the outcome of these investigations was. | | (151397) | 105
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many allegations of overseas bribery his Department has forwarded to the law enforcement agencies since (a) November 1997 and (b) February 2002; and if he will name the agencies to which allegations were forwarded, and give the dates concerned. | | (151398) | 106
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many allegations of overseas bribery his Department has received since (a) November 1997 and (b) February 2002. | | (151399) | 107
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many allegations of overseas bribery involving UK companies his Department has received from the US Administration since February 1999; on what dates these allegations were received; and what action his Department took on each allegation. | | (151401) | 108
| Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps have been taken to categorise into sub-groups by (a) operational activity and (b) incident those covered by the National Radiological Protection Board study of participants in UK nuclear weapons tests. | | (150844) | 109
| Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what funding has been granted to the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association to commission scientific advice on the epidemiology of exposure to nuclear tests. | | (150845) | 110
N | Mr Paul Tyler (North Cornwall):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects to publish the Government's full response to the National Audit Office's investigation report into Operation TELIC; and if he will make a statement. | | (150197) | 111
N | Mr Paul Tyler (North Cornwall):To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what conclusions have been reached by his Department's review of the investigation into the collision of two UK Sea King helicopters, from RNAS Culdrose in Cornwall, off Iraq on 22nd March 2003; what the implications were of the non-availability of night vision goggles for the pilots; and if he will make a statement. | | (150198) | Questions to the Deputy Prime Minister 112
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150928) | 113
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151040) | 114
N | John Austin (Erith & Thamesmead):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with the Association of British Insurers regarding flood risk in the Thames Gateway Development Area; and if he will make a statement. | | (150903) | 115
N | John Austin (Erith & Thamesmead):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the environmental consequences of building on the Erith Marshes; what assessment he has made of whether such development conflicts with the (a) local council's biodiversity plan and (b) recommendations of the biodiversity team of the Mayor of London; what assessment he has made of the increased flood risk in adjacent areas if the development proceeds; and if he will make a statement. | | (150904) | 116
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many and what percentage of planning applications rejected by planning authorities pursuant to revised PPG 25 have been subsequently allowed on appeal. | | (150873) | 117
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will list the organisations and individuals consulted in the Permitted Development Order Review England, published in September 2003. | | (150999) | 118
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what additional consultation is required before progress can be made with the recommendations of the Permitted Development Order Review England, with respect to railway undertakings and telecommunications masts. | | (151000) | 119
| Mr Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what his policy is on the issuing of directions to local authorities before those authorities have completed local consultations on the matters to which such directions relate; and if he will make a statement. | | (150808) | 120
| Mr Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, on what date he was informed of the intention of the Secretary of State for Education and Skills to direct Cambridgeshire County Council to increase its school budget by £4.5 million. | | (150834) | 121
| Mr Adrian Flook (Taunton):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will list the rurality factor given to each of the (a) county councils and (b) unitary authorities in England for the latest local authority financial settlements. | | (150601) | 122
N | Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what estimate he has made of the changes in the number of jobs in Kent County Fire and Rescue Service that would arise as a result of the proposed regionalisation of the Fire and Rescue Service. | | (149306) | 123
N | Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will list those whom he has consulted on the plans to regionalise the Kent Fire and Rescue Service. | | (149307) | 124
N | Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, under what powers he would implement the regionalisation of the Fire and Rescue Service in Kent without the consent of Kent County Council. | | (149308) | 125
N | Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with (a) retained and (b) full-time firefighters in Kent on his plans to regionalise the Fire and Rescue Service; and what their advice was. | | (149309) | 126
N | Mr Roger Gale (North Thanet):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what research relating to Kent he has commissioned to provide the evidential basis for his plans to regionalise the Fire and Rescue Service. | | (149310) | 127
N | Charles Hendry (Wealden):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what level of grant has been provided to each (a) metropolitan fire authority, (b) county council fire authority and (c) combined fire authority for each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. | | (150949) | 128
N | Charles Hendry (Wealden):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what guidance he gives to fire authorities on the level of financial reserves they should maintain. | | (150950) | 129
N | Charles Hendry (Wealden):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will take account of the need for fire authorities to build up reserves in decisions on capping precepting fire authorities. | | (150951) | 130
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will make a statement on the availability of affordable housing in each of the Lancashire districts; and what plans he has to increase availability. | | (151203) | 131
| Mr Bernard Jenkin (North Essex):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what representations he has received from the (a) British chambers of commerce, (b) Confederation of British Industry and (c) Institute of Directors on proposals to establish elected regional assemblies; what response he has made; and if he will place in the Library copies of the exchanges of correspondence on this issue. | | (151005) | 132
| Mr Bernard Jenkin (North Essex):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what representations he has received from organisations campaigning in (a) the North West, (b) the North East and (c) Yorkshire and Humberside in favour of an elected regional assembly for powers to be granted to those assemblies in addition to those set out in Your Region, Your Choice (Cm 5511). | | (151006) | 133
| Mr Bernard Jenkin (North Essex):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what the evidential basis is for the statement in Cm 5511 page 47, paragraph 5.13 on assemblies covering additional running costs through more effective targeting of resources and efficiency improvements. | | (151007) | 134
| Mr Peter Luff (Mid Worcestershire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, for what reason the data used to calculate area cost adjustment includes pay data for the public sector; and if he will make it his policy to use only private sector pay rates in future calculations. | | (151129) | 135
| Mr Peter Luff (Mid Worcestershire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, for what reason the data used to calculate area cost adjustment excludes overtime pay data; and if he will make it his policy to include such data in future calculations. | | (151130) | 136
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what the budget of the information campaign, Elected Regional Assembly: Your Say, is (a) in total, (b) for the East Midlands and (c) for West Derbyshire. | | (150890) | 137
N | Mr Andrew Mitchell (Sutton Coldfield):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, when he will reply to the Questions tabled by the honourable Member for Sutton Coldfield for Named Day Answer on 19th January, reference (a) 148012, (b) 148011 and (c) 148014. | | (150230) | 138
N | Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what estimate he has made of the impact on Cambridgeshire of migration by the Roma Community of Eastern Europe after enlargement of the EU on 1st May. | | (150822) | 139
N | Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what guidance he is issuing to local authorities regarding inward migration of the Roma Community of Eastern Europe after enlargement of the EU on 1st May. | | (150823) | 140
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the likely change in demand for gypsy and traveller sites following the admission to the EU of the accession states on 1st May. | | (151065) | 141
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the effect on demand for housing in the UK of the housing needs of nationals of the EU accession states who may come to the UK. | | (151066) | 142
| Sarah Teather (Brent East):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what percentage of Brent Housing Partnership homes are fitted with (a) smoke alarms, (b) fire doors and (c) double glazing. | | (150815) | 143
| Sarah Teather (Brent East):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment the Audit Commission has made of leisure facilities in Brent East. | | (151122) | 144
| Sarah Teather (Brent East):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many derelict phone boxes there were in each London Borough at the latest date for which data is available. | | (151123) | 145
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within his Department since 1997. | | (149627) | 146
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, whether he will allow the Cambridge private planning application to proceed. | | (150787) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 147
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150934) | 148
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151051) | 149
| Mr A.J. Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what proportion of students in (a) the North East of England, (b) England and Wales and (c) UK universities have been mature students in each of the last 15 years. | | (150627) | 150
| Mr A.J. Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will rank universities by their proportion of mature students in (a) the North East of England, (b) England and Wales and (c) the UK. | | (150628) | 151
| Mr Tim Boswell (Daventry):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what plans he has to modify the age cap on loans for mature students following his decision to introduce a 25-year cut-off period for student loans. | | (151113) | 152
| Mr Tim Boswell (Daventry):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will make a statement on development of the Global Gateway for Learning since the Commonwealth Education Ministers' Conference in October 2003. | | (151114) | 153
N | Mr Simon Burns (West Chelmsford):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, whether he plans to issue clarification to local education authorities on the guidance he has issued on the photographing of children at school; and if he will make a statement. | | (150531) | 154
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of people in the working age population in the West Midlands with no qualifications. | | (149831) | 155
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what steps he is taking to increase the proportion of the working age population in the West Midlands reaching degree level qualifications. | | (149832) | 156
| Mr Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, for what reasons his Department rejected a request on 2nd December 2003 from the leader of Cambridgeshire County Council to discuss Cambridgeshire school's budgetary problems. | | (150835) | 157
| Mr Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what meetings the Minister of State for School Standards has held since 1st December 2003 with (a) the honourable Member for Cambridge and (b) the opposition group leader on Cambridgeshire County Council to discuss budgetary problems in Cambridgeshire schools. | | (150836) | 158
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how much funding for environmental educational initiatives will be lost by schools following the end of the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme; and if he will replace such lost funding from his departmental budget. | | (150644) | 159
N | Mrs Louise Ellman (Liverpool, Riverside):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what estimate he has made of the proportion of people in Liverpool who have received higher education in each of the last 10 years. | | (150151) | 160
N | Mrs Louise Ellman (Liverpool, Riverside):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of educational maintenance allowances in improving staying-on rates in Liverpool. | | (150152) | 161
| Michael Fabricant (Lichfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what aggregate percentage of central government funding provided to Staffordshire Local Education Authority is made up of the formula spending share. | | (150618) | 162
| Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, whether it is his policy that trainee teachers will be exempt from university top-up fees; and if he will make a statement. | | (151238) | 163
| Sandra Gidley (Romsey):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many places were available for (a) UK nationals and (b) fee paying students from overseas to study medicine in each of the last five financial years; and how many places are available in 2004, broken down by academic institution. | | (151237) | 164
N | Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children in England and Wales missed at least one half day session of school in (a) 1997-98 and (b) 2002-03 in each local education authority. | | (150148) | 165
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many people attended universities from Chorley in each year since 1996. | | (151272) | 166
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children in Chorley received free school transport to (a) secondary, (b) primary and (c) special schools in each year since 1996. | | (151273) | 167
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many Taiwanese nationals study at universities in the UK. | | (151274) | 168
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will list for Lancashire the firms and companies taking part in employer training pilots; and how much public funding they have been given. | | (151276) | 169
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will state the average class size of (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in (i) Chorley and (ii) Lancashire in each year since 2000. | | (151277) | 170
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will list the level of funding per pupil in further education in (a) Chorley and (b) Lancashire in 2003-04. | | (151278) | 171
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how much money has been spent on school buildings in Chorley, broken down by school, in each year since 1997. | | (151279) | 172
| Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what estimate he has made of the percentage of the population of London who have national vocational qualifications at level (a) 1, (b) 2 and (c) 3. | | (151071) | 173
| Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time students enrolled on courses at higher education institutions in London in each of the last 10 years; and what the drop out rates in the first year of study were for each year. | | (151072) | 174
| Mrs Joan Humble (Blackpool North & Fleetwood):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many people attended university from the Blackpool North and Fleetwood constituency in each year since 1996. | | (151084) | 175
| Mr Alan Hurst (Braintree):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children in Essex received free school transport to (a) secondary shools, (b) primary and infant schools and (c) special schools in each year from 1990 to 2003. | | (150907) | 176
| Mr Alan Hurst (Braintree):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, whether there is a responsibility upon a local education authority to provide school meals to pupils attending its schools. | | (150908) | 177
| Mr Alan Hurst (Braintree):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many pupils in Essex were provided by the county council with school meals in each year from 1990 to 2003. | | (150909) | 178
| Mr Alan Hurst (Braintree):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the net cost of the provision of school meals was to Essex County Council in each year from 1990 to 2003. | | (150910) | 179
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, when the Minister for Children first ordered an investigation into the number of children who were taken away from parents who may have been sent to prison for cot death; and what actions he took subsequently. | | (150807) | 180
N | Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, on what basis he deemed it appropriate to state ahead of (a) the Appeal Court judgement in the case of R v Angela Cannings and (b) the subsequent review of cases announced that children taken away from birth parents as a result of judgements where expert witness testimony from Sir Roy Meadow has been instrumental should not be returned to them if judgements are found to be unsafe. | | (151025) | 181
N | Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what directions he has issued to local authority departments to (a) identify and (b) secure documents relating to cases involving infanticide or harm to childen which relied on expert testimony from Sir Roy Meadow. | | (151026) | 182
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, when he will answer the Question, reference no. 143066, tabled by the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham on 4th December 2003. | | (151034) | 183
N | Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the (a) position and (b) role is of Jenny Gray, a civil servant in his Department. | | (151093) | 184
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what funding has been made available for employment of school drugs advisers (a) to date and (b) after April 2004. | | (151296) | 185
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many half-days have been lost owing to unauthorised absence of pupils in (a) East Midlands and (b) West Derbyshire in each year since 1997 (i) in absolute terms and (ii) as a proportion of the total number of half-days. | | (150879) | 186
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will list the schools in West Derbyshire which ran a budget deficit in the year ending 31st March 2003; and how much this deficit was for each school. | | (150880) | 187
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children in the East Midlands were affected by divorce in (a) 2001-02 and (b) 2002-03. | | (150923) | 188
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, how many children in (a) the East Midlands and (b) West Derbyshire lived in poverty in (i) 2001-02 and (ii) 2002-03. | | (150924) | 189
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what (a) the national average level of funding per further education student and (b) the level of funding per student for each further education college is in Shrewsbury and Atcham. | | (151374) | 190
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will list the (a) average funding of each schoolchild in England and (b) the level of funding for a schoolchild in Shrewsbury and Atcham. | | (151407) | 191
| Mr Peter Pike (Burnley):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what discussions he has had on introducing charitable status for the provision of (a) school meals and (b) school trips. | | (151275) | 192
| Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what funding the Scottish Botanic Garden in Edinburgh receives from his Department. | | (150664) | 193
| Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what discussions he has had with Welsh Assembly Government colleagues with regard to funding for the National Botanic Gardens of Wales. | | (150665) | 194
| Phil Sawford (Kettering):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will provide the latest available figures for the number of places for children in privately run children's homes in each county in England. | | (151315) | 195
N | Mr Gerry Steinberg (Durham, City of):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what fees will be chargeable to students for part-time degrees at (a) universities and (b) further education colleges under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill. | | (150537) | 196
| Dr Jenny Tonge (Richmond Park):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of tuition fees on the number of doctors choosing to work abroad after qualification. | | (151120) | 197
| Mr Bill Wiggin (Leominster):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will make a statement on the relative value of the (a) English and (b) Welsh Qualified Teacher Status qualifications. | | (150599) | 198
| Mr Bill Wiggin (Leominster):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what assessment he has made of obstacles to prospective teachers who live on the Welsh borders qualifying as teachers. | | (150600) | 199
| Mr Bill Wiggin (Leominster):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, whether a teacher who completes their initial teacher training course in England may undertake the practical experience element in a Welsh school. | | (150603) | 200
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within his Department since 1997. | | (149626) | 201
| Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what definition of the term minted is used by his Department in (a) internal and external documents and (b) external advertising. | | (150610) | 202
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, which targets have been set by Government for the University for Industry; and what progress has been made in meeting them. | | (150777) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 203
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in her Department. | | (150930) | 204
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what cost savings have been made in her Department since the introduction of the Information Technology procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151042) | 205
N | John Austin (Erith & Thamesmead):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment of flood risk in the Thames Gateway Development Area has been made by the Environment Agency; and if she will make a statement. | | (150902) | 206
N | Vera Baird (Redcar):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for United Kingdom industry of the National Emissions Reduction Plan in relation to the Large Combustion Plant Directive. | | (150228) | 207
N | Vera Baird (Redcar):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the (a) process and (b) timescale is for reaching a final United Kingdom position on implementation of the Large Combustion Plant Directive. | | (150231) | 208
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 6th January, Official Report, columns 255-6W, on environmental taxation, if she will break down into component parts the 2.85 per cent. UK figure. | | (150114) | 209
| Mr A.J. Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect on farm diversification of pre-1983 agricultural tenancy conditions which refer to earnings from agriculture. | | (150885) | 210
N | Mr John Burnett (Torridge & West Devon):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what costs were incurred by her Department and its predecessor in relation to the proposed carcase burial pits at Ash Moor in Devon, broken down by (a) costs in relation to the acquisition of rights of way, (b) costs of construction including materials and off-site works, (c) security costs, (d) costs of restoration, including off-site works, (e) legal and professional fees and costs and (f) consultants' fees and costs. | | (151086) | 211
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in her Department in the last 12 months. | | (150888) | 212
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with her EU counterparts concerning measures to stem the decline of bird numbers in the regions of most intensive agriculture. | | (149829) | 213
N | Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on Government policy on the place of (a) environmental protection, (b) protection of wildlife and (c) animal welfare in UK farming policy. | | (149830) | 214
| Mrs Janet Dean (Burton):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will ensure that future measurements of emissions from crematoria will be monitored by independent organisations. | | (151303) | 215
| Mrs Janet Dean (Burton):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will quantify the financial impact on crematoria of introducing gas cleaning systems to all crematoria; and whether the principle of polluter pays will be adhered to. | | (151304) | 216
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will list the (a) number and (b) location of Information Technology staff in her Department employed directly or on contract at each location outside Guildford. | | (150614) | 217
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will list each Information Technology system (a) supported and (b) in development by the IT Department at Guildford; which of those systems provide information to agencies associated with her Department; which of those systems support payments to outside bodies and individuals, giving the value of the payments for each system and the number of recipients of payments; which of those systems provide statistical information and payments to (i) her own and (ii) other Government departments; and which of those systems provide statistical information to the European Union. | | (150615) | 218
| Paul Flynn (Newport West):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support the Department provides to the Voluntary Initiative on Pesticides website. | | (151008) | 219
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many organic farms there were in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley in each of the last three years. | | (151204) | 220
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage of (a) domestic, (b) commercial and (c) industrial refuse was recycled in each of the last three years. | | (151205) | 221
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many households she estimates are eligible for the Warm Front scheme in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley; and how many households qualify for the Warm Homes Plus element of the programme. | | (151206) | 222
| Mr Martyn Jones (Clwyd South):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has received a copy of the joint report by Greenpeace and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, entitled The Net Effect. | | (150882) | 223
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what subsidies are available for (a) the incineration of waste, (b) the recycling of waste and (c) other waste disposal options; at what rate per tonne those subsidies are paid; and what assessment she has made of the impact of each of the subsidies available on waste disposal options in England. | | (151366) | 224
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on the environmental benefits of recycling. | | (151367) | 225
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on the environmental benefits of incineration. | | (151368) | 226
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on the environmental costs and benefits of landfill. | | (151369) | 227
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many tonnes of waste have been disposed of in England by (a) landfill, (b) incineration and (c) recycling in each of the last five years. | | (151370) | 228
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average income was for a hill farmer in Shrewsbury and Atcham in the last year. | | (151317) | 229
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether persons wishing or authorised to undertake the relocation of badgers are required (a) to carry out tests on those animals and (b) to await the results of any such tests before setting them free in their new locations. | | (150609) | 230
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage of M. bovis was isolated from (a) carcasses and (b) faeces from wildlife species tested in studies carried out by or on behalf of her Department and its predecessor since 1974. | | (150611) | 231
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what further estimate she has made of the increase in bovine TB following the discontinuance of reactive culling. | | (150625) | 232
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what further research she is planning into seasonal trends in the incidence of TB in cattle. | | (150712) | 233
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the conclusions were of Professor Solly Zuckerman's 1988 report to the Ministry of Agriculture; and what his recommendations were for future strategy to protect (a) badgers and (b) cattle. | | (150713) | 234
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her Answer of 10th December 2003, Official Report, column 523W, on badgers, how many individual clearance operations in the Krebs areas were specifically related to individual farms; how many such operations covered more than one farm; and what difference there was in the TB incidence in cattle on farms which were part of an operation covering more than one farm as compared with those which were subject to an operation covering only one farm. | | (150775) | 235
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 15th December, Official Report, column 629-30W, on bovine TB, if she will take steps to compensate herd owners for uninsurable consequential losses arising from the TB infection, where there is clear evidence of no culpability. | | (150846) | 236
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8th December, Official Report, column 217-8W, under what circumstances genetic structures of M. bovis undergo mutation following sequences of transmission, with particular reference to transmission between species; at what rate mutations occur; whether techniques and facilities are available to detect these changes; and whether back-mutation of bacilli from final host species would assist in the determination of the direction of inter-species transmission. | | (150847) | 237
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, under what circumstances the North Sea sand eel quota would be reduced to below the level of the historic landing tonnage. | | (150848) | 238
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the estimated value is of payments due from the European Commission in respect of expenditures incurred and payments made by her Department, for which no claim has yet been made. | | (150849) | 239
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what conditions have been imposed by the European Commission in respect of the submission of claims for expenditures incurred and payments made by her Department in relation to foot and mouth disease. | | (150850) | 240
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of whether fishing effort managed by limiting days at sea, including the banning of discards, is an effective fisheries management tool. | | (150851) | 241
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research has been conducted on the effectiveness of hybrid systems which use total allowable catches, days at sea and individual species quotas. | | (150852) | 242
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps have been taken to encourage a consumer shift from cod to haddock; and what assessment she has made of the impact on the British fleet of such a shift. | | (150853) | 243
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of whether haddock is an acceptable retail alternative to cod. | | (150854) | 244
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the amount by which it would be safe to increase haddock quotas in (a) tonnage and (b) percentage terms above 2003 levels in ICES areas IVa and IVb if other fish stocks were disregarded. | | (150855) | 245
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proposals she and her officials put to the (a) Council of Ministers and (b) Commission in or before December 2003 with the aim of enabling Scottish fishermen to maximise opportunities to catch European haddock. | | (150856) | 246
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to offer marketing assistance to fish wholesalers and retailers to encourage increased consumption of haddock by British consumers. | | (150857) | 247
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make a statement on the Department's responses to Professor Zuckerman's recommendations on protecting badgers and cattle from TB. | | (150858) | 248
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the effects of the use of more discrete methods of badger culling on culling results. | | (150893) | 249
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which of the (a) proactive and (b) reactive and (c) control areas of the Krebs trials underwent boundary changes after initial designation of the areas; and when these changes occurred. | | (150894) | 250
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage cull of badgers was originally proposed for the Krebs trials; how the culling was to be achieved; and in what ways the protocol was amended in the final version. | | (150895) | 251
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the relationship is between risk of spread of animal pathogens from a laboratory and the infectivity of the organism; and which pathogens are classified as group 2. | | (150896) | 252
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information she has collated on the estimated badger population of mainland continental Europe. | | (150897) | 253
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the relative importance of (a) aural and (b) visual triggers in the escape responses of ground fish in relation to the approach of a towed trawl. | | (150898) | 254
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what measures are being taken to deter fishermen from applying techniques which result in the distortion of standard diamond netting. | | (150899) | 255
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how the fishing capacity of a vessel is measured in relation to the effect of different engine power between vessels of similar tonnage. | | (150900) | 256
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of whether the behaviour of fish species is constant, with particular reference to escape strategies when confronted with a towed trawl. | | (150901) | 257
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what power she has to request the Fisheries Council to reconvene. | | (150912) | 258
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will press for regulations to structure quota allocations to individual vessels to ensure that species allocated are grouped by escape behaviour. | | (150913) | 259
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the effect of (a) a plentiful food supply and (b) the absence of a relative abundance of competitive fish species on the predation habits of large cod. | | (150914) | 260
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if her Department will carry out simulation modelling of cod stocks, in respect of ICES areas IVa and IVb, which show the effect of (a) reducing the numbers of large adult cod from the overall biomass, (b) reducing inter-species competitive pressure and (c) increasing food supplies. | | (150915) | 261
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the implications of the use of days at sea restrictions on regulating fishing effort. | | (150916) | 262
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the optimal stock level of cod in a fishery, relative to the carrying capacity of the fisheries, which will (a) produce the highest rates of biomass increase and (b) optimise the economic yield of the fishery. | | (150917) | 263
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether stocks of fish are naturally variable. | | (150918) | 264
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the effect on younger fish in a fishery where the stocks are significantly below the optimum economic carrying capacity of a relatively high proportion of large cod, where all other factors are constant. | | (150919) | 265
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the effect of the extension piece on a demersal trawl on the selectivity of the cod end. | | (150920) | 266
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the implications are of fish categorised as grey fish being landed for the (a) accuracy of catch landing data and (b) estimation of fish stocks. | | (150921) | 267
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will propose to the Fisheries Council a package of measures based on selective fishing techniques aimed at reducing cod by-catch in haddock fisheries. | | (150938) | 268
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research she has conducted on the relationship between net mesh sizes required in commercial trawls and minimum landing sizes. | | (150939) | 269
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what input she has to the research priorities of the Fishing Technology and Fish Behaviour Working Group. | | (150940) | 270
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research she has commissioned on the effect of escape behaviour between different species on mortality rates for cod in North Sea fisheries. | | (150941) | 271
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the relationship between the size of the bumble bee population and the size of the badger population in England. | | (150942) | 272
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has established a field scale experiment to model postulated modes of transmission of bovine TB between badgers and cattle to test hypotheses relating to the spread mechanisms of the disease using live or attenuated TB bacilli, or indicator organisms which mimic the behaviour of the TB bacilli. | | (150943) | 273
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any behavioural patterns have been observed in badgers showing signs of TB which predispose them to closer contact with cattle. | | (150944) | 274
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what account is taken of routine sightings of badgers during daylight hours in calculating population size and density. | | (150945) | 275
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the effect on the yield of a cod fishery is of high level recruitment of juveniles; and what effect regulating juvenile mortality has on the overall productivity of a fishery. | | (150946) | 276
| 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 the closure of a cod fishery on the distribution of fish within the age classes in the fishery when the initial closure is precipitated by declining stocks of large fish. | | (150947) | 277
| Mr Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the implications for the sustainability of a fishery of concentrating on the catching of immature fish and leaving the bulk of mature adults untouched. | | (150948) | 278
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which landfill sites have been chosen to continue receiving hazardous waste following the implementation of the Hazardous Waste Directive. | | (151194) | 279
| Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of the Government's target figure of carbon dioxide emissions in 2050 she estimates will be taken up by aviation emissions. | | (151195) | 280
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the period of notice provided to owners of facilities licensed to quarantine animals entering the UK before inspections are carried out is. | | (150790) | 281
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the minimum number per year is of inspections of facilities licensed to quarantine animals entering the UK. | | (150793) | 282
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many inspections of facilities licensed to quarantine animals entering the UK were carried out in each of the last five years. | | (150794) | 283
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what types of diseases were detected in domestic animals in quarantine after entering the UK in each of the last five years. | | (150795) | 284
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proposals she has to reform the quarantine requirements for domestic animals entering the UK. | | (150796) | 285
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many facilities are licensed to quarantine animals in the UK; and where they are located. | | (150797) | 286
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average cost was of keeping an animal in quarantine after entry to the UK in the last year. | | (150798) | 287
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) cats and (b) dogs have died while being kept in quarantine after entering the UK in each of the last five years. | | (150799) | 288
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the last recorded case was of a domestic animal showing signs of rabies while kept in quarantine after entering the UK. | | (150800) | 289
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who the members of (a) the Environment Agency Board, (b) the Farm Animal Welfare Council, (c) the Food Advisory Committee, (d) Food From Britain and (e) the Harbour Commission were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (150837) | 290
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who the members of (a) the governing board of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, (b) the Sea Fisheries Committee and (c) the Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee were on 1st January; what the term of office of each member is; and what their remuneration is. | | (150838) | 291
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who the members of (a) the Home Grown Cereals Authority, (b) Horticulture Research International, (c) the Meat and Livestock Commission, (d) the Plant Varieties and Seeds Tribunal and (e) the Regional Floods Defence Committee were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (150839) | 292
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who the members of (a) the Advisory Committee on New Foods and Processes, (b) the Agricultural Dwelling House Advisory Committee, (c) the Apple and Pear Research Council, (d) the British Potato Council and (e) the Consultative Panel on Badgers and Bovine Tuberculosis were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (150840) | 293
| Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her Department has spent in each of the past three years on training for environmental health officers under the Contaminated Land Regime, Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990; and if she will make statement. | | (150612) | 294
| Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial and practical assistance her Department has given to environmental health officers since the Contaminated Land Regime, Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 came into force; and if she will make a statement. | | (150613) | 295
| Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what financial and practical assistance her Department has given environmental health officers since the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Regime came into force; and if she will make a statement. | | (150626) | 296
| Dr Alan Whitehead (Southampton, Test):To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her Answer of 14th January, Official Report, column 732W, on domestic waste, in which month the Government will consider the results of that work. | | (150841) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 297
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150933) | 298
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151050) | 299
N | Mr Michael Ancram (Devizes):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what action was taken by his Department as a result of the threat that light aircraft posed to British Airways planes in Saudi Arabia. | | (150528) | 300
N | Mr Michael Ancram (Devizes):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of continuing activity in Libya between March and September 2003 aimed at developing a nuclear capability; and what assessment was made on where material and development assistance was coming from. | | (150529) | 301
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the UN peacekeeping force in Liberia; and if he will make a statement. | | (151201) | 302
| Mr Colin Challen (Morley & Rothwell):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what criteria were used to select British companies to carry out reconstruction work in Iraq. | | (150604) | 303
| Harry Cohen (Leyton & Wanstead):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what records (a) his Department has and (b) have been released on the extent to which the Department was aware of the scale of loss of life as a result of Soviet policy in the Ukraine in 1932-33; whether all relevant documentation has been released; and if he will make a statement. | | (150926) | 304
N | Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the country-specific visa code is for Taiwan nationals. | | (150634) | 305
N | Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make a statement on the accession of Taiwan to the World Health Organisation with full member status. | | (150636) | 306
N | Mr Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will assess the feasibility of resettling the population to those parts of British Indian Ocean Territory permitted to Chagosians under the Immigration Ordinance (British Indian Ocean Territory) dated 3rd November 2002. | | (150188) | 307
N | Mr Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will place in the Library a list of actions taken since July 2002 to support the Chagosians. | | (150189) | 308
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many people entered the UK from (a) Venezuela, (b) Suriname and (c) Bolivia in the latest year for which figures are available. | | (150805) | 309
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many people entered the UK from (a) Papua New Guinea, (b) Jordan and (c) East Timor in the latest year for which figures are available. | | (151150) | 310
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Singaporean Government in relation to the use of the death penalty in that country. | | (151329) | 311
N | Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effects of political tension between the Sri Lankan Prime Minister and President on the peace process and existing ceasefire. | | (151074) | 312
| Lynne Jones (Birmingham, Selly Oak):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has asked the state from which it obtained intelligence on Iraq's alleged attempt to procure uranium from Africa if it may share that intelligence with (a) the United States Administration and (b) other governments. | | (151301) | 313
| 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 17th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs Ahmed. | | (151226) | 314
| 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 15th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to R. ul Haque Malik. | | (151227) | 315
| 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 15th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to S. Rahman. | | (151228) | 316
| 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 16th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ammar Marfani. | | (151229) | 317
| 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 15th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to A. Faqi. | | (151230) | 318
| 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 15th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to M. Din. | | (151231) | 319
| Norman Lamb (North Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his Answer of 12th January, Official Report, column 84W, on Iraq, if he will place in the Library a copy of (a) Mr Nadhmi Auchi's letter to him of 15th May 2003 introducing the Anglo-Arab Organisation and (b) his subsequent acknowledgement. | | (151126) | 320
N | Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list the membership of the panel responsible for drawing up the shortlist of United Kingdom candidates for the European Court of Human Rights, indicating (a) whom they represent and (b) who appoints them. | | (147791) | 321
N | Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list the political parties registered in Afghanistan. | | (150643) | 322
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to implement the transitional restrictions which the UK can apply in regard to the nationals of the EU accession countries. | | (151067) | 323
| Mr Richard Spring (West Suffolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his Department's position is on the United Kingdom's rebate in the context of the negotiations on the EU's multi-annual financial framework; and if he will make a statement. | | (150781) | 324
| Mr Richard Spring (West Suffolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what mid-term Lisbon process targets the European Union has said it will (a) meet and (b) miss; and if he will make a statement. | | (151343) | 325
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many reports of bribery and corruption overseas were received from diplomatic posts between November 1997 and February 2002. | | (151385) | 326
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what procedures his Department employs for validation of reports on bribery and corruption overseas were received from involved in this procedure; and what criteria are employed for such validation. | | (151386) | 327
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what guidance diplomatic posts offer to UK companies about the use of agents and intermediaries. | | (151387) | 328
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which official from Trade Partners UK was given a sabbatical to work with BAE Systems in South Africa; what date and for what period this sabbatical was given; and what position the official held prior to his sabbatical. | | (151388) | 329
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which (a) ministers and (b) officials from his Department met the former South African Defence Minister, Mr Joe Modise, when he visited the UK during 1998; and whether his Department was informed of the visit and its purpose. | | (151389) | 330
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many allegations of overseas bribery involving UK companies his Department has received from the US Administration since February 1999; on what dates; and what action his Department took on each allegation. | | (151390) | 331
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many staff in his Department have been (a) investigated, (b) suspended, (c) dismissed, (d) prosecuted and (e) convicted for involvement in benefit fraud in each of the last six years; and what the amounts involved were in each of the categories listed. | | (151460) | 332
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ensure that (a) the British Council and (b) the BBC World Service are included in the diplomatic initiatives to win the 2012 Olympics for London. | | (150789) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Health 333
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151049) | 334
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether all IT hardware and software products are being properly utilised in his Department. | | (151054) | 335
| Mr David Amess (Southend West):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on the health implications of (a) mobile phones and (b) mobile phone masts. | | (150906) | 336
N | Norman Baker (Lewes):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessement his Department has made of the potential for nanoparticles used in consumer goods to slip through membranes and lodge in the brain. | | (150115) | 337
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the proportion of cancer cases which were preventable in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by type of cancer. | | (150232) | 338
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the changes in cancer incidence between 1995 and 2000. | | (150233) | 339
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what action the Government is taking on the prevention of cancer; and what targets have been set for cancer prevention. | | (150234) | 340
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of those undertaking colonoscopy had been fully trained to do so in the latest year for which figures are available. | | (150235) | 341
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the United Kingdom will sign up to the code of practice for the international recruitment of health workers approved by the Commonwealth Health Ministers in May 2003. | | (150650) | 342
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many nurses working in the NHS have been recruited from developing countries under (a) memoranda of understanding and (b) bilateral agreements with other countries in each of the last five years. | | (150651) | 343
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many nurses working within the NHS have come to the United Kingdom from developing countries in each of the last five years, broken down by country of origin. | | (150657) | 344
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many of the recruitment agencies used by the NHS have not signed up to the Code of Practice on ethical recruitment. | | (150658) | 345
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what (a) steps his Department is taking and (b) guarantees his Department seeks to ensure that the NHS does not employ recruitment agencies that have not signed up to its Code of Practice on ethical recruitment. | | (150659) | 346
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information he collates on access to memory clinics in England. | | (150150) | 347
N | Mr Simon Burns (West Chelmsford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what measures the Government is taking to ensure that there is provision in place in (a) residential and (b) domiciliary care settings to provide sufficient care to cover the projected increase in the number of those requiring it. | | (150598) | 348
N | Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when his Department (a) commissioned and (b) received the Dental Workforce Review; and when he will publish the review report. | | (150809) | 349
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the (a) headcount and (b) whole-time equivalent figures are for dentists for each year since 1996 for (i) England, (ii) each NHS region and (iii) each strategic health authority. | | (150810) | 350
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on progress in smoking policy reviews in Government buildings. | | (150814) | 351
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to commission research into the reasons why (a) nurses and (b) midwives trained in the UK (i) do not register with the Nurses and Midwifery Council and (ii) practise overseas. | | (151344) | 352
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made in reducing the number of drug-related deaths since 1999. | | (151462) | 353
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many whole-time equivalent NHS dentists there were per head of population (a) in total and (b) offering NHS treatment in (i) England and (ii) each strategic health authority in each year since 1997. | | (151464) | 354
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the gender breakdown of NHS dentists was in each year since 1997; and what the gender breakdown is of dentists in training. | | (151465) | 355
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the procedure for non-EU overseas dentists wanting to work in the UK to be able to so do; and what plans his Department has to make changes to this procedure. | | (151466) | 356
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will estimate the number of trained dentists living in the UK as refugees; and what proportion he estimates are working in the NHS. | | (151467) | 357
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his Answer of 20th January, Official Report, column 1110W, on personal care charges, what the sources of the estimate are; and if he will place in the Library the assumptions and analysis from which this estimate was derived. | | (151468) | 358
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, why the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Trust had its Commission for Health Improvement assessment reduced from three stars to two stars in July 2003. | | (150534) | 359
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, on which date the health centre at Saxon Square, Christchurch was vacated by the NHS; what steps have been taken by the NHS to dispose of the building; and how much has been spent on (a) security and (b) rates on the property since its vacation. | | (150535) | 360
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that the waiting list for access to the INPUT pain management clinic at Guys and St Thomas's hospital is reduced; and when he will respond to the letter from Mrs Jackson of Christchurch dated 5th December 2003 on this subject. | | (150536) | 361
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what percentage of the annual budget for the National Health Service in 2003-04 has been spent on treatment of non-British citizens. | | (150645) | 362
| Paul Flynn (Newport West):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the recommendation of the Committee on the Rights of the Child that the UK Government adopt the International Code for Marketing of Breast-milk substitutes; what plans he has to introduce the remaining articles of (a) the 1990 Innocenti Declaration and (b) the International Code into UK legislation; and what steps his Department is taking to promote and support breastfeeding in the first six months of infant life. | | (150820) | 363
| Dr Ian Gibson (Norwich North):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what figures his Department collects on the levels of funding by government for cancer research in (a) the UK, (b) other European Union countries and (c) the USA. | | (150606) | 364
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many addicts in England and Wales are maintained on prescribed (a) heroin and (b) methadone; and at what average annual cost for each of those prescriptions. | | (150727) | 365
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many detoxification beds for treatment as an inpatient are available in England and Wales. | | (150760) | 366
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what therapies other than Raloxifen will be provided by the NHS to patients suffering from osteoporosis. | | (151119) | 367
| Jane Griffiths (Reading East):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of deaths from ectopic pregnancy; and if he will make a statement. | | (150771) | 368
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on funding of independent residential care providers in Lancashire; and how many beds there are in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley. | | (151280) | 369
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many general practitioners there are per head of population in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley. | | (151281) | 370
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many general practitioners surgeries there are in Chorley. | | (151282) | 371
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research has been undertaken into the link between (a) suffering long-term memory loss and (b) other side effects from taking ecstasy. | | (151283) | 372
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research has been carried out into the long-term use of cannabis with relation to (a) loss of memory and (b) other side effects. | | (151298) | 373
| Mrs Joan Humble (Blackpool North & Fleetwood):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many calls have been made to NHS Direct from (a) the constituency of Blackpool North and Fleetwood and (b) Lancashire. | | (150660) | 374
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he will answer the (a) Questions with reference numbers 144997, 144998, 145041, 145043, 145046 and 145055 tabled by the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham on 15th December 2003 and (b) Questions with reference numbers 144139, 144140, 144141, 144145 and 144148 tabled by the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham on 10th December 2003. | | (151035) | 375
N | Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has held with the General Medical Council about the possibility of accelerating its investigation into the record of Sir Roy Meadow. | | (151092) | 376
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to ensure that there are adequate care home beds available (a) now and (b) in the future in Worthing; and what mechanisms he will employ to ensure that the care homes receive sufficient fees to care for their residents. | | (151293) | 377
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the forecasted level of overspend is for this financial year for the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. | | (151463) | 378
| Mr Malcolm Moss (North East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many coronary angiograms were sanctioned by each primary care trust in England in each of the last three years; and how many of these were (a) second and (b) third interventions. | | (150729) | 379
| Mr Malcolm Moss (North East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many coronary angiograms were undertaken by each NHS hospital trust in England in each of the last three years; and how many of these were (a) second and (b) third interventions. | | (150730) | 380
| Mr Malcolm Moss (North East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost of a coronary angiogram was in each NHS hospital trust in England in the latest period for which figures are available. | | (150731) | 381
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the projected total (a) wage and (b) administration costs for implementation of the Agenda for Change are; and whether these costs have changed after evaluation of the 12 early implementer sites. | | (150642) | 382
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much money has been allocated to each (a) primary care trust, (b) acute and specialist hospital trust, (c) mental health trust, (d) ambulance trust and (e) strategic health authority in England for each of the next five years to implement the Agenda for Change programme. | | (151143) | 383
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his estimate is of the projected cost increase in each of the next five years if all members of staff eligible for the Agenda for Change programme receive an annual increase in pay of one pay point in a pay band and successfully pass through the (a) foundation and (b) secondary gateways. | | (151144) | 384
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total cost of developing the nationally agreed job profiles for the Agenda for Change programme has been. | | (151145) | 385
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on Knowledge and Skills Framework training for staff and managers in the 12 early implementer sites as part of the Agenda for Change programme; and what his estimate is of the total cost to the NHS of Knowledge and Skills Framework staff training. | | (151146) | 386
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been spent on job evaluation training for staff and managers in the 12 early implementer sites as part of the Agenda for Change programme; and what his estimate is of the total cost to the NHS for staff training in job evaluation. | | (151147) | 387
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff in the 12 early implementer sites have had a reduction in pay consequent on the Agenda for Change programme; and how many staff in the NHS (a) immediately after implementation and (b) after April 2011 will have a reduction in pay consequent on the programme.
| | (151148) | 388
| Mr Archie Norman (Tunbridge Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the costs (a) are of establishing and (b) were estimated to be in each of the next five years of running the NHS Staff Council. | | (151149) | 389
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what tenders are being considered for the disposal of NHS property. | | (151124) | 390
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the interim report of the three-year study being undertaken by Manchester University on behalf of his Department into prison suicide has been completed; if he will place a copy of the interim report in the Library; and if he will make a statement on the conclusions and recommendations.
| | (151410) | 391
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much funding was provided to the premature baby charity, BLISS, in each of the last five years. | | (150738) | 392
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the results of recent research into the association between cannabis use and psychosis. | | (150747) | 393
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what advice he issues to parents regarding risks associated with babies sleeping in the same bed as their parents at night; and if he will make a statement. | | (150755) | 394
| Sarah Teather (Brent East):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many general practitioner vacancies there were in (a) Brent Primary Care Trust, (b) London and (c) England in each year since 1997. | | (150812) | 395
| Sarah Teather (Brent East):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many general practitioner vacancies there were on average in each London primary care trust in each year since 1997. | | (150813) | 396
| Dr Jenny Tonge (Richmond Park):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what (a) radio and (b) television channels he has used for sexual health campaigns since he published the sexual health strategy. | | (151312) | 397
| Dr Jenny Tonge (Richmond Park):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what evidence he has assessed relating to the value of universal vaccination as a means of protecting the population against disease. | | (151313) | 398
| Dr Jenny Tonge (Richmond Park):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when a decision will be made on including pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the childhood vaccination schedule. | | (151314) | 399
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within his Department since 1997. | | (149628) | Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department 400
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether information technology (a) hardware and (b) software products are being used properly in his Department. | | (150932) | 401
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151048) | 402
| Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what procedures are in place to ensure that prisons maintain accurate records of foreign national prisoners in the establishment. | | (151077) | 403
| Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding the women's foreign national support group Hibiscus received from the Home Office in each year since 1997. | | (151078) | 404
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many individuals due for detention in (a) Yarls Wood and (b) other specialist immigration detention centres have been imprisoned in the prison estate in the past (i) 12 months and (ii) 24 months. | | (151079) | 405
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) shortest and (b) longest period is that an individual due for detention in a specialist immigration detention centre has spent in detention in the prison estate; and what procedures are being implemented to ensure that immigrants who have not been convicted or accused of a crime or offence are not detained in the prison estate. | | (151080) | 406
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to ensure that all prisons holding foreign nationals have in place (a) relevant policies and practices and (b) a foreign national co-ordinator employed to address the specific needs of the group of prisoners including (i) pre-release support, (ii) links to home country and family and (iii) procedures to manage deportation or repatriation. | | (151081) | 407
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what procedures are in place to ensure that the Immigration Service (a) monitors the sentences of foreign national prisoners, with particular reference to those liable to deportation and (b) takes action to ensure repatriation or deportation takes place as soon as a prisoner's sentence has expired. | | (151082) | 408
N | Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what special training and guidance is provided for prison officers working in prisons with a large proportion of foreign national prisoners. | | (151083) | 409
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his Answer of 12th January, Official Report, column 502W, on Cheadle Royal Hospital, what steps he has taken to satisfy himself that (a) all the income received by the charity has been applied to the properly authorised charitable purposes and (b) all the assets of the charity have been sold or reassigned in accordance with charity law, with particular reference to section 36(8) of the Charities Act 1993. | | (151001) | 410
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will place in the Library a copy of the standardised multi-agency racist incident reporting form. | | (150875) | 411
| Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many failed Iraqi asylum seekers (a) have been removed from the UK, (b) have voluntarily left the UK with government support and (c) have otherwise been recorded as leaving the UK in each year since 1997. | | (150619) | 412
| Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Iraqi asylum seekers (a) have been refused asylum or other legal status to remain in the UK and (b) exhausted their rights of appeal in each year since 1997. | | (150620) | 413
| Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many failed asylum seekers he estimates are in the UK without legal basis for their presence; and how many are failed Iraqi asylum seekers. | | (150621) | 414
| Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Iraqi asylum seekers have returned to Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein. | | (150622) | 415
| Mr Iain Coleman (Hammersmith & Fulham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will publish revised National Asylum Support Service Policy Bulletin 75 on the application of section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002.
| | (151409) | 416
| Mr Iain Coleman (Hammersmith & Fulham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish the revised casework notes on the application of section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, issued to the National Asylum Support Service caseworkers after 17th December 2003. | | (151418) | 417
| Ross Cranston (Dudley North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to require police authorities to provide him with statistics each year on the level of business crime in each area; and if he will make a statement. | | (150772) | 418
N | Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the requirements for police registration have been lifted in respect of Taiwanese nationals. | | (150635) | 419
| Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what records are kept on extraditions to EU countries from the UK. | | (150791) | 420
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the likely number of people coming into the UK from countries acceding to the EU in each of the next seven years. | | (150803) | 421
| Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether foreigners who are victims of crime in the UK are eligible for the criminal compensation scheme. | | (150804) | 422
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, who will decide whether to grant a home detention curfew until the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service takes up his appointment on 1st June. | | (149087) | 423
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which offences are assessed as being unsuitable for release on home detention curfew. | | (149088) | 424
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what evaluation he has made of the effectiveness of the Home Detention Curfew Scheme. | | (149089) | 425
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the confidence of the public in the Home Detention Curfew Scheme. | | (149090) | 426
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many prisoners are on electronic tags, broken down by (a) sex, (b) offence, (c) length of sentence and (d) region. | | (149091) | 427
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what evaluation his Department made of the restructuring of the Probation Service following its restructuring in April 2001. | | (150714) | 428
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of offenders under the management of the Probation Service have been serviced by non-qualified probation personnel over the last 12 months. | | (150715) | 429
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many additional staff will be employed in the National Offender Management Service to administer the new service at (a) national and (b) regional level. | | (150716) | 430
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget is for establishing the National Offender Management Service during (a) the current year and (b) each of the next three financial years. | | (150717) | 431
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the role will be of offender managers at area level under the new National Offender Management Service structure. | | (150718) | 432
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the National Probation Service and its Directorate will continue to function under the new arrangements for the National Offender Management Service. | | (150719) | 433
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the relationship will be between the (a) local areas, (b) regional offender managers, (c) national offender managers and (d) the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service. | | (150720) | 434
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether local probation areas will become an integral arm of the National Offender Management Service with substantial day to day operational freedom. | | (150721) | 435
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, who the employer will be of probation and prison staff under the National Offender Management Service. | | (150722) | 436
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many burglaries were committed in the last 12 months for which figures are available, broken down by police force area; and in how many of those cases convictions were obtained for (a) custodial and (b) non-custodial sentence, broken down by police force area. | | (150723) | 437
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will publish the report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman into deaths at Styal Prison. | | (150724) | 438
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the costs, and what extra resources will be provided, to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman's office when he takes on responsibility for investigating deaths of prisoners, residents of probation hostels and detainees in immigration removal centres from April. | | (150725) | 439
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what contingency plans he has made to cover the proposed prison officers' strike later in January. | | (150726) | 440
N | Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, to whom the Ombudsman for Prisons and Probation will report the findings of his investigations into deaths of (a) prisoners, (b) probationers and (c) detainees in immigration removal centres. | | (150728) | 441
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the National Offender Management Service will set up consultation committees with magistrates within the new structure for NOMS; what the line of accountability will be for prison and probation officers; whether probation areas will continue to have a role within multi-agency public protection panels; whether inter-agency work will be the subject of competitive tendering; and whether the supervision and potential recall of ex-prisoners will be opened up to competition. | | (150759) | 442
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of people in England and Wales who take (a) heroin, (b) marijuana, (c) cocaine and (d) ecstasy. | | (150761) | 443
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the evidential basis was for his decisions on the amounts to be levied on those guilty of victimless crimes to be used for compensation for victims of other crimes. | | (150779) | 444
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information he has collated on (a) monies paid out by and (b) funding sources of equivalents to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in other EU countries. | | (150780) | 445
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many convictions for burglary were of first-time burglars in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) police authority and (b) age; and how many of these were given a custodial sentence in each year. | | (150788) | 446
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list fires started by prisoners in 2003; at which prisons the incidents took place; and what the cost was in each case. | | (151152) | 447
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list attacks on (a) prison officers and (b) probation officers in each of the last five years, broken down by (i) prison and (ii) probation service area. | | (151153) | 448
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what action he has taken to address the shortfall of officers at HM Prison Highdown in Surrey. | | (151154) | 449
| Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people serving custodial sentences for motoring offences are doing so because of defaulting on fines. | | (151155) | 450
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons Part 8 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 was not extended to Northern Ireland; and what discussions he had with his colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office during the Bill's passage through Parliament in relation to the extension of Part 8 to Northern Ireland. | | (150663) | 451
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many illegal immigrants were detected at Northern Ireland's (a) ports and (b) airports in the last five years for which figures are available. | | (150673) | 452
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average length of time taken to process asylum applications originating in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland was in the last year for which figures are available. | | (151330) | 453
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what grants are available for introducing CCTV into (a) villages and (b) rural railway stations. | | (151267) | 454
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what areas in Lancashire meet the requirement for the Rural Policing Fund. | | (151268) | 455
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list the constituencies being considered for detention centres for asylum seekers. | | (151269) | 456
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers who have committed crimes in the UK in the last five years have been deported. | | (151270) | 457
N | Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the rate of Metropolitan police officer abstractions was from each London borough for (a) counter-terrorism, (b) special operations and (c) public order event policing work in each of the last 12 months; what the average was for each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. | | (151075) | 458
N | Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which London boroughs run neighbourhood warden schemes; how many wardens each of these boroughs employed at the latest date for which figures are available; which London boroughs directly fund and employ police community support officers; how many police community support officers each borough funded or employed at the latest date for which figures are available; which London boroughs run community safety accreditation schemes; and if he will make a statement. | | (151076) | 459
| Mrs Joan Humble (Blackpool North & Fleetwood):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many EU member states have adopted the recent proposals for a European Arrest Warrant; and how many have indicated that they will adopt it in due course. | | (150661) | 460
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 8th December 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Dr. Louis Sterling. | | (151232) | 461
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 13th November 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr E. Ebasani. | | (151233) | 462
| Mr Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will reply to the letter to him dated 10th November 2003 from the Right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs S. Khan. | | (151234) | 463
N | Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much money has been provided to each police authority from Airwave grant in 2003-04; and what the planned provision is from Airwave grant for each police authority for 2004-05. | | (150630) | 464
N | Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make a statement on the Government's policy for the funding for 2004-05 and future financial years of police authority expenditure now financed by the Airwave grant. | | (150631) | 465
N | Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he intends to inform police authorities of the amounts that they will receive from specific grants for the financial year 2004-05. | | (150632) | 466
| Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the Government's policy is on the licensing of brothels. | | (150633) | 467
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will answer the Question, reference no. 145030, tabled by the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham on 15th December 2003. | | (151033) | 468
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he will answer (a) the Questions with reference numbers 143057 and 143063 tabled by the honourable Member for East Worthing and Shoreham on 4th December 2003 and (b) Question number 144992, tabled on 15th December 2003. | | (151036) | 469
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what references will be made in his new campaign on drugs education to accompany the reclassification of cannabis on possible links with mental illness. | | (151291) | 470
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his Answer of 14th January, Official Report, column 762W, on HMYOI Wetherby, what the reasons were for the increase in (a) costs per prisoner and (b) cost per prisoner place at HMYOI Wetherby. | | (151131) | 471
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the changes in the costs of introduction of the detention and training orders. | | (151132) | 472
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what extra resources will be given to local authorities to support the children of failed asylum seekers. | | (151443) | 473
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assistance will be given to failed asylum-seeking families who cannot be returned to their country of origin because there are no removal agreements or removal arrangements have been suspended. | | (151444) | 474
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to improve the removals process and to ensure that it is transparent and fair. | | (151474) | 475
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many violent crimes against people were committed in each year since 1997 in West Mercia. | | (151360) | 476
| Patrick Mercer (Newark):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether (a) Mr Anwar al Aulaki (aka al Aulaqi), (b) Mr Yasser Tawfik el-Serri and (c) Mr Hani Yusef al Sebai are (i) detained and (ii) on remand; and if he will make a statement. | | (151135) | 477
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the Immigration and Asylum Fingerprint System has been accessed by (a) Interpol, (b) the National Criminal Intelligence Service, (c) the anti-terrorism branch of the Metropolitan Police and (d) metropolitan and provincial forces. | | (151411) | 478
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Sri Lankan authorities have accessed fingerprints taken from visa applicants under the six-month pilot scheme, (a) directly through the UK authorities and (b) indirectly through Interpol. | | (151412) | 479
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance he has issued in relation to (a) police officers and (b) community support officers patrolling in groups of two or more; and if he will place copies in the Library. | | (151415) | 480
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers have retired early owing to ill health in each year since 1997. | | (151416) | 481
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much has been spent on each phase of the Could You? police recruitment campaign to date; and how many officers have been recruited as a direct result. | | (151417) | 482
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many convictions for (a) driving without due care and attention, (b) failing to have proper control of a vehicle, (c) careless and inconsiderate driving and (d) dangerous driving have been secured as a result of evidence from speed cameras. | | (151419) | 483
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police forces have dedicated anti-paedophile units; and how many officers are working in those units. | | (151420) | 484
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what additional resources have been made available to police forces to facilitate the investigation and prosecution of offenders under section 15 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. | | (151421) | 485
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff are employed in the (a) Prison Service headquarters and (b) National Probation Directorate headquarters. | | (151422) | 486
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff are expected to be employed by the National Offender Management Service (a) in headquarters and (b) in the regional offices. | | (151423) | 487
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many seizures of alcohol were made in London prisons in the last 12 months. | | (151424) | 488
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) men and (b) women were sentenced to immediate custody in England and Wales following breach of a community sentence in each year since 1992. | | (151425) | 489
N | Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the numbers of members of the Roma community who will migrate into the UK from Eastern Europe after enlargement of the EU on 1st May. | | (150821) | 490
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his conclusions are arising from trials involving electronic tagging of juvenile sex offenders. | | (150749) | 491
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in what circumstances magistrates can impose a detention and training order on an offender aged 12 to 14 years who has been convicted of breaching an anti-social behaviour order. | | (150993) | 492
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to amend the rules on evidence relating to magistrates' courts cases involving breaches of anti-social behaviour orders to allow hearsay evidence to be heard. | | (150995) | 493
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what level of proof is required by magistrates' courts before an application for an anti-social behaviour order can be granted. | | (150996) | 494
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance his Department has issued to chief constables in England regarding the disclosure of names and contact details of victims of crime to victim support charities following recent data protection legislation. | | (150997) | 495
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many individuals were charged with serious sexual offences and given bail in each of the last five years. | | (150801) | 496
| Mark Tami (Alyn & Deeside):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many individuals were charged with serious criminal offences and allowed to travel outside the in each of the last five years. | | (150802) | 497
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many requests for mutual legal assistance his Department has received for corruption offences since November 1997; from which countries these requests came; when they were received; and how long it took for his Department to process each request. | | (151316) | 498
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what targets have been set by his Department for investigation and prosecution of the offence of bribery of a foreign public official. | | (151378) | 499
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what additional resources he has earmarked for enforcement of Part 12 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 since February 2002, and to which law enforcement agencies he has assigned them. | | (151379) | 500
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many reports of suspicious transactions reported to the National Criminal Intelligence Service since the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 came into effect have provided information related to the offence of bribery of a foreign public official. | | (151380) | 501
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many allegations of corruption received by the National Criminal Intelligence Service have resulted in NCIS reporting these allegations to authorities in a foreign jurisdiction. | | (151381) | 502
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the National Criminal Intelligence Service (a) has provided and (b) is intending to produce a problem profile of the offence of bribery of a foreign public official. | | (151382) | 503
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which government departments and law enforcement agencies are represented on the cross-departmental working group looking into Part 12 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001; how often the working group meets; what the remit of the working group is; and who is responsible for the group. | | (151383) | 504
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many allegations of overseas bribery involving UK companies his Department has received from the US Administration since February 1999; on what dates; and what action his Department took on each allegation. | | (151384) | 505
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the prison officers Mr Rowland, Mr Kerry and Mr Watkins will be allowed back to work. | | (150817) | 506
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was of the case brought against the prison officers Mr Rowland, Mr Kerry and Mr Watkins by the Prison Service. | | (150818) | 507
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason prison officers Mr Rowland, Mr Kerry and Mr Watkins are suspended; and if he will make a statement. | | (150819) | Questions to the Secretary of State for International Development 508
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151047) | 509
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether all Information Technology hardware and software products are being properly utilised in his Department. | | (151055) | 510
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will make a statement on the humanitarian situation in the Herat region of Afghanistan, following recent flooding. | | (150975) | 511
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps are being taken to ensure recent flooding in the Herat region of Afghanistan does not hamper future crop production. | | (150977) | 512
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the impact which recent flooding has had on (a) basic transport and (b) educational infrastructure in the Herat region of Afghanistan. | | (150978) | 513
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what impact the closure of the Salang tunnel has had on humanitarian efforts in the northern regions of Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement. | | (150979) | 514
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will make a statement on the levels of household fuel poverty in Uzbekistan. | | (150980) | 515
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations he has made to the government of Swaziland over the decision to build new palaces for King Mswati's wives. | | (150981) | 516
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what impact the decision by the government of Swaziland to build new palaces for King Mswati's wives will have on (a) UK bilateral aid programmes and (b) multilateral aid to that country. | | (150982) | 517
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the impact that the Government of Sudan's rezoning of camps for internally displaced persons around Khartoum is having on (a) levels of homelessness and (b) other humanitarian requirements in the region; and if he will make a statement. | | (151202) | 518
| Tom Brake (Carshalton & Wallington):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions he has held with the UN High Commission for Human Rights about the future of the Commission's office in Colombia. | | (151225) | 519
| Tom Brake (Carshalton & Wallington):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what research his Department has (a) conducted and (b) commissioned into numbers of (i) pharmacists, (ii) doctors and (iii) nurses in South Africa; and what assessment he has made of South Africa's ability to implement its plan to distribute anti-retroviral AIDS drugs to its HIV-positive citizens. | | (151284) | 520
| Tom Brake (Carshalton & Wallington):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance his Department has provided to fighting HIV/AIDS in South Africa broken down by (a) programme type, (b) programme name and (c) funding provided in each of the last six years. | | (151285) | 521
| Tom Brake (Carshalton & Wallington):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance his Department has provided to South Africa broken down by (a) programme type, (b) programme name and (c) funding provided in each of the last six years. | | (151286) | 522
| Chris Grayling (Epsom & Ewell):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what response he has made to the recent representations from international charities about an international arms trade treaty. | | (151118) | 523
| Mr John Lyons (Strathkelvin & Bearsden):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what improvements in health care have taken place in Afghanistan since the end of the war. | | (150623) | 524
N | Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many refugees have returned to Afghanistan from refugee camps in (a) Iran and (b) Pakistan; and how many remain. | | (150648) | 525
N | Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford):To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many Afghans in refugee camps belong to women-headed households. | | (150649) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 526
| Mr Roy Beggs (East Antrim):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with (a) Invest Northern Ireland and (b) NORTEL Northern Ireland on the future of Solectron Carrickfergus. | | (151002) | 527
| Mr Roy Beggs (East Antrim):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what grants have been paid to Solectron Northern Ireland towards the cost of establishing factories in Northern Ireland. | | (151003) | 528
N | David Burnside (South Antrim):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the monthly cost of the Office of the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly (a) was in the six months before suspension and (b) has been since suspension, broken down by (i) staff costs and (ii) administration costs. | | (150833) | 529
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people were convicted of benefit fraud in Northern Ireland in the last year for which figures are available; what the average sentence was; and if he will make a statement. | | (150662) | 530
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he has taken to promote e-government services within his Department. | | (150666) | 531
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many registered heroin addicts there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years. | | (150667) | 532
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has for the redevelopment of the former HM Prison Maze site; and if he will make a statement on progress. | | (150668) | 533
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what charges are in place for people using NHS services in Northern Ireland who do not reside in the United Kingdom; and whether these charges extend to citizens from (a) the Republic of Ireland and (b) other EU member states. | | (150669) | 534
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many health care professionals from outside the United Kingdom were recruited to work in the NHS in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997; what positions they held; and what their nationality was. | | (150670) | 535
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people have opened a Post Office card account in Northern Ireland since their introduction; and if he will make a statement on the uptake of Post Office card accounts in Northern Ireland. | | (150671) | 536
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on progress in Northern Ireland in reducing child poverty. | | (150674) | 537
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what percentage of school leavers in Northern Ireland went on into higher education in each year since 1997; what steps he is taking to increase these figures; and if he will make a statement. | | (150675) | 538
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many schools in each Northern Ireland constituency make use of temporary mobile classroom accommodation; and what the forecast average time is for the replacement of this accommodation. | | (150676) | 539
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many children have had to move schools as a result of bullying in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) North Down in each of the past five years; and what steps he is taking to reduce these figures. | | (150677) | 540
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many (a) part-time and (b) full-time classroom assistants were employed in Northern Ireland's schools in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement on (i) the recruitment and (ii) the retention of classroom assistants in Northern Ireland. | | (150678) | 541
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what percentage of school leavers in each of the past five years went on to attend a university in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland. | | (150679) | 542
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many game licences were issued in Northern Ireland in (a) 1985, (b) 1990, (c) 1995, (d) 2000 and (e) in each year since 2001. | | (150680) | 543
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to extend the Child Rescue Alert scheme to Northern Ireland. | | (150681) | 544
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many complaints have been referred to the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland for investigation since its formation; and how many of these complaints have resulted in (a) successful prosecution and (b) resolution between the parties. | | (150682) | 545
N | Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will include measures to deal with high hedges in his consultation on tackling anti-social behaviour in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. | | (150683) | 546
N | Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the recent disorder at HM Prison Maghaberry. | | (150684) | 547
N | Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people were recorded as obese in Northern Ireland in (a) 1985, (b) 1990, (c) 1995, (d) 2000 and (e) each year since 2001; what steps he is taking to reduce these figures; and if he will make a statement. | | (150685) | 548
N | Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many post offices in Northern Ireland offer an Irish Passport application service; and how many people have applied for an Irish passport during the recent pilot scheme for this service. | | (150686) | 549
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what percentage of police officers in Northern Ireland, broken down by rank, are (a) female and (b) from an ethnic minority.
| | (151319) | 550
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the average waiting time was for treatment in each of Northern Ireland's accident and emergency departments in each month of the last year for which figures are available; and what steps he is taking to reduce these figures.
| | (151320) | 551
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many teacher vacancies there were in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997; and what steps he is taking to reduce such figures.
| | (151321) | 552
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many general practitioner vacancies there were in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997; and what steps he is taking to reduce such figures.
| | (151322) | 553
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what his latest estimate is of the level of broadband coverage in (a) North Down and (b) Northern Ireland.
| | (151323) | 554
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to promote sexual health amongst young people in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.
| | (151324) | 555
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what his latest assessment is of the number of televisions being used in Northern Ireland without a valid television licence; and what steps he is taking to reduce this figure.
| | (151325) | 556
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what his latest assessment is of the number of car owners driving in Northern Ireland without valid (a) car tax, (b) insurance, (c) MOT certification and (d) driving licence; and what steps he is taking to reduce these figures.
| | (151326) | 557
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, by what percentage car park charging has changed in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.
| | (151327) | 558
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment he has made of the impact of the availability of anti-social behaviour orders in tackling such behaviour in Northern Ireland. | | (151332) | 559
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many businesses based (a) in Northern Ireland, (b) in the rest of the United Kingdom and (c) outside the United Kingdom have received assistance from Invest Northern Ireland in each year since its formation. | | (151333) | 560
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many flights (a) arriving and (b) departing (i) Belfast City Airport, (ii) Belfast International Airport and (iii) City of Derry Airport were in breach of the night time flying curfew in the last year for which figures are available. | | (151334) | 561
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many flights at Northern Ireland's airports were delayed (a) arriving from and (b) departing for London in the last month for which figures are available as a result of air traffic control restrictions in London. | | (151335) | 562
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with his colleagues in the Department for Transport in relation to the implications for Northern Ireland of the Department's White Paper, The Future of Air Transport; and if he will make a statement. | | (151336) | 563
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many Child Support Agency cases in Northern Ireland have used the new formula for calculating child maintenance payments in each month since its introduction; and what steps he is taking to increase these figures. | | (151337) | 564
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what his Department's policy is on the construction and location of mobile phone masts in Northern Ireland. | | (151338) | 565
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what applications to grow GM crops have been made in Northern Ireland. | | (151339) | 566
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many cot deaths there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last three years; and what advice is given by his Department to prevent such deaths. | | (151340) | 567
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many young people are being held at young offender institutions in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the provision for young offenders in Northern Ireland. | | (151341) | 568
N | Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what his policy is on the exemption of political parties in Northern Ireland from (a) the requirement publicly to declare donations received from individuals, organisations and businesses and (b) statutory restrictions on accepting donations from foreign and anonymous sources. | | (150629) | 569
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will attend the Anti-Racist Network rally in Belfast City Hall on 27th January; and whether his Department is providing financial assistance for the rally. | | (151137) | 570
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what evidence he has received of paramilitary group involvement in racist acts of vandalism carried out on peace walls between Protestant and Catholic communities; and if he will make a statement. | | (151138) | 571
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on swastika-style graffiti on peace walls in Belfast. | | (151139) | 572
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what estimate he has made of the number of estate agents who have been subject to violent threats to deter their provision of services and letting of properties to members of ethnic minority groups; and what steps have been taken by the police to (a) identify and (b) prosecute those responsible. | | (151140) | 573
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what information he has provided for the preparation of the next periodic report for submission to the International Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. | | (151141) | 574
| Mr Kevin McNamara (Kingston upon Hull North):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what information he has provided to the European Centre for the Monitoring of Racism and Xenophobia. | | (151142) | 575
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the relocation of the Moylinn General Practitioner Co-operative. | | (150732) | 576
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will estimate the financial costs resulting from overnight disturbance by prisoners at Maghaberry Prison on 14th to 15th January. | | (150733) | 577
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what amount was spent on leisure facilities in prisons in each of the last six years. | | (150734) | 578
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what restrictions there are on the number of domiciliary visits by physiotherapists to a particular patient. | | (150735) | 579
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many individuals are awaiting speech therapy assessment; and how many of those have waited more than six months. | | (150736) | 580
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to broaden the range of services offered on the Ards Hospital site. | | (150737) | 581
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to extend the opening hours of the minor injuries units at (a) Bangor and (b) Ards Community Hospitals. | | (150739) | 582
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients' hospital discharge was delayed while awaiting community care packages in each of the last six years. | | (150740) | 583
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on progress towards the construction of a new regional maternity hospital. | | (150741) | 584
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will estimate the cost of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the NHS in 2003. | | (150742) | 585
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many nursing vacancies there are in the province; and if he will make a statement. | | (150743) | 586
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many overseas nurses are employed in Northern Ireland. | | (150744) | 587
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many prisoners in Northern Ireland are the subject of suicide watch observations; and what the corresponding figure was for the first day of each of the last 12 months. | | (150745) | 588
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will study the feasibility of a courtesy bus service from Belfast to the Ulster hospital; and if he will make a statement. | | (150746) | 589
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the rights of members of the travelling community, with particular reference to (a) facilities, (b) education and (c) entitlement to benefits. | | (150748) | 590
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what additional funding was provided in 2003 for new specialist prescribed drugs for (a) rheumatoid arthritis and (b) multiple sclerosis. | | (150750) | 591
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many individuals died from lung cancer in 2003; and what the mean survival time was following diagnosis. | | (150751) | 592
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to prevent women from overseas presenting themselves at maternity units to give birth in an attempt to achieve EU citizenship; and if he will make a statement. | | (150752) | 593
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many women from outside the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland gave birth at each maternity unit in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. | | (150753) | 594
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many women from outside Northern Ireland gave birth in the province in each of the last 12 months who were from (a) Great Britain, (b) the Republic of Ireland, (c) other EU countries and (d) outside the European Union; and if he will make a statement. | | (150754) | 595
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, which grades of hospital doctors will be required to undergo an appraisal process in 2004 in Northern Ireland. | | (150756) | 596
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to decrease sick leave in the Northern Ireland Civil Service; and if he will make a statement. | | (150757) | 597
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the extent of elective surgery conducted in Northern Ireland on citizens of the Irish Republic in 2003; and if he will make a statement. | | (150758) | 598
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 7th January, Official Report, column 406W, on hospital trolley waits, how many patients included in trolley wait totals for 2002-03 (a) were discharged from hospital and (b) left hospital without obtaining a ward bed. | | (151089) | 599
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people are awaiting MRI scanning in Northern Ireland, broken down by health trust area. | | (151178) | 600
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what tranport allowances are available for mentally handicapped persons in Northern Ireland. | | (151179) | 601
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans there are to improve access to trains for disabled persons in Northern Ireland. | | (151180) | 602
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what means are used to assist disabled persons in gaining employment in Northern Ireland. | | (151181) | 603
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what preparations have been made to deal with a winter influenza outbreak in Northern Ireland. | | (151182) | 604
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent steps he has taken to improve services for those who develop dementia early in life. | | (151183) | 605
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what (a) financial and (b) other assistance has been provided towards film making in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years. | | (151184) | 606
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what plans he has to increase the number of children's home places in the province. | | (151185) | 607
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what input he has sought from service users into plans for redevelopment of the Muckamore Abbey Site. | | (151186) | 608
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what studies have been conducted into the extent of fly-tipping in Northern Ireland. | | (151187) | 609
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many homeless people there are in Northern Ireland; and what the figures were for each of the past 10 years. | | (151207) | 610
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many (a) successful and (b) failed MOT tests were performed at each test centre in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months. | | (151208) | 611
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many attacks on police officers there were in each of the last 10 years. | | (151209) | 612
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what proportion of (a) junior house officers, (b) senior house officers and (c) other doctors have weekly workloads in breach of the EU working time directives. | | (151210) | 613
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the early indications of the effectiveness of (a) assertive outreach and (b) crisis response teams in the practice of mental health locally. | | (151211) | 614
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the average waiting times are for (a) inpatient admission and (b) outpatient assessment in each of the Province's orthopaedic centres. | | (151212) | 615
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on preparations to deal with cases of SARS in Northern Ireland. | | (151213) | 616
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients are awaiting occupational therapy assessment and how many have waited for more than six months; and what the figures were at each six-month interval over the past five years. | | (151214) | 617
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients in Northern Ireland are awaiting (a) inpatient admission and (b) initial outpatient assessment, in neurosurgery. | | (151215) | 618
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients are awaiting (a) inpatient admission and (b) initial outpatient assessment in Northern Ireland; and what the comparative statistics were at 12-month intervals over the last five years. | | (151216) | 619
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on progress on protected elective surgery centres in Northern Ireland. | | (151217) | 620
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many individuals were provided with digital hearing aids in 2003; and what estimate he has made of how many others would benefit from these devices. | | (151218) | 621
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many (a) prison officers, (b) police officers, (c) political representatives and (d) others have been informed since October 2002 that their personal details were held by the Provisional IRA. | | (151219) | 622
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many individuals in Northern Ireland are trained in sign language. | | (151220) | 623
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make a statement on the future of the Northern Ireland Parades Commission. | | (151221) | 624
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many patients were awaiting physiotherapy assessment in each six-month interval over the last five years. | | (151222) | 625
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many individuals were disqualified from driving in each of the last 10 years. | | (151223) | 626
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the current average waiting times are for MRI scanning in Northern Ireland. | | (151224) | 627
| The Reverend Martin Smyth (Belfast South):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many starter home initiative schemes have begun in Northern Ireland. | | (150605) | 628
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Fair Employment Commission, (b) Industrial Development Board, (c) Tourist Board (Northern Ireland) and (d) Equal Opportunities Commission for Northern Ireland were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is.
| | (151408) | 629
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Industrial Tribunals Northern Ireland, (b) Health and Safety Agency for Northern Ireland, (c) Labour Relations Agency, (d) Fair Employment Tribunal and (e) Economic Council were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their renumeration is. | | (151449) | 630
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Law Reform Advisory Commitee for Northern Ireland, (b) Statute Law Committee, (c) Belfast Education and Library Board, (d) North Eastern Education and Library Board and (e) South Eastern Education and Library Board were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their renumeration is. | | (151450) | 631
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Southern Education and Library Board, (b) Western Education and Library Board, (c) Northern Ireland Museums Council, (d) Ulster Folk and Transport Museum and (e) Eastern Health and Social Services Board were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their renumeration is. | | (151451) | 632
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Western Health and Social Services Council, (b) Down Lisburn Health and Social Services Trust, (c) North and West Belfast Health and Social Services Trust, (d) South and East Belfast Health and Social Services Trust and (e) Distinction and Meritorious Service Awards Committee were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their renumeration is. | | (151452) | 633
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Charities Advisory Committee, (b) Health Promotion Agency, (c) Mental Health Commission, (d) Fire Authority for Northern Ireland and (e) Local Government Staff Commission were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151453) | 634
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Rent Assessment Panel, (b) Northern Ireland Housing Executive, (c) Laganside Corporation, (d) Advisory Committee on Travellers and (e) Planning Appeals Committee were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151454) | 635
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Agricultural Wages Board for Northern Ireland, (b) Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland, (c) Fisheries Conservancy Board for Northern Ireland, (d) Fishery Authority for Northern Ireland and (e) Industrial Research and Technology Board were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151455) | 636
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the members of the (a) Probation Board for Northern Ireland, (b) Police Authority for Northern Ireland and (c) Board of Visitors of Magillan Prison were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151458) | Questions to the Prime Minister 637
N | Mr David Amess (Southend West):To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his Oral Answer of 21st January, Official Report, column 1321, if he will (a) meet the relatives of the three detainees held in a Cairo prison and (b) make representations to President Mubarak on the case being adjourned twice. | | (150905) | 638
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Prime Minister, if he plans to visit Gibraltar in the Tercentenary; if he plans to attend St Clement Daines tercentenary service; and if he will make a statement on Gibraltar and its tercentenary. | | (151271) | 639
| Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury):To ask the Prime Minister, whether he intends to meet the Dalai Lama during his forthcoming visit to the United Kingdom. | | (150785) | 640
| Mrs Iris Robinson (Strangford):To ask the Prime Minister, if he will make a statement on his discussions with the Irish Government on criminal activities funding political parties. | | (150762) | 641
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the consequences of the proposed banning of religious symbols in schools in France upon European integration. | | (151038) | 642
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Prime Minister, who the members of the (a) Museums and Galleries Commission, (b) National Heritage Memorial Fund, (c) Security Vetting Appeals Panel and (d) Committee on Standards in Public Life were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151456) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Scotland 643
| Mr Roy Beggs (East Antrim):To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what sums have been paid to the Solectron plant in Dunfermline; and whether funds will be offered to Solectron Dunfermline to assist the relocation of work being carried out by Solectron Carrickfergus. | | (151004) | Questions to the Solicitor General 644
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Solicitor General, how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in the Law Officers' Department in the last 12 months. | | (150842) | 645
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, what requirements were placed on Sir Roy Meadow in his capacity as an expert witness for the prosecution in criminal and civil cases to retain his notes for those cases after guilty verdicts have been secured. | | (151027) | 646
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, what directions she has issued to local authority departments to identify and secure documents relating to cases involving infanticide or harm to children which relied on expert testimony from Sir Roy Meadow. | | (151028) | 647
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, on what occasions Sir Roy Meadow has given lectures to judges and other court officials on the subject of infanticide and harm of children at the hands of their parents. | | (151029) | 648
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, if she will list experts who (a) are currently and (b) have been in the last 10 years on the official list of expert witnesses for cases related to harm of children by their parents or carers. | | (151030) | 649
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, how long Sir Roy Meadow has been included on the offical list of expert witnesses. | | (151031) | 650
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Solicitor General, what the procedure is for (a) including, (b) removing and (c) reviewing the appropriateness of continued inclusion of individuals on the official list of expert witnesses. | | (151032) | 651
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, what criteria are used by the Serious Fraud Office to determine whether to initiate an investigation into bribery of a foreign public official. | | (151400) | 652
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, how many referrals there have been since 1997 to the Serious Fraud Office where bribery of a foreign public official has been an ancillary offence to another offence; and in how many instances since 1997 the SFO has investigated or prosecuted a company or individual for an offence to which bribery of a foreign public official was ancillary, or in which bribery of a foreign public official may have played a part. | | (151402) | 653
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, how many allegations of bribery of a foreign public official the Serious Fraud Office received between November 1997 and February 2002; and how many of these allegations led to an investigation. | | (151403) | 654
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, how many of the requests for mutual legal assistance on corruption offences received by the Serious Fraud Office have (a) indicated an offence by a UK individual or company and (b) led to an investigation by the SFO into a possible UK offence. | | (151404) | 655
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, whether the Serious Fraud Office has received additional resources for enforcing Part 12 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 since February 2002. | | (151405) | 656
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Solicitor General, whether investigation and prosecution under Part 12 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 are included in enforcement priorities of the Serious Fraud Office. | | (151406) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 657
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what cost savings have been made in her Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151046) | 658
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether all Information Technology hardware and software products are being properly utilised in her Department. | | (151056) | 659
N | Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what action her Department has taken to stimulate UK investment in (a) Slovakia, (b) Slovenia and (c) Cyprus. | | (150824) | 660
N | Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what action her Department has taken to stimulate UK investment in (a) Malta, (b) Turkey and (c) Romania. | | (150825) | 661
N | Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what action her Department has taken to stimulate UK investment in (a) Poland, (b) Lithuania and (c) Latvia. | | (150826) | 662
N | Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what action her Department has taken to stimulate UK investment in (a) Hungary and (b) Estonia. | | (150827) | 663
N | Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what action her Department has taken to stimulate UK investment in (a) the Czech Republic and (b) Bulgaria. | | (150828) | 664
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what assessment she has made of low pay levels in the (a) catering, (b) tourism and (c) leisure sectors; and if she will make a statement. | | (150976) | 665
| Mr Paul Burstow (Sutton & Cheam):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in her Department in the last 12 months. | | (150889) | 666
| Mrs Patsy Calton (Cheadle):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what assessment has been made of the adequacy of the Urban Reinvention Programme's consultation process for closure proposals. | | (150816) | 667
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will set out the circumstances in which her Department authorises Post Office counter clerks to (a) reject and (b) confiscate Post Office account cards; and on how many occasions this has happened. | | (150878) | 668
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what powers exist to penalise power companies whose service suffers from persistent power cut problems. | | (151196) | 669
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many power cuts there were in each of the last five years in (a) Howden, (b) Anlaby, (c) Willerby, (d) North Cave, (e) South Cave, (f) Kirk Ella, (g) Cottingham, (h) Eastrington, (i) Brough, (j) North Ferriby, (k) Swanland and (l) Holme Upon Spalding Moor. | | (151256) | 670
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what measures she is taking to inform consumers about their rights concerning distance selling. | | (151258) | 671
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many power cuts there were in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) parliamentary constituency and (b) individual power company. | | (151259) | 672
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what measures she is taking to ensure the integrity of the national power grid. | | (151260) | 673
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the power consumption of the United Kingdom was in each of the last 25 years.
| | (151261) | 674
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how much compensation for loss of power was paid by power companies to customers in each of the last five years, broken down by individual power company.
| | (151262) | 675
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what steps she is taking to ensure that power companies give adequate compensation to customers who suffer from power cuts.
| | (151263) | 676
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the capacity of the national power grid is.
| | (151264) | 677
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the projected demand for power is in the United Kingdom over the next 25 years; and what steps she is taking to ensure that this demand is met.
| | (151265) | 678
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her Answer of 15th December 2003, Official Report, column 646W, on the Science and Society Directorate, whether the objectives of the Science and Society Directorate's Public Engagement Team include the promotion of the public understanding of cultural factors impinging on and operating within scientific communities that will help the public make informed judgements. | | (151087) | 679
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her Answer of 15th December 2003, Official Report, column 646W, on the Science and Society Directorate, if she will make a statement on the Government's strategy for supporting science that is of social rather than economic benefit; and what the role of the Science and Society Directorate is in promoting the value of science that is without economic benefit. | | (151088) | 680
| Mr Huw Edwards (Monmouth):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what public consultation was held with the local community about the proposed closure of Stanhope Street Post Office in Abergavenny; and what the outcome was. | | (150637) | 681
| Michael Fabricant (Lichfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what steps she is taking to ensure that there is adequate consultation with relevent honourable Members and other interested parties when an urban post office is nominated for closure. | | (150616) | 682
| Michael Fabricant (Lichfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will make a statement on the closure of UK Business On-line. | | (150617) | 683
| Michael Fabricant (Lichfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her Answer of 15th January, Official Report, column 845W, on broadband, when she will publish a report on the work and findings of the joint departmental Rural Broadband Team. | | (150770) | 684
| Michael Fabricant (Lichfield):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what representations she has made to the European Commission with respect to their proposal that the Made in Britain identification be replaced by Made in Europe; and if she will make a statement. | | (150776) | 685
| Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, when the Government will publish the report of the Office of Fair Trading inquiry into the operation of the voluntary Supermarket Code of Practice. | | (150986) | 686
N | Mr Oliver Heald (North East Hertfordshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, when she will reply to the letters of 13th November 2003 and 15th December 2003 from the honourable Member for North East Hertfordshire on her Department's relationship with Ling Dynamics Ltd of Royston. | | (150357) | 687
| Mr Stephen Hepburn (Jarrow):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the value of the Buzzard oil field contract is; which companies tendered for the contract; what the country of origin of each company is; and which company won the bid. | | (151151) | 688
| Lady Hermon (North Down):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many Post Office closures there have been in each Northern Ireland constituency in each year since 1997. | | (150672) | 689
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the average length of time was for settlement of miners compensation claims for respiratory diseases in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley in each year since 1997. | | (151287) | 690
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many miners compensation claims for respiratory diseases (a) have been made, (b) have been settled and (c) are outstanding in (i) Chorley and (ii) Lancashire. | | (151288) | 691
| Mr Martyn Jones (Clwyd South):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what recent representations she has received on the operation of the Estate Agent Ombudsman scheme; and if she will make a statement. | | (150881) | 692
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many (a) children and (b) elderly people are living in fuel poor households in (i) the East Midlands and (b) West Derbyshire. | | (150922) | 693
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many manufacturing jobs were lost in Shrewsbury and Atcham in (a) each year since 1997 and (b) each month in the last 12 months. | | (151362) | 694
| Mr Stephen O'Brien (Eddisbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many (a) partial and (b) full regulatory impact assessments have been undertaken in relation to EU legislation for each year since 1998; and if she will make a statement. | | (151364) | 695
| Mr Stephen O'Brien (Eddisbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will make a statement on the quantification of the costs and benefits of regulations on (a) consumers, (b) small and medium-sized businesses and (c) the Government in the course of regulatory impact assessments. | | (151365) | 696
N | Mr Peter Pike (Burnley):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, when she proposes to publish her decisions arising from the Competition Commission report on the proposed GUS/Reality and Littlewoods Mail Order/Home Trading organisations. | | (150229) | 697
| Phil Sawford (Kettering):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many businesses in the construction industry have joined the Quality Mark scheme; and what action she is taking to promote the scheme. | | (151127) | 698
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, on what date the official seconded by the British Joint Steering Committee on the Industrial Participation Agreements in South Africa was seconded to the South African Department of Trade and Industry; and on what date the secondment ends. | | (151391) | 699
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, from what Department the official seconded by the British Joint Steering Committee on the Industrial Participation Agreements in South Africa came to the South African Department of Trade and Industry. | | (151392) | 700
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if she will place a copy of the reports made by the official seconded by the British Joint Steering Committee on the Industrial Participation Agreements in South Africa in the Library. | | (151393) | 701
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many reports on the progress of the South African industrial participation agreements have been received by the Joint Steering Committee on the Industrial Participation Agreements in South Africa since January 2000. | | (151394) | 702
| Mr Simon Thomas (Ceredigion):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, on what dates the Joint Steering Committee on the Industrial Participation Agreements in South Africa has met since January 2000. | | (151395) | 703
| Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what progress has been made in settling chest disease claims from mineworkers who worked (a) in dirty surface environments and (b) underground only for short periods. | | (150843) | 704
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many people are employed by the Insolvency Service; and how many were employed in 1997. | | (151009) | 705
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what complaints she has received on the operation of the Insolvency Service in the last three years. | | (151010) | 706
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, how many companies went into liquidation in 2003. | | (151011) | 707
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, who the members of the (a) National Consumer Council, (b) Welsh Consumer Council, (c) Scottish Consumer Council, (d) Hearing Aid Council and (e) Gas Consumer Council were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151289) | 708
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, who the members of the (a) Advisory Committee on Coal Research, (b) Energy Advisory Panel, (c) Measurement Advisory Committee, (d) Overseas Project Board and (e) London and South East Industrial Development Board were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151299) | 709
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, who the members of the (a) North West Industrial Development Board, (b) South West Industrial Development Board and (c) Eastern Region Industrial Development Board were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151300) | 710
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, who the members of the (a) Northern Ireland Committee on Telecommunications, (b) Economic and Social Research Council, (c) Medical Research Council, (d) Natural Environment Research Council and (e) Horticulture Research International were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151302) | 711
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, who the members of the (a) Post Office Users Council for Scotland, (b) Post Office Users Council for Northern Ireland, (c) Post Office Users Council for Wales, (d) English Advisory Committee on Telecommunications and (e) Scottish Advisory Committee on Telecommunications were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their renumeration is. | | (151448) | 712
N | Mr Phil Willis (Harrogate & Knaresborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what the total value is of Lottery revenue used to support Government-sponsored projects within her Department since 1997. | | (149629) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport 713
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology Procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151045) | 714
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether all Information Technology hardware and software products are being properly utilised in his Department. | | (151057) | 715
| John Barrett (Edinburgh West):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of households which will be subjected to (a) a noise level of (i) 63dBa Leq or more and (ii) 69dBa Leq or more and (b) an increase in noise level of 3dBa Leq or more directly as a result of the increased use of the existing runway at Edinburgh Airport as outlined in the recent White Paper on Aviation. | | (150974) | 716
N | Mr Simon Burns (West Chelmsford):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many attempts approved driving instructors will be permitted to pass the test; whether ADIs will be removed from the register if they fail the test; when the Government intends to bring in these changes; and if he will make a statement. | | (149828) | 717
| Mrs Helen Clark (Peterborough):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many tonnes of (a) 1,3-butadiene, (b) benzene, (c) particulates and (d) sulphur dioxide emissions he estimates have been saved as a result of the liquid petroleum gas duty rebate. | | (151037) | 718
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many speed cameras there are in England and Wales; and how many are covered by the special schemes introduced in 2002 to facilitate investment in safety cameras. | | (150646) | 719
| Sue Doughty (Guildford):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many road accident (a) injuries and (b) fatalities there were in each of the past 10 years, broken down by (i) children and (ii) adults. | | (150647) | 720
| Mr Adrian Flook (Taunton):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much grant his Department has given to Somerset County Council for rural transport in each year since 1997. | | (150624) | 721
N | Andrew George (St Ives):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with (a) French authorities, (b) Breton authorities, (c) the Ministry of Defence and (d) others following the sinking of the Bugaled Breizh off The Lizard on 15th January. | | (150988) | 722
| Mr David Heath (Somerton & Frome):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether European nationals who are licensed to drive in other EU member states using bioptics are allowed to drive using bioptics in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement. | | (151309) | 723
| Mr David Heath (Somerton & Frome):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of whether the European Directive on Driver Licensing allows the use of bioptics for driving; and if he will make a statement. | | (151310) | 724
| Mr David Heath (Somerton & Frome):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what policy has been formulated by the Honorary Medical Advisory Panel on Driving and Visual Disorders regarding the use of bioptics for driving; and if he will make a statement. | | (151311) | 725
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of how many people in Lancashire used (a) bus services and (b) train services in each year since 1997. | | (151198) | 726
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vehicles used by the coastguard service were built in (a) the UK, (b) the EU and (c) outside the EU, broken down by make of car. | | (151199) | 727
| Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Royal Train has been used in each of the last three years, broken down by journey. | | (151200) | 728
N | Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vehicles have been stopped for roadside checks by the Vehicles Inspectorate in London in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many (a) were found to have vehicle faults and (b) were motor cars and other non-commercial vehicles. | | (151073) | 729
N | Mr Robert Key (Salisbury):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the Bristol and Bath to South Coast study will be published. | | (149881) | 730
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much money raised in fines from speed cameras during the last year for which records are available was spent in (a) the East Midlands and (b) West Derbyshire; and how that money was spent. | | (150886) | 731
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much money was raised in fines from speed cameras in the last year for which records are available in (a) the East Midlands and (b) West Derbyshire. | | (150887) | 732
| Mr Patrick McLoughlin (West Derbyshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many speed cameras (a) there are and (b) there have been in each of the last five years in (i) the East Midlands and (ii) West Derbyshire. | | (150925) | 733
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the number of (a) fatalities and (b) injuries as a result of road traffic accidents on the A54 road between Shrewsbury and Telford for each month over the last 12 months. | | (151371) | 734
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the number of (a) fatalities and (b) injuries as a result of road traffic accidents on the A458 road between Shrewsbury and Welshpool for each month over the last 12 months. | | (151372) | 735
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) fatalities and (b) injuries there were as a result of road traffic accidents on (i) the A5 between Shrewsbury and Oswestry and (ii) the A49 between Shrewsbury and Ludlow, in each of the last 12 months. | | (151445) | 736
| Mr Greg Pope (Hyndburn):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, who appointed the members of the Lancashire Safety Camera partnership; what the length is of their term of office; and to whom they are accountable. | | (151266) | 737
| Mr Greg Pope (Hyndburn):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his Answer of 19th January, Official Report, column 1004W, on speed cameras, how much of the income generated by speed cameras in the Lancashire Safety Camera Partnership area in 2003-04 is returned to the partnership to cover the costs of their camera activity; and where the remainder of the income is spent. | | (151290) | 738
N | Mrs Gillian Shephard (South West Norfolk):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's timetable is for consultation on the implementation of the EU bio-fuels directive; and what consideration has been given to ensuring that the UK's 2005 target for implementation of the directive is notified in the EU by July. | | (150782) | 739
| David Taylor (North West Leicestershire):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Civil Aviation Authority and (b) international counterparts concerning security at regonal airports in the UK. | | (151012) | 740
| David Taylor (North West Leicestershire):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how regularly security arrangements at regional airports are reviewed. | | (151013) | 741
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he last met the Chief Executive of East Midlands Airport. | | (151059) | 742
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he was notified that East Midlands Airport was planning to change its name. | | (151060) | 743
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he last travelled on the London Underground on official business. | | (151061) | 744
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to visit Birmingham Airport on official business. | | (151062) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Wales 745
N | Mr Jon Owen Jones (Cardiff Central):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, English universities will be able to charge top-up fees to students resident in Wales; and what assessment he has made of the funding shortfall if such fees are not charged. | | (150116) | 746
N | Mr Jon Owen Jones (Cardiff Central):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, Welsh universities will be able to charge top-up fees to students resident in (a) England and (b) Scotland; and what assessment he has made of the funding shortfall if such fees are not charged. | | (150117) | 747
N | Mr Jon Owen Jones (Cardiff Central):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, students resident in England will have to pay upfront fees if attending a Welsh university; whether they will be entitled to claim bursaries while attending a Welsh university; and what assessment has been made of funding methods for such bursaries. | | (150118) | 748
N | Mr Jon Owen Jones (Cardiff Central):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether, under the provisions of the Higher Education Bill, students resident in Wales will have to pay upfront fees if attending an English university; whether they will be entitled to claim bursaries while attending English universities; and what assessment he has made of funding methods for such bursaries. | | (150119) | 749
N | Mr Jon Owen Jones (Cardiff Central):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the estimated cost is of compensating universities in Wales for lost revenue if top-up fees are not charged. | | (150120) | 750
| Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what representations he has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer regarding match-funding for Objective One projects in Wales in each of the past 15 months. | | (150652) | 751
| Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many meetings he has had in his capacity as Secretary of State for Wales in the past 15 months. | | (150653) | 752
| Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many visits he has made to the National Assembly for Wales in each of the last 15 months. | | (150655) | 753
| Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many meetings he has had with Members of the National Assembly for Wales in each of the last 15 months. | | (150656) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 754
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what cost savings have been made in his Department since the introduction of the Information Technology procurement Centre of Excellence; and how these were calculated. | | (151043) | 755
| Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what audit mechanisms are in place to determine whether all Information Technology hardware and software products are being properly utilised in his Department. | | (151058) | 756
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will set out the circumstances in which voluntary contributions to a stakeholder pension scheme are treated as voluntary deprivation of capital for the purposes of income support; and if he will make a statement. | | (150876) | 757
| Mrs Janet Dean (Burton):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training is given to staff to enable them to understand the needs of clients with learning disabilities. | | (151305) | 758
| Mrs Janet Dean (Burton):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what measures are taken to ensure that those clients with learning disabilities are not penalised for earning below the £20 limit. | | (151306) | 759
| Mr Adrian Flook (Taunton):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners who receive the basic state pension live together as man and wife but claim two single pension entitlements; what estimate he has made of the additional cost to the Exchequer of such claims compared with the cost if such people claimed only the married persons' entitlement; and if he will make a statement. | | (150602) | 760
| Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate the additional cost of pension and social security payments to citizens of the 10 EU applicant states after they join in May. | | (151307) | 761
| Andy King (Rugby & Kenilworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what percentage of children are living in poverty, using the (a) absolute low income, (b) relative low income and (c) material deprivation indicators announced in his Department's report, Measuring Child Poverty; and if he will give this information for (i) before and (ii) after housing costs for (A) 1998 and (B) 2001 for (1) the UK, (2) England, broken down by region, (3) Scotland, (4) Wales and (5) Northern Ireland. | | (151376) | 762
| Andy King (Rugby & Kenilworth):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate (a) how many and (b) what percentage of children will be living in povery in (i) 2004-05, (ii) 2010 and (iii) 2020, (A) before and (B) after housing costs, broken down by nation and region of the UK. | | (151377) | 763
| Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to extend the Winter Fuel Payment scheme to people with severe disabilities. | | (151295) | 764
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the impact on the UK labour market after 1st May of the absence of transitional restrictions in the UK for the nationals of the EU accession states. | | (151068) | 765
| Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what entitlement to pension credit nationals of the EU accession countries will have if they come to live in the United Kingdom. | | (151069) | 766
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress is being made with transferring individual child support cases which are still subject to the rules of the old system of child support to the new system; and if he will make a statement. | | (150994) | 767
| Dr Howard Stoate (Dartford):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what arrangements his Department has made to help partially sighted clients with Post Office card accounts, who have difficulty in using a PIN number, but do not wish to nominate another person to collect their money for them, to obtain their payments from the Post Office branch. | | (150998) | 768
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who the members of the (a) Central Advisory Committee on War Pensions, (b) Chaseley Trust, (c) Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board, (d) Far East (Prisoner of War and Internees) Fund and (e) Industrial Injuries Advisory Council were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151357) | 769
| Keith Vaz (Leicester East):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who the members of the (a) Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority, (b) Royal Patriotic Fund Corporation, (c) Social Security Advisory Committee and (d) War Pensions Committee were on 1st January; what their term of office is in each case; and what their remuneration is. | | (151363) | 770
N | Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children in families receiving (a) income support and (b) jobseekers allowance are receiving support through (i) the tax credits system and (ii) income support personal allowances; and if he will make a statement on the transition between the two systems. | | (151014) | 771
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases of benefit fraud were detected in each of the last six years; and how many of these have resulted in (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions. | | (151015) | 772
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many whole time equivalent staff were employed by his Department on anti-benefit fraud programmes in each of the last six years; what the operational costs were in each of those years; how much additional benefit was recovered in each case; and what the unit cost ratio of cost to benefit was in each case. | | (151016) | 773
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate the (a) operational and (b) advertising costs of the National Benefit Fraud Hotline in each of the last six years. | | (151017) | 774
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many calls have been received by the National Benefit Fraud Hotline in each of the last six years; and how many (a) investigations, (b) prosecutions and (c) convictions have resulted. | | (151018) | 775
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the recorded benefit fraud savings for (a) his Department and (b) local authorities were in each of the last six years. | | (151019) | 776
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate the annual level of (a) detected and (b) undetected benefit fraud in each of the last six years. | | (151020) | 777
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff have been employed to investigate internal fraud within his Department in each of the last six years. | | (151021) | 778
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions the additional powers to obtain information from specified private and public sector organisations to tackle benefit fraud and error introduced by the Social Security Fraud Act 2001 have been used in each year since the powers took effect; and if he will list the organisations which (a) were asked to provide information and (b) supplied information. | | (151022) | 779
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions the additional powers which provide the authority for his Department to supply information which related to benefit fraud and error to countries outside the UK introduced by the Social Security Fraud Act 2001 have been used in each year since the powers took effect; and if he will list (a) the countries involved and (b) the action that resulted in each of the cases involved. | | (151023) | 780
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions the additional powers to reduce or withdraw benefits where an offender is convicted twice of benefit offences within a period of three years introduced by the Social Security Fraud Act 2001 have been used in each year since the powers took effect. | | (151024) | 781
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) lowest, (b) highest and (c) average salary is for full-time members of staff in (i) his Department, (ii) Jobcentre Plus, (iii) the Child Support Agency, (iv) the Pension Service, (v) the Disability and Carers Service and (vi) the Appeals Service. | | (151446) | 782
| Steve Webb (Northavon):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will list the salary bands for full-time members of staff who are on (a) clerical support, (b) management, (c) senior management and (d) senior civil service grades in his Department and each of its agencies; and how many staff are employed in each of those bands. | | (151447) | 783
N | Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey):To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what arrangements he has made for wheelchair users who cannot use their hands to collect benefits and pensions at Post Offices when using the new PIN card system. | | (150786) | Questions to the Minister for the Cabinet Office 784
N | Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch):To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take action to ensure that payments of civil service pensions by Capita Hartshead to retired civil servants resident in France enjoy the same rate of exchange as payments of the state pension; and if he will make a statement. | | [Transferred] (150877) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 785
N | Tim Loughton (East Worthing & Shoreham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what directions have been issued to social services departments to identify and secure documents relating to cases involving infanticide or harm to children which relied on expert testimony from Sir Roy Meadow. | | [Transferred] (151091) | 786
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the average number of hours per week of physical education in schools in (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire was in the last year. | | [Transferred] (151318) | 787
| Dr Jenny Tonge (Richmond Park):To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what health care is provided to children in children's centres. | | [Transferred] (151121) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 788
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the outcomes of the six-month pilot scheme under which visa applicants in Sri Lanka were required to provide fingerprints; and if he will publish the findings of the research. | | [Transferred] (151413) | 789
| Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester):To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the estimated cost is of extending the fingerprinting of visa applicants announced on 21st January. | | [Transferred] (151414) | Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department 790
| Mr Paul Marsden (Shrewsbury & Atcham):To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the number of fines issued from speeding camera convictions in each year since 1997 in Shrewsbury and Atcham was. | | [Transferred] (151361) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 791
| David Davis (Haltemprice & Howden):To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what measures she is taking to ensure that the UK national power supply is protected from sabotage. | | [Transferred] (151257) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport 792
| Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York):To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the number of road traffic accidents in which use of cannabis was a contributory factor. | | [Transferred] (151136) |
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