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Chagos Islands

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what meetings he has attended with (a) hon. Members, (b) Chagos Islanders and (c) other organisations on matters relating to the Chagos Islands since 10 June; and what the nature of the discussion at those meetings was. [203131]

Mr. Rammell: I met hon. Members on 28 June, 23 September, 8 November and 16 November when various matters relating to the Chagos islands and the Chagossians were discussed. Representatives of the Chagossian community also attended the meetings on 28 June and 16 November. In addition I had a meeting with one of the Chagossians' legal advisers on 15 June, when I informed him of the making on 10 June of two Orders in Council relating to the British Indian Ocean Territory.

There have been no meetings relating to the Chagos islands with other organisations but when my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met the Mauritian Foreign Minister on 4 October, the future of the British Indian Ocean Territory was among the wide range of matters discussed.

Child Protection

Rev. Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether the protection of children, including children abused through commercial sexual exploitation, will be a key priority within the Northern Ireland Policing Plan. [200516]

Mr. Pearson: The reduction of all types of crime is a key priority for the Northern Ireland Policing Service. Child protection is not specifically included in the current draft of the 2005/08 Annual Policing Plan as a performance indicator or target. Child protection will be included in Part III of the Annual Policing Plan which includes area which have a corporate impact.

Columbia

Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance has been given by the UK Government to the Columbian armed forces. [203123]

 
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Mr. Rammell: We have always made it clear that we do provide, from time-to-time, military and security advice and assistance to the Colombian Government. UK military assistance focuses on Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) training and British military education.

Mines and other explosive devices are responsible for a significant proportion of deaths among the Colombian armed forces, and also have a devastating effect on the civilian population. Bomb Disposal training, which forms the core of our military assistance programme, directly helps the Colombian armed forces to save civilian and military lives. We have also trained elements of the Colombian Authorities engaged in Counter-Narcotics work.

We have also assisted the Colombian military on human rights issues. For example, under the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Human Rights Project Fund (HRPF) we recently ran a project to raise awareness of the armed forces on their role in prevention of displacement and protection of the rights of internally displaced persons. We also have an ongoing project on human rights training for the military through the Colombian military justice school; over 5,000 service personnel benefited from such training in 2004.

British military training and education introduces personnel to British defence concepts, including the importance of accountable and democratic control of the armed forces, and the use of Rules of Engagement. It improves the ability of the Colombian armed forces to provide security for the Colombian people in a professional manner that preserves democracy and respects human rights.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of whether Rwandan troops have crossed into the Democratic Republic of Congo despite the presence of a UN peacekeeping force in the country. [202390]

Mr. Mullin: We are concerned by reports that Rwanda plans to send troops into the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We have not been presented with any conclusive evidence that proves Rwandan troops have entered the DRC.

The UK and the wider international community have made clear to Rwanda that any incursion into the DRC would be unacceptable. My right hon. Friend the International Development Secretary has spoken to President Kagame to emphasise that unilateral military action is not the answer to the serious problem of disarming the Ex-Forces Armees Rwandaises/Interahamwe armed groups.

Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps (a) the Government, (b) the European Union and (c) the United Nations Security Council are taking to prevent the deterioration of relations between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda; and if he will make a statement. [202533]

Mr. Mullin: We are concerned by the ongoing problems between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We are working with the
 
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Security Council, EU and regional partners to seek an urgent solution to the problem. We have urged both sides to use existing mechanisms such as the Joint Verification Mechanism and Tripartite Agreement to resolve the difficulties between them through dialogue. The UK and all partners have made clear to Rwanda that any incursion into the territory of the DRC would be unacceptable. Concerted international effort is also required to disarm foreign armed groups on DRC territory.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of recent reports of increased violence in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if he will make a statement. [203802]

Mr. Mullin: The eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) continues to be unstable. Outbreaks of violence have occurred periodically since the end of the war in the DRC.

We have urged neighbouring governments to play a constructive role in supporting the peace process in the region, including respecting the DRC's territorial integrity.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what resources his Department has allocated to assessing the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [203803]

Mr. Mullin: We have an Embassy in Kinshasa and Embassies and High Commissions in other countries in the Great Lakes region that monitor the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. We exchange views with our international, EU and African partners. Our overseas posts are supported in their assessments by diplomatic and research officers at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. To provide the information requested on a year-by-year basis would incur disproportionate cost.

Departmental Costs

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his estimate is of the (a) annual cost and (b) total value of the empty properties owned by (i) his Department, (ii) his agencies and (iii) other public bodies for which he has had responsibility in each of the last two years. [200840]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and its agency, Wilton Park, have no empty properties in the United Kingdom. Day to day management of the overseas estate is devolved to our overseas posts and it is not, therefore, possible to provide details of all empty properties without incurring disproportionate cost.

None of the FCO's non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) have empty properties in the United Kingdom.

The British Council, one of the FCO's NDPBs, also has properties overseas but day to day management of their overseas estate, like the FCO, is devolved to their overseas posts and it is not, therefore, possible to provide details of all their empty properties without incurring disproportionate cost.
 
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The BBC World Service is part of the BBC (which is a public corporation), and is funded by the FCO through a grant-in-aid. It does not have any empty properties in the UK.

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-departmental premises in each of the last two years giving the (i) title, (ii) purpose, (iii) date and (iv) cost of each. [200845]

Mr. Rammell: Details of these events are not held centrally within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total cost to his Department was for the use of external consultants in each of the last two years. [200853]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office expenditure on consultants is published annually in our departmental report. However, we have listed below our expenditure for 2003–04 in advance of the publication of our departmental report which is due for publication in April 2005.

	£ million
2002–03	23.7
2003–04	23.2

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total external spending by his Department was on public private partnership (PPP) consultants in each of the last two years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PPP consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement. [200855]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not entered into any PPP deals in the last two years.

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