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Vocational Training

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she will next visit a further education college in the south-east to assess the provision of vocational training places. [217664]

Derek Twigg: I currently have no plans to visit further education colleges in the south-east. I would consider any such invitations, depending on diary commitments.

PRIME MINISTER

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Prime Minister whether the decision by the Metropolitan police to interview hon. Members as part of an on-going Official Secrets Act investigation into the disclosure of Iraq-related material was (a) authorised by and (b) communicated to (i) Ministers and (ii) officials in his Government. [218035]

The Prime Minister: The Metropolitan police have kept officials in the Cabinet Office informed of the progress of their inquiry, which was initiated at the request of the Cabinet Office. Decisions about the handling of the inquiry are a matter for the police.

Official Correspondence

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Prime Minister whether he has used a signing machine for official correspondence. [216625]

The Prime Minister: No. My office does, however, use an electronic version of my signature on some letters and messages.
 
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INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Iraq

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support the UK has given to democracy-building in Iraq; what the cost of that support has been; and what proportion of the budget was allocated to support for women. [217433]

Hilary Benn: Democracy building is a strategic priority of the UK's support to Iraq, as set out in DFID's Iraq Country Assistance Plan (February 2004). DFID works closely with the FCO to support and encourage a stable, united and law abiding state that provides effective and representative government, sustainable economic growth and rising living standards for all Iraqi citizens.

DFID has funded a number of initiatives to support democracy-building activities in Iraq. These have included $10 million in support of the Independent Elections Commission of Iraq (IECI) for the recent elections; and funding for two advisers to the UN team supporting the IECI. DFID's £5 million Political Participation Fund (PPF) supports initiatives which aim to increase opportunities for political representation and participation in the political process. Projects funded so far include voter education and media and monitors' training for the recent elections. There is no specific allocation to support for women, but the project has a particular focus on supporting women's participation in the political process. So far nine projects amounting to over £300,000 have been specifically targeted at women.

Kosovo

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support the UK has given to democracy-building measures in Kosovo, including training of local and national legislators; what the budget was for that support; and what proportion of that budget was allocated to support for women. [217432]

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID has provided the following funding to democracy-building measures in Kosovo:

Project	Year	Amount (£)
1. Support for domestic election observers—Local elections	2000	110,000
2. Support for domestic election observers—General Election	2001	163,584
3. Support to Kosovo Criminal Defence and Resource Centre (promoting human rights)	2001–02	93,000
4. International Foundation for Election Systems—Civic and Voter Education Outreach Programme	2001–02	349,749
5. International Foundation for Election Systems—Electoral Assistance and Civic Participation Programme	2002–03	249,899

In addition, the FCO has provided the following assistance under the Western Balkans Global Conflict Prevention Pool, which is a joint strategy between DFID, the FCO, and MoD:
 
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Project	Fund	Amount (£)	Description
2002–03
1. KOCB (Kosovo Organised Crime Bureau, UNMIK)	GCPP (Organised Crime [OC])	215,000	Law and order
2. Plemetina Community Centre	GCPP (Democracy and Interethnic Relations [DIER])	51,561	Reduction of inter-ethnic tension, confidence building and greater co-operation between ethnic groups in Plemetina community.
2003–04
3. KOCB	GCPP (OC)	532,000	Law and order
4. IFES-Local Participation and Governance Programme	GCPP (DIER)	133,190	Community development and bringing citizens closer to municipalities
5. Open Eyes-Documentary Training Through Production	GCPP (DIER)	100,961	Building bridges of divided communities, portraying diversity in this region.
6. Forum—Customs Monitoring Kosovo	GCPP	100,000	Creation of an anti-crime and anti-corruption coalition involving structures, Kosovo governing institutions, UNMIK Customs Service, civil society organisations, the main printed and electronic media in Kosovo, to fight trafficking.
2003–04–05
7. KACI Civil Bridges	GCPP (DIER)	117,684	Monitoring of municipal assemblies, and promotion of active and well-informed citizenship.
8. Podgorce Returns	GCPP (DIER)	296,960	Stabilisation and Integration for Returnees to Podgorce
9. IFES-Human Rights and Good Governance	GCPP (DIER)	345,380	Building NGOs capacities, working with elected officials and civil servants, training on human rights, transparency, anti-corruption, and advocacy.
10. Resolution for Kosovo Politicians	GCPP (DIER)	81,700	Five day conflict resolution course for Kosovo politicians.
11. Stabilisation of minorities and returns through Micro-credit	GCPP (DIER) and GOFRE	360,000	Promotion of sustainable reintegration of minorities and returns to Kosovo by enhancing their participation in the mainstream economy, through skills development and the provision of business mentoring, training and micro-credit.

The bulk of the UK's assistance to the region is contributed through the European Union's Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS) programme. The UK contributes approximately 19 per cent. of CARDS funding which provided €291.18 million to Kosovo in the years 2002–04. The European Commission has funded democracy related projects in Kosovo including:

Project	Year	Amount (€ million)
1. Support to the assembly of Kosovo	2003–05	2 million
2. Building institutional capacity of Civil Society organisations to include those representing different ethnic communities	2004–05	1 million

None of these projects had specific allocations for women, although women have benefited from many of the activities.

Malawi

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of the
 
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funds from the new six-year health programme for Malawi, announced in December 2004, is earmarked for salaries of health workers in Malawi. [217544]

Hilary Benn: The salary component of the new six-year health programme in Malawi will cost $100 million including a 50 per cent. increase in salary for existing health workers and the salaries of additional health workers. This salary component represents about half of the total cost of the Emergency Human Resources Programme, which also includes training of Malawian health workers and the provision of expatriate volunteer specialists. DFID is contributing £55 million towards that programme or about half the total cost. Other smaller contributions will come from the Global Fund, UN agencies and bilateral donors. In addition, DFID is contributing £45 million towards the separate Essential Health Package component, making a total contribution of £100 million to the Malawi's health programme over the next six years.

Swaziland

Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what development aid has been provided by the UK to Swaziland in each year since 1997; and what assessment his Department has made of its effectiveness. [218180]

 
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Hilary Benn: Total UK assistance to Swaziland since 1997 is set out in the following table:

	£000
1997–98	3,448
1998–99	3,981
1999–2000	3,533
2000–01	2,646
2001–02	1,282
2002–03	1,343
2003–04	907

DFID projects are subject to annual reviews of effectiveness. The results of the reviews are recorded on a central project review data-base which provides for reporting of portfolio performance.

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