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24 Feb 2005 : Column 770W—continued
Green Box Review
Mr. Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether it is the Government's policy to support proposals at the World Trade Organisation for a review of the Green Box. [217419]
Alun Michael: As part of the World Trade Organisation negotiations for the current Doha Development Round, a Framework Agreement was reached in August of last year. Under this Framework agreement, all WTO members agreed that Green Box criteria should be
"reviewed and clarified with a view to ensuring that Green Box measures have no, or at most minimal, trade-distorting effects or effects on production. Such a review and clarification will need to ensure that the basic concepts, principles and effectiveness of the Green Box remain and take due account of non-trade concerns."
The UK Government fully supports a review on this basis.
Horse Passports
Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many horse passports have been issued in London. [217528]
Alun Michael: There are no Passport Issuing Organisations based in London. Horse owners residing in London can apply to any Passport Issuing Organisation in the United Kingdom for their passports.
Parking
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent on (a) provision of parking spaces for civil servants and (b) parking tickets and penalties incurred by civil servants in the Department and its predecessors in each year since 1997. [213835]
Alun Michael: The Department was created in June 2001.
(a) A number of buildings across the Departments estate do offer on-site car parking for civil servants and visitors as per the tenancy and rental agreement for each site. No specific records are kept that identify the cost of providing car parking.
(b) The Department does not meet the cost of parking tickets and penalties incurred by civil servants. Civil servants are personally responsible for meeting the costs of any such fines.
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Pay Television
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many pay television subscriptions the Department had in each year since 1997; and what the cost was in each year. [207654]
Alun Michael: Since Defra came into existence in May 2001, the pay television subscription costs for each financial year are as follows:
| Financial year | £ |
|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 42,522 |
| 2002–03 | 26,150 |
| 2003–04 | 9,415 |
| 2004–05 | (7)— |
(7) Figures not available. Most installations are now free view.
Rural Policy
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on progress towards modernising rural delivery within the Department's strategy. [214713]
Alun Michael: Since announcing the Rural Strategy in July 2004 we have made excellent progress. Our reforms are aimed at delivering services more efficiently, through a smaller number of organisations with clearer and more accountable roles. We are devolving delivery to give a better deal for the environment and the taxpayer and the overarching principle is sustainable development.
Work is now under way to identify clear priorities and simple processes in each region of England. In order to explore better ways of supporting rural communities we have identified a local "rural pathfinder" for each region. We are working with these rural pathfinders to test innovative ways of improving local delivery and they are currently developing their plans. From this April, rural socio-economic funding will be mainstreamed through Rural Development Agencies with an increase of £27 million in their single pot allocation to £72 million from Defra. Rural community councils will be funded directly by Defra and some further social and community funds will be channelled through Government Offices.
Everyone will benefit from our radical simplification of funding streams. Rural businesses are being helped by an additional £2 million that Defra has provided to Business Links this financial year.
We are establishing a smaller, more focused body to act as a strong voice for rural people and communities, especially those facing disadvantage.
Dr. Stuart Burgess has been appointed as the Chair of the Countryside Agency and Rural Advocate. By April 2005 the new organisation—the Commission for Rural Communities—will have been established as a distinct body, initially within the existing legal framework. It will use its statutory independent voice to hold to account those who deliver to the countryside and rural communities.
In order to conserve and enhance the resource of nature and realise the economic benefits of so doing, we are establishing an Integrated Agency consisting of English Nature, most of the Rural Development Service
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and parts of the Countryside Agency. We have already initiated closer working at the regional level between these three organisations, as part of preparing for the establishment of the new Agency. We are moving the Rural Development Service out of the policy core of Defra and providing it with greater autonomy and devolved authority for decision-making and delivery, and, in order to pave the way for the Service to move into being part of the new Integrated Agency, we have appointed Poul Christensen to chair a small non executive board. From April 2005 the bodies that will make up the Integrated Agency will have begun working as a confederation of partners as a precursor to the full establishment of the Integrated Agency by legislation.
On Thursday 10 February, we published (in draft) a Bill to implement those elements of the Rural Strategy that require primary legislation—including full establishment of the Integrated Agency and the Commission for Rural Communities.
By April we will also have begun delivering benefits to taxpayers through beginning the process of delivering around £21 million of efficiency gains per year by 2009–10.
Targets
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many targets have been set in each year since 1997 by the Department; and, of these, which have been (a) met, (b) nearly met, (c) not met, (d) changed and (e) dropped. [215798]
Alun Michael: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 21 February 2005, Official Report, column 75W by the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Asylum Seekers
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to which (a) countries and (b) regions affected by the tsunami removal of failed asylum seekers has been suspended; for how long suspensions will last in each case; and if he will make a statement. [214987]
Mr. Browne: The UK is currently not enforcing the removal of failed asylum applicants to the following countries, or parts of countries:
This approach is in line with the UNHCR's recommendations for south-east Asia of 12 January 2005. Proposals to conduct removals to non-affected areas immediately outside of those identified above, are being reviewed sensitively and on a case by case basis. The Government do not attach a time scale to their policy to temporarily suspend enforced returns on the
24 Feb 2005 : Column 773W
basis that this is being monitored and kept under active review in light of the ongoing assessment and development of the country conditions.
Commonwealth Working Holiday Scheme
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) professions allied to medicine from Commonwealth countries are working in the UK on two-year visas under the Commonwealth Working Holiday Scheme; and what assessment he has made of the effects of changing the scheme to one-year visas on recruitment in the national health service. [217500]
Mr. Browne: Working Holidaymakers are required to obtain entry clearance prior to coming to the United Kingdom. This allows them to take relevant employment, including as doctors, nurses and in other healthcare professions. No central record is kept by the Home Office of the numbers of working holidaymakers in each part of the workforce, including medicine and healthcare, because they do not need separate permission to work after arrival.
After 12 months in the United Kingdom working holidaymakers are eligible for work permit employment in any of the occupations on the list of designated shortage occupations maintained by Work Permits (UK). These include doctors, nurses and other healthcare professions. Working holidaymakers were eligible to switch into these occupations after 12 months in the United Kingdom before the changes announced on 7 February. The effect of these changes on recruitment in the national health service is therefore neutral.
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