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Parades

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the outcome was of the inquiry undertaken by the Police Ombudsman in relation to the alleged breaches of determinations of the parades commission concerning parades in East Belfast on 1 July 2004. [218976]

Mr. Pearson: The Police Ombudsman has advised me that she has not undertaken an inquiry in relation to the alleged breaches of determinations of the parades commission concerning parades in East Belfast on 1 July 2004.

Pensions

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how proposed Government
 
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pension scheme changes will impact on pension scheme members in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [219816]

Mr. Pearson: It is assumed that this question is referring to the proposed changes to the pension schemes for civil servants, staff employed in the NHS and for teachers.

The Government announced in June 2003 that it intended to proceed with a proposal to make the normal age of retirement for public service pensions schemes 65rather than 60 and that it intended to proceed with this through reviews of those schemes.

As a result, consultation on proposed changes for the main civil service pension scheme in Great Britain and the NHS and teachers schemes for England and Wales is currently underway. As the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme for Northern Ireland, the Health and Personal Social Services Superannuation Scheme, and the Teachers Superannuation Scheme in Northern Ireland operate on a principle of parity with these schemes, the normal approach would be to introduce similar changes for Northern Ireland staff.

It is proposed that the new arrangements would take effect from April 2006, but that these would not be extended to existing staff before 2013. In addition, pension benefits earned before 2013 would be protected in full.

Police Secondments

Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will extend the personnel exchange and secondment arrangements announced on 21 February between the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the police force of the Irish Republic to (a) other parts of the United Kingdom and (b) other member states of the EU. [218658]

Mr. Pearson: I have no plans to extend those arrangements flowing from the Inter-Governmental Agreement on Policing Co-operation as arrangements already exist to facilitate the movement of police officers to other parts of the UK or other member states of the EU.

Under Section 27 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998, members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland can engage in temporary service with other police forces in Great Britain. Similarly, Section 8 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000 confers a power on the Policing Board, subject to the approval of the Secretary of State, for PSNI officers to provide advice and assistance to international organisations/institutions or any other person or body engaged outside the United Kingdom in carrying out policing related activities.

In addition, the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland also has the authority under Section 98(3) of the Police Act 1996 to assist other Chief Constables in the UK should there be special demands placed on their resources.
 
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Provisional IRA

David Burnside: To ask the Secretary of State forNorthern Ireland what his most recent assessment isof the scale of illegal distillation of spirits by the Provisional IRA in the Province. [219674]

John Healey: I have been asked to reply.

HM Customs and Excise has made no such assessment. The Northern Ireland Organised Crime Task Force's threat assessment and strategy document Confronting the Threat, which was published in May 2004, contains information on paramilitary involvement in organised crime. Copies of this document have been placed in the House of Commons Library.

David Burnside: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with the Justice Minister of the Irish Republic following his statement in February that Gerry Adams MPMLA and Martin McGuinness MPMLA were members of the Army Council of the Provisional IRA. [220235]

Mr. Pearson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland met with Mr. McDowell on 21 February at Hillsborough Castle for the signing of the Protocols between the PSNI and Garda Siochana, during which a number of matters were discussed. The Secretary of State also met with Mr. Ahern and Mr. McDowell at the recent British Irish Intergovernmental Conference where a variety of matters of mutual interest were discussed and these are included in the joint communique".

Psychiatric Illness Claims

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made in settling post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychiatric illness claims against the Royal Ulster Constabulary and Police Service of Northern Ireland; what target he has drawn up for the maximum time to be taken in dealing with individual claims; and how many new claims have been submitted in each month since March 2001. [218970]

Mr. Pearson: The group action being taken by serving and retired members of the RUC and PSNI in respect of post-traumatic stress disorder claims is listed for hearing in November 2005. The chief constable has not set target times for dealing with individual claims but they will be dealt with expeditiously and in accordance with the time limits set by the courts.

The chief constable currently holds details of 3,363 claims which have been made since June 2001. However, the PSNI is unable to provide figures relating to the number of claims submitted on a monthly basis.

Road Accidents

Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many accidents on Ballyquin Road, Limavady, County Londonderry, have been reported to DRD Roads Service within the past 10 years. [220441]

Mr. Spellar: The Chief Executive of Roads Service (Dr. Malcolm McKibbin) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.
 
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Letter from Dr. Malcolm McKibbin to Mr. Gregory Campbell dated 8 March 2005:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a parliamentary Question asking how many accidents on Ballyquin Road, Limavady, County Londonderry, have been reported to DRD Roads Service within the past 10 years (220441). I have been asked to reply as the issue raised falls with my responsibility as Chief Executive of Roads Service.

With regard to accident statistics I should explain that the Police Service for Northern Ireland (PSNI) gathers road traffic injury collision information. Roads Service has access to this information for its own investigation purposes. We currently hold PSNI records for the B68 Ballyquin Road for the period January 1996 to February 2005. During that period there were 50 such injury collisions, including the recent double fatality at a bend on the road near Dungiven.

Like the vast majority of the rural road network, Ballyquin Road was not designed to modern standards, though a number of improvement schemes have been carried out on the road over recent years, including the erection or bend warning signs at the double fatality accident location. However, the collision history along this road remains a cause for concern. We have, therefore, been analysing the nature and type of collisions along the road, with a view to delivering a package of measures designed specifically to reduce the number of collisions.

As a result of this work, a route action Collision Remedial Scheme (signs, white lines etc.) for the Ballyquin Road has been included in our programme of works for the next financial year. Detailed analysis of the route is underway and we are intending to complete the necessary design work for this scheme within the next few months. The bend referred to above will be given priority within the scheme, so that any suitable measures can be implemented at this location, as soon as possible. Any more major improvement proposals along the road (realigning of bends, improving sight distances, road widening etc.) would, of course, have to compete for funding with other worthwhile schemes within our Northern Division area.

You may also be interested to learn that we also intend to carry out some resurfacing work on the Ballyquin Road during the incoming financial year.

I hope this information is helpful.

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