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15 Mar 2005 : Column 209W—continued
Work Permits
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individual work permits were issued in 2004. [216688]
Mr. Charles Clarke [holding answer 22 February 2005]: 181,432 individual work permits were issued in 2004.
Young Offenders Institutions
Mrs. Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) baseline Certified National Accommodation (CNA), (b) in use CNA, (c) operational capacity and (d) prisoner population was for each young offenders institution on 28 January. [220514]
Paul Goggins: The (a) baseline Certified National Accommodation (CNA), (b) in use CNA, (c) operational capacity and (d) prisoner population for each Young Offenders' Institution on 31 January 2005 are given as follows. Table 1 gives the figures for establishments which only hold sentenced young offenders.
Table 2, gives the numbers for establishments that hold other prisoners in addition to sentenced young
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offenders. The data for CNA and Operational Capacity are available only for the whole of these establishments and cannot be broken down for particular groups.
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FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Aegis Defence Services
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what information his Department has (a) supplied to and (b) received from the United States Administration regarding that government's award of the Iraq Reconstruction Security Support Services contract to Aegis Defence Services; [220988]
(2) what discussions there have been between the British and American governments regarding the award of the US Administration's Iraq Reconstruction Security Support Services' contract to Aegis Defence Services. [220989]
Mr. Rammell: I refer the hon. Member to the written statement made on 12 July 2004, Official Report, columns 53–54WS, by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary in which he stated that
"the contract in question was awarded by the United States Government. Her Majesty's Government is not a party to the contract, nor was it involved in any way in its negotiation."
Attorney-General (Iraq Advice)
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 7 March 2005, Official Report, column 1575W, on the Attorney-General (Iraq Advice), whether he had a role other than in its framing, drafting and drawing up in the parliamentary answer given by the Attorney-General on 17 March 2003 on Iraq. [221611]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer 14 March 2005]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Attorney-General, Lord Goldsmith, to Baroness Hanham on 28 February 2005, Official Report, House of Lords, column WA1, which clearly describes those involved in the parliamentary answer given by him on 17 March 2003 on Iraq and confirms that my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary had no role.
Bangladesh
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information his Department received from the Government of Bangladesh concerning the perpetrators of the attempted assassination of the British high commissioner in Sylhet in 2004. [221647]
Mr. Alexander [holding answer 14 March 2005]: The investigation into the attack on the British high commissioner in Sylhet in 2004 is ongoing and we remain in contact with the Bangladeshi authorities on this. I emphasized to the Prime Minister in Dhaka in December the importance which we attach to the investigation reaching a swift conclusion.
China
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last had discussions with Chinese officials concerning the Chief Executive and Legislative Council of Hong Kong; and if he will make a statement. [221042]
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Mr. Rammell: Ministers and officials regularly discuss Hong Kong matters with Chinese officials. My right hon. Friend, the Foreign Secretary discussed Hong Kong's constitutional reform and progress towards universal suffrage with Premier Wen Jiabao and Foreign Minister, Li Zhaoxing in China in January. I also raised these issues when I visited China in July last year. During my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister's talks with the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on 10 May 2004, both Governments reaffirmed their commitment to the implementation of the Joint Declaration and agreed to continue their exchanges of view on these issues.
Her Majesty's Government support democracy throughout the world as the best means for creating stable, accountable and transparent government, of protecting rights and freedoms, and of upholding the rule of law. The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) contains provisions regarding the methods of selecting the Chief Executive of the SAR and the formation of the Legislative Council. The ultimate aim of the Basic Law is a Chief Executive and Legislative Council elected by universal suffrage. The Government favour early progress to this end. We hope that the Hong Kong SAR Government will take full account of the wishes of the people of Hong Kong.
We continue to follow developments in Hong Kong closely, in line with our responsibilities as a co-signatory to the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his Department's policy is on China's occupation of Tibet. [221043]
Mr. Rammell: Successive British Governments have regarded Tibet as autonomous while recognising the special position of the Chinese authorities there.
We monitor Tibet-related developments closely. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary raised the case of a Tibetan prisoner during his visit in January 2005. I personally raised the issue of Tibet with Assistant Foreign Minister Li Hui during my visit to China in October 2004. We also discuss Tibet at our biannual UK/China Human Rights Dialogue, the last round of which was held in Beijing on 22 November 2004.
We have welcomed visits to China by representatives of the Dalai Lama. We have made clear to the Chinese authorities our view that a long-term, peaceful solution to the Tibet issue can be found only through substantial dialogue without pre-conditions.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the relationship between Taiwan and China. [221044]
Mr. Rammell:
In recent months there have been a few signs suggesting an improvement in the political relationship between China and Taiwan. For example, over the Chinese new year there were direct flights
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across the Strait for Taiwanese businessmen, the first time for over 50 years that mainland commercial aircraft have landed in Taiwan. Moreover, cross-Strait trade increased by a third last year.
We welcome these developments and believe that such practical measures build confidence and promote dialogue. We believe that through such pragmatism, real progress can be made. We continue to oppose the use of force and to take the view that the Taiwan question should be settled peacefully through negotiation between the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
We are paying close attention to the development of China's proposed anti-secession legislation, the background to which I discussed recently with the Vice Minister of China's Taiwan Affairs Office. We continue to urge both sides to avoid unilateral measures that might raise tension.
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