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Welfare Reform Green Paper

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what effect he expects the new employment and support allowance proposed in the Green Paper A New Deal for Welfare: Empowering People to Work" to have on the number of claimants subject to means testing in each year from 2008 to 2018. [51985]

Margaret Hodge: Analysis on the number of claimants subject to means testing is not currently available up to 2018. Claimants will be able to access either the contributory or income related strand of the proposed employment and support allowance depending on their contribution history and personal circumstances.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Africa

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the environmental impact of oil exploration and extraction in Africa. [58844]

Ian Pearson: The Government works with African Governments, international oil companies and other partners to mitigate some of the negative impacts associated with oil exploration and extraction. We continue to encourage producer countries within Africa to set clear and rigorous environmental standards by which the oil industry must operate. Similarly, we continue to promote the requirement for international oil and gas companies to operate to international standards across Africa.

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the impact of oil exploration and extraction in (a) Tanzania, (b) Uganda, (c) Cameroon and (d) Chad upon (i) poverty reduction, (ii) good governance, transparency and corruption and (iii) human rights. [58839]

Ian Pearson: Tanzania and Uganda have relatively low levels of activity in the oil sector and it is too early to judge what future impact there may be of increased activity in the sector.

We judge the prospects for economic growth and prosperity through oil exploration and extraction in Chad as positive. We are committed to ensuring that poverty reduction, good governance, transparency, corruption and human rights are addressed through the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) mechanism, which Chad has signed up to but is yet to implement. We encourage the Government of Chad to work with the World Bank in relation to current differences in order to address its current financial crisis, while protecting its poverty reduction programmes.

We welcome the Government of Cameroon's commitment to the EITI process and encourage full implementation to ensure that oil revenues are committed to the betterment of the people. Cameroon is also heavily committed to a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility programme and starting debt relief. As
 
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a part of this process and in support of good governance targets, the international financial institutions carefully monitor Cameroon's revenue and expenditure records.

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the government of (a) Tanzania, (b) Uganda, (c) Cameroon and (d) Chad regarding (i)good governance and (ii) corruption. [58840]

Ian Pearson: Our High Commission in Dar es Salaam has had recent discussions with, among others, the President, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Tanzania. On each occasion, High Commission officials commended the high priority given by the new Tanzanian Government to the promotion of good governance, notably on Zanzibar, and the fight against corruption.

On 7 March, our High Commissioner in Kampala took part in discussions with President Museveni which covered the conduct of the recent elections and the need to promote good governance. The UK is a leading member of the anti-corruption donor group which has regular discussions with the Government about corruption, including on the recent problem of financial mismanagement of Global Fund resources.

My noble Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister for Africa, Lord Triesman of Tottenham, met with Prime Minister Inoni of Cameroon on 7 March. He praised the Government of Cameroon's recent commitment to tackling corruption and encouraged them to continue the progress they have made towards improved governance.

The focus of our discussions with Chad is through the EU and the Heads of Mission of member states who are resident in N'Djamena. Governance and corruption issues are an important part of the EU/Chad agenda.

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the impact of oil exploration and extraction in (a) Equatorial Guinea, (b) Sao Tome", (c) Congo-Brazzaville, (d) Gabon and (e) Madagascar upon (i)poverty reduction, (ii) good governance, transparency and corruption and (iii) human rights. [58842]

Ian Pearson: We encourage Equatorial Guinea, Sao Tome, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon and Madagascar to adopt and implement the principles enshrined in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which will help promote poverty reduction, good governance, transparency and human rights.

We welcome the fact that Gabon and Equatorial Guinea have committed themselves to EITI. We encourage all states with extractive industries to do so.

Alcoholic Beverages (Government Stock)

Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the estimated value is of central Government's stock of alcoholic beverages; and how many bottles of (a) wine, (b) beer, (c) spirits and (d) other alcoholic beverages are held by the Government for entertainment and other purposes. [59039]

 
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Mr. Straw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is responsible for the administration of the Government Hospitality wine cellar. The cellar contains a mixture of fine and beverage wines, spirits, liqueurs and beers. The current estimated value is approximately £640,000, based on cost price. The cellar contains just under 35,000 bottles, of which fewer than 300 are spirits and liqueurs. Beer is not held in large quantities, and is bought on an ad hoc basis, depending on requirements.

Chad

Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to help defend democracy in Chad. [58904]

Ian Pearson: The Foreign Minister of Chad, Allam-mi Ahmad, called on our Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York on 9 January 2006. They discussed the security situation on the Chad/Darfur border and the negative impact it is having on the fragile democracy within Chad. We encouraged the Government of Chad to act with restraint.

There is no resident UK mission in N'Djamena so our main engagement in-country is through resident EU Heads of Mission. Governance is part of the EU/Chad dialogue.

Chad is due to hold Presidential elections in May 2006. The UK calls upon the Chadian authorities to ensure that the elections are peaceful, free and fair.

Chad-Cameroon Pipeline

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has received regarding the Chad-Cameroon pipeline; what assessment he has made of its operation; and what assessment he has made of its impact on (a) poverty reduction, (b) good governance, transparency and corruption, (c) human rights and (d) civil society. [58841]

Ian Pearson: We have received representations from the World Bank and Amnesty International on the Chad-Cameroon pipeline.

The UK supports the Chad-Cameroon pipeline project and believes it will offer developmental as well as energy security and strategic benefits to Chad; it will also bring economic benefit to Cameroon. We encourage both governments to deliver these benefits while ensuring respect for human rights, local governance, and the local environment.

Departmental Security Staff

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of his Department's security staff will be licensed before the Security Industry Authority's licensing deadline of 20 March 2006. [59553]

Mr. Straw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office security guards are provided by an external contractor (Pegasus Security Group).

90 per cent. of guards applied for the Security Industry Authority licence in August/September 2005, and the remaining 10 per cent. applied subsequently to
 
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joining Pegasus after September. Approximately 7 per cent. of guards have received licences to date. 85 per cent. have received confirmation of the criminal record check and are waiting to receive the licence.

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