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19 Jun 2006 : Column 1587W—continued
West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive
West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive
Wiltshire County Council
The legislation does not specify any time limit for reaching a decision on appeals. The Secretary of State will consider and determine the appeals within a reasonable timeframe.
M25
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps will be taken to alleviate congestion and inconvenience to road users between junctions 27 and 30 of the M25 when the planned expansion and widening begins. [78869]
Dr. Ladyman: Road users of the M25 between junctions 27 and 30 already experience congestion and delays, especially during peak times. The objectives of the widening are to improve journey time reliability and provide drivers with smoother, less stressful and safer journeys.
During normal daytime operations the traffic will have, at least, the existing number of lanes in both directions. At most locations this will be three lanes in both directions. To allow safe construction at difficult locations the number of lanes may be reduced for limited periods at night and at weekends.
During construction, lane widths will be narrower and the hard shoulder will be used as a running lane. The use of a lower speed limit will help traffic flow smoothly through the roadworks area. A breakdown service, free to the road user, will be provided and CCTV cameras will monitor traffic to enable rapid clearance of any breakdowns.
Works will be placed on hold during the period for the Olympics.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the expansion and widening of junction 25 of the M25 to be complete. [78873]
Dr. Ladyman: The scheduled completion date of the M25 junction 25 eastbound improvement and Holmesdale tunnel refurbishment is November 2007.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects completion of the M25 Holmesdale Tunnel refurbishment; and how much the project will cost. [78874]
Dr. Ladyman: The scheduled completion date of the M25 Holmesdale Tunnel refurbishment is November 2007. The approved budget of the scheme is £75.1 million.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the planned dates are for the expansion and widening of the M25 between junctions (a) 5 and 7, (b) 1b and 3, (c) 23 and 27 and (d) 27 and 30. [78875]
Dr. Ladyman: The widening of three of the sections, that is (a) junctions 5 to 7, (c) junctions 23-27 and (d) junctions 27-30, will be delivered within a Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO) contract, which also includes widening of the M25 between junctions 16 and 23. The widening of these sections will be phased over approximately 10 years, scheduled to commence in 2008. The phasing of the works is to be determined with the successful bidder. From the work we have done so far we believe the section between junctions 16 and 23 will be the first to be widened.
The widening of the section between junctions 1b and 3 is being delivered through the same early contractor involvement contract that is delivering the adjacent A2/A282 improvement. The widening of M25 junctions 1b and 3 will start in 2007, subject to completion of any statutory processes and availability of funding and take about 18 months to complete.
Weymouth Relief Road
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what role the South West regional assembly will play in determining the priority given to building the Weymouth relief road. [78432]
Dr. Ladyman: The South West regional assembly was one of the principal organisations which contributed to the advice provided by the south west region in January 2006 on the priority that it attaches to major transport schemes in the south west including the Weymouth relief road. The advice included proposals for the delivery timescales for transport schemes within the indicative regional funding allocation for the south west. We are currently considering this advice and hope to announce our response to it before the summer recess.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Afghanistan
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total UK expenditure on capacity-building of the Afghan Government, including strengthening democratic institutions, was in each year since 2002. [78797]
Dr. Howells: The total UK expenditure on capacity building of the Afghan Government, including strengthening democratic institutions, since 2002 can be broken down as follows:
| Financial year | £ million |
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she has had with her US counterparts regarding proposals to start poppy eradication with crop-spraying planes in Afghanistan; and what the Government’s policy is regarding this issue. [78798]
Dr. Howells: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has had no discussions with her US counterparts regarding proposals to crop-spray in Afghanistan. The Government of Afghanistan’s eradication policy, as set out in the National Drug Control Strategy, is based on ground based eradication targeted where there is access to legal rural livelihoods. The UK has no plans to undertake or support aerial eradication.
Eradication on its own will not solve the drugs problem in Afghanistan. It is a useful deterrent where there is access to legal livelihoods. But tackling the drugs trade requires a range of activities including arresting and convicting the traffickers who profit from the trade, and putting in place the development programmes which enable farmers to move away from growing poppy. That is why the UK is spending £270 million over a three-year period on supporting the Government of Afghanistan’s National Drug Control Strategy.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the most recent assessment is of progress in encouraging farmers in the Helmand Province in Afghanistan to grow alternative crops; and if she will make a statement. [78799]
Dr. Howells: The Department for International Development (DFID) has a number of programmes which seek to provide economic alternatives to farmers who grow poppy in Helmand Province. When in Afghanistan last week, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development announced a UK contribution of £30 million over the next three years in Helmand. However, whether farmers choose to pursue alternative livelihoods to poppy in Helmand also depends on effective law enforcement and a credible threat of eradication. That is why the UK is supporting the multifaceted approach set out in the Afghan National Drug Control Strategy. We believe that the focus on the four key priorities—targeting the trafficker, strengthening livelihoods, reducing demand and developing effective institutions will together have a greater impact on the drug trade.
In terms of measuring the impact of the Government of Afghanistan’s National Drug Control Strategy in changing farmers’ behaviour, Afghanistan has a poorly developed data collection and management system. DFID is working closely with the Central Statistics Office of
the Government of Afghanistan to put in place mechanisms to ensure we are able to do this. These efforts should start to bear fruit over the next few months. This will allow us to make more robust assessments about the progress we are seeing in changing the behaviour of those farmers that currently grow poppy.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to her Afghan counterpart concerning reports that the Afghan Government have started remobilising militia groups to fight the Taliban; what her assessment is of those reports; and if she will make a statement. [78800]
Dr. Howells: My right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary raised the issue of armed militias during his call on President Karzai on 13 June 2006. He received assurances from President Karzai that the Afghan Government did not intend to remobilise militias. President Karzai explained the Afghan Government’s plans to establish community police units under the control of the Ministry of Interior to help deliver stability in some rural areas. Our ambassador in Kabul regularly discusses security matters with the Afghan Government and will continue to monitor the situation closely.
We recognise there is a need to increase the capacity and effectiveness of the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police, and the UK and the international community are playing an active role in supporting the establishment of effective Afghan security forces.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total UK expenditure on Afghan (a) police equipment and (b) salary payments has been since January 2006. [78912]
Dr. Howells: The UK does not make direct salary payments to the Afghan National Police (ANP). However, the UK contributes to the Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan (LOTFA) which supports salaries and the purchase of equipment for the Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan. The UK's total contribution to LOTFA last financial year 2005-06 was £1.5 million. There has been no UK expenditure on equipment for the ANP since January 2006.
Burma
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries have supplied military equipment to Burma in each of the last three years. [78098]
Dr. Howells: Comprehensive information on international exports of military equipment to Burma is not available. There is currently no international mechanism that provides the fully comprehensive data required for a full assessment. However, the UN Register of Conventional Arms does provide information covering those countries who have submitted returns. Further information is available on the UN website at:
http://disarmament.un.org/cab/register.html
The EU maintains an arms embargo against Burma and a ban on the supply of equipment that might be used for internal repression.
Guantanamo Bay
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information the Government have sought from the United States Administration in respect of the (a) cause and (b) circumstances of the deaths of three detainees held at the Guantánamo Bay military detention centre; and what information has been provided. [78060]
Dr. Howells: The United States Government have told us, as they have also announced publicly, that they will conduct an investigation into the deaths of the three detainees. We welcome that decision and look forward to hearing the results of the investigation.
Iraq
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the UK's role is in the demobilisation of militia groups in Iraq; and if she will make a statement. [78801]
Dr. Howells: The new Iraqi Government are currently considering their approach to the demobilisation of militia groups. We are ready to help with this effort and hope that other members of the international community will do likewise.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the UK's role is in increasing Iraqi capacity to house the detainee and prisoner population. [78906]
Dr. Howells: The UK has deployed in Iraq a team of HM Prison Service officers who work with the UK military and international donors to assist and advise the Iraqi Correctional Service (ICS) in southern Iraq. Since 2003, the team has helped the ICS to increase capacity significantly by building new prisons and refurbishing and extending existing ones, including providing separate facilities for women and juveniles.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the UK is providing to the new Iraqi Government in the Constitution Review process. [78908]
Dr. Howells: The Iraqi Government will lead this process with support from the UN. We are in contact with them and stand ready to assist. We hope others in the international community will also stand ready to help through the UN as and when required.
Israel
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what matters in respect of (a) Israel's possession of nuclear weapons and (b) the prospects for Israel joining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty were raised during her meeting with her Israeli counterpart on 12 June. [78061]
Dr. Howells:
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary did not discuss the prospects for Israel
signing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty (NPT), or Israel's possession of nuclear weapons, during her meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Livni.
We have on a number of occasions called on Israel to accede to the NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state and also to the Chemical Weapons Convention, and will continue to do so.
Michael Shields
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she has taken to assist the transfer of Michael Shields from Bulgaria to the UK to serve his sentence of imprisonment; and if she will make a statement. [78508]
Dr. Howells: We fully support Mr. Shields' request to be transferred back to the UK and have advised Mr. Shields and his family on the procedures involved. Officials from our embassy in Sofia have discussed Mr. Shields' transfer with the Bulgarian Ministry of Justice, most recently on 9 June, and will continue to monitor the situation closely. Consular staff are also in contact with the Prisoner Transfer Section of the Home Office to facilitate Mr. Shields' return.
Pakistan
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make representations to the Pakistan authorities on the abduction of Christian children from their villages in the Punjab, Pakistan, by the militant Islamic group Jumait-ud-Daawa. [78045]
Dr. Howells: We are aware of the report in the Sunday Times of 21 May 2006 that Jamaat-ud-Daawa are involved in the abduction of Pakistani Christian children. Our high commission in Islamabad is currently looking into this. We have not so far raised the question with the Pakistani authorities.
Venezuala
Colin Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs at what level UK/Venezuela counter-narcotics co-operation is undertaken; and what recent assessment she has made of its effectiveness. [78057]
Dr. Howells: The UK co-operates closely with the Venezuelan authorities and law enforcement agencies at all levels as well as with other international partners to combat drug trafficking and strengthen institutions in the fight against illicit drugs and international organised crime. I hope to travel to Venezuela later this year. UK support for Venezuelan anti-narcotics operations has recently led to several seizures of illicit drugs and associated arrests.
Communities and Local Government
Best Value Performance Indicators
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Audit Commission has amended its methodology for assessing Best Value Performance Indicator 199 in the last 12 months. [78378]
Mr. Woolas: The Audit Commission has not amended its methodology for assessing Best Value Performance Indicator 199 in the last 12 months.
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