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5 July 2006 : Column 1161W—continued
UK Ambassadors
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the names are of those who (a) approve and (b) select UK ambassadors. [80046]
Mr. Hoon: All Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) appointments are made in accordance with the rules in the Diplomatic Service or Home Civil Service Orders in Council.
As with other FCO appointments, applications for Heads of Mission positions are invited and candidates considered by the relevant FCO Selection Board, as follows:
the No 1 Selection Board (for appointments in Senior Management Structure Pay Bands 2-4 and all Governorships of Overseas Territories) is chaired by the Permanent Under-Secretary, and consists of the five Directors General and a non-Executive member of the FCO Board of Management;
the No 2 Selection Board (for appointments in Senior Management Structure Pay Band 1) is chaired by the Director, Human Resources and consists of all FCO Directors in Senior Management Structure Pay Band 2, and the Directors for the Americas and for Russia and Central Asia, as well as an independent observer;
the Delegated Grades Band D Board is chaired by the Human Resources Assistant Director (Operations). Three independent board members sit on each board, drawn from a pool of Senior Management Structure officers who have volunteered for this role, undergone diversity training and been agreed by the Trade Union Side.
Some Heads of Mission appointments will be considered by interview panels, at the discretion of the Boards.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary approves all Head of Mission appointments, and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister approves all Head of Mission appointments in Pay Bands 2-4 and all Governorships of Overseas Territories, before the names of the individuals are submitted to Her Majesty the Queen for her approval.
Zimbabwe
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to the Zimbabwean authorities on freedom of expression by opposition spokespersons in Zimbabwe. [81865]
Mr. McCartney: Our ambassador in Harare, Dr. Pocock, makes repeated representations to the Government of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front leaders to reverse their policies which are causing immense suffering to Zimbabweans and to restore the democratic space, including by permitting freedom of expression for all Zimbabweans as well as civic society and opposition representatives. Dr. Pocock made these representations most recently during a call on Minister Mnangagwa on 17 May.
We will continue to work for the restoration of good governance and the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate the Government has made of the amount of Zimbabwean beef licensed for export to the EU which comes from confiscated (a) land and (b) stock. [81944]
Mr. McCartney: The Statistical Office of the European Commission estimate that around 33 tonnes of beef products were imported into the EU from Zimbabwe in 2005. It is not possible to identify whether this came from confiscated land or stock. It is clear, however, that seizures of commercial beef farms have greatly affected production, and further demonstrates the extent of the damage caused by the Zimbabwe Government’s misguided policies.
Constitutional Affairs
Crown Courts
Dr. Starkey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when her Department expects to finalise plans to increase Crown court capacity in Buckinghamshire; and what assessment has been made of providing Crown court facilities at (a) Aylesbury, (b) Milton Keynes and (c) both. [82285]
Ms Harman: A strategic business case has been prepared which outlines the need to seek to replace the current Aylesbury Crown court facilities with modern premises that provide additional capacity for the future.
The business case was prepared on the basis of reviewing the current and future requirements for the county of Buckinghamshire including Milton Keynes Unitary Authority.
At this stage it is considered that the facility will be in one location, still to be defined, and will serve the county of Buckinghamshire, including Milton Keynes.
The business case has been submitted to Her Majesty’s Courts Service (HMCS) to be reviewed and receive detailed consideration by the National Property Board in the coming months. If the business case is determined as appropriate, it will be subject to prioritisation in the future HMCS building programme, and will then be dependant on Treasury approval of the HMCS capital spending programme.
In the meantime, the current Crown court requirements for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes are being reviewed to ensure that all courtroom capacity in the Thames Valley HMCS area is fully utilised to facilitate the early scheduling of cases. This does, on occasions, require the transfer of cases to other locations until a new facility is built to replace Aylesbury Crown court.
It is not anticipated that any new court building would be available before 2010, should it receive an early approval by the National Property Board for inclusion in current and future building schemes.
Parliamentary Papers
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will make it her policy to make copies of Deposited Papers available in (a) the Vote Office and (b) Printed Paper Office at the same time as copies are deposited in the Library of the House; and if she will make a statement. [81454]
Vera Baird: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 3 July 2006, Official Report, column 729W by my right hon. Friend the Leader of the House.
Work and Pensions
Accident Victims
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many cases recoupment of benefits for accident victims has taken place in the last three years; how much was recouped (a) in total, (b) for road accident cases, (c) for accidents at work cases, (d) for clinical negligence cases and (e) in other cases; and if he will make a statement. [75994]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is in the following tables.
| Total cases where recoupment from damages awarded to accident victims has been made by the Compensation Recovery Unit in each of the past three years | |||||
| Total cases | Road accident victims (motor) | Accidents at work (employer) | Clinical negligence | Other cases | |
| Amounts recovered by the Compensation Recovery Unit by way of recoupment from damages awarded to accident victims in each of the past three years | |||||
| Total Amount (£) | Road accident victims (motor) | Accidents at work (employer) | Clinical negligence | Other cases | |
| Notes: 1. The column titled “Other Cases” includes other, public and unknown liabilities. 2. The figures in table (2) are rounded up to the nearest £. Source: Figures are taken from the Compensation Recovery Unit's management information statistics. | |||||
Departmental IT Systems
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Mrs. Villiers) of14 March 2006, Official Report, column 2167W, on departmental IT systems, if he will list the suppliers and contractors involved in each project; and what proportion of listed outturn for each project was paid to each supplier and contractor involved. [61401]
James Purnell:
The following table shows the project name, purpose, actual end date and outturn included in the answer to the hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Mrs. Villiers) of 14 March 2006, Official Report, column 2167W. We have added supplier/contractor and
proportion of outturn columns and included the name of the principal IT suppliers/contractors for each
project and the proportion of the outturn paid to these suppliers/contractors.
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