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30 Nov 2006 : Column 852W—continued

Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she will reply to the letter of 12 October 2006 from the right hon. Member for Manchester Gorton with regard to Mr. K. Said. [105797]

Margaret Beckett: A response to my right hon. Friend’s letter of 12 October was issued on 24 November.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to the Government of Congo on the arrest of the former presidential candidate Marie-Thérèse Nlandu; and if she will make a statement. [106571]


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Mr. McCartney: Our ambassador in Kinshasa spoke to the Interior Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo and advisers to President Kabila regarding the detention of Mme Nlandu on 21 November. We have outlined our concerns over allegations that Mme Nlandu’s human rights, particularly her access to legal representation, have not been respected.

We continue to press the Congolese Government to ensure that due legal process is adhered to in this case and continue to remind the Government of the need to ensure space for political opposition.

Mr. Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the safety of nuclear facilities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [105930]

Mr. McCartney: We and international partners are concerned by the state of the small nuclear research facility in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s only nuclear facility. Several donors and the International Atomic Energy Agency have offered support to safely dismantle this facility and dispose of any radioactive material, but thus far this has not been accepted by the Congolese Government. We will continue to monitor the situation and press the new Congolese Government to fulfil its environmental and security responsibilities.

Departmental Staff

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many value for money exercises on the use of (a) management consultants and (b) professional advisers were conducted by her Department in each of the last five years for which information is available; and if she will make a statement. [103015]

Mr. Hoon: Value for money exercises are an integral part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) contracting process for all management consultants and professional advisors. The FCOs use of external consultants helps to contribute to the success of projects by providing relevant new knowledge, specialist skills, experience and an independent view of key issues not available in-house. This wider experience and broader perspective, drawn from their work with other organisations, can add value to the FCO's business.

The FCO's policy on the procurement of services is based on value for money, having due regard to propriety and regularity and ensuring full compliance with the EU consolidated Public Procurement Directive, implemented in the UK by The Public Contracts Regulations 2006 (SI 2006 No 5). These promote equal treatment, transparency and competitive procurement. Value for money is therefore assessed in the tendering and award of contract process and through active contract management throughout the period of engagement. Project deliverables and the quality of advice received from the consultants are matched against expectations and consultants carry out assigned tasks to a properly managed plan of milestone objectives and timescales. Project managers must ensure that the deliverables produced by consultants are as specified and that the outputs are
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used effectively to improve performance or meet key objectives. At the end of the contract the assignment is reviewed to assess the value for money achieved.

Departmental Statistics

Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which statistics have been put forward by her Department for consideration to become new national statistics in each of the last five years; and how many statistics sets her Department has produced in total in each of the last five years. [101650]

Margaret Beckett: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not produce national statistics. However, official statistical information on the FCO’s activities can be found in the departmental annual report, hard copies of which are available in the Library of the House. It can also be accessed online at www.fco.gov.uk In addition the FCO publishes a number of specialised reports, including the Annual Human Rights Report and the Global Opportunities Fund Report, which contain statistical information.

Iraq

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received on Site Four Prison in East Baghdad; what representations UK representatives have made about it to the Iraqi authorities; and if she will make a statement. [106163]

Dr. Howells: In June 2006, our embassy in Baghdad received reports of serious over-crowding and abuse at the Site Four detention facility in east Baghdad following a joint Iraqi and US led Multi-National Force inspection. Our ambassador in Baghdad conveyed my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary's concern at the allegations to Iraqi Prime Minister Al-Maliki, and welcomed his undertaking to investigate and bring those responsible to justice. We have since continued to raise Site Four with the Iraqi authorities at all levels. We understand that investigative judges have issued over 50 arrest warrants in relation to the incident. We will continue to press the Iraqi authorities to progress with prosecutions.

Madagascar

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make a statement on the political situation in Madagascar. [103145]

Mr. McCartney: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Cotswold (Mr. Clifton-Brown) on 27 November 2006, Official Report, column 474W.


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Middle East

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment her Department has made of the economic and social impact on the Palestine village of Al-Walajah if the Israeli government proceeds with its plan to construct a wall. [106587]

Dr. Howells: We have made no specific assessment on the effect the barrier would have on Al-Walajah. As a whole, the route of the barrier has had a detrimental effect on the economy of Palestinian villages. Where the barrier has been constructed, Palestinians face restrictions on movement, which may prevent them accessing their land, schools, universities and medical care. Palestinians living in “closed areas” have to pass through gates in the barrier to reach markets, schools and hospitals, to cultivate land, and to maintain contact with family and friends living in other parts of the west bank.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether her Department has made representations to the Israeli government on the construction of a wall in the village of Al-Walajah. [106588]

Dr. Howells: We have made no specific representations to the Israeli government about the village of Al-Walajah. However, we continue to have concerns about the routing of the barrier. The barrier should be built on or behind the Green Line, not on occupied territory. Our ambassador in Tel Aviv most recently raised our concerns about the routing of the barrier with the Israeli government on 10 October.

Minister for Europe

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for which responsibilities the Minister for Europe reports (a) directly to the Prime Minister and (b) to her. [102575]

Margaret Beckett [holding answer 23 November 2006]: My right hon. Friend the Minister for Europe informs my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and me directly across the range of responsibilities.

Ministerial Visits

Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries she has visited on official business since May. [106711]

Margaret Beckett: USA on four occasions, Belgium on six occasions, Luxembourg twice, France twice, Moscow, Brazil, Italy, Iraq, Egypt, Mexico, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Germany, Austria and India.

Nigeria

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the conditions for British oil and gas workers in the Niger Delta. [104548]


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Mr. McCartney: There is currently a high risk of kidnapping in the Niger Delta. Expatriates are frequently taken hostage by armed militants. In eight separate incidents since January 2006, 20 British nationals have been kidnapped and one tragically has been killed.

There have also been several kidnappings of other foreign nationals, and clashes between militant groups and the Nigerian armed forces. We also continue to believe that armed groups may be planning further attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, through its travel advice, continues to give up to date assessment of the risks of working in the Niger Delta. We work closely with UK and other employers, to ensure that British oil and gas workers are aware of our advice, both in the UK and Nigeria.

North Korea

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps her Department is taking to support measures to prevent another nuclear test by North Korea. [103657]

Mr. McCartney: The UK joined the international community in strongly condemning the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) nuclear test on 9 October. The unanimous adoption of UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1718 underlines powerfully to the DPRK the importance of this issue. Any further nuclear tests will only serve to strengthen international resolve for a robust response.

The UK is putting in place the necessary arrangements to implement the measures set out in UNSCR 1718 and has urged partners to do likewise as soon as possible. We welcome the DPRK’s agreement to return to the six party talks and have underlined to partners the need for the talks to be result-oriented.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether her Department has a traffic light system in place for processing parliamentary questions, where questions are categorised using a colour code. [103161]

Margaret Beckett: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office tries to meet all deadlines when answering parliamentary questions and does not use a traffic light or colour coded system for classifying or answering them.

Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether her Department uses an internal (a) traffic light and (b) colour coded system to answer written parliamentary questions; and whether her Department grades or classifies written parliamentary questions according to their political sensitivity. [103796]

Margaret Beckett: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office tries to meet all deadlines when answering parliamentary questions and does not use a traffic light or colour coded system for classifying or answering them.


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Refugees

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate she has made of the number of refugees entering (a) Chad and (b) the Central African Republic; what assessment she has made of acts of violence perpetrated by cross-border rebel groups; and what reports she has received on whether these rebel groups are supported by the Janjaweed militia. [103037]

Mr. McCartney: We are concerned for the safety and security of the 233,000 Sudanese refugees and the 45,000 refugees from the Central Africa Republic currently in Chad, also for the 100,000 Sudanese refugees in the Central Africa Republic.

Chadian rebels and Darfur militia continue to mount cross-border attacks into eastern Chad from Darfur. We have seen reports of the recent attacks and condemn the violence. We are urging both the Sudan and Chadian governments to implement and abide by the terms of the Tripoli Agreement and respect each other's borders. We are pressing the government of Sudan to neutralise and disarm the Janjaweed and expel foreign fighters from Darfur as soon as possible, as required under the Darfur Peace Agreement.

Rwanda

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the UK Government provided support to President Kagame of Rwanda (a) before and (b) in the immediate aftermath of his coming to power. [104204]

Mr. McCartney: The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), of which Paul Kagame was leader, took power in 1994 at the end of the genocide (he became President of Rwanda in 2000). The Government did not provide support to Kagame before or immediately after the RPF came to power.

However, the UK did give limited material support to the new Government during the 12 months immediately following the genocide, to a value of approximately £3 million up to July 1995.

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the implications for stability in the Great Lakes region of the French judicial authorities' pending indictment of President Kagame of Rwanda. [105951]

Mr. McCartney: Following a French judicial investigation into the shooting down of President Habyarimana's plane in 1994, arrest warrants have been issued for nine Rwandan officials. We are not aware of an arrest warrant for President Kagame.

The security situation in the Great Lakes region remains fragile, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in the immediate post-election period. We welcome the recent improvement in relations between DRC and Rwanda and the implications for the region. The UK remains committed to supporting the creation of long term peace and security in the DRC and the region as a whole.


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Saudi Arabia

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has been informed of any planned visits to the UK by any Saudi government ministers in the next three months. [106670]

Dr. Howells: We are not aware of any planned visits by Saudi government Ministers to UK in the next three months.

Somalia

Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the extent to which there are links between Al-Qaeda and Islamic Courts in Somalia; and if she will make a statement. [101979]

Margaret Beckett: We are aware of allegations that there are links between extremist elements of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) and Al Qaeda. The Chairman of the Standing Committee of the UIC Shura Council, Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, is named in UN Security Council resolution 1267 and in a US list of individuals with links to terrorism. The UIC has denied any links. We continue to urge the UIC to respect international law, to renounce terrorism and not to allow the areas of Somalia over which they hold sway to become a safe haven for terrorists.

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the Somalia Monitoring Group’s report and recommendations; and if she will make a statement. [103193]

Mr. McCartney: We, along with our UN Security Council partners, are considering the findings of the Somalia Monitoring Group’s report and the responses of states alleged to have violated the arms embargo. With our Security Council partners we continue to urge all parties inside and outside Somalia to refrain from action that could provoke violence, to respect the UN arms embargo on Somalia and to pursue a peaceful resolution through dialogue.

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports she has received on the security situation in Somalia. [103233]

Mr. McCartney: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary gave to the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague) on 27 November 2006, Official Report, columns 469-70W.

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports she has received of the conflict in Somalia; and what action she is taking to establish a sustainable peace. [104400]


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