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17 Apr 2007 : Column 527W—continued

Bridget Prentice: Under Protocol 3 of the UK's Treaty of Accession, the Channel Islands are part of the customs territory of the European Union. Consequently, the common customs tariff, levies and agricultural import measures apply to trade between the Islands and non-member countries. There is free
17 Apr 2007 : Column 528W
movement of goods between the Islands and the member countries. Other Community Rules do not generally apply.

Dr. Gibson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what rights and responsibilities are enjoyed by the Channel Islands under the terms of their relationship with the UK. [131748]

Bridget Prentice: The UK is constitutionally responsible for the defence and international representation of the Channel Islands. The Channel Islands make annual voluntary contributions towards the cost. As a more general principle, the Channel Islands have a right to respect for their autonomy in domestic affairs and a responsibility to give all reasonable assistance and co-operation to the UK in the exercise of its domestic and international responsibilities. The UK in turn has a right to expect this co-operation, and a responsibility to give all reasonable assistance to the Islands, and to respect their autonomy and work for its preservation. The most recent statement of the relationship between the UK and the Channel Islands is to be found in Part XI of Volume 1 of the Report of the Royal Commission on the Constitution (1973).

Courts: Pay

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what estimate she has made of the rate of local court staff turnover following implementation of the new pay system, broken down by region. [128608]

Ms Harman: The ongoing negotiations with the Trade Unions address a range of important issues, including how the new pay system will better enable the department to retain court staff. I will write to my right hon. Friend once the negotiations have been concluded.

Departments: Pressure Groups

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what meetings took place between Ministers in her Department and outside interest groups between 1 January and 31 March; and what the date of each such meeting was. [131026]

Ms Harman: Ministers in my Department meet a large number of people and groups in the course of their official duties. Between 1 January and 31 March 2007 these have included:

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17 Apr 2007 : Column 530W

Date	Group	Minister(s)
8 January 2007	Which?	Baroness Ashton
8 January2007	The Bar Council	Baroness Ashton
8 January 2007	The Law Society Regulation Board	Baroness Ashton
9 January 2007	National Association of Guardians Ad Litem and Reporting Officers	Harriet Harman
11 January 2007	Co-operative Legal Services	Bridget Prentice
15 January 2007	Support After Murder and Manslaughter	Lord Falconer and Harriet Harman
15 January 2007	Muttons Solicitors	Vera Baird
16 January 2007	National Youth Advocacy Service	Harriet Harman
17 January 2007	Mind; Mencap; Age Concern; Help the Aged; Royal College of Psychiatrists; English Community Care Association; Turning Point; National Autistic Society; Mental Health Foundation; Registered Nursing Home Association; Mental Health Alliance	Baroness Ashton
18 January 2007	Liberty	Baroness Ashton
18 January 2007	Four Communications	Baroness Ashton
24 January 2007	The Next Step Foundation	Bridget Prentice
24 January 2007	National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children	Lord Falconer
25 January 2007	General Medical Council; Age Concern; carers UK; Alzheimer’s Society; ResCare; British Medical Association; Royal College of Psychiatrists; Mental Health Foundation; Mencap; Motor Neurone Disease	Baroness Ashton
	Association; National Advisory Group on Learning Disabilities and Ethnicity; National Autism Society; Mind
29 January 2007	The Bar Council	Lord Falconer
30 January 2007	Allen and Overy; Berwin Leighton Paisner; Clifford Chance; DLA Freshfields; Herbert Smith; Linklaters; Norton Rose; Slaughter and May; Simmons and Simmons; Pinsent Masons; Law Society; Bar Council; College of Law; The Sutton Trust	Lord Falconer
30 January 2007	UK Joint Economic Trade Committee	Baroness Ashton
5 February2007	The Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys; The Chartered Institute of Paten Attorneys; AS Biss and Co	Baroness Ashton
6 February 2007	Association of Chief Police Officers	Lord Falconer
12 February 2007	Commission for Equality and Human Rights	Lord Falconer
19 February 2007	Fathers for Justice	Harriet Harman
20 February 2007	British Youth Council; The Electoral Commission; The Hansard Society; X-Change; National Children's Bureau; English Secondary School Association	Bridget Prentice
20 February 2007	Society of Editors	Baroness Ashton
21 February 2007	Law Society Solicitors' Regulation Authority; Law Society Legal Complaints Service	Bridget Prentice
21 February 2007	Eaves Housing	Lord Falconer
22 February 2007	The Electoral Commission	Lord Falconer and Bridget Prentice
22 February 2007	UK Joint Economic Trade Committee; Arlington Aharma Solicitors	Baroness Ashton
22 February 2007	Rights and Humanity	Baroness Ashton
26 February 2007	Standing Together against Domestic Violence	Harriet Harman
26 February 2007	The Financial Times	Baroness Ashton
26 February 2007	The Telegraph Group	Lord Falconer
27 February 2007	The Council of Europe	Bridget Prentice
27 February 2007	The Guardian; The Independent; The Evening Standard; The Sunday Times; The Sunday Telegraph; The Daily Telegraph	Baroness Ashton
28 February 2007	The Law Commission	Vera Baird
28 February 2007	Coventry Youth Group	Bridget Prentice
1 March 2007	Legal Services Ombudsman	Bridget Prentice
5 March 2007	BBC; The Independent; ITN; Reuters; The Financial Times; The Guardian; Periodical Publishers Association; The Times	Baroness Ashton
7 March 2007	Four Communications	Baroness Ashton
8 March 2007	Bar Standards Board	Bridget Prentice
8 March 2007	Which?	Bridget Prentice
12 March 2007	ITN	Harriet Harman
12 March 2007	Law Centres Federation	Vera Baird
12 March 2007	Co-operative Insurance Services	Vera Baird
15 March 2007	Master of the Faculties; The Institute of Trademark Attorneys; The Association of Law Costs Draftsmen; Office of the Legal Services Complaints Commissioner; The Council for Licensed Conveyancers; Consumer Complaints Board; The Bar Standards Board; The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys; The Bar Council; The Solicitors Regulation Authority; The Law Society	Bridget Prentice
19 March 2007	The Coroners Society	Harriet Harman
19 March 2007	Clifford Chance; UK Joint Economic Trade Committee	Baroness Ashton
19 March 2007	Citizens Advice	Vera Baird
20 March 2007	Imkaan	Baroness Ashton
21 March 2007	Parliamentary Education Unit	Bridget Prentice
23 March 2007	Ashiana	Baroness Ashton
26 March 2007	Co-operative Legal Services	Bridget Prentice
26 March 2007	Bristol City College Student Group	Bridget Prentice
26 March 2007	The Guardian	Baroness Ashton
27 March 2007	The Law Society; The Bar Council	Bridget Prentice and Baroness Ashton
27 March 2007	The National Governors’ Association	Baroness Ashton
27 March 2007	NHS Confederation	Baroness Ashton
28 March 2007	Himat	Baroness Ashton
28 March 2007	Interights	Baroness Ashton
28 March 2007	Equal Opportunity Commission; Amnesty; Employers Forum on Age; Employers Forum in Belief; Fawcett Society; Gender Trust; Help the Aged; Men's Aid; Opportunity Now; Runnymede Trust; Women's National Commission	Vera Baird
12 April 2007	Liberty	Baroness Ashton

Departments: Redundancy

Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people in her Department and its predecessor participated in (a) involuntary and (b) voluntary staff exit schemes in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement. [131541]

Ms Harman: The information is as follows:

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(a) There have been no involuntary staff exit schemes since 1997-98.

(b) The number of employees who have taken voluntary early departure since 1997-98 is set out in the following table. These figures are for the period 1 April to 31 March.

	Early Retirement	Early Severance
1997	118	251
1998	24	45
1999	3	0
2000	2	1
2001	0	0
2002	0	0
2003	0	0
2004	3	1
2005	3	1
2006	76	58

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