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11 Jun 2007 : Column 840W—continued
DEFRA does not hold specific figures for the amount of waste that is aerobically or anaerobically digested. However, a report from the Composting Association estimated that less than 1 per cent. of total waste was composted at centralised sites using anaerobic digestion. This estimate is based on a sample of compost producers which responded to the Composting Association survey.
Agricultural waste was not classified as controlled waste until the Waste Management (England and Wales) Regulations 2006 came into force on 15 May 2006, so no figures are available for management of agricultural organic waste. The Composting Association report(2) estimates that on-farm composting grew by 40 per cent. from 2003-04, from 0.25 million tonnes (Mt) to 0.35 Mt, but on-farm processing still represented just 13 per cent. of the overall organic waste processed in 2004-05.
(1 )Municipal Waste Statistics
(2 )‘The State of Composting and Biological Waste Treatment in the UK, 2004-05’
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the Department for Communities and Local Government on the implementation of joint waste authorities; and what estimate he has made of the number of local authorities likely to adopt such schemes. [140804]
Mr. Bradshaw: My officials and I have held a number of discussions with our counterparts in the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) on proposals to allow local authorities to work together to deliver waste services, through the establishment of statutory joint waste authorities.
The Secretary of State for the Department for Communities and Local Government (Ruth Kelly) announced the Government’s intention to introduce these powers in the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill on the 22 January.
No estimate has been made by my Department on the number of local authorities likely to apply to create a joint waste authority.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Aung San Suu Kyi
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking in response to the ongoing imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi. [140979]
Mr. Hoon: We have repeatedly condemned the continuing detention of Aung San Suu Kyi. My right. hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 26 May condemning the Burmese government's decision to extend Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest by a further year and called for her release and that of all other political prisoners in Burma. The EU also released a similar statement on 25 May.
On 28 May, my right hon. Friend the Minister for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs, (Mr. McCartney), met the Burmese Foreign Minister at the Asia/Europe Foreign Ministers meeting in Hamburg and called again for the Burmese government to release Aung San Suu Kyi.
With the UN and other key partners, we will continue to press for an open and inclusive political process in Burma, and an improvement in the human rights situation. The release of Aung San Suu Kyi is central to both objectives.
Chagos Islands
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further action the Government plans to take in relation to (a) compensation and (b) repatriation for the Chagos Islanders; and if she will make a statement. [141056]
Mr. Hoon: The Chagossians have already received compensation to the value of £14.5 million at today’s prices through two payments made in the early 1970s and 1982. They were also given the right to apply for British citizenship by the British Overseas Territories Act 2002.
In 2004, the Court of Appeal, following a two year litigation, confirmed the decision of Mr. Justice Ouseley in rejecting all claims by the Chagos Islanders to additional compensation from the Government.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will consider the 23 May judgment of the Court of Appeal
carefully. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary reserves the right to petition the House of Lords to grant permission to appeal, as she is entitled to do within one month. The Government’s policy in relation to the British Indian Ocean Territory therefore remains the subject of possible ongoing legal proceedings and it would be inappropriate to comment further.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government’s policy is on the return of the Chagossians to the Chagos Islands following the Court of Appeal ruling that the orders in council preventing them from returning were unlawful. [142051]
Mr. Hoon: The Court of Appeal handed down its judgment on the 2004 Orders in Council on 23 May. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will consider it carefully and reserves the right to petition the House of Lords to grant permission to appeal, as she is entitled to do within one month.
The Government’s policy in relation to the British Indian Ocean Territory therefore remains the subject of possible ongoing legal proceedings and it would be inappropriate to comment further.
Chechnya
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the situation in Chechnya; and if she will make a statement. [138244]
Mr. Hoon: We monitor the situation in Chechnya and the wider north Caucasus regularly. Recent years have seen a gradual improvement in the security situation in Chechnya, resulting in the UN downgrading its security classification for Chechnya from Phase 5 to Phase 4 in August 2006. But the security situation in neighbouring Ingushetia and Dagestan is increasingly concerning.
The death of Shamil Basayev in 2006 was followed by an amnesty under which over 500 rebel fighters were reported to have surrendered, creating the opportunity for a process of reconciliation that could underpin long-term security. Although the general security trend is positive and large-scale military action by federal troops has now ceased, low-intensity clashes with separatist groups continue to be reported.
We believe that the best prospect for political stability in the republic is for the federal and local authorities to work together towards democratic accountability of government structures and to address the social and economic needs of the population.
We remain concerned about reports of human rights abuses in the north Caucasus. There are reports of forced disappearances, torture and extra-judicial killing in the republic. We believe that security measures which do not respect international human rights law are counter-productive and that a long-term solution to the region's problems is only possible once an end has been put to human rights violations. It is important that President Kadyrov ensures that all government agencies operate within the law and that all security measures are combined with a full respect for human rights.
The situation in Chechnya and the wider north Caucasus remains an issue of importance in our continuing bilateral and EU discussions with Russia. With EU partners, we raised the latest developments in Chechnya with the Russian government at the EU-Russia Human Rights Consultations on 3 May.
The Government are also active in assisting development in the north Caucasus through individual projects supported by the global conflict prevention pool, our bilateral £1 million north Caucasus education initiative, and the €20 million technical aid to the Commonwealth of independent states special assistance programme, which was agreed under the UK's EU presidency in 2005.
Departments: Ministerial Advisers
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many of her Department's special advisers were on (a) paid and (b) unpaid leave in order to assist with party political matters under section 22 (iii) of the code of conduct for special advisers on 16 May 2007; and how many days' leave each adviser was granted. [140125]
Margaret Beckett: Special advisers' involvement in party political matters is conducted in accordance with the requirements of the code of conduct for special advisers, including section 22 (iii), and the guidance issued by the Cabinet Secretary in December 2006 and May 2007, copies of which are in the Libraries of the House.
Ethiopia: Political Prisoners
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further steps she has taken since October 2006 to secure the release of Kifle Tigneh Abate and other opposition political leaders being detained by the Ethiopian government; and if she will make a statement. [140922]
Mr. Hoon: We continue to make representations to the Government of Ethiopia to ensure that the continuing trials of all opposition political leaders, including Kifle Abate, are swift, transparent and fair, and that their individual human rights are respected.
On 11 December 2006 our Ambassador in Addis Ababa raised the case with the Ethiopian Minister and State Minister for Justice. On 3 January and 26 May he met Kifle Abate’s wife to discuss his ongoing trial.
Our Ambassador in Addis Ababa has raised the opposition trials with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi on several occasions, most recently on 11 May.
Embassy officials in Addis Ababa continue to monitor Kifle Abate’s trial. At the last hearing on 14 May, the judges dismissed the charge of attempted genocide against him and released 14 of his 32 co-defendants. The court will reconvene on 19 October to consider the charge of “outrage against the constitutional order”.
EU Constitution Treaty
Mr. Bone:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions
she has had on the EU constitutional arrangement; and if she will make a statement. [141475]
Mr. Hoon: EU institutional reform will be discussed at the European Council on 21-22 June. We expect the presidency to issue a report on its consultations with member states before the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council on 18 June.
We have made clear to partners our belief that the EU should return to the model of an amending Treaty. The principles behind the Government’s approach remain those set out in my written ministerial statement of 5 December 2006, Official Report, columns 10-11WS.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Department's policy is on transferring additional powers to the European Union as part of any new constitutional treaty; and if she will make a statement. [141933]
Mr. Hoon: EU institutional reform will be discussed at the European Council on 21-22 June. We expect the presidency to issue a report on its consultations with member states before the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council on 18 June.
We have made clear to partners our belief that the EU should return to the model of an amending treaty. The principles behind the Government's approach remain those set out in my written ministerial statement of 5 December 2006, Official Report, columns 10-11WS.
Foreigners: Crimes of Violence
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what account is taken of past convictions for violent crimes when considering whether to issue visas to foreign nationals. [141362]
Dr. Howells: In accordance with paragraph 320(18) of the Immigration Rules, an Entry Clearance Officer will normally refuse an entry clearance application if the applicant has been convicted of an offence in any country, which, if committed in the UK, would be punishable by imprisonment of 12 months or more.
Iran: Afghanistan
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received of Iran’s decision to expel illegal Afghan migrants; and what steps she plans to take in response in Afghanistan. [140156]
Dr. Howells: We have received a number of reports from our embassies in Tehran and Kabul about the expulsion of illegal Afghan immigrants from Iran. The Iranian Government estimates that there are about 1 million unregistered Afghans in Iran who do not have refugee status and it has made it clear that it intends to expel them. Iran is also host to 1 million documented Afghan refugees.
In mid April the Iranian authorities launched a repatriation campaign for these illegal refugees, focusing particularly on moving them out of Iranian
Sistan-Baluchistan (with the movement of 3,000 refugees from Iran into the Afghan province of Nimroz in the first month of the campaign).
Against a backdrop of public and parliamentary disquiet the Government of Afghanistan is looking at ways to manage the situation. It has convened its National Emergency Response Commission, with the Refugee Ministry in the lead. The Afghan Foreign Ministry is in discussions with Iran to ensure better procedures to deal with the return of Afghan nationals.
We remain in touch with the Government of Afghanistan and office of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees on this issue.
Iran: Nuclear Programme
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what International Atomic Energy Agency supervision the Iranian Government would be required to accept in order for the UK Government to be satisfied that uranium enrichment in Iran would be confined to entirely peaceful purposes; and if she will make a statement. [139826]
Dr. Howells: After many years of hiding its nuclear programme from the world, Iran needs to satisfy the international community, and not just the UK, that its programme is for purely peaceful reasons. The generous and far-reaching proposals presented to Iran on behalf of the E3+3 (France, Germany, UK + China, Russia, US) by Dr. Javier Solana in June 2006 would give Iran everything it needs to develop a modern civil nuclear power programme. These remain on the table and we stand ready to negotiate with Iran on the basis of these. But Iran first needs to suspend its enrichment-related activities, as repeatedly required by the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors, to gain the confidence of the international community.
We will not be satisfied that Iran’s nuclear programme is for entirely peaceful purposes until Iran meets in full the requirements of the international community. These include Iran’s obligations under UN Security Council Resolutions 1696, 1737 and 1747, as well as the requirements under IAEA Board of Governors decisions and resolutions. In particular, as the Director-General of the IAEA has stated many times, unless Iran addresses the long outstanding verification issues, and implements the Additional Protocol which it has agreed with the agency, as well as essential transparency measures, the IAEA will not be able to fully reconstruct the history of Iran’s nuclear programme and provide the international community with assurances about the exclusively peaceful nature of that programme. The Director-General has also stated that these required transparency measures would need to go further than the measures prescribed in the Safeguards Agreement and Additional Protocol, given the 20 years of undeclared nuclear activities in Iran. In the Director-General’s most recent report on Iran on 23 May, he noted that the agency’s level of knowledge of certain aspects of Iran’s nuclear related activities had deteriorated over the past year.
Mr. Jenkin:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response she has
made to proposals for (a) further incentives for Iran to suspend Iranian enrichment and (b) a further round of sanctions against the Iranian regime; and if she will make a statement. [140157]
Mr. Hoon: The report by the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Dr. ElBaradei, of 23 May made clear that Iran had not complied with UN Security Council Resolution 1747. As envisaged in the resolution, the Security Council will respond accordingly and will adopt further sanctions on Iran. We remain committed to the twin-track approach and stand ready to enter negotiations with Iran, once they comply with the Security Council Resolutions and the IAEA Board of Governors, on the basis of the generous and far-reaching proposals presented to Iran by Javier Solana in June 2006 on behalf of the E3+3 (France, Germany, UK + China, Russia, US).
Iraq: Foreign Relations
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in setting up co-operation programmes between Iraq and its neighbours on (a) border security, (b) energy and (c) refugees. [140376]
Margaret Beckett: Following agreement at the Iraq Neighbours Conference on 4 May, we understand that the Government of Iraq plans to hold the first meetings of the working groups on energy, security and refugees between 5-15 June.
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