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28 Jan 2008 : Column 54W—continued
Gaza: Politics and Government
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government have taken to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza. [182928]
Dr. Howells: The Government are committed to helping all Palestinians, including the people of Gaza. In financial year 2007-08 the UK has provided £31 million bilaterally to the Palestinians: £15 million through the UN Relief and Works Agency; £1 million to the International Committee for the Red Cross' work in the west bank and Gaza; and £15 million through the Temporary International Mechanism.
We are deeply concerned by the escalating security and humanitarian situation in Gaza and southern Israel. We deplore the suffering on both sides and urge all parties to exercise restraint. All parties should work for the normal operation of the Gaza crossings.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place between the Government and the Israeli government on the situation in Gaza. [182929]
Dr. Howells: The Government continue to believe that Israeli security and Palestinian suffering and hardship need to be addressed together, and they can only be addressed through mutual recognition, which will be vital to long-term stability in the area.
As my right hon. Friends the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for International Development said on 21 January:
“The recent escalation of violence between Gazans and Israelis is extremely grave”.
Our ambassador in Tel Aviv regularly raises our concerns with the Israeli government about the security and humanitarian situation in Gaza. My right hon. Friends the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for International Development have issued statements about the situation in Gaza on 30 October 2007, 11 January and 21 January 2008.
I made clear the Government's concerns on the situation in Gaza when I met the Israeli ambassador on 17 January.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will also be discussing the situation in Gaza with his European colleagues at the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council on 28 January. He raised our concerns in his conversation on 24 January with the Israeli Foreign Minister.
Holocaust Memorial Day
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department plans to take to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust and more recent genocides on Holocaust Memorial Day. [181378]
Dr. Howells: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Hazel Blears) represented the Government at the UK’s main commemoration event at the London Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool on 27 January along with 1,600 other guests, including Holocaust and genocide survivors, young people from Liverpool, dignitaries and ambassadors. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials in London and around the world also be attended many of the hundreds of events to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.
The Government are deeply committed to promoting Holocaust education and remembrance, and to combating all forms of racism and anti-Semitism. To this end, we strongly support the work of the International Task Force on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research, which works to promote greater knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust across the world.
Kenya: Politics and Government
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the likelihood of the unrest in Kenya developing into civil war; and if he will make a statement. [181750]
Meg Munn: The Government fully condemn all acts of violence in Kenya. While there is widespread tension across Kenya, outbreaks of violence have, for the most part, been limited to parts of Western, Nyanza, and Rift Valley provinces, informal settlements in Nairobi and parts of Mombasa Town. It is important that all Kenya’s leaders come together in a process of dialogue to agree a way forward that respects the democratic will of the Kenyan people and restores Kenya to peace, stability and prosperity.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made an assessment of the merits of establishing an international sanctions regime against the government of Kenya in response to recent civil unrest within Kenya; and if he will make a statement. [181752]
Meg Munn:
The Government are deeply concerned about the post-election crisis in Kenya. This is why we are fully supporting the African Union initiative to
facilitate talks between the political parties. The current focus is on restoring stability through political agreement. The international community has not ruled out any options in seeking to help return Kenya to the path of peace, stability and prosperity.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of (a) whether the recent elections in Kenya were fair and free and (b) reported irregularities during the period of the election; and if he will make a statement. [181751]
Meg Munn: We share the concerns raised by the East Africa Community, Commonwealth election observation reports and the EU preliminary statement about alleged irregularities in the conduct of the Kenyan elections, specifically in the tallying process. These irregularities need to be investigated.
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when his officials last met members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam; and if he will make a statement. [181237]
Dr. Howells: In November 2006, Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials travelled with my right hon. Friend the Member for Torfaen (Mr. Murphy) to meet the then political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
In addition, officials regularly meet community groups, who reflect a variety of views, some supportive of the LTTE’s political position. During a debate in the House on Sri Lanka on 17 January 2008, Official Report, columns 1183-1188, I stressed the importance that we attach to listening to views from across the communities and called on the Sri Lankan diaspora to play a constructive role in bringing peace.
Natural Resources: Armed Conflict
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by what means the Government are supporting the Kimberley Process on conflict diamonds; and what funding the Government are providing to support the continuation of the process. [181730]
Meg Munn: The UK is fully committed to implementing the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. The Government Diamond Office, sits within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and works closely with HM Revenue and Customs, the UK diamond industry and civil society groups to ensure effective implementation of the provisions of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme.
In the past year, an official from the Government Diamond Office has taken part in Kimberley Process review visits to Romania and Bulgaria. A staff member of the Government Diamond Office also formed part of last year’s extraordinary review mission to Ghana, as part of wider efforts to ensure full compliance of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme among all participants in order to eradicate the trade in conflict diamonds.
In 2007, the UK supported the European Union’s chairmanship of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme by funding a non-governmental organisation secondee to provide logistical support to European Commission.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funding the Government are providing to promoting the Extractives Industry Transparency Initiative scheme. [181731]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
The Department for International Development (DFID) has provided to date a total of £6.9 million to support the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) globally.
Sri Lanka
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met members of the Sri Lankan Government; what was discussed; and if he will make a statement. [181235]
Dr. Howells: When my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister in November 2007, at the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Kampala, he reiterated our view that respect for human rights and democracy would help ensure a strong Sri Lanka and that we stood ready to support a process of reconciliation.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans next to meet representatives of the Sri Lankan Government. [181236]
Dr. Howells: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has no current plans to meet representatives of the Sri Lankan Government. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials here and in Colombo remain in regular contact with Sri Lankan Government representatives.
Sri Lanka: Children
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the deployment of child soldiers in Sri Lanka; and if he will make a statement. [181238]
Dr. Howells: The UN Children’s Fund and Radhika Coomaraswamy, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for children and armed conflict, regularly report on the recruitment of child soldiers by both the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and Tamileela Peoples Liberation Tigers (known as the TMVP). We condemn the recruitment of children in violation of international law and praise the continuing efforts of UN agencies under difficult circumstances to combat this appalling practice.
Sri Lanka: Peace Negotiations
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Government’s involvement in the peace process in Sri Lanka. [181234]
Dr. Howells: I refer my right hon. Friend to my statement during the debate on Sri Lanka in the House on 17 January 2008, Official Report, columns 1183-1188.
Williams Draft Dossier
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs further to the decision of the Information Tribunal dated 22 January 2008, when he plans to make public a copy of the Williams draft dossier; and in what format the document will be made available. [182538]
Dr. Howells: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is considering the judgment and the legal options available to it. It would be premature to say anything more at this stage.
If, and when, the document is made available it will be released in the form in which we have it, subject to a very small redaction in the manuscript annotations that the Information Tribunal ordered should be made under section 27 of the Freedom of Information Act.
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs further to the decision of the Information Tribunal dated 22 January 2008, paragraph 22 (iv), which two individuals annotated the Williams draft; and what status these contributions had within the drafting process. [182693]
Dr. Howells: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is currently considering the Information Tribunal's judgment and the legal options available to it. It would not be appropriate to comment on the specifics of the document at this stage.
Duchy of Lancaster
Departmental Manpower
Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many staff within the Cabinet Office work for the Prime Minister's Office, other than those directly employed by that Office. [181304]
Edward Miliband: One of the Cabinet Office's key objectives is ‘Supporting the Prime Minister to define and deliver the Government's objectives'. Details of staff numbers that support this objective are provided in the Cabinet Office Departmental Report 2007 which is published on the Cabinet Office website and is available in the Library of the House.
Wales
Departmental Consultants
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultancy contracts his Department issued in each year since 2005; what the (a) value, (b) purpose and (c) contractor was in each case; and whether the consultant's report is publicly available in each case. [181894]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The only consultancy contract the Wales Office has issued since 2005 was in 2006-07. ER consultants were appointed to conduct staff surveys and provide analysis, facilitation and support for the change management programme.
The total cost of the contract was £37,699.
The various activities did not give rise to a written report.
Departmental Information Officers
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department paid in bonuses to press and communication officers in each of the last 10 years; and what the (a) highest and (b) lowest such bonus was in each of those years. [182710]
Departmental Telephone Services
Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many 0845 or similar cost telephone numbers are used by his Department for public access to services. [181603]
Departmental Travel
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on travel (a) within and (b) outside the UK for officials in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of his Department's overall expenditure was spent on such travel in each such year. [181632]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The information requested can be provided only at a disproportionate cost for the years 1999 to 2003-04.
Travel within UK totalled £81,599.75
Travel outside UK totalled £18,238.
This accounts for 3 per cent. of the total expenditure for that year.
Travel within UK totalled £123,754.69.
Travel outside UK totalled £546.
This accounts for 3 per cent. of the total expenditure for that year.
Travel within UK totalled £79,435.23.
Travel outside UK totalled £8,416.
This accounts for 2 per cent. of the total expenditure for that year.
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