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27 Feb 2008 : Column 1698W—continued
Beverley Hughes: The Government do not collect specific information on youth and community facilities as responsibility for these rests with local authorities.
However, Government are committed to investing in facilities for young people. ‘Aiming high for young people: a ten year strategy for positive activities’, which was published in July 2006, announced the launch of a new programme of capital investment based on the reinvestment of unclaimed assets from dormant bank accounts and £60 million of new DCSF funding. Our ambition is that this will lead to new and improved youth facilities in every constituency over the next 10 years.
The Children's Plan subsequently announced a further £160 million of DCSF investment over the next two years to support this ambition.
In addition a total of £115 million over two years (2006-08) has been made available through the Youth Opportunity Fund (YOF) and the Youth Capital Fund (YCF), to fund activities and improve facilities for young people in their neighbourhood. The two funds which are designed to work in tandem and are spent at young people's discretion are allocated through local authorities. The YCF can be used to provide new or improving existing facilities and equipment. This investment will continue over the next three years up to 2011.
Lancashire local authority has a combined YOF/YCF allocation of £1,226,929 (YOF £657,899/YCF £569,030).
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Aceh: Earthquakes
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the earthquake in Indonesia’s western province of Aceh. [189608]
Meg Munn: Indonesia sits along a volatile seismic strip called the ‘Ring of Fire’ in the Pacific. The possibility of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis is ever present. An earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale struck undersea near Aceh Province on 20 February. The community which recorded the strongest tremor is reported to be Meulaboh, Aceh. Five people were killed, 52 seriously injured and many buildings were damaged. Our embassy in Jakarta continues to monitor the situation, but reports no British casualties.
In addition, a further earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale struck off the Indonesian island of Sumatra on 25 February. The Indonesian authorities report that there does not appear to be any visible damage. In both cases, tsunami warnings were issued but later lifted. Again, our embassy in Jakarta continues to monitor the situation.
British Indian Ocean Territory: Diego Garcia
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British Indian Ocean Territory officials are based in Diego Garcia; what access they have to US military commanders; and to whom they report. [189825]
Meg Munn: Commander British Forces (CBF) British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) is the UK authority on Diego Garcia, leading a team of currently 42 military personnel. CBF BIOT is responsible for the conduct of UK civil and military activity reporting to the BIOT Commissioner in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and to the Chief of Joint Operations at Northwood, respectively. CBF has daily and routine access to the United States Commanding Officer on Diego Garcia.
Climate Change: Finance
Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the levels of additional climate change mitigation expenditure made by other countries to date intended to meet the target of one per cent of global gross domestic product recommended by the Stern Review. [188294]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is pursuing an extensive programme of engagement with the UK’s international partners to build the necessary political will to reduce global carbon emissions levels and secure the commitment of Governments in key countries to ensuring that high quality climate change mitigation work is undertaken.
Departmental Property
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what property has been lost or stolen from his Department since 1997; and what the cost of replacement was. [187463]
Meg Munn: This information is not held centrally. To compile it would be disproportionately costly.
Departmental Translation Services
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of his Department's translation and interpreting work is outsourced through framework agreements with commercial providers; and if he will make a statement. [189193]
Mr. Jim Murphy: None of the translation work undertaken by the Translation and Interpreting Unit, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Services is outsourced through a framework agreement.
Translation work which cannot be handled by our in-house team of translators is outsourced to a panel of individual freelance translators with whom the FCO has had a long and successful working relationship.
Decisions on outsourcing translation assignments are based on a combination of quality and price, therefore ensuring value for money.
Departmental Travel
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 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. [181523]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The amount spent by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on UK and overseas travel in each of the last 10 years is provided in the following table.
| Overseas travel | UK travel | |||
| Financial year | Spend (£ million) | Percentage of total( 1) | Spend (£ million) | Percentage of total( 1) |
| (1) The Department’s first audited resource accounts were published in 1999-2000 and so no percentage figure is given for earlier years. | ||||
The expenditure is shown as a percentage of the Department's net resource outturn, as given in the departmental resource accounts published for each year.
The figures include the costs of duty travel, for officials based in the UK and overseas, and the costs of travel for UK based staff and their families on their arrival at and departure from post, as well as leave journeys undertaken whilst at post.
The recent increase in expenditure can be attributed in part to the increased number of staff based in posts in Iraq and Afghanistan, where the costs of travel out of the country are high. Another contributory factor is that some travel payments which were formerly paid as allowances to staff are now paid from the travel budget. It is not possible to provide further detail without incurring disproportionate cost.
Diego Garcia: Military Bases
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has received from the Government of Mauritius on (a) the use of Diego Garcia and (b) the future military use of the Chagos Islands. [189820]
Meg Munn: The Prime Minister of Mauritius, Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, last raised the issue of sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory with my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in the margins of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Kampala in November 2007. The Government have no doubt about their sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory, but my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister agreed to establish a dialogue between the Mauritian high commission in London and officials at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on issues relating to the British Indian Ocean Territory.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions (a) his Department and (b) British Indian Ocean Territory officials have had with the US on the future military use of Diego Garcia and the Chagos archipelago. [189821]
Meg Munn: Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, including the British Indian Ocean Territory Commissioner and Administrator, and the Ministry of Defence hold annual talks with their United States counter-parts to discuss issues surrounding Diego Garcia and the outer islands. Officials also have regular contact with the United States on an ad hoc basis as needed.
Diego Garcia: Rendition
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when his US counterparts first told him of the use of Diego Garcia for rendition flights; and what steps he took in response. [189822]
Dr. Howells: As set out in my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary's statement to the House on 21 February 2008, Official Report, columns 547-48, UK officials were informed of this development on 15 February. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has asked officials to compile a list of all the flights where we have been alerted to concerns regarding rendition through the UK or our Overseas Territories. Once this is ready we will be sending this list to the US and seeking their specific assurance that none of these flights were used for rendition purposes. He has also asked officials to continue to work through, with their US counterparts, the details and implications of this information.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which (a) individuals and (b) organisations have expressed concern to his Department at the use of Diego Garcia for rendition flights since 2002; what steps he took in response to their comments; and what responses were provided. [189823]
Dr. Howells: As set out in my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary's Statement to the House on 21 February, Official Report, columns 547-548, he has asked officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to compile a list of all the flights where we have been alerted to concerns regarding rendition through the UK or our overseas territories. In this context we will be reviewing correspondence to Ministers on these issues, including from hon. Members, non-governmental organisations and members of the public. In responding to such concerns in the past, the FCO has made reference to explicit assurances by the US that detainees had not been and would not be held or transported via Diego Garcia.
Diplomatic Service: Official Cars
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give guidance to UK consulates on the procurement of UK-built cars for ambassadors and staff. [189606]
Meg Munn:
The procurement of vehicles for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is based on achieving value for money, normally by competition and in a manner that conforms with appropriate UK regulations and EU directives. Within that approach,
we prefer British missions abroad to buy British cars for heads of posts, where they are readily available and represent value for money.
Currently, the FCO's preferred suppliers for vehicles, used by its heads of posts, are Jaguar for saloon cars and Land or Range Rover where four wheel drive capability is essential. This arrangement is supported by central contracts with those companies, which have been negotiated against strict value for money criteria. Posts which consider that there are overriding reasons on either value for money, security or maintenance grounds not to purchase flag cars manufactured by our preferred suppliers must submit a detailed case for ministerial approval.
Pool cars for day to day operational use by staff at posts are sourced locally on the basis of value for money taking into account the full cost of ownership, including local maintenance and spares issues.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a list of cars used by UK ambassadors and staff; and how many of the cars were built in the UK. [189607]
Meg Munn: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in the UK operates 20 cars, these are used by FCO Services staff in both the Hanslope Park fleet operations area and by London car service/London external messengers operating from King Charles street, details are as follows:
12 Fords manufactured in Portugal;
1 Rover manufactured in the UK;
1 Toyota manufactured in the UK; and
6 Vauxhalls manufactured in Germany and Spain.
Since the acquisition of vehicles in the overseas fleet is the responsibility of the individual posts, and detailed records are not held centrally, it would incur disproportionate cost to collate the information requested by my hon. Friend. We are, however, aware of 381 Land Rovers operated by FCO posts overseas, and all of these vehicles have been manufactured in the UK.
Electronic Surveillance
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what national and international bodies based in the UK are authorised to conduct covert electronic surveillance of UK residents. [188213]
David Miliband: The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) sets out those public bodies that can be authorised to undertake covert surveillance activity covered by that Act. Schedule 1 to RIPA, as amended, lists all bodies who can apply for direct surveillance.
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