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1 July 2008 : Column 780W—continued
Waste Management: Finance
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding was allocated to each county council in England for recycling and sustainable waste management in each year since 1979. [209673]
Joan Ruddock: The main source of funding for local authorities’ waste management services is Formula Grant allocated by central Government. It is for local authorities to decide what proportion of their funding to invest in waste management services, including recycling. Other funding allocated to authorities in England for waste management since 1997 is shown in the following table:
| Funding provided (million) | ||||||||||
| Scheme | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |||
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Burma: Foreign Investment
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Mid-Norfolk, (Mr. Simpson) of 26 February 2008, Official Report, column 1364W, on investment in Burma, what progress has been made in discussions between the UK and EU partners on restrictive measures against Burmese companies as agreed at the October 2007 General Affairs and External Relations Council; whether a full prohibition on new investment in enterprises in Burma engaged in the logging, timber and mining of metals and minerals industries is under consideration; and what assessment he has made of the effect of Cyclone Nargis on discussions on restrictive measures at EU level. [214421]
Meg Munn: In November 2007 EU partners agreed a prohibition on new investment in enterprises engaged in logging, timber, mining of metals and minerals, precious or semi-precious stones as well as related technical and financial assistance. This came into force with the publication of EC Regulation 194/2008 on 10 March 2008.
The EU General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) conclusions agreed to consider further financial measures at the April GAERC in 2008. The European Commission is working on an options paper. A review of two annexes to the current common position, listing companies targeted by the EU measures, is due for completion in July.
Cyclone Nargis struck Burma after the new common position was agreed. The financial and other measures set out in the common position target the regime's leaders and those who benefit from its policies, rather than the ordinary Burmese people. Any future financial measures would be designed to meet the same objective. The common position also restricts the scope and means of delivery of non-humanitarian aid or development programmes, but these restrictions do not apply to humanitarian aid—such as that provided in the wake of Cyclone Nargis.
Republic of Ireland: Lisbon Treaty
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on pursuing the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty following the result of the referendum in the Republic of Ireland. [213230]
Mr. Jim Murphy: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made a statement to the House on this issue on 23 June.
All 27 member states must ratify the Lisbon Treaty before it can enter into force. In the UK, the EU (Amendment) Bill received Royal Assent on 19 June.
Article 6 of the Lisbon Treaty provides that:
“This Treaty shall be ratified by the High Contracting Parties in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Government of the Italian Republic”.
Ratification is the process by which the UK indicates its consent to be bound by a treaty under international
law. The procedure for ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon on behalf of the UK is the same as that for previous EU amending treaties. An instrument of ratification is drafted and submitted for the signature of Her Majesty The Queen. This is then sealed and bound and forwarded to our embassy in Rome for delivery to the Italian Government as depositary.
The administrative arrangements for ratification of the Lisbon Treaty were initiated following the granting of the Royal Assent to the EU (Amendment) Bill on 19 June 2008. The completion of these arrangements normally takes a number of weeks.
Somalia: Politics and Government
Mr. MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the political situation in Somalia. [215025]
Dr. Howells [holding answer 30 June 2008]: We are pleased that the UN sponsored talks in Djibouti resulted in the initialling of a peace agreement between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Alliance for Re-Liberation of Somalia on 9 June 2008. This is a positive step and we look forward to all parties formally signing soon and fulfilling their commitment to cease armed confrontation. We continue to work closely with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould Abdalla, to encourage and support the TFG in reaching out to all groups which reject violence and to pursue increased inclusiveness in government and a process of national reconciliation.
Television
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on (a) commissioning and (b) funding the production of television programmes (i) in each of the last three years and (ii) in 2008-09 to date; what programmes these were; and which companies made them. [213832]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 25 June 2008]: This information is not held centrally. To provide an answer would incur a disproportionate cost.
Treaty of Lisbon
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by what mechanism the UK would ratify the Treaty of Lisbon; and whether such ratification is revocable prior to the Treaty coming into effect. [212909]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Article 6 of the Lisbon Treaty provides that:
“This Treaty shall be ratified by the High Contracting Parties in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Government of the Italian Republic”.
Ratification is the process by which the UK indicates its consent to be bound by a treaty under international law. The procedure for ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon on behalf of the UK is the same as that for previous EU amending treaties. An instrument of ratification is drafted and submitted for the signature of
Her Majesty The Queen. This is then sealed and bound and forwarded to our embassy in Rome for delivery to the Italian Government as depositary.
The administrative arrangements for ratification of the Lisbon Treaty were initiated following the granting of the Royal Assent to the EU (Amendment) Bill on 19 June 2008. The completion of these arrangements normally takes a number of weeks.
Mr. Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to ratify the Treaty of Lisbon; what the procedure for ratification is; and when UK ratification will come into effect. [213818]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 25 June 2008]: Article 6 of the Lisbon treaty provides that:
“This Treaty shall be ratified by the High Contracting Parties in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Government of the Italian Republic”.
Ratification is the process by which the UK indicates its consent to be bound by a treaty under international law. The procedure for ratification of the treaty of Lisbon on behalf of the UK is the same as that for previous EU amending treaties. An instrument of ratification is drafted and submitted for the signature of Her Majesty the Queen. This is then sealed and bound and forwarded to our embassy in Rome for delivery to the Italian Government as depositary.
The administrative arrangements for ratification of the Lisbon treaty were initiated following the granting of the Royal Assent to the EU (Amendment) Bill on 19 June. The completion of these arrangements normally takes a number of weeks.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the instruments of ratification required under Article 6 of the Treaty of Lisbon are; when the Government plans to deposit the instruments of ratification with the depositary in Rome; and if he will make a statement. [213841]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 25 June 2008]: Article 6 of the Lisbon treaty provides that:
“This Treaty shall be ratified by the High Contracting Parties in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Government of the Italian Republic”.
Ratification is the process by which the UK indicates its consent to be bound by a treaty under international law. The procedure for ratification of the treaty of Lisbon on behalf of the UK is the same as that for previous EU amending treaties. An instrument of ratification is drafted and submitted for the signature of Her Majesty the Queen. This is then sealed and bound and forwarded to our embassy in Rome for delivery to the Italian Government as depositary.
The administrative arrangements for ratification of the Lisbon Treaty were initiated following the granting of the Royal Assent to the EU (Amendment) Bill on 19 June. The completion of these arrangements normally takes a number of weeks.
Communities and Local Government
Regeneration
8. Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she plans to change the procedures for making decisions on regeneration. [214842]
Mr. Dhanda: Officials are finalising proposals for a regeneration framework which we expect to publish in the summer.
9. Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps her Department is taking to promote community aspirations through regeneration. [214843]
Hazel Blears: Through programmes New Deal for Communities and Neighbourhood Management we have put residents and their aspirations at the heart of regeneration and local delivery—and in March we announced how we would build on our commitment to this agenda through our plans for a new Empowerment White Paper.
Local Area Agreement: Barnsley and Doncaster
10. Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made in local area agreement negotiations in Barnsley and Doncaster. [214844]
Hazel Blears: I am delighted to confirm the successful conclusion of Local Area Agreement negotiations. This represents a landmark in the relationship between the Government and our local partners.
In Barnsley and Doncaster, we have worked closely with local partners to agree ambitious LAAs which focus on tackling deprivation, reducing health inequalities and improving the prospects of children and young people.
Community Cohesion Strategy
11. Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what support she is giving to Christian faith groups as part of her community cohesion strategy. [214845]
Mr. Dhanda: The Government recognise and welcome the great contribution people who are motivated by faith make to their local communities and their contribution to building cohesion. Our new inter faith strategy to be published in July will set out further our commitments on this important agenda.
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