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13 Jan 2009 : Column 585W—continued
Bosnia: Overseas Aid
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid his Department has given to Bosnia and Herzegovina in each year since 1997; and how it has been used. [244538]
Mr. Michael Foster: Details on the Department for International Development’s (DFID) bilateral expenditure and imputed share of multilateral official development assistance (ODA) in Bosnia-Herzegovina since 1997-98 are in the following table.
| DFID expenditure on development in Bosnia-Herzegovina, 1997-98 to 2007-08 | ||
| £000 | ||
| Total DFID bilateral expenditure | Imputed DFID share of multilateral ODA | |
DFID’s aid has been focused on socio-economic development, supporting activities under the UK Government through the global conflict prevention pool (GCPP) and de-mining activities.
Key programme objectives are to strengthen the capacity of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Government in their path towards EU integration. We specifically support:
the development of an aid co-ordination mechanism;
the development of Country Development Strategy processes;
strengthening the budgetary process;
public administration reform;
economic, fiscal and social policy reform, including social insurance policy;
support to the national justice sector reform strategy;
strengthening Government statistical systems;
the business enabling environment, and
good donor practices.
Departmental Data Protection
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many contracts his Department has which allow contractors to store personal data of UK citizens overseas; for which contracts this applies; in which countries the data for each contract is held; and how many people have their data stored overseas in the case of each such contract. [245336]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development does not have any contracts with IT suppliers that allow them to store the personal data of UK citizens overseas.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when his Department appointed a senior information risk owner in accordance with the report, Data Handling Procedures in Government and the accompanying document Cross-departmental Actions: Mandatory Minimum Action; when the appointment was made; and what grade the person holds within the Department. [245366]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development has had a senior information risk owner since the role was introduced in 2004. There were no changes to the role as a result of the introduction of the Data Handling Procedures in June 2008. The individual currently holding the role is a director in the senior civil service.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of the IT systems in his Department is fully accredited to the Government's security standards. [245376]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: To date 81 per cent. of the Department for International Development's IT Systems are fully accredited to the Government's security standards. A project is under way to review and accredit the remaining 19 per cent. of IT systems and this is scheduled to finish in March 2009.
Departmental Furniture
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was spent by his Department on furniture made by (a) British firms, (b) Remploy and (c) overseas firms in each year since 2000. [244350]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not record details of the nationality of firms providing furniture, and such information cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost. DFID has not procured any furniture from Remploy.
All expenditure is incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Departmental ICT
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what information technology projects initiated by his Department have been cancelled prior to completion in the last five years; and what the cost of each such project was to the public purse. [240383]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development cancelled an internal information technology project run by DFID Pakistan in September 2008. The project had spent £7,000 at the point of cancellation.
Guyana: Rain Forests
Mr. Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to assist in preservation of rainforest in Guyana. [244488]
Mr. Michael Foster: Following a visit to the UK by President Jagdeo earlier this year, DFID committed £100,000 towards work by Guyana to develop a low-carbon investment prospectus and implementation plan. This includes an assessment of the cost of conserving Guyana’s rainforests. Guyana has also secured funding under the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Fund, to which the UK has contributed £15 million, to prepare a Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation Readiness Plan. Guyana is included in the Caribbean Regional Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. In addition, we have undertaken to discuss with Guyana the results of the Eliasch Review into climate change and the financing of forests.
DFID officials will meet this month with Guyanese counterparts to discuss the creation of incentives to avoid deforestation.
International Assistance
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department plans to contribute to the International Fund for Agricultural Development in the next three years. [244165]
Mr. Michael Foster: Planned contributions to the International Fund for Agricultural Development in the next three years are made up of overlapping contributions to the 6(th), 7(th) and 8(th) Replenishments:
| £ | |||
| Replenishment | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
North Korea: Overseas Aid
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid the Government have provided to North Korea in each of the last 10 years; how much is planned to be provided; and what the (a) purpose and (b) nature of this aid is. [244495]
Mr. Michael Foster: Details on the UK's bilateral expenditure and imputed share of multilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) in North Korea over the last 10 years are in the following table.
| UK gross public expenditure on development to North Korea, 1998-99 to 2007-08 | ||
| £000 | ||
| UK bilateral assistance | Imputed UK share of multilateral ODA | |
Of the UK's bilateral assistance, £83,000 in 2000-01, £42,000 in 2001-02 and £30,000 in 2007-08 was provided in support of English language training. In 2007-08, £53,000 was provided to support economic and development planning. All other UK bilateral expenditure was provided as humanitarian assistance.
There are currently no plans for DFID to start a bilateral programme in North Korea.
Overseas Aid: Wildlife Conservation
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what programmes exist in the British Indian Ocean Territories to promote biodiversity and conservation. [245418]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Overseas Territories Environment Programme, jointly funded by the Department for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, supports biodiversity conservation in UK Overseas Territories. To date seven projects have been funded in the British Indian Ocean Territory, of which two are being funded in the current financial year. These are:
(i) Royal Navy Birdwatching Society: monitoring of seabird populations at key sites to assess the impact of rodent eradication efforts;
(ii) Chagos Conservation Trust: publication of a public information note on the global environmental importance of the Chagos archipelago and ways in which visitors can help protect the unique environment. The information note is intended for distribution to visiting military and civilian personnel.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture: Animal Welfare
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether it is his Department's policy to seek to reduce the financial support for intensive livestock production methods. [244680]
Jane Kennedy: It has long been the case that the intensive livestock production sectors such as the pig, poultry and egg industries have been unsupported by direct EU subsidies. The legal basis for intervention in the pigmeat sector was removed in the recent CAP Healthcheck agreement in Brussels, a measure which the UK supported.
Bees
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2008, Official Report, column 123W, on insects, if he will publish the assessment his Department has made of recent trends in the populations of wild bees. [246596]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Trends in the distributions of wild bee populations were published in the 'Provisional Atlas of the Aculeate Hymenoptera of Britain and Ireland' by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee are currently collating and analysing data on population trends for all UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority species including bees. This information will be available in the spring.
Cardiff-Weston Barrage
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the costs of flood protection and alterations to sewage disposal facilities required as a result of the construction of (a) Cardiff-Weston barrage and (b) a Shoots barrage. [244501]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Government-led Severn Tidal Power Feasibility Study is considering the opportunities to generate power from the tidal range of the Severn Estuary.
The first phase of the study has concentrated on identifying the issues associated with the 10 possible projects under consideration. As such, no estimates have been made to date of costs of each of the options in respect of flood protection or sewage treatment. If the study should continue into Phase 2, more detailed assessments of possible impacts and costs of each of the short listed options will take place.
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