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18 May 2009 : Column 1148W—continued
Departmental Work Experience
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many work placements his Department offered to (a) school pupils, (b) university students and (c) graduates in each of the last five years. [274485]
Gillian Merron: Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Human Resources Directorate offered the following numbers of work placements:
| Number | |||
| School Pupils | University Students | Graduates | |
These figures do not include ad-hoc placements organised by individual directorates.
To collect this information would incur disproportionate cost.
Our records before 2006 are incomplete and as a result we do not hold information on the educational status of individuals to whom we offered work placements in 2005 and 2004. From 1999 to 2008, FCO Services, a trading fund of the FCO, participated in the Equal Choices Schools Initiative programme. They take 16 children annually from ethnic minority backgrounds, who spend two days gaining an insight into their work.
All individuals undertaking work experience at FCO Services were in full-time education.
France
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had on international security with the French government. [276060]
Caroline Flint: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has regular in-depth discussions with the French Government on international security issues. Most recently, at the General Affairs and External Relations Council of the European Union on 18 May 2009, he had a wide-ranging discussion with French and other European counterparts.
G20: Greater London
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who he expects to participate in the G20 summit in London in March 2009; what gifts each participant will receive; what the cost of each such gift is; how much is being spent on (a) catering and (b) catering facilities; if he will place in the Library a copy of the menu for each official dinner during the summit; how much is being spent per person at each dinner; and if he will make a statement. [268581]
Gillian Merron: All of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's counterparts who were invited participated in the G20 summit in London on 2 April 2009. These were as follows:
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, President, Argentina
Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister, Australia
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President, Brazil
Stephen Harper, Prime Minister, Canada
Hu Jintao, President, China
Nicolas Sarkozy, President, France
Angela Merkel, Chancellor, Germany
Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister, India
Susilo Bambang, President, Indonesia
Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister, Italy
Taro Aso, Prime Minister, Japan
Lee Myung-Bak, President, Republic of Korea
Felipe Calderón, President, Mexico
Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister, The Netherlands
Dmitry Medvedev, President, Russia
HRH King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud, Saudi Arabia
Kgalema Motlanthe, President, South Africa
José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister, Spain
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister, Turkey
Barack Obama, President, United States of America
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand, Chair of ASEAN
Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek of the Czech Republic, EU Presidency
José Manual Barroso, President, European Commission
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, Chair of NEPAD
Mario Draghi, Head of Financial Stability Forum
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Managing Director, IMF
Yousseff Boutros-Ghali, Chair of IMFC
Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General
Robert B. Zoellick, President, World Bank Group
Pascal Lammy, Director General, World Trade Organisation.
Gifts were only given to heads of delegations and their spouses. These were hampers of British products. The total amount spent for all gifts was £3,566.23.
At present we are unable to provide a final figure for the costs of the catering for the summit, but hope to be able to publish those figures in the coming weeks along with the total costs of the London summit.
Copies of the menus for each official dinner will be placed in the Library of the House.
Germany
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had on international security with the German Government. [276059]
Caroline Flint: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has regular in-depth discussions with the German Government on international security issues. Most recently, at the General Affairs and External Relations Council of the European Union on 18 May 2009, he had a wide-ranging discussion with German and other European counterparts.
Israel: Anniversaries
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to what events held in Israel to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of Tel Aviv HM Ambassador to Israel he has been invited; what such invitations the Ambassador has (a) accepted and (b) declined; and if he will make a statement. [275616]
Bill Rammell: Our ambassador has received several invitations to attend events relating to the 100th anniversary of Tel Aviv. So far he has been able to attend the opening of “The British Season”, a specially created programme of film and music events by the British Council designed to mark the anniversary; a reception in the Sarona gardens organised by Tel Aviv Municipality; and the dedication of a school for children with neurological difficulties built with the assistance of the UK Friends of the Tel Aviv Foundation.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to what events held in (a) the UK and (b) Israel to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel he has been invited; what such invitations he has (i) accepted and (ii) declined; and if he will make a statement. [275617]
Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary accepted an invitation to deliver a speech on 5 May 2009 at an event hosted by the Israeli embassy in London to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to what events held in (a) the UK and (b) Israel to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel the Prime Minister has been invited; what such invitations he has (i) accepted and (ii) declined; and if he will make a statement. [275619]
Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister did not attend any events commemorating the 61st anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel. However, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary attended an event hosted by the Israeli embassy in London on 5 May 2009 where he delivered a speech.
Middle East: Armed Conflict
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of the alleged take-over by Hamas of a ward in Shifa Hospital, Gaza, and its use by Hamas as a command and control centre; and if he will make a statement. [275526]
Bill Rammell: We are aware of reports of Hamas representatives operating out of Shifa hospital during the recent conflict. We condemn any use of hospitals for non-medical purposes that could endanger the patients and staff. The UK continues to regard Hamas as a terrorist organisation and to call for it to renounce all violence, recognise Israel and adhere to previous agreements with the Palestinians.
Middle East: Diplomatic Relations
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials in his Department have had with Arab governments on (i) economic and (ii) diplomatic relations between Arab governments and the State of Israel; and if he will make a statement. [275527]
Bill Rammell: We believe that the Arab peace initiative (API) provides the best path towards achieving normal economic and diplomatic relations between Arab Governments and the state of Israel. The API offers full normalisation of relations with Israel in exchange for withdrawal from occupied land. We frequently emphasise the importance of the API, including in discussions with Israel and Arab Governments; my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary did so in his UN Security Council intervention on 11 May 2009.
Pakistan: Politics and Government
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the US Administration on the military and political situation in Pakistan. [273319]
Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary last discussed the situation in Pakistan with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on 12 May 2009. We shared our concerns about the threat violent extremism poses to the Pakistani state. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials also continue to hold frequent discussions about the situation in Pakistan with a wide range of US officials.
Somalia: Piracy
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the effect of payments of ransom money following pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden on the activities of (a) Islamic militants in Somalia and (b) terrorist groups in the region; and if he will make a statement. [270993]
David Miliband: We are aware that the majority of pirates operating off the coast of Somalia organise their activities in the Puntland region. However, we do not have the capabilities within Somalia to monitor the movement of ransom monies around Somalia.
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Somalia on the number of piracy incidents in the Gulf of Aden in recent months. [273144]
Gillian Merron: Piracy has been discussed in many meetings with the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia. In addition to regular meetings between officials at our high commission in Nairobi and representatives of the TFG, my noble Friends the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN (The Lord Malloch-Brown), the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office, (The Lord West of Spithead), and my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development (Mr. Lewis) all discussed piracy with the Somali Deputy Prime Minister, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, during his visit to the UK on 20 April 2009. Sharif Hassan confirmed the TFG is committed to helping tackle this issue.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the effects of poverty in the region on numbers of acts of piracy in the Gulf of Aden. [274324]
Gillian Merron [holding answer 11 May 2009]: Piracy in the Gulf of Aden and off the Coast of Somalia is a symptom of the ongoing instability and lack of economic opportunities in the horn of Africa. Although the security situation makes it difficult to access the region to conduct a full assessment, it is likely that poverty in rural communities in Puntland is one of several contributing factors.
The UK is taking a leading role in the international response to piracy by offering the Operation HQ and Commander for the EU’s Counter Piracy operation. We also chair a working group looking to enhance regional co-operation and co-ordination. This working group is also looking to highlight regional capacity-building requirements that will aim to address the longer term causes of piracy.
Somalia: Politics and Government
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the ability of the transitional government in Somalia to provide for its citizens. [274323]
Gillian Merron [holding answer 11 May 2009]: The Transitional Federal Government have stated that its priorities are reconciliation, security and the development of governmental institutions. Given Somalia’s recent history, it faces considerable challenges. However, it is receiving international support and has produced an initial three-month budget, which harnesses port revenue to enable the re-establishment of key Ministries in Mogadishu to take its priorities forward.
Tibet: Human Rights
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 23 April 2009, Official Report, columns 807-08W, on Tibet: human rights, what reports he has received on the compliance with international standards of the trials of individuals arrested in connection with the disturbances in Tibet in March 2008. [272629]
Bill Rammell: We have received a number of reports from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) stating that the trials of those connected with the disturbances in Tibet in March 2008 were not compliant with international standards, and that the evidence against the individuals concerned was unsound and the convictions therefore unsafe. We have consistently expressed our concern at the need for proper due process for all those detained, and our belief that any trials should be conducted justly, fairly and transparently. The fact that independent observers were not allowed at these trials means that we have been unable to verify that the human rights of the defendants were respected, and that the trials were free from political interference. This, together with the reports from NGOs, does give us real cause for concern, as does the verdict of the death penalty, to which the UK is opposed in principle. As a consequence, and working closely with our EU counterparts, we are urging the Chinese authorities not to carry out the sentences imposed on those convicted. I made these points in similar terms in my written response to Free Tibet and the Tibet Society at the beginning of May.
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