Sri Lanka: Politics and Government
Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what account is taken of the views of Sri Lankans resident in the UK in formulating UK foreign policy on Sri Lanka. [316580]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: In formulating its policy towards Sri Lanka the UK takes into consideration all relevant factors, including the views of the Government of Sri Lanka and other international partners. The views of British nationals of Sri Lankan origin are also considered. Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office regularly meet with representatives from Sri Lankan communities. Ministers and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Special Envoy to Sri Lanka, the right hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Des Browne), have also had meetings with them. The UK's view remains that lasting peace in Sri Lanka can only come about through a fully inclusive political process that addresses the underlying causes of the conflict. Following the recent presidential election in Sri Lanka my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister wrote to President Rajapakse urging him to use his mandate to take forward that process. Genuine reconciliation between Sri Lanka's communities will depend in large part on the Government protecting and promoting the rights of all Sri Lankans.
Sudan: Peace Negotiations
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on the proposed appointment of a mediator for Sudan. [316358]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
We have pressed for strong UN and African Union (AU) leadership as Sudan enters this crucial period, for example in my joint statement on 9 January 2010 with Hilary Clinton and Jonas Store on the fifth anniversary of the Comprehensive Peace
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Agreement. My noble Friend Baroness Kinnock and the UK Special Representative for Sudan discussed these issues during the AU summit in January with Haile Menkerios, the new Special Representative of the Secretary General for the UN Mission, and Ibrahim Gambari, the new AU/UN Joint Special Representative for the AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur. We are also working closely to support the efforts of Djibril Bassole as AU/UN Chief Mediator on Darfur, and Thabo Mbeki as chair of the AU High Level Panel. In liaison with international partners, we will continue to press too for maximum co-ordination and efficiency between them.
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last discussed with the Secretary of State for International Development the matter of the end of the Sudanese Comprehensive Peace Agreement. [316361]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Foreign Secretary, International Development Secretary and other Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Department for International Development (DFID) Ministers work very closely together on Sudan, drawing on the work of the Joint DFID-FCO Sudan Unit. My noble Friend Baroness Kinnock and my hon. Friend the Minister of State for International Development gave a joint press briefing on 6 January 2010 ahead of the fifth anniversary of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/news/latest-news/?view=News&id=21534511
Sudan: Peacekeeping Operations
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will bring forward proposals for a more proactive mandate for the United Nations Mission in Sudan at the meeting of the UN Security Council in April 2010. [316357]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We have consistently pressed for a proactive, robust approach by the UN Mission (UNMIS) in Sudan. My noble Friend Baroness Kinnock and the UK Special Representative for Sudan discussed these issues with the new UNMIS Special Representative of the Secretary General, Haile Menkerios, and UN officials at the African Union Summit on 27-28 January 2010. During Security Council consultations on 26 January 2010 we urged the Council to prioritise protection of civilians in the UNMIS mandate. This will remain a priority for the UK in the lead up to the mandate renewal in April.
Sudan: Politics and Government
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last discussed Sudan with the (a) US administration, (b) Chinese government and (c) African Union. [316359]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
At the African Union (AU) summit on 27-28 January my noble Friend Baroness Kinnock discussed Sudan with US Special Envoy Scott Gration
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and senior State and National Security Council officials, the Chinese Vice Foreign Minister and the AU Peace and Security Commissioner. We will continue to engage with them and with others both in the region and internationally.
Prime Minister
Departmental Internet
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Prime Minister what redesigns of websites operated by his Office have taken place since 27 June 2007; and what the (a) cost to the public purse and (b) date of completion of each such redesign was. [306191]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on 9 February 2010, Official Report, column 888W.
Dissolution
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Prime Minister (1) what progress has been made on his proposal that the approval of the House of Commons should be sought for a request for a dissolution of Parliament since 3 July 2007; [316337]
(2) whether he plans to seek the approval of the House before exercising his power to request a dissolution of Parliament. [316382]
The Prime Minister: This proposal is subject to ongoing inquiry by Parliament.
Wales
Rural Economy
10. Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he last met the First Minister to discuss the prospects for the rural economy in Wales. [315873]
Mr. Hain: A strong rural economy is vital to Wales as a whole, even more so as we exit the recession and look to continue to grow over the coming year.
Employment
11. Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent assessment he has made of levels of employment in Wales; and if he will make a statement. [315874]
Mr. Hain: Latest figures show that the employment level in Wales increased by 6,000 on last quarter, to 1.304 million, an increase of 94,000 since 1997.
The Government’s extra investment in jobs, education and training is making a real difference in Wales, helping people through the recession and preventing the kind of unemployment we saw haunt Wales in the eighties and nineties. This fragile recovery would be wrecked by the Tories.
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ProAct and ReAct
13. Mrs. Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on the ProAct and ReAct programmes in Wales. [315876]
Mr. Hain: Since the start of the economic crisis we have worked in partnership with the Welsh Assembly Government through the regular All Wales Economic Summits, where initiatives such as ProAct were born.
One of the main focuses of the next All Wales Economic Summit which I will attend tomorrow in Llanelli will be the ProAct initiative.
South Wales Police
14. Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on levels of public confidence in South Wales Police. [315877]
Mr. David: South Wales Police have an excellent record on dealing with crime and antisocial behaviour. I would therefore like to see higher levels of public confidence, though I am pleased to note that latest figures from the British Crime Survey do show the number of respondents expressing confidence in delivery has increased by over 22 per cent. since last year.
The Policing White Paper contains a raft of measures aimed at improving public confidence in the Police across England and Wales. Where a force, such as South Wales, is performing well on dealing with crime but public confidence remains low, this could be due to a number of reasons. For example more work might need to be done to ensure the successful work taking place is being communicated effectively to the public. The commitments to information provision and holding public forums within the policing pledge should assist with this.
Knowledge Economy
Dr. Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on the development of the knowledge economy in Wales; and if he will make a statement. [315875]
Mr. David: I have regular discussions with the First Minister on the Welsh economy and he and I both recognise the importance of developing the knowledge economy in Wales.
Now that the UK economy has returned to growth it is vital that we ensure our workforce and our innovative businesses are equipped to face the challenges of the recovery.
Departmental Sick Leave
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff in his Department have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more of the last three years. [316453]
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Elections
Mr. Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the new First Minister on means of encouraging greater voter participation in Wales in the forthcoming general election. [316222]
Mr. Hain: I discuss a range of issues including means of encouraging voter participation with the First Minister. The level of turnout in recent elections have been disappointing and the Government and the Electoral Commission are always looking at ways of addressing this issue.
Exports
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what the monetary value was of high technology sector exports from Wales (a) in total and (b) to China in the last five years; [315789]
(2) what the monetary value was of exports from each (a) sector and (b) industry in Wales in each of the last five years; [315790]
(3) what estimate he has made of the monetary value of financial services provided from Wales to overseas in the latest period for which figures are available; and what proportion of UK exports (a) in total and (b) to China such services accounted for in each of the last five years; [315794]
Mr. Hain: A breakdown of total Welsh exports by product sector is provided in Table 1 and similar data for exports to China are provided in Table 2.
No breakdown exists that details high technology products although some of the industries in the tables do have high technology as a feature of their activity. For exports to China, information can be provided only for the top four industries and no breakdown of the export of financial services is available.
These figures clearly demonstrate the vibrancy of Welsh exports and their strength in new markets with total exports to China in creasing by over 60 per cent. in the last year for which figures are available.
| Table 1: Value of Welsh exports to all countries, latest data | |||||
| Value (£ million) | |||||
| Year ending: | |||||
| Product sector | Q3 2005 | Q3 2006 | Q3 2007 | Q3 2008 | Q3 2009(1) |
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| (1) Provisional Source: Statistics and Analysis of Trade Unit, HM Revenue and Customs, 25 November 2009 | |||||