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7 Apr 2010 : Column 1419W—continued
Where slaughter takes place in a slaughterhouse, enforcement is undertaken by the Meat Hygiene Service. The number of cases referred to DEFRA Legal Services in the last five years (April to March) were:
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Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent reviews his Department has undertaken of the effectiveness of regulations governing slaughtering practices. [325808]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Slaughter practices involving the welfare of animals are currently governed by the Welfare of Animals (Slaughter or Killing) Regulations 1995 (WASK) as amended. These regulations implement Council Directive 93/119/EC. This directive was reviewed by the Commission in 2008 and 2009 and as a result Council Regulation EC No. 1099/2009 was made on 24 September 2009. This regulation will apply from 1 January 2013 and will replace directive 93/119.
The new regulation will be directly applicable in the UK and requires every member state to establish penalties for infringements. We are currently reviewing how this will impact on WASK and will be consulting on the legislative changes required at the appropriate time.
Northern Ireland
Billy Wright Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Wright Inquiry has spent on IT since its inception. [325512]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Billy Wright Inquiry that the Inquiry has spent £7.15 million on information technology since its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Wright Inquiry has spent on IT consultants since its inception. [325513]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Billy Wright Inquiry that the Inquiry has spent £951,000 on IT consultants since its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget is of the press office for the Wright Inquiry in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [325514]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Billy Wright Inquiry that it does not have a press office or employ a press officer. Therefore the Billy Wright Inquiry does not have a budget for a press office in either of financial years 2009-10 or 2010-11.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people the Wright Inquiry has employed in each post in each month since its inception. [325515]
Mr. Woodward: From October 2004, there has been one civil servant working as solicitor to the Inquiry.
The following staff changes have occurred:
In February 2005, a secretary to the Inquiry was recruited.
In April 2005, a deputy solicitor to the Inquiry was recruited.
In June 2005, an assistant solicitor was recruited.
In July 2006, the assistant solicitor ended his secondment and returned to his home department.
In November 2006, a document evidence manager and a finance accommodation officer were recruited.
In April 2007, two personal secretaries were recruited.
In May 2007, a witness liaison manager was recruited.
In November 2007, an assistant solicitor was recruited.
In March 2009, the finance and accommodation officer ended his secondment and returned to his home department.
In March 2009, one of the personal secretaries ended her secondment and returned to her home department.
In September 2009, one of the personal secretaries resigned from her home department and ended her secondment.
In September 2009, the assistant solicitor ended her secondment and returned to her home department.
In December 2009, the document evidence manager retired.
In March 2010, the solicitor to the Inquiry retired.
Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on virtual reality technology since its inception. [325506]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that it has spent approximately £106,000 on virtual reality technology.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on IT since its inception. [325507]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that it has spent approximately £34.3 million on information technology to the end of February 2010, including £2.2 million on information technology consultancy costs.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on accommodation since its inception. [325510]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that it has spent approximately £26.2 million on accommodation (including hire of venues for inquiry hearings plus office and private accommodation).
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people in each role the Saville Inquiry has employed in each month since its inception. [325511]
Mr. Woodward: The Bloody Sunday Inquiry does not directly employ staff. The inquiry has engaged a number of people on loan or secondment from Government Departments/agencies to undertake specific posts and roles. A number of other people have been issued with NIO fixed-term contracts to work with the inquiry.
Over its lifespan, the number of staff in the inquiry peaked at 38 during hearings in April 2003. Posts included the secretary and deputy secretary to the inquiry, five inquiry solicitors one costs solicitor, one assistant solicitor, one press officer, one assistant press officer, three legal assistants, two researchers, six witness liaison, one finance assistant, one archivist, two personal assistants and 12 administrative support staff.
The inquiry has since reduced its complement to six staff, including the Secretary to the inquiry (part-time), deputy secretary, finance assistant, personal assistant to the chairman, IT assistant (part-time) and an administrative officer.
The inquiry also holds contracts with employment agencies for the provision of temporary staff for administration services. These have not been included in this response, as their employer is the temporary staff agency.
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will set a date beyond which no further invoices or accounts for legal work in connection with the Saville Inquiry will be accepted. [325749]
Mr. Woodward: I have proposed to fund legal representation at public expense for Interested Parties provided with advance sight of the report on the day of publication. A protocol governing the scope of this work is being developed, including a time limit for the receipt of invoices.
Departmental Books
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on books for its libraries in each of the last five years; and which books were purchased. [325407]
Mr. Woodward: Expenditure and a list of the books purchased in each of the last five years by the Northern Ireland Office, including its arm's length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs, could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Lost Property
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what property has been recorded as (a) lost and (b) stolen from his Department in the last 12 months; and what estimate has been made of the cost of the replacement of that property. [325496]
Paul Goggins: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 16 March 2010, Official Report, column 731W.
Festivals and Special Occasions
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on events to mark (a) St. Patrick's Day and (b) the Twelfth of July in each of the last five years. [325428]
Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO), including its arms length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs, has not incurred any spend in the past five years on marking either St. Patrick's Day or the Twelfth of July.
Robert Hamill Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Hamill Inquiry has spent on IT since its inception. [325501]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Robert Hamill Inquiry that it has spent £6.35 million on information technology since its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Hamill Inquiry has spent on IT consultants since its inception. [325502]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Robert Hamill Inquiry that it has spent £942,000 on IT consultants since its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget is of the press office for the Hamill Inquiry in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [325503]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Robert Hamill Inquiry that the budget of the press office for the inquiry in financial year 2009-10 is £57,509 and in financial year 2010 it is £21,387.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people the Hamill Inquiry has employed in each role in each month since its inception. [325505]
Mr. Woodward: From November 2004 there have been two civil servants working as secretary and solicitor to the inquiry.
The following staff changes have been made:
In January 2005, a deputy solicitor, assistant solicitor and deputy secretary were recruited.
In February 2005, a finance officer was recruited.
In March 2005, a higher executive officer and administrator were recruited.
In August 2005, the deputy secretary was released.
In November 2005, the deputy solicitor and assistant solicitor were released.
In January 2006, the administrator was released and a deputy solicitor was recruited.
In September 2006, the deputy solicitor was released and an assistant solicitor was recruited.
In January 2007, a finance/administration officer was recruited.
In May 2007, a deputy solicitor was recruited.
In July 2007, the assistant solicitor was released.
In September 2007, the secretary was released and the solicitor took on the secretarial role.
In January 2008, a witness information officer (50 per cent. full-time employment), a personal assistant (75 per cent. full-time employment) were recruited, and the finance officer moved to 50 per cent. full-time employment.
In February 2008, the witness information manager and personal assistant became full-time, and the 50 per cent. FTE finance officer was released.
In April 2008, a senior finance officer was recruited.
In July 2008, a witness team member (50 per cent. FTE) was recruited.
In August 2008, the witness team member became full-time.
In November 2008, an assistant to counsel was recruited.
In April 2009, an Information and Legal Liaison Officer was recruited.
In October 2009, the assistant to counsel, witness information officer and witness team member were released.
Rosemary Nelson Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Nelson Inquiry has spent on IT since its inception. [325516]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry that the inquiry has spent £7.08 million on information technology since its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Nelson Inquiry has spent on IT consultants since its inception. [325517]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry that the inquiry has spent £1.23 million on IT consultancy from its inception.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget is of the press office for the Nelson Inquiry in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [325518]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry that the inquiry uses one press officer on an ad-hoc basis. In the financial year 2009-10 the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry has no budget for a press office, and for the financial year 2010-11 has budgeted £14,100 for this function.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people the Nelson Inquiry has employed in each post in each month since its inception. [325519]
Mr. Woodward: From November 2004, there have been two civil servants working at the inquiry, acting as solicitor and secretary to the inquiry. The following staff changes have occurred:
In January 2005, two legal support officers, an evidence manager, a finance officer and an admin support officer were recruited.
In February 2005, a deputy secretary was recruited.
In March 2005, a deputy solicitor was recruited.
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