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3 July 2006 : Column WA1
Written Answers
Monday 3 July 2006
Armed Forces: Future Aircraft Carriers
Lord Trefgarne asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the
expected in-service date for the first of the planned new Royal Navy
aircraft
carriers.[HL6613]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Drayson): As for all projects, the in-service dates (ISDs) for the future aircraft carriers will only be set following the main investment decision and once they have been approved by Ministers. This decision has not yet been taken.
Asylum Seekers
Lord Judd asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What
consideration they have given to the recommendations by Church Action
on Poverty concerning the destitution, homelessness and vulnerability
of many asylum
seekers.[HL6016]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): I refer the noble Lord to my Answer of 14 June 2006 (Official Report, col. WA 25). The National Asylum Support Service (NASS) makes available support and accommodation for asylum seekers, who would otherwise be destitute, from the time they claim asylum in the UK to the determination of their claim. Asylum seekers whose claims are unsuccessful are required to leave the UK. NASS support cannot and should not be continued indefinitely for those who have no legal basis to remain in the UK. Under Section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, support and accommodation continues to be available for failed asylum seekers who are destitute and unable to leave the UK immediately due to circumstances entirely beyond their control. If there are problems in accessing support for such individuals, their cases should be notified to NASS for resolution.
Asylum Seekers: Dispersal
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What
criteria the Home Office now applies when dispersing asylum
seekers across the
country.[HL6242]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): In considering dispersal, a range of issues is taken into consideration, such as an adequate supply of suitable accommodation and relevant support services with the aim of maintaining good community cohesion. Under the new regional accommodation contracts, the arrangements for placing asylum seekers are now considered on a regular basis by regional strategic groups. Key local stakeholders including local authorities, the police, the health sector, the voluntary sector and the accommodation providers are represented.
3 July 2006 : Column WA2
Asylum Seekers: Provision for the Disabled
Lord Morris of Manchester asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What provision
is made by the Home Office and the National Asylum Support Service to
meet the needs of disabled asylum seekers; and what records are kept of
disabled asylum seekers as part of the application
process.[HL6315]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): Details of any disability which an asylum seeker raises during the interview process in relation to their asylum claim will be fully taken into account. Special arrangements may also be made for the interview to take place to ensure that claimants with disabilities are able to present their case effectively. Claims for the grant of asylum are decided on their individual merits, against the criteria set out in the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Particular attention is paid to claims where the disability is the result of the alleged persecution or the disability is the reason for the alleged persecution. The National Asylum Support Service (NASS) considers the circumstances of all destitute asylum seekers when assessing their applications for asylum support. It takes into account particular needs when providing accommodation. Information relating to disabled asylum seekers is recorded on individual case files.
British Citizenship
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
will place in the Library of the House a copy of the position paper,
Citizenship Denied: the Stateless British Children of Hong Kong,
submitted to the Minister of State for Nationality, Citizenship and
Immigration, Mr Des Browne, by the Lord Avebury and Tameem Abdulhusein
Ebrahim in December
2004.[HL6450]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): It is not general practice for government departments to disseminate unsolicited material produced by persons outside the Government and we do not propose to do so on this occasion. I understand that there is some provision for Peers to place documents in the Library of the House and the Government would have no objection if the noble Lord wished to do so.
Child Protection: List 99
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
will review all candidates for employment referred to the Department
for Education and Skills' List 99 in each of the past three
years.[HL6514]
3 July 2006 : Column WA3
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Lord Adonis): In her 19 January Statement, the Secretary of State, Ruth Kelly, announced the findings of a review of cases since 1997 where a decision had been taken by Ministers or officials not to place on List 99 individuals who were on the sex offenders register, or who had committed relevant offences before the introduction of the sex offenders register in 1997.
Ruth Kelly also announced, as an interim measure, the establishment of a panel of experts, headed by Sir Roger Singleton, to oversee the List 99 process. The panel is fully in place, advising the Secretary of State on cases for his determination. Sir Roger Singleton is reviewing all cases determined before 1997 where, had the sex offenders register existed, it would have resulted in the individual's inclusion on the register, and all cases involving a sexual offence or allegation which resulted in a decision not to include on List 99 or in a restriction or a partial bar. The aim of this review will be to establish if any individual poses a risk of harm to children and if any action should be taken.
Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000: Maps
Baroness Byford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- In the light of
the National Audit Office report on The Right of Access to Open
Countryside, what was the issue relating to data quality cited by
the Countryside Agency which led to problems with the accuracy of the
maps for the south-east; what were the causes of this development; what
steps have been taken to ensure that there will be no recurrence; and
whether any penalties have been applied to those
responsible.[HL6481]
The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Rooker): The Countryside Agency withdrew and re-issued the provisional map for the south-east because it discovered the initial map contained a number of errors. The agency attributed the errors in part to technical drafting issues, caused by the mapping tool used by the agency's mapping contractor, and in part to inadequate checking by the contractor of the changes made between the draft and provisional maps following the public consultation period.
As a result the agency put in place measures to ensure more rigorous checking of the maps and also switched to a more advanced mapping tool. Appropriate penalties were applied to the mapping contractor.
Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000: Ordnance Survey Maps
Baroness Byford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- In the light of
the National Audit Office report, The Right of Access to Open
Countryside, how many ordnance survey maps showing open access land
have been (a) supplied to retail outlets; (b) sold directly; and (c)
sold by retail outlets; and what was the value of these
maps.[HL6473]
3 July 2006 : Column WA4
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): Ordnance Survey has provided over 1.75 million OS Explorer maps containing open access information to the retail trade. These have a retail value exceeding £13 million.
Ordnance Survey has sold some 31,000 OS Explorer maps direct to customers through its map shop on its website at www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/mapshop/. These have a retail value of a little over £230,000.
A little under 750,000 OS Explorer maps have so far been sold through the retail channel. These have a value of some £5.5 million.
Diabetes: Inhaled Insulin
Lord Harrison asked Her Majesty's Government:
- In the light of
the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's
recommendation that the newly developed inhaled insulin should not be
available on the National Health Service, what assessment they have
made of the needs of needle phobic
diabetics.[HL6129]
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner): A second appraisal committee decision on inhaled insulin from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) was published on21 June for consultation. The current appraisal committee decision includes proven injection phobia diagnosed by a psychiatrist or psychologist. However, this does not constitute NICE's formal guidance on this technology. The recommendations made are preliminary and may change after consultation.
Eisteddfod
Lord Roberts of Conwy asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
will waive the £85 visa charge for competitors at the
international eisteddfodat Llangollen which starts on 4
July.[HL6546]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman): Fees for visa services are set to cover the costs of providing them in accordance with HM Treasury guidelines on fees and charges, and any decision to issue visas at less than the normal fee would need to be made financially good to UKvisas from another source. UKvisas has consulted other government departments to ascertain whether there are any public funds available to cover the expenses of foreign participants at the 60th International Eisteddfod in Llangollen, but has not identified any such funds. Unfortunately, we cannot therefore waive the fee for visas for this event.
3 July 2006 : Column WA5
EU: Council of Ministers
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
support the latest Austrian European Union presidency initiatives for
open and public debates on the Council of Ministers’ activity in
relation to new
legislation.[HL6303]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman): I refer the noble Lord to the reply I gave to the noble Lord, Lord Stoddart of Swindon, on 26 June (Official Report, cols. WA 124-5); namely, that the European Council has agreed “an overall policy on transparency”, as itemised in Annexe 1 of its conclusions. The European Council also agreed to review this policy after six months to assess the “impact on the effectiveness of the Council's work”. The Government support this approach.
EU: Finnish Presidency
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What
subjects they propose to discuss with the Government of Finland as
priority policies for the next European Union presidency starting
on1
July.[HL6488]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman): We are especially keen to highlight the importance of the Hampton Court agenda agreed during our presidency last year: focusing on delivery for the citizens of the EU. Our embassy in Helsinki is in daily contact with the Finnish Government on a wide range of issues. More than 40 separate meetings have also taken place between Ministers and officials from the UK and Finland since March this year. These have covered topics as diverse as the future of Europe, enlargement, counter-terrorism, Afghanistan, competitiveness and innovation, development policy, energy, climate change, and justice and home affairs. We will maintain close contact with the Finns throughout their presidency.
EU: Turkey
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
have made an assessment of any increase in opposition in the United
Kingdom and within other member states to the European Union membership
negotiations with
Turkey.[HL6486]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman): Although the Government have not made a recent assessment, a Eurobarometer poll of UK citizens was published in February 2006. It shows 38 per cent in favour of Turkey joining the EU and 42 per cent against; a survey six months earlier showed 45 per cent in favour and 37 per cent against. The February survey shows figures for EU member states as a whole with 31 per cent in favour of Turkey joining the EU and 55 per cent against.
3 July 2006 : Column WA6
EU: UK Budget Rebate
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether
the agreement on the United Kingdom European Union budget rebate for
the period 2007-14 can be changed without re-opening negotiations on
the European Union budget as a
whole.[HL6626]
Lord McKenzie of Luton: The UK abatement arrangements are covered by the Own Resources Decision. The ORD has to be agreed unanimously in Council and then be ratified by each member state. For the UK, this will require primary legislation in the form of an EC (Finance) Bill. In practice, the Own Resources mechanisms have always been agreed as part of a package in conjunction with setting the EC expenditure commitments for the next multi-annual spending period, as was the case with the December 2005 agreement.
Government: Ministerial Responsibilities
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
- When the Cabinet
Office will publish the list of ministerial responsibilities and
contact details to incorporate the changes made on or before 5 May
2006.[HL6403]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: I refer the noble Lord to the Statement I made on Tuesday 27 June, Official Report, col. WS 58.
Immigration: Detention Centres
Lord Ouseley asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many
detainees at immigration detention centres have been moved to two or
more different centres during their period of detention
during(a) 2003-04; (b) 2004-05; and (c)
2005-06.[HL6597]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): The required statistics could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Lord Ouseley asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What are the
annual costs of each of the immigration detention centres run by
private
contractors.[HL6598]
Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The annual costs of each of the immigration detention centres run by private contractors are in the table below.
| Immigration Removal Centre | Annual Costs £ million |
3 July 2006 : Column WA7
Immigration: Doctors
Lord Turnberg asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is their
assessment of recent changes to the immigration rules requiring
overseas doctors already in training in the United Kingdom to apply for
work
permits.[HL6051]
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner): The Department of Health worked with the Home Office to put in place transitional arrangements. Those doctors and dentists offered a relevant training programme before the changes were announced have the opportunity to complete that programme.
Overseas doctors and dentists will still be able to come and train in the United Kingdom. They will now need to meet the requirements of an employment category of the immigration rules—such as the work permit requirements—in line with the immigration rules for other professions.
Immigration: Oakington Detention Centre
The Earl of Sandwich asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Why they have
changed their closure plans for Oakington Detention Centre; how long
the new
3 July 2006 : Column WA8
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): There is currently a rising demand for places in the immigration removal estate. We are urgently considering whether Oakington should remain open beyond September. However, this will be subject, among other matters, to suitable funding being agreed.
Immigration: Suicide in Detention
Lord Ouseley asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many
incidents of attempted suicides have been recorded since 1 January 2002
at immigration detention
centres.[HL6595]
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): We do not keep records of attempted suicides, rather self-harm attempts. Figures for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 to 31 May 2006 are in the table. No figures are available for periods before this.
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