| Previous Section | Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |
Strategic Investment Board: Northern Ireland
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Under what authority the Strategic Investment Board operates in Northern Ireland; to whom it reports; and when; and[HL6643]
Who are the members of the Northern Ireland Strategic Investment Board; when they were appointed; by whom; and on what basis; and[HL6644]
How many employees there are in the Strategic Investment Board in Northern Ireland; how they were appointed and by whom; and what is their community background.[HL6687]
Lord Rooker: The Strategic Investment Board Limited was established and operates under the provisions of the Strategic Investment and Regeneration of Sites (Northern Ireland) Order 2003. The Strategic Investment Board reports to the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister on a quarterly basis and on other occasions as required by the office.
Membership of the Strategic Investment Board comprises: A Watson, J Stewart, G Sparks and N Hamilton—who were initially appointed on 1 April 2003 and re-appointed on 1 April 2006—D Gavaghan—appointed 21 July 2004—D Dobbin—appointed 1 October 2005—and B Hannam—appointed 11 January 2006.
These appointments were made by the Minister with responsibility for the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister. The appointment of the non-executive directors was in accordance with the guidance issued by the office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Northern Ireland. The executive directors D Gavaghan and B Hannam are senior officers of the Strategic Investment Board.
The Strategic Investment Board employs 16 people all of whom were appointed by the company through external recruitment processes. The community background of employees is as follows:
Underwater Heritage
Lord Beaumont of Whitley asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they intend to ratify the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s underwater heritage convention.[HL6599]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The position of Her Majesty's Government remains unchanged since the decision not to ratify the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage was taken in 2001.
Vehicle and Operator Services Agency
Lord Campbell-Savours asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Ashton of Upholland on 3 July (HL6470), what was the total cost to central funds of all actions brought by the Vehicle Operations Services Agency where the agency has not succeeded in those actions.[HL6755]
12 July 2006 : Column WA133
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (Baroness Ashton of Upholland): The information requested is not available.
Lord Campbell-Savours asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will charge to the budget of the Vehicle Operations Services Agency the cost of all unsuccessful actions which the agency pursues in the courts.[HL6756]
Baroness Ashton of Upholland: We do not charge to any prosecuting authority the sums awarded in costs from central funds to an acquitted defendant. However, the criminal court in which the proceedings have been brought does have the power to award costs against the parties in respect of unnecessary or improper acts or omissions.
Water Supply: Consumption
Lord Hanningfield asked Her Majesty's Government:
How much water in total and per occupant in cubic metres was consumed in the headquarters of the Department for Work and Pensions in each year since its creation.[HL6568]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): The overall water consumption figures for the whole of DWP in cubic metres per person per annum, as reported in the Sustainable Development in Government Report, are as follows.
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 |
Calculations for 2005-06 have not yet been made, but will be published later this year.
The following table provides a breakdown of total water consumption, in cubic metres, for each building that is currently on our headquarters estate. It is not possible to provide data on the consumption rate per occupant as the department does not maintain historical information on the number of staff deployed within individual buildings.
Data are reported from 2002-03 as this was the first full year of DWP operations.
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
The data given for 2003-04, for all buildings marked with an *, has been estimated. Full-year information was not available, due to failures in the recording system. Part-year data were amended to show an estimated consumption for the whole year.
We are unable to provide any information on water consumption in the following buildings, as the department is either a minor occupier to another government department (which would report consumption figures) or it is a building where the water charges are included as part of the overall rental figure paid to the landlord.
Revised targets for water consumption across the government estate were published on 12 June. These require us, using a baseline of 2004-05 data, to achieve a 25 per cent reduction in water consumption by 2020 and also to reduce water consumption to an average of 3 cubic metres per person/year in all new builds or major office refurbishments.
The department is working with its estates partners, Land Securities Trillium, to develop additional measures to meet current and any future water consumption targets. This includes investment into water saving devices such as waterless urinals, which are anticipated to considerably reduce water consumption figures across the estate.
Waterways Ireland
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
At what level the director of marketing and communications was designated and transferred from the Civil Service to Waterways Ireland in March 2002; and what is his current salary.[HL6607]
Lord Rooker: The current salary of the director of marketing and communications at Waterways Ireland is £50,571.35 per year.
It would be inappropriate for me to comment on his previous employment in the Irish Civil Service.
12 July 2006 : Column WA135
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether Waterways Ireland will be included in the discussions and negotiations on restoring devolution to Northern Ireland due to take place over the coming months.[HL6608]
12 July 2006 : Column WA136
Lord Rooker: The Government will do all they can to facilitate discussions and negotiations between the Northern Ireland political parties in the lead-up to the 24 November deadline. It is primarily a matter for the parties to determine which issues need to be included in these discussions. To date, none has suggested that Waterways Ireland be included.
| Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |