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Manufacturing: Northern Ireland
Lord Rana asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
will ensure that manufacturing in Northern Ireland has access to the
expertise and practical support provided by the Department for Trade
and Industry's Manufacturing Advisory
Service.[HL6717]
Lord Rooker: Government, through Invest NI, provide the broad range of manufacturing sectors within Northern Ireland with access to both expertise and practical support similar to that provided by the DTI's Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS). The agency encourages manufacturing businesses, through its Technical Advisory Unit (TAU), to make technological improvements in their business processes through increasing collaboration with universities and research establishments. The TAU follows similar delivery criteria to the MAS.
In addition, Invest NI's Business Improvement Services and Innovation, Research and Technology Division offer a wide range of services to manufacturers. These include programmes such as Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), Lean Manufacturing, Supply Chain Development, Interim Manager (often used by manufacturers implementing new manufacturing processes), and process development support under both Compete and Product/Process Development schemes.
Other national R&D programmes, such as Smart and Smart Micro, are also promoted within Northern Ireland by Invest NI. These also encourage Northern Ireland companies to develop innovative efficient processes (and products).
These support measures are integral parts of Invest NI’s objectives of helping companies to become more innovative, entrepreneurial and internationally focused.
Lord Rana asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they
will ensure that the interests of manufacturing industry in Northern
Ireland are considered in any plan to establish a National
Manufacturing Skills
Academy.[HL6718]
Lord
Rooker: SEMTA, the sector skills council for the
science, engineering and manufacturing technologies sector, is
progressing plans for a National Manufacturing
12 July 2006 : Column WA126
Northern Ireland Assembly
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Further
to the Written Answer by the Lord Rooker on 13 June (WA 17)
concerning the Belfast agreement, how it can be actively developed
across its structures and functions without an
Assembly.[HL6376]
Lord Rooker: I refer the noble Lord to my Answer on 13 June (WA 17) and would draw his attention to paragraph 4 of the joint statement made on 29 June 2006 by the Prime Minister and the Taoiseach, which referred to continuing work on new partnership arrangements that would need to be put in place to ensure effective joint stewardship of the Belfast agreement in the event that devolution does not take place by 24 November.
Northern Ireland Events Company
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether
they propose to provide the Northern Ireland Events Company with more
funding for community festivals; if so, how much; and
when.[HL6690]
Lord Rooker: Government have no proposals to provide more funding to the Northern Ireland Events Company for the Community Festivals Fund.
Having reviewed the funding decrease experienced by a specific number of festivals as a result of the new arrangements for funding community festivals, Government have decided to award further transitional funding to three community festivals. This funding will be processed by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure.
Northern Ireland National Stadium
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether senior
civil servants in the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and
Leisure and the Strategic Investment Board are lobbying for a national
stadium based on the site of the Maze prison.
[HL6540]
12 July 2006 : Column WA127
Lord Rooker: No. The decision is one for Ministers. On the basis of a site selection exercise undertaken by the Strategic Investment Board (SIB) on behalf of the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) between 2004 and 2005, Ministers decided in March 2005 that the Maze/Long Kesh was the only suitable location in Northern Ireland for a proposed multi-sports stadium. DCAL and SIB officials are, as a consequence, currently considering a range of issues in relation to the construction of the stadium at the Maze/Long Kesh.
Lord Maginnis of Drumglass asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Further
to the Written Answer by the Lord Rooker on 22 June (WA 107),
whether they intend to retain the Bobby Sands hospital block as an
integral part of plans for a sports stadium at the former Maze prison
site; and, if so, which department, agency or Minister is responsible
for this
decision.[HL6580]
Lord Rooker: The Environment and Heritage Service of the Department of the Environment listed or scheduled a number of buildings and structures at the Maze/Long Kesh site including the former prison hospital. No decisions have been taken by the Government regarding their potential future use.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether
the funding for a national stadium for Northern Ireland will come from
the Northern Ireland block grant; and, if not, from
where.[HL6689]
Lord Rooker: A final decision has not yet been made to proceed with this project, and accordingly no public expenditure allocations have been made in the current Budget period. In the event that the project does proceed, the level and source of funding will be an issue for future Budget processes.
Northern Ireland Tourist Board
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the
incidence of absence through sickness of the staff of the Northern
Ireland Tourist Board in each year since
2000.[HL6749]
| Sickness Absence Days Lost 2000-06 | |
| Financial Year | Days Lost Due to Sickness Absence |
12 July 2006 : Column WA128
Official Meetings: Prime Minister
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
- On which dates
since 30 September 2002 the Prime Minister has met Rupert Murdoch or
Richard
Desmond.[HL6761]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Information Commissioner has recently issued a decision in relation to freedom of information requests for this information. A copy of the Information Commissioner's decision notice and the Cabinet Office's disclosure in response to the decision is available in the Library for the reference of Peers.
Police: Northern Ireland
Lord Maginnis of Drumglass asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Why the 2009
completion date for a new Police Service of Northern Ireland police
college has been postponed; whether all consultants working on the
project have had to cease their work; and what will be the cost of
compensation for this
delay.[HL6657]
Lord Rooker: The PSNI has completed a detailed re-scoping of the new police college project and a revised outline business case has been submitted to the department.
The Government have advised the policing board and PSNI that it will make up to £90 million available for the new college and work is ongoing to explore a number of options to take this project forward. Currently consultancy work and the commencement of the construction of the college are on hold until that work is finalised and it is too early to say when the college will be completed. There will be no compensation for this delay.
Lord Rana asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether, in view
of the public attendance record, they will review the role and
functions of the district policing partnership boards in Northern
Ireland.[HL6714]
Lord Rooker: District policing partnerships form a vital link between their local community and the PSNI and have increased the understanding of the public in policing issues. The policing Oversight Commissioner has reported that district policing partnerships are functioning as intended and therefore Government have no plans for a review of their role and functions.
Prisoners: Deportation
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether
foreign criminals who have been deported on discharge from prison are
banned from re-entering the United Kingdom; if so, for how long; and
whether they are liable to immediate deportation, without rights of
appeal, if they return illegally while under ban from
re-entry.[HL5948]
12 July 2006 : Column WA129
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): A person entering or seeking to enter the United Kingdom in breach of a deportation order (DO) is an illegal entrant as defined in Section 33(1) of the Immigration Act 1971 and so is not permitted to seek re-entry to the UK. Information on deportation orders is contained in Part 13 of the Immigration Rules (HC 395). We will seek to remove any person who enters the UK illegally while subject to a DO and the decision to remove an illegal entrant does not in itself attract an in-country right of appeal.
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the
courts of the United Kingdom can recommend citizens of other European
Union countries who have been convicted of an imprisonable offence for
deportation; and what powers they have to deport such
persons.[HL6001]
Baroness Scotland of Asthal: There is nothing to prevent courts from recommending the deportation of an EEA national. EEA nationals are considered for deportation following a court recommendation or where they have been convicted of an offence and sentenced to 24 months or more imprisonment. We will shortly be setting out proposals on how the system for deporting foreign national prisoners can be improved.
Prisoners: Foreign Nationals
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How
many foreign nationals who have been sentenced to imprisonment in the
United Kingdom are currently serving their sentences in prisons in
their own countries; and what rules and arrangements determine their
early release;
and[HL5998]
- Whether
deportation of foreign nationals who have been given custodial
sentences in the United Kingdom, but who have not completed those
sentences, invariably involves an agreement with the Government of the
country to which they are deported that they should be kept in prison
in that
12 July 2006 : Column WA130
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): The Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 enables prisoners to be repatriated to continue serving their sentences in accordance with international arrangements to which the United Kingdom is a party. The United Kingdom is a party to two multi-party agreements: the Council of Europe Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons, and the Commonwealth Scheme for the Transfer of Convicted Offenders. In addition, the United Kingdom has concluded bilateral prisoner transfer agreements with 19 countries. In all, the UK has a prisoner transfer arrangement with 96 countries and territories. Under each of these agreements, the release arrangements following transfer are those applicable in the state to which the prisoner has been transferred, not those of the UK. Since 1 January 2002, 392 prisoners have been transferred to other countries to continue serving their sentences. British prisoners may be deported and removed from the United Kingdom early under the early removal scheme. This scheme enables prisoners to be removed up to 135 days prior to the halfway point of their sentence.
Public Bodies: Chairmen
Lord Lee of Trafford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What are the
salary and time requirements for all chairmen of public bodies
appointed by the Secretary of State for Work and
Pensions.[HL6558]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): The current remuneration and time commitment for the chairs of the Department for Work and Pensions’s non-departmental public bodies are set out in the table.
Questions for Written Answer: Reasonable Expense
Baroness Byford asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How
a decision is made that the cost of providing an Answer to a Question
for Written Answer will be disproportionate; and what level of
expenditure would prompt such a
decision.[HL6669]
Lord McKenzie of Luton: Where the cost of answering a Question for Written Answer exceeds the disproportionate cost threshold—currently £600, as announced to both Houses of Parliament by Written Ministerial Statement on 22 March 2005—the Minister concerned decides whether it would be appropriate to answer the Question irrespective of its cost.
Schools: Northern Ireland
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How much funding
they estimate is spent in schools in Northern Ireland teaching (a)
Irish, and (b) Ulster Scots
languages.[HL6828]
Lord Rooker: I refer the noble Lord to the Answer given on 4 July (Official Report, col. WA 40), which provides all the information that is available. It is not possible to provide information at school-level on the amount spent on individual subjects.
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.
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