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Invest NI supports the work of the Carbon Trust, which has ongoing campaigns to promote the benefits of energy saving across industry and commerce. In the domestic sector, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive has been involved in similar ongoing campaigns, while the Department of Finance and Personnel leads the promotion of energy efficiency in the public sector through a programme of measures. Furthermore, funding from the new Environment and Renewable Energy Fund is being used to enhance action in all these areas.
EU: Maritime Green Paper
Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer asked Her Majesty's Government:
Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government intend to respond formally to the European Union’s maritime Green Paper once a wide-ranging consultation exercise has been completed. The Government held a conference for UK stakeholders in October that will be followed by a full written consultation exercise in November 2006. The Government will then produce a response for publication in spring 2007, in good time for the European Commission’s deadline for consultation replies (30 June 2007).
Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer asked Her Majesty's Government:
What consultations they are undertaking with interested parties and groups on their response to the European Union's maritime Green Paper.[HL8029]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government intend to consult as widely as possible in preparing the formal UK response to the EU maritime Green Paper. A conference for UK stakeholders from across the maritime sector was held in October and will be followed by a
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EU: Scrutiny Reserve
Baroness Byford asked Her Majesty's Government:
Which proposals for European Union legislation they gave agreement to were passed in 2005 and in 2006 to date on which the Scrutiny Reserve Resolution relating to the work of the House of Lords European Union Select Committee was still in place; and which of these were deemed to be confidential, routine or trivial. [HL7486]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman): The Government provide the House of Lords European Union Committee with twice-yearly reports of the occasions when Ministers gave agreement to legislative proposals in the Council of Ministers before the committee had lifted its scrutiny reserve. On each occasion, Ministers write to the chairman of the European Union Committee setting out why the Government judged it important to give agreement before scrutiny had been completed. For an accurate assessment of the reasons in each case, we would need to consult the correspondence between the lead Minister and the chairman of the committee and confirm with lead departments their assessment of the reasons. This would incur disproportionate cost.
In 2005, there were 44 occasions. However, that figure was higher than would have been the case had Parliament not been dissolved in April and May due to the general election. In 2006, there have been 15 occasions up to the end of June. Figures have yet to be compiled for the period since the end of June. I have placed copies of the reports covering the period from January 2005 to June 2006 in the Library.
Euro
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
Lord McKenzie of Luton: The Government's policy on membership of the single currency remains as set out by the Chancellor in his Statement to the House of Commons in October 1997, and again in the Chancellor's Statement on the five tests assessment in June 2003. The determining factor underpinning any government decision on membership of the single currency is the national economic interest and whether the economic case for joining is clear and unambiguous.
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European Court of Human Rights: Judgments
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, in view of the judgment of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights in Kyprianou v Cyprus, they have any proposals to change the common law on contempt in the face of the court.[HL8023]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (Baroness Ashton of Upholland): The Government do not believe that any change in UK laws is needed as a result of this judgment. The decision by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights was made on the facts of the particular case.
Food: Bowland Dairy Products
Lord Willoughby de Broke asked Her Majesty's Government:
What action the Food Standards Agency will be taking over the sanctions imposed by the European Commission on Bowland Dairy Products Ltd; and [HL7847]
Whether the Food Standards Agency agrees with the European Commission’s decision to issue emergency measures against Bowland Dairy Products Limited, which resulted in a European Union-wide product recall and the closure of the business; and [HL7848]
Whether they and the Food Standards Agency will be defending any legal action taken against them by the European Commission in connection with Bowland Dairy Products Limited.[HL7849]
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner): Statutory measures have been taken in all four countries of the United Kingdom. These implement Commission Decision 2006/694/EC,
- “prohibiting the placing on the market of curd cheese manufactured in a processing establishment in the United Kingdom”.
The United Kingdom fully shares the Commission’s desire to protect public health but was unable to support its proposed measure when it was accepted by member states by a qualified majority in the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health on 6 October, because of genuine differences of view on the science. The Commission has now undertaken to consider the scientific issues with all interested parties.
On 16 October, the Government received a letter from the European Commission, issued under Article 226 of the Treaty of Rome, as amended, setting out the Commission's view that the United Kingdom has failed to correctly enforce the relevant provisions of Regulations (EC) Nos. 853/2004, 178/2002 and 882/2004. The response from the United Kingdom authorities was sent on 23 October, and it is under consideration by the Commission. The
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The Government's position on any legal action that may be taken against them in this matter would depend on the full grounds set out for that action.
Food: Health Claims
Earl Howe asked Her Majesty's Government:
What definition has been agreed between European Union member states for generally accepted scientific evidence under the European Union nutrition and health claims made on foods regulation; and what guidance will be available to food manufacturers from the European Food Safety Authority for submissions to the Community register of health claims.[HL8013]
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner): Member states of the European Union have not agreed a definition of generally accepted scientific evidence for the EU regulation on nutrition and health claims made on foods. The Commission, with the assistance of the European Food Safety Authority, is required to give advice to food manufacturers and assistance to small businesses on the preparation and presentation of an application for the authorisation of health claims. We expect this to be addressed once the regulation is published around the end of the year.
Earl Howe asked Her Majesty's Government:
What support will be provided by (a) the Food Standards Agency, and (b) the European Food Safety Authority for small and medium-sized enterprises under the European Union nutrition and health claims made on foods regulation.[HL8014]
Lord Warner: The Food Standards Agency has worked closely with the Small Business Service and in consultation with small businesses to find ways to help them to comply with the regulation. Detailed guidance is in preparation, tailored to the needs of small business, and the agency will be consulting on this once the EU regulation on nutrition and health claims made on foods is published. The agency has published the developing list of UK health claims on its website to help small businesses to monitor and ensure that the list of generally accepted claims is complete.
The regulation refers to the importance of small businesses in the European food industry and makes it a requirement for the Commission, in close co-operation with the European Food Safety Authority, to make available technical guidance and tools to assist them in the preparation and presentation of an application for authorisation of a claim. We expect this to be addressed once the regulation is published.
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Food: Trans Fats
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner): Evidence for the health effects of trans fatty acids (TFAs) was reviewed by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy (COMA) in 1994. COMA concluded that TFAs may increase the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), as they have been shown to raise blood cholesterol levels. These conclusions were supported by the findings of the European Food Safety Authority's risk assessment of TFAs in 2004.
The heart health risks associated with saturated fats outweigh those of trans fats when the relative average population intakes are taken into account.
Foster Parents
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the remuneration and allowances of foster parents working for local authorities has increased over the past 12 months by more than the rate of inflation; and whether there is now a national minimum allowance.[HL8036]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Lord Adonis): The Government do not collect information about the level of remuneration that individual foster carers receive. We know, however, that low allowance rates, a lack of transparency about entitlements, and inefficiency in payment systems can impact on foster carers' morale. For that reason, we announced a national minimum allowance for foster carers in July 2006, alongside good practice guidance on payment systems. We expect all fostering providers to work towards meeting the national minimum allowance rates from April 2007.
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the shortage of foster parents, estimated at 8,000 in 2005, has been reduced; whether social services, in conjunction with the British Association for Adoption and Fostering and the Fostering Network, have been successful in (a) improving recruitment, and (b) developing training and support for foster parents.[HL8037]
Lord Adonis: We do not collect information centrally on the number of foster carers. However, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) has recently finalised an annual data collection which will provide a range of information about foster carers in England. The return, which will be completed by local authority and independent providers in England, will include information about the number of approved fostering households. We anticipate that data from the returns will be available for analysis in early 2007.
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With regard to training and support, evidence from the inspection of fostering services shows that local authorities’ performance is improving, particularly with regard to the management and support of carers. However, the Green Paper Care Matters: Transforming the Lives of Children and Young People in Care, published in October 2006, makes clear that more needs to be done to improve support for foster carers. The document outlines proposals for a “tiered” model of placement types, underpinned by a national qualifications framework for foster carers. The proposed model would be structured around the needs of children, with carers trained and skilled to a level matching children’s individual requirements, and would offer a ladder of career progression for carers. The proposals in the Green Paper are subject to consultation.
Freedom of Information
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether as part of the review of the operation of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 they have made an assessment of the introduction in other countries of provisions in freedom of information fees regulations (a) to include reading time, consideration time and consultation time in the calculation of the appropriate limit above which requests could be refused on cost grounds; and (b) to aggregate requests made by any legal person, or persons apparently acting in cohort, to each public authority for the purposes of calculating the appropriate limit.[HL7977]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (Baroness Ashton of Upholland): The Frontier Economics review, published by my department last month, looked only at countries where changes have been made to existing freedom of information fees regimes.
Galileo Satellite Navigation System
Lord Rotherwick asked Her Majesty's Government:
What costs have been incurred by the United Kingdom to date for the Galileo satellite navigation system; and what future cost is anticipated for the completion of the project.[HL8087]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The European Union (EU) and member states of the European Space Agency (ESA) jointly fund the development of Galileo. To date the UK's subscription to the ESA element of the programme has been €142 million. The EU's contribution to the design and development phase of Galileo is made from the EC budget and is estimated by the Commission to be €790 million. The UK makes its contributions to the EC budget as a whole and not to individual programmes within it. The UK's gross contribution to the EC budget is currently around 17 per cent, before abatement.
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The deployment and operational phase of the project will be an EU public private partnership (PPP). The provisional budget in the draft Galileo financial regulation is €900 million. There are no reliable estimates of these total costs. An assessment will be presented to Council and Parliament as the budget authorities once the main elements of the contract have been agreed. This is expected in the next few months.
The ESA has recently published an additional call seeking further contributions from its member states for the European Geo-stationary Navigational Overlay Service (EGNOS), which is now integrated with Galileo.
The UK element would be €6 million, if the Government agree to contribute. The deadline for decision is 16 November.
Gulf War Illnesses
Lord Morris of Manchester asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Statement by the Lord Drayson on 19 October (WS 87—88), when the findings on the Vaccines Interactions Research Programme, sponsored by the Ministry of Defence, will be made available in full to the Royal British Legion and placed in the Library of the House.[HL8031]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Drayson): The findings of the Vaccines Interactions Research Programme have been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals or, in the case of the study of multi-vaccinated staff at DSTL Porton Down, on the MoD website. All are publicly accessible and we have written to veterans’ organisations drawing their attention to them. Where such material is publicly available in this way, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely place copies in the Library of the House.
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