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Written Answers
Thursday, 18th March 1999.
Millennium Date Change
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What their plans are to inform the British public about the potential problems associated with travelling, living and doing business overseas during the millennium date-change period.[HL1623]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean): We are issuing two sets of advice about potential millennium bug disruptions overseas. The first will alert British nationals who plan to travel or will be resident overseas in the period late 1999 to early 2000 to the problem. The second will address the possible international consequences of the millennium bug for British businesses. Copies of these advice notices have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Developing Countries: Debt
Lord Alton of Liverpool asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What are the current debts of the world's 25 poorest nations; what is the estimated size of the debts of the developing countries; what are the current levels of repayment; how much is repaid to the United Kingdom annually; and how this compares with the size of our current aid programme.[HL1409]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The table below shows, for the latest year available, figures from the World Bank's Global Development Finance 1998 on the debts owed by the world's 25 poorest nations, defined as the countries with the lowest GNP per capita, the debt service received by ECGD in 1998 and UK bilateral aid in 1997-98 excluding aid given through multilateral programmes such as EC, World Bank Group, Regional Development Bank Group, Commonwealth, UN agencies and international research organisations.
| Country | Total Long-term Debt Burden (US$m) in 1996 | Total Debt Service Paid (US$m) in 1996 | Debt Service Received by ECGD 1998 (£000s) | Bilateral Aid Programme from UK 1997-98 (£000s) |
| Angola | 9,400 | 645 | 0 | 5,131 |
| Bangladesh | 15,403 | 595 | 0 | 38,865 |
| Burkina Faso | 1,160 | 45 | 81 | 156 |
| Burundi | 1,081 | 21 | 0 | 1,602 |
| Cambodia | 2,023 | 8 | 0 | 4,748 |
| Central African Republic | 844 | 5.2 | 0 | -- |
| Chad | 914 | 22.9 | 0 | 153 |
| DR Congo | 9,262 | 0 | 0 | 6,911 |
| Ethiopia | 10,077 | 346 | 564 | 7,357 |
| Guinea-Bissau | 856 | 9.6 | 0 | 76 |
| Haiti | 836 | 20.7 | 0 | 125 |
| Kenya | 6,022 | 747 | 11,554 | 29,213 |
| Madagascar | 3,589 | 55 | 529 | 477 |
| Malawi | 2,092 | 68 | 86 | 25,694 |
| Mali | 2,776 | 106 | 263 | 697 |
| Mozambique | 5,476 | 140 | 355 | 21,938 |
| Nepal | 2,349 | 76 | 0 | 17,252 |
| Niger | 1,460 | 43 | 152 | 151 |
| Nigeria | 25,731 | 2,461 | 0 | 9,071 |
| Rwanda | 977 | 16 | 0 | 6,198 |
| Sierra Leone | 892 | 54 | 0 | 3,133 |
| Tanzania | 6,149 | 229 | 0 | 42,167 |
| Togo | 1,285 | 42 | 366 | 80 |
| Uganda | 3,151 | 95 | 406 | 47,875 |
| Vietnam | 22,344 | 251 | 821 | 4,329 |
There are some 165 developing countries listed in Part I of the DAC list of aid recipients. Global Development Finance shows the total long-term debt stock held by these countries in 1996 to be 1,400 billion US dollars, and the total debt service paid to be 207 billion US dollars.
Euro
The Earl of Dartmouth asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether, in the event of larger-scale selling of the euro on the international markets, there is a treaty obligation on the British Government or the Bank of England to accede to a request to support the euro currency.[HL1482]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: There is no treaty obligation on the British Government or the Bank of England to accede to a request to support the euro.
Buxton Memorial Fountain
The Earl of Sandwich asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they have any plans to renovate the Buxton memorial fountain in Victoria Tower Gardens which commemorates the emancipation of slaves in 1834.[HL1366]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Responsibility for the subject of this Question has been delegated to the Royal Parks Agency under its Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to the Earl of Sandwich from the Head of Policy of the Royal Parks Agency, Viviane Robertson, dated 18 March 1999.
In the absence of the Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch, I have been asked by the Secretary of State for
Culture, Media and Sport to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the Buxton memorial fountain in Victoria Tower Gardens because it concerns an operational matter for which the Agency is responsible.It is our long-term aim to restore the Buxton memorial fountain to full working order when resources allow. In the meantime we are carrying out maintenance and repair works as necessary to preserve the fabric of the memorial.
Hyde Park: North Carriage Drive Closure
Lord Kennet asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the Royal Parks Agency is planning to secure estimates of the costs, in money and in other terms, to (a) Londoners and (b) local residents, of their plan to close the North Carriage Drive of Hyde Park during three months this summer, including particularly the costs of any environmental and social degradation involved; and, if not, whether the Government will now instruct them to do so.[HL1464]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Responsibility for the subject of this Question has been delegated to the Royal Parks Agency under its Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Kennet from the Head of Policy of the Royal Parks Agency, Viviane Robertson, dated 18 March 1999.
In the absence of the Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch, I have been asked by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the proposed closure of North Carriage Drive, Hyde Park, during the summer.
As I explained in my reply of 8 February to your previous Parliamentary Question on this subject, we have not yet made a decision as to when we will need to close North Carriage Drive this summer. This will depend on the periods required to set up and dismantle the concert sites, but we will ensure that the closures are for the shortest time possible. By allowing contractors to park on North Carriage Drive we seek to minimise the flow of contractors' vehicles outside the park and to stop them from parking in neighbouring streets.
We do not believe it would be feasible to obtain estimates of the costs to Londoners and to local residents of any closure of North Carriage Drive that may be necessary. Previous traffic studies indicate that the closure of the road does not have a significant impact on traffic flows in the area. However, we plan to carry out a more detailed traffic study while the road is closed in the summer to verify what the impact is.
The Mall: Closure
Lord Kennet asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether the Royal Parks Agency is obtaining estimates, in money and other terms, of the costs to Londoners of their decision recently to close all but one lane of the Mall for three months and all of it for three weeks; and, if not, whether the Government will now instruct them to do so; and[HL1462]
What objections were received by them or the Royal Parks Agency, and from whom, concerning the Royal Parks Agency's closure of the Mall.[HL1463]
Lord McIntosh of Haringey: Responsibility for the subject of these questions has been delegated to the Royal Parks Agency under its Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter to Lord Kennet from the Head of Policy of the Royal Parks Agency, Viviane Robertson, dated 18 March 1999.
In the absence of the Chief Executive, Mr. David Welch, I have been asked by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to reply to your two Parliamentary Questions about closure of the Mall.
The Mall was closed in one direction for five weeks (not three months) and in both directions for almost three weeks. The works were completed two days ahead of schedule and the Mall was reopened on 5 March.
The agency did not obtain estimates of the costs to Londoners that you mention. It would be difficult to collect and quantify such information. However, we consulted Westminster City Council, as the local highway authority, and the Metropolitan Police about the proposed works on the Mall, and the programme of works drawn up--including closure of the Mall for part of the time--reflected their joint advice. Our aim was to complete the works in as short a time as possible and to minimise disruption to traffic. Diversion signs were erected, in accordance with police recommendations, two weeks before the works started, as were warning signs on routes coming into central London.
We received 21 telephone calls and two letters from members of the public complaining about the re-surfacing works on the Mall and two Parliamentary Questions in addition to your own.
North Durham Healthcare Trust
Baroness Gould of Potternewton asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they will respond to the recent report on the PFI scheme at North Durham Healthcare
NHS Trust.[HL1622]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Baroness Hayman): We have today placed copies of a response to the report in the Library.
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