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18 Jan 2007 : Column WA171
Written Answers
Thursday 18 January 2007
Animal Welfare
Lord Bradley asked Her Majesty's Government:
When secondary legislation consequential on the Animal Welfare Act 2006 will be laid before Parliament. [HL1246]
The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Rooker): The table below outlines in full our intended timetable for the introduction of secondary legislation under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Anti-social Behaviour Orders
Lord Steinberg asked Her Majesty's Government:
Lord Bassam of Brighton: The number of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued in 2005 (latest available) in England and Wales, as reported to the Home Office by the Court Service, is 4,060. The Scottish Executive advises that 283 ASBOs were granted in Scotland in 2005-06 (latest available). The Northern Ireland Office advises that 24 ASBOs were made in Northern Ireland in 2006.
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Benefits: Winter Fuel Payment
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by the Lord McKenzie of Luton on 19 December 2006 (WA 273), what savings to the Exchequer would result if the winter fuel payment to pensioners were made fully taxable; and what could be the increase in winter fuel payment for all pensioners from that saving. [HL1157]
Lord Davies of Oldham: Winter fuel payments are worth £200 to households with someone aged 60 or over and £300 to households with someone aged 80 or over. Estimates suggest that making winter fuel payments fully taxable would raise revenue of around £465 million. This would represent an increase of around £55 for each of the 8.5 million households that receive winter fuel payments.
The estimation of revenue raised excludes those in residential care and relies on a number of simplifying assumptions such as 100 per cent take-up of winter fuel payments and no behavioural change. Taxing winter fuel payments would be administratively complicated, and this administrative cost is also not taken into account.
British Citizenship
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, having regard to the total prohibition on dual nationality in Nepal, which was communicated on 22 November 2006 to the Home Office and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office by the Nepalese Ministries of Home and Foreign Affairs at a meeting in Kathmandu, there are any circumstances under which a person would (a) have failed to become a British overseas citizen under Article 6(1) of the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986; and (b) as a British Overseas citizen, not be entitled to registration as a British citizen, if (i) he was born before 1 July 1997; (ii) immediately before 1 July 1997 he was a British Dependent Territories citizen; (iii) he ceased to be a British Dependent Territories citizen on 1 July 1997 under Article 3 of the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986; (iv) at the time of his birth his father was a citizen of Nepal; (v) he has not registered as a British national (overseas); (vi) other than a nationality or citizenship held as a consequence of (i) to (v) above, he has never held any other nationality or citizenship; and (vii) he has mistakenly applied for and holds a Nepalese passport because in good faith both he and the Nepalese authorities believed he was solely a citizen of Nepal and were unaware that he holds British nationality. [HL1088]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: As the noble Lord is aware, discussions between the Her Majesty’s Government and the Nepalese Government are still continuing, and we are still awaiting formal confirmation from the Nepalese side that a note of the meeting prepared by our side accurately records the Nepalese position.
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Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Under what circumstances a person would not have been a British Dependent Territories citizen on 4 February and 30 June 1997, if (a) he was born in Hong Kong after 31 December 1948 and before 1 January 1983; (b) at the time of his birth his father did not possesses immunity from suit and legal process as was accorded to an envoy of a foreign country; (c) at the time of his birth his father was not an enemy alien and Hong Kong was not under occupation by the enemy; and (d) he has not made renunciation of British nationality. [HL1252]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: Whether such a person would have had a claim to British Dependent Territories citizenship is a matter of law which can be determined conclusively only by the courts. However, from the information provided, it appears that a person with the circumstances you have described would have been a British Dependent Territories citizen on those dates.
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Under what circumstances a person would not have been a British Dependent Territories citizen on 4 February and 30 June 1997, if (a) he was born in Hong Kong after 31 December 1982 and on or before 4 February 1997; and (b) at the time of his birth his father or his mother was a British Dependent Territories citizen or was settled in Hong Kong. [HL1253]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: Whether such a person would have had a claim to British Dependent Territories citizenship is a matter of law which can be determined conclusively only by the courts. However, subject to his never having renounced citizenship, I cannot envisage circumstances in which such a person would not have been a British Dependent Territories citizen on those dates.
Children: Policy Review
Lord Hylton asked Her Majesty's Government:
Why their policy review of children and young people (January 2007) did not mention foster parents, stable placements or the training of staff in children's homes. [HL1234]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Lord Adonis): Improving outcomes for children in care is already a key priority for the Government. The children and young people's review discussion paper, published on 9 January 2007, examined new evidence on how we can improve outcomes for all children by: fulfilling their potential through better prevention and early intervention; helping young people reach their full potential; achieving better outcomes for disabled children; and supporting families caught in a cycle of low achievement. It did not focus specifically on children in care because the Government have published two key documents on these issues in recent months.
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New proposals on children in care were set out in the Care Matters Green Paper, which was launched for consultation in October. It focuses on early intervention, strengthening the corporate parenting role, high quality placements and education. In addition, the report of the Options for Excellence Review published in October 2006 provides a framework for future developments for the social care workforce. This focuses on five key areas: continuing professional development, recruitment and retention, new ways of working, strengthening leadership and management and improved commissioning. Copies of these documents are available in the Libraries of both Houses.
Children: UN Conventions
Lord Roberts of Llandudno asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will indicate the date when they will sign up in its entirety to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. [HL1286]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Lord Adonis): The Government signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child on 19 April 1990. Subsequently—on 7 September 2000—the Government signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict.
Climate Change
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
What assessment they have made of the response by the Confederation of British Industry and United Kingdom companies to their proposals on climate change controls. [HL1074]
The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Rooker): The CBI's director-general has recently highlighted that the business community is serious about playing a full and active role in tackling climate change alongside other key players. The CBI’s new climate change task force will help to encourage the actions necessary to enable business to achieve its contribution. The CBI also supports the Government’s Climate Change Bill and will now work to ensure that the resulting policy framework is effective while ensuring that a healthy and competitive business base is maintained.
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether their present policy of increasing wetlands environmental zones will counter the effects of pollution, incorrect waste disposal and global warming in and near large United Kingdom conurbations. [HL1188]
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Lord Rooker: The Government believe that the creation and restoration of wetlands, especially peatlands, can help reduce the effects of climate change by sequestration of carbon. Further information is available on the Defra website at www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/biodiversity/biostrat/index.htm.
The Government are seeking to promote integrated urban drainage. Further information on this is available in Making Space for Water: First Government Response, which is available on the Defra website at www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/strategy.htm. On 15 January, my honourable friend the Minister for Climate Change and Environment announced 15 pilot projects in urban areas to provide the Government with information on the best working arrangements for managing urban flood risk. The pilots are due to be completed by April 2008.
Sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) can include in their design small wetlands. They can intercept pollution from storm drains and run-off from hard surfaces, such as roads and car parks. They are an integral part of the pilot projects.
Wetlands, as functioning biological systems, can clean water by a mix of physical and biological mechanisms. Natural wetlands are shallow, permanently flooded or wet marshy ground populated with macroyphytic vascular plants (that is, reeds). Constructed wetlands are now a very widespread and quite well understood form of soft engineering for pollution mitigation. However, the primary function of wetland systems in the UK and Europe is now the provision of biodiversity. Most wetlands are under conservation designation, which may compromise their function to clean water. Many would benefit from clean water entering the system, because pollutants can compromise the biodiversity of the ecosystem.
Crime: Domestic Violence
Lord Ouseley asked Her Majesty's Government:
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): Available data for England, Wales and Scotland relate to currently recorded offences of homicide (murder, manslaughter and infanticide) where the relationship of the victim to the principal suspect includes current or former spouse, cohabitant or lover, and were published in Violent Crime Overview, Homicide and Gun Crime 2004/2005 (HOSB 02/06) and Homicide in Scotland, 2005/06. Figures for Northern Ireland relate to the recorded crime data collection, where offences of murder have been classified as domestic-related.
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