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9 Nov 2009 : Column WA107
9 Nov 2009 : Column WA107
9 Nov 2009 : Column WA107
Monday 9 November 2009
Alcohol: Labelling
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the remarks by Baroness Thornton on 1 May 2008 (WA 410) during the Committee of the Whole House on the Alcohol Labelling Bill stating that if a voluntary scheme was not adopted by industry the Government would introduce a mandatory scheme, when they intend to introduce mandatory labelling of containers of alcoholic beverages. [HL6136]
Baroness Thornton: In May 2007, the department reached a United Kingdom-wide voluntary agreement with the alcohol industry to include specified unit and health information on alcohol labels. The Government made clear their expectation that the majority of labels should be covered by the end of 2008.
We expect to be able to publish shortly the results of independent monitoring from samples taken in April 2009. We will be looking at whether a majority of labels are covered by the expected information and whether the content is consistent with the 2007 voluntary agreement.
If we find that most labels are still not complying with the voluntary agreement, we will consider what action we can take to improve compliance, including using existing powers under the Food Safety Act to make this a mandatory requirement.
We believe that consumers have a right to consistent, agreed information on at least the large majority of alcohol labels, to enable them to assess their intake of alcohol and to relate this to the Government's guidelines.
Cyprus
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the number of settlers from mainland Greece who are resident in the south of Cyprus who took residence there (a) following 1974, and (b) since the referendum in 2004. [HL5963]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead): HMG has made no such assessment. However, the Republic of Cyprus's most recent census, undertaken in 2001, can be found on the internet at the website address at http://www.pio.gov.cy/mof/cystat/statistics.nsf/All/805CB6E0CF012914C2257122003F3A84/$file/MAIN%20RESULTS-EN.xls?OpenElement.
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To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the number of Turkish Cypriots living in Greek Southern Cyprus has fallen or increased in the past two years. [HL5996]
Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: HMG has no knowledge of changes in the population of the Turkish Cypriot community in the south of Cyprus. However, the Republic of Cyprus's most recent census, undertaken in 2001, can be found on the internet at the website address at http://www.pio.gov.cy/mof/cystat/statistics.nsf/All/805CB6E0CF012914C2257122003F3A84/$file/MAIN%20RESULTS-EN.xls?OpenElement.
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the proposed memorial to British people killed by Greek Cypriot terrorists will be located in (a) Greek Cypriot Southern Cyprus, (b) the United Nations Buffer Zone between Northern and Southern Cyprus, (c) a Sovereign Base Area, or (d) Turkish Cypriot Northern Cyprus; and when that memorial will be unveiled. [HL5999]
Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: The British Cyprus Veterans Association has taken forward an independent initiative to commemorate the British service personnel who died during the EOKA campaign of the 1950s. The memorial is in Kyrenia, in Northern Cyprus, and will be unveiled on 8 November.
Cyprus: Property
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the claim of property rights in Varosha by the land-holding foundation Efkaf. [HL5964]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead): HMG are aware of these claims but believe that a comprehensive settlement to reunite Cyprus is the best solution to the complex issue of property rights.
Data Protection
Question
Asked by Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer
To ask Her Majesty's Government in the light of the launch by the European Commission of the second phase of infraction proceedings over the United Kingdom's not implementing European Union rules on privacy and personal data protection when using electronic communications, (a) what advice they received from officials on that issue, (b) what legislative action they took as a consequence, and (c) what response they will make to the European Commission press release about the infraction proceedings. [HL6156]
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): I refer the noble Baroness to the Answer I gave to her Question of 9 July 2009 (Official Report, WA140). We are considering the letter of 29 October from the European Commission and will be responding in due course.
Education: Home Schooling
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government why Ofsted has decided to investigate a sample of 15 local authorities about their provision for home educators; which 15 local authorities it will investigate; and how they were chosen. [HL5984]
To ask Her Majesty's Government what questions have been posed to home-educating parents in local authorities currently having their provision for home educators investigated by Ofsted; how those parents were chosen; what steps were taken to ensure the anonymity of their responses; and which home education organisations have been asked to provide evidence to the investigators. [HL6031]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Children, Schools and Families (Baroness Morgan of Drefelin): These are matters for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the noble Lord and copies of her replies have been placed in the Libraries.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, to Lord Lucas, dated 5 November 2009.
Your recent Parliamentary Question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response. (HL5984)
As part of Ofsted's annual programme of survey inspections, agreed in 2008, we are undertaking a survey of education otherwise than at school. This survey will cover elective education at home, as well as those children that go missing from school. It will provide independent inspection evidence about the quality of provision and outcomes for this group of children and young people.
We have identified a representative sample of 15 local authorities, based on the estimated size of the population of children educated otherwise than at school, and the location and type of the local authority, for example whether it is inner city, rural, urban, coastal or in a conurbation. Ofsted publishes the names of providers and areas visited for survey work in the final report rather than in advance of our visits, enabling us to carry out short notice visits that give us a better picture of practice on the ground. It would, therefore, be inappropriate to provide the individual local authority names at this stage.
A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, to Lord Lucas, dated 5 November 2009.
Your recent Parliamentary Question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response. (HL 6031)
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The activity to which you refer is part of an Ofsted survey of education otherwise than at school. This survey is part of Ofsted's annual programme of survey inspections, agreed in 2008.
All home educating parents in the 15 local authorities are being offered the chance to meet inspectors and to complete a voluntary, anonymous questionnaire. The information that parents give to inspectors will contribute to the evidence base for the survey, and will help to reflect the views of parents and the young people being educated at home. The questions will be about the parents' reasons for deciding to educate at home, the numbers and ages of the children involved, what has assisted parents as home educators and what the barriers have been.
Responses in meetings and to any questionnaires will be anonymous, and will be treated with the same high degree of confidentiality as all our inspection evidence. Local authority officers will not be present at the meetings and will not see the anonymous responses to the questionnaires, which are being returned directly to Ofsted. The local authorities will not have access to the evidence or findings other than what is included in the main report.
Ofsted is in contact with the Education Otherwise Government Policy Group, Education Otherwise, the Home Education Advisory Service, and local home education support groups in local authority areas.
A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.
Embryology
Questions
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answers by Lord Darzi of Denham on 3 June (WA 88-89) and by Baroness Thornton on 27 October (WA 124), whether the numbers of human gametes and embryos used in research are monitored by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority in order to ensure that the proposed use still fulfils the criteria of the research licence upon renewal; and what assessment they have made of how progress in the work undertaken has met the objectives of the original application for research licence R0152. [HL6144]
Baroness Thornton: The numbers of human gametes and embryos used in licensed research are monitored by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) in order to ensure that the proposed use still fulfils the criteria of the research licence upon renewal.
Regarding research licence R0152-granted to the Newcastle Fertility Centre at Life-I understand that the HFEA's research licence committee was informed of the number of eggs and embryos used in the research project during 2007, when it considered renewal of the licence. The inspection report to which the committee referred and the minutes of the meeting are available at www.hfea.gov.uk/2015.html#Newcastle_ Fertility_Centre_at_Life-0017 and www.hfea.gov.uk/
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Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Thornton on 27 October (WA 124), why the Answer stated that a total figure of only 36 human oocytes were used between 11 August 2004 and 3 July 2005 under research licence R0152 when the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority indicated in response to a Freedom of Information request (F-2005-00134, cited in correspondence with Lord Alton of Liverpool on 6 August 2007) that 486 human oocytes were used between 11 August 2004 and 31 March 2005. [HL6145]
Baroness Thornton: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that the figures supplied in the response to the Freedom of Information request (F-2005-00134) were incorrect. The authority is undertaking a full reconciliation and will write further to the noble Lord.
The total figure supplied for 11 August 2004 to 3 July 2005 in the Written Answer of 27 October (WA 124) is correct, save that the 36 eggs used included 10 failed-to-fertilise eggs, which should have been recorded separately. An amended table is included as follows.
| Period (inspection report date) | Fresh eggs used | Failed-to-fertilise eggs used |
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Thornton on 28 October (WA 151), whether UK Biobank does not expect to receive any applications to use the samples it holds to create cloned human embryos or human admixed embryos because it would not fall within the scope of improving the health of future generations. [HL6146]
Baroness Thornton: UK Biobank has made no judgment of this sort. UK Biobank will give full and proper consideration to any proposal for the use of the samples it holds for the purposes the noble Lord describes if, and when, any such proposal is received.
9 Nov 2009 : Column WA112
Asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answers by Baroness Thornton on 28 October (WA 150-51), whether tissue banks providing material for research are required to use contact information at their disposal in order to ensure that researchers can fulfil the requirements of paragraph 21(4) of Schedule 3 to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008. [HL6147]
Baroness Thornton: There is no legal requirement on tissue banks to use contact information at their disposal to aid researchers.
In considering whether to grant a research licence to a project which proposed to use human cells without consent in the creation of embryos, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority would expect the applicant to show that they had complied with the provisions in the Human Embryology and Fertilisation Act 1990 (as amended). In particular, the applicant would need to demonstrate that they had taken reasonable steps to contact the cell provider or, where the cell provider was dead, to contact people in a qualifying relationship to the cell provider.
EU: Diplomatic Service
Question
Asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether negotiations are taking place with other member states of the European Union about the European Union diplomatic service in advance of the possible implementation of the Lisbon treaty; and, if so, what position they are taking on the relationship between the European Union and United Kingdom diplomatic services, particularly on the issue of maintenance of the statutes and power of the United Kingdom diplomatic service. [HL5825]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead): No decisions on treaty implementation issues can be taken until the treaty of Lisbon enters into force. When the Lisbon treaty comes into force then the detailed organisation and functioning of the European External Action Service will be decided by the member states by unanimity on the basis of a proposal from the high representative. Coreper ambassadors have discussed a number of issues related to the European External Action Service and a text has been forwarded to the European Council as possible input into the high representative's eventual proposal. There are no plans to discuss the maintenance of the Orders in Council and the diplomatic service regulations of the United Kingdom diplomatic service. Article 27 (paragraph 3) of the TEU states that the European External Action Service will work in co-operation with the diplomatic services of the member states.
9 Nov 2009 : Column WA113
Foreign Policy
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government in exercising their foreign policy, what are the characteristics of an area by which they regard it as a country. [HL5958]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead): As a matter of foreign policy, the Government do not take a view as to whether an area is a country. The term "country" has no specific meaning under international law unlike the term "state". The issue is really whether an area or a country can be recognised as a state. The normal criteria which the Government would apply for the recognition of a state remain those that are set out in the Written Answer dated 16 November 1989 (Official Report, col. 494 ) by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. They are that "it should have, and seem likely to continue to have, a clearly defined territory with a population, a Government who are themselves able to exercise effective control of that territory, and independence in their external relations. Other factors, including some United Nations resolutions, may also be relevant".
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