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Nepal
Question
Asked by The Archbishop of York
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will encourage the Government of Nepal to honour its obligations under international human rights treaties by guaranteeing freedom of religion and belief in their new constitution. [HL6317]
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead): We regularly raise with the Government and political parties of Nepal the importance of ensuring that the new constitution is fully in line with Nepal's commitments under international human rights treaties. The interim constitution of Nepal already provides for freedom of religion, and Nepal was declared a secular state by the interim parliament in 2007. We will continue to urge the government of Nepal to give priority to the implementation of all rights and freedoms, including religious freedoms.
Non-Domestic Rating Regulations 2009
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the remarks by Lord McKenzie of Luton on 14 October (Official Report, House of Lords, col. 295) on the Non-Domestic Rating Regulations 2009, whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the note on whether primary legislation would be required to stop backdated liabilities of port taxes. [HL6124]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Department for Work and Pensions (Lord McKenzie of Luton): The note I referred to at the debate was an informal briefing note informing me that the legal opinion provided by the Ports Lobby group had been received by the department. This note is no longer available to be put into the House Library.
The department is considering the content of the legal opinion provided.
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Northern Ireland Office: Business Cards
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what savings have been made by the Northern Ireland Office since 2004 by reducing the use of printed business cards. [HL6280]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: Printed business card savings of £5,000 have been made since 2004 by the Northern Ireland Office (including its arm's-length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs).
Northern Ireland Office: Efficiency Initiatives
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the corporate file plan to manage parliamentary Questions in the list of efficiency initiatives identified by the Northern Ireland Office as part of the 2004 Comprehensive Spending Review; and how much has been saved as a result each year. [HL6279]
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Baroness Royall of Blaisdon): This initiative reflects savings in staff time across the Northern Ireland Office as a result of introducing a more efficient IT-based system for managing the parliamentary Questions process using the department's corporate file plan. This has generated recurring savings of £64,000 per annum since 2005-06.
Northern Ireland Office: Staff
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many posts there are in the Northern Ireland Office Political Directorate; whether the number of posts has reduced in recent years; if so, by how much; and what is the annual saving therefrom. [HL6253]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: There are currently 120 posts in the Political Directorate of the Northern Ireland Office. The following table details the number of staff in the Political Directorate over the last five years:
| Year (April) | Actual Staff in Post |
The increase in staff for the current year resulted from the management of both Hillsborough Castle and Stormont House moving from another directorate into the Inquiries and Corporate Services Division, which is part of the Political Directorate.
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To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the objectives of the Northern Ireland Office's Political Directorate; and why it has been absorbed into the British-Irish Intergovernmental Secretariat. [HL6254]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: The Northern Ireland Office's departmental strategic objectives (DSOs) arising from CSR07 are published on the Department's website (http://www.nio.gov.uk/index/a-z.htm).
The Political Directorate of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has lead responsibility for DSO 1-a stable devolved government in Northern Ireland with responsibility for policing and justice, and a society reconciled with the past.
The NIO Political Directorate has not been absorbed into the British-Irish Intergovernmental Secretariat (BIIGS). BIIGS is a separate body which was established as a result of an international agreement between the British and Irish Governments. The British side of the Secretariat is staffed by civil servants from the NIO Political Directorate.
Northern Ireland Office: Taxis
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Royall of Blaisdon on 2 November (WA 19) concerning the cost of taxis used by the Northern Ireland Office, why the cost of taxis increased from £24,163 in 2004-05 to £74,767 in 2008-09. [HL6249]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: The increase in expenditure on taxis in the Northern Ireland Office followed a review in 2007 when the department adopted a policy which made greater use of taxis rather than private hire cars. While this change in policy has led to an increase in the cost of taxis, it has generated estimated whole-year net savings of £150,000.
Each member of staff is advised that, before any business-related journey is made, the most cost-effective means of transport must be considered. Where the use of public transport or private car is not possible or economic, the journey may be made by taxi.
The NIO keeps the cost of travel on official business under regular review.
Northern Ireland: Atlantic Philanthropies
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what checks they carried out on Atlantic Philanthropies before that organisation was allowed to provide funding to public bodies. [HL5988]
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Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's initial proposal requesting permission to access external funding from Atlantic Philanthropies included its assessment that the organisation was a credible funding body.
To inform the Secretary of State's decision on this matter, further research was carried out to establish background information on the organisation, including its purpose and aims, criteria for funding, corporate governance arrangements and financial information. Information on existing funding relationships was also considered and it was noted that the organisation has funded a wide range of bodies in the public, private and voluntary sector on a non-sectarian basis. That information is all publicly available and supports the initial assessment of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission.
Northern Ireland: Human Rights Commission
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Royall of Blaisdon on 12 October (WA 16) concerning the supply of funding by the Atlantic Philanthropies to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, why the funding was considered to be appropriate; and whether they considered the issue of equality. [HL5883]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: Correspondence explaining the decision in full has been placed in the Library of the House. As set out in my answer of 12 October 2009, Official Report, Cols WA 16-17, the decision to allow the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to access external funding was permissible under the terms of its management statement and financial memorandum. There is no reason to believe that this decision had a significant impact on equality of opportunity.
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many appraisals of the chief commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission have been presented to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland since her appointment; and whether they will place copies of such documents in the Library of the House. [HL5885]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: Informal appraisals of the chief commissioner's performance have taken place throughout her tenure and informed the Secretary of State's decision on her suitability for reappointment in 2008. Details relating to the performance of any public appointee, whether formal or informal, would generally be regarded as personal information.
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will place in the Library of the House all correspondence they had with the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission in the first two weeks of September 2009. [HL5985]
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Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: On 9 September 2009, an invitation was sent to the chief commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to a dinner at Hillsborough Castle on 14 September 2009. Copies will be placed in the Library of the House.
Pensions
Questions
Asked by Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated cost of uprating the basic state pension on the basis of average earnings in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2015. [HL5483]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government & Department for Work and Pensions (Lord McKenzie of Luton): In the 2009 Budget the Chancellor committed to increasing the basic state pension by 2.5 per cent when this is higher than September RPI inflation. This will apply in 2010, which means that the increase in the basic state pension will also exceed growth in average earnings.
The gross and net additional basic state pension spend due to increasing the basic state pension by earnings from 2010 and the 2007 Pensions Act reforms are given in the table below:
| Additional basic State Pension spend due to pension reform and uprating the basic State Pension by earnings from 2010/11, £ billions 2009/10 price terms | ||
| Gross | Net of income related benefits | |
- 8. Baseline published projections of expenditure on pensioner benefits assume that the basic state pension is increased by earnings from 2012. Prior to 2012, projections assume that the basic state pension is uprated by the greater of RPI or 2.5 per cent.
- 9. Estimates given show the gross additional basic state pension spend due to increasing the basic state pension by earnings from 2010 and implementing all of the other 2007 Pensions Act reforms to the basic state pension from April 2010 relative to uprating by RPI or 2.5 per cent. They also reflect the estimated savings from reduced income-related benefit payments (pension credit, housing benefit and council tax benefit). During the next Parliament, we will re-link the uprating of the basic state pension to average earnings. Our objective, subject to affordability and the fiscal position, is to do this in 2012, but in any event by the end of the next Parliament at the latest. We will make a statement on the precise date at the beginning of the next Parliament.
- 10. In the financial years up to and including 2014-15 Treasury economic assumptions consistent with Table C1 of the Budget Report 2009 have been used to model earnings uprating. Economic assumptions for uprating beyond 2014-15 are beyond the Budget 2009 forecast.
- 11. The costs and savings estimates provided are based on future projections of earnings and price inflation-which are inherently uncertain and subject to change, particularly in light of the current economic uncertainty. This is underlined by the fact that
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- 12. Generally earnings rise faster than prices resulting in a greater cost from earnings uprating that would build over time-this would still be expected to hold over the medium and long term. Therefore despite the initial savings produced under current inflation forecasts, the introduction of earnings uprating would still be expected to increase expenditure on the basic state pension significantly as the cumulative costs of this policy grow over time.
- 13. If the restoration of the earnings link to the basic state pension were brought forward to 2010, the weekly value of the basic state pension to pensioners would be below the 2.5 per cent increase committed to by the Chancellor at Budget 09.
- 14. Estimates are in 2009-10 prices, have been rounded to the nearest £100 million and include UK and overseas claimants.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the pension arrangements of the Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; and what is the annual cost of funding those arrangements. [HL5805]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon:Pension contributions for the current Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) are made to an existing employer's pension scheme. The annual cost of pension provision in 2007-08 was £7,436, as set out in the NIHRC annual accounts, available in the Libraries of both Houses. The 2008-09 accounts will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses once these are finalised.
People Trafficking
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support services are in place for victims of child trafficking. [HL6228]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): Government guidance-Safeguarding Children who may have been trafficked (2007)-issued to supplement and to be used in conjunction with the statutory safeguarding guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children (2006) includes detailed information for local authorities about how their safeguarding responsibilities must apply to children who may have been trafficked.
Where a young person, such as, for example, an unaccompanied asylum-seeking child (UASC), presents to a local authority as having no parent or guardian in this country, then in fulfilling its duties to assess and respond to their needs, the local authority may conclude that it should accommodate the young person using its powers under the Children Act 1989. In these circumstances, the local authority will have duties to the young person as a looked-after child. Each child must have a care plan based on a thorough assessment, outlining how the local authority proposes to meet the individual child's needs.
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