To ask the Prime Minister when he expects to lay the Intelligence and Security Committee's Report on Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction—Intelligence and Assessments before Parliament.[130290]

I am grateful to the Intelligence and Security Committee for their Report on Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction—Intelligence and Assessments. I have today laid the Report before the House. The Government will respond formally to it in due course. Copies will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will rescind the powers given to Mr. Jonathan Powell to direct civil servants. [129278]

I have no plans to do so.

To ask the Prime Minister under what circumstances he has sought advice on presentational matters from the right hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson). [129279]

I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues and others on a wide range of subjects and will continue to do so. As with previous Administrations, it is not my practice to provide details of confidential discussions, under exemption 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Water and sewerage undertakers/ water undertakers	Significant shares (over 25 per cent.) in appointee	Ultimate holding company and where H is based	Significant shares (over 25 per cent.) in holding company
Anglian Water Services Ltd.	100 per cent. AWG plc	Anglian Water Group plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
South Staffordshire Water plc	100 per cent. South Staffordshire Group plc	South Staffordshire Group plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
Severn Trent Water Ltd.	100 per cent. Severn Trent Water plc	Severn Trent Water plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
Cambridge Water plc	100 per cent. Ufacex UK Holdings plc	Union Electricia Fensoa SA (Spain)	n/a
Tendring Hundred Water Services Ltd.	99.23 per cent. VW Capital Funds plc	Veolia Environnement (France)	n/a
Northumbrian Water Ltd.	100 per cent. Northumbrian Water Services.	Northumbrian Water Groan plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
United Utilities Water plc	100 per cent. United Utilities plc	United Utilities plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
Southern Water Services Ltd.	100 per cent. SWS Holdings Ltd.	Southern Water Investment Ltd. (UK)	Royal Bank of Scotland
Portsmouth Water plc	100 per cent. Portsmouth Water Holdings Ltd.	South Downs Capital Ltd. (UK)	n/a privately owned
South East Water plc	100 per cent. Saur Water Services plc	Boygues SA (France)	100 per cent. Saur (UK) Ltd.
Mid Kent Water plc	99.98 per cent. Mid Kent Financing Ltd.	Swan Capital Group Ltd./WestLB (UK)	n/a privately owned
Folkestone and Dover Water Services Ltd.	74.07 per cent. VW Capital Funds plc, 25.05 per cent. Southern Water plc	Veolia Environnement (France)	n/a
South West Water Services Ltd.	100 per cent. Pennon Group plc	Pennon Group plc (UK)	None over 25 per cent.
Thames Water Utilities Ltd.	100 per cent. Thames Water plc	Thames Water Aqua Holdings GmbH (RWE AG) (Germany)	None over 25 per cent.
Three Valleys Water Services plc	100 per cent. VW Capital Funds plc	Veolia Environnment (France)	n/a

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much public funding the Carbon Trust has received since it was established. [128034]

The Carbon Trust was allocated £26.5 million in 2001–02 by my Department, and a total of £49.6 million for 2002–03 (including £17.1 million from the Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme). The Carbon Trust has been allocated £50.6 million for 2003–04 (including £17.1 million from the Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme).The devolved Administrations have separate funding relationships with the Carbon Trust.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to introduce waste minimisation targets. [126715]

The Government recognise that progress must be made to reduce waste. However, before considering setting waste reduction targets for local authorities, the Government will consider the levers local authorities have for reducing waste and whether a reduction target would be an effective means of encouraging waste reduction.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the water companies supplying domestic industries, indicating the nationality of the individuals and organisations with a controlling interest. [128297]

The following table shows the information for water and sewerage and water only undertakers. The table shows in brackets the country where the ultimate holding company's head office is located.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the major civil emergency exercise postponed from 23 March 2003 will take place in London. [128656]

An exercise to test specific elements of the emergency services' response to a chemical attack on the London Underground, postponed from 23 March 2003, took place on 7 September 2003. This was one of a regular series of exercises being held in London and throughout the UK.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures are in place to ensure the safe transport of radioactive materials; and what recent discussions have taken place with the nuclear industry regarding the safe disposal of its radioactive waste. [128109]

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) publishes internationally agreed standards for the transport of radioactive material. These are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure they reflect current safety standards and reflect current transport practices. These IAEA standards form the basis for various modal standards, which in turn, become the basis of legislation in the UK. There is a continuous cycle of reviewing IAEA standards and implementing them nationally.Legislation in the United Kingdom is brought into line with the currently applicable version of these IAEA technical requirements on a regular basis, the latest amendment being SI 2003 No. 1867, The Radioactive Material (Road Transport) (Amendment) Regulations 2003.Policy for the long-term management of the UK's higher activity radioactive waste is currently under review as part of the "Managing Radioactive Waste Safely" programme. Industry had the opportunity to input its views in respect to the original September 2001 consultation document. There will be further opportunities for input of views as the programme proceeds under the oversight of the new Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM). Ownership of the UK's low level waste disposal facility at Drigg will pass to the proposed new Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) when this is established. The July 2002 "Managing the Nuclear

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to be able to make an announcement regarding airport expansion. [R] [129633]

The Government intend to publish their conclusions on 'The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom' consultation in a White Paper later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will publish the regulations required to help local authorities designate Quiet Lanes. [128869]

We are aiming to publish regulations on Quiet Lanes in draft for consultation later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to change regulations to ensure that anyone who sails a boat at sea has first participated in adequate safety training; and for what reasons there are no training requirements in place for those taking boats under 25 feet out to sea. [129119]

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) in conjunction with other safety organisations has produced a voluntary code of Best and Safe Practice for Leisure Craft Users. This code is widely available, and encourages boat users to become familiar with their craft and to take a recognised training course. We keep the voluntary approach to training under review, taking account of the practicalities of implementation and enforcement that a regulatory regime would involve. All craft using our seas, regardless of size, must follow the rules of the International Regulations for the Avoidance of Collisions at Sea 1972 (as amended).

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the companies holding railway franchises indicating the nationality of the individuals and organisations holding a controlling interest. [128305]

The majority of the holding companies are of British origin except for Keolis and Vivendi who are French. We do not hold information about the nationality of individual directors. Information about franchise operators and franchisees is available on the website of the Strategic Rail Authority at: http://www.sra.gov.uk/passengers/tocs.tt2

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what public subsidies have been made available to the railway industry in each year since 1983. [128304]

I refer my right hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 28 April 2003, Official Report, columns 7–10W. In 2002–03, central Government support to the rail industry was £2,284 million. The increase in support since 2000–01 has helped to fund a substantial increase in investment from £2,958 million in 2000–01 to £4,888 million in 2002–03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport in how many accidents involving drivers (a) mobile telephone use and (b) smoking were identified as contributory factors in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [128812]

The information requested is not available as the official road casualty statistics which are collected by the police and reported to the Department using the STATS 19 accident report format does not currently include information on either smoking or mobile phones.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) passengers and (b) crew in (i) public service vehicles, (ii) hired coaches and minibuses and (iii) taxis and private hire vehicles suffered fatal accidents in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [129334]

The number of passengers and drivers of coaches, minibuses and taxis who have died in road accidents is given in the tables below. Vehicles are defined by body type.

a) Passengers
	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002
Bus or Coach1	17	11	14	10	17
Minibus2	N/A4	10	11	19	5
Taxi3	3	4	4	3	2

b) Drivers5
	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002
Bus or Coach1	1	0	1	4	2
Minibus2	N/A4	5	3	5	2
Taxi3	2	6	8	1	4

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what changes since 1997 have been made to the COBA formula for determining the value of road projects, with particular reference to the weighting of environmental factors against economic and safety considerations. [129261]

All major (and many minor) road projects are now analysed within the New Approach To Appraisal (NATA) framework, implemented in 1998. The NATA is a problem-oriented approach, focused on a range of alternative options to determine which provides the most effective solution within the context of a range of economic, environmental and social (including safety) objectives. Environmental factors are not given any explicit weighting. Rather an appropriate measure of each impact is presented to decision takers in the form of a one page Appraisal Summary Table to ensure that the full range of economic, environmental and social factors are actively considered during analysis and at decision points.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much additional terminal capacity would be required if two new runways were to be built at Gatwick; and how this additional capacity would be expressed as a multiple of the capacity at Heathrow Terminal 5. [128999]

The option for two new runways at Gatwick would provide total capacity of 115mppa. This is an additional terminal capacity of 75mppa beyond the base case capacity of 40mppa. Terminal capacity at Gatwick would be a multiple of 2.5 of the capacity at Heathrow Terminal 5 (based on T5 capacity of 30mppa). The amount and timing of terminal capacity provided would, in practice, depend on actual demand.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total net economic benefit would be using the assumptions recommended by the Treasury, of (a) a close parallel runway, (b) a wide spaced runway at Gatwick and (c) a new runway at (i) Heathrow and (ii) Stansted. [129006]

The total net economic benefit in present value terms, using the Treasury's assumptions, of (a) a close parallel runway at Gatwick is £1.8 billion, (b) a wide spaced runway at Gatwick is £4.4 billion,(c) (i) a new runway at Heathrow is £6.3 billion and (ii) a new runway at Stansted is £5.4 billion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy that in the forthcoming White Paper on Air Transport there will be no positive reference to new runways at sites, which were not included in the consultation on the Future Development of Air Transport, without a full public consultation. [129009]

The Government have not yet taken any decisions on policies for the air transport White Paper. A number of proposals for new airport capacity at sites which were not included in the Government's consultation document have been submitted as responses to the consultation. These are being considered. If the Government were minded to favour any of these options it would be necessary to consult separately on them.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will publish his responses to the consultation on the Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom. [129010]

The Government intend to publish their conclusions on the Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom consultation in a White Paper later this year.The Secretary of State gave an undertaking to the Transport Select Committee, in oral evidence on 21 May, to publish the White Paper before the end of 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to recommend that BAA and the West Sussex County Council extend their 2001 legal agreement on Gatwick Airport until 2030. [129011]

The Government have not yet taken any decisions on policies for the air transport White Paper. The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom consultation closed on June and the many thousands of responses are currently being analysed. It remains the intention to publish the White Paper later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what total percentage fall in the cost of air travel over the period 2000 to 2030 is assumed in the future demand forecasts given in the consultation paper 'The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom'.[129012]

The central national forecast published in 'Air Traffic Forecasts for the United Kingdom 2000', May 2000, assumed that there will be a 1 per cent. reduction per annum in air fares in real terms between 2000 and 2020. No further reduction was assumed between 2020 and 2030. However, as described in Chapter 5 of 'The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom—South East', February 2003, greater competition between airlines, including the impact of the No Frills sector, suggests that the decline in the cost of air travel will be greater. It is argued in 'The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom—South East' that air fares are likely to fall by 1.5 per cent. per annum in real terms between 2000 and 2020, giving a total percentage reduction in the cost of air travel of around 26 per cent. in the period from 2000 to 2030.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has requested the owners of Redhill aerodrome to provide additional details of their expansion proposals. [129103]

The Department held discussions earlier this year with several promoters of proposals for new airport capacity that are alternatives to, or variants of, options set out in the Government's consultation document, including with the owners of Redhill aerodrome.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) grants and (b) other assistance have been given by his Department for the improvement of transport infrastructure in Crosby since 1997. [129454]

Government assistance for transport improvements is provided through Local Transport Plans. These are the cornerstone of our integrated transport policy at the local level.Figures are not available for Crosby. Since 1997 Sefton borough council has received £35,136,000 for transport improvements. For details of individual schemes, I refer my hon. Friend to the Director of Technical Services, Sefton BC, Balliol House, Balliol House, Bootle, L20 3NJ.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the campaigns since 1974 that resulted in a medal being struck, what the duration was of each campaign, and when the first medal in each case was presented. [129304]

Specific campaign medals and clasps to both the General Service Medal (GSM) 1962 and, more recently, the Operational Service Medal (OSM) have been instituted for the following campaigns and operations since 1974. It is not possible to say when any given campaign started or was completed, but the dates specified in the table represent the qualifying period considered to be suitable for the award.

Medal Clasp (as required)	Qualifying dates
GSM Northern Ireland	14 August 1969-ongoing
GSM Dhofar	1 October 1969–30 September 1976
The Rhodesia Medal	1 December 1979–20 March 1980
South Atlantic Medal	2 April 1982–14 June 1982
GSM Lebanon	7 February 1983–9 March 1984
GSM Mine Clearance Gulf of Suez	15 August 1984–15 October 1984
GSM Gulf	17 November 1986–28 February 1989
The Gulf Medal	2 August 1990–7 March 1991
GSM Kuwait	8 March 1991–30 September 1991
GSM Northern Iraq and Southern	6 April 1991–17 July 1991
Turkey		GSM Air Ops Iraq	16 July 1991–18 March 2003 (Op Resinate South)
	16 July 1991–30 April 2003 (Op Resinate North)
OSM Sierra Leone	5 May 2000–31 July 2002

No record was made of when these medals were first issued to eligible recipients. Medals for campaign service are generally posted direct to individuals or, if still serving, sent in batches to their Unit/Regiment/Ship/ Squadron and distributed. Any formal presentation ceremony would be a local initiative organised by the commanding officer of the unit concerned.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of Her Majesty's armed forces have died through deaths ruled as suicide or self-inflicted at Deepcut Barracks since 1 January 1996. [129329]

Only a coroner can rule on the cause of a death.Since 1 January 1996, the coroner has recorded no verdicts of suicide relating to deaths at Deepcut.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 13 June, Official Report, column 112W, on HMS Dryad, if he will make it his policy to ensure that, before marketing arrangements are made, the neighbouring local authorities are consulted in the event of a decision to dispose of the site of HMS Dryad; and if he will make a statement. [120316]

It is already departmental policy to ensure that there is full consultation with all parties in the run up to any disposal, including with local authorities, English Heritage and the local community.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the estimated Iraqi civilian death toll is from when hostilities began to 28 August 2003. [128941]

I refer the hon.Member to the answer I gave on 16 June 2003, Official Report, column 55W to the hon.Member for Lewes (Mr Baker).

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many call out notices for reservists have been issued for Operation Telic; how many reservists have been accepted into service; and if he will make a statement. [128412]

As at 29 August 2003 a total of 11,668 call-out notices had been served. 298 of these call-out notices were revoked before the individual reported for service. A total of 8,955 Reservists reported for service, of which 7,514 were accepted for service. Of those accepted for service, 4,236 have been demobilised after completing an operational tour.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will order an independent inquiry into the effectiveness of the Ministry of Defence police investigation branch; and if he will make a statement. [128384]

No. The Criminal Investigation Department of the MOD Police is inspected by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary who have stated that the force as a whole continues to provide an efficient and effective service.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the (a) state of the runways at RAF Halton and (b) the future repair programme for the runways. [129276]

During the recent prolonged period of hot, dry weather experienced across the United Kingdom, a number of cracks developed in both of the primary grass runways at RAF Halton airfield. As a flight safety precaution, both runways have been closed and a single, temporary runway has been brought into use to allow limited flying to continue.Specialists in the maintenance of grass airfields are being consulted to identify the options for returning the airfield to full availability and the future repair programme will be informed by their advice.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons he decided not to proceed with his proposal to relocate (a) the Joint Services Adventurous Training (Gliding) Centre and (b) the RAF Gliding and Soaring Association Centre to Rissington. [129232]

The RAF Gliding and Soaring Association withdrew from consideration of relocating its Bicester Centre to Little Rissington because they could not afford to build the new hangar they would have needed to operate at Little Rissington. An option of moving the publicly funded Joint Services Adventurous Training (ISAT (G)) gliding activity to Little Rissington was considered but would have required considerable initial investment in equipment, which was deemed unaffordable.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the additional number of flights that will take place from RAF Halton as a result of the relocation of (a) the Joint Services Adventurous Training (Gliding) and (b) the Royal Air Force Gliding and Soaring Association centres. [129233]

The Joint Services Adventurous Training (Gliding) unit is tasked by the Ministry of Defence sponsor with providing places on its courses which will result in a maximum of 4,800 launches per year.Until the closure of the RAF Gliding and Soaring Association Club at Bicester, it will not be clear how many of its members will join the Association's Club at RAF Halton. It is possible that the increased membership could double the level of activity undertaken by the Chiltern Gliding Club at RAF Halton to approximately 8,000 launches, which would return it to that undertaken eight years ago, however, it may be fewer than that.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the number of local residents who will experience increased intrusion from aircraft noise following the relocation to RAF Halton of (a) the Joint Services Adventurous Training (Gliding) and (b) the RAF Gliding and Soaring Association centres. [129277]

The airfield at RAF Halton is currently very well used by light aircraft; motorised gliders and winch launched gliders. The relocation of the Joint Services Adventurous Training (Gliding) activity to the airfield is expected to cause very little increased aircraft noise. The gliders used are, in the main, not motorised. The tug aircraft have four bladed propellers and their performance is maximised for quick take off and climb. This allows engine power to be reduced during the climb, all of which reduces noise output. Return to the airfield invariably utilises a constant descent at reduced power, causing very little noise.The relocation of the RAF Gliding and Soaring Association assets to RAF Halton is not expected to increase intrusion from aircraft noise as the gliders do not have motors and are winch launched.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the effects upon marine mammals of low frequency active sonar operating at levels up to 240 decibels. [128949]

The Ministry of Defence has conducted an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Sonar 2087, a Low Frequency Active Sonar (LFAS) system. The EIA indicated that the sonar had the potential to be harmful to marine mammals. The effect is determined by the duration and frequency of the sound, as well as its intensity: the EIA looked at these at varying levels in different environmental conditions and developed a range of mitigation measures to minimise the impact. A copy of the EIA will be placed in the Library of the House later this month.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to introduce low frequency active sonar operating at levels up to 240 decibels in Royal Navy ships. [128950]

We plan to fit Sonar 2087, a tactical, variable-depth, low frequency active and passive sonar to Type 23 Frigates during their refit cycle. It will replace the Type 23fs current passive towed array Sonar 2031 (where this is fitted) and will be integrated with the existing bow-mounted, active Sonar 2050. The system is expected to begin to enter operational service in 2006, once trials of the first production sets are complete.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the proposal to introduce a medal for service in the Suez Canal Zone has received Royal Assent; and when he expects issue of medals to commence. [128946]

Her Majesty The Queen has agreed in principle to the institution of a new medal for service in the Suez Canal Zone, as announced in the House by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 11 June. Final agreement to the detailed qualifying criteria for the medal is still awaited. It is hoped that the first medals will be issued shortly after receiving the Royal Assent.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the qualifying criteria for the Suez Canal Zone medal will be. [128947]

Proposals for the detailed qualifying criteria for the Naval General Service Medal 1915–62 and General Service Medal 1918–62, for service in the Suez Canal Zone between 1951 and 1954, have been passed to the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals for their consideration. They will be published in a White Paper when The Queen has agreed them.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the application process for a Suez Canal Zone medal will be. [128948]

Veterans of the Canal Zone, or the next-of-kin of those who have died, will need to apply in writing to the appropriate medal office, giving full name, date of birth and Service number. The addresses of the medal offices are as follows:

Royal Naval Medal Office, Room 1068, Centurion Building, Grange Road, Gosport, Hampshire P013 9XA

Royal Marines Medal Office. Room 038, Centurion Building, Grange Road. Gosport, Hampshire P013 9XA

Army Medal Office, Government Buildings, Worcester Road, Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire WR9 8AU

Royal Air Force Medal Office, Room 6, Building 248A, RAF PMA,

RAF Innsworth, Gloucester, Gloucestershire GL3 lEZ.

All applications will be acknowledged on receipt and will be dealt with strictly in the order they are received. The Ministry of Defence will arrange for the individual Service files of those who apply to be recalled from the archives and will assess entitlement from these detailed records.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many copies of the Scotland Office Annual Report 2002–03 have been printed; at what cost; and how it was distributed. [128007]

The Scotland Office had 150 copies of the Departmental Report produced at a total cost of £4,036. Copies of the report were provided to the Scottish Affairs Committee, other Government Departments and for use within the Department. The report is also available on the department's website.The Stationery Office determines the number of copies it requires for retail sale and meets the costs of printing and publication.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many (a) special advisers, (b) press officers, (c) civil servants, (d) advisers to civil servants and (e) permanent staff were working for the Scotland Office in each year since 1996. [1264741

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999.Details of staff numbers which cover permanent staff, including press officers, are given in Table C of the annual publication. "Civil Service Statistics". Copies of this publication are available from the Libraries of both Houses.The Department employed three special advisers in 1999–2000 and 2000–01, one of whom was unpaid; and two special advisers in 2001–02 and 2002–03.The Department does not employ any staff as advisers to civil servants.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff in his Department have been transferred to new responsibilities within the Department for Constitutional Affairs. [127847]

The staff of the Scotland Office transferred to the Department for Constitutional Affairs on 12 June. They have retained their existing responsibilities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff in his Department were allocated to the Friends of Scotland project, expressed as full-time equivalents in the last year for which figures are available. [127846]

In 2002–03, five staff were allocated to the Friends of Scotland project.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many outsourced IT contracts have been signed by his Department in each year since 1997; how much each of these contracts is worth; with whom they are signed; how many have been renegotiated; how many are still in place; and if he will make a statement. [126194]

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. The Department's IT systems and support are provided through the Scottish Executive. The Scotland Office has no outsourced IT contracts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what his Department's policy is on employing secondees from the private sector; how many secondees from the (a) private and (b) public sectors his Department employed in each year since 1997; from which companies and organisations they were seconded; at what level they were employed; and if he will make a statement. [127062]

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Since then the department has employed two individuals from the private sector (Bank of Scotland) at Grade 7 and SEO levels in 2002 and two individuals from the public sector (House of Lords) at Grade 7 and SCS level, one in 2001 and one in 2002.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children of asylum seekers were being held in custody at each removal centre on 1 July 2003; and if he intends to end the practice. [124066]

The latest published information on the number of children of asylum seekers held in removal centres is for 2 April 2003.At this date an exercise was carried out to access the number of children under the age of 18 who were detained in Dungavel, Harmondsworth, Oakington and Tinsley House Immigration Service Removal Centres. These centres are the only ones that deal with family cases. The results of the exercise are contained in the following table.

Immigration service removal center	Children under 18 years of age in detention at 2 April 2003
Dungavel	21
Harmondsworth	18
Oakington	14
Tinsley	3
Total	56

Children under 18 years are detained only in two limited circumstances: first, as part of a family group whose detention is considered appropriate; second, when unaccompanied, while alternative care arrangements are made and normally just overnight.While the detention of families with children is very regrettable, it nevertheless remains necessary in appropriate cases in order to maintain an effective immigration control and to tackle abuses of the asylum system.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development if he will place the Department's pre-conflict plans for the reconstruction of Iraq and their estimated costs in the Library. [128943]

Details of the Department for International Development's pre-conflict planning for Iraq are contained in the Memoranda submitted to the International Development Committee by the Department in February and June this year.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for International Development what plans there are to expand the use of the RTSS/ASO2A malaria vaccine following its trial in Mozambique. [127935]

The RTSS/ASO2A vaccine (a GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Biologicals' product) is a new product for malaria which has yet to undergo the full approval process.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what public appointments have been made by holders of his office since June 1999 (a) individually and (b) jointly with other Ministers. [103813]

Information about ministerial appointments to public bodies is included in the Cabinet Office's annual report "Public Bodies", copies of which are placed in the Library of the House and which is published on the Cabinet Office website.

(a) Since June 1999, holders of the office of Secretary of State for Wales have made one appointment to the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for Wales. In addition the Secretary of State for Wales offers advice to Her Majesty about a number of Crown Appointments.

(b) Appointments to the Audit Commission are made jointly with my right hon. Friends the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Health.

All decisions about public appointments are made with regard to the Commissioner for Public Appointments' Code of Practice.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment has been undertaken of museum entry prices; what plans there are to make an assessment; and if she will make a statement. [128777]

Since 1 December 2001, all the principal museums and galleries sponsored by this Department have offered free admission to all. This has been a huge success. In 2002–03, the first full year of free access, our sponsored museums and galleries received over 32 million visits—over 8 million more than in 1997.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what plans there are to increase the number of qualified school sports coaches employed at a local level; [128707](2) how many qualified school sports coaches were employed in

DCMS is investing £28 million to implement the key recommendations of the Coaching Task Force. These include the creation by 2006 of 3,000 qualified Community Sports Coaches, who will work in partnership at local level with schools, clubs and other local or regional organisations supporting sport I expect the first phase of some 100 Community Sports Coaches to be operational during the current financial year.The information requested about numbers of qualified school sports coaches could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether her Department has undertaken research into the potential effect of the tolls and charges proposed for using cars on British roads, on the British tourism industry. [128575]

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has undertaken no such research. DCMS recognises that transport is a key issue for UK tourism and officials from DCMS and the Department for Transport are in regular contact on transport issues. The revenues raised from local authority congestion charging schemes must be reinvested into local transport improvements and can help deliver a quality transport system that will benefit all sectors of the economy, including tourism.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment has been made of the provisional numbers of domestic and overseas tourists in England this summer. [128890]

The latest provisional figures for the number of domestic tourism trips including an overnight stay in England show that over the three months April to June 2003 there were 31.4 million trips¹.Figures for the number of overseas tourists visiting England are currently only available up to March 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether her Department has undertaken research into the effect of the congestion charge on tourism in London. [128576]

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has undertaken no such research. Responsibility for tourism policy in London has been devolved to the Mayor and the London Assembly. Likewise, congestion charging is the responsibility of the Mayor. An initial three-month assessment of the scheme has been published by Transport for London. A six-month report is due to be published in October.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what his latest estimate is of the incidence of hepatitis C among the prison population; [129137](2) what his latest estimate is of the proportion of prisoners with chronic hepatitis C who are receiving treatment in accordance with National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidelines; [129138](3) what his latest estimate is of the incidence of hepatitis C among prisoners

Prisoners are not routinely screened for hepatitis C. Individual prisoners often ask to be tested for evidence of chronic hepatitis C infection and this is done, after pre-test counselling. The Public Health Laboratory Service undertook an unlinked, anonymised survey of the prevalence of blood borne viruses among prisoners in England in 1997–98. This indicated that 9 per cent. of adult men, 11 per cent. of all women and 0.6 per cent. of young men had evidence of previous exposure to hepatitis C. No research has been undertaken on the prevalence of hepatitis C on reception and discharge.Prisoners newly diagnosed with hepatitis C are referred to national health service specialists for further assessment and treatment, as clinically appropriate. People received into prison with hepatitis C will have any treatment begun in the community continued while they remain in prison. Information about the number of prisoners receiving treatment for hepatitis C and what form that treatment takes is not collated centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding Lincolnshire NHS Trust received from the Government in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04. [129285]

Total income for 2002–03 for the Lincolnshire Partnership National Health Service Trust, including income from activities and all other operating income was £63,190,000. Figures for 2003–04 are not available.

To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee what progress has been made with the internal audit on the possibility of resuming later collections of parliamentary mail. [129231]

The arrangements for the reinstatement of later collections have now been set out in a notice from the Serjeant at Arms and Black Rod to all users of the service:

In response to representations from Members of both Houses, from 9 September 2003 there will be a 7pm final collection on sitting days from the 15 main post boxes (detailed below). This reinstatement of service has been negotiated with Royal Mail to enable Members' and departments' letters to be processed through the Royal Mail network ensuring that they are delivered the following day wherever possible.

• Central Lobby and Post Office Counter
• Members' Lobby and Post Office Counter
• Peers' Lobby
• Members' Entrance
• Peers' Entrance
• Star Chamber Court
• Ground Floor Portcullis House
• Ground Floor Millbank House
• Ground Floor 7 Millbank
• Ground Floor Parliament Street
• Ground Floor 1 The Abbey Garden
• Ground Floor 2 The Abbey Garden
• Ground Floor Norman Shaw North
• Ground Floor Norman Shaw South
• Ground Floor 7 Old Palace Yard

To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, what the estimated cost to public funds is of interrupting the maintenance and building work in the Palace of Westminster for the two week sitting of the House in September. [129031]

The Serjeant at Arms is collating the costs associated with interruptions to the works projects in the Palace of Westminster for the September sitting period and will write to the right hon. Gentleman when the figures are available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate she has made of the change in (a) turnover and (b) employment in the UK biotechnology industry within the duration of the farm-scale trials programme. [128699]

In the agricultural biotechnology sector, the following statistics are available:

December	Revenue (£ million)	Employees
2000	160	1,147
2001	198	1,145

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will introduce legislation removing the upper age limit on employment rights. [129038]

There is no upper age limit on the great majority of employment rights. However, under current legislation employees cannot generally complain of unfair dismissal if they have reached their employer's normal retirement age for their job, or, if there is no normal retirement age, the age of 65. Similarly, they have no entitlement to a statutory redundancy payment if they have reached the age of 65 or, if lower, the employer's normal retirement age for their job.The public consultation on age discrimination launched on 2 July, "Equality and Diversity: Age Matters", proposes changing these provisions so that employees who believe they have been unfairly dismissed can seek redress at any age, but retirement at a justifiable retirement age will be a fair reason for dismissal. The upper age limit for entitlement to a statutory redundancy payment will depend on the decision we make about retirement ages. A final decision will be made in the light of responses to consultation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the THORP reprocessing plant at Sellafield will close in 2010. [128272]

BNFL expects to complete their existing order book for reprocessing spent fuel at THORP by around 2010. Operation of THORP beyond completion of the existing order book would be dependent on there being new contracts for reprocessing further spent fuel at the plant which, in the first instance, is dependent on there being customer demand.The Government's position on the future of THORP was set out in the July 2002 White Paper on Managing the Nuclear Legacy. We expect existing THORP contracts to be honoured. There are currently no proposals for new contracts for reprocessing further spent fuel at THORP. Before any such new THORP contracts could be concluded or changes made to existing contracts that increased the volume of spent fuel to be reprocessed at THORP, the approval of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry would be required. Before making a decision on any such future proposal, the Government would review it against the specific criteria that were set out in the White Paper and would consult publicly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) whether the Export Credits Guarantee Department has reviewed allegations of corrupt practice by BAE Systems regarding the supply of a package of Hawk jets and Gripen planes to the Government of South Africa; what action is being taken by the Export Credits Guarantee Department regarding its guarantee to BAE Systems regarding the supply of this package following these allegations; when the Export Credits Guarantee Department first received allegations of corrupt practice by BAE Systems regarding the supply of this package; and if she will make a statement; [123018](2) whether allegations of corrupt practice by BAE Systems regarding the supply of a package of Hawk jets and Gripen planes to the Government of South Africa were raised during meetings during the visit of the then Minister for Trade to South Africa in November 2000. [123020]

We have been unable to find any record of this issue having been discussed during the meetings referred to.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the (a) bank rate of interest and (b) rate of interest accrual under the 1838 bankruptcy provisions has been in each year since 1992. [129499]

The information is as follows:

(a) The Bank of England publishes the base rates throughout the year and these can be accessed from their website www.bankofengland.co.uk. In November 1992 the "base rate" was 6.87 per cent. and since July of this year it has been 3.5 per cent.

(b) On 1 April 1993 the judgment rate of interest was set at 8 per cent. and has been 8 per cent. since that date. Immediately prior thereto, including for the whole of 1992, it was set at 15 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what responsibilities her Department undertakes in connection with British Overseas Territories. [123990]

[holding answer 16 July 2003]: The Radiocommunications Agency of the Department for Trade and Industry is responsible for representing the interests of the Overseas Territories in the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). In doing so, the Radiocommunications Agency has to ensure compliance with the obligations, procedures and practices that derive from the UK's membership of the ITU in respect of facilitating efficient international telecommunications and, more particularly, on the use of radio frequencies and satellite orbits for delivering all types of radiocommunication services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the inquiries initiated by the European Commission on the subsidising by France of the computer group Bull and Company; and what the outcome of the inquiries has been. [128823]

[holding answer 10 September 2003]: The European Commission announced on 9 April 2002 that it was launching an investigation into a €450 million cash advance by France to Bull. On 13 November 2002, it authorised the aid and ordered France to submit evidence of the reimbursement by Bull of the advance with interest by 17 June 2003. Copies of the notices appear in the Official Journal of the European Communities, C 128, 30.5.2002 and C 209, 19.8.2003 respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much of the (a) major photovoltaics

Scheme	Funds allocated at 9 September 2003 including management costs (£ million)	Unallocated (£ million)	Advertised at
Major Photovoltaic Demonstration Programme	11.55	8.45	www.solarpvsrants.co.uk editorial in national and local press, radio and TV
Clear Skies	2.31	7.69	www.clear-skies.org editorial in national and local press, radio and TV
Scottish Community Renewables Initiative	0.65	4.62	www.est.co.uk/schri and www.hie.co.uk

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the recommendations for reducing corporate energy consumption in the Government's sustainable development strategy—"A Better Quality of Life". [128568]

The 1999 strategy for sustainable development for the UK, A better quality of life, sets out key UK Government actions to achieve sustainable development, including those to achieve more prudent use of energy by the business sector.The Climate Change Levy was launched in April 2001 to help fund measures to promote energy efficiency in business and the public sector. As part of the CCL package a number of measures were introduced including:

[holding answer 9 September 2003]: The information is in the following table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list all the documentation issued by her Department that an employer must complete when he or she takes on his or her first employee, in order to be fully compliant; and if she will make a statement. [128690]

None. However, employment legislation for which the Department is responsible requires employers to keep records showing compliance with the national minimum wage legislation and weekly working time and night work limits; and to provide the following documents: an itemised pay statement, issued at or before the time of payment; a written statement of employment particulars for employees who are employed for one month or more; and, for shop and betting workers in England and Wales who are or may be required to work on Sundays, a written statement explaining how they can opt out of Sunday work. The wording of that opt-out statement is prescribed by law and the written statement of employment particulars must contain certain prescribed information. The Department publishes an example form of the written statement of employment particulars for the assistance of employers.The Department is fully aware of the need to regulate only where it is necessary to do so and to keep compliance requirements as simple as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employment tribunals were attended by small businesses, as a result of non-compliance with employment legislation in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement. [128691]

The Employment Tribunals Service does not record the numbers of employment tribunals that are attended by small businesses because no information is held on the size of the employer's business that may be subject to tribunal proceedings.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employment regulations were introduced by her Department in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [127802]

In its first term (1997–2001), the Government introduced a foundation of minimum standards in the workplace. Every employee now has, for example, the right to a minimum wage, paid holidays, rest breaks, time off for family emergencies, and a cap on the working week. Trade unions have the right to recognition by the employer where a majority of the workforce want it. Part-time workers have the same rights as their full-time colleagues.In their second term, the Government are building on all these measures in its drive to raise productivity, including a range of changes to support families and to make work pay. The Government have improved existing maternity rights and introduced paid paternity and adoption leave for the first time. For example, the payment period of statutory maternity pay and maternity allowance has been extended to 26 weeks. It has also introduced a right for working parents with children under six, or disabled children under 18, to request flexible working. This new right builds on existing best practice and further enforces our aim to promote greater dialogue in the workplace to find flexible solutions that suit both employers and employees.Recently, both Houses have passed regulations to tackle discrimination in employment on the grounds of sexual orientation and religion or belief, which will take effect in December 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the future of the UK's energy supply; and how the Government intends to bridge future energy generation shortfall. [128645]

The Government's Energy White Paper 'Our energy future—creating a low carbon economy', published on 24 February this year, covered both these points. It set out the Government's new energy policy, designed to deal with the major challenges that confront our energy system, namely climate change, our declining indigenous energy supplies and updating our energy infrastructure. The position remains as set out in the White Paper.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 10 July 2003, Official Report, column 888W, when she expects to receive the report of the Director General of Fair Trading on estate agents; and on what date she expects to publish the report. [126752]

I expect the Office of Fair Trading to publish its report on estate agents in the autumn.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 10 July 2003, Official Report, column 888W, (1) how many estate agents are practising in the United Kingdom; and what percentage of estate agents are members of the Ombudsman for Estate Agents Scheme; [126753](2) how much was paid out in each year since 1997 by way of compensation by the Ombudsman for malpractice by estate agents. [126756]

This information is not collected by the Department.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 10 July 2003, Official Report, column 888W, what procedures are in place to ensure that estate agents banned by the Office of Fair Trading (a) no longer practise and (b) are no longer involved in the management of estate agency companies; how many estate agents banned since 1997 have subsequently been discovered to have continued or recommenced estate agency work; how many estate agents have been prosecuted since 1997 for such practices; what the penalties received were; and what procedures are in place to monitor estate agents whose conduct has resulted in warning letters being issued by the Director General of Fair Trading. [126754]

The banning of an estate agent by the Office of Fair Trading results in a press release that alerts other local estate agents and consumers. Local Trading Standards Officers are advised separately, and the OFT relies on them to notify it if the banned agent continues in business or is involved in the management of an estate agency company. It is a criminal offence for an agent banned by the OFT to continue doing estate agency work.No estate agents banned since 1997 have subsequently been discovered to have continued or recommenced estate agency work or been prosecuted for such practices.The OFT does not publicise the issue of warning letters to estate agents, and does not formally monitor estate agents whose conduct has resulted in a warning letter being sent. However, a copy is sent to the local Trading Standards Department to alert them to the action taken. Formal warning orders are treated as per banning orders.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 10 July 2003, Official Report, column 888W, on estate agents, how many complaints were investigated by the Office of Fair Trading in each year since 2000; how many were upheld in each year since 1997; what the average time taken to investigate a complaint is; and what the longest time taken to investigate a complaint is. [126755]

The following table contains details of the complaints about estate agents investigated by the Office of Fair Trading and the number of complaints upheld in each year since 2000. The OFT did not record details of how many complaints were upheld prior to 2001.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans there are to monitor and record the number of workers (a) requesting and (b) being granted flexible working in (i) central government, (ii) local government, (iii) the public sector and (iv) the private sector; and if she will make a statement. [128673]

In addition to the detail in my answer to my hon. Friend on 1 July, Official Report, column 214W, my Department has since commissioned questions on flexible working to appear in the monthly Office for National Statistics omnibus survey.The Government is taking a strategic approach to monitoring flexible working. This will feed into the review of the new flexible working law it is committed to commencing in 2006 and to the future work of the Government's Work-Life Balance campaign. The approach involves gathering qualitative and quantitative evidence to establish a comprehensive research base.The Government is circulating a summary of the Government's approach to how it is monitoring all the new working parent laws introduced in April 2003 to interested parties, which is also available at www.dti.gov.uk/workingparents. This invites others to share their own experience of the new laws, including flexible working.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the openness of the GATS negotiations; and what she estimates the benefits were of (a) open and (b) closed discussions during this process. [118914]

[holding answer 16 June 2003]: The Government believe that all WTO negotiations should be as transparent as possible, consistent with protecting negotiating positions. To this end the Government have been as open as possible with civil society about progress with the negotiations, meeting them frequently.In relation to the GATS, we published our second public consultation document last year, setting a lead that other governments and the European Commission have followed. We will shortly be publishing our response. We also pressed strongly for the EU's initial

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will change her policy on the termination of the collection and analysis of the Home Accident Surveillance System statistics. [128369]

Since the decision to stop HASS was announced on 2 May, contracts to collect the data have been terminated and the work within the DTI is being wound up. I have no plans to reverse this policy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether she plans to establish a new Government accident recording system to ensure and improve the safety standards of home and leisure products and activities. [128370]

I have no plans to establish such a system. I have, however, offered to support initiatives that the Department of Health might launch to strengthen the surveillance of accidental injury at regional and local levels in the NHS.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many representations she has received in opposition to the decision taken by her Department to cease the collection by Home Accident Surveillance Systems of statistics relating to accidents in the home. [127057]

I have received approximately 80 representations opposing the decision to stop HASS.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if the Government have plans to create an independent chief engineer. [128646]

The Government have no plans to appoint an independent chief engineer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent representations her Department has received from major inward investors on the effects on their investment decisions of the condition of the transport system. [124732]

Invest-UK, British Trade International's inward investment arm, has received one such recent representation from a major inward investor—Pfizer Global Research laboratories based in Sandwich.In their continuing dialogue with key major inward investors, Invest UK has identified the UK's transport infrastructure as one among a number of important competitiveness factors for investors when looking to maintain or further develop their UK presence. UK inward investment figures for the year to March 2003 show that the UK remains by a good margin the top destination in the EU.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) how many jobs were created by the first Merseyside Objective 1 Programme between the years 1994 to 1999; [128563](2) what the five key targets were for the first Merseyside Objective 1 Programme which ran from 1994 to 1999; and what the outcomes were for each target; [128562](3) how many people accessed further education or training between the start of the first Merseyside Objective 1 Programme in 1994 until its end in 1999; [128565](4) how many cases there were of business assistance provided by the first Merseyside Objective 1 Programme from 1994 to 1999 in Merseyside. [128564]

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 9 July 2003, Official Report, column 798W.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total generating capacity available to the National Grid was in each year since 1983; and what the percentage change in generating capacity was in each year. [128302]

Available data are shown in the following table.

Generating capacity available to the National Grid
Year	Capacity (MW)	Change in year (MW)	Change in year (percentage)
At end of financial year
1983–84	57,640	—	—
1984–85	58,225	585	+1.0
1985–86	59,270	1,045	+1.8
1986–87	61,615	2,345	+4.0
1987–88	61,194	-421	-0.7
1988–89	61,376	182	+0.3
1989–90	65,592	4,216	+6.9
1990–91	63,822	-1,770	-2.7
1991–92	61,931	-1,891	-3.0
1992–93	60,636	-1,295	-2.1
1993–94	61,358	722	+1.2
1994–95	58,946	-2,412	-3.9
1995–96	58,265	-681	-1.2
1996–97	62,758	4,493	+7.7
1997–98	61,885	-873	-1.4
1998–99	63,087	1,202	+1.9
1999–2000	64,049	962	+1.5
2000–01	66,465	2,416	+3.8
2001–02	67,593	1,128	+1.7
2002–03	66,468	-1,125	-1.7

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures have been put in place to ensure that new offshore wind power projects will have sufficient grid connection points and capacity capabilities to connect the required megawatts. [128128]

I have stated that transmission licences will apply throughout the strategic areas and I shall legislate to achieve this. Transmission licences covering the strategic areas will provide certainty for generators that there will be a connector of last resort, in addition to providing infrastructure that is efficient, economical and which guards against the owner of the connection wielding market power. DTI and Ofgem are working together to create the necessary regulatory regime and will issue licences in a timely way that ensure that generation and infrastructure development can run concurrently.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the impact of international and domestic (a) regulation and (b) financial support on the (i) science and (ii) biotechnology sectors in the United Kingdom. [128121]

International and domestic regulation of science in general, and biotechnology in particular is necessary to encourage scientific and technological innovation, while protecting the legitimate interests of members of the public and other groups that might be affected by scientific developments.The biotechnology regulations in place maintain a framework for ethical scientific study in an industry of rapid expansion and improvement. The Government realises that a supportive regulatory environment in the UK and Europe will be critical to the success of the UK biosciences sector.The Government regularly monitors the effect of scientific regulation. The government/industry Bioscience Innovation and Growth Team is considering the topic of regulation and is likely to make recommendations for action in its report which is due to be published in the autumn.The Government is committed to support UK science. In 2000 the budget for science and technology increased by 7 per cent. in real terms, year on year, and as a result of the last spending review it will be increasing at 10 per cent. per annum in real terms over the next three years. In 1997–8 the science budget was 1.3 billion. By 2005–6 it will be 2.9 billion. The Government has also invested heavily in modernising the scientific infrastructure of the country.The Government's cross-cutting Review of Science and Research published in March 2002 included a review of funding of the UK science base, and the effectiveness of departments' own science and research programmes to ensure that they are delivering maximum long-term benefits to the economy and quality of life. Following this review, the Government published in July 2002 its strategy for science, engineering and technology—"Investing in Innovation"The Government regularly assesses the effect of its financial support for the biotechnology industry. The Bioscience Innovation and Growth Team is also reviewing government support for the sector.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment her Department has made of the consequences of dumping of goods by developed countries upon trade liberalisation in developing countries. [121283]

The UK has long been conscious that reductions in the currently high levels of trade-distorting support in the agriculture sector are necessary to address over-production in the developed world and the consequent disruption of world commodity markets, which are of vital interest to developing countries. So the UK was pleased that all WTO members agreed at Doha in November 2001 to "comprehensive negotiations aimed at: reductions of, with a view to phasing out, all forms of export subsidies; and substantial reductions in trade-distorting domestic support".

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of bills remained unpaid in excess of 30 days in each year since 2001 in her Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies; what the (a) longest and (b) average time is that an invoice has remained outstanding for payment in that period; and whether it is her Department's policy to pay interest on late payment of invoice. [126653]

The percentage of bills that were unpaid by the Department and its agencies within 30 days of receipt of a valid invoice was 2.3 per cent. for the financial year 2001–02 and 2.8 per cent. for the financial year 2002–03.Information on the longest and average time that an invoice has remained outstanding for payment by the Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.The Department's policy is to pay interest on late payment of undisputed and correctly presented invoices where appropriate in line with relevant legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many wind generators are working in the United Kingdom; and how many are planned to be built in the next five years. [129062]

My Department does not collate figures for all wind turbine generators in the UK. Only if a wind farm application is referred to DTI through section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 or through the Transport and Works Act 1992 (wind farms of an installed capacity of 50 megawatts or above onshore and 1MW or above offshore) would this Department have figures. The British Wind Energy Association states that the current number of wind turbines operating in the UK which are grid connected is 1,030, and the total installed capacity for operating wind turbines in the UK is 587 megawatts.Wind generation will provide an important contribution to the Government's target of generating 10 per cent. of electricity from renewable energy sources by 2010. It is for wind farm developers to bring forward their proposals for future developments. There have been an encouraging number of applications for wind farms that have received planning consent and I expect this trend to continue.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent steps she has taken to protect water services in developing countries within the WTO negotiations. [120517]

Water services are the responsibility of individual WTO member countries, who are responsible for the regulatory environment and any other requirements on the provision of water services. The Department for International Development (DFID) provides technical assistance in a number of developing countries aimed at improving regulatory capacity. DFID also provides a range of trade-related support to help developing countries pursue their interests with respect to WTO agreements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of co-ordinated al-Qaeda activity against British interests abroad. [129078]

Al-Qaeda and related groups continue to pose a significant global threat, including to British interests abroad. The mounting of more than one attack simultaneously is a technique that has been employed by such terrorist groups. It remains vital for the international community to maintain a co-operative and comprehensive approach to tackling international terrorism. The capture of a significant number of senior al-Qaeda figures and the disruption of terrorist operations, planning, financing and support as a result of the international effort, has had, and continues to have, a substantial negative impact on the organisation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been (a) budgeted and (b) spent by his Department since April 2002 on (i) combating computer fraud, (ii) preventing theft of computers and (iii) safeguarding the security of information held on computer; and if he will make a statement. [128794]

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) manages the security of its information, including information held on its computer systems, in accordance with the guidance given in the Manual of Protective Security, a comprehensive body of policy and interdepartmentally agreed security standards that is issued by the Cabinet Office.It is not possible to identify the resources devoted to these activities, since they form a part of the FCO's overall effort to combat illegal and unauthorised actions against its computer and other systems, and the theft of official assets from its buildings.