To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much money has been spent to date by his Department and by bodies funded by his Department in connection with the National Changeover Plan; on what headings this money has been spent; and how much his Department plans to spend on implementing the plan over the next 12 months. [112140]

[holding answer 29 February 2000]: I refer the right hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury on 29 February 2000, Official Report, column 233W.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many public employees have been involved in legal work relating to Senator Pinochet since October 1998. [113512]

At any one time two Home Office lawyers had significant involvement in the case. A Treasury Solicitor lawyer had conduct of the case for litigation purposes, and lawyers in the Crown Prosecution Service, the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office were from time to time significantly involved. Lawyers from other Government Departments have also played a role.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the total cost to the (a) central and (b) local government of the containment of Senator Pinochet broken down into (a) police, (b) legal and (c) accommodation costs. [113600]

For the information requested, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend the Under-Secretary on 2 March 2000, Official Report, House of Lords, column WA87.Senator Pinochet's accommodation costs were not met from public funds.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the outcome of his investigation into allegations made by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection against Harlan-Hill Crest. [113893]

I have today placed in the Library copies of the Home Office investigative report into allegations which were made available to the Home Office by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV) on 29 June 1999. The BUAV's allegations were based on the evidence of a sympathiser working undercover at the establishment. The establishment is designated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.I received the Chief Inspector's report on 17 December after a thorough investigation into a complex series of allegations. Generally, the establishment was found to be well run and the level of compliance generally good. I did, however, take action against one breach of a condition of certification—that two animal rooms were not identified in documentation as having been checked as required on two dates during the last two years. The Certificate holder received an admonition for this apparent lapse and I sought reassurances from management about staffing levels. These have been given.Since Christmas 1999, officials have been arranging with the company, its customers and key staff, to lift confidentiality of material in the report whose disclosure would have been contrary to Section 24 of the 1986 Act, as being provided in confidence. A small number of areas remain censored because they represent commercially sensitive or personnel information which cannot be disclosed.The greater number of blocked-out areas in the report stem from the BUAV not lifting the confidentiality of material stemming from the undercover investigator's videotapes, diary and interview with the Inspectorate in time for publication this week. When we indicated that we would publish the document in this form, BUAV then indicated late yesterday that they might be prepared to lift the confidentiality restrictions on some parts of the report. My officials will contact them again today to ask them to lift their restrictions.The report was disclosed to the Animal Procedures Committee on 9 February for information. The Committee has not had opportunity to discuss the report, nor are Ministers expressly seeking advice on its content or the action taken since the investigation was completed.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made on the production of a code of practice in relation to the civil penalty provisions of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999; and when implementation of those provisions will commence. [113951]

Clandestine entry into the United Kingdom, particularly in road haulage vehicles, has become a major abuse of the immigration control in recent years. The number of clandestine entrants identified is currently running at about 2,000 each month and the Government are determined to take action to tackle this growing problem.Part II of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 provides for a penalty for each clandestine entrant carried to be levied on the person or persons responsible. It also provides for the detention in certain circumstances of the transporter or vehicle in which the clandestine arrived against payment of the penalty.The civil penalty is an important measure to enable us to deal effectively with an escalating problem. It will be implemented on 3 April 2000 in relation to clandestine entrants arriving in road vehicles.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of police local drugs units in bringing to court hard drugs dealers. [112259]

The police have a key role in the Government's anti-drugs strategy working with other enforcement agencies to stifle the availability of illegal drugs on our streets. The drug problem will not be the same in each force area, and it is an operational matter for each Chief Officer of Police to decide the most effective way to tackle drug dealing in his or her force area. It is for the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether to prosecute those charged with an offence.Tough targets have been set under the Government's drugs strategy, significantly to reduce access to all drugs among young people, and to reduce access to the drugs which cause the greatest harm—particularly heroin and cocaine—by 25 per cent. by 2005 and by 50 per cent. by 2008. A target for 1999–2000 is to increase by 10 per cent. the number of offenders dealt with for supply offences in respect of Class A drugs.The latest available statistics show that the number of persons found guilty at court of "dealing" (possession with intent to supply unlawfully and unlawful supply) in heroin, cocaine and crack increased significantly between 1997 and 1998. Detailed information is given in the table.

Persons found guilty at court for offences of unlawful supply/possession with intent to supply unlawfully, involving cocaine/crack, heroin (Great Britain)1
Drug/offence	1997	1998
Cocaine
Unlawful supply	218	354
Possession with intent to supply unlawfully	411	522
Crack
Unlawful supply	88	137
Possession with intent to supply unlawfully	73	134
Heroin
Unlawful supply	1,009	1,378
Possession with intent to supply unlawfully	1,006	1,311
1 As the same person may be found guilty of more than one offence, rows cannot be added together to produce totals

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current status of those passengers on the recently hijacked Afghan airliner who sought asylum. [113575]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Lincoln (Gillian Merron) on 1 March 2000, Official Report, columns 289–91W, in which I provided details of my consideration of the 44 applications for asylum.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the most recent statistics for reported racist incidents for each of England's police forces. [113549]

Information on the number of racist incidents that were recorded by the police, by police force area, was published in December 1999 in "Statistics on Race and the Criminal Justice System", a copy of which is in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what percentage of racially aggravated offences have resulted in acquittals since the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force; and how many defendants this involved, broken down by ethnic group; [113367](2) how many charges relating to racially aggravated offences as defined by section 28 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 have been made since the Act came into force; and how many victims were alleged to be affected by the offences broken down by ethnic group. [113332]

Information collected centrally indicates that 10,982 racially aggravated offences were recorded by the police in the period 1 April 1999 to 30 September 1999. No information is collected on the number of charges made for these offences, the number of victims involved or their ethnic group. 745 defendants were prosecuted in magistrates courts for racially aggravated offences in the period October 1998 to 30 June 1999 of which 261 (35 per cent.) had their prosecution terminated early and 31 (4 per cent.) had their charge dismissed. No information is available on the ethnicity of the defendants.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints of racially aggravated offences have been made against police officers since the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force. [113335]

Information is not routinely collected centrally on the occupations of people accused of crime. But there were 709 complaints of racial discrimination recorded against the police in 1998–99.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many racially aggravated offences (1) charged by the police have been discontinued by the Crown Prosecution Service (a) before and (b) after the case reached a magistrates court; and how many victims, broken down by ethnic group, were alleged to be affected by the offences charged; [113333](2) have been added as further offences to other charges preferred against defendants by the Crown Prosecution Service since the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into effect; and how many victims were alleged to be affected by the offences charged, broken down by ethnic group. [113334]

I have been asked to reply.The information sought is not currently available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the Crown Prosecution Service has been monitoring the prosecution of racist crime since 1995. The monitoring has been substantially revised in order to capture a wider range of information as a result of the new offences of racially aggravated crimes created by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The first full year of the revised scheme ends on 31 March 2000 and the Crown Prosecution Service aims to publish a report in the autumn. At that time the figures sought regarding charges for racially aggravated offences will, it is anticipated, be available. The monitoring scheme is solely offence based and does not record information about victims of racially aggravated crime either by number or ethnic group.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what responses he has received to the consultation paper, New Measures to Control Prostitutes' Cards in Phone Boxes; and if he will make a statement. [113331]

We have received 60 responses to the consultation paper from local authorities, police staff associations, local residents' groups, telephone operators, organisations representing sex workers and members of the public.We hope to make an announcement shortly on the outcome of the consultation exercise and our proposals for action.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officers were serving in (a) the Dorset Constabulary and (b) the Hampshire Constabulary on 31 March 1997; and how many were serving on the latest date for which figures are available. [113037]

The information is set out in the table.

Dorset Police and Hampshire Constabulary
	Total police officer numbers
Year	Dorset	Hampshire
31 March 1997	1,284	3,452
30 September 19991	1,276	3,411
1 Latest available

To ask the Secretary of state for the Home Department what are the domestic legislative implications of the individual in the Portuguese Presidency's Programme of work in the Field of Justice and Home Affairs. [113070]

:None of the measures specified in the Portuguese presidency Work Programme in the field of Jusice and Home Affairs has been finalised, and most are in the early stages of discussion. It is not possible, until an individual proposal has been finally adopted, to identify the extent of any legislative implications in the United Kingdom.However, in accordance with the terms of reference of the Scrutiny Committees of both Houses of Parliament, the Government deposit Explanatory Memoranda on all draft European Union proposals. Part of the Explanatory Memorandum covers the possible implications to United Kingdom Law should the proposal be adopted in its draft form.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what ways organisations offering balloting services are regulated; and if he will make a statement. [113032]

My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is responsible only for legislation affecting the conduct of elections for Westminster parliamentary, European parliamentary and local elections. He has no remit to legislate the way that balloting is conducted by outside organisations, such as trade unions and political parties. This is a matter for them to agree within their own organisation and subject to any existing legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers Leicestershire Police Authority area has had in post in each year between 1992–93 and the last year for which figures are available. [113168]

The information requested is set out in the table.

Leicestershire Constabulary Total police officer numbers from 1992–93 to 1999/2000
Year as at 31 March	Total
1992–93	1,805
1993–94	1,825
1994–95	1,839
1995–96	1,908
1996–97	1,949
1997–98	1,983
1998–99	1,993
1999–20001	1,998
1 As at 30 September

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many appeals against refusal to grant political asylum were waiting to be heard on 1 February. [113084]

I have been asked to reply.There were a total of 3,825 asylum appeals outstanding before adjudicators as at 3] January 2000.There were in addition 2,258 asylum appeals outstanding before the Tribunal as at 31 January 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions for what reasons genetically-modified winter oilseed rape planted, pursuant to his decision to vary consent reference 98/R19/18 was permitted to remain in the ground after the order of the High Court. [108005]

The Consent Order issued by the High Court, which was agreed and signed by all parties, did not order the destruction of the crop. The Government and the consent holder (AgrEvo UK Ltd.) indicated to the Court that the crops, which had been sown in good faith, will be treated as if a valid consent was in place in respect of them. In accordance with the terms of the Consent Order, the Government will continue to regulate the crops on the same terms and subject to the same conditions as if a new consent had been lawfully granted.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how he plans to evaluate the effectiveness of the current three year spending programme on rural transport services. [112513]

The current three year spending programme on rural transport includes the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant, the Rural Bus Challenge Fund, the Rural Transport Partnership Scheme and the Rural Transport Development Fund.We are monitoring on an annual basis the impact of the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant. This analysis has shown that in the first year over 1,800 new or improved services were introduced in England. Monitoring of Rural Bus Challenge projects is based on an analysis of annual progress and end of project reports.The Rural Transport Partnership scheme and the Rural Transport Development Fund are administered by the Countryside Agency on the Department's behalf. The Countryside Agency will be evaluating these schemes during 2000–2001.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what reports he has requested under section 139A of the Social Security Act 1992; and if he will make a statement. [112652]

None. I refer to the answer given by the Under-Secretary of State for Social Security, my hon. Friend the Member for Wallasey (Angela Eagle), on 7 March 2000, Official Report, column 613W.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received calling for reform of the system for removing abandoned vehicles from public highways. [112994]

My Department has received letters from a number of local authorities, members of the public and other interested bodies about the system for the removal of abandoned vehicles. Correspondents have expressed concern about the financial burden the removal of such vehicles places on local authorities, the period of notice authorities must give before removing vehicles, acts of vandalism associated with abandoned vehicles, and the difficulty of tracing the vehicles' owners. They have also suggested a variety of changes to the current system intended to address these concerns.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many times since May 1997 his Department has overruled the advice of Sport England not to grant permission for the sale of a playing field. [112953]

Sport England are consulted on planning applications for the development of playing fields but have no role in decisions about whether or not playing fields may be sold. Their role in the referral of planning applications to my Department came into effect on 23 December 1998 under the Town and Country Planning (Playing Fields)(England) Direction 1998. Since then, 18 applications have been referred to the Secretary of State. Of these, one has been called in by him for his own determination and 14 have been left to the local authority to determine. The remainder are under consideration. Of the 14 cases which were left to the local planning authority to determine, all but one involved the development of new or expanded educational or sporting facilities at existing schools or colleges. In each of these cases, the area of land which would be developed was a very minor part of the overall playing field provision.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what percentage of local planning authorities' local plans or unitary development plans include provision for sites for travelling showpeople, of the type provided for in the guidance contained in paragraph 6 of Department of the Environment Planning Circular 22/91. [113267]

This information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many applications for planning permission for living accommodation for travelling showpeople were received by local authorities in each year since 1985; and how many of the above applications were (a) granted by local planning authorities, (b) turned down by local planning authorities, (c) granted on appeal, (d) turned down on appeal and (e) called in by the Secretary of State, broken down into figures relating to the regions corresponding to each regional planning conference. [113266]

The Department does not hold statistics of planning applications or local planning authority decisions on the basis requested.The regional breakdown of planning appeals (under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) relating to living accommodation for travelling showpeople between 1990 and 1999 is set out in the table. In the 10 years for which records are available, our records show a total of 62 appeals. Of these, 28 were allowed and 34 were dismissed. There are no records available for 1985 to 1990.No applications relating to living accommodation for travelling showpeople were called in by the Secretary of State during the period for which records are available.

Regional breakdown of S.78 planning appeals relating to living accommodation for travelling showpeople (1990–99)
Year/Region	Decision allowed	Dismissed	Total
1990
East	1	—	1
South East	2	1	3
West Midlands	1	1	2
Yorkshire and The Humber	—	1	1
Total			7
1991
West Midlands	—	1	1
Yorkshire and The Humber	1	—	1
Total			2
1992
East	1	—	1
South East	2	3	5
South West	—	1	1
West Midlands	—	2	2
Yorkshire and The Humber	1	—	1
Total			10
1993
East Midlands	—	1	1
North West	—	1	1
South East	1	4	5
South West	—	1	1
West Midlands	1	1	2
Total			10
1994
North West	—	1	1
South East	1	5	6
Total			7
1995
East	1	—	1
North West	—	1	1
South East	2	2	4
South West	—	1	1
Yorkshire and The Humber	1	—	1
Total			8
1996
North West	1	—	1
South East	1	1	2
West Midlands	1	—	1
Total			4
1997
South East	2	1	3
South West	—	1	1
Total			4
1998
NorthWest	1	1	2
South East	2	1	3
South West	—	1	1
West Midlands	1	—	1
Yorkshire and The Humber	1	—	1
Total			8
1999
South East	2	—	2
Total			2
Grand Total	28	34	62

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidance his Department offers about resolving conflicts arising from the EU requirement to restore heathland habitats in Dorset and to retain trees as a habitat for woodland birds and as an amenity and landscape feature. [113036]

None. However, English Nature, the Government's scientific advisers, and the Forestry Commission are working closely together to ensure delivery of obligations under the Habitats Directive and of the Lowland Heathland Habitat Action Plan. In September 1999, English Nature issued guidance to its local teams on how to resolve such issues. The Forestry Commission has similarly drawn up preliminary guidance as to how its staff should consider the potential conflicts when considering felling licences.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many licensed asbestos removal companies are operating in the UK in the last year for which figures are available; and how many had their licence revoked. [113325]

At 1 March 2000, there were 751 asbestos licence holders on the database maintained by HSE. Not all licensees are actively engaged in asbestos removal or associated work on a regular basis.In the period 1 April 1999 to 1 March 2000, some 20 licensees have been warned that HSE has considered revocation of their licence and will take that step unless there is an improvement in performance. No licences were revoked.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the status of land owned by Railtrack and Rail Property Ltd. in use as allotments. [113076]

Land in use as allotments and owned by Railtrack, a private company, and Rail Property Ltd. has no special status. Statutory protection of allotment land does not apply to privately owned land or land owned by a public body when that body—such as Rail Property Ltd.—is not a local authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the legal relationship between his Department and Rail Property Ltd. [113075]

Rail Property Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Railways Board (BRB) which is one of the nationalised industries sponsored by the Department. The British Railways Board now operates as part of the shadow Strategic Rail Authority (sSRA). Subject to the passage of the Transport Bill currently before Parliament the SRA, when formally established, will incorporate the functions of the BRB.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent steps he has taken to ensure the aircraft flying over London into Heathrow have sufficient fuel on board. [113039]

Responsibility for the safety regulation of airlines, including compliance with minimum fuel requirements, lies with the country in which the airline is based. The UK Civil Aviation Authority ensures that UK airlines have effective minimum fuel policies for all flights and checks fuel records when auditing airlines. Regulatory authorities for foreign airlines must ensure that their airlines meet at least the international standards for minimum fuel levels.We have procedures in place to check that foreign operated aircraft flying to the UK are being maintained and operated in compliance with international standards. These include targeted inspections by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of aircraft from countries where safety oversight has been questioned. Last summer, following an allegation that one airline had operated into Heathrow airport with low fuel levels on a number of occasions, we targeted a number of inspections on long haul operators from the Far East. We asked the particular operator concerned to provide us with weekly reports of fuel levels of their aircraft on arrival at Heathrow and this has continued as a condition of their operating permit; the reports have been satisfactory. We will investigate fully any reports of problems with other operators.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what requirements exist for non-departmental public bodies responsible to his Department to carry out an environmental impact statement for their respective activities. [113306]

Regulations require environmental impact assessment for certain public and private projects that are likely to have a significant effect on the environment. These apply to activities proposed by non-departmental public bodies responsible to my Department in the same way as those proposed by any other body.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action he is taking to encourage the expansion of combined heat and power generation capacity. [113057]

The Government's action to exempt Good Quality Combined Heat and Power from the Climate Change Levy is the strongest evidence of this Government's commitment to the wider use of CHP. It is also intended to be one of the energy technologies eligible for the proposed Enhanced Capital Allowances scheme under the Climate Change Levy package. The announcement on 6 March that electricity generating plant and machinery in all Good Quality CHP schemes will be de-rated from 1 April 2001, further strengthens Government support for CHP.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions further to his answer of 24 January 2000, Official Report, column 130W, on rats, if he will commission a more detailed assessment of the conditions of drains and sewers near dwellings and their relationship to rat infestations as part of the 2001 English House Condition Survey. [113062]

The 1996 English House Condition Survey (EHCS) included an assessment of observable faults to the drainage system around the dwelling, which surveyors can reasonably be asked to collect as part of a standard house condition survey. Development work is now under way for the 2001 survey and it is highly likely that this will be repeated. However, the EHCS is not an appropriate vehicle for carrying out more detailed investigative work on the overall condition of drains and sewers.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, further to his answer of 24 January 2000, Official Report, column 130W, on rats, if cracked or defective drain covers would render a dwelling unfit. [113061]

Under the current fitness standard a dwelling can be deemed unfit if it does not have an effective system for the draining of foul, waste and surface water. This tends to be based on an overall assessment of a number of features connected with the drainage system. In relation to the collection and analysis of the English House Condition Survey data, dwellings are not deemed unfit solely because of cracked or defective drain covers.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, further to his answer of 24 January 2000, Official Report, column 130W, on rats, if dwellings that are unfit as the result of lack of effective drainage are more likely to have rat infestations than those that are unfit on other counts; and if he will make a statement. [113060]

The English House Condition Survey questions related to rodent infestations are analysed in the recent MAFF report "Rodent Infestations in domestic properties in England". Page 11 of the report emphasises that properties with defective drainage systems also tend to be defective in many other aspects. It would not be appropriate to analyse the data to make a distinction between those that are unfit for drainage reasons and those that are unfit for other reasons. This is because the number of dwellings in the sample that are classed as unfit because of problems with drainage is very small, less than 1 per cent. of the total sample.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions on what dates in the last year officials and Ministers of his Department have met representatives of the (a) British Road Federation, (b) Road Haulage Association, (c) Freight Transport Association, (d) RAC, (e) AA, (f) Cyclists Touring Club, (g) Pedestrians Association and (h) Transport 2000. [113051]

Ministers and officials have formal and informal meetings with representatives of these organisations as necessary; a detailed record could be kept only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many Connex train services have (a) run on time, (b) been delayed and (c) been cancelled in the last month. [113173]

The shadow Strategic Rail Authority (sSRA) does not monitor the train operating companies' performance in these terms. The sSRA publishes quarterly statistics on punctuality and reliability, the next of which will be published shortly and placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action his Department has taken to identify potential sources of funding for proposals to partially pedestrianise Trafalgar Square. [113444]

The Government fully support the proposal to close the north side of Trafalgar Square to traffic which is included in phase 1 of the World Squares for All Masterplan. We are making up to £2 million available to Westminster City Council for the design of phase 1 of the Masterplan.Implementation of phase 1 could begin in 2001 and further funding would be a matter for the Mayor of London. Contributions to the cost of implementation could also be sought from the Heritage Lottery Fund and private sector sponsorship.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will publish his Department's consultation document concerning additional funds to deal with rural poverty. [113476]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: As part of the consultation for the forthcoming Rural White Paper, DETR published its discussion document "Rural England" in February 1999. This posed a series of questions on a wide range of rural issues. A summary of the themes arising from this consultation has been published on the DETR internet website.Rural poverty is one of the issues being addressed in preparing for the Rural White Paper which we expect to publish later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will publish his Department's research into the extent of rural poverty; and what definitions of poverty he has used. [113465]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: Poverty is a complex, multi-dimensional issue, affecting many aspects of people's lives—income, health, housing, the quality of the environment, opportunities to work and learn, and access to services. There is no single reliable measure.The Countryside Agency, the Government's statutory adviser on social and economic development in rural areas, has been conducting research into indicators of rural disadvantage. The findings of this research are expected to be published in due course. Current information on rural disadvantage is contained in the Agency's "State of the Countryside", a copy of which is in the Library. It is also among the topics covered in The Cabinet Office's "Sharing the Nation's Prosperity" report, which provides information on the economic, social and environmental conditions in the countryside.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to facilitate the conversion of disused farm buildings for residential and other purposes; and if he will make a statement. [113145]

Planning Policy Guidance (PPG) note 7: Countryside, already positively encourages the re-use and adaptation of rural buildings. I shall be considering whether any revised guidance maybe appropriate in the light of the Performance and Innovation Unit's report "Rural Economies".

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if the extension of china clay quarrying in Dartmoor is an exceptional circumstance in the sense intended by his own guidance; and what examination of proposals for such quarrying he has conducted. [113573]

Whether a planning application for an extension of china clay quarrying in Dartmoor comprises an 'exceptional circumstance', as explained in paragraph 4.5 of Planning Policy Guidance Note 7—The Countryside: Environmental Quality and Economic and Social Development, would depend upon the scale, nature and individual circumstances of that proposal.So far as I am aware, no applications have recently been submitted for new or extended china clay quarrying. If they had, the Dartmoor National Park Authority would be responsible for determining them. The Secretary of State would only examine such an application if he called it in for his own determination or if it came before him on appeal.I am, however, aware of several applications that have been submitted to both the National Park Authority and to Devon County Council under the old minerals planning permission (OMP) review provisions of the Environment Act 1995. These are for the determination of modern operating and restoration conditions for existing china clay planning permissions within and adjoining the Dartmoor National Park, and not extensions of existing quarrying operations. The local authorities for areas within which these are located are responsible for determining them. As these applications may come before the Secretary of State on appeal, he is unable to comment on their merits.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what AADT figures were recorded for the Chideock section of the A35 in 1998 and 1999; and what percentage increases are projected for the years 2000 to 2010. [113576]

The Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) figures in 1998 and 1999 were 13,186 and 13,618 respectively.DETR forecasts indicate that by 2010, a central traffic growth estimate (which represents an average of low and high estimates) would add a further 20 per cent. to traffic levels.In the case of the A35 at Chideock this would mean estimated AADT figure in the region of 16,500 vehicles per day by the year 2010.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will monitor kerbside nitrogen dioxide in Chideock on the A35. [113574]

Part IV of the Environment Act 1995 requires local authorities to review and assess the current and likely future air quality in their areas. Local authorities are required to consider whether one or more of the national air quality objectives, as prescribed in regulations, are unlikely to be met by the required date. Objectives have been set for a number of air pollutants including nitrogen dioxide. The Secretary of State has issued guidance on how to undertake such reviews and assessments, including on where and when monitoring of air pollutants is needed. I understand that West Dorset district council will consider monitoring the kerbside nitrogen dioxide in Chideock on the A35, in addition to their existing monitoring sites throughout the area.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what powers he plans to give to regional assemblies. [113599]

The eight regional assemblies and chambers already established are voluntary bodies. We have no plans to give them statutory powers but we have provided them with important roles specifically in relation to Regional Development Agencies, regional planning guidance, and regional sustainable development frameworks.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list those local authorities in England which (i) have completed an LSVT of housing stock and (ii) are currently undertaking an LSVT. [113598]

I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 22 Febtruary 2000, Official Report, columns 923–25W. Report, columns 923-25W.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the average turn around times between tenants of local authority housing stock for each authority in England. [113597]

Local authorities in England provide estimates of the average time taken to relet their housing stock on their annual Housing Investment Programme (HIP) Operational Information returns. Information reported for lettings during 1998–99 is given in the table. There are variations in the way local authorities maintain lettings records and compile these estimates, and comparisons between authorities should be treated with caution.

Average time to relet local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
North East
Alnwick	35
Berwick-upon-Tweed	9
Blyth Valley	25
Castle Morpeth	28
Chester-le-Street	55
Darlington	31
Derwentside	16
Durham	63
Easington	66
Gateshead	32
Hartlepool	31
Middlesbrough	68
Newcastle upon Tyne	34
North Tyneside	33
Redcar and Cleveland	31
Sedgefield	28
South Tyneside	19
Stockton-on-Tees	40
Sunderland	30
Teesdale	30
Tynedale	24
Wansbeck	33
Wear Valley	58
Yorkshire and the Humber
Barnsley	35
Bradford	52
Calderdale	50
Craven	18
Doncaster	68
East Riding of Yorkshire	53
Hambleton2	0
Harrogate	13
Kingston upon Hull	43
Kirklees	31
Leeds	42
North East Lincolnshire	63
North Lincolnshire	77
Richmondshire	35
Rotherham	73
Ryedale2	0
Scarborough	23
Selby	14
Sheffield	42
Wakefield	11
York	25
East Midlands
Amber Valley	22
Ashfield	37
Bassetlaw	82

Average time to relet local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
Blaby	26
Bolsover	28
Boston	86
Broxtowe	32
Charnwood	48
Chesterfield	18
Corby	50
Daventry	54
Derby	33
Derbyshire Dales	16
East Lindsey2	0
East Northamptonshire	53
Erewash	41
Gedling	31
Harborough	55
High Peak	29
Hinckley and Bosworth	35
Kettering	34
Leicester	40
Lincoln	37
Mansfield	50
Melton	52
Newark and Sherwood	32
North East Derbyshire	39
North Kesteven	53
North West Leicestershire	52
Northampton	42
Nottingham City	25
Oadby and Wigston	12
Rushcliffe	26
Rutland	24
South Derbyshire	25
South Holland	24
South Kesteven	33
South Northamptonshire	31
Wellingborough	57
West Lindsey	49
East of England
Babergh	25
Basildon	35
Bedford2	20
Braintree	14
Breckland2	0
Brentwood	35
Broadland2	0
Broxbourne	26
Cambridge	52
Castle Point	44
Chelmsford	33
Colchester	15
Dacorum	51
East Cambridgeshire2	0
East Hertfordshire	25
Epping Forest	51
Fenland	30
Forest Heath	32
Great Yarmouth	27
Harlow	49
Hertsmere2	0
Huntingdonshire	25
Ipswich	22
Kings Lynn and West Norfolk	23
Luton	38
Maldon2	0
Mid Bedfordshire	3—
Mid Suffolk	34
North Hertfordshire	45
North Norfolk	23
Norwich	37
Peterborough	53
Rochford	31
South Bedfordshire	29

Average time to relet local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
South Cambridgeshire	35
South Norfolk	19
Southend-on-Sea	67
St. Albans	27
St. Edmundsbury	30
Stevenage	33
Suffolk Coastal2	43
Tendring	30
Three Rivers	14
Thurrock	63
Uttlesford	22
Watford	49
Waveney	41
Welwyn Hatfield	50
Barking and Dagenham	51
Barnet	54
Bexley2	0
Brent	39
Bromley2	0
Camden	52
City of London	18
Croydon	33
Ealing	45
Enfield	77
Greenwich	55
Hackney	78
Hammersmith and Fulham	43
Haringey	64
Harrow	46
Havering	32
Hillingdon	30
Hounslow	46
Islington	162
Kensington and Chelsea	37
Kingston upon Thames	64
Lambeth	38
Lewisham	50
Merton	35
Newham	53
Redbride	57
Richmond upon Thames	110
Southwark	54
Sutton	56
Tower Hamlets	35
Waltham Forest	70
Wandsworth	46
Westminster	28
South East
Adur	27
Arun	50
Ashford	25
Aylesbury Vale	52
Basingstoke and Deane2	0
Bracknell Forest	34
Brighton and Hove	53
Canterbury	27
Cherwell	26
Chichester	20
Chiltern2	0
Crawley	46
Dartford	28
Dover	54
East Hampshire2	0
Eastbourne	21
Eastleigh2	0
Elmbridge	45
Epsom and Ewell2	7
Fareham	20
Gosport	30
Gravesham	50
Guildford	51

Average time to relet local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
Hart2	0
Hastings2	0
Havant2	0
Horsham	38
Isle of Wight2	21
Lewes	31
Maidstone	38
Mid Sussex2	0
Milton Keynes	40
Mole Valley	58
New Forest	22
Oxford	36
Portsmouth	4
Reading	28
Reigate and Banstead	58
Rother2	0
Runnymede	38
Rushmoor2	0
Sevenoaks2	0
Shepway	22
Slough	29
South Bucks2	0
South Oxfordshire2	0
Southampton	46
Spelthorne2	0
Surrey Heath2	0
Swale2	0
Tandridge	40
Test Valley	15
Thanet	30
The Medway Towns	42
Tonbridge and Malling2	0
Tunbridge Wells2	14
Vale of White Horse2	46
Waverley	33
Wealden	30
West Berkshire2	8
West Oxfordshire	35
Winchester	15
Windsor and Maidenhead2	2
Woking	28
Wokingham	25
Worthing2	18
Wycombe	20
South West
Bath and North East Somerset2	0
Bournemouth	46
Bristol	22
Caradon	27
Carrick	19
Cheltenham	52
Christchurch2	0
Cotswold2	0
East Devon	33
East Dorset2	0
Exeter	22
Forest of Dean	30
Gloucester	20
Isles of Scilly	7
Kennet2	0
Kerrier2	0
Mendip	14
Mid Devon	27
North Cornwall	18
North Devon	17
North Dorset2	0
North Somerset	27
North Wiltshire2	0
Penwith2	0
Plymouth	4
Poole	38
Purbeck	25

Average time to relat local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
Restormel	39
Salisbury	19
Sedgemoor	12
South Gloucestershire	33
South Hams2	0
South Somerset2	3
Stroud	26
Swindon	15
Taunton Deane	14
Teignbridge	29
Tewkesbury2	0
Torbay	26
Torridge	29
West Devon2	0
West Dorset2	0
West Somerset2	0
West Wiltshire	3—
Weymouth and Portland	17
West Midlands
Birmingham	47
Bridgnorth	40
Bromsgrove	34
Cannock Chase	28
Coventry	35
Dudley	115
East Staffordshire	46
Herefordshire	13
Lichfield2	0
Malvern Hills2	0
Newcastle-under-Lyme	47
North Shropshire	40
North Warwickshire	35
Nuneaton and Bedworth	71
Oswestry	45
Redditch	20
Rugby	10
Sandwell	69
Shrewsbury and Atcham	26
Solihull	35
South Shropshire2	0
South Staffordshire2	0
Stafford	39
Staffordshire Moorlands	41
Stoke-on-Trent	46
Stratford-upon-Avon2	0
Tamworth	25
Telford and Wrekin2	35
Walsall	42
Warwick	30
Wolverhampton	49
Worcester	25
Wychavon2	0
Wyre Forest	28
North West
Allerdale2	44
Barrow-in-Furness	33
Blackburn with Darwen	56
Blackpool	37
Bolton	44
Burnley	83
Bury	58
Carlisle	74
Chester	35
Chorley	45
Congleton2	0
Copeland	16
Crewe and Nantwich	41
Eden2	0
Ellesmere Port and Neston	34
Fylde	30
Halton	83

Average time to relet local authority housing stock1, 1998–99
	Days
Hyndburn	37
Lancaster	26
Macclesfield	55
Manchester	24
Oldham	44
Pendle	35
Preston	36
Ribble Valley	21
Rochdale	40
Rossendale	50
Salford	54
South Lakeland	23
South Ribble2	0
Stockport	37
Tameside	30
Trafford	40
Vale Royal	35
Warrington	37
West Lancashire	35
Wigan	28
Wyre2	0
Knowsley	25
Liverpool	68
Sefton	44
St. Helens	38
Wirral	44
1 Excludes dwellings let after major works, mutual exchanges and tenancy successions.
2 Denotes authorities which had transferred all or most of their housing stock, under Large Scale Voluntar Transfer arrangement, by 31 March 1999
3 Not available

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what funds will be available for the study of traffic congestion on the A27 in the Worthing area due later this year; and when the study will be carried out. [113596]

The A27 Worthing-Lancing Integrated Transport Study is to be funded as part of the Department's programme of Multi Modal Studies. Tenders will be issued shortly to invite consultants to the bid for the commission to undertake the Study.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he will publish the Government's draft climate change programme. [113826]

I will publish a draft climate change programme for the UK on Thursday 9 March. This will set out how we plan to deliver the UK's emission reduction target from Kyoto and move towards its domestic goal. I will also be publishing a consultation paper on a new Energy Efficiency Standard of Performance scheme which would start in 2002.Copies of the report and the consultation paper will be available from the Vote Office and be placed in the Libraries of the House at 11.00 am tomorrow morning.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the impact on the housing benefit budget of the judgment in the Court of Appeal in R v. Secretary of State ex parte Spath Holme Ltd. [113339]

I have been asked to reply.The Court of Appeal judgment means that we can no longer factor in the capping arrangements in our forecast of rent allowance expenditure which relates to tenancies with a registered rent in England and Wales. As a result, our forecast will need to be increased by £8 million and £15 million for the years 2000–01 and 2001–02 respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the impact of the Government's policy on debt reduction on her target of halving world poverty by 2015. [113495]

The Government have continually emphasised that the purpose of debt relief is to enable countries to make greater progress on reducing poverty and achieving the international development targets. Our submission to the review of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative set out ways in which the impact of debt relief on poverty reduction could be increased, and I welcome the improvements to the HIPC framework that have been agreed internationally and are now being implemented. The revised HIPC initiative both provides deeper and faster debt relief to qualifying countries, and ensures that a poverty reduction strategy is put in place so that all development resources, including those freed up by HIPC debt relief, can be invested effectively in anti-poverty programmes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will ensure that organisations offering balloting services to (a) trade unions and (b) political parties which involve contested elections count votes in the presence of the candidates should they wish this. [113031]

The Government have no plans to do so.Trade union election ballots are regulated by the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, which requires elections to be held for appointments to certain positions in trade unions and governs the conduct of those elections. In particular, the Act requires that votes should be fairly and accurately counted, an independent scrutineer should be appointed to monitor and report on the conduct of the election, and voting papers should be stored, distributed and counted by the scrutineer or another independent person. A union member or candidate who believes that there has been a breach of the Act's requirements can apply for a remedy to the Certification Officer or the court.The procedure for the selection of candidates by political parties is a matter for the parties themselves.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to remove the provisions relating to (a) telecommunications and (b) water from the Utilities Bill; and if he will make a statement. [113324]

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on his plans for the regulation of telecoms and water. [113280]

[holding answer 6 March 2000]: I announced during Oral Questions on 2 March 2000, Official Report, column 555, that the provisions relating to telecommunications and water will be removed from the Utilities Bill.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to his answer of 28 February 2000, Official Report, column 50W, on international price comparisons, for what reason his Departmental Press Notice of 11 February stated that the survey report was to be published on 11 February. [113129]

[holding answer 6 March 2000]: The Department Press Notice did not say that the survey report was to be published on 11 February.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the Director General of Fair Trading began the present review of the petrol undertakings given by oil companies in 1966; when the review will be completed; and if he will publish the results of the review. [113532]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: The Director General of Fair Trading began the present review of the 1966 petrol undertakings in July 1998. He expects to complete the review this month and will advise me on whether the undertakings should be retained, removed or amended. I will announce my decision in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the impact of changes in the number of petrol supplier and petrol retailers in the downstream market from 1997 to date on competition. [113535]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: Under UK competition legislation, the Director General of Fair Trading has responsibility for monitoring markets. He completed a major review of the petrol market in 1998. He concluded that competition in the petrol retailing market was strong and working to the benefit of consumers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will ensure that voluntary agreements between petrol suppliers and petrol retailers not covered by the undertakings given by oil companies in 1966 are subject to equivalent scrutiny by the Office of Fair Trading to ensure fair competition. [113533]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: The Director General of Fair Trading has powers to investigate such agreements if they appear to raise competition concerns.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry who has the responsibility for ensuring adherence to the petrol undertakings given by oil companies in 1966. [113534]

[holding answer 7 March 2000]: The Director General of Fair Trading is responsible for monitoring markets and compliance with orders and undertakings given under the competition legislation. He has in recent years considered a number of complaints about breaches of the 1966 petrol undertakings but has not so far found that breaches of the undertakings have occurred.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list those trade contracts with Latin American countries which have been cancelled in the last 16 months. [113595]

I am unable to provide such a list. Companies do not generally advise my Department of contractual disputes which would be regarded as a commercial matter for them.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment the OFT has made of the comparative cost of telephone calls from the UK to (a) India, Pakistan and Bangladesh and (b) the USA, Australia and New Zealand; and if he will make a statement. [113143]

OFTEL has the main responsibility for telecoms competition issues. The market for international calls from the UK is competitive with more than 70 operators providing services. Prices for international calls have risen by only 7 per cent. in the last five years and BT's share of the market for international calls has fallen to below 37 per cent. for business users and below 70 per cent. for residential users.There is still nevertheless a marked discrepancy in the cost of calling different countries.BT's headline retail prices for the routes in question together with the accounting rates are:

£
Route	Retail price per minute1	Accounting rate
(a)
India	1.20	0.91
Pakistan	1.35	0.81
Bangladesh	1.35	1.13
(b)
USA	0.24	0.13
Australia	0.49	0.25
New Zealand	0.49	0.14
1 Inclusive of VAT

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what talks he has had with (a) other departments and (b) the First Secretary concerning teachers' pay; and if he will make a statement. [108956]

I meet the First Secretary on a regular basis to discuss various issues including the importance of high standards of teaching in Wales. I have been involved in discussion with the National Assembly and the Department for Education and Employment on the implementation of the recommendations of the School Teachers Review Body in Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the new public bodies established by his Department since May 1997. [112666]

No new public bodies have been established by either the Welsh Office between May 1997 and 30 June 1999, or the Wales Office from 1 July 1999 to date.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of candidates for appointment to non-departmental public bodies since 1 May 1997 were not appointed due to their political affiliations. [113308]

Political affiliation is not taken into account when making appointments to non-departmental public bodies.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans he has to update the report entitled "Sharing the Nation's Prosperity". [112253]

There have been two reports published under the general heading "Sharing the Nation's Prosperity". The first, "Variation in Economic & Social Conditions Across the UK", was completed in December 1999; the second, "Economic, Social and Environmental Conditions in the Countryside", was completed in February 2000. Both reports were prepared by the Cabinet Office and reflected relevant conditions and statistics at their time of publication. The Government will keep their findings in mind in developing and delivering future policies, but have no immediate plans to produce updates.

To ask the Prime Minister what recent representations he has received regarding leak inquiries in Government departments. [112265]

None.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 22 February 2000, Official Report, column 851W, on Operation Horseshoe, if he will place a copy of the statement made by the German Defence Minister on 9 April 1999 in the Library. [113365]

I have arranged to have placed in the Library a copy of the material concerning Operation Horseshoe made public by the German Defence Minister on 9 April, along with an English language translation.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment she has made of how the use of information technology can improve the delivery of public services. [112263]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what action is being taken to develop a strategic approach to the use of IT in delivering public services. [112272]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what action is being taken to develop a co-ordinated approach to the use of IT in delivering public services. [112280]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps she is taking to develop a strategic approach to the use of IT in delivering public services. [112281]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what studies her Office is carrying out into the scope for improving the use of information technology in the delivery of Government services. [112282]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans she has to increase communications between Ministers and members of the public by means of the Internet. [112277]

We set out proposals for improving public service delivery by information technology in our draft Corporate IT Strategy, of which I announced the publication in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, West (Valerie Davey) on 14 February 2000, Official Report, column 353W.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement on the latest developments in implementing the Government's anti-drugs strategy. [112264]

The Government are making good progress towards the tough targets set out in their strategy document, "Tackling Drugs to build a better Britain".On 3 February, my right hon. Friend announced the joint funding of over £500,000 with the Department of Health and the Home Office to recruit up to 300 extra specialist treatment workers. This will help to ensure we have enough properly skilled staff to provide a high quality treatment service to those who need it.We are also providing a further £7.5 million of support this year and in 2000–01 to assist all schools to deliver effective drug education.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what role the drug action teams are playing in the delivery of the Government's anti-drugs strategy. [112271]

Drug Action Teams have a crucial role in the delivery of the National Drugs Strategy. They consist of agencies for Probation, Health, Education, Police authorities and local authorities. They are the main mechanism for delivery on the ground. All Drug Action Teams are required to plan and deliver an effective programme of anti-drug activities in their area, which is in line with the National Strategy.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when she last met the Anti-drugs Co-ordinator to discuss future policy on the control of illegal substances entering the country. [112269]

I met with the Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator at the Ministerial Steering Group for Drugs meeting on 23 February.I hold regular meetings with the Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator to discuss all aspects of the Government's anti-drug strategy.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment she has made of the Drug Awareness Resistance Education Programme; and if she will make a statement. [112273]

I am aware of the contribution made by the Drug Awareness Resistance Education Programme to drug education schemes in a number of areas. I know also that it has enjoyed strong support from a number of hon. Members, particularly in the Nottinghamshire area.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement about the implementation of policies designed to tackle social exclusion. [112266]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement about the implementation of policies designed to tackle social exclusion. [112275]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps she is taking to tackle social exclusion. [112278]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement about the implementation of policies designed to tackle social exclusion. [112279]

I can confirm that good progress is being made towards achieving the Government's targets on the four reports from the Social Exclusion Unit that have been published. These of course are on School Truancy and Exclusion, Rough Sleeping, Teenage Pregnancy and Bridging the Gap, and 16 to 18-year-olds not in Education, Training or Employment.A draft report for consultation, on the National strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal, is due to be launched in early April.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans she has to develop the Better Government for Older People projects. [112267]

The pilot phase of the Better Government for Older People programme comes to an end this month. We hope that, given the 28 pilots' great success in delivering better public services to older people, the local authorities leading them continue to support them and develop their work. The Government are looking forward to receiving the programme's final report in June and to putting its lessons into practice to deliver a marked and sustainable improvement in older people's experience of public services.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans she has to reduce the number of regulations issued by Government Departments. [112268]

Each Government Department now has a Regulatory Reform Minister. These Ministers are directly responsible for delivering our regulatory strategy in their Department including:

getting rid of unnecessary regulations; and

consulting with business on any essential new proposals.

My right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office will chair a Regulatory Accountability Panel which will be examining the regulatory performance and programmes of each Department. Together with the requirement to produce regulatory impact assessments, these arrangements will ensure that this Government regulates only where necessary and in the least burdensome way.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent discussions she has had with (a) trade union representatives and (b) others on the "Modernising Government" programme. [112270]

I have regular meetings with the trade unions at which developments in modernising government are discussed among other topics.I have many other meetings and it would be unusual for modernisation not to feature positively in some way.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will make a statement on the state of preparedness of the United Kingdom for online Government. [112276]

I refer the hon. Gentleman to my reply to him on 20 January 2000, Official Report, column 544W.

Target	Subject	Status
Key Target 1	Establish cost of disposals (including internal costs and consultancy fees, but not Works in Aid) as a percentage of disposal receipts and set targets for improvement	Achieved
Key Target 2	Achieve gross disposal receipts of £150m	Achieved
Key Target 3	Complete transfer of title to new owner of 90% of disposals within 3 years of property being passed to DEO for disposal.	Not Achieved
Key Target 4	Complete initial assessment against Business Excellence Model.	Achieved
Key Target 5	Complete Internal Investors in People (IIP) and external customer survey and submit reports to the Owner's Advisory Board, together with proposed targets for improvement:
	a. Internal IIP process	Achieved
	b. External customer survey	Achieved
Key Target 6	Appointments for external Project Managers for capital works projects:
	a. 99% achievement within 1 month for appointments made through Term Commissions or Partnering arrangements.	Achieved
	b. 90% achievement within 5 months for all appointments.	Achieved

It was not possible to achieve KT3 due to the legacy of sites in the disposal programme. The actual figure achieved for sites sold during 1998/1999, was 77 per cent.

The 1998/1999 Annual Report & Accounts for Defence Estates was published on 2 November 1999, and a copy placed in the library of the House of Commons on 2 November 1999.

The Agency's Key Targets for 1998/1999 reflected an organisation in transition. This was a period during which the Agency necessarily committed itself to essential internal restructuring to accommodate the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR). It was also necessary for the Agency to improve its focus on the needs of its customers and other stakeholders. The 1999/2000 Key Targets reflected this. Specifically, they addressed the need to establish a corporate management strategy for the estate, the development of a new construction procurement model and to improve the process for the disposal of surplus buildings and land.

The published Key Targets for 1999/2000 are:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list (a) those targets of the Defence Estates organisation for 1998–99 which (i) were and (ii) were not achieved, giving the factors affecting the outcome in each case and (b) action taken by the agency to improve target achievement performance in 1999–2000; and if he will make a statement. [111725]

This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Estates agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the right hon. and learned Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list (a) those targets of the RAF Signals Engineering Establishment for 1998–99 which (i) were and (ii) were not achieved, giving the factors affecting the outcome in each case and (b) action taken by the agency to improve target achievement performance in 1999–2000; and if he will make a statement. [111752]

This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Royal Air Force Signals Engineering Establishment. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the right hon. and learned Member.