To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's contributions to the provision of contraceptives in the developing world. [138526]

We are committed to the International Development target to attain universal access to reproductive health services before 2015. We have substantial involvement in efforts to ensure women and men in developing countries can access contraceptives and other reproductive health commodities.Our recent pledge to contribute an additional £25 million to the United Nations Population Fund, on top of our annual core contribution of £15 million, will help meet immediate and short-term needs, and assure continued access to essential reproductive health commodities, including condoms for family planning and HIV/AIDS prevention, in a number of countries which are facing shortages.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has made to other donor Governments about the supply of contraceptives in the developing world. [138527]

The recent pledges by this Department and the Government of the Netherlands, to contribute an additional £51 million to the United Nations Population Fund to help fund immediate and short-term needs in developing countries for reproductive health commodities, is a further demonstration of the commitment of both Governments to the health of poor people.We will continue to encourage other donors and developing countries to make every effort to meet the rising demand for contraception in the developing world.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effects of recent decisions within the WTO on patents and intellectual property rights in technological developments in the developing world. [138552]

[holding answer 16 November 2000]: The UK Government believe that intellectual property rights (IPR)—for instance, conferring copyright, patent or trade mark protection—provide an important incentive for private investment. Developing countries have an important interest in providing intellectual property protection, as a way of encouraging more foreign investment, research and innovation from which they should benefit.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the GM research funded by her Department which incorporates genetic systems designed to prevent seed germination. [138721]

[holding answer 16 November 2000]: This Department is not funding research which incorporates genetic systems designed to prevent seed germination.We have funded a study to examine the likely costs and benefits to the livelihoods of the poor in developing countries from the application of so-called "terminator genes" and similar technologies. The results of this work are being prepared for publication and will be disseminated widely.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what was the outcome of the Development Council held in Brussels on 10 November; and if he will make a statement. [138452]

The main achievement was the adoption by the Council and the Commission of a Declaration on the European Community's Development Policy. This was a milestone for the EC. The Declaration provides the EC, for the first time, with a clear operational framework for all EC development assistance, with poverty reduction as the principal objective. This was an important UK objective in our published strategy for working with the EC. The Development Commissioner, Poul Nielson, also presented a comprehensive Action Programme for implementing the Declaration. He emphasised the multi-dimensional nature of poverty, the need to work within a country's own poverty reduction strategies, the importance of focusing EC development assistance on fewer areas and the need for further progress in ensuring that other EC policies such as fisheries, trade and agriculture do not undermine our development efforts.I strongly welcomed the Declaration and the Commission's plans for implementing the new policy. It remains essential to turn the operational framework into reality on the ground. My Department will be reviewing how we can help ensure that this is achieved.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many British school children participated in ski lessons in (a) the UK and (b) Europe in each of the last three years as part of school organised sport. [138663]

Figures for the number of children participating in school organised skiing lessons are not centrally held. However, Crystal Holidays Industry Report 2000 estimates that in 1999–2000, 119,000 British children took part in school organised skiing holidays. These figures are not broken down between the UK and Europe.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pensioners will receive free television licences in Cheltenham in 2000. [139283]

Everyone aged 75 or over will be entitled to benefit from a free television licence, but licences cover households rather than individuals. Estimates of the number of households which will receive a free licence are not available at constituency level and TV Licensing, which administers the concession as agent for the BBC, is not able to provide geographical breakdowns of free licences issued. However, estimates of the over-75 population based on the 1991 Census indicate that there were approximately 7,400 people aged 75 or over in the Cheltenham constituency.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on the accountability of English Heritage. [138867]

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is answerable to Parliament for the policies and performance of all public bodies sponsored by the Department, including English Heritage. In addition, the Chief Executive of English Heritage, as its Accounting Officer, and the Accounting Officer of DCMS are responsible to Parliament for the resources under their control, and can be summoned to appear before the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Commons.

To ask the Solicitor-General how many meetings the Attorney-General has had with Lord Birt regarding crime since Lord Birt's appointment as an adviser to the Government on crime. [137317]

I refer to the answer given by the Prime Minister on 17 November 2000, Official Report, column 800W.

To ask the Solicitor-General if his Honour Gerald Butler QC has completed his review of arrangements for the instruction of Treasury Counsel at the Old Bailey. [139708]

His Honour Gerald Butler QC delivered his report to the Attorney-General on 18 August 2000. The report recommends the retention of the Treasury Counsel system but makes important recommendations to open up and modernise the Treasury Counsel arrangements. The Government will be accepting most of the recommendations without modification.The system of selecting barristers to be monitored for appointment as Treasury Counsel will be reformed with the aim of encouraging applications from a broader cross-section of the bar (and solicitor advocates) and there will be a higher quality of monitoring so that able barristers have the best chance of an appointment.There will be clear rules as to the maximum permitted length of service of Junior and Senior Treasury Counsel. There will be new criteria governing the ambit of work sent to Treasury Counsel with the aim of reducing their considerable workload and giving other banisters more opportunity to be instructed in cases being prosecuted at the Old Bailey. Murder and manslaughter cases, not falling within the criteria, will not normally be prosecuted by Treasury Counsel at the Old Bailey in the future.Consideration will be given to instructing Counsel from the provinces in cases at the Old Bailey and, with a reduced volume of work, Treasury Counsel will be freed up to prosecute some cases in the provinces and to be instructed to defend in some cases. The practice whereby Junior Treasury Counsel are paid a brief fee of two thirds of that of Senior Treasury Counsel leading them, whatever work is to be done or not to be done, will cease. I believe these reforms will be of considerable benefit to the criminal justice system.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what investigations have been carried out by his Department into Gulf War syndrome; what are the causes of Gulf War-related illnesses; and if he will make a statement. [138454]

In July 1997, the Government published a detailed policy statement: "Gulf Veterans' Illnesses: A New Beginning", which set out how we proposed to address veterans' health concerns, including 20 key points on which the Government are taking specific action. Progress against the 20 key points has been reported and published, the most recent occasion being as part of the Defence Committee's Eleventh Special Report, Session 1999–2000. Further details of the Government's work to date can be found in the Library of the House and on my Department's website at: http://gulfwar.mod.uk. The Government accept that since returning from the Gulf conflict, some British veterans have become ill. Many believe that this ill-health is unusual and directly related to their participation in the conflict. Research published so far shows that Gulf veterans report more health problems than comparable military personnel who were not deployed to the Gulf.However, the findings also support the view that Gulf veterans were not suffering from a single illness or "syndrome", and that the illnesses identified were not unique to the veterans. There is still no medical or scientific consensus on this subject. My Department remains open minded about the various causes of illness which have been suggested and important research continues.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received on plans to review the locations of the home bases of helicopters in the armed forces; and if he will make a statement. [138544]

I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave on 14 November 2000, Official Report, column 574W, and on 13 June 2000, Official Report, column 565W, and to my letter dated 24 August to my hon. Friend the Member for Ayr (Ms Osborne).

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what initiatives his Department outlined at the university of Lancaster for a range of new equipment capabilities designed to improve the SSN's operational effectiveness in littoral zones; what initiatives were laid out for a network-centric concept of operations; and if he will make a statement; [138982]

At the Submarine Centennial Conference (27–29 September 2000), the Ministry of Defence's Equipment Capability Customer organisation outlined the research programme to inform new equipment capabilities that will improve our ship, submarine and aircraft operational effectiveness, in support of littoral operations contributing towards a more joint defence capability. Rear Admiral Rob Stevens, Flag Officer Submarines, and members of his staff, also addressed the conference.The research programme includes work relevant to operations in littoral zones: hull-mounted sonar arrays; communications technologies; Recoverable Tethered Optical Fibre buoys; and mine detection and avoidance.We are also conducting research related to a network-centric concept of operations, and to improve connectivity and advanced intelligence, surveillance, targeting and reconnaissance capabilities. The aim is to integrate underwater assets fully with wider maritime, air and land forces. There is a large programme of research and development work under way specific to the underwater battlespace. Some highlights include research into multistatics, allowing ships, submarines and maritime aircraft to exploit each other's sensors; remote sensor active acoustics; long-range acoustic communications; remotely deployed sensor systems; static sensors and Underwater Unmanned Vehicles. These technologies have wide military utility, and commercial applications, which are also developing rapidly, will be taken into account.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if soldiers assigned to the EU defence capability may be used in operations outside Europe. [138724]

[holding answer 16 November 2000]: Troops on EU-led operations could be deployed outside Europe. The European Union has resolved to establish the capability, where NATO as a whole is not engaged, to launch and conduct military operations in response to international crises. The United Kingdom is committed to support the development of this capability, and will offer British forces to such operations in the light of circumstances at the time, which may involve deployment outside Europe.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will state (a) the title and function of each of the military bodies established within the Secretariat of the Union, as agreed in December 1999, (b) the names of each of the representatives of the United Kingdom, together with their service rank, appointed to each, together with any other office held by them, (c) the body or institution of the Union that supervises the activities of each committee and to whom they are accountable and (d) what meetings of the Union he has attended in 2000 with members of the Governments of other member states. [139084]

At the Helsinki European Council in December 1999, EU member states agreed to the establishment of a Military Committee and a Military Staff within the European Council.The function of the Military Committee is to give military advice, make recommendations to the Political and Security Committee and provide military direction to the Military Staff. The Chairman of the Military Committee will attend meetings of the Council when decisions with defence implications are to be taken.The function of the Military Staff is to provide military expertise and support to the Common European Security and Defence Policy, including on the conduct of EU—led operations. The Military Staff will perform early warning, situation assessment and strategic planning for Petersberg tasks.As an interim measure, the Council agreed to set up the following bodies within the Council as of March 2000:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the assessment he has made of the impact on the organisational efficacy and cost of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and of the chain of command to individual military units of adding to the existing NATO contingency planning, the parallel obligations now contemplated within the European Union; and if he will indicate what extra forces will be necessary to fulfil such dual demands. [139056]

The commitments we have made to develop the military crisis management capabilities of the European Union will strengthen both the European Union and NATO. The establishment of a small military staff within the EU will be partly offset by the winding down of the Western European Union. British forces will be contributed to multinational operations in the framework of the European Union on a voluntary basis, depending on the circumstances at the time.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of how many British (a) military personnel, (b) aircraft, (c) ships and (d) armoured vehicles he estimates will be seconded to the EU under plans put forward at the St. Malo, Cologne and Feira meetings for the development of EU defence policy. [138681]

[holding answer 16 November 2000]: No British forces are being seconded to the EU. The UK, along with other member states, will identify a range of forces from which a contribution to an EU—led military crisis management operation could be drawn.The details of this contribution will not be finalised until the Capability Commitments Conference on 20 November.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what United Kingdom forces will be offered to help meet the Headline Goal adopted by the EU at its Helsinki summit; and if he will make a statement. [139515]

Over the last six months, military experts of EU member states assisted by NATO planners, have carried out a detailed assessment of the forces and capabilities required by the EU to enable it to carry out by 2003 the full range of crisis management ("Petersberg") tasks envisaged in the Headline Goal set at Helsinki. The UK has identified a pool of forces and capabilities which would enable it to make a powerful contribution to such options in support of the Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy, where NATO as a whole is not engaged. UK participation in any particular operation, and the nature of our contribution, would be matters for decision by the UK Government in the light of circumstances at the time.In the maximum scale operation envisaged at Helsinki—a corps level of deployment of up to 60,000 troops—the UK component could be around 12,500 strong. Maritime and air deployments of up to 18 warships and 72 combat aircraft could be made in addition.The pool provides for an element of choice in order to cater for differing operational, political or geographical circumstances. The full details of the forces identified are confidential, but the major elements are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contingency plans exist in respect of submariners in Trident submarines being trapped on the sea bed; if the Royal Navy has the capability to deal with such emergencies without the use of outside agencies; and if he will make a statement. [138803]

The UK submarine Rescue Service has the capability to deal with rescue from any submarine without the use of outside agencies. However, every rescue attempt from a submarine trapped on the sea bed, regardless of nationality, has to be evaluated to determine the optimum solution taking into consideration speed/time and distance. This may mean that it is quicker to rescue distressed submariners using the assistance of other nations' submarine rescue assets.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the impact of the adoption of the proposals of the European Commission for the creation of a common European sky on existing provisions and agreements, concerning the powers of Her Majesty's Government to make such arrangements with NATO allies. [139063]

The Commission's proposals are still being developed. A formal presentation of the proposals is expected to be made to the Stockholm Summit in March 2001. The need to ensure sufficient access to airspace for both civil and military purposes will be highlighted, as will the need to respect national security and defence requirements. Bringing together civil and military expertise at European level, in co—operation with NATO, is an important element of the work being undertaken. I am content that our active engagement in the process will ensure that the defence needs of the UK and our allies will not be compromised.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) service and (b) civilian personnel are employed (i) by DARA and (ii) outwith DARA at RAF St. Athan. [138886]

As at 1 October 2000, DARA employed 729 service personnel and 2,224 civilian personnel at RAF St. Athan. The non DARA personnel employed at St. Athan on that date were 669 service personnel and 340 civilians.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many headquarters staff were employed by DARA at RAF St. Athan when it was launched in April 1999. [138883]

There were 39 staff employed in the DARA Head Office at RAF St. Athan on 1 April 1999.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the cost of re—locating DARA operations at RAF St. Athan to Cardiff International Airport. [138884]

DARA are conducting a rigorous investment appraisal of the various options to provide modern infrastructure for its Aircraft Business Unit. This investment appraisal is not yet complete and an accurate cost is therefore not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) military and (b) civilian personnel are employed by DARA at (i) Fleetlands, (ii) Almondbank and (iii) RAF Sealand. [139327]

The number of personnel employed by DARA at its four locations is set out in the table.

Locations	Civilian	Service
Fleetlands	1,103	13
Almondbank	363	0
Sealand	1,070	184

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the annual cost of maintaining RAF St. Athan if DARA were to re—locate elsewhere. [139330]

No decision has been made yet to relocate the DARA elsewhere. Options are being considered, and the extent of any relocation, if it were to go ahead, has not been decided. Until a full business case has been prepared, no estimate of the cost of maintaining RAF St. Athan without the DARA can be provided.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian employees working for DARA at RAF St. Athan live in the Vale of Glamorgan. [139583]

This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who in his Department was involved in the appointment of the Chief Executive of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency; when he was appointed; and what criteria were used to assess his suitability for the post. [138273]

The selection board for the Chief Executive of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency consisted of the Chief of Defence Procurement, the Air Member for Logistics, the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Civilian Management (Principal Establishment Officer) and the Non Executive Director of the Air Officer Communications, Information Systems and Support Services RAF Signals and Engineering Establishment (AOCSS's RAF SEE) Owners Board. The board was chaired by the Civil Service Commissioner and confirmed by Ministers. CE/DARA designate was appointed on 1 September 1998.The Department was seeking an innovative Chief Executive to lead and motivate a diverse team during the creation and development of the new Agency, and to devise a strategy for moving the Agency to Trading Fund status in order to operate on a fully commercial basis. Candidates were asked to demonstrate experience at Director/Board level of successful change management to improve working methods and achieve cost reductions in an organisation relevant to the core business of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency. In addition to commercial experience, financial acumen was also sought.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his letter dated 19 October 2000 to the hon. Member for Gosport in reply to his question of 28 July 2000, Official Report, column 911W, if he will give figures of medically downgraded personnel in the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Royal Marines, (c) Army and (d) RAF for each of the preceding five years on the same basis. [139009]

I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the hon. Member for Gosport will receive a substantive answer to his question put down for priority answer on 28 July 2000 concerning the detailed strengths of doctors and nurses in each medical and surgical specialty in recent years. [139010]

I wrote to the hon. Member on 14 November and copies of my letter have been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the fuel capacity is of (a) a Tristar and (b) a VC10 aircraft; and how many standard road fuel tankers it takes to fill (i) one Tristar and (ii) one VC10. [139164]

The fuel capacity of Tristar and VC10 aircraft and the numbers of standard road fuel tankers it takes to fill each is detailed in the table.

	Number of aircraft in fleet	Max fuel capacity (litres)	Number of bowsers to fill aircraft Civilian road bowser (35,000 litres)
TriStar mark of aircraft
C2/C2A	3	121,134	3.46
KCl/K1	6	176,530	5.04
VC10 mark of aircraft
CMk1(K)	12	87,940	2.51
KMk2	1	98,055	2.80
KMk3	4	104,601	2.99
KMk4	5	88,054	2.52

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what problems are scheduled to be resolved during the docking period of HMS Ocean; when it is estimated that the ship will be operational; what will be the cost of the repairs; and if he will make a statement. [138423]

The next docking period of HMS Ocean is planned for early 2002 and is likely to span about four months. This is the first routine docking since acceptance, as required to meet Lloyd's survey standards, and is expected to cost in the region of £5 million. During this docking period, the opportunity will be taken to make modifications to the hull to improve the safety of the deployment of some of the landing craft.In addition, when HMS Ocean returns from her current deployment, routine maintenance will be undertaken at her base port. During this maintenance, defect repair will also be undertaken; the most significant of these will be modifications to the landing craft davit arrangements, enhancements to the replenishment—at—sea facilities and changes to the main engine governors. These repairs are expected to cost in the region of £2 million.HMS Ocean has been deployed on operations and exercises throughout the last two years and is currently on deployment with an amphibious ready group. As in all first of class ships, operating the vessel has indicated the need for improvements in some areas. These are being addressed in the programmed support periods.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what products manufactured at CAMR and Porton Down were subject to agreements with Porton Products for their marketing and distribution between 1986 and 1994; where these products were (a) marketed and (b) distributed to; and if he will make a statement. [138421]

I have been asked to replyPorton Products Ltd. was purchased by a French company, the Beaufour Ipsen Group, in 1994. I refer the hon. Member to the list of products subject to the marketing agreement with Porton Products Ltd., which has been deposited in the Library. Neither CAMR nor the Department has information relating to the locations in which CAMR products were marketed and distributed by Porton Products Ltd. Beaufour Ipsen may be able to provide the hon. Member with such information.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what public investment in public transport and road improvement has been made since 1997. [135209]

Historic and planned expenditure
£ billion1
	1997–98	1998–99	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04
Public Investment expenditure	2.8	2.3	2.7	2.8	3.3	4.5.	6.8
of which:
Strategic roads	0.9	0.8	0.7	0.9	1	1.1	1.2
Rail	0	0	0.1	0.1	0.3	1	2.3
Local transport	0.6	0.4	0.5	0.8	1.3	1.5	1.7
London	1.2	1	1.2	1	0.6	0.8	0.9
Other transport areas	0.1	0	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Public Resource expenditure	4.7	4.9	5.2	5.3	5.5	5.7	5.9
of which:
Strategic roads	0.3	0.3	0.5	0.5	0.6	0.7	0.7
Rail	1.8	1.7	1.5	1.4	1.4	1.3	1.3
Local transport	2.1	2.3	2.5	2.6	2.8	2.9	3
London	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.7
Other transport areas	0.1	0.1	0.3	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.1
Total Public expenditure	7.4	7.2	7.8	8.1	8.8	10.2	12.1
of which:
Strategic roads	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.4	1.6	1.8	1.9
Rail	1.8	1.7	1.6	1.5	1.6	2.3	3.6
Local transport	2.6	2.8	3	3.4	4.1	4.4	4.7
London	1.6	1.4	1.7	1.6	1.2	1.5	1.7
Other transport areas	0.1	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
1 Rounded, outturn prices

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the implications of the Phillips report for animal rendering plants. [136385]

The Phillips Inquiry report raises a wide range of issues, including some concerning the management, operation and regulation of meat rendering plants. The Government are considering the implications of this extensive and complex report and will publish a response in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many (a) deaths and (b) serious injuries between 1 December and 5 January have been attributed to drinking and driving in each of the last 10 years. [136502]

"Transport 2010: The 10—Year Plan" published by the Government in July contained details of historic and planned future levels of public investment in transport. Between 1997–98 and 1999–2000, DETR funded public capital investment in transport totalling £7.8 billion in cash terms. In the same period DETR funded public expenditure on transport totalling £22.4 billion in cash terms. The table provides a breakdown of these figures by mode of transport and year and illustrates how spending on transport is due to increase as a result of the Spreading Review 2000 settlement announced by the Chancellor in July. Copies of the 10—Year Plan have been placed in the House Libraries.

[holding answer 6 November 2000]: The estimates of casualties in drink drive related accidents in Great Britain are shown as follows:

Casualties in drink drive accidents 1 December-5 January
	Fatal	Serious
1989	60	450
1990	50	330
1991	60	340
1992	60	280
1993	40	230
1994	50	230
1995	60	280
1996	50	230
1997	40	220
1998–991	50	210
1 Provisional

These figures are shown rounded to the nearest 10.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the major breakdowns on the London Underground in the last 12 months. [137380]

This is an operational matter for London Underground (LUL) but they have provided the following information.LUL keep a range of records of incidents on the London Underground system. They do not use the term "major breakdown" as such, but the most appropriate measure to refer to is the record LUL have of operational or mechanical incidents which give rise to delays to passengers of over one hour. For the purpose of answering this question a "major breakdown" is therefore taken to be an incident which gives rise to delays to passengers of over one hour on the system, and is related to a failure of infrastructure or assets on the system.The table sets out, by line and by main categories of infrastructure or asset failure, the number of such incidents during the 12 months to 14 October 2000. The incidents are in practice very varied, and categories may inevitably overlap to some extent: for example, track failures may be closely linked to signal problems, and train or track failures may be linked to power problems.The table excludes incidents which are not related to a failure of infrastructure or assets on the system. These include a wide range of instances: for example delays due to passengers reporting the smell of burning, or water on platforms, or broken glass roof panels at a station.

Failures	Train/signal/track	Escalator	Lifts	Power
Bakerloo Line	19	8	36	18
Central Line	17	8	—	8
District Line	13	—	—	11
Jubilee and East London Lines	8	3	—	4
Metropolitan and Circle (C and H)	11	—	—	2
Metropolitan and Circle (Main)	8	3	—	10
Northern Line	7	48	1	16
Piccadilly Line	7	10	4	9
Victoria Line	9	73	—	11
Waterloo and City	5	—	—	—
Total	104	153	41	89

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what steps he has taken to ensure that better information is made available to the travelling public concerning the cancellation and disruption of train services arising from (a) Railtrack's rail replacement programmes and (b) disruption caused by adverse weather conditions. [138164]

On 9 November, the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister met senior rail industry representatives to discuss progress with the national track recovery plan, including the need to provide better information to passengers during the current disruption to services. Train operators have, among other things, increased staffing on stations and trains by 1,000 and have placed posters on stations and distributed newsletters to passengers setting out service changes. The National Rail Enquiry Service has an extra 200 staff to help at its call centres and the National Rail website ("www.nationalrail.co.uk") is updating travel information three times an hour.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will discuss with Ofwat proposals to encourage water companies to offer support to farmers who are committed to methods of cultivation and land management which reduce pesticide usage. [138302]

Diffuse sources of pollution, including from the inappropriate use, mis—use or run—off from agricultural pesticides, fertilisers and cultivation (erosion) can increase the cost of purifying drinking water. The regulatory regime provides an incentive for water companies to adopt the most cost—effective way of delivering clean water to their customers. In some cases, there will be scope for innovative approaches to cutting treatment costs by reducing diffuse pollution. This could include supporting farmers in reducing their usage of chemicals, and I very much welcome the efforts of those water companies who have chosen to do this.However, water companies are not responsible for the environmental quality of water more generally. The Government therefore believe that the principal channel for financial support for environmentally friendly farming practice should continue to be agri—environment measures. Expenditure on these measures will more than double in England over the seven year period of the England Rural Development Programme. The Government have published Codes of Good Agricultural Practice to help farmers protect water, air and soil, and also the Green Code for the safe use of pesticides. We are also encouraging the Environment Agency to focus more regulatory effort on the causes of diffuse pollution, particularly where bathing waters or river water quality objectives are threatened.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what actions he will take following the conclusion of the inquiry into the sinking of the MV Derbyshire. [138263]

I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 8 November 2000, Official Report, columns 239–40W about the MV Derbyshire Report.The Honourable Mr. Justice Colman's report was published on 8 November 2000, and copies have been placed in the Commons Library.Mr. Justice Colman made a total of twenty—four recommendations to enhance bulk carrier safety and safety generally. These are addressed to the Department, Lloyds Register of Shipping, the International Association of Classification Societies and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). In consultation with the others to whom recommendations are addressed, the Department will prepare a response to each of the recommendations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many properties are in Band F and above, broken down by (a) registered social landlords and (b) local authority in (i) London and (ii) England. [138627]

I have placed in the Library of the House a table showing the number of dwellings in Bands F and above in each local authority in England. The Department does not collect separate information which allows this to be broken down by registered social landlords.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what progress has been made on recovering the city grant awarded to Walton Group plc for the regeneration of Exchange Flags in Liverpool. [138751]

Police investigations are still in progress, and therefore it would be inappropriate for me to make any further statement at this time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the need for provision of affordable housing in advance of his publication of his (a) rural white paper and (b) urban white paper. [138548]

While the Government have from time to time commissioned studies of the extent and nature of housing need to inform their views on the need for affordable housing in England, they believe that neither national nor regional estimates can adequately reflect the diversity of needs and priorities which exist at the local level. For these reasons, the Government believe that local authorities are best placed to carry out assessments of housing need in their areas.But the Government recognise that in many areas there is a need for more affordable housing. That is why we shall be almost doubling funding for affordable housing through the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme over the next three years. Our Rural White Paper will set out our policies for affordable housing provision in rural areas.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many of the recommendations made in the Policy Action Team 7 report from the Performance and Innovation Unit, "Unpopular Housing" his Department (a) has implemented to date and (b) plans to implement in the near future. [138547]

Nearly all recommendations are being progressed. A number of these have been implemented in full. Several were included as proposals for reform in the Housing Green Paper, published in April. We will make an announcement on the outcome of consultation on the Green Paper later this year. An Audit tracking progress on implementing the recommendations made by all 18 Policy Action Teams will be published by the Social Exclusion Unit in the next few months.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent steps he has taken to improve the quality of the National Rail Inquiry Service. [138524]

The National Rail Inquiry Service is provided by train operators and administered by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). It has recently increased staffing levels by 15 per cent. (200 staff) and has introduced a new recorded state—of—the—network information service to provide better information to passengers during the current disruption to rail services.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to accelerate the decision—making process with regard to planning inquiries. [138615]

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning to my hon. Friend the Member for Basildon (Angela Smith) on 27 June 2000, Official Report, columns 453–54W.The statutory instruments setting out the streamlined procedures for handling planning appeals by written representations, hearings and inquiries in England, and laid before Parliament that day, came into effect on 1 August 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent discussions he has held with Railtrack about the second phase of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link; and if he will make a statement. [138531]

Railtrack have said that they will take a decision on exercising their option once they have the final outcome of the Regulator's periodic review process. As yet the Department has received no formal approach from Railtrack concerning Section 2 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. Railtrack has already committed to purchase Section 1 of the link and has previously indicated its desire to exercise its exclusive option to purchase Section 2.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimates he has made of the dates on which the (a) first and (b) second phases of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link will be in service. [138529]

(a) Construction on Section 1 remains on time and on budget. Services are due to start in October 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent estimate he has made of the cost of building the second phase of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. [138530]

The target construction cost of Section 2 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link remains at £2.5 billion at 1997 prices.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the passenger figures were for Eurostar journeys in the last year for which figures are available; and what assessment he has made of the need for subsidy to complete the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. [138517]

The most recent passenger figures are for the year 1999 when 7,046,000 tickets were sold. This was a 4 per cent. increase on 1998. In 2000 to date Eurostar have sold 5,914,000 tickets, an increase of 11 per cent. on the same period last year.The Government are providing Capital Grant towards both sections of the CTRL, with £78 million going towards Section 1 and £1.7 billion towards Section 2. Both figures are at 1997 prices.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to increase competition in the United Kingdom water industry. [138616]

On 6 November 2000 the Government published a consultation document on a draft Water Bill. The draft Bill would give the Director General of Water Services in England and Wales a new duty to protect the interests of consumers in relation to water and sewerage services including, wherever appropriate, by promoting effective competition.In April this year, my Department published, jointly with the National Assembly for Wales, a consultation paper on the broad options for extending competition in the water industry in England and Wales. There have since been a number of proposals within the industry for restructuring. In the light of the responses to the consultation exercise and these other recent developments in the industry, we are carrying out further work to examine options for increasing competition. We will consider what legislative changes may be needed to promote competition as part of this work, and will make a statement setting out our conclusions early next year.The Scottish Executive is responsible for the water industry in Scotland.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the effect of European legislation on wildlife and the management of (a) nature conservation areas and (b) green belt sites since 1997. [139065]

Nature conservation areas in England are generally notified as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because they host the best examples of our national heritage of wildlife habitats, geological features and landforms. In relation to the first part of his question I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 16 November 2000, Official Report, column 727W.In relation to the second part, green belt designation has no bearing on the notification of wildlife sites for the purposes of European Union legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement about those local authorities which require school transport to meet R66 standard. [138843]

I am not aware of any local authority requiring school buses to meet the UN ECE Regulation 66 standard, which applies to the strength of superstructure of coaches. This standard is required for single—deck coaches first used in the UK on or after 1 April 1993. However, local authorities can specify the age and type of vehicle used for school transport and could require ECE Regulation 66 compliance by specifying coaches first used after April 1993 in their contracts.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list those bus companies which have had prohibition notices issued against them in the last 12 months. [138844]

Details of operators and any prohibitions which they receive are not released because they might be open to misinterpretation.Prohibitions issued to bus operators by the Vehicle Inspectorate are monitored by Traffic Commissioners. They consider whether an operator should be called to appear at a Public Inquiry (under the Public Passengers Vehicles Act 1981) and decide whether disciplinary action is appropriate.In the financial year ending 31 March 2000, disciplinary action was taken against bus and coach operators on 172 occasions.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to review the regulations relating to static caravans; and if he will make a statement. [139254]

Recommendations for changes to the control regime applying to mobile homes were included in the report of the Park Homes Working Party, published earlier this year. We have consulted on, and are considering, the Working Party's recommendations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions who Her Majesty's Government's representatives were at the Hague Conference on curbing emissions of greenhouse gases; and what conclusions were reached to which Her Majesty's Government acceded. [138532]

[holding answer 17 November 2000]: The Deputy Prime Minister and I will represent the Government at the Sixth Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which is currently taking place in The Hague. The ministerial segment begins on 20 November and the Conference is scheduled to end on 24 November. The Government will inform the House about the outcome of the Conference in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many rough sleepers there were in (a) East Sussex and (b) the Lewes constituency in the last year for which figures are available. [139038]

The latest available figures for the number of rough sleepers in each of the local authorities in East Sussex are shown in the table. There are no specific figures available for the parliamentary constituency of Lewes.These figures show the position as at June 2000. These figures are compiled on the basis of local authority data from local street counts, and estimates provided by local authorities.

	Number of rough sleepers
Brighton and Hove	26
Eastbourne	1
Hastings	3
Lewes	10
Rother	10
Wealden	20
1 Estimated
2 No estimate made by local authority

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what progress his Department has made in ensuring that all automatic train ticket machines have facilities for accepting rail cards held by disabled people; [138782](2) if his Department will take steps to ensure that all automatic train ticket machines are able to provide discounted tickets to groups of people with a statutory entitlement to a discounted fare. [138781]

Automatic ticket machines inherited by train operators from British Rail offer a limited number of ticket options and train operators have had to decide which tickets to include on the basis of greatest demand. The new generation ticket machines gradually being introduced by train operators will allow a wider range of tickets to be sold and we expect train operators to include discounted tickets for Disabled Persons Railcard holders.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many grants have been awarded under the home energy efficiency scheme in the Newcastle upon Tyne, Central constituency from 1997–98 to 1999–2000; and what was the (a) total and (b) average value of grants in that period. [139159]

The number of grants and their total value and average value for each year from 1997–2000 is shown in the table. Also shown is the comparative information for the current year to date.

Period	Number of grants	Average value of grant £	Total value of grant £
1997–98	606	142	85,900
1998–99	450	135	60,600
1999–00	511	162	82,800
2000–011	1,133	371	420,100
For overall period 1997–2000	2,700	241	649,400
1 Up to 13 November 2000

The average value of grant has increased substantially in the current year following the launch of the new Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES) for England on 1 June 2000. It replaced the more basic scheme that operated since 1991. HEES provides packages of insulation and heating measures, linked to the condition of the property and the type of householder. The grant maximum increased from £315 up to £2,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what has been the cost to public funds to date of the South East England Regional Assembly, broken down into provision for (a) salaries of staff, (b) premises, (c) disbursements to members and (d) others. [138783]

Expenditure for the year 2000–01 as at the end of September 2000 is as follows:

	£
(a) Salaries of staff	128,729
(b) Premises 1	0
(c) Disbursements to members	22,226
(d) Others	89,425
Total	240,380
1 Rent free office provided by the Government Office for the South East

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 13 November 2000, Official Report, column 488W, on the emergency tug in the Pentland Firth, if he will place a copy of the correspondence in the Library. [139078]

I am unable to provide this information as correspondence between Ministers and their correspondents is treated in confidence unless the originator chooses to make such issues public.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the British—Irish Council Environmental Sectoral Group meeting held in London on 2 October. [138742]

A copy of the Communiqué issued at the end of the meeting which sets out very clearly all the matters covered has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what data he provided to the British—Irish Council Environmental Sectoral Group on the environmental impact of munitions dumping in the Beaufort's Dyke. [138744]

I did not provide any information on the environmental impact of munitions dumping in the Beaufort's Dyke to the 2 October meeting of the British-Irish Council Environmental Sectoral Group. The meeting reviewed the conclusions of the OSPAR Regional Quality Status Report on the Celtic Seas which has been made public.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what forecast he has made of the level of radioactive discharge into the Irish Sea in each year to 2020, indicating the measures he will take to ensure fulfilment of the OSPAR Agreement. [138743]

The consultation document on a UK Strategy for Radioactive Discharges 2001–20, which was published in June, shows how we shall implement the agreements on radioactive discharges reached at the 1998 Ministerial meeting of the OSPAR Commission. It includes projected discharge profiles by sector for the nuclear industry, for the period to 2020. Responses to the consultation are now being considered, with a view to issuing the final strategy in the spring. The final strategy will show separate projections for radioactive discharges into the relevant OSPAR sea areas, one of which is the Celtic Seas, which includes the Irish Sea. Statutory guidance to the Environment Agency, which is about to be issued in draft for consultation, will ensure that future discharge authorisations are consistent with the discharges strategy. The strategy will also contain environmental concentration data for a key set of indicators designed to monitor progress in implementing our OSPAR commitments and will be updated every four years. Comprehensive data on the amounts of radionuclides discharged from UK installations and their concentrations in the marine environment are published annually in "Radioactivity in Food and the Environment", a joint report by the Food Standards Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on his plans to change the restrictions on the siting of bill boards in the countryside. [138868]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bury, North (Mr. Chaytor) on 7 November 2000, Official Report, column 136W.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 13 November 2000, Official Report, column 467W, on payroll administration, what the total wage bill is estimated to be in 2000–01 for his Department and its agencies. [139011]

The estimated wage bill for the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions and its Agencies, in the financial year 2000–01, is £464 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the purpose was of the visit of the Minister for Housing and Planning to Santiago, Chile on 9 and 10 November; and what was the total costs to public funds. [138484]

I led a very successful trade mission to Brazil and Chile from 5–10 November. We visited Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Santiago. Accompanying me were around a dozen representatives from the British construction industry. The purpose of the mission was to promote British construction exports. In Santiago we met with the Chilean British Chamber, the Minister of Justice, the Under-Secretary for the Economy, Energy and Mining, the Under-Secretary for Finance and the Director General of the Ministry for Public Works and participated in a seminar to promote the use of Public—Private Partnerships to facilitate greater investment in public infrastructure. A large number of UK construction companies are now pursuing the opportunities opened up during this mission. While I was in Santiago, I took the opportunity to address the Canning House conference on Chile and the EU which coincided with my visit. Other speakers from the UK included Baroness Hooper, Chris Patten and Lord Garel—Jones.The cost to public funds of the mission to Brazil and Chile was approximately £27,400. This covered the cost of my travel and accommodation and that of four officials who accompanied me. It also included part sponsorship of the seminar to promote Public—Private Partnerships and the cost of the Chairman of the Movement for Innovation joining the Chilean part of the mission to discuss plans to promote the principles of "Rethinking Construction" in Chilean construction projects.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received from Mr. PY Gerbeau regarding the operation of the Millennium Dome after 31 December. [139307]

Since the withdrawal of the bid from Nomura for the Dome in September, we have received numerous unsolicited expressions of interest from parties interested in procuring the Dome, including one from PY Gerbeau. These have all been outside the terms of the competition.Within the context of the competition, the competition team has been continuing its discussions with Legacy plc, and in the light of progress the Government have now decided to grant Legacy preferred bidder status. Legacy plc have been awarded preferred bidder status because they have confirmed that they will resolve all outstanding contractual issues within an agreed timetable. Negotiations will continue, and if all goes well we expect to exchange contracts during February. Progress will be reviewed regularly.English Partnerships will be working closely with Legacy plc to agree a masterplan for the Dome and associated land.In addition, English Partnerships and the London Borough of Greenwich are working together, and are in discussion with the London Development Agency, to put in place a new partnership for the next stage of the regeneration of the Greenwich Peninsula. This will build on the work done so far on the development of the Peninsula, including the Dome site, the Millennium Village, and retail and commercial investments, and the emerging development framework for East Greenwich Riverside.The aim will be to work closely with local stakeholders, including private sector landowners, employers and residents, to establish and implement a new masterplan framework for the Peninsula. This will maintain the momentum established by the Millennium Experience and the enormous improvements in transport infrastructure that have been made, maximising private sector investment and regeneration benefits for the Peninsula. I have asked English Partnerships to consider, in their discussions with other parties, the possible establishment of an urban regeneration company, following the principles set out in our White Paper published last week.

Title	Author	Date commissioned	Estimated publication date
UK Accession to the EEC volume 1	Professor Alan Milward	1993	2001
UK Accession to the EEC volume 2	Professor Alan Milward	1997	2005
Falklands Campaign	Professor Lawrence Freedman	1997	2002
North Sea Oil and Gas	Professor Alexander Kemp	1999	2004
External Economic Policy since the War volume 2	Professor Leslie Pressnell	1974	2002
Defence Organisation since the War	Professor Donald Cameron Watt	1974	2001
Secret Flotillas—revised edition	Sir Brooks Richards	2000	2001
SOE in France—revised edition	Professor M. R. D. Foot	2000	2002
SOE in the Low Countries	Professor M. R. D. Foot	1987	2000
SOE in Italy	Christopher Woods	1989	2002
SOE in Greece	Professor Richard Clogg	1984	2002

To ask the Prime Minister how many officials in his office work (a) part time and (b) full time in the Regulatory Impact Unit; and if he will make a statement. [136020]

None.

To ask the Prime Minister if it is his practice to notify hon. Members when he has received a complaint about a personal constituency matter for which the hon. Member would expect to take responsibility; and if he will make a statement. [137772]

It would depend on the circumstances of the correspondence and the nature of the complaint.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 30 October 2000, Official Report, column 280W, what factors underlay his decision not to hold discussions with the Iraqi Government on the hijacking of a Saudi Arabian aircraft. [136861]

[holding answer 15 November 2000]: The Iraqi Government severed diplomatic relations with the UK in February 1991. The Saudi Government naturally took the lead in discussions with the Iraqi Government to resolve the hijacking of Saudi Air flight SV115. I am grateful for the assistance provided by the Russian Embassy in Baghdad which was in touch with the local authorities on our behalf.

To ask the Prime Minister how many Government sponsored official histories are in preparation; when each was commissioned; who the authors are; what the estimated dates of completion are; and what the estimated cost in each case is. [138778]

[holding answer 17 November 2000]: The original programme of official histories, commissioned by the War Cabinet and covering military and civil histories of the second world war, was extended in 1966 by the then Prime Minister to include selected periods or episodes of peacetime history. The following are in preparation:

To ask the Prime Minister what was the greatest amount paid from public funds to an individual (a) dentist, (b) doctor, (c) solicitor, (d) barrister and (e) accountant for services provided in the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available. [139597]

The information requested is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is (1) on the 2000 NPT Review Conference proposals on a move to single—warhead submarine—launched ballistic missiles and multiple warhead SLBMs; [138480](2) on the 2000 NPT Review Conference decision on a no—first—use policy. [138479]

No such decisions were made at the 2000 NPT Review Conference.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is the policy of Her Majesty's Government that NATO's arms control options (1) should include an upgraded financial commitment to International Atomic Energy Agency and a public statement in support of the organisation; [138483](2) should include

The scope of the exercise to which each of these questions refer is, as agreed by all Allies at the 1999 Washington NATO summit:

to consider options for confidence and security building measures, verification, non—proliferation and arms control and disarmament.

NATO has already made clear, at its ministerial meetings in Florence in May, its strong support for, and commitment to, the conclusions of the 2000 NPT Review Conference. Allies have naturally taken those conclusions into consideration in the course of this exercise. We expect Allies to reiterate their support for all of them. It will be for NATO Foreign Ministers to decide, at their meetings in December, how best to make public the conclusions of this exercise.The Trilateral initiative involves the development of arrangements to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to verify that fissile material from nuclear weapons declared by the US and Russia to be no longer required for military purposes is irreversibly removed from military programmes. These arrangements are being negotiated between the US, Russia and the IAEA. NATO is not a party to these negotiations.The UK and NATO Allies have of course made regular national statements in support of the IAEA, most recently at the Agency's General Conference in October. All NATO Allies make regular budget subscription payments and contributions to the IAEA Technical Co—operation Fund, in accordance with a scale guided by United Nations principles. Furthermore, last year the UK, along with 14 other NATO allies, made additional voluntary contributions to the Agency amounting to some US$15 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the policy of Her Majesty's Government are on production of fissile material for weapons use. [138474]

The previous Government announced in 1995 that the United Kingdom had stopped the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons. We have welcomed similar statements by France, Russia, and the United States.We are eager to see negotiations started in the Geneva Conference on Disarmament on a Treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the policy is of Her Majesty's Government on implementation of Article VI and paragraph 4(c) of the 1995 Decision on Principles and Objectives for Nuclear Non—Proliferation and Disarmament. [138476]

The Government are fully committed to the implementation of Article VI and paragraph 4(c) of the 1995 Decision on Principles and Objectives for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament. It hopes to see early international progress on the implementation of the agreements reached at the 2000 NPT Review Conference in this regard.The Government's highest priorities are the entry into force of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty; the negotiation of a Fissile Material Cut—Off Treaty; and further deep cuts in the nuclear arsenals of the United States and the Russian Federation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which social protection policies are intended to be covered by the new Article 130(b) of the TEC, as proposed in the draft Treaty of Nice. [138486]

New Article 130(b) of the TEC is a suggestion from the Presidency. It proposes that a new Committee on Employment and Social Protection with advisory status shall monitor the social situation and the development of social protection policies in the member states and the Community and promote exchanges of information, experience and good practice between member states and with the Commission. Discussion continues on the Article.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what criteria will apply to determine whether representatives of the general public come from organised civil society as proposed by the amendment to Article 257 of the TEC contained in the draft Treaty of Nice. [138487]

Each member state will decide its own criteria for determining which members of the general public best represent civil society in their country. The Government will consider a wide variety of nominees, with the aim of making our delegation to the Economic and Social Committee as representative as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list those areas which fall within the exclusive competence of the European Commission which will not be subject to the proposals for enhanced co—operation as set out in the draft Treaty of Nice. [138499]

Discussions continue on the precise scope of the proposed enhanced co—operation arrangements. All partners are clear that enhanced co—operation could not be used in areas such as trade policy, the common agricultural policy or the single market.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the areas of social exclusion which are intended to be brought within the ambit of the suggested new Article 137(j) of the TEC in the draft Treaty of Nice. [138485]

New Article 137(j) of the TEC is a suggestion from the Presidency. It proposes that the Community supports and complements the activities of member states in combating social exclusion. Discussion continues on this Article.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which of the provisions outlined in the draft Treaty of Nice as being candidates for qualified majority voting are deemed by Her Majesty's Government not to be vital to the United Kingdom's national interest. [138491]

The Government have made it clear that we shall insist on retaining unanimity in the areas of tax, social security, Treaty change, own resources, border controls and defence. We shall consider all the other Articles on a case by case basis.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the regional bodies which will be politically accountable to (a) the National Assembly for Wales, (b) the Northern Ireland Assembly and (c) the Scottish Parliament, for the purpose of the amendment of Article 263 of the TEC proposal in the draft Treaty of Nice. [138488]

The proposed amendment states that representatives to the Committee of the Regions will either hold a regional or local authority electoral mandate, or be politically accountable to an elected assembly. There would be no change to the present position in the UK.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place a copy of the draft Treaty of Nice in the Library. [139294]

A copy of the Progress Report on the Intergovernmental conference has been informally available in the Library since 6 November. It is also available on the following website "www.europa.eu.int".

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the areas where it is proposed that enhanced co—operation need not involve at least eight members of the EU. [138472]

Talks continue on the scope of enhanced co—operation and the number of member states required for enhanced co—operation in specific areas. Some member states have suggested enhanced co—operation in foreign policy in groups of less than eight.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is the policy of Her Majesty's Government that the EU's provisions on closer co—operation should encompass the Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy. [138473]

The Government support the introduction of provisions for enhanced co—operation to the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy for the implementation of policies which have been agreed by consensus by all member states.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when draft amendments to the consolidated treaties of the European Union will be considered at Nice; when they will be (a) published, (b) placed in the Vote Office, (c) available to the media throughout the European Union and (d) sent to the Governments of candidate member states; and if he will publish communications he has made to representatives of Governments of (i) member and (ii) candidate states prior to the consideration of the proposed amendments. [139085]

The Nice European Council will take place from 7–9 December 2000. The Presidency has been consistent in placing draft papers put to the Intergovernmental Conference on the Council Secretariat website www.europa.eu.int. We have passed these to the Scrutiny Committee. A final version of the Treaty will be made available to the media at the end of the European Council; this will then be submitted to Parliament in the form of a Command Paper in the usual way. The Government are in regular touch with other member states and applicant countries on the IGC. It is not the Government's policy to make public its records of meetings with other Governments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made on the proposals in the paper Confer 4790/00, "Progress report on the Intergovernmental Conference on Institutional Reform", relating to the extension of qualified majority voting to (a) Article 13, (b) Article 100, (c) Article 137(a)(f), (d) Article 151(5) and (e) Article 161. [138355]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Wokingham (Mr. Redwood) on 30 October 2000, Official Report, column 238W.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which export licence applications for the export of equipment on the Military List for demining operations in Afghanistan the Government have approved since August. [139226]

Following consultations with this Department and the Ministry of Defence, the Department of Trade and Industry recently issued a licence for the export of Military Listed mine—clearance equipment for use by OMAR International, a UN funded NGO, to aid their demining activities in Afghanistan. This licence was granted for humanitarian purposes and it does not affect the Government's continued support for the EU Common Position on arms exports to Afghanistan.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what investigations are being undertaken into the use of Israeli military helicopters using parts exported by United Kingdom companies. [138988]

We are closely monitoring the current violence in the Middle East, including the equipment used by the Israeli Defence Forces in the Occupied Territories. We have no evidence that British equipment licensed for export under this Government has been used against civilians in the Occupied Territories. We continue to look at all applications for licences to export defence equipment to Israel on a case—by—case basis against consolidated EU and national arms export licensing criteria.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British citizens resident in Zimbabwe have been affected by the actions of the Zimbabwean Government which have recently been ruled illegal by the Supreme Court; and if he will make a statement. [138839]

British nationals overseas are not obliged to register with British missions. Those that do register are not asked about their property holdings. It is therefore impossible to say how many British citizens might be affected by the Supreme Court ruling in Zimbabwe on 10 November.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will provide a breakdown of the special missions and services included in the other external relations section of his Department's expenditure plans for 2000–01. [138354]

The planned expenditure of £17.574 million for special missions and services, information services, sponsored visits and lecture tours, given at Table 28 of the departmental expenditure plans for 2000–01 (Command 4609), is broken down as follows:

(a) £7.274 million for general programme activities comprising payments for:

• Military training delivered by loan service personnel—£923K
• Other training assistance—£771K
• Environmental policy—£665K
• Climate change challenge fund—£500K
• Royal visits—£487K
• Conflict prevention—£448K
• War Crimes Tribunal—£350K
• Small Commonwealth states office—£256K
• Peacekeeping incidental expenses (visas, medication)—£240K
• Commonwealth human rights fund—£205K
• Counter terrorism assistance—£204K
• Peacekeeping training—£204K
• Crisis management—£125K
• Other programme items of less than £100K—£1.895 million

(b) £2.8 million sponsorship of visits to the UK by foreign dignitaries

(c) £3.7 million command programme budgets covering several hundred small overseas assistance projects under £25K.

(d) £1.4 million consular information campaign.

(e) £1.3 million challenge fund—overseas assistance projects over £25K where FCO funds are often matched by private sponsorship.

(f) £1.1 million OSCE projects.

These planning figures are based on expenditure during the previous year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list for each local education authority (a) the amounts spent and (b) the full-time equivalent numbers directly employed in the Youth Service in each of the last three years, together with a projection of the proportion of that (i) expenditure and (ii) staff to be transferred to the Connexions Service. [137032]

[holding answer 7 November 2000]: The table gives the information requested in respect of the amounts spent for each local education authority in the Youth Service for the last three years. The figures are drawn from the local authority returns (R01) for 1996–97, 1997–98 and 1998–99, which is the latest year available. The three years prior to 1996–97 are included to indicate how spending is recovering from cuts in services in 1995–96.My Department does not collate the numbers employed by local authorities within their Youth Services. The 1998 audit of England's Local Authority Youth Services,

Net current expenditure after recharges (R01 line 29) by English LEAs on the Youth Service from 1993–94 to 1998–99
12£000
	1993–94	1994–95	1995–96	1996–97	1997–98	31998–99
Corporation of London	0	10	40	130	90	100
Avon	6,380	6,540	6,820	—	—	—
Barking and Dagenham	1,490	1,440	1,220	1,320	1,280	1,280
Barnet	1,620	1,650	1,480	1,540	1,650	1,950
Barnsley	820	1,070	1,210	1,530	1,360	1,630
Bath and North East Somerset	—	—	—	570	1,230	1,310
Bedfordshire	2,580	2,510	2,300	2,190	1,400	1,190
Berkshire	4,220	4,470	4,780	4,920	4,990	—
Bexley	1,350	870	1,060	1,120	1,150	1,460
Birmingham	5,890	7,010	6,680	6,800	7,430	8,140
Blackburn	—	—	—	—	—	1,030
Blackpool	—	—	—	—	—	600
Bolton	1,700	1,540	1,570	1,560	1,200	1,340
Bournemouth	—	—	—	—	1,040	1,000
Bracknell Forest	—	—	—	—	—	740
Bradford	3,270	4,900	4,640	4,200	4,280	4,290
Brent	3,930	3,570	2,670	2,570	2,410	2,480
Brighton and Hove	—	—	—	—	710	1,050
Bristol	—	—	—	2,380	2,380	1,040
Bromley	920	970	880	890	960	2,210
Buckinghamshire	5,360	3,970	3,970	3,820	2,440	1,970
Bury	890	940	1,090	850	710	820
Calderdale	1,740	1,910	1,890	2,150	2,070	1,980
Cambridgeshire	5,270	5,020	3,860	3,600	3,110	2,410
Camden	1,850	2,180	2,310	2,310	2,040	2,190
Cheshire	4,240	5,140	3,910	3,730	3,980	2,610
Cleveland	4,720	5,070	5,150	—	—	—
Cornwall	1,920	2,030	2,380	2,110	2,070	2,460
Coventry	1,760	1,750	1,830	2,330	2,510	2,100
Croydon	1,700	1,730	1,690	1,770	1,740	1,860
Cumbria	2,150	1,600	1,550	1,590	1,530	1,610
Darlington	—	—	—	—	520	560
Derby City	—	—	—	—	1,140	1,410
Derbyshire	5,970	6,450	5,610	5,520	4,230	4,320
Devon	4,780	4,160	2,970	3,170	3,150	2,130
Doncaster	1,900	1,980	1,890	1,710	1,730	1,870
Dorset	3,390	3,610	3,710	3,770	2,010	2,320
Dudley	970	1,090	1,100	1,070	1,180	1,190
Durham	4,620	4,370	3,740	3,970	3,650	3,740
Ealing	1,120	1,110	1,230	1,010	940	1,080
East Riding of Yorkshire	—	—	—	1,320	1,300	1,360
East Sussex	2,020	2,260	2,210	2,100	1,610	1,500
Enfield	690	740	690	750	900	970
Essex	9,790	11,270	8,930	8,950	8,760	5,780
Gateshead	1,160	980	900	990	930	1,150
Gloucestershire	3,340	3,520	3,060	3,010	2,980	2,590