To ask the Prime Minister what plans there are to commemorate the 50 anniversary of the accession and coronation of Her Majesty the Queen. [144839]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for High Peak (Mr. Levitt) on 23 November 2000, Official Report, columns 294–95W.

To ask the Prime Minister (1) what categories of submissions from civil servants are submitted to special advisers before being seen by Ministers; [143823](2) what categories of submissions from civil servants to Ministers, other than those relating to

[holding answer 10 January 2001]: Special Advisers have access to material produced by permanent civil servants in accordance with paragraph 14e of the "Model Contract for Special Advisers".

To ask the Prime Minister what contact officials in his Office have had with the media concerning correspondence from the right hon. Member for South-West Surrey regarding a constituent. [144919]

None.

To ask the Prime Minister what steps he is taking to promote awareness of Holocaust Memorial Day. [145410]

A national ceremony will be held in London on the evening of Saturday 27 January and will be attended by a wide audience including survivors, senior public figures, community representatives and students. The event is being produced and televised live by the BBC guided by the Home Office-led Holocaust Memorial Day Steering Roup. The BBC has plans to publicise this event in the run up to the day.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the Government's policy in respect of the tapping of telephones of hon. Members. [144972]

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to our hon. Friend the Member for Walsall, North (Mr. Winnick) on 30 October 1997, Official Report, column 861W.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will announce the full composition of the United Kingdom delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and Western European Union. [145830]

The United Kingdom delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is as follows:

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 18 December 2000, Official Report, column 14W, what action he will take in respect of the visits by the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Janet Anderson) and the right hon. Member for Dulwich and West Norwood (Ms Jowell) to the constituency of the right hon. Member for North-West Cambridgeshire without notifying the right hon. Member of their visit to his constituency. [144432]

[holding answer 8 January 2001]: The right hon. Member's question has been drawn to the attention of the Ministers concerned.

To ask the Prime Minister if (i) policy planning, (ii) strategic lift, (iii) peacekeeping and (iv) J2 matters are included in clause J exemptions from Reinforced Co-operation agreed at Nice. [144634]

I have been asked to reply.Article J of the Treaty of Nice provides that enhanced co-operation for matters falling within the Common Foreign and Security Policy shall be limited to the implementation of a joint action or a common position.Article J further provides that all questions with military or defence implications shall be excluded from the provisions for enhanced co-operation in common foreign and security policy.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the impact on NATO of Reinforced Co-operation, Clause I(2), as agreed at Nice. [144637]

I have been asked to reply.Clause J of the draft Treaty of Nice makes it clear that the provisions of the draft Treaty on enhanced co-operation in the field of common foreign and security policy shall not apply to matters having military or defence implications. Article I(2) therefore does not apply to questions with military implications.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will deposit in the Library a copy of the letters from Nice of the (i) Spanish and (ii) Italian Prime Ministers on operational co-operation in controlling the EU external borders, referred to in Presidency conclusion section 49. [144582]

I have been asked to reply.

To ask the Prime Minister to which two documents section 50 of the Nice Presidency Conclusions refers. [144638]

I have been asked to reply.The two documents referred to in paragraph 50 of the Nice Conclusions are:

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his position on including a declaration on Sport in the Presidency Conclusions of Nice, indicating the Treaty base for such a declaration. [144642]

I have been asked to reply.The Government welcomed the inclusion of a declaration on Sport in the Presidency Conclusions at Nice as it is right to join with other member states in acknowledging the special nature of sport in modern society. The declaration makes it clear that sport should retain its independence and that the organisation of support for sport is a matter for member states and governing bodies of sport.

To ask the Prime Minister what manner of directive is planned to promote gender equality in areas other than employment and professional life, as set out in Annex I, V(c) of the Nice Presidency Conclusions. [144640]

I have been asked to reply.The European Commission has as yet given no indication of what it is considering proposing under this heading. As usual, Ministers in the Council will scrutinise the proposals carefully when they are made. Any directive under Article 13 requires the unanimity of member states.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the planned (i) budget and (ii) roles of the (a) European Monitoring Centre on Change, (b) European Institute for Gender Issues and (c) Gender Expert network, referred to in the Nice Presidency Conclusions. [144641]

I have been asked to reply.The European Commission has not yet indicated what the suggested remit and budget will be for the European Monitoring Centre on Change, the European Institute for Gender Issues or the experts' network. When formal proposals are made, the Council of Ministers will scrutinise them carefully.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the increase of state aid permissible under the Nice Treaty. [144632]

I have been asked to reply.The Nice Treaty did not make any changes to the rules on state aid which increase permissible aid. The recent trend in state aid has been downwards.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the effect of the Nice Treaty on UK subjects committing perjury before the European Court of Justice and Court of First Instance. [144630]

I have been asked to reply.The Nice Treaty will have no effect on UK subjects committing perjury before the European Court of Justice and Court of First Instance.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to her answer of 21 December 2000, Official Report, column 263W, if she will make a statement on the result of the investigation into support for centres of social welfare in Kosovo. [144668]

We have received a preliminary report from the joint World bank and DFID team that is assisting UNMIK to prepare a social protection strategy for Kosovo. The team found that Centres for Social Welfare lack basic facilities, and has made preliminary proposals for reorganising their responsibilities and training their staff. The team will now begin a programme of work to follow up its preliminary observations. A DFID team will also visit Kosovo later this month and will discuss possible provision of training for staff of Centres for Social Welfare.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the aid given to St. Helena in each of the last six years for which figures are available. [144970]

Expenditure figures for UK development assistance to St. Helena over the last six financial year were:

£ million
Year	Total DFID programme
1994–95	7,786
1995–96	8,695
1996–97	7,792
1997–98	8,386
1998–99	8,585
1999–2000	9,194

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the level of Government aid was for South Africa for each year between 1995 and 2000: and how much has been spent on projects for the modernisation of Government in South Africa. [145220]

In addition to contributions through multilateral agencies, DFID's direct expenditure in South Africa since 1995 has been as follows:

Year	£
1995–96	17,194,000
1996–97	18,955,000
1997–98	25,823,000
1998–99	29,131,000
1999–2000	29,602,000

Most of this money has been spent on working with various parts of government in South Africa to improve service delivery. We currently have specific commitments totalling £13.5 million to support improved public administration in national, provincial and local government.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what advice in respect of the potential health hazards posed by depleted uranium dispersed in the environment from NATO shelling has been given to British aid workers deployed in Kosovo. [145290]

KFOR has provided the United Nations Mines Action and Co-ordination Centre (UNMACC) with an information pack about depleted uranium which UNMACC distributed to each mine clearance organisation.It has not been necessary to provide advice more widely to aid workers on this issue. The interim statement of the United Nations Environment Programme's survey of sites where depleted uranium was used in Kosovo states that they found slightly raised levels of radiation at eight sites. We are awaiting their final report. The Royal Society is also conducting a general review of depleted uranium. We shall review our practice on advice to aid workers in the light of both reports. Our present view is that mines and unexploded ordnance pose a greater risk to assistance workers and all personnel are given mines awareness training before deployment to Kosovo.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the landmine clearance programmes in which her Department is involved. [144902]

My Department is supporting the following landmine clearance programmes:

Afghanistan—United Nations Mine Action Programme for Afghanistan

Albania—Stockpile clearance and weapons collection (co-funded)

Bosnia—International Trust Fund for Mine clearance—Kupres region

Cambodia—Mine clearance through Cambodia Mine Action Centre, HALO Trust and Mines Advisory Group

Croatia—Mine clearance through United Nations Mine Action Service

Georgia—Mine clearance in Abkhazia via HALO Trust

Guinea Bissau—Mine clearance via United Nations Development Programme and HUMAID

Jordan—Equipment for mine clearance in Jordan Valley—Jordan Government

Iraq—Mine clearance in northern Iraq via Mines Advisory Group

Laos—Unexploded ordnance clearance via Mines Advisory Group and United Nations Development Programme

Mozambique—Mine clearance in Zambezia via HALO Trust

Nicaragua—Mine clearance North Atlantic Autonomous Region via Organisation of American States

Yugoslavia-FR—Mine clearance in Kosovo in support of United Nations Mine Action and Co-ordination Centre.

The second progress report on all activities within my Department's Humanitarian Mine Action Programme was published in September 2000. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he intends to lay before Parliament the draft code of practice and the sound and vision video recording code of practice under the Terrorism Act 2000. [145840]

I have today laid before Parliament a draft police code of practice, made under section 99 of the Terrorism Act, and a draft sound and vision video recording code of practice under paragraph 3(4) of Schedule 8 to the Act.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) if he will estimate the number of additional retirement pensioners in Northern Ireland who will become eligible to receive the Minimum Income Guarantee, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit in consequence of the measures announced in 2000; [145119](2) how many retirement pensioners in Northern Ireland are receiving

Responsibility for this subject has been devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly and is therefore no longer a matter for the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what grants were paid to TransTec plc and its subsidiaries between 1994 and 1998. [144822]

I have been asked to reply.I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 January 2000,

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent assessment he has made of the potential energy generation from (a) off-shore wind turbines, (b) land-based wind turbines, (c) wave power and (d) other renewable sources; what proportion of the United Kingdom's annual electricity consumption this represents; and if he will make a statement. [144671]

An assessment of the prospects for the different forms of renewable energy in the UK is contained in a report produced at time of the Government's consultation on renewable energy in March 1999: "New and Renewable Energy: Prospects in the UK for the 21 Century: Supporting Analysis". A copy is in the Library of the House. The report presents different possible scenarios for the future of renewable energy in the UK.Assessments are currently being carried out of potential renewable energy resources in each of the English regions, Scotland and Wales.The Renewables Obligation will provide a sound framework for the long-term development of renewable energy in the UK. The Government have proposed targets of obtaining 5 per cent. of UK electricity supplies from renewable sources by the end of 2003 and 10 per cent. by 2010, subject to the cost being acceptable to consumers. The Government do not propose, however, to prescribe targets for each different form of renewable energy, as the balance between the different forms of renewable energy is a matter best determined by the market.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to ensure that independent newsagents are not subject to unfair competition; and if he will make a statement. [145076]

Under UK competition legislation, responsibility for investigating allegations of anticompetitive practices, abuse of monopoly position and restrictive trade practices lies with the Director General of Fair Trading.Any evidence of abuse of anti-competitive behaviour should be passed to the Director General of Fair Trading.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the system of prior scrutiny of arms sales in the Swedish and US legislatures. [143746]

The Government considered the export control systems of a number of countries, as part of their review of the proposals in the 1998 White Paper on Strategic Export Controls. Following the Quadripartite Committee's second report on "Strategic Export Controls: Further Report and Parliamentary Prior Scrutiny" (HC467), the Government considered the nature and scope of prior scrutiny of arms exports in Sweden arid the US. As the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Mr. Hain), informed my hon. Friend on 21 December 2000, Official Report, column 338W, the systems in those countries are very different from ours and in each case reflect their particular circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement about the future of the Marine Laboratories, with particular reference to plans for merger at (a) Plymouth, (b) Liverpool and (c) Dunstaffnage. [144667]

Following the Natural Environment Research Council's (NERC) announcement on 29 June 2000 to disband the Centre for Coastal and Marine Science, the NERC Council agreed in November 2000 to provide continued funding for the work of each of the three marine laboratories for a further five years. Funding levels for the first two years have already been agreed; the Council's Science and Technology Board will consider funding levels for the remaining three years at its meeting in May 2001.The Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory is scheduled to relocate to the University of Liverpool Campus in 2003. It will remain a NERC-owned and managed facility. Discussions with the Scottish Association for Marine Science over future management arrangements for the Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory are ongoing. The NERC Council will consider future management arrangements for the Plymouth Marine Laboratory at its meeting in March 2001.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he intends to publish the details of the business case for rural post offices. [144758]

The business case for rural post offices is an integral part of the Post Office network strategic plan. The plan, which was submitted to the Secretary of State "in strictest confidence" and is commercially sensitive, will not be published.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the implications of the Competition Commission decision to overrule Ofgem's decision to impose market abuse licence conditions on British Energy and AES. [143900]

The references to the Competition Commission were made by the Director General of Electricity Supply (DGES). In the light of the Competition Commission's decision, Ofgem is considering other means of tackling market abuse.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will place in the Library a copy of the draft Code of Practice covering the relationship between suppliers and producers in the produce trade. [144899]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: I will do so once a draft Code of Practice is available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information he has received from the Office of Fair Trading on how the process of consultation was determined in the course of preparing the Code of Practice covering the relationship between suppliers and producers in the produce trade. [144898]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: I have not yet received advice from the Director General concerning the Code of Practice. I understand the Office of Fair Trading is still in discussions with the supermarkets concerned. I have said that representatives of suppliers will have an opportunity to comment on a draft of the Code. The Director General expects that to take place later this month, once the current round of discussions with the supermarkets is complete.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent in total on advertising (a) electricity privatisation, (b) gas privatisation, (c) telecoms privatisation, (d) rail privatisation and (e) the minimum wage since its introduction. [144451]

[holding answer 8 January 2001]: The expenditure on advertising was:

	£ million1
(a) Electricity2	47.9
(b) Gas	21.4
(c) Telecommunications3	38.5
(d) Railtrack	5.1
(e) National Minimum Wage	8.0
1 Excluding VAT
2 Includes the electricity generating companies; regional electricity companies; Scottish and Northern Ireland generating companies; British Energy.
3 Includes British Telecommunications (3 offers); Cable and Wireless.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make it his policy to publish minutes of meetings of the ECGD management board. [145320]

It is not intended that the minutes of meetings of the Export Credits Guarantee Department's Management Board should be published. The minutes of meetings of the Export Guarantees Advisory Council, whose role and membership were reformed as a result of the recent Review of ECGD's Mission and Status, will, however, be placed on ECGD's website.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what appointments have been made to the management board of the Export Credits Guarantee Department following the recommendation in the recent Mission and Status Review that outside directors should play a key role in overseeing ECGD's risk management systems; and if he will provide details of the appointment procedures followed, the salaries awarded and interests declared by the appointees. [145318]

The process of identifying and selecting suitable outside directors for ECGD's Management Board is still under way and no appointments have yet been made.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many applications have been received under the compensation scheme for former distant water trawlermen; what the average time is from receipt of applications to payment; and how many payments have been issued so far. [145132]

The Department has so far received some 8,900 claims for payments under this scheme. The average time taken to make a payment from receipt of a claim is currently 59 days (8.4 weeks). As of 8 January 2001, 314 claims have been paid.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on progress on the draft directive discussed at the December 2000 meeting of the European Employment and Social Affairs Council relating to information and consultation on company plans. [144955]

The Employment and Social Policy Council met on 20 December and unanimously agreed the regulation and linked employee-involvement directive on the European Company Statute. The proposed directive establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the European Community was not on the agenda.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many compensation claims on behalf of coalminers suffering from respiratory diseases, which cover interim the entitlement to compensation arising from the High Court judgment of January 1998, have been settled in full for general and special damages. [144868]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: As at the end of December the Department had made full and final settlements on some 6,500 claims. In addition the Department has made a further 24,500 interim settlements. In total the Department has paid out over £104 million in compensation to former miners and their families with claims for respiratory diseases.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions during the past 12 months he has visited Corns steel works in Wales. [144873]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: I visited the Llanwern plant on 8 October 1999 and keep in regular contact with the company and the trade unions representing the work force.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the impact on other industrial sectors of the closure of Llanwern steel plant. [144881]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: I am aware that Corus is considering further restructuring. Naturally we are assessing the consequences of a change to the structure of steel plants in Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received from the National Assembly for Wales on the impact of the Government's industrial policy on the prospects of the steel industry in Wales. [144875]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: I have had several discussions with my right hon. Friend for Cardiff, West (Mr. Morgan), First Secretary for the National Assembly for Wales, in recent months on a range of issues concerning the steel industry in Wales. I continue to keep in close touch with him on this important issue.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has made to the European Commission for special dispensations to help the survival of the UK steel industry. [144880]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: My Department is in touch with the European Commission about ways in which the steel industry can be assisted which meet the criteria of the Steel Aid Code of the European Coal and Steel Community Treaty.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the impact on the UK's balance of trade of the closure of Llanwern steel works. [144882]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: Corus figures for export are available only by product and not individual plant.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the UK steel industry's (a) imports and (b) exports were for the last year for which figures are available. [144883]

[holding answer 11 January 2001]: Imports and exports for the tariff headings which most closely align with products of the steel industry during 1999, which is the last full year for which figures are available, were:

	Imports	Exports
1999	6,915	17,624
1 Thousand tonnes

Figures for the whole of 2000 are not yet available. Imports and exports of steel industry products in the first nine months of 2000, compared to the same period in 1999 were:

	Imports	Exports
20001	5,567	5,642
19991	4,953	5,813
1 To September
2 Thousand tonnes

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the outcome was of the Transport Council held in Brussels on 20 and 21 December; and if he will make a statement. [144177]

My right hon. and noble Friend the Minister for Transport, Lord Macdonald of Tradeston, represented the United Kingdom at the Council.The Council unanimously adopted Conclusions welcoming the Commission's proposals for a new European Aviation Safety Agency. The Commission welcomed the progress made and hoped that a Common Position would be reached by June 2001.The Council took note of a progress report on a Commission proposal for transposing safety standards of the Joint Aviation Authorities into EC law. The Council also noted that a proposal for a directive creating generic training requirements for airline cabin crew was moving towards agreement.The Commission set out the main conclusions of the High Level Group set up following publication of the Commission Communication "The Creation of a Single European Sky," and chaired by the Commissioner. The conclusions focus on: creating an independent regulator; managing civil and military airspace in Europe collectively; promoting technical interoperability; and improving the training and recruitment of air traffic controllers. The Commission said it would present a Communication to the Stockholm European Council, and make legislative proposals soon after that. Member states all reacted positively. Most pointed to the need to fully involve central European countries in this work. Lord Macdonald stressed the need to separate the operation and regulation of air traffic management services.The Council discussed air passengers' rights. The Commission stressed the need for performance criteria for airlines. It hoped for new agreements with industry by the end of April. The Presidency noted that voluntary arrangements were preferable to legislation.The Commission gave a progress report on negotiations on air services agreements with the central and east European countries.The Presidency noted recent progress on the technical aspects of a Commission mandate for negotiating a Transatlantic Common Aviation Area with the US.The Commission presented its report on the definition phase of the Galileo satellite navigation project. During the debate, the UK joined other member states in recalling the Conclusions of the Cologne and Nice European Councils on the predominant role of private sector finance in the project. The Council did not reach agreement on how to proceed with the development and validation phase. The Commission will undertake further work on outstanding issues, and the project is likely to be discussed again by the Council in April.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received regarding the safety of school buses and coaches used by school parties. [144463]

Over the last two years ministerial colleagues and I have responded to two Parliamentary Questions, three letters from Members' constituents and my officials have responded on behalf of Ministers to four letters direct from the general public on this subject.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many school coaches are (a) over 10 years old, (b) over 20 years old and (c) older than 20 years. [144457]

There is no dedicated vehicle classification of a school coach as it is unlikely that coach operators would use their vehicles solely for the purpose of carrying school children. It is thus currently impossible to know the ages of the vehicles that are used for carrying school children, although it is generally recognised that vehicles used for school and college contracts are normally from the older section of the public service vehicles—PSV—fleet.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many buses which have been subject to spot-checks have been found by the police to have defects in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the number which were school buses. [144487]

In addition to its routine roadside spot checks the Vehicle Inspectorate supports the police in nationwide checks. Of these, Operation Coachman, which has been running since 1997–98, involves specific targeted roadside checks on the condition of public service vehicles (minibuses, coaches and buses) used on school and college services. The table shows the results of Operation Coachman checks in each of the last three years and routine PSV roadside spot checks in each of the last five years. Data on routine PSV roadside spot checks carried out by the Inspectorate are not broken down to identify school buses.

	Number of vehicles examined	Prohibition rates (Percentage)
Operation Coachman
1999–2000	2,523	17.4
1998–99	2,171	18.1
1997–98	2,254	18.9
PSV spot checks1
1999–2000	23,516	13.4
1998–99	20,635	13.6
1997–98	28,045	12.7
1996–97	28,809	14.4
1995–96	23,987	15.0
1 Figures include emission only spot checks and foreign vehicles

A prohibition notice bans the use of a vehicle on a public road. There are two types of prohibition. An immediate prohibition is issued when defects are so serious that further driving of the vehicle would involve a risk of injury. A delayed prohibition is issued for less serious defects and can come into force at any time within 10 days of the inspection of the vehicle.The prohibition rate at targeted roadside checks (such as Operation Coachman) is not indicative of the condition of the PSV fleet as a whole. The Inspectorate targets vehicles which are most likely to have defects. The higher prohibition rate for Operation Coachman is due to the fact that vehicles used for school and college contracts are normally drawn from the older section of the PSV fleet.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what proportion of school buses have correctly-fitted seat belts. [144459]

Seat belts are required to be fitted on all school minibuses and coaches, but not on other types of bus. All new seat belt installations on buses, whether fitted on a voluntary or mandatory basis, must satisfy a Vehicle Inspectorate installation check. Subsequent to this initial check, seat belts and anchorages are inspected for condition as part of the normal annual test.Although figures for school buses are not recorded separately, Vehicle inspectorate figures for buses in general show that a total of 2.5 per cent. of public service vehicles (covering most large buses and coaches) and 6 per cent. of Class V vehicles (covering most minibuses) failed the annual test due to seat belt or anchorage defects.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment his Department has made of the number of school buses that comply with Government safety standards. [144460]

All buses are required to be constructed and operated to meet specific legal requirements for safety. Compliance with these standards is checked through statutory annual testing and through in-service checks during the year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what his Department's policy is on the introduction of congestion charges in the Greater London area; and if he will make a statement. [144904]

The Greater London Authority Act 1999 gives power to the Mayor and the boroughs to introduce road user charging schemes in Greater London. The Government believe that road user charging can be a useful part of a transport strategy in appropriate circumstances. It is for the Mayor, and the boroughs subject to the Mayor's consent, to judge whether schemes are justified in London.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what information he has collated on the effect of commercial sand extraction on the decline of the shrimp harvest in the Ribble Estuary. [144944]

The Secretary of State has not collated any information on the effect of commercial sand extraction on the decline of the shrimp harvest in the Ribble Estuary. He is, however, aware that commercial sand extraction is taking place at Sefton Beach within the Ribble Estuary. He has been asked by the Local Minerals Planning Authority, Sefton Borough Council, to call in two planning applications for continued sand extraction in this location for, respectively, 10-year and 12-month periods. He is currently considering this request and will announce his decision shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to re-examine local government boundary configurations in major conurbations outside London, before the introduction of elected mayors. [145302]

There are no plans at present to examine the external boundaries of local authorities. As part of the programme of periodic electoral reviews, the Local Government Commission for England is examining the electoral arrangements, including ward boundaries, within all local authorities. Any changes in the electoral arrangements in Metropolitan authorities would be likely to be implemented in 2004.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions which railway companies have been penalised since 1 May 1997; how much they have been fined; when they were fined; and what the reason was for the penalty in each case. [145301]

Details of penalties levied upon train operating companies under the terms of their franchise agreements are contained in the shadow Strategic Rail Authority's publication "On Track" and in the Authority's Annual Report. Copies of both documents are in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received from British Airways concerning the airworthiness of Concorde; and if he will make a statement. [145007]

An Anglo-French Working Group of senior government officials and civil aviation authority representatives was established on 17 August to co-ordinate work and review progress on restoring the airworthiness of Concorde. The Working Group has met representatives from Concorde's manufacturers and operators, including British Airways, several times. Both carriers also have regular contact with their national aviation safety regulatory authorities.The Working Group met for the fourth time on 15 December 2000 during which it received the latest information from the technical accident investigators. At that meeting, British Airways confirmed its commitment to take the necessary steps that would enable Concorde's certificate of airworthiness to be restored as soon as possible. The next (fifth) meeting of the Working Group will take place in Paris on 9 February.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his letter of 14 December 2000 to the hon. Member for Linlithgow, if he will make a statement on his meeting with Ralph King about the Flixborough disaster. [144669]

I am due to meet Mr. King and the right hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Sir A. Hamilton) on 29 January to discuss Mr. King's views about the causes of the Flixborough disaster.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he plans to announce his Soil Protection Strategy. [144666]

Next month.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action he proposes to take following the judgment of the House of Lords in the case of Goodes v. East Sussex; and if he will make a statement. [145719]

The judgment was that there was no duty on local highway authorities under the Highways Act 1980 to remove ice from highways. Nevertheless, we expect authorities to continue to salt their roads in icy conditions in accordance with their Code of Good Practice on Highway Maintenance, which has been in place since 1989. All our soundings with local highway authorities have confirmed that it is their intention to maintain existing practices.We have instructed the Highways Agency to continue its usual practice of keeping motorways and trunk roads free of ice and snow.Road users should follow the advice in the Highway Code that they should drive extremely carefully when the roads are icy.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he plans to allow public consultation before he announces new special areas of conservation; and if he will make a statement. [145449]

Full public consultation and discussion with affected interests on all sites has been and continues to be an important principle for the Government. English Nature has, as part of the consultation process initiated in August 2000, given all landowners and occupiers, local authorities, statutory agencies and relevant bodies with interest in new special areas of conservation the opportunity to comment. At national level, my officials consulted national interest groups and representative bodies.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will publish the guidelines by which he will decide on the location of new special areas of conservation. [145450]

The Habitats Directive requires that member states nominate Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) that are the best areas to represent the range and variety of the habitats and species identified in Annexes I and II of the Directive. The criteria for the selection of Special Areas of Conservation are set out in Annexe III of the Habitats Directive.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the sites he is proposing for new special areas of conservation. [145451]

Yes. The Government asked English Nature to consult on the following proposed new special areas of conservation (SACs) in England.

Site name	Administrative area
Alde, Ore and Butley Estuaries	Suffolk
Arnecliff and Park Hole Woods	North Yorkshire
Ashdown Forest	East Sussex
Aston Rowant	Buckinghamshire
	Oxfordshire
Baston Fen	Lincolnshire
Beast Cliff—Whitby (Robin Hood's Bay)	North Yorkshire
Bee's Nest and Green Clay Pits	Derbyshire
Blackstone Point	Devon

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the outcome of the discussions on 8 January between the Minister for Local government and the Association of London Government about asylum seeker support. [145335]

I met the Association of London Government on 8 January to discuss their response to the proposed local government finance settlement for 2001–02, on which I announced my proposals to the House on 27 November. I shall take into account the points they made, together with those made by the Local Government Association, individual local authorities and others before putting the Government's final proposals before the House for approval. In the course of that meeting the ALG raised their concerns about the costs of housing homeless asylum seekers.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what has been the estimated contribution of private and commercial vehicles to total UK carbon dioxide emissions for each of the past three years in (a) percentage terms and (b) by volume. [145433]

The table shows, road transport carbon dioxide emissions for the last three years for which we have data, the period 1996 to 1998 inclusive, both in (a) percentage terms and (b) by volume in million tonnes of carbon (MtC).

Year	(a) Percentage	(b) MtC
1996	20	31.3
1997	21	31.7
1998	21	31.5

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the extent to which the site investigation of the proposed Green Burial site at Acorn Ridge, Enborne carried out by West Berkshire District Council, meets the requirements of the Planning Inspection Decision Letter (25/8/98) (Ref. T/APP/WO340/A/98/ 293497/PS). [145224]

In granting planning permission, the Planning Inspector imposed a condition requiring a site investigation to be carried out by the developers and for the details to be submitted to, and approved by Newbury District Council before development could begin. It was entirely a matter for the Council to consider whether the submitted details were acceptable and the Secretary of State had no powers to intervene, or assess, the Council's decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the application to build a motorway services area near Brockworth, Gloucestershire. [144917]

The initial application on this site is the subject of appeal against non-determination by Tewkesbury Borough Council and the date for the appeal to be heard by an Inspector has not been finalised; any statement made now may prejudice the outcome. More recently a revised application was submitted for a motorway service area and this is still being considered by the borough council.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the level of subsidy has been in percentage terms which is paid to local authorities towards the cost of rent rebates for each year since 1990–91. [145623]

The information requested is given in the table:

Rent rebate subsidy as percentage of national total cost of rent rebates, England
	Percentage
1990–91	90
1991–92	86
1992–93	83
1993–94	80
1994–95	78
1995–96	75
1996–97	72
1997–98	69
1998–99	66
1999–20001	62
2000–012	60
1 Provisional
2 Estimated

We have altered the way in which the housing revenue account subsidy system operates for 2001–02 by introducing the major repairs allowance. As a result we expect that the equivalent figure for 2001–02 will be over 80 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to introduce a national waste collection scheme for farm plastic; and if he will make a statement. [145453]

The issue of farm plastics has been raised most recently in the context of extending waste management controls to agricultural waste and is being considered currently.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the budgeted running costs and staff numbers in 2000–01 broken down by Government Office region for (a) Sport England, (b) the Arts Council, (c) the British Tourist Authority, (d) the English Tourism Council and (e) English Heritage. [144279]

The information for Sport England and English Heritage is in the table. Running costs include payroll, premises and administrative costs. The Arts Council, the British Tourist Authority and the English Tourism Council do not have regional offices. The Arts Council and the English Tourism Council however, allocate block grants to Regional Tourist Boards and Regional Arts Boards respectively.

	Sport England		English Heritage
	£	Number of staff	£	Number of staff
East of England	637,000	17	2,446,325	82
East Midlands	623,000	17	1,733,635	56
London	612,000	17	5,328,961	185

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the budgeted expenditure in 2000–01 broken down by Government Office region for (a) the British Tourist Authority, (b) the English Tourism Council and (c) English Heritage. [144277]

The British Tourist Authority deploys its budget in marketing Britain as a whole and no specific funds are allocated for each region. The information for the English Tourism Council and English Heritage is in the table. The English Tourism Council's expenditure is in the form of grants to the separate Regional Tourist Boards.

£
	English Tourism Council	English Heritage
East of England	476,879	11,906,834
East Midlands	1—	4,628,935
London	417,505	9,675,566
North East	340,687	4,769,174
North West	2729,413	4,898,151
South East	331,517	11,700,356
Southern	2426,079	n/a
South West	407,758	10,413,531
West Midlands	1—	5,794,224
Yorkshire	367,100	6,630,971
Heart of England	4502,939	n/a
1 See Heart of England
2 This figure includes that of the Cumbria Tourist Board
3 The Southern Tourist Beard covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (all within the South East Government Office Region); and East Dorset (within the South West Government Office Region)
4 The Heart of England Tourist Board covers both the East and West Midlands Government Office Regions, as well as Gloucestershire (South West); Hertfordshire (East of England) and part of Oxfordshire (South East)

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on Lottery funding for hospices. [144747]

In November 2000, the Department published a consultation paper which proposed a number of new initiatives to be funded by the New Opportunities Fund. Subject to responses to this consultation, we intend that £300 million will be made available to health initiatives, including money to provide palliative care for adults and children with life-threatening and chronic illness. This will include additional funding for hospices caring for people suffering from a range of serious conditions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations he has made to the directors of the National Gallery about its exhibition for the millennium, Seeing Salvation. [145223]

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I visited the critically acclaimed Seeing Salvation exhibition. Since then, in discussions with the National Gallery, we have been pleased to acknowledge the exhibition's impressive quality and its success in attracting 350,000 visitors, many of whom were first time visitors to the gallery.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to amend the provisions of the National Lottery Act 1998 concerning the process of awarding the licence to operate the National Lottery; and if he will make a statement. [145171]

I welcome the fact that the National Lottery Commission has reached a decision on the award of the new Lottery licence. In the light of the experience of awarding the new licence, I intend to review the process to see if there is scope for improving the present system. Any such review will not be instituted until all the arrangements for the new licence are completed; as a result, the scope and nature of the review still have to be decided but I envisage that it will have an independent element, and changes to the legislation have not been ruled out.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will publish details of the bids to operate the National Lottery. [145561]

This is a matter for the National Lottery Commission.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the achievements to date of each of the regional culture consortiums. [145527]

The Regional Cultural Consortiums are independent advisory bodies providing a focus for each region's many and varied cultural and creative interests. They are currently developing cultural strategies to be published in the next few months. Each strategy will identify the priorities for that region's cultural development over the next few years and include an action plan for implementing them.All the Consortiums have published draft strategies or undertaken consultation on them. Some have also undertaken surveys of public attitudes to culture and audits of cultural provision in their region. In developing their strategies they are consulting a wide range of individuals and organisations, both in writing and in meetings and seminars. Most are also developing their own websites.The Consortiums are working closely with Regional Development Agencies to support their regional economic strategies and, in particular, to promote tourism and the creative industries. They are also working with other regional partners to ensure that the energy and enthusiasm of cultural and sporting interests make a significant contribution to economic development, regeneration and social inclusion in their region.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with the Film Council regarding the publication of actuarial reports on the film franchises. [145138]

None. The consultants' reports—which are not, of course, actuarial—were undertaken on the basis that the information would be treated as commercial in confidence.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he plans to appoint the Chairman of the Broadcasting Standards Council. [145170]

We are currently considering candidates for the post of Chairman of the Broadcasting Standards Commission and will make an announcement as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations he has received from trustees and directors of national museums regarding his proposals to alter the method of appointing trustees. [145169]

Last year I consulted the trustees and directors of national museums on a number of proposals to improve the process of public appointments to the museums and galleries sponsored by DCMS. These proposals were generally well received. Seven out of 10 who commented supported the proposal that those trustee appointments made currently by the Prime Minister should in future be made by the Secretary of State, as many are already. Seven out of eight supported proposals to allow numbers of trustees to be varied and upper and lower limits to numbers set out to allow more flexibility. Nine out of 14 who commented supported the proposal that Boards should have the freedom to appoint at least 25 per cent. of their trustees.I also consulted on the handling of Chairmen appointments. Five of these are already made by the Secretary of State and two by the Prime Minister. Despite this there was much opposition to the proposal that nine others should be appointed by the Prime Minister and this proposal was accordingly dropped. By contrast there was little opposition at that stage to the alternative proposal that there should be consultation with the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister before Chairmen are elected, a process which in a number of cases happens informally already. However, there have also been subsequent representations on this point, and we are considering these carefully.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the UK Government are taking to ensure civil society groups are involved in discussions on the search for peace in Colombia. [144425]

The UK has played a leading role in encouraging the Colombian Government to ensure that NGOs and civil society groups are fully involved. NGO and civil society organisations made a valuable contribution to meetings in Costa Rica on 17 October and in Bogota on 24 October 2000. We will continue to encourage this dialogue.We have fully involved NGOs and civil society groups in our own consultations on Colombia. On 19 June 2000 we hosted an international meeting in London to help prepare the ground for a successful conference on Colombia in Madrid in July 2000. NGO representatives participated in both meetings. My right hon. Friend the Member for Redcar (Marjorie Mowlam) and I also met a wide range of NGOs, church and trade union leaders during our visit to Colombia in September last year. We value all these contacts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the UN presence in Colombia. [144426]

We fully support the work of the various UN agencies in Colombia. The British Embassy in Bogota works very closely with the UN Human Rights office in Bogota and Embassy officials have visited UN field offices on both Putumayo and Uraba. The UK has been a major contributor to the UN Human Rights office's activities over recent years, most recently contributing £108,000 in March.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the present legal position of Mrs. Titina Loizidou and the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg in the case of Loizidou against Turkey. [111410]

Mrs. Loizidou awaits settlement of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in her case against Turkey in which she was awarded financial compensation for the loss of access to her property. The Government will continue to play their part in the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers, which is responsible for supervising the implementation of judgments and for taking the necessary measures to ensure that they are implemented.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had recently with foreign ministers of European countries on Cyprus's application for membership of the European Union; and if he will make a statement. [144409]