To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) if the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland has expressed his views about the Criminal Justice Review Group's recommendations on judicial appointments; [144664](2) if the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland has expressed his views about the merit of recommendations made by the Criminal Justice Review Group. [144665]

The Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland did express views on the recommendations of the Criminal Justice Review Group. It is usual policy that views expressed by individuals in consultation exercises are treated in confidence, unless the individual wishes otherwise.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) if the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland has communicated with members of the Criminal Justice Review Group; [144663](2) if the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland responded to the request for consultation made by the Criminal Justice Review Group. [144662]

I can confirm that the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland responded to the Criminal Justice Review Group's consultations and met members of the Group as part of its consultation exercise.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she plans to set up an immigration appeal tribunal in the North East Government Office for the Region. [146386]

There are no plans for the Immigration Appeal Tribunal to sit in the north-east, but the Tribunal is investigating the potential for using video conferencing so that parties are not put to the expense and inconvenience of travelling long distances.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will list for (a) 1992–93, (b) 1993–94, (c) 1994–95, (d) 1995–96, (e) 1996–97, (f) 1997–98, (g) 1998–99, (h) 1999–2000 and (i) 2000–01, (I) his Department's total spending on quantitative and qualitative surveys of policy issues by focus groups, opinion polling, task forces or other means and (II) the cost of each individual project. [146594]

Spending by the Department on market and opinion research on policy issues for 1999–2000 was £161,004. Information so far available for spending in 2000–01 gives a total of £39,848. Figures for earlier years are not readily available. The individual projects and their cost are shown in the table.In addition, in 2000–01 the Department has provided funding for the Review of Tribunals being undertaken by Sir Andrew Leggatt to research and evaluate the views and experiences of recent applicants to a tribunal at a cost of £24,375.

Projects undertaken	£
1999–2000
Provision of Information Meetings: market research findings	30,000
Community Legal Service: strategy development research	41,854
Community Legal Service: quality market and brand identity evaluation	49,150
Total	161,004
2000–01
Office for National Statistics Omnibus Module: non-pecuniary loss	2,336
Factors affecting the decision to apply for Silk and judicial office	9,652
The effects on magistrates of learning that the defendant has a previous conviction	27,860
Total	39,848

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the contract will be awarded in respect of the new transporters for the Challenger II tanks; and if he will make a statement. [147410]

The Ministry of Defence has selected FASTTRAX—a consortium led by Brown and Root Ltd. of Leatherhead, Surrey—to be the preferred bidder for a private-sector financed heavy equipment transporter service for the Army that will provide UK production, support and service employment opportunities for the 20 years of the contract. The service will be based upon vehicles provided by the Oshkosh Truck Corporation of Wisconsin, USA, and King Trailers of Market Harborough, Leicestershire.The Defence Procurement Agency will now conclude its negotiations with FASTTRAX with the aim of achieving financial close and contract award by the middle of the year. This is the first programme to seek a solution under the Government's private finance initiative for an operational combat support vehicle requirement and is also one where a significant proportion of the service will be delivered using sponsored reserves.The contract value is around £300 million and will create or sustain up to 200 jobs in UK companies and sponsored reserves service units.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what date an amendment to Joint Services Publication 341 (The Road Transport Operations Handbook) was issued requiring a certificate to be signed by a commanding officer when normal operating standards are to be exceeded; and how many such certificates have been issued in each month since that date. [146276]

The amendment to Joint Services Publication 341 (Joint Service Road Transport Regulations) was issued in December 1999. This requires commanding officers to sign a certificate of waiver when authorising any change to maximum driving periods and minimum rest periods.Certificates are held at unit level for 12 months and are not recorded centrally. Information on the number of certificates issued each month since December 1999 could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.I would also refer the hon. Member to my previous reply to the hon. Member for Hereford (Mr. Keetch) on 20 October 1999,

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what arrangements will be made for the availability and issue of the morning-after pill to female UK service personnel; and if he will make a statement; [146451](2) how information about sexual health safety is communicated to UK service personnel; and if he will make a statement. [146452]

I will write to my hon. Friend.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if depleted uranium rounds are routinely carried by Challenger tanks on operations and training exercises. [146899]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: Depleted uranium rounds are not carried by Challenger tanks on exercise and are moved to a theatre of operations only if the circumstances suggest that they may be needed. For example, each Challenger 1 carried DU ammunition when deployed to the Gulf in 1990–01. DU ammunition is not currently held in the Balkans, but could be flown out at short notice should the situation warrant it.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the arrangements are for the storage and handling of depleted uranium ammunition in service with UK armed forces; and if he will make a statement. [146898]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: The Ministry of Defence places the utmost importance on the health and safety of all service and civilian employees. Accordingly, the Department maintains the provisions of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974, the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the Environment Act 1995 and associated legislation as minimum standards. Specifically, the MOD explosive storage and transport committee lays down the policy and standards for the storage and transportation of all conventional military explosives held by the UK MOD and this includes depleted uranium (DU) munitions. These standards are then enshrined as necessary in single service regulations and local depot procedures. The MOD would not consider storing or handling munitions of any type until approved, satisfactory procedures were in place and, as such, they are a pre-requisite of acceptance. In the case of DU munitions, appropriate procedures have been in place since these munitions entered service and, as is common practice, they are routinely reviewed and updated as necessary. We have no evidence to suggest any inadequacy in our current procedures or arrangements for the storage and handling of DU munitions in service, nor of any safety-related incidents which give us cause for concern.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if depleted uranium ammunitions were (a) produced and (b) tested at Royal Ordnance, Chorley. [147050]

Depleted uranium ammunitions have neither been produced nor tested at Royal Ordnance, Chorley.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if depleted uranium-based ammunition is authorised for use at (a) the Tain Air Weapons Range and (b) the Cape Wrath Range by (i) UK forces and (ii) overseas forces; and if he will make a statement. [145909]

[holding answer 17 January 2001]: Depleted Uranium (DU)-based ammunition is not authorised for use at Tain Air Weapons Range, or at Cape Wrath Range, by either UK forces or overseas forces.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the outcome of his most recent discussions with the Indian Government about the sale to them of Hawk aircraft. [146745]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: During my recent visit to India, which was both productive and valuable, I was pleased to be able personally to assure the Indian Government of HMG's support for greater co-operation between UK and Indian defence companies. This includes BAE Systems' proposal to supply the Hawk advanced jet trainer aircraft to the Indian Government in conjunction with Indian Industry, on which the Indian Government have indicated that they intend to take a final decision shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what assessment he has made of the influence of issues relating to the supply of American components to the Indian Government on Indian policy concerning purchase of Hawk aircraft; [146746](2) what assessment he has made of the influence of issues relating to the supply of US originated components for the Sea King helicopter on Indian policy with reference to a purchase of BAE Hawk aircraft. [146747]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: Indian policy on the purchase of Hawk aircraft is a matter for the Indian Government. All relevant issues are taken into account in assessing how to maximise UK Government support for the BAE Systems Hawk proposals.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the reports that UNAMSIL peacekeepers will be deployed to the RUF-controlled areas of Sierra Leone. [146480]

As part of the Abuja ceasefire, the RUF committed themselves to allow freedom of movement throughout the country. We urge them to implement this commitment. It is for the UN force Commander to decide how and when to deploy his forces.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions have taken place between his Department and the incoming US Administration with regard to national missile defence. [146722]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: We discussed national missile defence regularly with the previous US Administration and expect to do so with the new US Administration.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Erewash (Liz Blackman) of 21 November 2000, Official Report, column 101W, regarding Porton Down, (a) what plans his Department has to write to hospitals and general practices in the UK to inform them of these arrangements and (b) who will analyse the data from the consultations at St. Thomas' Hospital. [146686]

The Department of Health sent an electronic message about the medical assessment programme for Porton Down volunteers to directors of public health in England on 21 November 2000. This message was then forwarded to general practitioners, chief executives of health authorities, chairs of primary care groups, primary care medical advisers, project managers/nurse leads in walk-in centres and leads at nurse-led personal medical services pilots. A copy of the message was also sent to the Library of the House and is available on the Department of Health website at www.doh.gov.uk/cmo/cmo3.htm. The Health departments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have disseminated this message to OPs and health board directors of public health within their area of responsibility.The Porton Down volunteers' medical assessment programme has only just started and it is therefore too early to consider the analysis of its data. The data about specific individuals' referral to the medical assessment programme will be medically confidential. However, it is planned to aggregate and anonymise the data to form a case series for analysis. Such data could, with volunteers' consent, be made available to independent researchers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if service volunteers under the age of 18 years have taken part in experiments at the chemical defence establishment, Porton Down, since 1971; and what analysis and research his Department has carried out into the ages of service volunteers who took part in experiments at the chemical defence establishment, Porton Down. [146648]

The policy of the chemical and biological defence sector of DERA at Porton Down has always been to refuse any prospective participants of the service volunteer programme if they were proven to be under the age of 18. This policy has been published in Defence Council instructions dating from 1971 and in the later 1992 Army general and administrative instructions. Information on age limits was also included in information produced by Porton Down following the formalisation of their protocol systems in the 1980s.No formal analysis of the experimental records relating to the service volunteer programme has been undertaken to determine the ages of volunteers who have participated in the studies. However, there are some entries in the records which indicate that volunteers were returned to their units on the basis of their age being below an 18-year-old threshold.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what additional costs he anticipates arising from the geographical dislocation of the Meteorological Office from the European Meteorological Centre, following his decision to relocate the Meteorological Office to Exeter. [146768]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Meteorological Office. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the work of the Veterans Cell in his Department. [146466]

The Ministry of Defence's "Policy for People", outlined in the 1998 Strategic Defence Review, highlighted the Department's commitment to place people at the heart of our plans. The Veterans' Advice Unit was established in October that year as an initiative resulting from this policy. Staffed by one Warrant Officer from each of the 3 Services, the unit provides a helpline where veterans and their dependants can seek guidance on how to obtain expert advice on matters which concern them. The unit has close links with other Government Departments and agencies, as well as with ex-service organisations. It plays an important part in helping us to gauge the views of veterans and to understand the problems they face. Since its foundation, the unit has received over 16,000 inquiries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many spouses of former far east prisoners of war have remarried and are thus ruled ineligible for the ex-gratia payment. [146740]

As I indicated to the House on 7 November 2000, Official Report, column 165, where the surviving spouse of a former far east prisoner of war (or of a member of any of the other groups included in the scheme) has since remarried, he or she remains eligible for the ex-gratia payment which is being made to the surviving members of the British groups who were held prisoner by the Japanese during the second world war.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the impact on military personnel and people in the Solent area from the closure of Haslar Hospital and expenditure at Queen Alexandra, Southampton and Winchester hospitals; and if he will make a statement. [146606]

The decision and announcement in late 1998 that the Royal Hospital Haslar would close followed careful consideration of all the implications and subsequently has been a matter of extensive discussion between the Ministry of Defence, Department of Health and NHS locally. We are satisfied that the arrangements will be entirely appropriate in terms of treatment of service personnel. The impact of the closure of Haslar on the local civilian population and expenditure at Queen Alexandra, Southampton and Winchester hospitals is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health. We have reached agreement with the Department of Health on the funding we will transfer to compensate for the costs the Portsmouth and South-East Hampshire health authority will incur for NHS patients who have hitherto been treated at Haslar without charge to the health authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans there are to move service nurses to Selly Oak hospital from Haslar Hospital; and if he will make a statement. [146621]

Nurses, doctors and other medical staff are moving from a number of defence medical units, including the Royal Hospital Haslar, to form the initial staffing of the Centre for Defence Medicine, which is being established in partnership with the University Hospital Birmingham NHS trust with its headquarters at the Selly Oak hospital. By April 2001, when the centre formally opens, Defence Medical Services personnel will be managing a surgical ward at the Selly Oak hospital, with other staff employed in the acute areas of the trust.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his plans to develop the military ethos of Defence Medical Services. [146705]

The Defence Medical Services have a strong military ethos as an integral part of the armed forces. Those employed in MOD hospital units (MDHUs), working in a predominantly civilian medical environment, continue to undertake military training and have opportunities to participate in service sport and adventure training. Where appropriate, additional facilities may be provided, as in the case of the fitness centre for DMS personnel at the Frimley Park MDHU, which is due to be completed in spring this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what level of medical support was available to ground troops preparing for a possible intervention in Kosovo; and what assessment he has made of the level of medical support available to service the UK's commitment to (a) NATO and (b) the rapid reaction force. [146707]

Medical support for UK troops deploying to Kosovo was provided at sufficient levels to meet the specified requirements. The level of medical support required for UK forces committed to a NATO or European rapid reaction force deployment would similarly depend on the operational circumstances at the time and would be drawn from the available resources of the UK Defence Medical Services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in respect of the sale of the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank. [146887]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: The Ministry of Defence consulted a number of other Government Departments, including the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, before a final decision was taken on the preferred bidder for the purchase of the site of the former Royal Army Medial College at Millbank.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the agreed selling price of the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank. [146882]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: I am withholding details of the agreed selling price under exemption 7 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the contract to sell the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank has been signed. [146885]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: The proposed date for exchange of contracts is 14 February, with completion due on 28 February.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what meetings Ministers in his Department have had with bidders for the purchase of the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank. [146886]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I, accompanied by the Minister for Education and Employment and the Minister for the Arts, received a presentation from each of the short-listed bidders on 21 September 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will make a statement on the reasons for the elimination of each of the unsuccessful bids for the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank; [146884](2) if the Royal Army Medical College at Millbank is to be sold to the highest bidder. [146883]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: The Ministry of Defence selected the bid which best served the public interest, taking into account the presence of listed buildings on the Millbank site, its prominent location and proximity to Tate Britain.The guidelines for the disposal of heritage sites and listed buildings give Departments discretion to accept a lower bid where there are non-financial or wider environmental or cultural benefits.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the sale of surplus MOD property; and if he will make a statement. [146888]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: Surplus Ministry of Defence property is disposed of in line with the overall economic objectives of the Government and within Treasury guidelines. This dictates that property is disposed of in a timely (usually within three years) and transparent manner (usually through open market testing) so that the interest of the tax payer is protected.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is in respect of the supply of condoms to UK service personnel; when the policy was last reviewed; and if he will make a statement. [146450]

I will write to my hon. Friend.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) if he will set out the basis on which the sums being held back from local education authorities funding in relation to adult education in 2001–02 have been calculated; [145226](2) if he will set out for each local education authority their spending on adult education this year and the sum being top-sliced from their funding for adult education in 2001–02. [145227]

[holding answer 15 January 2001]: No sums are being held back or top sliced from local education authorities' funding. For 2001–02 the Government are allocating up to £142 million to local education authorities, via the Learning and Skills Council, for Adult and Community Learning—an increase of 5.7 per cent. on what authorities are spending in 2000–01. To help pay for this, £127 million was removed at national level from Education Standard Spending for 2000–01, before the addition of over £1 billion for 2001–02.The following table sets out, for each local education authority, their estimated spending on adult education in 2000–01, and the maximum provisional allocation they would receive for this activity in 2001–02 from the Learning and Skills Council, as notified to LEAs on 29 November 2000.Final figures for the maximum allocations from the Learning and Skills Council are under discussion between my Department and a number of authorities.

£000
LEA number	LEA name	LEA estimated adult education expenditure 2000–01	Proposed LSC allocation for adult education 2001–02
201	City of London	409	432
202	Camden	804	850
203	Greenwich	1,327	1,403
204	Hackney	1,311	1,386
205	Hammersmith	1,369	1,447
206	Islington	457	483
207	Kensington and Chelsea	922	975
208	Lambeth	1,709	1,806
209	Lewisham	1,698	1,795
210	Southwark	778	822
211	Tower Hamlets	1,877	1,984
212	Wandsworth	1,356	1,434
213	Westminster	2,272	2,402
301	Barking	580	613
302	Barnet	203	215
303	Bexley	745	787
304	Brent	1,053	1,113
305	Bromley	934	987
306	Croydon	1,594	1,685
307	Ealing	219	231
308	Enfield	59	62
309	Haringey	1,498	1,583
310	Harrow	364	385
311	Havering	261	276
312	Hillingdon	436	461
313	Hounslow	824	871
314	Kingston-upon-Thames	538	569
315	Merton	654	692
316	Newham	1,077	1,138
317	Redbridge	754	797
318	Richmond-upon-Thames	311	329
319	Sutton	1,362	1,440
320	Waltham Forest	1,295	1,369
330	Birmingham	3,556	3,759
331	Coventry	2,358	2,493
332	Dudley	475	503
333	Sandwell	386	407
334	Solihull	68	72
335	Walsall	833	880
336	Wolverhampton	1,624	1,716
340	Knowsley	74	78
341	Liverpool	3,602	3,807
342	St. Helens	192	203
343	Sefton	261	275
344	Wirral	678	717
350	Bolton	1,719	1,817
351	Bury	589	623
352	Manchester	3,253	3,439
353	Oldham	1,074	1,135
354	Rochdale	969	1,024
355	Salford	135	142
356	Stockport	523	553
357	Tameside	168	177
358	Trafford	43	45
359	Wigan	32	34
370	Bamsley	781	826
371	Doncaster	120	127
372	Rotherham	232	245
373	Sheffield	457	483
380	Bradford	395	417

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the extra capital and revenue resources he has made available to (a) St. Martin's College, Lancaster and (b) Lancaster University since 1 May 1997. [145543]

St. Martin's College received total recurrent and capital resources of £9.35 million from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Teacher Training Agency in the academic year 1996–97. In academic year 2000–01 it will receive total recurrent and capital resources of £16.1 million, an increase of 72 per cent. over the year 1996–97.Lancaster University received total recurrent and capital resources of £27 million from HEFCE in academic year 1996–97. In academic year 2000–01 it will receive total recurrent and capital resources of £33.2 million, an increase of 23 per cent. over the year 1996–97.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is the average class size in secondary schools; and what was the average class size in 1997. [146362]

[holding answer 22 January 2001]: The size of the average secondary class in January 1997 was 21.7. The figure in 2000 was 22.0. Secondary classes still have about five fewer pupils on average than primaries. The size of the average secondary class was below 20 in 1989, and rose consistently throughout the nineties. The rate of growth has in fact slowed since 1997 as a result of the additional investment this Government are making.We are on course to deliver our infant class size pledge. In Wokingham just 4 per cent. of pupils were in classes of 31 plus in September 2000 compared with 25 per cent. in Berkshire, which consisted of Wokingham and five other Local Education Authorities, in January 1998.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will meet the National Association of Citizens' Advice Bureaux to discuss a statutory power to provide assistance with school clothing costs to low income families; and if he will make a statement in respect of good practice guidance in school clothing grant schemes. [146486]

I will be responding shortly to the National Association's correspondence about its report on school uniform costs. Local education authorities already have discretionary powers to offer grants towards school clothing costs in cases of hardship, and we have no current plans for further legislation. We have published good practice guidance on aspects of school uniforms, and I will be considering whether further guidance is needed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many individuals who are full-time students at a university in the UK have parental homes in Sussex. [146697]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: The latest data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency show that in 1999–2000 there were 19,276 full-time students in higher education institutions in the UK whose home domicile was either in East or West Sussex.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many persons were recruited for secondary teacher training in (a) England and Wales and (b) England in (i) 1996–97 and (ii) 2000–01. [146943]

For matters relating to teacher training numbers in Wales, I refer the hon. Member to the National Assembly for Wales.In England, in 1996–97, the total number of people recruited to ITT courses was 28,430, of whom 15,965 were on secondary ITT courses. The provisional figures for 2000–01 are 27,674 in total, with 14,525 on secondary courses. A further 1,058 people have been recruited so far this year onto the Graduate Teacher Programme, which started in January 1998; with 604 trainees on secondary courses. Further recruitment for a further 622 GTP is expected during the summer term. Taken with ITT recruitment for 2000–01 this would mean that by the end of the year, over 29,000 are expected to be training as teachers. This would represent an increase of over 2,500 on 1999–2000, and is the first time since 1992–93 that recruitment to initial teacher training has risen in England.On 30 March 2000, the Government announced training salaries and new-style Golden Hellos, which have increased graduate recruitment to initial teacher training courses by 12 per cent. compared with last year; and of extra funding for the Graduate Teacher Programme, which is being doubled in size.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many persons were training to be teachers in each of the last eight years for which figures are available. [146944]

Figures for recruitment to ITT courses in England for the years 1992–93 to 2000–01 are presented in the following table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the total capital expenditure available for schools in (a) Staffordshire and (b) Burton constituency for each year from 1990–91 to 2000–01. [146985]

The information showing the schools in the Burton constituency which have benefited from investment through the New Deal for Schools programme, which commenced in 1997–98, is contained in tables, copies of which have been placed in the Library. This is the only constituency level information which is readily available. These allocations formed part of the £20.151 million investment made so far in schools in Staffordshire local education authority under the New Deal for Schools programme.The New Deal for Schools was introduced as a new additional programme targeted specifically at addressing the backlog of urgent repairs in school buildings that had built up after 18 years of underfunding under the previous Administration. It has been in addition to other capital funds made available to Staffordshire local education authority.In total, since 1996, Staffordshire local education authority has received some £90.985 million of funding for capital investment in school buildings, as shown in a table which has also been placed in the Library.Nationally, investment in school buildings has tripled from £683 million a year in 1996–97 to over £2 billion in 2000–01. It will be £3.2 billion in 2003–04, including grant, credit approvals and Private Finance Initiative credits. There will be central Government investment of £7.8 billion in school buildings in total from 2001–02 to 2003–04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the names and affiliations of the members of the coal compensation monetary committee which he chairs. [145323]

It was agreed at the 29 November meeting of the GB-wide coal health claims monitoring group to set up a specific Welsh monitoring group, which will bring together all those involved in the process in Wales to discuss ways of speeding up payments to our ex-miners.The membership of this Welsh sub-group of the coal health claims monitoring group include:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list for (a) 1992–93, (b) 1993–94, (c) 1994–95, (d) 1995–96, (e) 1996–97, (f) 1997–98, (g) 1998–99, (h) 1999–2000 and (i) 2000–01, (I) his Department's total spending on quantitative and qualitative surveys of policy issues by focus groups, opinion polling, task forces or other means and (II) the cost of each individual project. [146585]

The Wales Office has not carried out any surveys of policy issues either through focus groups, opinion polling, task forces or any other means since it was established on 1 July 1999.Reliable, comparable and complete statistics are not available for the former Welsh Office for the period from 1992–93 until the end of June 1999. However, all public opinion research by Government is subject to strict rules, which ensure that spending represents good value for the taxpayer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many homes in the UK are estimated to have television sets but no TV licence. [144940]

The estimated number of households in the United Kingdom with television sets but without a valid television licence is 1.95 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on the total funds received by the BBC in 2000 from the European Union. [145014]

[holding answer 15 January 2001]: In common with other broadcasters, regulators and broadcasting research bodies across Europe, the BBC takes part in a range of technical research projects which attract funding from the European Commission. According to the latest information provided by the BBC, during the financial year 2000–01 the corporation has received a total of £444,000 in connection with such projects, as detailed in the following table.

£
Project/Purpose of project	EC funding to BBC
ATLANTIC
Research and Development (R&D)—Advanced TV at low bit rates	95,000
ASSAVID
R&D—automatic segmentation and semantic annotation of sports videos	30,000
DRIVE
R&D—Dynamic Radio for IP-services in vehicles	50,000
G-FORS
R&D—developing a stanardised file format	60,000
Metavision
R&D—metavision	32,000
myTV
R&D—personalised TV services	10,000
SAMBITS
R&D—advance multime ha broadcast and IT services	20,000

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when audited attendance figures for the Millennium Dome will be available; and if he will publish them. [145386]

[holding answer 16 January 2001]: Total visitor attendance at the Dome was 6,517,116 million as announced by the New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) on 3 January 2001. In terms of the breakdown of that total (for example tickets sold and free entry) NMEC is in the process of reconciling ticket sales data across the various outlets (including train operating companies and river boat services), and visitor attendance data. The external audit of NMEC's operational year finances and ticket sales data are intended to commence in February and should be concluded by the end of March. The audited information will be incorporated in the company's next annual report and financial statements covering the period 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2000 which, under non-departmental public body requirements, will be published within six months of 31 December 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many tickets for the Millennium Experience had been sold in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland by 1 December 2000. [145893]

[holding answer 16 January 2001]: The New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) has advised that the information sought is not available in the format requested. The nature of NMEC's ticket sales channels and the data arising from them do not allow definitive regional breakdowns covering all tickets sold. While postcode identification data are available from the call centre and national lottery outlets (which indicates that by 1 December 2000, 13,934 tickets had been sold in Northern Ireland, 52,053 in Scotland, 50,283 in Wales, and 3,634,272 in England), these figures do not include tickets purchased at the gate on the day of visits, nor do they include tickets sold as part of travel/visit packages by train operating companies or one-off coach company bookings.Also, not included in the call centre and national lottery statistics are those Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish schools who enjoyed visits to the Dome as part of the free school programme, and those schools and communities from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland who visited the Dome as part of the "Our Town" story initiative. In addition, many of the other outreach initiatives (under the national programme and the learning experience), developed and implemented by NMEC as an integral part of the millennium experience, involved schools and communities across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to his oral answer of 22 January 2001, Official Report, column 646, if he will make a statement on the involvement of Ministers in the sponsorship of the Faith Zone at the Millennium Dome by the Hinduja brothers. [147442]

In reply to the hon. Member for Lewes (Mr. Baker) on 22 January 2001, Official Report, columns 645–46, I stated that the sole involvement of my right hon. Friend the Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson) in Mr. S. Hinduja's application for British citizenship was for his then Parliamentary Private Secretary to inform Mr. Hinduja that his application would be dealt with in the normal way.As has now been made clear publicly, my right hon. Friend made inquiries about how an application might be viewed given the Government's wider policy of encouraging citizenship from long-standing residents who fulfilled the criteria, but did not make representations that an application be granted.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what criteria (a) current and (b) former members of the Board of Directors of the New Millennium Experience Company will be judged when deciding (i) whether these individuals will receive a bonus and (ii) the level of any bonus. [145413]

[holding answer 16 January 2001]: The non-executive directors of the board of the New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) have never received remuneration and have never, therefore, been eligible for bonus payments. Among current executive directors, only Mr. P. Y. Gerbeau is eligible to be considered for a bonus. The past executive directors of the board have contracts which describe certain circumstances under which bonuses might be payable subject to the board's discretion. As is conventional in any contractual relationship between employer and employee, the criteria for such bonuses are confidential. However, as NMEC' s annual report and financial statements for the period ended 31 December 1999 (published July 2000) stated:

"The performance related bonus scheme for executive directors includes critical success factors for the company covering the achievement of specified targets as well as an assessment of the personal contribution the individual has made to the success of the project. The total payable under the scheme to any director serving up to the end of 1999 is a maximum of 30 per cent. of contract earnings. The total payable to Mr. P. Y. Gerbeau is under review. Determination of the bonus payable will be entirely at the board's discretion and is based on its determination of performance against agreed criteria."

The board's remuneration and recruitment committee is considering the issue of bonus payments to relevant directors and will be making its recommendations to the board in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if the new star rating system for self-catering accommodation is in operation in north-west England. [146819]

Yes. The new self-catering star rating system was launched throughout England on 27 September 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the percentage of households which make use of (a) digital television and (b) digital radio. [146696]

[holding answer 23 January 2001]: From the figures declared by the service providers, we estimate that around 6 million households in the UK use digital television, which represents 26 per cent. of households with a television. Estimates for the take-up of digital radio are not available, but around 20,000 digital radio receivers have been sold in the UK to date.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Indonesia. [145911]

We continue to follow events in Indonesia closely, and have a detailed dialogue with the Indonesian Government. The challenge for Indonesia is to build on the foundations laid by the recent democratic process and to deliver human rights and economic prosperity that benefit everybody. We will play a full part in helping towards that goal.We welcome the commitment of the Indonesian Government to resolve the country's regional conflicts through dialogue and reconciliation. We welcome the recently agreed moratorium on violence in Aceh. We hope this will allow both sides to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, through dialogue rather than force. We remain concerned about events in Maluku and Irian Jaya, and have made these concerns known to the Indonesian Government—I did so most recently with Foreign Minister Shihab on 12 December.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many spouses of UK citizens living abroad have been refused a visa to enter the UK. [146164]

I regret that the information requested is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Statistics are available for the number of spouses refused entry clearance to join husbands or wives settled in the UK, but they do not distinguish between spouses of UK citizens living abroad and others. For most non-settlement applications, statistics are not available distinguishing between spouses and others.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many foreign relatives of UK citizens were denied visas to attend family weddings in the UK in the most recent year for which figures are available. [146165]

I regret that the information requested is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Statistics are not collected on the number of applications for visas to attend weddings.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many initially refused applications for visas to enter the UK were (a) reconsidered and (b) approved, following intervention by hon. Members in the last three years. [146166]

As Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with responsibility for entry clearance, I am replying on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State.I regret that the number of visa applications reconsidered following intervention by hon. Members is not recorded centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.As a result of intervention by hon. Members, I have, since October 1999, approved the issue of 45 visas that had previously been refused. No records of such approvals were held before this date.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library copies of the most recent returns relating to confidence-building measures submitted by states which are parties to the biological weapons convention. [146428]

The confidence-building measures (CBMs) drawn up by the states part to the biological weapons convention (BWC) are first submitted to the United Nations centre for disarmament and then shared on a Government-to-Government basis. The UK does not therefore presently have agreement to make the contents of these documents public. This can only be given by the BWC review conference which next takes place on 19 November to 17 December 2001 in Geneva. The UK will press for wider dissemination of this information on that occasion.A decision to place a copy of the UK CBMs in the House of Commons Library will be made after the necessary consultations with the other Government Departments, laboratories, and commercial companies which contribute to the UK's returns. I will write to my hon. Friend.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the British Government provide to support air traffic control monitoring in the air space in Sub-Saharan Africa. [146833]

We do not at present provide support for air traffic control monitoring in the air space of Sub-Saharan Africa.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out, with statistical information relating as directly as possible to the Slough constituency, the effects on Slough of his Department's policies and actions since 2 May 1997. [146933]

We hold no information of the kind sought by my hon. Friend. The mission of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is to promote the national interests of the United Kingdom and to contribute to a strong world community. For details of the Government's achievements in meeting its foreign policy targets, the following page of the FCO website may be helpful:

http://www.fco.gov.uk/directory/dynpage asp?page=108

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance the Government have provided for Nigeria's human rights violations investigation commission. [146829]

Although we have not provided specific assistance to Nigeria's human rights violations investigation commission, we have directly funded several projects for Nigeria's permanent human rights body, the Nigerian human rights commission. We have also supported human rights projects through a number of NGOs and have helped NGOs attend Senate public hearings aimed at developing a national policy on human rights.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will disclose information collected by the British security services in Nigeria between 1966 and 1998 for the use of Nigeria's Human Rights Violations Investigations Commission. [147051]

We have received no requests for information from the Nigerians. It is not Government policy to comment on intelligence matters.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the prospects for a ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of Congo following the death of President Kabila; and if he will make a statement. [147018]

The UK condemns all acts of political violence, including the assassination of President Laurent Kabila. The political situation in DRC is still not clear, but it is vital that the new leadership restores stability and seizes the opportunity fully to implement the Lusaka agreement, including facilitating the deployment of UN personnel in DRC territory and the establishment of national dialogue. We are urging all parties to the conflict not to take military advantage of the current uncertainty and to give new impetus to fulfilling their commitments under the Lusaka agreement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many reports he has received of aerial bombings of civilian targets in Southern Sudan. [147052]

We received several reports of aerial bombings of civilian targets in southern Sudan last month from NGOs and church representatives. Our ambassador in Khartoum has made our concerns clear to the Sudanese authorities. We will continue to urge both sides to return to the negotiating table and agree a comprehensive ceasefire.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of (a) the health risks and (b) actual health damage to people in Iraq arising from exposure to depleted uranium used for bombing. [143502]

The Government are aware of claims of an increase in ill-health (including alleged deformities, cancers and birth defects) in southern Iraq, and that some have attributed this to the use of depleted uranium (DU)—based ammunition by UK and US forces during the Gulf conflict of 1991. The principal problem is lack of detailed information about the health situation not just in that area but throughout Iraq. However, we have encouraged the World Health Organisation to work with the Iraqis on a proper study—only then can particular problems be properly addressed.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he will take to ensure that farmers whose land has been affected by flooding meet the requirements of the IACS regulations. [144884]

[holding answer 15 January 2001]: In addition to the measures announced by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary on 7 November, we have been evaluating with fanning organisations here and with the European Commission in Brussels the extent to which further flexibility may be needed in applying certain CAP scheme rules.The EU' s Cereals Management Committee has approved a derogation from Article 19(3) of Commission Regulation 2316/1999 to extend the latest date for harvesting crops from land to be set aside in 2001 from 15 January to 28 February, with a further extension to 31 March in the specific cases of sugar beet and potatoes.We have also put to the Commission proposed changes to our national implementing rules for the Arable Area Payments Scheme (AAPS) designed to allow farmers on whose land winter crops have either been lost, or could simply not be planted, the option of trying to establish spring sown crops after 15 January, retaining the possibility of entering such land into set-aside up to the 15 May IACS claim deadline if the attempts prove unsuccessful. Similarly we are proposing to treat flood damaged winter crops which are either ploughed in or otherwise destroyed by 15 May as meeting our green cover requirements for entry into set-aside if no other crop is feasible. We will be making further detailed announcements about this in the light of the Commission's response.We will be exercising our national discretion under Council Regulation 1251/1999 to extend the relevant latest sowing dates from 15 May to 31 May 2001 and will keep open the possibility of seeking extensions if necessary.We have also requested that all farmers who consider their cropping plans to have been affected by the recent extreme weather conditions should let their local MAFF Regional Service Centre have details of the circumstances so that these are on record when subsequent area payment claims come to be assessed.The position on other IACS schemes remains under review.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received on the impact of recent severe weather conditions on potato and sugar beet crops. [146234]

There have been a small number of representations specifically addressing the impact of the recent severe weather on potato crops although none specifically in relation to sugar beet. The National Farmers Union has also made representations about these crops where they are on land which is to be set aside under the Arable Area Payments Scheme in 2001. Under EU rules, these crops have to be harvested by 15 January to allow the land to be set aside. However, as the bad weather has seriously delayed the harvest, my right hon. Friend the Minister wrote to Commissioner Fischler. As a result, the Commission has made a regulation which, where the adverse weather has prevented an earlier harvest, permits any crop to be harvested up to 28 February and potatoes and sugar beet to be harvested up to 31 March on land which is to be set aside in 2001. As required by the EU regulation, any farmer who wishes to take advantage of this should contact his/her MAFF Regional Service Centre.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many staff were employed on the Environment Agency's Floodline programme during the period October to December 2000. [145472]

The Floodline service is operated at a BT call centre where callers can either listen to pre-recorded information or speak to a live operator. Calls are initially taken by a BT operator who will try to respond to the call. If this is not possible, or if the call relates to a particular flooding emergency, they will refer the caller to the relevant Environment Agency office (to which there is a 24-hour link for emergencies).The call centre is normally staffed with up to 10 positions, but during the recent flooding that number was increased to 20 operators with a total of 42 trained to cover the whole day's shift (8 am to 12 am). The agency estimates that some 5,000 hours were spent by BT call centre staff on Floodline during the period October to December 2000.The agency's offices receiving calls from Floodline, or direct from the public, will have been staffed at variable levels during the flooding period. Some staff would have been dedicated to dealing with such calls, others would have combined this with other work. In total the agency estimates that its staff spent some 8,200 hours on Floodline work during October to December 2000.Floodline received a total of 689,838 calls during the same three month period. This compares to some 102,000 calls in the first year of the service's operation.The operation of Floodline will be included in the "lessons learned" report that the agency will be producing on the flooding.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of patients waited in accident and emergency for more than two hours, once a decision had been made that they need a bed for each quarter for the last two years in each NHS Trust or Health Authority, by NHS region. [141507]

[holding answer 13 December 2000]: National summary information on emergency admissions through accident and emergency departments for the period Quarter 1 1998–99 to Quarter 2 2000–01 is given in the table and is available in the Library.Information by health authority and National Health Service trust is not routinely published.

Year and quarter	Total number admitted through A&E in quarter	Number of patients admitted to ward more than 2 hours	Percentage of patients admitted to ward more than 2 hours
2000–01
Quarter 1	511,782	116,550	23
Quarter 2	516,977	120,785	23
1999–2000
Quarter 1	486,909	85,630	18
Quarter 2	497,277	90,629	18
Quarter 3	523,318	112,139	21
Quarter 4	527,615	126,978	24
1998–99
Quarter 1	480,669	83,279	17
Quarter 2	473,681	80,380	17
Quarter 3	501,767	103,223	21
Quarter 4	497,662	103,545	21

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the areas of policymaking for which the Food Standards Agency is responsible and those areas of policymaking for which his Department is responsible. [144122]

Under Section 6 of the Food Standards Act 1999, the Food Standards Agency is responsible for developing policies relating to matters connected with food safety or other interests of consumers in relation to food. The Department is responsible for improving and protecting the health and social well being of the people of England, tackling the causes of ill-health and modernising the National Health Service and personal social services.In certain subject areas, such as nutrition, the two Departments have a shared interest. Details of the relative responsibilities of the two Departments in such areas are set out in a concordat, copies of which have been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients are on NHS waiting lists in the Barnet Health Authority area; how many were on such lists in May 1997; and if he will make a statement. [146509]

The figures relate to the total inpatient waiting list. Data for May 1997 are not available as data were only collected quarterly at that point. Therefore data are provided for the two nearest quarter months for Barnet Health Authority:

Total inpatient waiting list—Barnet Health Authority
	Total
March 1997	7,321
June 1997	7,198
November 2000	5,360

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to add other NHS trusts in Hampshire to the list of trusts providing digital hearing aids. [146512]

[holding answer 22 January 2001]: The Department will study the results of the modernising National Health Service hearing aid services project at the twenty participating NHS trusts to determine how changes to hearing aid services are rolled out to the NHS. Pending the outcome of the project other hospitals are able to access the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency contract for digital hearing aids where the service criteria are met.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what salary is being paid to the holder of the office of Chief Executive of the NHS and Permanent Secretary to the Department of Health. [146955]

Information concerning the salaries of all permanent secretaries is published in the annual Senior Salaries Review Body report. For the purposes of the report the pay ranges applicable to permanent secretaries are divided into £5,000 bands. It is not normal practice to publish the actual salary in payment to individual permanent secretaries. The salary of Nigel Crisp, Chief Executive of the National Health Service and Permanent Secretary to the Department of Health, falls within the range £145,000-£149,999.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will increase the funding of the London Ambulance Service, to improve pay and conditions of staff. [146625]

Ambulance staff on national terms, including those employed by the London Ambulance service, have been offered an above inflation increase of 3.7 per cent. from 1 April 2001. We are currently awaiting a response from trade unions on this offer. National Health Service trusts have the flexibility to pay still more where there are proven recruitment and retention difficulties.This year an extra £6 million was given to the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust. Discussions are underway over additional funding for 2001–02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on the side-effects of high-energy drinks; what research he has commissioned into these products; and if he will make a statement. [145953]

[holding answer 22 January 2001]: We have not received any recent representations on the side-effects of high-energy drinks and the Department and the Food Standards Agency have not commissioned any research in this area.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish his Department's clinical indicators and the CHKS tables of mortality rates by hospital trust. [146490]

The last set of clinical indicators published by the Department was issued in July 2000 in "Quality and Performance Indicators".CHKS is a private sector organisation, which collects data from a proportion of trusts in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recommendations have been made by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence about reducing keyhole operations on financial grounds; and if he will make a statement. [146767]