To ask the Prime Minister what papers he has submitted to date to Lord Butler's inquiry into intelligence on Iraq; and whether officials from his office have given oral evidence to the inquiry. [177071]

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer my hon. Friend the Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr. Rammell) gave to him on 8 June 2004, Official Report, column 303W.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria are used in the planning system to decide when an environmental impact assessment is considered necessary; and what assessment he has made of whether such an assessment is required in respect of the proposed development at Aston Down Airfield, near Stroud in Gloucestershire. [177598]

In response to the first part of this question, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 27 April 2004, Official Report, column 885W. On 24 March 2003, a screening direction under the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 1999 (SI 1999 No. 293) was issued to the effect that, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, the proposed development at Aston Down Airfield, near Stroud, would not be likely to have a significant effect on the environment by virtue of factors such as its nature, size or location.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many letters he has received about the decision made by Westminster council to approve The Ellipse project for the Royal College of Art; how many requests he has received to meet those opposed to the decision of the council's planning committee; what plans he has to call in the council's planning decision; and if he will make a statement. [176698]

My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has received over 10,000 representations, the majority of which objected to the proposal by the Royal College of Art for an extension building, known as the "Ellipse". A number of requests were also received to meet those opposed to the proposal but it is not standard practice to do so when a planning application is formally before my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister for consideration on whether it should be called in. The hon. Member will be interested to know that my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister called in these proposals on 19 May 2004. A copy of the decision will be made available in the Library of the House.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what action he has taken to bring the sides together to discuss the difficulties encountered with the agreement to end the firefighters' dispute; [177029](2) what discussions he has had with the employers' organisations regarding fulfilling the obligations undertaken to end the firefighters' dispute. [177030]

My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has had no such discussions and taken no such action. The June 2003 agreement, which ended the firefighters' dispute, set out a clear path for pay improvement linked to modernisation of the Fire and Rescue Service subject to some further negotiations. I understand that discussions between the employee representatives and their employers are continuing. Negotiation is clearly the way forward.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what representations he has received regarding difficulties with the agreement which ended the firefighters' dispute. [177031]

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received a handful of representations on these issues both directly and through ministerial colleagues and constituency MPs. Letters originated from members of the public, serving members of the Fire and Rescue Service and the Fire Brigades Union. In addition, Andy Gilchrist, General Secretary of the Fire Brigades Union wrote to all Members of Parliament on 17 May 2004 setting out the Union's views on the detailed negotiations with employers following the June 2003 pay and conditions agreement.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he has taken to inform members of the public about how they can participate in the consultation on high hedges. [176912]

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister issued a press release launching the public consultation on the high hedges legislation on 29 March. The announcement was covered in three national and a number of local newspapers, by national radio stations and some regional TV. The consultation package has been sent to a number of organisations with a special interest, for example, Hedgeline, the Consumer's Association, the National Consumer Council, the National Federation of Consumer Groups, the Royal Horticultural Society and the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux. It is also available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website and on UK Online.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average number of homeless households living in temporary accommodation was in each year since 1997, broken down by accommodation type. [173736]

The most recent quarterly Statistical

Table 7: Households in accommodation arranged by local authorities under the homelessness provisions of the 1985 and 1996 Housing Acts, by type of accommodation1
		Bed and breakfast hotels percentage			Hostels/women's refuges percentage
1985 and 1996 Housing Acts	Total number of households accommodated at end of quarter	Number	of total	change on previous quarter	Number	of total	change on previous quarter
1997
quarter 1	41,250	4,100	9.9	-1.4	9,680	23.5	0.4
quarter 2	43,720	4,500	10.3	9.8	9,430	21.6	-2.6
quarter 3	45,290	4,630	10.2	2.9	9,450	20.9	0.2
quarter 4	44,870	4,520	10.1	-2.4	8,730	19.5	-7.6
1998
quarter1	47,520	4,820	10.1	6.6	9,730	20.5	11.5
quarter2	49,390	5,380	10.9	11.6	9,490	19.2	-2.5
quarter 3	52,510	5,890	11.2	9.5	9,820	18.7	3.5
quarter 4	53,790	7,240	13.5	22.9	9,760	18.1	-0.6
1999
quarter 1	56,580	6,570	11.6	-9.3	9,840	17.4	0.8
quarter 2	58,430	7,700	13.2	17.2	10,210	17.5	3.8
quarter 3	61,450	8,240	13.4	7.0	9,960	16.2	-2.4
quarter 4	62,180	8,000	12.9	-2.9	9,660	15.5	-3.0
2000
quarter 1	65,170	8,680	13.3	8.5	10,300	15.8	6.6
quarter 2	67,520	8,910	13.2	2.6	10,320	15.3	0.2
quarter 3	71,860	9,420	13.1	5.7	10,460	14.6	1.4
quarter 4	73,080	9,870	13.5	4.8	10,790	14.8	3.2
2001
quarter 1	75,200	10,860	14.4	10.0	10,610	14.1	-1.7
quarter 22	75,920	11,390	15.0	4.9	10,320	13.6	-2.7
quarter 32	78,370	12,240	15.6	7.5	10,400	13.3	0.8
quarter 42	78,030	11,890	15.2	-2.9	9,850	12.6	-5.3
2002
quarter 12,3	80,440	11,840	14.7	-0.4	9,610	11.9	-2.4
quarter 22,3	82,110	12,380	15.1	4.6	9,760	11.9	1.6
quarter 32,3	85,260	13,250	15.5	7.0	9,740	11.4	-0.2
quarter 42,3	83,860	12,540	15.0	-5.4	9,640	11.5	-1.0
2003
quarter 12,3	89,260	12,100	13.6	-3.5	10,070	11.3	4.5
quarter 22,3	91,330	1 1,340	12.4	-6.3	10,420	11.4	3.5
quarter 32,3	93,930	10,310	11.0	-9.1	10,770	11.5	3.4
quarter 42,3	95,060	8,360	8.8	-18.9	10,230	10.8	-5.0

	Private sector accommodation (eg on lease or licence, or direct with landlord)			Other types including local authorities' and RSL's own stock
		Percentage			Percentage
	Number	of total	change on previous quarter	Number	of total	change on previous quarter
1997
quarter 1	14,040	34.0	27.9	13,430	32.6	-22.9
quarter 2	14,300	32.7	1.9	15,490	35.4	75.3
quarter 3	14,310	31.6	0.1	16,900	37.3	9.7
quarter 4	14,040	31.3	-1.9	17,580	39.2	4.0
1998
quarter 1	14,820	31.2	5.6	18,150	38.2	3.2
quarter 2	15,470	31.3	4.4	19,050	38.6	5.0
quarter 3	18,280	34.8	18.2	18,520	35.3	-2.8

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how he has told people in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Chorley about the referendum on regional government; and how much has been spent on informing people of the referendum on regional government in (i) the North West, (ii) Lancashire and (iii) Chorley. [177149]

The Government's "Your Say" information campaign has been running in the three northern regions since November 2003.In the North West this has included issue of the "Your Say—A New Opportunity for the North West" leaflet in November 2003, available at no charge from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Free Literature, from the Government Office for the North West and at regional events, such as the recent hearings on elected regional assemblies. 552,000 copies were distributed as inserts in 19 free sheet newspapers across Lancashire and Cumbria. There were three hearings in the North West, at Blackburn, Liverpool and Kendal. Ministers have also visited the North West as part of cross-regional tours in inform voters of our policy and on other occasions.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the secondees from outside organisations working in his Department, stating in each case (a) the name of the person, (b) the name of the organisation, (c) the post held and (d) the start and finish dates of the secondment; and which are involved in drafting parliamentary answers. [158049]

The information requested is in the table. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not routinely publish the names and personal details of individual employees, in order to ensure compliance with the Data Protection Act. While on secondment, secondees are subject to Civil Service terms and conditions, and are expected to undertake the full range

		Start		End
Organisation	Posting	Year	Month	Year	Month
Accord Plc.	Local Government Quality	2001	3 September	2006	30 September
Alien Associates Ltd.	Strategic Partnering Taskforce	2002	1 November	2004	31 March
Audit Commission (NDPB)	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit	2003	28 April	2004	31 March
Australian Government	New Growth Area	2003	14 July	2004	13 July
Avon Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	11 August	2005	11 August
Babtie Group Ltd.	Strategic Service Delivery Partnership Taskforce (LGQ	2001	3 September	2004	31 March
Basildon District Council	Thames Gateway Strategic Executive	2001	23 July	2005	23 July
Beds and Luton Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	17 April	2004	31 July
Birmingham City Council	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit	2004	2 February	2004	30 July
Bracknell Forest Council	Local Government Capacity and Modernisation Division	2003	3 March	2005	3 November
Bradford MDC	Housing Directorate	2002	4 February	2006	31 March
Bradford MDC	Local Government Practice Division	2003	30 June	2006	29 June
British Urban Regeneration Association	Planning, Housing and Growth Division	2003	17 February	2005	16 February
Building Research Establishment	Building Regulation Division	2003	1 July	2005	30 June
Busha Global Ltd.	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit	2003	28 April	2005	31 March
Calderdale MBC	Community Housing Task Force	2001	14 May	2005	13 May
Cambridgeshire County Council	Local Government Capacity and Modernisation Division	2003	6 May	2005	5 May
Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	30 September	2004	29 September
Capacity	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit	2002	16 October	2004	31 October
Cheshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Services Inspectorate Fire Service Improvement Team	2003	18 August	2004	30 April
Cheshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	1 November	2004	14 April
City of York Council	Local Government Practice Division	2003	30 June	2006	29 June
Cleveland Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	21 October	2004	20 July
Cleveland Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	11 August	2005	12 August
CPEA Ltd.	Local Government	2002	13 May	2004	31 March
Croydon Council	Regional Economic Performance Division	2003	6 May	2004	31 July
Denison Associates Limited	Local Government Capacity and Modernisation Division	2003	2 April	2004	1 April
ED AW Plc.	Liveability and Sustainable Communities Division	2004	5 January	2004	2 July
Elmbridge Borough Council	Bed and Breakfast Unit	2003	17 February	2004	31 March
ENCAMS	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit	2003	1 May	2004	31 March
Essex County Council	Thames Gateway Strategic Executive	2001	14 May	2005	1 April
Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	1 November	2004	31 March
Greater Manchester County Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	14 October	2004	13 April
Greater Manchester County Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	19 October	2004	31 March
Greater Manchester County Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	2 January	2004	30 September
Hampshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	1 December	2004	30 November
Hampshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	14 March	2004	13 March
HAS	Social Exclusion Unit	2003	18 August	2004	18 June
Help the Aged	Social Exclusion Unit	2003	1 April	2004	1 April
Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	5 November	2004	4 November
Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue	Operational Practices, HMFSI	2004	1 February	2006	31 January
Idea	Housing Care and Support	2003	12 May	2005	10 May
IPPR	Social Exclusion Unit	2003	16 June	2004	18 June
Kent County Council	Housing Management Division	2003	15 September	2004	31 July
Kent County Council	Thames Gateway Strategic Executive	2001	19 March	2004	31 March
Kent Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	1 August	2004	1 August
Kent Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	1 December	2004	30-November
Knowsley Borough Council	Local Government Modernisation	2001	1 July	2005	31 December
Lambeth County Council	Community Housing Task Force	2001	9 July	2005	31 May
Lancashire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	3 January	2005	02 January
London Thames Gateway Forum	Planning Legislation Implementation	2002	20 August	2004	20 August
Leicestershire Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	1 June	2004	31 May
Liberata Plc.	Local Government Capacity	2003	1 August	2004	31 March
Local Government Association	Local Government Strategy Unit	2003	29 December	2004	31 December
Local Government Ombudsman	Planning Control Casework	2002	4 November	2004	28 May
London Borough of Camden	Social Exclusion Unit	2003	3 November	2004	7 May
London Borough of Enfield	Urban Policy Unit 2	2003	30 June	2004	31 March
London Borough of Southwark	Local Government Strategy Unit	2004	1 March	2005	28 February
London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2004	12 January	2004	31 March
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	16 June	2004	15 June
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	7 January	2004	6 January
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	1 February	2004	31 March
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	16 September	2004	15 September
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	4 June	2004	3 June
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	1 June	2004	31 May
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2003	1 April	2004	31 July
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2002	18 February	2005	17 February
London Fire and Rescue	HM Fire Service Inspectorate	2001	7 January	2005	6 January

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to implement the recommendation of the ICE Ergonomics Ltd. Report of July 2001 commissioned by the Joint Aviation Authorities concerning the seat pitch on British passenger aircraft. [177147]

On 28 September 2003 the European Safety Agency (EASA) assumed responsibility for the design standards of most aircraft manufactured and operated in the European Union. This includes standards for airline seat spacing. At the suggestion of the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA), an investigation of all seat pitch issues has been added to the EASA rulemaking programme for 2005 onwards. It is expected that the EASA investigation will take full account of the ICE Ergonomics Ltd. report of Jury 2001.

:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many crimes were committed on London Underground in each year since 1997; and how many were (a) assaults, (b) of a sexual nature and (c) robberies. [175461]

[pursuant to the reply, 7 June 2004, Official Report, c. 69–70W]: The British Transport Police (BTP) have provided corrected information on crimes recorded on London Underground in each year since 1998; information is not readily available for earlier than 1998.

	Assaults	Sexual offences	Robberies	Passenger trips (million)
1998–99	1,302	425	597	866
1999–2000	1,424	362	643	927
2000–01	1,234	393	591	970
2001–02	1,168	336	783	953
2002–03	1,543	340	535	942
2003–04	1,834	357	502	947

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made towards the five per cent. reduction in real terms in his Department's administration budget by 2008 announced by the Chancellor in the House on 17 March 2004, Official Report, column 331. [176509]

The real terms reduction of 5 per cent. or more will be a central feature of the public spending settlements for 2006–08 to be announced in detail later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will report progress on each of the bullet points on page 20 of the Department's Race Equality Scheme 2003–05. [176820]

[holding answer 7 June 2004]: In complying with the specific duties of Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 relating to employment, the Department has some monitoring systems in place, and where they are not, we are setting them up for any areas where monitoring has lapsed. We are monitoring by ethnic group applicants seeking employment by:

the number of applications for employment;

the numbers dropping out at different stages of the recruitment process;

the numbers selected;

the numbers successful and unsuccessful at different stages of selection; and

the numbers accepting job offers.

We also ask applicants to let us know where they found out about our vacancies.As regards staff working within the Department, we monitor by ethnic group, and gender:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her Department's policy is in respect of the computer file formats used for the (a) distribution and (b) archiving of publicly available documents. [173359]

Defra's main method for placing documents in the public domain is our online Publication Scheme, which can be found on the Defra website at http://defraweb/corporate/opengov/pubscheme/index.htm. A range of standard web file formats are used for these documents; primarily Portable Document Format (.pdf), Hypertext Markup Language (.html) and Active Server Pages (.asp).Documents that are created electronically but are distributed to the public via other methods are stored in their native file format. Typically this will be one of the Microsoft Office formats such as Word (.doc) Excel (.xls) or PowerPoint (.ppt).These documents are placed on a registered file, in hard copy, to form part of our official public record, as mandated by The National Archive. Currently Defra does not have an accredited electronic archive, although plans are in development for a future implementation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) staffing and (b) staff costs for the Environment Agency are for 2004–05 in respect of its activities on (i) central administration, (ii) flood defence, (iii) water resources, (iv) environmental protection, licensing activities, (v) environmental protection, non-licensing activities, (vi) fisheries, (vii) recreation and conservations (viii) navigation and (ix) other activities. [176407]

The Environment Agency's current staff numbers and costs for each function are set out in the following table.

Environment Agency	Full time equivalent staff	Annual staff costs (£0OO)
Central Administration	279	8,841
Flood Defence	4,071	126,450
Water Resources	1,233	39,078
Environmental Protection	3,752	118,176
Fisheries	499	15,823
Recreation and Conservation	189	4,174
Navigation	109	4,685
Other Activities	928	41,654
Total	11,060	358,881

The Agency is not able to distinguish between environmental protection staff working on licensing activities and those working on non-licensing activities. Most staff in Environmental Protection functions undertake both duties depending on need."Central Administration" is defined as Head Office Finance, Human Resources, Facilities, Operational Co-ordination, Payroll and other exchequer services and Audit."Other Activities" comprise mainly Corporate Information Systems, National Laboratory Service, Legal, Estates and Procurement.Staff costs include travel and subsistence.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the pay gap between men and women employed by her Department and its agencies in (a) Southampton, (b) Eastleigh, (c) Winchester and (d) Romsey. [171633]

In response to the Equal Opportunities Task Force report "Just Pay", the Government committed all departments and agencies to undertake an equal pay review by April 2003 and to prepare action plans to close any equal pay gaps. Consequently, an equal pay audit of the Core Defra, Pesticides Safety Directorate and Veterinary Medicines Directorate pay system was carried out, the results of which revealed that there were no significant inequalities in pay for staff in these locations. There are 17 Core-Defra staff employed in offices in Southampton and Winchester.Of my Department's other agencies, only the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) and the Central Science Laboratory (CSL) have staff in these locations. The VLA has 33 staff and CSL has three staff based in or near Winchester. Both agencies have carried out equal pay audits of their pay systems. The CSL audit did not identify any pay inequalities. The Chief Executive of the VLA will reply to the hon. Member separately.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much time her Department spent dealing with honours in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by Civil Service grade. [173038]

For the period April 2003 to January 2004 the Departmental Honours team consisted of a full-time Honours Secretary graded at a Higher Executive Officer (HEO) supported by two full-time Administrative Officers (AO's).From February 2004 the Departmental Honours team has been re-organised and is now a full-time Honours Secretary who is an Executive Officer (EO) supported by one full-time Administrative Officer (AO).The Honours Secretary is involved with the twice-yearly Departmental Honours sift with the Permanent Secretary and other senior officials.The majority of the work on honours is undertaken by the Departmental Honours team. Information is not available on time spent on honours related work, by departmental staff who are not members of the Departmental Honours team.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) total budget and (b) budget for administration were for the (i) Agricultural Wage Committee, (ii) Agricultural Dwelling House Advisory Committee, (iii) Consumers' Committee for Great Britain, (iv) Committee of Agricultural Valuation, (v) Committee of Investigation for Great Britain, (vi) Commons Commissioners and

	Total costs budget	Administrative costs budget	Comments
Agricultural Wage Committee	35,000	No separate budget	—
Agricultural Dwelling House Advisory Committee	44,000	No separate budget	—
Consumers' Committee for Great Britain	0	0	This NDPB is dormant
Committee of Agricultural Valuation	0	0	This NDPB is dormant
Committee of Investigation for Great Britain	0	0	This NDPB is Dormant
Commons Commissioners	30,000	30,000	—
Hill Farming Advisory Committee	0	0	Dormant
Note:
Advisory and Tribunal NDPBs—Administrative Costs
Administration costs for advisory and tribunal NDPBs Include the costs of board members (fees and expenses)and any associated direct costs of running the NDPB. It does not include the costs of the secretariats within Defra.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) total budget and (b) budget for administration were for the (i) Dairy produce Quota Tribunal, (ii) Horticultutal Development Council, (iii) Home Grown Cereals Authority, (iv) Meat and Livestock Commission, (v) Forum on Non-Food Uses of Crops,

	Total costs budget	Administrative costs budget	Comments
Dairy Produce Quota Tribunal	0	0	Activities on hold
Horticultural Development Council	3,900,000	293,300	—
Home Grown Cereals Authority	10,167,000	582,000	—
Meat and Livestock Commission	36,946,000	2,064,000	—
Forum on Non-Food Uses of Crops	150,000	No separate budget	—
Advisory Committee on Organic Standards	167,000	167,000	—
Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment	40,000	40,000	—
Notes:
Executive NDPBs—Administrative Costs
Both management accounting practices and the definition of administration costs differ from organisation to organisation. Therefore comparisons between NDPBs may not be appropriate.
Advisory and Tribunal NDPBs—Administrative Costs
Administration costs for advisory and tribunal NDPBs include the costs of board members (fees and expenses) and any associated direct costs of running the NDPB. It does not include the costs of the secretariats within Defra.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) total budget and (b) budget for administration was for the (i) Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB, (ii) Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee, (iii) Veterinary Products Committee, (iv) Plant Varieties and Seeds Tribunal, (v) Integrated Administration and

	Total costs budget	Administrative costs budget	Comments
Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB	124,000	124,000	—
Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee	290,029	No separate budget available	—
Veterinary Products Committee	149,000	149,000	—
Plant Varieties and Seeds Tribunal	0	0	This NDPB has not met since 1984 and therefore has not incurred costs
Integrated Administration and Control Systems Panel	Costs met from overall Rural Payments Agency budget	Costs met from overall Rural Payments Agency budget	This NDPB is demand led. The levels of expenditure are determined by the throughput
Agricultural Land Tribunals	30,000	30,000	—
Veterinary Residues Committee	18,000	18,000	—
Note:
Advisory and Tribunal NDPBs—Administration Costs
Administration costs for advisory and tribunal NDPBs include the costs of board members (fees and expenses) and any associated direct costs of running the NDPB. It does not include the costs of the secretariats within Defra.

Details of the total budget and budget for administration for 2003–04 for the NDPBs requested is as follows.(vi) Advisory Committee on Organic Standards and (vii) Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment in the financial year 2003–04. [176286]

Details of the total budget and budget for administration for 2003–04 for the NDPBs requested is as follows:Control Systems Panel, (vi) Agricultural Land Tribunals and (vii) Veterinary Residues Committee in financial year 2003–04. [176298]

Details of the total budget and budget for administration for 2003–04 for the NDPBs requested is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions her Department has held with the Government's Chief Scientific Adviser on the reasons for increased use of the Thames Barrier. [176484]

There have been no direct discussions between Defra and the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) on the specific issue of the usage of the Thames Barrier. However, Defra has provided assistance in sourcing material for the CSA to use in papers on a variety of subjects including the Thames barrier usage.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment the Government has made of the benefits of non-academic adult education; and if he will make a statement. [177277]

The Department has completed a number of studies that look at the benefits of non-academic or leisure based adult education courses. These include work by the DfES-funded Centre for Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning, published on their website at www.learningbenefits.net and the results from the first sweep of a DfES commissioned tracking survey of 1,900 learners who have participated in Adult and Community Learning to be published by the DfES on 24 June.The results from both areas of work confirm the positive impact of adult learning e.g. on health and civic participation and on the individual's confidence and motivation to undertake further learning. That is why we remain committed to safeguarding a varied range of learning opportunities for personal fulfilment, community development and active citizenship.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much funding has been allocated to each local council in 2004–05 for the purposes of adult education. [177278]

The Department allocates funds for education and training in the post-16 learning and skills sector to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). The LSC decides the funding allocated to local education authorities and other providers. Information about these allocations is not collected by the Department. This is an operational matter and the responsibility of the LSC. Mark Haysom, the LSC's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many investigators are employed by the Adult Learning Inspectorate; [176339](2) how many deaths have been investigated by the Adult Learning Inspectorate since its creation; [176341](3) how many bullying incidents have been investigated by the Adult Learning Inspectorate since its creation; [176342]

These are matters for the Adult Learning Inspectorate. David Sherlock, the Chief Inspector, will write to my hon. Friend with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the budget is of the Adult Learning Inspectorate in 2004–05; and what funds have been set aside to inspect military establishments. [176340]

The annual budget of the Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI) was set out in the Secretary of State's Grant Letter issued on 16 December 2003. This Grant Letter provides the Inspectorate with up to £24.2 million from the Department for Education and Skills, and a further £5.75 million from the Department for Work and Pensions/Jobcentre Plus, for 2004–05. There is no funding specifically set aside for the inspection agreement between the ALI and Ministry of Defence (MoD) because this is commissioned work, which will be funded on a full cost recovery basis by the MoD.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils were excluded from secondary school because of (a) drug-related and (b) alcohol-related behaviour in each year since 1997. [176623]

My Department started to collect data on the reasons for exclusions, including drug and alcohol related incidents, from summer term 2003. There are concerns about the reliability of the first term's data but initial findings are expected to be released within the next few weeks. The first set of annual figures, relating to 2003/04, will not be available until 2005.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress is being made in the investigation by the Ministry of Defence police into allegations that a member of the Saudi armed forces project of the Ministry of Defence was provided with free holidays and gifts by BAE Systems between 2000 and 2002; and if he will make a statement. [176052]

The Ministry of Defence Police investigation is continuing and I am therefore unable to comment on progress.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status of detainees held by UK forces under Article 78 of the IV Geneva Convention (1949) will be after the transfer of Iraqi sovereignty on 30 June; and if he will make a statement. [173909]

[holding answer 24 May 2004]: We will not be detaining anyone under Article 78 of the IV Geneva Convention after 30 June. The United Kingdom will cease to be the occupying power on 30 June and Article 78 of the IV Geneva Convention will no longer be relevant. The case of each of the 125 security internees currently being held is reviewed regularly and those no longer posing an imperative threat to security are released. Post 30 June detention policy will need to be discussed with the Iraqi Interim Government.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to provide the British public with information on the abuse of Iraqi prisoners. [173227]

The Ministry of Defence provides as much information as it is able to through the media and Parliament. Where allegations are subject to investigations and potentially judicial proceedings, it is necessary to limit what is said in order not to prejudice that process.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions Ministers had with (a) Coalition partners and (b) the armed forces, and when, about the handling of prisoners in Iraq. [173521]

The handling of prisoners captured by UK forces in Iraq is determined by our obligations under the Geneva Conventions.In March 2003, a Memorandum of Understanding was concluded by the US, UK and Australia dealing with the procedures for the transfer of custody of prisoners of war (PWs) between them. This covered not only PWs but all internees and detainees as well. It emphasises the importance of compliance with the relevant Geneva Conventions and customary international law. A copy was placed in the Library of the House on 15 November 2003.Ministers have regular discussions with Coalition partners on a wide variety of issues concerning Iraq and I am withholding details of the discussions under Exemption 1 b of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. I am withholding details of the advice to Ministers from the Armed Forces under Exemption 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel in all three services have been medically downgraded as a result of service in the Gulf since January 2003, broken down by reason for downgrading; and if he will make a statement. [176803]

As of 20 December 2003, centrally held records show that 1,669 military personnel had been medically downgraded subsequent to their arrival in the Gulf region on deployment on Operation Telic. The main reasons for downgrading are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which councils have been included in the Cultural Services Excellence Network; and what the criteria for inclusion were. [176461]

The Cultural Services Excellence Network is an informal grouping hosted by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The network is open to Cultural Beacon Councils, local authorities that have an "excellent" overall score in the Comprehensive Performance Assessment or perform well in the cultural and leisure services part of the assessment, and authorities that receive an excellent Best Value Inspection score in cultural services. The following councils currently meet the criteria, although not all choose to attend meetings:

• Barnet London Borough Council
• Birmingham City Council
• Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
• Bromley London Borough Council
• Camden London Borough Council
• Cheshire County Council
• Chichester District Council
• City of London
• Colchester Borough Council
• Cornwall County Council
• Derbyshire County Council
• Dorset County Council
• East Riding of Yorkshire Council
• Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council
• Greenwich London Borough Council
• Hambleton District Council
• Hampshire County Council
• Hartlepool Borough Council
• Hertfordshire County Council
• Kensington and Chelsea Royal Borough Council
• King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council
• Kingston upon Thames, Royal Borough of
• Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council
• Leeds City Council
• Liverpool City Council
• New Forest District Council
• Nottingham City Council

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made towards the five per cent. reduction in real terms in her Department's administration budget by 2008 announced by the Chancellor in the House on 17 March 2004, Official Report, column 331. [176501]

The real terms reduction of 5 per cent. or more will be a central feature of the public spending settlements for 2006–08 to be announced in detail later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much time her Department spent dealing with Honours in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by civil service grade. [173035]

We have a centralised team dealing with Honours work, the complement of which for the year to 31 March 2004 was 10 per cent. of a Grade A post (Grade 7), two Grade Cs (EO) and three Grade Ds (AO). The team undertakes virtually all of the work on honours within the Department and information is not available on time spent by other staff who are not members of this team.The input from senior civil service officials in the Department is estimated at 16 per cent. of one post.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the travel costs incurred (a) by her Department and its predecessors and (b) by each Minister within her Department, for each of the last 10 years. [175641]

All official travel is undertaken in accordance with the rules contained in the Department's staff handbook and all ministerial travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers", copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.In respect of overseas travel by Ministers, since 1999 the Government have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The Government have also published on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House. These report information reaching back to 1995–96. Information for earlier years could be obtained only at disproportionate cost and in some cases will no longer be held. Information for 2003–04 will be published in due course.The following table shows domestic ministerial and overall Departmental expenditure on travel and subsistence combined. An analysis on travel only is not recorded on the Department's accounting system and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

£
Financial year	Departmental	Of which ministerial
2003–041	839,928.68	15,044.44
2002–03	876,636.96	24,719.22
2001–02	750,593.38	17,386.39
2000–01	807,806.27	31,931.38
1999–2000	755,429.32	24,539.59
1998–99	643,283.50	22,913.88
1997–98	582,564.51	11,697.81
1996–97	242,031.00	2—
1995–96	280,104.00	2—
1994–95	266,092.00	2—
1Financial year 2003–04 costs are provisional pending finalisation of Department's annual accounts.
2Information for these years is not recorded separately.
Figures from Financial year 1994–95 to 1996–97 are only available on cash basis (rounded).

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much money from the New Opportunities Fund was allocated to Stoke-on-Trent, North since 1997. [177633]

The New Opportunities Fund began making grants in 1999. The awards to Stoke-on-Trent, North are shown in the table.

Financial year	Amount (£)
1999–2000	49,050
2000–01	52,346
2001–02	12,381
2002–03	123,601
2003–04	0
2004–05	1,350

The information is freely available from the Department's searchable Lottery award database at www.lottery.culture.gsi.gov.uk, which uses information supplied by the Lottery distributors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much public funding has been received by (a) the Royal Household and (b) the Royal Parks in each year since 1979; how much the Government plan to spend for each year until 2005–06; and if she will make a statement. [175272]

The following is the information from 1991–92 when the Grant in Aid arrangements were established for Property Services for the Occupied Royal Palaces, and from the same date for the royal parks.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received about the TV licensing direct debit scheme; and if she will make a statement.[177488]

There is no single direct debit scheme for payment of the television licence fee; direct debit arrangements are available for the monthly and quarterly instalment schemes as well as for a single, annual payment. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport receives regular representations from hon. Members and members of the public about licence fee issues but does not keep a separate record of representations about direct debit arrangements.

To ask the Leader of the House how many Bills have been introduced as draft Bills. [175293]

[pursuant to his reply, 25 May 2004, Official Report, c. 1479W]: The number of draft Bills published in 2001–02 was seven, not six as indicated in error in my answer of 25 May.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief about the impact of the security situation on the distribution of aid. [176600]

DFID does not have regular meetings with the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief (ACBAR) on security but we receive regular briefings from the ACBAR NGO Security Office. These are available on www.acbar.org. ACBAR plays a valuable role in Afghanistan, both by coordinating NGO activity and by challenging the Afghan Government and donors through its advocacy work.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps the Government are taking toward offering micro-generation technologies to poor African countries. [176844]

DFID does not promote particular technologies but supports initiatives that seek to increase reliable, affordable energy services that meet the needs of the poor. A number of micro technologies at the development stage in the UK have limited prospects in Africa because of problems with accessing secure primary energy supplies, particularly by the poor.DFID has funded £3.6 million of research since 1992 for the development and promotion of more renewable energy supplies, especially for rural communities. This has covered a wide range of technologies, including wind, small hydropower, solar photovoltaic, solar thermal and biomass. DFID has also seconded experts and provided over £9 million of funding over and above UK contributions to the multilateral system to three relevant international initiatives. These are, the Global Village Energy Partnership, the European Union Energy Initiative for Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Development, and the World Bank Energy Trust Funds. These initiatives cover a range of suitable energy technologies and policy options that include micro technologies where appropriate.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much time his Department spent dealing with honours in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by civil service grade. [173034]

We have a dedicated honours team consisting of a part time span 7 (senior executive officer), a span 4 (executive officer) and a part-time administrative support officer. Additionally, a number of departmental officials are involved in our internal sifting meetings. No formal records are kept of the time spent by officials on this work, but for the year ending 31 March 2004 we estimate the time spent by them at those meetings to have been as follows:

Grade	Number of hours
Senior civil service	66
Span 9 (grade 6)	2
Span 4	2

The majority of work on honours is undertaken by the departmental honours team. Information is not available on the time spent on honours-related work by departmental staff who are not members of the Department's honours team.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many solicitors' firms had legal aid departments in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [177571]

From 1997–98 to 1999–2000 the number of solicitors' firms paid for civil and criminal legal aid work was:

	Number
1997–98	10,601
1998–99	10,751
1999–2000	10,518

From 2000–01 onwards the number of solicitors' offices holding civil and criminal contracts was:

	Civil	Criminal
2000–01	4,952	n/a
2001–02	4,932	2,910
2002–03	4,641	2,900
2003–04	4,301	2,669

The number of offices with contracts does not equal the total number of firms because some offices practised both civil and criminal legal aid before 2000–01, or now hold a contract in both civil and criminal law.Before the introduction of contracting, (January 2000 for civil work and April 2001 for criminal work) any solicitors' firm could undertake legal aid work.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the average age is of (a) male and (b) female magistrates in (i) Surrey, (ii) the South East and (iii) England. [177373]

This information is not accurately available in the format requested. We are able to provide numbers of magistrates within age bands, but not divided by gender, in (i) Surrey:

• Up to age 30: 0 magistrates
• 30–39: 10 magistrates
• 40–49: 68 magistrates
• 50–54: 67 magistrates
• 55–59: 90 magistrates
• 60–65: 87 magistrates
• 66 + : 44 magistrates.

(ii) the South East. (The South East region is comprised of Kent, Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire):

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assistance is provided by his Department for the training of (a) members of the judiciary and (b) the police force in Afghanistan; [177111](2) what support is provided by his Department to train

The UK funded two senior Afghan police officers to attend the International Commanders Course at the International Faculty at Bramshill in 2003. Two UK police trainers form part of the International Police Assistance Mission that has been providing basic and conversion police training in Kabul since June 2003. In July 2003 a five-strong team of UK police advisers deployed to Kabul to establish Crime Scene Investigation Units for the Afghan police. A further five UK police mentors are currently being deployed to join the US-led Regional Police Training College in Mazar-e Sharif. All police training in Afghanistan supported by the UK includes an awareness of both human rights and gender issues.Italy and UNDP lead work on judicial reform in Afghanistan, in conjunction with the Afghan Ministry of Justice. The UK contributed £1 million in 2002–03 to the UNDP Judicial Reform programme. In 2004–05 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is providing £240,000 over two years to the Bar Human Rights Committee to train Afghan legal practitioners in human rights and women's rights advocacy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the case for expanding protection by the International Security Assistance Force throughout Afghanistan. [177114]

The international community, including the UK, is responding to the need for security throughout Afghanistan with increased commitments of troops and resources, including extension of the network of Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs). Deploying additional PRTs is the key to expansion of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The UK is at the forefront of this, having agreed to lead a second PRT and provide a Forward Support Base for all PRTs in the North. But ISAF expansion can only proceed once NATO's statement of requirements is fully met and we are pressing other nations to contribute the resources needed to meet existing shortfalls.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Afghanistan about the need to criminalise (a) rape, (b) the giving of girls in marriage as a means of dispute resolution and (c) the forcing of women and girls to marry against their consent in Afghanistan. [177116]

The UK and other EU member states have regularly raised human rights issues, including the rights of women and girls with the Afghan Transitional Administration.Women's rights in Afghanistan are protected by the new Constitution, ratified in January 2004. The Constitution contains specific articles on women's equality and rights to political participation. The Constitution also requires the Government to uphold its obligations under international law. Rape and forced marriage are both prohibited by Afghanistan's obligations under the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, both of which Afghanistan has ratified. It is important that these rights now be implemented in practice.Practical improvements in women's rights require further progress on security and judicial reform. The UK provided £10 million in 2003–04 for training of the new Afghan National Army and US$4 million in 2003–04 for Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration of former combatants. In 2004–05 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is providing £240,000 over two years to the Bar Council to train Afghan legal practitioners in human rights and women's rights advocacy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what efforts he has made to achieve a change in the mandate of the provincial reconstruction teams in Afghanistan to focus exclusively on security. [177120]

We have not sought to change the mandate of the Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs). They are not resourced to focus purely on security, nor is that their purpose. PRTs aim to extend the authority of the central Government by facilitating reconstruction and security sector reform. Although small in size, we believe that PRTs are succeeding in achieving this through the beneficial effect they have on the security environment in the areas in which they operate. This has certainly been borne out by our experience with the UK-led PRT in Mazar-e Sharif.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Australia about its withdrawal in March 2002 from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. [177424]

In March 2002, Australia opted out of the compulsory dispute settlement procedures provided for in Section 2 of Part XV of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) for disputes concerning the interpretation or application of articles 15, 74 and 83 of UNCLOS relating to sea boundary delimitations or those involving historic bays or titles. This exception is provided for in Article 298(l)(a) of UNCLOS. Australia has not therefore withdrawn from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) and there have been no discussions between the Foreign Secretary and the Government of Australia regarding any such withdrawal.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Australia about the economic implications of the International Unitisation Agreement for East Timor. [177425]

The UK Government has not sought, and would not seek to become involved with this bilateral agreement between Timor-Leste and Australia.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the participation of (a) Aung San Suu kyi, (b) the National League for Democracy and (c) ethnic minorities are conditions of Burma's membership of the Asia Europe Meeting. [176899]

Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) Foreign Ministers met on 17–18 April and discussed enlargement of ASEM, among other issues. While Ministers noted moves by the regime in Burma, including the release of some members of opposition parties, they agreed that they wanted to see further and concrete progress in Burma. EU Foreign Ministers raised in particular the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, and an open and inclusive National Convention with the participation of the National League for Democracy. Ministers therefore agreed to postpone a decision on Burma's membership of ASEM, to allow ASEM members to monitor progress in Burma and review the situation in June.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what papers his Department has submitted to Lord Butler's inquiry into intelligence on Iraq. [177072]