To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners what the most recent attendance figures for the Church of England are; and if he will make a statement. [209742]

The latest figures for church attendance reveal growth in adult attendance in 2003 in just over half (i.e. 23) of the dioceses in the Church of England. Nationally, this resulted in a small increase of 1 per cent. in attendance.

About 1.7 million people attend a church or cathedral for worship each month; 1.2 million do so each week and 1 million each Sunday.

To ask the Solicitor-General what plans the Attorney General has to appoint special advocates under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 to replace those who have resigned. [209668]

Two other special advocates have already been appointed from the pool of 12 special advocates to act in the cases in which the two who resigned were instructed.

One appellant is without a special advocate because of the resignations but we do not expect there will be any practical difficulties with the process of allocating a special advocate to that case.

The Attorney General will increase the number of special advocates if necessary.

To ask the Solicitor-General how many unduly lenient sentences for sex offences against children have been referred to the Court of Appeal in the last 12 months. [209669]

Since January last year the Attorney General and I have referred to the Court of Appeal as unduly lenient sentences for sex offences against children 26 cases. The Court of Appeal increased the sentence in 11 and confirmed the original sentence in seven. Eight have yet to be heard.

To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to the answer of 2 December 2004, Official Report, columns 206–07W, on the Crown Prosecution Service, whether the review of charging arrangements has commenced. [209670]

In December last year there was a review of the operation in Nottinghamshire of the new charging arrangements whereby the CPS rather than the police make the charge.

Good progress has been achieved, recommendations for improvement were made and the situation is being monitored.

To ask the Solicitor-General what liaison there has been between the Crown Prosecution Service and the Criminal Justice Board in North Yorkshire. [209671]

The Chief Crown Prosecutor has chaired the board since its inception, and other members of the Crown Prosecution Service locally are working with partner agencies to deliver the board's objectives and targets.

Solid progress has been made. In particular, North Yorkshire has exceeded the target set for it by increasing the number of offenders brought to justice by 20.2 per cent. against its baseline figure. This is also against a background of falling levels of crime recorded in the county, which are down by 12 per cent. in the period January to December 2004 from the same period in the previous year.

To ask the Solicitor-General if she will make a statement on the role of the prosecutors designated to work with the Serious Organised Crime Agency. [209672]

The Government believe that prosecution will remain central to the successful disruption and dismantling of organised crime groups.

There will be a strong and effective prosecution capability, to provide prosecution services to the Serious and Organised Crime Agency.

The independent prosecution services will be provided by a new cadre of dedicated specialist prosecutors, drawn from the Crown Prosecution Service and the Customs and Excise Prosecutions Office, later the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office.

To ask the Solicitor-General if the Attorney-General will publish her advice to the Government on the legality of the war in Iraq. [209881]

No. As I indicated in my reply to my hon. Friend of 23 February 2004, , there is a long-standing convention, observed by successive Governments, that advice which the Law Officers have given to the Government is not publicly disclosed.Official Report, column 78W

To ask the Prime Minister what information he has (a) received and (b) requested from his US counterpart on US military reconnaissance missions in Iran. [209892]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 8 November 2004, during my statement on the EU Summit, to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend, East (Sir Teddy Taylor)Official Report, column 578

To ask the Prime Minister whether paragraph 23 of the Ministerial Code was applied in relation to the complete text of the Attorney-General's advice of 7 March 2003. [209939]

The Ministerial Code is a code of conduct and guidance on procedures for Ministers.

Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice and the proceedings of Cabinet and Cabinet Committees is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the arrangements for (a) hon. Members and (b) Members of the Government occupying official residences to contribute to the running costs of those properties. [209844]

The running costs of official residences are the responsibility of the relevant Department.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the official residences which are occupied by (a) hon. Members and (b) Members of the Government. [209845]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Wealden (Charles Hendry) on 2 November 2004, .Official Report, columns 180–81W

There are a number of former Ministers and Prime Ministers who continue to receive special security requirements after leaving office. We therefore take into account the assessment of the threat to them. On this basis, it has been agreed that my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett) may continue to have the use of the official residence while his security arrangements are reviewed, and appropriate measures can be put in place.

To ask the Prime Minister whether the Government have commissioned a report by Lord Birt on the future functions of Her Majesty's Treasury; and if he will make a statement. [209393]

Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will reply to the letter dated 29 November 2004 from the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan regarding the working time directive for truck drivers. [209820]

I replied to the hon. Member's letter on 11 January.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what crèche facilities are provided by his Department; and at what cost. [202421]

The Department has a variety of child care arrangements in place and is currently assessing the practicalities of introducing child care vouchers through salary sacrifice when the introduction of tax and national insurance benefits come into effect from April 2005. Salary sacrifice will be operated at cost neutral with the cost of operating the scheme being offset by savings in employers national insurance contributions.

The DVLA provides accommodation for a workplace nursery which is managed and run by an external provider. The central department offers a limited number of nursery places at its accommodation in Hastings, shared with ODPM and CSA at a cost of £6,000 per annum.

The Department also alerts staff to a number of play schemes operated during the school holidays and considers requests from staff to work flexibly as part of its wider child care initiatives.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many gyms are available to the staff in the Department; and what the cost of providing them was in the last year for which figures are available. [204370]

The Department provides limited accommodation for gym facilities but has no ongoing costs regarding equipment. Staff may join local sports and social clubs/associations who may operate gym facilities but at no cost to the Department.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport

(1) if he will give for each year since 1995 (a) total, (b) public and (c) private investment in the rail infrastructure in (i) Scotland, (ii) England, (iii) Wales and (iv) Great Britain; and how much was spent on (A) track repair and maintenance, (B) station repair and maintenance, (C) new track, (D) new station facilities, (E) other infrastructure repair and maintenance and (F) new infrastructure in each case; [207800]

(2) if he will give for each year since 1995 (a) total, (b) public and (c) private spending on the rail infrastructure (i) per person and (ii) per track mile in (A) Scotland, (B) England, (C) Wales and (D) Great Britain. [207801]

The information is not available in the format requested. Total Government support for the rail industry is set out in table 6.2 of National Rail Trends and total investment in the rail industry is set out in table 6.4 of that document. A copy of National Rail Trends is available in the Library of the House and can be accessed on the Strategic Rail Authority's website at http://www.sra.gov.uk/pubs2/performance_ statistics/nrt

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the maintenance costs for the Forth Rail Bridge were for each year since 2000 (a) in total and (b) as a percentage of track and infrastructure maintenance costs in (i) Scotland and (ii) Great Britain. [207802]

Network Rail advises that the information is not available in the form requested. However, since 1997 over £30 million has been invested on maintenance and refurbishment of the Forth Bridge.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether Scottish Executive Ministers will have responsibility for (a) maintaining and (b) paying for the maintenance of the Forth Rail Bridge under his proposals in the Railways Bill. [207803]

Network Rail is responsible for maintaining the Forth Rail Bridge, and for meeting the initial cost of that maintenance. This is not affected by proposals in the Railways Bill. The Department for Transport and Scottish Executive are currently discussing the arrangements for devolving the responsibility for specifying and funding railway infrastructure in Scotland, as proposed in the White Paper 'The Future of Rail'.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) railway stations and (b) miles of railway track there are in (i) Scotland, (ii) England and (iii) Great Britain. [207799]

Network Rail advises that there are 2,507 railway stations in Great Britain, of which 341 are located in Scotland and 2,166 are located in England and Wales.

Of the 21,000 miles of track within Great Britain, 2,573 miles are located in Scotland and 18,427 miles are located in England and Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport

(1) what provision he has made for the rejection of community railways by local communities; [209343]

(2) if he will make a statement on the process by which local communities will be invited to comment on the designation of a railway line as a community railway. [209344]

Before a line is designated as a community rail line, a formal consultation will take place with local authorities, the Rail Passengers Committee, local stakeholders and any existing community rail partnerships involved with the line. If it is found that there is insufficient local support for the proposition, the line will not be designated as a community rail line and will remain a part of the conventional national rail network.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the progress of the Crossrail project. [209426]

A hybrid Bill seeking powers for the construction and operation of Crossrail will be introduced. An Environmental Statement will be deposited at the same time and will also be available on the internet. Between 10 and 19 February, Cross London Rail Links Ltd. are to undertake an Information Round, which will provide affected parties with further details of the scheme to be set out in the Bill.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much land which is not part of the rail network Crossrail will need to acquire in order to complete the project. [209427]

The Crossrail Bill will set out in detail the powers of compulsory purchase that are being sought and identify the areas of land over which those powers will be exercised. A Bill will be introduced and will be accompanied by an Environmental Statement which will assess the significant likely environmental effects of the Crossrail scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether it is his policy that resources allocated to Scottish Executive Ministers as a result of the additional responsibilities to be devolved in the Railways Bill shall be allocated on the basis of (a) historic spending, (b) planned spending, (c) population share and (d) share of stations and track miles; and if he will make a statement. [207804]

The methodology and level of resource transfer to the Scottish Executive is the subject of ongoing discussions with the Executive. I hope to be able to make a substantive announcement shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what definition he uses of a purpose built taxi. [209472]

We regard a purpose built taxi as a taxi which meets the Metropolitan Conditions of Fitness (MCF). The MCF were devised by the Licensing Authority for London and set out the criteria which taxis in London must meet.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of (a) capital and (b) revenue expenditure (i) in total, (ii) from public and (iii) from private sources for each underground/tube system in the UK in each year since 1995; and what estimate he has made of (A) track, (B) station, (C) other and (D) total repair and maintenance costs for each system in each year since 1995. [207805]

The information is not available in the format requested. The following table sets out London Underground's capital and revenue expenditure.

London Underground capital and revenue expenditure -- £ million (outturn prices)

⁽¹⁾ In April 1999, London Underground adopted new accounting treatment for its investment expenditure which removed the category 'renewals' and reclassified such expenditure as capital or operating costs as appropriate. Therefore the figures up to and including 1998–99 are not directly comparable with those for subsequent years.

⁽²⁾ This includes the investment in fixed assets undertaken by the infracos under the PPP contracts, for those assets on LUL's balance sheet.

⁽³⁾ This excludes expenditure on assets provided under the PFI contracts, as they are not on LUL's balance sheet.

Source:

LUL Directors' Report and Accounts

London Underground does not record repair and maintenance expenditure by asset type, but the following table sets out repair and maintenance costs.

London Underground: Repair and maintenance, infrastructure companies costs and private finance initiative contract costs -- £ million (outturn prices)

⁽⁴⁾ These are the costs incurred on maintaining the operational railway prior to the establishment of the Infracos as separate subsidiary companies. The 1999–2000 figure includes £91 million that under the previous accounting policy would have been included in 'Renewals'.

⁽⁵⁾ Total operating costs of the Infraco subsidiaries while they remained within the LUL Group, which include all maintenance expenditure in those years.

⁽⁶⁾ This is the element of PPP Infrastructure Service Charge allocated which is apportioned to maintenance and included in LUL's profit and loss account.

⁽⁷⁾ Costs include the charges for the services provided under the PFI contracts (Connect, Power, British Transport Police accommodation, Prestige and Northern Line Trains). From the date of transfer of Infraco JNP (1 Jan 2003) the Northern Line Trains contract PFI became the responsibility of Tube Lines.

The only other underground system in the UK is Glasgow Underground, which is a devolved responsibility of the Scottish Executive and Parliament and on which the Department does not hold the information requested.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many departmental staff have responsibility for preparing Christmas cards. [205193]

A member of staff in Defra's Communications Directorate takes on managing the production of Christmas cards as an additional duty as the festive period approaches. There is no additional staff cost. The estimated cost of answering questions on this issue from the right hon. Member is £221 to date.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many hours of staff time were taken up in preparation of Christmas cards in 2004. [205197]

No record was kept of the time taken by Defra staff to manage the production of Christmas cards but it was minimal and did not involve extra cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many official Christmas cards were sent out by her Department in (a) 2003 and (b) 2004. [205200]

The number of official departmental Christmas cards sent out were as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of official departmental Christmas cards included a contribution to charity in their cost; and which charities benefited from such a contribution. [205207]

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to respond to the application for climate change levy exemption submitted by the British Apparel and Textile Confederation on behalf of Black Sheep Textiles. [208166]

Black Sheep Textiles submitted an incomplete application in April 2004 for a Climate Change Agreement, which are agreements with energy intensive industries whose participants receive an 80 per cent. discount from the CCL Climate Change Levy in return for meeting energy efficiency targets. My officials asked for the outstanding information from the company via the trade association on several occasions so that the application could be processed. The last request was made in September 2004. When the complete application is received, it will be processed within the usual 10 working days.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the protection afforded to the Darwin Mounds referred to in her letter of 2 July to the hon. Member for Linlithgow. [206897]

Following a request from the Department, on 20 August 2003 the European Commission introduced measures to protect the Darwin Mounds from damaging fishing activities. These restrictions are closely monitored by the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency. No breaches of the restrictions have been identified.

In April 2005, the Department will outline details of a proposed research project to determine the current condition of the coral reef structures on the Darwin Mounds.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many households in Hendon have benefited from (a) Warm Front and (b) Warm Front Plus schemes; how many were pensioners in each case; what the (i) average and (ii) maximum awarded under the scheme was in each case; and if she will make a statement. [207949]

Since the launch of the Warm Front scheme in June 2000 and the end of December 2004 approximately 430 households in Hendon received assistance under Warm Front of which 79 were pensioner households.

Some 395 pensioner households received assistance under Warm Front Plus.

The average Warm Front grant to each household was approximately £350 and the average Warm Front Plus grant was approximately £570.

The grant maxima available under Warm Front is £1,500 and £2,500 is available under Warm Front Plus.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of dwellings in England meet or exceed the energy efficiency standard of SAP 65. [209654]

I have been asked to reply.

On the basis of the 2001 English House Condition Survey, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister estimates that 16 per cent. of the housing stock meets or exceeds SAP 65.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average (a) farmgate and (b) retail price was of (i) one kilogram of (A) beef, (B) lamb, (C) pork, (D) chicken, (E) turkey, (F) bacon, (G) dessert apples, (H) potatoes, (I) carrots, (J) cauliflower, (K) peas and (L) runner beans, (ii) one pint of (x) milk, (y) cream and (z) yoghurt, (iii) one dozen eggs and (iv) one litre of (X) English wine and (Y) brandy in (1) 1975, (2) 1980, (3) 1985, (4) 1990, (5) 1995, (6) 2000, (7) 2003 and (8) 2004, broken down by (I) organic and (II) conventionally produced foodstuffs. [204157]

Where available the farmgate prices and retail prices are shown in the following tables.

While regular price series are not separately available for organically produced food, prices provided by the Soil Association for 2000 are provided.

Differences in the level of processing vary by commodity and over time which will affect the trends shown within the tables.

Retail prices⁽⁸⁾

n/a = Information not available

⁽⁸⁾ Prices are consistent with those used in Agriculture in the United Kingdom to calculate the UK farmers' share of the value of a basket of food items.

⁽⁹⁾ 2004 figures are provisional

⁽¹⁰⁾ Meat and Livestock Commission UK Market Survey Report, untrimmed prices adjusted for drip loss

⁽¹¹⁾ Office for National Statistics, average retail prices

Farm-gate prices⁽¹²⁾

n/a = Information not available

⁽¹²⁾ Prices are consistent with those used in Agriculture in the United Kingdom to calculate the UK farmers' share of the value of a basket of food items.

⁽¹³⁾ 2004 figures are provisional

⁽¹⁴⁾ Meat and Livestock Commission UK Market Survey Report

⁽¹⁵⁾ Defra

Estimated farm-gate prices of organic produce in 2000

Source:

Soil Association

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much money (a) was claimed, (b) was awarded and (c) is contingent liability under foot and mouth financial support; and how much of each of these sums is (i) UK sourced and (ii) European Communities sourced grant. [207127]

Claims to the Department following the 2001 FMD outbreak amounted to £20.84 million, of which £2.23 million was awarded. £226,194 still remains as a potential liability.

This money was entirely UK sourced as claims to the Department were ineligible for EU re-imbursement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what correspondence she has received from the European Food Safety Authority with regard to the safety of GM products; and if she will publish the correspondence. [208977]

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, has not received any correspondence from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) concerning the safety of GM products. Defra officials receive regular e-mail updates concerning the status of applications made to EFSA under the provisions of Regulation(EC) 1829/2003 on GM Food and Feed. The content of these updates is publicly available on the EFSA website (http://www.efsa.eu.int/science/gmo/gmffapplications/catindexen.html).

Recently, officials have also received a request from the EFSA GMO panel requesting the provision of national assessment reports produced on applications for the marketing of GMOs under the provisions of Directive 2001/18/EC. These assessment reports have been provided to EFSA. The Competent Authority for Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 in the UK is the Food Standards Agency.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the most common causes are of failure of attempts under the relevant legislation to close alleys or gullies. [209176]

Most applicants have been able to provide clear evidence of the need for designation including evidence from the police, the local crime prevention education partnership and local residents, often backed by representations from councillors and MPs. Of 22 applications received, two were withdrawn. The other 20 were approved and then one was revoked at the request of the local authority concerned.

So far the successful councils have made a total of 18 extinguishment orders. 15 have been confirmed, two are awaiting decisions having been referred to the Secretary of State because objections were received and a third is expected shortly following an objection.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the consultation by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate on the draft Regulations to consolidate UK legislation on veterinary medicines. [208268]

On 4 January 2005 the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) issued a letter to more than 300 organisations and individuals announcing a formal consultation exercise and inviting comments on the draft Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2005 and associated guidance notes which set out revised controls on veterinary medicines. The new Regulations are intended to implement amendments to EU legislation, carry forward some recommendations of the recent Marsh and Competition Commission Reports on the supply of veterinary prescription only medicines, and to simplify and consolidate existing UK legislative provisions which are currently contained in the Medicines Act 1968 and some 50 statutory instruments. It is proposed to replace these with a single set of Regulations containing all the provisions, which will come into force at the end of October 2005 to comply with the timetable for implementing the amended EU requirements.

The formal consultation exercise follows a series of informal consultation meetings held during the summer and autumn of 2004 with a wide range of organisations at which various aspects of the proposals were discussed. The full consultation package, comprising draft Regulations, 18 draft guidance notes and a draft partial Regulatory Impact Assessment is available on the VMD's website (www.vmd.gov.uk) under "consultations" "current". It is also available from the VMD on CD-ROM or as a paper copy on request. In view of the volume of the package and the wide scope of the Regulations, four months, rather than the standard 12 weeks, is being allowed for comments, which are required by 5 May 2005.

The key changes contained in the proposals include provisions to:

improve the clarity of the requirements;

disapply the Medicines Act 1968 from the regulation of veterinary medicines;

delete unnecessary provisions from current legislation;

make Defra's Secretary of State responsible for veterinary medicines legislation;

permit a veterinary surgeon to dispense another veterinary surgeon's prescription;

introduce a tiered Prescription Only Medicine (POM) distribution system;

allow specified qualified people other than veterinarians to prescribe products in the lower tier;

streamline appeal arrangements;

abolish the five-yearly renewal requirement;

increase data protection periods;

promote the availability of veterinary medicines;

implement an exemption scheme for products for small pets;

extend record-keeping requirements; and

restrict advertising of POM products.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many tonnes of waste mercury were produced in (a) 1999–2000, (b) 2000–01, (c) 2001–02 and (d) 2002–03; and how much of this was recycled. [206782]

A key source of mercury waste arises from the chlor-alkali industry. Annual figures for the three UK mercury cell chlor-alkali plants for the years in question are set out in table 1. Large amounts of mercury will no longer be required when mercury cell plants are decommissioned, although this mercury is pure enough to be re-used without further treatment. Mercury can be present in waste arising from a range of other industries, including from power generation, and mining activities, although there are no aggregated national figures available for these. Mercury is also present in used dental amalgam, some forms of lighting equipment, certain thermometers, thermostats, manometers, some batteries, switches and relays, although the use in all these applications is declining. Implementation of the WEEE Directive and the hazardous waste regulations should encourage the greater recovery and recycling of mercury from these sources.

Table 1: Mercury disposal and emissions fromUK chlor-alkali plant -- kilogrammes⁽¹⁶⁾

⁽¹⁶⁾ This includes all mercury-contaminated materials, such as cell components, process equipment, solid wastes from sumps, pits, demercurisation units and the brine purification process, which have been sent to authorised and properly controlled waste disposal sites.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office further to the Prime Minister's answer of 14 December 2004, Official Report, column 1005W to the hon. Member for Daventry (Mr. Boswell) on the Butler Review, whether there is (a) an informal group and (b) a formal ad hoc Cabinet Committee to consider policy towards Iraq. [209937]

I have been asked to reply.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1024W to my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Walton (Mr. Kilfoyle).

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many senior civil servants left the Government for the private sector and were vetted by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments during 2004; and if he will list their (a) civil service and (b) private sector posts. [208518]

Information about applications considered by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments is published in the Advisory Committee's Annual Reports, copies of which are available in the Library.

Information for the period up to 31 March 2004 is set out in the Committee's sixth report which is available in the Library.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what his policy is on the deletion of e-mails; when this last changed; and how. [208677]

It is Cabinet Office policy that all emails that form part of the official record must be printed and placed on existing paper files. This includes emails that contribute to the full understanding of a decision or results in action being taken. In December 2004 a three month time limit was introduced in relation to the time emails in inboxes, sent items and deleted items would be kept before automatic deletion.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office

(1) what guidance he has issued to other departments in respect of the deletion of emails; [208678]

(2) what guidance he issues to Government departments on circumstances under which paper copies may be kept of emails which have been deleted. [208679]

I have been asked to reply.

The Department for Constitutional Affairs has issued guidance to departments on records management, including the management of information held electronically, to all departments—specifically in relation to the full implementation of the Freedom of Information Act on 1 January 2005.

Good records and information management is fundamental to the effectiveness of the Freedom of Information Act. Parliament has recognised this by providing a Code of Practice on the Management of Records under section 46 of the FOI Act.

All the guidance provided to departments is also publicly available on the departmental website at http://www.foi.gov.uk/quidance/proguide/index.htm.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will make a statement on the Office's policy regarding the retention of e-mails in electronic form (a) after and (b) up to 1 January 2005; and what instructions have been given regarding the deletion of e-mails prior to 1 January 2005. [206955]

The Department continues to implement well established policies and procedures for the review and disposal of files in accordance with its administrative needs and the Public Records Act.

Email messages that form part of the official record are saved for as long as business needs require and stored corporately in accordance with departmental record management procedures. Further email guidance is available on the National Archives web site at:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/electronicrecords/advice/pdf/managing emails.pdf

It is departmental policy that all emails that form part of the record must be printed and placed on existing paper files. This includes emails that contribute to the full understanding of a decision or results in action being taken. In December 2004 a three month time limit was introduced in relation to the time emails in inboxes, sent items and deleted items would be kept before automatic deletion.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the amount of Government IT equipment scrapped in the last 12 months; and what the average age of such equipment was. [207294]

Individual departments are responsible for the disposal of their information technology equipment and no central records are kept.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what (a) guidelines and (b) other regulations have been promulgated since July 2004 on procedures for record-keeping by (i) informal groups and (ii) formal ad hoc Cabinet Committees engaged in considering policy issues. [209938]

The arrangements for recording decisions which are the collective responsibility of Ministers are set out in the Ministerial Code and have not changed since July 2004.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what reports she has received of difficulties experienced by the proprietors of amusement arcades and similar attractions which undertake joint operations between schedule C and schedule D in ensuring that prohibited persons take no part in activities covered by schedule C; and how many proprietors have (a) lost their licenses and (b) been prosecuted as a result of such breaches. [209346]

The revoking of licences and bringing prosecutions for breach of licence conditions is a matter for local authorities.

I have received no reports of difficulties experienced by the proprietors of amusement arcades and similar attractions, in ensuring that children and young people do not play category C machines.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her policy is on (a) the duration of grandfather rights to proprietors of schedule D amusement arcades, (b) the grant of such rights to joint operations between schedule C and schedule D and (c) the steps which need to be taken by a proprietor to secure for himself such rights as may be granted; and what exceptions to the legislation are to be provided by the grandfather rights. [209347]

Under the Gambling Bill grandfather rights will be granted to all current proprietors of amusement arcade establishments that offer gaming machines under part III of the 1968 Gaming Act.

Where existing arcade premises offer what will become known as category D gaming machines, they will become entitled to receive a family entertainment centre gaming machine permit. Where existing premises offer a mixture of category C and category D gaming machines, they will need to apply for, and be granted an operating licence from the Gambling Commission, and they will be entitled to receive a family entertainment centre premises licence from their local authority.

In all cases, the existing operator will need to apply for the necessary permit or licences, and to pay a fee. In the case of the family entertainment centre gaming machine permit and the family entertainment centre premises licence the grandfather rights mean that the local authority must grant these applications. They will have no power to reject the applications, or to impose conditions which alter the existing rights of the operator. However, all gaming machines must comply with the Bill's requirements on which category of machine may be used (from A to D), and the stakes and prizes for each.

Once grandfathered, the permits or licences will operate in the same manner as any new permit or licence. Therefore, there is no enduring duration of the grandfather rights. For example, should an operator breach the terms of a licence, the Gambling Commission will be able to review it, and may impose a penalty, including the revocation of the licence. The permits have a ten year duration, and that applies to grandfathered permits also.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what role is envisaged for the proposed public service publisher; what its budget will be; who will fund its establishment; and what plans she has for its relationship with (a) the BBC and (b) regional independent broadcasters. [209738]

The establishment of a public service publisher was a proposal made by Ofcom in Phase 2 of its Public Service Television review. Ofcom has conducted a public consultation on all of its proposals and will publish its final conclusions and recommendations in due course. The Government will of course consider those recommendations very carefully, against the background of BBC Charter Review and other relevant factors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much lottery funding the Arts Council has committed for theatre building and improvement schemes in each of the last three years; and what proportion of the total Arts Council lottery funding this constituted in each year. [208759]

The figures as requested, which have been provided by Arts Council England, are as follows. These do not include spend on multi-purpose arts venues that may also include theatre.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the most recent television licence fee evasion rates are for the United Kingdom; and what plans she has to publish a regional breakdown of evasion rates. [209118]

The estimated television licence evasion rate as at the end of March 2004 was 5.7 per cent. The BBC, who produce the evasion estimates and maintain the statistical model on which they are based, have indicated that the data required to produce accurate estimates, much of which relies on external sources, are not available at regional and local levels. The Government therefore have no plans to publish estimates of regional evasion rates.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the running costs of the Department were in each year since 1997, broken down by (a) electricity, (b) water, (c) gas, (d) telephones, (e) mobile telephones and (f) televisions. [206673]

The running costs of the Department, which covers costs for the Court Service, the Public Guardianship Office and DCA Headquarters, for(a) electricity, (b) water, (c) gas, (d) telephones and (e) mobile phones are set out in the following table:

Total DCA

⁽¹⁷⁾ To 30 November

It is not possible to provide the running costs of the Department for (f) televisions without incurring disproportionate cost

Information on 1997–98 is not readily available.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will make a statement on his Department's policy regarding the retention of e-mails in electronic form (a) after and (b) up to 1 January 2005; and what instructions have been given regarding the deletion of e-mails prior to 1 January 2005. [206954]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Guildford (Sue Doughty) on 10 January 2005, Official Report, column 118W.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the balance of political affiliations is on each of the magistrates benches in (a) England and Wales and (b) Northern Ireland. [209749]

Political affiliation has not been used as an indicator for balance on the magistrates bench since November 2003 in England and Wales and has never been recorded in Northern Ireland.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many car parking spaces are provided for those (a) working in and (b) visiting his Department. [208971]

This response relates to the DCA HQ estate and associated offices only since the Court Service does not hold any records on this centrally and would have to incur a disproportionate cost to collect the information.

The number of car parking spaces provided for those working in and visiting the DCA HQ estate is 127.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs

(1) how many non-geographic 0870 telephone numbers are in use by his Department; and what services can be accessed by calling each of them; [205837]

(2) how much revenue his Department has received from the use of non-geographic 0870 telephone numbers for the period 1 October 2003 to 30 September 2004. [205846]

The Department has 481 0870 numbers on its Goldfax system. This system allows network PC users to receive faxes direct to their desktops in the form of gif files. No revenue is produced from these calls.

The Department's central recruitment unit uses 41 0870 numbers for its recruitment campaigns. The revenue produced from these calls from when the system was set up in December 2003, until 7 October 2004, was £2,615.07

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the progress made at the African Union summit in Gabon on the issues of (a) Cote d'Ivoire, (b) Sudan and (c) the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and if he will make a statement. [209086]

We welcome the African Union's (AU) endorsement of President Mbeki's peace plan for Cote d'Ivoire, which focuses on the adoption of all texts emanating from the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement; the implementation of the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintergration (DDR) programme; the effective functioning of the National Transitional Government; and the establishment, throughout the country, of a climate conducive to the restoration of peace and stability in Cote d'Ivoire. We hope that the AU's commitment will encourage all sides to work together to bring about a sustainable peace.

We support the conclusions of the African Union Peace and Security Council on Sudan. In particular, we condemn the violations of the ceasefire by both sides and have made clear to the parties that they must stop the fighting and co-operate fully with the African Union and the rest of the international community.

We welcome the commitments made by the AU to continue to support the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) peace process and to work towards improving relations between DRC and Rwanda.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect on UK relations with the Republic of Taiwan of approval by the United Kingdom Government of the lifting of the EU's embargo on the sale of armaments to the People's Republic of China. [209943]

We do not recognise Taiwan as a State. Despite having no diplomatic ties we enjoy good relations in areas such as trade, investment, culture and education.

We take every appropriate opportunity to convey to the Taiwanese authorities, through informal channels, and to the Chinese Government our strong opposition to the use of force or to any action that raises cross-straits tensions.

As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary pointed out to the Quadrapite Committee on 12 January, the European Council meeting in December 2004 emphasised that the result of any decision on the lifting of the EU arms embargo should not be an increase in arms exports to China either in quantitative or qualitative terms.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effects on the level of threat to the security of the People's Republic of China of the lifting of the EU's embargo on the sale of armaments. [209944]

The arms embargo review, announced by the December 2003 European Council, is ongoing. Until the review process is complete, the Government continues to implement the arms embargo as set out by the then Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the late Derek Fatchett, in his reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Gedling (Vernon Coaker) on 3 June 1998 Official Report, columns 240–41.

The Government do not believe that a decision to lift the embargo would affect the security of the People's Republic of China or any country or territory in the region since arms exports would remain covered by the EU code of conduct.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the US Government on lifting the EU's embargo on the sale of armaments to the People's Republic of China. [209946]

As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary told the Committee on Strategic Export Controls on 12 January 2005, the US has a legitimate and understandable interest both in the effectiveness of the EU's system of arms control and in the stability of the east Asian region. Representatives of the UK and US Governments, at all levels, have therefore discussed the issue. However, the review of the EU arms embargo and any decisions arising from it are to be undertaken by the EU only. The EU will take all relevant factors into account in the review.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects to make a final response to the letter from the hon. Member for Bolton, South-East, of 7 October 2004, regarding the case of Mr. Mohammed Howaz's daughter-in-law, ref. GV100/83465. [209269]

I replied on 19 January.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the impact on the stabilisation process of Cote d'Ivoire of the proposed referendum on the presidential candidature of Alassane Ouattara; and if he will make a statement. [209088]

We support the package of actions for all parties set out in the Linas Marcoussis (LMA) and Accra III Agreements, and believe that these offer the best hope for lasting peace in Cote d'Ivoire.

We recognise, as does the African Union, that a referendum is one of the options for changing the nationality requirements for presidential candidature (Article 35) but share their view that there needs to be a speedy solution to this issue in compliance with the spirit of the LMA and Accra III.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will press the European Union to consider imposing sanctions against Eritrea in response to its treatment of evangelical Christians. [209566]

The Government have no plans to press for sanctions against Eritrea on this issue. We believe this would be counterproductive.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the government of Eritrea on (a) releasing evangelical Christians arrested on new year's eve in Asmara, (b) official recognition of the evangelical Protestant Christian denominations in Eritrea and (c) detentions of evangelical Christians; and if he will make a statement. [209567]

We raise the issue of religious freedom with the Eritrean Government regularly. Our Ambassador last raised the matter on 13 December and I raised it with President Isaias in Asmara during my visit there in January last year. We will continue to make clear our concern.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's priorities for the General Affairs and External Relations Council will be during the United Kingdom's Presidency of the European Union; and if he will make a statement. [209556]

The UK Presidency, like all Presidencies, will manage the continued priorities of the European Union. These will include:

Reaching an agreement on the future financing of the EU (2007–13) if not already resolved.

Taking forward as appropriate the accession processes of the four candidate countries: Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Turkey. This is likely to include finalising the negotiating mandate for Turkey to enable the launch of its negotiations on 3 October as well as consideration of the Commission Regular Reports on each of the candidate countries.

The UK Presidency will also respond to events and pursue the objective of global stability through continued development of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) including the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), along the lines set out in the European Security Strategy (ESS). An important aspect will be to work closely with the United States.

Work will continue to develop the EU's relations with its neighbours through the European Neighbourhood Policy including developing relations with Ukraine following the recent elections. The EU will also continue to build up its strategic relationship with Russia.

Work will continue to resolve the situation in the Middle East, through the implementation of the Road Map, and to address the situation in Iran, including the issue of Iran's nuclear programme. The General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) will continue to implement the EU strategy for Iraq in partnership with the Iraqi government with the objective of achieving a stable, democratic and prosperous future as envisaged in United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1546.

Work will continue to review, update and implement the EU action plan on combating terrorism and the EU strategy against the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Work will continue to develop the EU's relations with Africa, taking into account work going on in the G8 context and the recommendations of the Commission for Africa. Particular attention will be paid to reducing poverty, economic development, prevention management and resolution of conflict and improving governance. In Latin America the GAERC will aim to make further progress to finalise the EU-Mercosur negotiations. The GAERC will continue to build up strategic partnerships with China, India and Japan.

In the field of military crisis management, particular attention will be devoted to the running of the EU Force operation Althea in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 2005, the two first six-monthly reviews of the operation will be carried out. The Union will remain active in the field of civilian crisis management and look to implement the action plan for the future of civilian ESDP. The EU will continue to run effectively the ongoing mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Macedonia, and Georgia.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what sanctions would be available under the proposed EU constitution against member states in breach of their duty under Articles I-16 (a) actively and unreservedly to support the Union's common foreign and security policy and (b) to refrain from action contrary to the Union's interests or likely to impair its effectiveness. [208256]

The Article I-16 obligations referred to in the question are in substance the same as those first set out in Article J.1 (4) of the Maastricht treaty (currently Article 11(2) TEU). As under the Maastricht treaty and the treaty on European Union, member states are under the constitutional treaty required to comply in good faith with their treaty obligations, including those relating to the common foreign and security policy mentioned in Article I-16. Any consequences which might follow if a member state failed to fulfil its obligations would depend on the circumstances. But the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice is excluded from common foreign and security policy issues by Article III-376.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether a derogation from EU Treaty provisions was granted to the United Kingdom which allows dual membership of the House of Lords and the European Parliament; and if he will make a statement. [209259]

The Act concerning the election of the representatives of the European Parliament (annexed to Council Decision 76/787 of 20 September 1976 as amended by Council Decision 2002/772), provides that, from the European Parliament elections in 2004, the office of member of the European Parliament shall be incompatible with that of member of a national parliament. That Article also provides that, by way of derogation from that rule, members of the United Kingdom Parliament who were also members of the European Parliament during the five year term preceding election to the European Parliament in 2004 may have a dual mandate until the 2009 European Parliament elections.

The ban imposed by this Article, and the derogation it provides, apply in respect of membership of either House of the United Kingdom Parliament.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the current position with regard to (a) Mr. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, imprisoned in Pakistan, and (b) his Department's involvement in this case. [209016]

We continue to raise the case of Mr. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh with the Pakistani authorities in London and Islamabad. We have offered consular assistance to Mr. Sheikh and shall continue to seek clarification on whether he wishes to take up this offer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

(1) what plans he has for disposal of the assets comprising the British consulate in Oporto when the post is closed; [209884]

(2) what use will be made of funds raised from the disposal of the property and land occupied by the British consulate in Oporto when the post is closed; [209885]

(3) if he will publish the disposition attachment of the will of the late Evelyn Teage pertaining to the closure of the British consulate in Oporto; [209886]

(4) what legal advice he has taken on the status of the property and land occupied by the British consulate in Oporto after closure of the post; [209887]

(5) what sales have previously been made of land occupied by the British consulate in Oporto; and what happened to the proceeds under the terms of the Evelyn Teage Will Trust. [209888]

Following the announcement of the closure of the Consulate in Oporto in December 2004, the Trustees are considering, with legal advice, the future of the property and the fund against the background of the intentions of Evelyn Teage's bequest.

In 1994, the Trustees sold part of the land attached to the consulate. The proceeds were used to renovate the house; to pay off debts to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office who had been paying maintenance of the property; to construct new offices and to provide a long-term fund to maintain the remaining property.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many conferences were (a) attended by officials from his Department, (b) cancelled by and (c) facilitated by his Department in each year since 1997; and what the (i) cost to the Department and (ii) location was in each case. [205757]

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Information in the form requested is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many properties are held by the Department; what total floor space these properties provide; how many properties are vacant; and how much floor space vacant properties comprise. [206487]

The Scotland Office leases two buildings, which are shared with the Office of the Advocate-General for Scotland. In addition, some staff are accommodated in buildings owned or leased by the Scottish Executive. The total floor space of accommodation occupied by the Scotland Office and the Office of the Advocate-General is 2,760 sq m. There are no vacant properties.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on his Department's policy regarding the retention of e-mails in electronic form (a) after and (b) up to 1 January 2005; and what instructions have been given regarding the deletion of e-mails prior to 1 January 2005. [206952]

The Scotland Office continues to implement well established policies and procedures for the review and disposal of files in accordance with its administrative needs and the Public Records Act. E-mail messages that form part of the official record are saved for as long as business needs require and stored corporately in accordance with departmental record management procedures. Further e-mail guidance is available on the National Archives website at:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/electronicrecords/advice/pdf/managing_emails.pdf.

No instructions were given to staff about the deletion of e-mails prior to 1 January 2005.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate he has made of the costs of security for the G8 summit at Gleneagles. [209397]

It is not customary to disclose the security costs for such events. Discussions on the overall arrangements, including resource matters, are continuing between relevant Government Departments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff in his Department have (a) received official warnings and (b) faced disciplinary procedures following breaches of IT policy in each year since 1997. [205808]

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Since, April 2000, when records began, three members of staff have received warnings following minor breaches of IT policy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the ministerial engagements (a) out of London and (b) in London that he has cancelled since 1 January 2004. [209219]

My right hon. Friend and I carry out frequent engagements both in and outside London and it is occasionally necessary to cancel such engagements for parliamentary or other ministerial business. No record is kept of cancelled engagements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many press officers are employed in the Department. [206528]

The Scotland Office currently has two press officers, one of whom is part-time, and there is also one vacant post.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the estimates were of the cost of building the Skye Toll Bridge when the private finance initiative agreement to build it was agreed in 1986. [209633]

Responsibility and documentation relating to the construction and financing of the Skye Bridge are devolved matters for the Scottish Executive. The Scotland Office has no continuing responsibility and does not hold information about the Skye Bridge.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many civil servants from his Department have (a) faced disciplinary proceedings as a result of allegations of theft, (b) been charged with theft and (c) been dismissed following theft allegations in each year since 1997. [206397]

The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Since then, no staff have faced disciplinary proceedings, charges or faced dismissal as a result of theft allegations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many non-geographic 0870 telephone numbers are in use by his Department; and what services can be accessed by calling each of them. [205832]

The Scotland Office has no 0870 telephone numbers in use.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much revenue his Department has received from the use of non-geographic 0870 telephone numbers for the period 1 October 2003 to 30 September 2004. [205842]