To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the overall change in UK carbon dioxide emissions has been since 1997, taking 1997 as a base figure of 100; and what the change in carbon dioxide emissions from (a) industry, (b) domestic sector, (c) transport, (d) road transport and (e) air transport have been since 1997, taking 1997 as a base figure of 100. [218908]

holding answer 1 March 2005

The following table contains the rebased carbon dioxide emission from 1997 to 2002. The figures are based on the 2004 official inventory (UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, 1990 to 2002") using new factors for Gas and Power Station Coal (Scenario 2 and 6) to be in line with the Review of the UK Climate Change Programme Consultation Paper". The total decrease in carbon dioxide from 1997 to 2002 is 1.1 per cent.

⁽¹⁾ Includes energy industries and industrial processes

⁽²⁾ Includes all domestic transport (incl. domestic aviation and domestic shipping only)

⁽³⁾ Domestic aviation only (excl. international aviation)

⁽⁴⁾ Includes businesses and land use change emissions (excl. landuse change removals)

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

(1) what safeguards she has put in place to prevent the importation and spread of avian flu; and if she will make a statement; [219285]

(2) what steps she has taken to ensure that imports of poultry from countries with known outbreaks of avian flu are safe; what inspections are made of foodstuffs imported from such countries; and if she will make a statement. [218465]

If there is an outbreak of disease in an exporting country, Community legislation allows member states to take appropriate emergency safeguard action, which may include a ban on imports of animal products from all, or parts, of that country, pending emergency action at Community level. Once Community measures are put in place the safeguard measures will reflect them. Safeguard measures are currently in place to ban or restrict imports of meat and other animal products of susceptible species in respect of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Pakistan, the People's Republic of China, including the Territory of Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and South Africa and Newcastle disease in Bulgaria

All poultry meat and products derived from birds imported from third countries must be accompanied by veterinary certification. As laid down in Community law.

All live birds, poultry meat and poultry meat products imported from third countries must be accompanied by a licence and/or veterinary certification. This confirms that the birds are not derived from an area where there has been an outbreak of avian influenza or Newcastle disease; it also confirms that live birds have not been vaccinated against Newcastle disease; show no clinical signs of disease and are fit to travel.

Post imports of live poultry, or eggs once hatched, must be held in quarantine for six weeks in an approved establishment.

All poultry meat and birds imported into the EU from third countries must enter at designated border inspection posts where they are subject to veterinary inspections. All consignments are subject to documentary and identity checks. At least 20 per cent. of consignments of animal products undergo physical checks, and a number of animals in each consignment are physically checked. These checks ensure import conditions are met.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many incidents of avian flu have been reported in the UK in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement. [219287]

Since February 2004, five reports of suspected avian influenza have been notified to the State Veterinary Service. None were subsequently confirmed. The results of the UK survey for avian influenza in farmed poultry required by Commission Decision 2004/630/EC and carried out between August and December 2004 were all negative.

Defra has produced risk assessments on avian influenza in other countries and these are available on the Defra website.

The Diseases of Poultry (England) Order 2003 provides powers to control avian influenza and a contingency plan for avian influenza and Newcastle disease was laid before Parliament in March 2004 in line with provisions of the Animal Health Act of 1981 (as amended). The plan outlines Defra's objectives for disease control in terms of emergency preparedness, mobilisation of the response effort, and outbreak management. The contingency plan is currently being reviewed and is due to be laid before parliament in July this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the impact of the withdrawal of (a) the over-30-month scheme and (b) other beef subsidies on the UK beef market. [217821]

The information is as follows:

(a) Defra commissioned a report from the MLC entitled Impact of OTM Exit on the UK Market" which is regularly updated as market conditions change. This describes the expected impact on the market of over-30-month cattle, cattle born after August 1996 when they return to the food chain after the OTM rule is replaced by a robust system of BSE testing.

(b) Defra has commissioned a number of reports examining the impact of the change in the support arrangements for agricultural production as a result of CAP reform. These are collated on Defra's website. The impact on the UK beef production industry is covered in these reports.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research she has commissioned on steps to encourage the production of biofuels and bioethanol to meet the EU biofuels directive of May 2003. [217531]

The Government are currently carrying out a feasibility study on the possible introduction of a Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation. In parallel, the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership are preparing advice for the Government on how a carbon certification scheme might operate. Cambridge University has been commissioned to review the economics of energy crops, including those used for biodiesel and bioethanol. In the light of these studies, the Government will consider the way forward for biofuels.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 February 2005, Official Report, column 1653W, on bovine passports, if she will list the reasons for the successful appeals of the 8,196 bovines initially refused applications for passports. [218859]

Cattle passports are issued by the British Cattle Movement Service which is part of the Rural Payments Agency.

Successful appeals in respect of the 8,196 cattle initially refused passports can be broken down as follows:

External circumstances outside the control of the farmer for example floods or industrial action—6 per cent.

Exceptional personal circumstances for example the bereavement of a close relative—11 per cent.

Exceptional postal delay—15 per cent.

Actions of officials for example mistakes or removal of farm records during inspection—12 per cent.

An illness or malady affecting the keeper which prevented the application being made on time—21 per cent.

Other reasons—including problems with the use of home computers or unavoidable delays in obtaining ear tags from manufacturers—35 per cent.

In all these cases, evidence of the exceptional circumstance was demonstrated.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will publish a Government strategy for the (a) control and (b) eradication of bovine TB from the British herd. [218326]

The Government Strategic Framework for the Sustainable Control of Bovine Tuberculosis in Great Britain" was published on 1 March.

The strategic framework focuses on what is achievable in the control of bovine TB in a 10 year timeframe. Whilst eradication is desirable we believe it is not achievable in 10 years.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the first results are expected from the Bourne/Krebs triplet trials. [218769]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 31 January 2005, Official Report, column 575W to the hon. Member for North-West Leicestershire (Mr David Taylor).

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her latest estimate is of the number of live cattle kept in the UK which were born (a) before and (b) after August 1996 which would be eligible for compensation payments under the over-30-month-scheme; and what records her Department has maintained of these cattle. [218366]

At 24 February 2005 the Cattle Tracing System (CIS) database shows there to be 846,530 cattle alive that were born before 1 August 1996 and 3,166,935 cattle born after this date, all of which are potentially eligible for compensation under the over-30-month-scheme if they meet the scheme requirements.

The CTS is a computer based system to register cattle in Great Britain. CTS records the:

identification and death of cattle,

movements from birth to death of cattle issued with passports from 28 September 1998, and

movements of older cattle since 29 January 2001.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what policies her Department has in place for supporting employees with cancer. [218674]

Support for employees with cancer is the same as support for employees with any long term (and possibly terminal) illness, through the following policies and services:

Welfare Services provide individual support.

Reduced working hours for medical reasons.

Reasonable adjustments to the workplace.

Special leave arrangements (including disability leave).

Retirement on medical grounds.

In each case the Department takes account of the wishes of the individual.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information she has received from the Chairperson of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) concerning (a) the suspension of Dr. Keith Baverstock from the Committee and (b) the current status of Professor David Ball on CoRWM; and if she will make a statement on progress made to date by CoRWM in meeting its planned timetable. [217827]

CoRWM's sponsoring Ministers in Defra and the devolved administrations have jointly commissioned a review with the terms of reference:

To consider (i) concerns identified by Dr. Keith Baverstock concerning the operation of the CoRWM Committee and (ii) the role and personal contribution of Dr. Baverstock in delivering the corporate aims and objectives of CoRWM. To report the outcome of this review, and to provide recommendations to CoRWM's sponsoring Ministers".

This follows receipt of representations from both the CoRWM Chair, Gordon MacKerron, and Dr. Keith Baverstock. Dr. Baverstock has been suspended from the Committee pending the outcome of this review.

The review is being carried out by the independent assessor, approved by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA), who was involved in the CoRWM appointments process. The assessor will be considering the information provided by relevant parties in arriving at his recommendations to Ministers.

Subsequent to the commissioning of this review, Professor David Ball informed Defra that he has voluntarily suspended himself from CoRWM's activities while the situation giving rise to Dr. Baverstock's suspension is resolved.

In the meantime CoRWM's work continues unchanged from the programme set out in its First Annual Report 2004, available on its website—www.corwm.org.uk. This will lead to the Committee publishing its short list of options and proposed assessment methodology for public and stakeholder consultation during the course of March 2005.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding was allocated to programmes dealing with (a) the risk of human-induced climate change, (b) assessment of the impact of climate change on the environment and (c) identification of mitigation and adaptation options for climate change since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [217553]

The Department's climate change science research programme analyses the risk of human-induced climate change, assesses its potential impacts, and means of adaptation and mitigation. The following table details this research programme's spend over the last three financial years.

£

Information for the financial year 1996–97 to 2001–02 is not available without disproportionate costs of retrieval. It is impossible to separate climate change impacts and adaptation research as these are complementary. An aggregate figure, therefore, describing research spend on both impacts(b) and adaptation/mitigation (c) has been presented. Data presented for the financial year 2004–05 are estimates of expected annual spend.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list government-funded (a) organisations and (b) projects whose sole duty is (i) to analyse and (ii) to combat the effects of climate change in the UK; how much funding was allocated to each in 2004–05; and if she will make a statement. [217554]

Information on all of the Government's spending on addressing the impacts of climate change is not held centrally—work to analyse these impacts and then to build in adaptation is rightfully carried out by many Departments in the course of their policy planning and implementation.

The Department supports a broad climate change science research programme, which includes funding a number of organisations to undertake projects to assess the impacts of climate change in the UK, and potential adaptation responses. It is not possible to separate the funding into discrete categories of that which supports analysis of the impacts of climate change, and that which supports the investigation of adaptation responses to tackle these impacts, since in almost all cases, projects address both.

The following table provides a breakdown of the relevant research projects, giving the project title, the organisation contracted to carry out the research, and the Department's allocated funding for this financial year, 2004–05.

The implementation of adaptation actions falls to a wide range of organisations in both public and private sector.

The figures provided here do not cover the Government's funding for organisations and projects that analyse the causes of climate change and contribute to its mitigation through reductions of greenhouse gas emissions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the likely impact on the UK breeding population of cormorants of her Department's change of policy on cormorant control. [217969]

holding answer 24 February 2005

Modelling by Defra's Central Science Laboratory (CSL) has examined the likely consequences of the new policy on winter cormorant numbers. The focus on winter numbers is appropriate since this coincides with the period when licensed shooting occurs; wintering counts are also recorded annually, unlike counts of breeding birds which are only conducted infrequently at the national level. CSL have explored the limits within which the licensing system may operate without risking the conservation status of the cormorant population. The aim has been to identify prudent upper limits for shooting and not to recommend levels of population reduction. To further safeguard the conservation of cormorants Defra will monitor the national winter population and if necessary reduce or stop the granting of licences should the population not respond in the manner predicted.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of fish refuges in reducing predation by cormorants; and how much her Department has spent on research into the effectiveness of fish refuges in the last two years. [217970]

holding answer 24 February 2005

Mr Bradshaw Defra's Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science is currently undertaking research into the use of fish refuges to reduce damage to inland fisheries by cormorants. Early results are encouraging and suggest that the technique has considerable potential for reducing fish losses at some sites, such as smaller stillwater coarse fisheries. Currently, fish refuges do not offer a solution for all fisheries. However, work is continuing to further evaluate the benefits of introducing refuges in a range of fisheries and to assess any effects of the refuge structures on anglers. Over the past two years this research has cost the Department £260k.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many licences to control cormorants have been issued in each English county since 16 September 2004; and how many birds are permitted to be killed under each licence. [217971]

holding answer 24 February 2005

Up until 9 February 2005 the Department granted 274 licences. The minimum number of birds which have been licenced to be killed is 1800. This equates to an average of almost seven birds per licence. The analysis of licences per county involves a disproportionate cost and has not been supplied.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what criteria she is using to determine the location of the new headquarters of the Countryside Agency; and whether premises in Cheltenham are under consideration. [214714]

The Secretary of State announced in Rural Strategy 2004 that the 'new' Countryside Agency would in due course be located in a lagging" rural area. For these purposes, lagging" rural areas will be defined by reference to those local authority districts demonstrating poor economic performance in their rural economies, as set out in Annex B to Defra's Public Service Agreement 2004 (see www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/busplan/tn.pdf). As Rural Strategy 2004 sets out, poor economic performance is both affected by, and affects, social exclusion.

The annex above lists the geography of poor economic performance in rural England as follows:

We are looking forward to receiving proposals shortly from the agency, taking into account the Government's policy priorities set out in Rural Strategy 2004 and the objectives of the 'new' Countryside Agency, that will enable an early decision to be made on the new location.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many dairy herds had an average size of (a) less than 20, (b) 21to 40, (c) 41 to 60, (d) 61 to 80, (e) 81 to 100, (f) 101 to 120, (g) 120 to 140, (h) 141 to 160, (i) 161 to 180, (j) 181 to 200 and (k) more than 200 in (i) 1995, (ii) 2000 and (iii) the last year for which figures are available. [219310]

The figures in the table show dairy herd and holding numbers in England by dairy cow size group in (i) 1995, (ii) 2000 and (iii) 2003. The dairy herd are all cows and heifers that have calved and including cows in calf, cows in milk and cull cows.

Dairy cows in England by dairy cow size group in (i) 1995,(ii) 2000 and (iii) 2003

Notes:

(a) Figures prior to 2000 are for main holdings only, from 2000 onwards main and minor are included.

A holding is defined as minor if it meets all of the following conditions:

1. the total area is less than 6 hecatres

2. the labour requirement is estimated to be less than 100 standard person-days

3. there is no regular full-time farmer or worker

4. the glasshouse area is less than 100 square metres

5. the occupier does not farm another holding

Source:

June Agricultural Census

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the number of wild deer in the UK, broken down by breed. [218931]

The following are mid-1990s estimates of wild deer numbers in Britain by species¹ .

¹ From Harris S, Morris P, Wray S, and Yalden D. (1995) A review of British Mammals. JNCC, Peterborough. Quoted in Current and Future Deer Management Options," Defra December 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the application of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 to access to the countryside, with particular reference to the use of gates and stiles. [218382]

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 ensures that private or public landowners, who are service providers", will be subject to the provisions of the Act. Service providers are required to take reasonable steps to remove, alter or provide a reasonable means of avoiding physical features.

As far as rights of way are concerned, we believe that this will apply to features such as stiles and gates—which might act as barriers to disabled people accessing their services—since the provision and maintenance of these is the landowner's responsibility. However, it is not clear at this stage what reasonable steps" would mean in practice and this will probably only be established by case law.

Section 69 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 provides for the Secretary of State to issue guidance on how the powers to authorise works are to be exercised. We plan to issue this guidance later this year and will consider using this opportunity to issue guidance on the application of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

As regards access to open country under Part I of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, we believe that landowners are unlikely to be service providers under the Disability Discrimination Act just because their land has been designated under this part of the Act. Landowners may become service providers if they voluntarily provide signs, gates, stiles or other infrastructure to support the right of access, but there is no case law in this area. If the courts decide that the Disability Discrimination Act does

apply in these circumstances, then we would expect reasonable steps" to take account of factors like cost, land management, privacy and the level of demand from local disabled people

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Committee for the Adaptation to Technical and Scientific Progress of the Directive on Conservation of Wild Birds (ORNIS) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217816]

The Committee for the adaptation to technical and scientific progress of the Directive on conservation of wild birds (the ORNIS Committee) met twice during the Irish and Dutch residencies on 18 March 2004 and 20 September 2004 in Brussels. The ORNIS Committee did not meet during the Italian presidency. UK representation on 18 March 2004 comprised one official from my Department together with a scientific adviser from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and on the 20 September 2004 an official from the Scottish Executive attended together with a scientific adviser from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

(1) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Gambia) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217823]

(2) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Greenland) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217824]

(3) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Guinea) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217825]

(4) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Guinea Bissau) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217826]

(5) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Cape Verde) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217828]

(6) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Comoros) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217829]

(7) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Co(r)te d'Ivoire) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217830]

(8) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Estonia) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217831]

(9) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Angola) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217883]

(10) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Argentina) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217884]

(11) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch residency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EC-Russia) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217926]

(12) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch Presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Sao Tome" and Principe) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217927]

(13) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Senegal) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217928]

(14) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Seychelles) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217929]

(15) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Madagascar) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217932]

(16) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch Presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Morocco) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217933]

(17) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Mauritania) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217934]

(18) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EC-Poland) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217935]

(19) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch residency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC- Equatorial Guinea) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217936]

(20) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Mauritius) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217937]

(21) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch Presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Latvia) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217938]

(22) how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Fisheries Joint Committee (EEC-Lithuania) met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement; [217939]

The UK did not attend any of the Joint Committees (except that for EU-Greenland) listed in these questions as we have no fishing interest in these waters. Records about these meetings are not held by my Department. The meetings of the EU/Greenland Joint Committee took place on 28 September 2004 and 1–2 February 2005. The discussions were about the operation of the Fourth EU/Greenland Protocol. The UK was represented by a Defra official.

There are no bilateral fisheries agreements between Estonia, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Argentina and Morocco.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Oils and Fat met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217847]

Meetings of the Oils and Fats Management Committee were held on the following dates:

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by a Defra official.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004, and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Natural Fibres met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217848]

The information is as follows.

Italian presidency—July to December 2003

The committee met on the 28 November 2003 when one UK expert attended.

Irish presidency—January to June 2004

The committee met on 24 March and 28 May 2004. On each occasion one UK expert attended.

Dutch presidency—July to December 2004

The committee met on 7 September when one UK expert attended, and on 30 November 2004, when two UK representatives attended.

The meetings provide an opportunity to exchange market information and to discuss the regulation of natural fibres.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Fresh Fruit and Vegetables met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217855]

Meetings of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Management Committee were held on the following dates:

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by Defra officials.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004, and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Products Processed from Fruit and Vegetables met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217856]

Meetings of the Processed Fruit and Vegetables Management Committee were held on the following dates:

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by Defra officials.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004, and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Wines met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217857]

The Wine Management Committee met nine times during the Italian presidency, 10 times during the Irish presidency and six times during the Dutch presidency. The meetings took place on the following dates: 8 and 23 July 2003, 9 and 23 September 2003, 15 and 28 October 2003, 12 and 25 November 2003, 10 December 2003, 13–14 and 27 January 2004, 10 and 24 February 2004, 9 and 23 March 2004, 20 April 2004, 11 May 2004, 9 and 15 June 2004, 13 July 2004, 17 September 2004, 12 and 26 October 2004, 24 November 2004 and 16 December 2004. All meetings were held in Brussels.

UK Government representation consisted of one Defra official for the majority of these meetings, although on several occasions, two Defra officials attended in view of the nature of the agenda items. In each case the representatives were from the Department's Food and Drink Industry Division.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Raw Tobacco met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217858]

Meetings of the Raw Tobacco Management Committee were held on the following dates:

Irish presidency

28 January 2004

26 February 2004

6 May 2004

25 May 2004

27 May 2004

17 June 2004

25 June 2004

Dutch presidency

29 July 2004

22 September 2004

27 October 2004

30 November 2004

The Raw Tobacco Management Committee did not meet during the Italian presidency.

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by a Defra official.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004, and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Hops met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217861]

Meetings of the Hops Management Committee were held on the following dates:

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by Defra officials.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004, and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Seeds met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217862]

The Management Committee for the common organisation of the market in seeds did not meet during the Italian presidency. During the Irish and Dutch presidencies the Committee met in Brussels on the following dates, with UK representatives as noted:

A series of Command Papers on prospects for the EU (Cm 6174 laid in April 2004, Cm 6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm 6450 laid in February 2005), which covers the periods of the above presidencies, is available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Live Plants and Floriculture Products met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217863]

There were no meetings of the Management Committee for Live Plants and Floriculture Products during the period covered by the Italian, Irish and Dutch presidencies.

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm 174 laid in April 2004, Cm 6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm 6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Management Committees of the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets for Bananas met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217864]

Meetings of the Bananas Management Committee were held on the following dates:

All meetings were held in Brussels and were attended by Defra officials and on occasions a representative from the Rural Payments Agency .

A series of Command Papers on developments in the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm6450 laid in February 2005, cover the periods of the above presidencies and are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Implementation Committee for spirit drinks met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217868]

The Spirit Drinks Implementation Committee (SDIC) met once during the Italian presidency, three times during the Irish presidency and twice during the Dutch presidency. The meetings took place on the following dates: 29 October 2003, 9 and 23 March 2004, 15 June 2004, 27 September 2004 and 24 November 2004. All meetings were held in Brussels.

UK representation at all these meetings consisted of one Defra official, apart from that held in November 2004, when two Defra officials attended. In each case the representatives were from the Department's Food and Drink Industry Division.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Implementation Committee on aromatised wine-based drinks met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217869]

The Aromatised Wine Implementation Committee meets very infrequently. There have been no meetings of the Committee since 2002.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the joint meetings of management and/or regulatory committees in the field of agriculture—agrimonetary questions met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217871]

The committees dealing with these issues met irregularly over the period specified.

The meetings took place in Brussels and were attended by officials from Defra only.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the joint meetings of management and/or regulatory committees in the field of agriculture—trade mechanisms met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217872]

Meetings of the Directorate General (DG) Agri Trade Mechanisms Management Committee usually take place on a monthly basis in Brussels. The Committee met five times during each of the Italian, Irish and Dutch presidencies.

During the Italian presidency, the committee met on 15 July, 16 September, 14 October, 11 November and 9 December 2003.

During the Irish presidency, the committee met on 20 January, 17 February, 16 March, 20 April and 25 June 2004.

During the Dutch presidency, the committee met on 20 July, 21 September, 19 October, 16 November and 14 December 2004.

The United Kingdom's delegation to the DG Agri Trade Mechanisms Management Committee is led by officials from the Rural Payments Agency, with HM Customs in attendance depending on the agenda.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Standing Forestry Committee met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217874]

The Standing Forestry Committee met twice during the Italian presidency, on 1 July 2003 and 4 November 2003; it met four times during the Irish presidency, on 12 January 2004, 31 March 2004, 28 May 2004 and 22 June 2004; and it met twice during the Dutch presidency, on 28 September 2004 and 22 October 2004. All the meetings took place in Brussels and were attended by Forestry Commission officials.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund Committee and working party on irregularities met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217881]

The European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund Committee and related working parties met on average about once a month during the lifetime of each presidency.

All meetings were held in Brussels. The UK was represented by officials from Defra, and, depending on the agenda and their availability, officials from the UK Co-ordinating Body, the Treasury, the Devolved Administrations, and the Rural Payments Agency also attended some meetings.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the committee on supply of agricultural products to the population of the former Soviet Union met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [217882]

The Department has no record of such a committee and is not aware that any such meetings have taken place.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Standing Committee on Propagating Material and Plants of Fruit Genera and Species met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [215918]

The Standing Committee on Propagating Material and Plants of Fruit Genera and Species met once during the Italian presidency on 14 October 2003; once during the Irish presidency on 2 April 2004; and once during the Dutch presidency on 18/19 October 2004. All the meetings took place in Brussels and were attended by an official from the Department's Plant Health Division and also, in the case of the meeting on 18/19 October 2004. a scientific adviser from the Central Science Laboratory.

The mandate of the Committee is to consider and adopt measures to facilitate implementation of Council Directive 92/34/EEC on the marketing of fruit propagating material and fruit plants intended for fruit production. The UK's priorities are to secure arrangements which are proportionate and facilitate access to a wide range of healthy propagating material, and provide increased opportunities for UK trade while ensuring co-ordination with the parallel EU plant health regime. The Committee's agendas and meeting reports are available on the European Commission's website at http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/rc/scpfgs/index_en.h tml.

A series of Command Papers on prospects for the EU—Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm6450 laid in February 2005. which cover the periods for the above presidencies are available on the FCO website at http://www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Standing Committee on Seeds and Propagating Material for Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [215919]

The Standing Committee on Seeds and Propagating Material for Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry met in Brussels on the following dates with UK representatives as noted:

UK representation at these meetings depended upon the agenda for each meeting.

A series of Command Papers on prospects for the EU (Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm6450 laid in February 2005), which covers the periods of the above presidencies, is available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the (a) Italian, (b) Irish and (c) Dutch presidency of the EU the Committee for Community protection of plant variety rights met; when and where these meetings took place; what UK Government expert was present; and if she will make a statement. [215920]

The Standing Committee on Community Plant Variety Rights did not meet during the Italian and Irish presidencies. The Committee met once during the Dutch presidency on 24 November 2004 in Brussels and was attended by representatives from the Plant Variety Rights Office in my Department.

A series of Command Papers on prospects for the EU (Cm6174 laid in April 2004, Cm6310 laid in September 2004 and Cm6450 laid in February 2005), which covers the periods of the above presidencies, is available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk/commandpapers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what lessons have been learned from the deadline for the implementation of phase I of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme in the UK for phase II. [219339]

holding answer 2 March 2005

The directive specifies the dates by which National Allocation Plans in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) should be submitted to the European Commission, final allocation decisions should be made and the date by which allowances should be issued. For phase I these deadlines have proved extremely challenging to meet for all member states.

One of the key lessons learned from phase I is with regard to the volume of analysis, negotiation and decision making required to develop a robust and effective NAP within a demanding timeframe. In light of this we have already started work on phase II in particular focussing on analytical work to inform the decision making process.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many member states have implemented Phase 1 of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. [219340]

holding answer 2 March 2005

The Commission has approved 21 National Allocation Plans (NAPs) (eight on 7 July 2004, eight on 20 October 2004 and five on 27 December 2004). The Commission has yet to announce decisions on NAPs from Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy and Greece.

To date only Denmark has begun spot trading, although the Netherlands are expected to start shortly. A number of member states have announced installation level allocations (e.g. Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Slovenia and Ireland) but are not yet in a position to issue allowances, either as a result of the registry not being approved or because a final allocation decision has not yet been made.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects the European Commission to make a decision on the UK's application for an opt out from Phase 1 of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. [219341]

holding answer 2 March 2005

We aim to make an application to the Commission for temporary exclusion from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme for Climate Change Agreement participants before Easter, after operators have made their applications to Defra by 4 March. We do not know when the Commission will make a decision on the application, but there is no guarantee that they will approve it.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent developments there have been on the application to the European Commission for exemption from phase one of the Emissions Trading Scheme; and if she will make a statement. [218612]

Installation level allocations for the National Allocation Plan were published on 14 February. Operators of Climate Change Agreements were asked to decide whether they wished to apply for temporary exclusion by 4 March. Defra aims to make an application to the Commission before Easter.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what threshold has been set for the number of farmers who need to sign up to the Fallen Stock Scheme in order to make it viable; and if she will make a statement. [218471]

In its business projections for the Scheme the National Fallen Stock Company estimated that it would need 40–50,000 members to ensure the Scheme was viable in the longer term. However, no threshold has been set and the number which would ensure viability may differ from this depending on how closely actual Scheme costs and income match those that had been projected.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

(1) what safeguards she has put in place to ensure that contamination does not take place between farms when animals are transferred through the Fallen Stock Scheme; and if she will make a statement; [218472]

(2) what research she has conducted of the risks of bio-contamination occurring due to the Fallen Stock Scheme; and if she will make a statement. [218473]

Animal By-Products legislation, which applies equally to fallen stock collected outside and inside the Scheme, already controls the collection, storage and transportation of animal by-products, including animal carcases. It also requires records to be kept of any consignment of animal by-products to assist in the auditing and traceability of this material. General guidance on biosecurity is also available on the Defra website.

Although no formal assessment has been made of the biosecurity risks of the National Fallen Stock Scheme, Scheme rules require that fallen stock are collected and disposed of according to strict biosecurity guidelines and is available on the Defra website. The National Fallen Stock Company has engaged the State Veterinary Service to inspect collection premises and vehicles to ensure compliance with these rules.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total estimated income for the farming industry was in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [218470]

Information on total income from farming for the years 1995 to 2004 is given in the following table:

Total income from farming (real terms at 2004 prices)

Total income from farming is income generated by production within the agriculture industry, including subsidies. It represents business profits plus remuneration for work done by owners and other unpaid workers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in which other EU member states the fishing industries are subject to full cost recovery for their management costs; how many have partial cost recovery; and how many do not charge their industries management costs. [218140]

The Department does not hold information on all other EU member states in relation to cost recovery for fisheries management. However, we are making enquiries in order to complete the information and will respond in writing once we have the complete picture.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received about the withdrawal of designated port status for haddock landings from Warkworth Harbour, Amble, Northumberland; and if she will reconsider the decision. [219077]

holding answer 1 March 2005

The Fisheries Department has received three representations regarding the withdrawal of designated port status for haddock landings from Warkworth Harbour, Amble, Northumberland.

The purpose of designating ports is to assist Defra inspectors in the monitoring of landings of fish. Amble was designated in 2004 following the introduction of the haddock permit scheme which made it compulsory for vessels with haddock permits to land into designated ports. It was made clear at the time that designation would only remain while the haddock permit scheme remained. The scheme has now ended.

Under current rules, landing into a designated port is not compulsory except for vessels with more than two tonnes of cod on board. Vessels landing into Amble do not normally catch such quantities and they are therefore free to continue landing there, subject to requirements for advance notification in certain circumstances. I therefore do not propose to reconsider the decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

(1) what proportion of the management costs of the UK fishing industry was borne (a) by her Department and (b) by the industry in the last year for which figures are available; [218116]

(2) what proportion of the management costs of the UK fishing industry was borne by her Department in the last year for which figures are available. [218117]

The costs of the Fisheries Directorate within the Department was £53 million in financial year 2003–04. This included expenditure on enforcement, regulation, quota management, licensing, European negotiation, research and policy development. All of these activities contribute to management of the industry. Devolved administrations bear their own costs.

The industry bears the cost of Producer Organisations (PO) which play a part in quota management. The Department does not have information on the sums involved.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much was spent by (a) her Department and (b) departmental sponsored bodies on research into aquaculture and fish farming at sea in the last year for which figures are available. [218127]

Defra spent £1,907,488 on aquaculture related research including fish health and welfare in 2004–05. The Sea Fish Industry Authority have allocated £190,000 to fund aquaculture research and development projects in 2004–05. They also contribute about £150,000 to the research work of the Scottish Association of Marine Science in 2004–05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on how many occasions when her officials have been processing requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 it has been necessary to extend the statutory 20 working day limit for response due to the need to assess whether the public interest in disclosing the information requested outweighed the public interest in witholding the information requested. [214644]

It must be remembered that officials are dealing within an entirely new set of requirements and we expect these processes to be much easier to follow once they are bedded in. To date our central tracking system records that there have been a total of 14 requests for information where a reply has had to be extended past the statutory 20 working day limit due to the need to apply the Public Interest Test. Of these requests nine were under the Freedom of Information Act and five were under the new Environmental Information Regulations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her contingency plans are for dealing with a future foot and mouth epidemic. [217535]

The measures that the Government would take in the event of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease are set out in the Defra FMD Contingency Plan, the latest version of which was laid before Parliament at the end of March 2004. These include the immediate imposition of movement controls on all susceptible livestock, strict bio-security requirements and enhanced options for controlling the disease. Vaccination would be considered from the outset of an outbreak in addition to the culling of all susceptible animals on infected premises and those that have been exposed to infection, as required by EU law.

We are engaging with operational partners and with stakeholders to ensure they are aware of their responsibilities and the measures that would be taken in an outbreak. Plans are also in place in the event of an outbreak to enable a rapid increase in resources and for the implementation of contingency contracts, including that for emergency vaccination. We have revised the instructions for staff and are ensuring that they are trained and equipped to deal with an outbreak of disease. A revised version of the contingency plan, incorporating the lessons learned from the national foot and mouth disease exercise held last June, will be issued for public consultation shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research she has evaluated on whether wild birds can spread the foot and mouth virus, with particular reference to geese. [218662]

The Department commissioned and published a risk assessment to consider the risks of importation of contaminated meat and meat products and the subsequent exposure of GB livestock. Several viral pathogens were included in this work, among them Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

As part of this work the risk of transfer and spread of contaminated material, by scavengers (including wild birds), from an infected site to livestock holdings was considered.

Foot and mouth disease virus has been recovered from the plumage and feet of birds in contact with affected livestock, however, there is a lack of evidence that birds play a significant role in the spread of the disease. In those cases where wild geese were possibly implicated in 2001 UK outbreak of FMD, other more likely sources were usually found.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the levels of greenhouse gases emitted by the UK were in each of the last 10 years; and what levels were emitted during that period by other EU countries. [218290]

The following table contains the most recent greenhouse gas emissions estimates, in million tonnes of carbon equivalent per year, for each of the EU-15 countries and for the ED-15 collectively from the European Environment Agency.

The data, expressed as million tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent per year, are published in the Annual European Community greenhouse gas inventory 1990–2002 and inventory report 2004", which is available from the European Environment Agency (http://www.eea.eu.int/main html).

The estimates differ a little from those published in the Consultation Paper for the Review of the Climate Change Programme because the latter contain estimates for emissions due from land use change, which are not included in the comparative data from the European Environment Agency, and because of revisions to the emission factors for coal used in power stations and for natural gas, as described in the Consultation Paper.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action her Department is taking to protect coral reefs and sea-mounts in UK territorial waters. [208419]

Reefs are included in annex I of the EC Habitats Directive and the UK has designated 33 Natura sites in territorial waters under article 4 of the directive which have reefs listed as a feature of interest. These are biogenic and rocky reefs rather than coral reefs given available data on the nature and distribution of reefs in UK territorial waters. However, the UK's statutory nature advisers will be investigating whether there are further occurrences of marine habitats listed in annex I that meet the criteria in annex III of the directive as part of a wider exercise in which EC member states are working with the European Commission to extend the Habitats Directive into the marine environment.

In 1999 a habitat action plan forLophelia pertusa reefs was published as part of the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP). The objectives of the action plan are to protect the distribution and status of the Lophelia pertusa reefs to enhance their density and community richness.

The UK is also working through OSPAR's Biodiversity Committee to identify species (and habitats) in need of protection.Lophelia pertusa reefs have been classified as a priority habitat, OSPAR is currently investigating possible management measures.

There are no known occurrences of seamounts in UK territorial waters.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will answer the question from the hon. Member for Portsmouth South, ref 200297. [216500]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 10 February 2005, Official Report, column 1660W.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the projects being undertaken by her Department in respect of which information cannot be given in answer to parliamentary questions as a result of commercial confidentiality. [216634]

Requests for information on projects currently being undertaken by the Department would be considered on their merits in accordance with the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act governing disclosure or exemption(s) from disclosure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to assist farmers with cashflow difficulties arising from switching from IACS to Single Farm Payments; and if she will make interim payments to them. [217537]

The Rural Payments Agency has announced that payments are planned to start from February 2006. I have asked my officials to look at any mitigating actions that might be possible to speed up any payments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the work of the task force on soil guidance values; and when she expects this group to report formally on the outcomes of their work and meetings. [218927]

The Soil Guideline Values Task Force is an initiative of the Cabinet Office Business Regulation team and the Government Departments and agencies most involved in the publication of the Defra/Environment Agency soil guideline values and related materials. This technical guidance help in assessing risk to human health in connection with land contamination, for example when considering regulatory action or proposals for development of land.

In the interests of better communication with ail stakeholders the group now includes representatives from both local authorities and the private sector. It is looking at a number of issues including, training and awareness raising, timetables for further publications, and approaches to elevated ambient levels of some substances. We currently expect formal proposals from the group later in the year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by whom her Department was represented at the annual ministerial planning meeting for the United Nations Environment Programme, held in Nairobi, on 21 to 25 February; what issues were on the agenda; what matters were agreed; what papers were submitted to the meeting by the United Kingdom; and if she will place a copy of the final agreement and papers submitted in the Library. [217832]

I represented the United Kingdom during the 23 governing council, global ministerial environment forum of the United Nations Environment Programme. The UK delegation also included officials from Defra, DfID,

FCO and the UK mission in Nairobi.

The ministerial consultations considered UNEP's contribution to the following themes:

Eradicating extreme poverty and hunger (millennium development goal one) within the context of environment;

Ensuring environmental sustainability (millennium development goal seven) together with policy issues related to water, sanitation and human settlements;

Promoting gender equality and empower women (millennium development goal three) within the context of gender and environment.

A non-negotiated president's summary was produced to capture the key elements of the ministerial consultations, which will form UNEP's contribution to the UN commission on sustainable development and the UN millennium review summit.

In parallel discussions formal decisions were taken on the following issues:

Chemicals;

Water policy and strategy of UNEP;

International environmental governance;

Gender equality and the environment;

Green procurement practices for UNEP;

Poverty and environment;

Strengthening environmental emergency response and developing disaster prevention, preparedness, mitigation and early warning in the aftermath of the Indian ocean tsunami disaster;

Keeping the world environmental situation under review;

2006–07 budget and work programme of UNEP;

Trust funds;

Administrative and other budgetary matters;

Agenda and location of the nine special session of the UNEP governing council, global ministerial environment forum.

The United Kingdom worked closely with its EU colleagues in all areas on the basis of papers tabled by the secretariat of UNEP and others, but did not table any papers of its own. The outcomes of the meeting highlighted that environmental sustainability underpins the achievement of the millennium development goals and the world summit on sustainable development targets in line with EU and UK objectives.

A copy of the decisions and the president's summary will be made available in the Library once formally issued.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effects of the two metre-wide strip on wheat farmers with regard to contamination from ergot and other weeds; and if she will make a statement. [218469]

This cross compliance requirement allows regular cutting to control the growth of vegetation, it also includes an exemption which allows the spot application of herbicide for the control of weeds in the 2-metre protection zone. In cases of severe weed infestations, farmers can also seek the Rural Payments Agency's approval to use more rigorous weed control measures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to support the renewable energy manufacturing industry. [219473]

We are spending almost half a billion pounds from 2002–08 on emerging technologies. Money that has already been allocated from this includes: £117 million in capital grants for round 1 offshore wind farms; approximately £66 million for biomass capital grants; £331 million for solar; £12.5 million for the Clear Skies Programme; over £50 million for Renewables; around £19 million/year for industry led R and D: £4 million for research under the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Supergen programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to assess the impact of globalisation on UK manufacturing. [219474]

The White Paper Trade and Investment: Making Globalisation a Force a Good" published in July 2004 analyses the growth of globalisation and the challenges it poses. In the same month we published a review of the Manufacturing Strategy setting out a framework for action to address this and other challenges facing manufactures in the UK. It focuses on support for innovation and skills, and helping industry to produce smarter, higher value-added products. This message is reinforced in The DTI Five Year Programme, published in November 2004, which sets out the Government's approach to help British companies succeed in today's challenging global economy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the security of energy supply for the UK. [219475]

The market is delivering secure energy supplies, and we expect it to continue to do so.

For example, we are seeing plans being brought forward for new gas import pipelines and infrastructure to import liquid natural gas.

There are also signs that the market is already thinking about the need for new build to meet future demand. For example, E-On recently announced plans for an upgrade of its generating facility on the Isle of Grain.