asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they are taking to ensure that the effectiveness of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency will be maintained if the proposals for its part-privatisation are implemented. [HL2131]

The Government concluded in the Strategic Defence Review that, in order to guarantee the ability of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) to continue to conduct world-class research, we would harness the opportunities offered by a Public Private Partnership. Last year's consultation exercise on a potential PPP proposal produced a wide range of useful comments from stakeholders.As a result of this process, we announced in October that we would be widening the scope of our discussion to take these comments into account. That work is now complete and has led to the development of two revised models for potential PPP structures, known as "Core Competence" and the "Public Sector Option". A detailed evaluation of these options indicates that Core Competence best meets the PPP objectives while also responding to the views of stakeholders. Both models are described in a consultation document which has been placed in the Library of the House and which is also available on the internet at

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they expect to make representations to the Post Office concerning the suitability or otherwise of topics for special stamp issues; whether such representations were made about the bi-centenary in 2001 of the United Kingdom; and, if so, by which department, and what was their nature. [HL1873]

It is not normal practice for the Government to make representations on subjects suitable for special stamp issues. The choice of topics for stamps is left to the Post Office. I am not aware that representations were made to the Post Office by any government department concerning the bi-centenary of the United Kingdom.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are their plans to amend the Wireless Telegraphy (Television Licence Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2000 in order to ensure that those organisations which are responsible for managing sheltered accommodation in which all the residents are over 75 are not required to buy television licences for the television equipment used in communal areas. [HL1956]

The Government have no such plans. Our policy on free television licences for people aged 75 or over is intended specifically to benefit individuals and their households. A single licence taken out by the managers of sheltered housing, whatever the age of the residents, already covers any number of television sets installed in the communal areas at the specified address. Introducing free licences to cover such sets only in cases where all the residents were 75 or over would inevitably create anomalies, since a single resident aged below 75 would disqualify the accommodation.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the performance standard requirements for the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency for processing applications for driving licences and their renewal within a reasonable time. [HL2019]

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency undertakes to issue photocard driving licences (and return original identity documents) to their customers within 15 working days (3 calendar weeks) from the receipt of their applications. Applications where medical investigations have to be undertaken do take longer.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their policy on rate relief for equestrian enterprises on farms; and [HL1974]Whether any equestrian enterprises on farms, whether or not still in active operation, will qualify for rate relief; and [HL1975]Whether any small riding schools not on farms will qualify for rate relief. [HL1976]

At present the rateable values of stud farms linked to agricultural land and property are reduced by £2,500. This represents a saving of £1,040 on rates bills this year. In announcing an Action Plan for Farming on 30 March, the Prime Minister said that the Government would be consulting publicly on proposals to extend rate relief to horse enterprises linked to farm premises.Details of the proposals have still be to worked out. Small riding schools not linked to farm premises would not qualify for relief under these proposals, but might qualify for relief under the Government's proposals for rate relief for small businesses. We shall be consulting separately on the details of these.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the debate on Northern Ireland on 22 March (H.L. Deb., col. 358), what support they are giving, on an ongoing basis, to Belfast International Airport to compete with Dublin Airport in attracting direct international services? [HL1985]

The Government do not provide direct marketing support for Belfast International Airport, which is a profitable private sector enterprise. But they are always happy to draw attention during international air services agreement negotiations to the potential advantages of serving Belfast. There are no legal constraints on air carriers wishing to start up services between Belfast and another EEA destination. The Government have also offered access to all regional airports, including those serving Belfast, to their bilateral partners, provided reciprocal treatment is permitted to UK carriers. I understand that the Northern Ireland Tourist Board markets the Belfast airports as gateways to the Province.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have held any discussions with Railtrack and the Scottish Executive on the upgrading of the line between Aberdeen and London. [HL1979]

The shadow Strategic Rail Authority (sSRA) is discussing with all interested parties a replacement for the current Great North Eastern Railway franchise, including future infrastructure requirements for the entire East Coast Main Line. Separate discussions between the sSRA, Railtrack and the relevant train operating companies are also taking place to improve journey times within Scotland on the London to Aberdeen route. The Scottish Executive is a party to all these discussions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, and on what dates since his appointment, the present Minister of Transport has had formal meetings with:

Ministers have extensive dealings with organisations in both the public and private sector as part of their official duties.It would be impracticable to maintain a central record of such meetings.

asked Her Majesty's Government:On how many days the Minister of Transport attended the World Road Congress in Kuala Lumpur; how many officials accompanied him; what was the total cost to the taxpayer; and what was the purpose of attending. [HL1831]

My honourable friend Keith Hill, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the House of Commons, represented Her Majesty's Government at the Ministers' session of the World Road Congress in Kuala Lumpur. A Private Secretary accompanied him and the total cost for their flight and accommodation at the Congress, which took place between 3–5 October 1999, was £6,655.00. All travel complied with the requirements of the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code.The World Road Association is the oldest international association involved with roads and transportation and its quadrennial Congress is the most important arena for shaping its policy direction and agenda for the four-year period. The Congress provided UK Agencies and exporters with an opportunity to further develop their contact networks and, in the Ministers' session, an appropriate international audience for the Minister to explain the new policy orientation for the Highways Agency and other UK road administrations arising from the Integrated Transport White Paper.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they are taking to ensure that sufficient school places are available throughout Northern Ireland for pupils (and their parents) who wish to be in integrated education. [HL2064]

My department has developed a strategic approach to the further development of integrated education in Northern Ireland, not only through the approval of new schools, where they are robust and viable, but by supporting the transformation of existing schools to integrated status. In November 1999, my department issued a comprehensive information pack on the transformation process to all schools in Northern Ireland to ensure that there is a proper understanding of the process. In addition, my department provides significant funds to the Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education to support its promotional and development work in the integrated sector, and has been the main contributor to the Integrated Education Fund, which assists the initial development costs of new schools. The growth of the integrated sector from 10 grant-aided schools with 2,000 pupils in 1989 to 43 schools with over 11,000 pupils in 1999 fully demonstrates my department's commitment to responding to parental demand for integrated education.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many lone parents under the age of 25 are benefiting from the Sure Start programme during the first year of their child's life at present; and how many are anticipated to be doing so in (a) six months, (b) one year and (c) two years. [HL1937]

Sure Start is a government programme for children under four and their parents. Its aim is to work with parents and children to promote the physical, intellectual and social development of pre-school children—particularly those who are disadvantaged—to enhance their chances of success. The programme is targeted on areas of disadvantage, typically with between 500 and 1,000 children under four, and will aim to provide services for all families in that area with children under four. A key target group of the population in these areas will be lone parents.The Sure Start programme in England is being rolled out in stages, with the target to have 250 programmes operational by 2001–2002. The first 60 "trailblazer" areas were announced in January 1999 and most have now started to deliver services. A further 69 areas were announced in November 1999 and it is anticipated these will be up and running by the summer. It is hoped to announce a further round in the summer.Information on how many lone parents are using Sure Start services is collected centrally, on a monthly basis, but this is not broken down by their age, nor that of their children. As the 60 trailblazer programmes are only just starting to deliver services, the information received so far does not give an accurate or reliable indication of the number of lone parents who are benefiting from Sure Start. As more Sure Start programmes start to deliver services, the overall number of lone parents benefiting from Sure Start will increase.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the debate on Northern Ireland on 22 March (H.L. Deb., col. 357), why less public funding is spent on the railway system in the Province per head of the population than any other part of the United Kingdom; and what steps are being taken to redress the imbalance. [HL1981]

The railway system in Northern Ireland is smaller per head of population than that in Great Britain. Public expenditure priorities in Great Britain and Northern Ireland have also been different, with spending on transport being afforded a lower relative priority in Northern Ireland. The future level of funding for the railway system in Northern Ireland will be considered as part of the 2000 Spending Review.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the debate on Northern Ireland on 22 March (H.L. Deb., col. 357) on what date the commencement of the relaying of the railway line between Belfast and Bangor will commence and whether European Union funding is available for the project. [HL1982]

European grant aid of £7.169 million is available for this project. However, when European grant aid was sought, the estimated cost of the project was £9.5 million. The Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company now estimate the cost to be £14.7 million so it has a shortfall in funding and this is delaying commencement of the project.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the debate on Northern Ireland on 22 March (H.L. Deb., col. 357), whether Northern Ireland Railway (NIR) will be allowed to lease rolling stock in the same way as other railway companies in the United Kingdom. [HL1983]

The issue will be affected by decisions reached following the outcome of the work of the Task Force that is examining options for the future of railways in Northern Ireland. In principle, Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) would be permitted to lease trains if that is shown to be the most cost-effective option for replacing its rolling stock. However, unlike the other railway companies in the United Kingdom, NIR is publicly owned and consequently would normally have lower borrowing costs. This means that leasing is less likely to be cost effective for NIR than for other railway companies in the United Kingdom.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in the planning agreements of 1994 and 1997 for Belfast City Airport, an upper limit of flights or passengers per year was set; if so, what is the limit, how is it monitored, and what sanctions are imposed if it is exceeded. [HL2040]

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Planning Service under its chief executive, Mr H S McKay. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the official report, written by Sir Con O'Neill, on the United Kingdom's failed negotiations for entry into the European Community in 1961–63 is available to scholars and others; and, if not, in which year they plan to make it available. [HL2023]

Official reports on the failed negotiations for entry to the European Communities in 1961–63 were prepared by officials, led by Sir Pierson Dixon, on the UK Delegation to the negotiations and by the Treasury. These reports are available at the Public Record Office (PRO) in a Foreign Office file, FO 371/177369 and a Treasury file, T 267/14.Sir Con O'Neill was not involved in the preparation of these reports. His own report on the successful negotiations in 1970–72 for UK entry to the European Community will be published later this year by FCO Historians. The original report will be placed in the PRO at the time of publication.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What consultation took place between them and the European Commission before the statement was issued by the President of the Commission on 31 January announcing procedures to be adopted by the other 14 member states in their relations with Austria. [HL1883]

The President of the European Commission issued a statement on Austria on 1 February in support of the Portuguese Presidency statement of 31 January which served to limit the bilateral political relationship with Austria. The Portuguese statement was issued after consultations between the Portuguese Prime Minister and Heads of Government of the 13 other EU member states.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will impose sanctions similar to those they have imposed on Austria against any country whose leader or leaders have expressed sympathy, support or understanding for the national socialist or communist regimes in the former Soviet Union, in China, or in Cuba; and, if not, why not. [HL1955]

We have not imposed sanctions on Austria. The measures implemented by us and our 13 other EU partners serve to limit our bilateral political relationship, as a signal of our concern over the inclusion of a far right party in the new Austrian Government. Austria's history makes this an especially serious cause for concern at this time.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they know the whereabouts and health of Min Ko Naing, the Burmese pro-democracy activist. [HL1884]

Our Embassy in Rangoon has obtained confirmation that Min Ko Naing is in Sittwe prison. He is said to be in reasonable health, is allowed outside exercise and regular family visits. He is one of an estimated 1,500 political prisoners in Burma. We take every opportunity to press for the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience—for example, through ambassadorial representations in Rangoon and United Nations resolutions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have received information from the British High Commission in Zimbabwe on the alleged role of the ruling Zanu-PF party in Zimbabwe in a campaign of violence, intimidation and lawlessness in that country. [HL1895]

We receive regular reports about developments in Zimbabwe from our High Commission at Harare. We are deeply concerned at the violence accompanying occupations of farms and have urged the Zimbabwe authorities to ensure that law and order is maintained.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have reviewed the possibility of President Mugabe declaring a State of Emergency in Zimbabwe; and, if a military coup with popular backing and a clearly defined timetable for new elections should be announced, whether they would then consider there to be sufficient grounds to call for the suspension of Zimbabwe from the Commonwealth. [HL1896]

President Mugabe has assured us that the elections in Zimbabwe will be held on time.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have received reports that, following the compulsory purchase of land from white farmers in Zimbabwe, government ministers, members of the judiciary and members of the armed forces have received farms from the state. [HL1905]

Yes.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have received reports that public servants and members of the armed forces have taken advantage of the Ordinary Tenant Farmer Scheme as "ordinary tenants" in Zimbabwe; and whether land reform there was initiated as a policy to help the poor. (HL1906)

Yes, we have received such reports. We will only consider supporting land reform when it generally helps the poor.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Zimbabwe Government's farm policy undermines the Commonwealth's fundamental political values. (HL1908)

It does not undermine Commonwealth values. But we are deeply concerned about the current farm invasions and their implications for law and order, stability and economic development.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they share the concern expressed by Human Rights Watch over the recent crackdown on press freedom in Zimbabwe. (HL1909)

We are concerned about any threats to the freedom of the press or expression, wherever they occur, and we make our views known.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the sale of spare parts for Hawk aircraft in use in Africa from the Congo to Zimbabwe is consistent with the ethical dimension of their foreign policy and with the statement by the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Mr Hain, at Wilton Park on 13 September 1999 that Britain must not supply defence material where this could start, sustain or stoke internal or external oppression. [HL1898]

The Government's policy on licence applications to export defence equipment to Zimbabwe and other countries intervening in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo is set out in the statement made by my right honourable friend the Prime Minister on 9 February 2000, Official Report, cols. 184–185W.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What information they have about the causes and possible consequences of the attempted assassination and wounding of Mr Arkady Ghukasian, the elected president of Nagorno-Karabakh, on 22 March. [HL1921]

Samvel Babayan, a political rival of Arkady Ghukasian, has been arrested along with his brother and at least 28 other individuals on the instructions of the "Public Prosecutor" of the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, in connection with the assassination attempt on Ghukasian. It is too early to say what effect, if any, the assassination attempt will have on the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. But the situation inside Nagorno-Karabakh appears to be calm for the present.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What changes have been made to the implementation of European Union financial sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. [HL2079]

EC Regulation 723/2000 amending EC Regulation 1294/1999 concerning a freeze on funds and a ban on investment in relation to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) was adopted by the Council of the EU on 6 April. The regulation, which enhances the implementation of the existing financial sanctions against the FRY, came into force on 8 April. Among other changes, it clarifies the scope of the freeze of funds by tightening the definition of "the Government of the FRY" and "the Government of the Republic of Serbia".

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish the recommendations of the report by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary on Community Safety and Partnership. [HL2153]

Yes. I have today placed in the Library a note of the recommendations from the report, together with the Commissioner's responses and the police authority responses, which take into account the advice my right honourable friend the Home Secretary and my noble friend the Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office (Lord Bassam of Brighton) have received from the Metropolitan Police Committee.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will announce further appointments to the Commission for Racial Equality. [HL2154]

My honourable friend the Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office, Mr O'Brien, is pleased to announce that he has appointed Beverley Bernard as Deputy Chair for the Commission for Racial Equality. The appointment is initially for three years on a part-time basis.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will make publicly available the latest progress report prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on bovine spongiform encephalopathy. (HL2081]

A further Progress Report on BSE in Great Britain was placed in the Library of the House.The report outlines the measures which have been taken to protect public health since June 1999, including legislation to establish the Food Standards Agency and to lift the retail ban on beef on the bone and beef bones. It summarises the results of action to enforce existing public health measures. An update on the number of cases of vCJD is included.There is also a section on the protection of animal health which covers controls on animal feed.The epidemiology section shows that the epidemic of BSE in the UK continues to decline. The number of clinically suspect cases of BSE reported in Great Britain has continued to fall and for the year to 31 December 1999 was 26.3 per cent less than for the same period in 1998, and 46.2 per cent less than for the same period in 1997. A continued improvement is expected for the future. The report shows that 63 per cent of UK herds with adults breeding cattle have never had a case of BSE, including 84 per cent of beef suckler herds. Reported incidence also shows that herds with more than four cases of BSE account for three-quarters of all BSE cases, but represent less than one-eighth of all herds.The section on the European perspective reports the first exports of UK beef produced under the Date-based Export Scheme, which started in August 1999. It also covers the Commission's latest proposal for regulation to control and prevent animal transmissible spongiform encephalopathies.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many officials in (a) the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, (b) the Department of Health, and (c) the Food Standards Agency spend more than half their time on Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy; and what the functions and grades of these officials are. [HL1928]

The following table provides a breakdown of staff who spend more than half their time on Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made with the proposed Regulatory Reform Bill. [HL2152]

The Regulatory Reform Bill has today been published in draft, in order to allow the two Parliamentary Deregulation Committees to report on it prior to its formal introduction to Parliament. The Delegated Powers and Deregulation Committee and its counterpart in the House of Commons have great expertise on the existing deregulation order-making power under the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994. Their views on the proposed extension of this power will clearly be of great interest to the House when it comes to consider the Bill. Publication of the draft Regulatory Reform Bill (Cm 4713) contains the draft Bill, Explanatory Notes and other supporting material, and I have placed copies in the Libraries of the House, the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.In addition to the changes to the deregulation order-making power, the draft Bill includes provisions to replace Section 5 of the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994, which deals with enforcement of regulations. This policy was the subject of a public consultation exercise in autumn 1999. The majority of those responding to the consultation document were supportive of the Government's proposals. Copies of the Government's response to that consultation exercise have today been placed in the Libraries of the House, the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office. Copies of the Government's response to the earlier consultation exercise on the proposed changes to the deregulation order-making power, published in September 1999, are already in the Libraries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many hits are being received per week by (a) the Prime Minister's webcasts and (b) the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman's pages on the 10 Downing Street website. [HL1766]

The Prime Minister's weekly audio broadcasts on the Internet appear on the site in three forms—"Real" stream, "mp3" file (the broadcast-quality file) and the transcript. The Real streams are hosted on a separate server and it is therefore possible to say that they have been accessed by on average 3,473 people each week.However, many thousands more will have accessed the transcripts of the broadcasts and the mp3 version. These are hosted on the Number 10 site and the site's statistics software is not configured to give figures for the number of people accessing specific parts of the site such as these. As a consequence, we are unable to give an exact figure for the total number of people accessing the Prime Minister's weekly broadcasts. The average number of hits per week on pages in the site has been 3.3 million.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are satisfied with the level of public response to the Prime Minister's webcasts on the 10 Downing Street website. [HL1767]

Yes.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What sanctions, if any, are available to them when Ministers of the Crown breach the underlying principles of paragraph 27 of the Ministerial Code; and [HL1961]Whether they are proposing to put in place measures to ensure that, in future, Ministers comply properly with paragraph 27 of the Ministerial Code; and, if so, what measures they have in mind. [HL1962]

Paragraph 1 of the Ministerial Code sets out the general duties of Ministers in relation to Parliament, based on the resolutions of both this House and another place in 1997. Paragraph 27 of the Ministerial Code makes it clear that, when Parliament is in session, Ministers will want to bear in mind the desire of Parliament that the most important announcements of Government policy should be made, in the first instance, in Parliament. It is for individual Ministers to account for their actions in accordance with the Ministerial Code.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 31 January (

The Answer I gave on 31 January refers to government advertising, most of which is bought through the Central Office of Information. The Answer given on 6 April refers to public relations and consultancy contracts which are not managed or purchased centrally.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 20 March (

In my Answer to you of 20 March, I said that I would ask officials, as far as practically possible, to collect information on their departments' use of Electoral Reform Ballot Services Ltd (ERBS) for the 1998–99 financial year, and for the period 1 April 1999 to 31 December 1999. The information is set out in the table below.