asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their assessment of the relative strength of relevant education and training in the workforce of Britain as compared with that of other relating nations in Europe and beyond; and what role they seek to persuade companies and employers in the private and public sectors to play in this respect. [HL960]

International comparisons suggest that the UK performs favourably in comparison with other advanced countries at higher skill levels. We compare less favourably, and need to make improvements, at intermediate skill levels and in adult basic skills.Our aim is to drive up the skills of the workforce by working in partnership with employers. Through initiatives such as Investors in People and the Union Learning Fund we are focusing employers' attention on the benefits of skill training and employee development. We will be consulting on how to give statutory backing to union learning representatives and we are working with national training organisations to test new voluntary ways of funding training.The new Learning and Skills Council will have a key role in persuading and engaging employers to invest in the skills and development of their employees. The council will set up, with industry, clear targets for improving the skill levels in the workforce and will consult on its workforce development strategy in June 2001.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What role they will encourage trade unions to play in the Learning and Skills Councils and the Regional Development Agencies. [HL961]

Trade unions have a vital role to play in supporting the Government's lifelong learning and workforce development agenda, including through their involvement with the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs).John Monks has been appointed to the LSC's National Council and as Chair of its Adult Learning Committee, Tony Chandler (Unison) and Bill Connor (USDAW) have also been appointed to the Adult Learning and Young People's Learning Committees respectively. At the time of the main announcement of local council members in November, all 47 of the LSC's local councils appointed members with trade union experience.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the estimated cost to universities of the assessments of teaching quality carried out by the Quality Assurance Agency in 1999 and 2000. [HL 1025]

Institutions are not required to maintain records of costs associated with assessments carried out by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA). They will vary between type of provision and the amount institutions invest in their internal quality assurance. In 2000, a report commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Better Accountability of Higher Education), based on a study of two institutions and other unpublished work, estimated that the higher education sector has incurred costs in the region of £45 million in QAA reviews. Quality of teaching is a small part of the reviews for the QAA.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What value for money studies have been undertaken of the work of the Quality Assurance Agency in assessing teaching quality in universities; and what have been the results of such studies. [HL1026]

In 2000, a report commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Better Accountability of Higher Education), assessed the accountability burden for institutions. It found that institutions do not maintain any systematic cost or value data but concluded that the efficiency of the accountability regime could be improved. The Quality Assurance Agency has overhauled its review mechanisms and from September 2001 will use a method which will significantly reduce the amount of work carried out by institutions for reviews which include assessment of teaching quality.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What advice they are issuing to help combat the increasing rise of acoustic syndrome in the workplace. [HL738]

I am not aware of any rise in ill-health effects caused by acoustic shock (a sudden increase in noise in telecommunication systems) in the workplace. Since 1991 any risk of hearing damage has been limited by the design of headsets and, although sudden noises may startle the operator, they are unlikely to be harmful.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in the light of the increasing importance of speed limits, they have any plans to make it easier for the private motorist to have his speedometer tested for accuracy. [HL839]

The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, as amended, allows the use of speedometers that meet the requirements of EC Community Directive 75/443(97/39) or ECE Regulation 39. Both the EC Directive and the ECE Regulation lay down accuracy requirements to be applied at the time of vehicle approval for speedometers. These requirements are that the indicated speed must not be more than 10 per cent of the true speed plus 4 km/h. In production, however, a slightly different tolerance of 5 per cent plus 10 km/h is applied. The requirements are also that the indicated speed must never be less than the true speed.A vehicle meeting these requirements would not be able to travel at a greater speed than that shown on the speedometer and a driver could not, therefore, inadvertently exceed speed restrictions. Her Majesty's Government have no plans to introduce instrument tests.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they are taking to review the adequacy of crash barriers on the approach roads to bridges over railway lines. [HL1184]

We are extremely grateful to the HSE and to TRL for their speedy consideration of the factors involved in the tragic accident at Great Heck near Selby on 28 February 2001. HSE and TRL will be continuing their investigations, but it is becoming apparent that there was nothing the railway industry could reasonably have done to prevent the train collision. It also appears that there were no technical matters connected with the road infrastructure that would help explain why the vehicle left the M.62 in the first place. The road surface appears to have been adequate and the safety barriers more than met the current standards. We will, of course, have to await the report of the police into the incident. But in the interim my right honourable friend the Deputy Prime Minister has asked the HSC to convene and lead a working group that will look at the circumstances of incidents where vehicles have blocked rail lines and whether there are features in common that might have been preventable. In parallel, the Highways Agency will be reviewing its standards for safety barriers.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether on 2 June 1994 after the Chinook helicopter ZD576 had completed its morning sortie a member of the crew completed the aircraft technical log form 700; and, if so, what exactly was written on that form. [HL985]

Form 700 is a generic descriptor for a series of forms. The only member of the crew of ZD576 to complete any forms after the morning sortie was Flt Lt Tapper. He signed a Form 705(H) Flight Servicing Certificate to show that the morning sortie had been completed and he was handing over the aircraft for flight servicing at 15.30. He also signed this form again to show he was accepting the aircraft, before its final flight.Flt Lt Tapper had also completed a Form 724 (Chinook)

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why they did not inform the House of Lords on 22 January that lawyers acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for Health intended to tell the High Court on 26 January that they would need five months to prepare scientific evidence in defence of the regulations on human embryos arising out of the Donaldson Committee Report. [HL624]

An application for permission for the Pro-Life Alliance to bring a judicial review was considered in the High Court on Friday 26 January. The application was adjourned to allow time for both parties to prepare their cases before the resumed application for permission and the substantive arguments were heard together on or after 15 June this year.The court order set out a timetable for this process, including time for statements to be made by both sides about the scientific principles on which each side would rely. Lawyers for the Secretary of State for Health did not ask for five months to prepare a statement on the scientific principles but were granted six weeks to do so by the court.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 24 January (

Universal neo-natal hearing screening is being piloted, initially in 20 health authorities. This phase was started in March 2001, and will be staged over 12 months. An announcement will be made early next year about a timetable for national implementation, taking account of the initial findings of the pilot which will enable us to plan a national roll-out to a feasible time-scale.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any clusters of nvCJD cases are associated with, or close to, rendering plants, abattoirs or meat and bone meal storage facilities. [HL741]

The National Creuztfeldt Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit collates data on the past residential histories of variant CJD patients as part of its routine investigations into cases. Data where cases are associated geographically are studied in conjunction with the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and the local public health team to determine if there are any common factors. To date, no association with the location of abattoirs, rendering plants or meat and bone meal storage facilities has been found.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 21 February (H.L. Deb., col. 809) regarding deep vein thrombosis, how many of the 25 hospitals referred to in the Answer will have staff continuously on site capable of diagnosing deep vein thrombosis throughout the Easter holiday period; and [HL1054]Further to the Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 21 February (HL Deb, col. 809) regarding deep vein thrombosis, whether any of the hospitals which will have staff capable of diagnosing deep vein thrombosis on call but not on site throughout the Easter holiday period will automatically have staff called if a patient is suspected of having a deep vein thrombosis. [HL1055]

All 31 accident and emergency departments in London have access to equipment and staff to diagnose deep vein thrombosis. Out of the 25 hospitals referred to in my Answer of 21 February (H.L. Deb., col 809) that will have staff available to operate diagnostic equipment out of hours, all will have staff on call who can come in as and when needed. Staff can also stay in National Health Service accommodation if required. It is not necessary to have staff continuously on site. This is normal NHS practice.Those hospitals that do not have the staff to access the equipment out of normal working hours would generally admit the patient, start treatment and do tests on the first working day. The response by hospitals would vary according to clinical need.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the drug Enbrel used to treat rheumatoid arthritis is generally available through the National Health Service in England to patients who meet the criteria for its use. [HL1043]

We have no detailed statistics on the prescribing of etanercept (brand name Enbrel).Etanercept is currently being appraised by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). Until NICE has completed its appraisal, National Health Service bodies have been advised to use their existing arrangements to determine local policies on the publicly available evidence.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether anti-TNF therapy for rheumatoid arthritis is available in rheumatology departments at teaching hospitals in England. [HL1114]

Infliximab (Remicade) and entanercept (Enbrel) are currently being appraised by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). Until NICE has completed its appraisal, National Health Service bodies have been advised to use their existing arrangements to determine local policies on the publicly available evidence.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What consideration is being given to the future of Wythenshawe Hospital's heart transplant centre; on what grounds it was not included among the regional centres whose future has been guaranteed; and when a decision on the centre's future can be expected. [HL1079]

The Secretary of State for Health announced the development of an NHS Action Plan for organ and tissue transplantation last month, which will include the modernisation and reorganisation of organ transplant services. We are currently considering proposals from the National Specialist Advisory Group for the future of the English Cardiothoracic Transplant Service. Only two of the current seven adult centres, Papworth Hospital in Cambridge and the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle, met the requirements of a report on the future of organ transplant services by the Royal College of Surgeons. We intend to issue a discussion document setting out proposals for the remaining units soon.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many cases of organophosphate poisoning in humans have been reported in the last 10 years by those with the statutory duty to report such cases; how many cases of organophosphate poisoning, either acute or chronic, have been diagnosed by the National Poisons Unit (Medical Toxicology Unit) for that period; and what have been the criteria for such a diagnosis. [HL1083]

During the 10 year period 1990–1991 to 1999–2000, there were 18 cases of poisoning reported under the Reporting of Injuries Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) which can be attributed with certainty to organophosphates.This number is likely to be a considerable underestimate of the actual number of cases of organophosphate poisoning, as RIDDOR is known to be subject to serious underreporting and, furthermore, it is not always possible from the information provided to attribute a poisoning to a specific substance.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the draft investigation protocol of 22 February 1993,

The draft investigation protocol of 22 February 1993, Clinical investigation of symptomatic patients secondary to exposure to organophosphate containing sheep dips, was a pilot investigation on patients admitted at the request of their health authorities. The results of the investigations offered no useful evidence on which to base further research, so no formal research programme was developed.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the surveillance study of sheep dippers using organophosphate dips carried out by Dr Virginia Murray et al in 1991 and 1992, and which involved taking blood samples, classed as "research" for the purposes of medical ethical control; and, if so, whether the National Poisons Unit had an obligation to obtain Ethics Committee approval and informed written consent from each individual subjected to the study. [HL1085]

The surveillance study of sheep dippers using organophosphate dips carried out by Dr Virginia Murray et al in 1991 and 1992, was research, carried out by issuing questionnaires that were filled in either by the patients or their general practitioners, and submitted by the GP. Blood samples were sent to the Medical Toxicology Unit for clinical purposes. It was not accepted practice at that time to obtain informed written consent from subjects before taking blood samples or issuing questionnaires. There was no obligation at that time to obtain Ethics Committee approval for the study.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What representations were received by the Department of Health from the e-Envoy in respect of the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Bill; and how these were addressed by the department. [HL1109]

The Department of Health has had various discussions about the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Bill, including with the e-Envoy's office.If approved by Parliament, the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Bill will enact a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising. The Bill is intended to help reduce tobacco consumption and so make inroads into the mortality and ill health caused by tobacco products. The Government are anxious, however, to ensure that this does not create a liability for Internet service providers and others in circumstances where their involvement with the advertisement is such that it would not be appropriate to do so.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they are taking, other than through the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank or otherwise, to secure transparency of key data by oil companies operating under Angolan sovereignty. [HL973]

We have regular contact with the major oil companies operating in Angola both in London and via the British Embassy Luanda. We have discussed matters relating to transparency of oil revenues with them. It is Her Majesty's Government's view that oil revenues should be used for the benefit of all the Angolan people.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will seek the release from prison in Guinea of Mr Alpha Conde MP, a former presidential candidate, considered by the Inter-Parliamentary Union not to have received a fair trail (Resolution of Council 21 October 2000). [HL1008]

We supported European Union demarches calling on the Government of Guinea to ensure Mr Conde received a fair trail. EU Heads of Mission on Conakry attended the trial as observers. Since the sentencing on 12 September 2000, we have been monitoring Mr Conde's treatment closely. We will continue to urge the Government of Guinea to ensure that Mr Conde is treated humanely, in accordance with international human rights standards.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they believe that all prisoners held by Iraq and Iran at the end of the war between those countries have now been released; and, if not, whether they will use all available channels to achieve that end. [HL1009]

We believe that there are a number of prisoners still being held in Iraq and Iran since the end of the war between those two countries. We understand there are ongoing negotiations between Iraq and Iran with the involvement of the ICRC. We continue to remind both Iraq and Iran of their obligations under SCR 598.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are actively co-operating with all efforts to secure the release of the 605 persons from a total of eight countries who were removed from Kuwait to Iraq 10 years ago. [HL1010]

We are committed to working through the Tripartite Commission to establish the whereabouts of the 605 Kuwaitis and other nationals still missing since the Iraqi occupation. The UK played a leading role in the adoption of SRC 1284, which appointed Yuli Vorontsov as the UN High Level Co-ordinator for Kuwaiti matters with the aim of raising the profile of these issues and increasing pressure on Iraq to co-operate.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any changes have been made in relation to United Nations sanctions against Liberia. [HL1146]

UN Security Council Resolution 1344 (2001), imposing mandatory UN sanctions in relation to Liberia, was adopted on 7 March. The resolution was co-sponsored by the UK and US in response to the findings of the UN Expert Panel on Sierra Leone on violations of the Sierra Leone arms embargo and the link between the trade in diamonds and arms. The Security Council determined that the active support provided by the Government of Liberia for armed rebel groups in neighbouring countries, and in particular the RUF in Sierra Leone, constitutes a threat to international peace and security in the region.The new measures are as follows:

asked Lord Tordoff, as acting Chairman of Committtees:Whether he has estimated the savings on insurance that would result in enforcing a smoking ban in the House of Lords, and, in particular, in the Library rooms. [HL1169]

There would be no savings. Her Majesty's Treasury bears its own property insurance risks.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a decision has been reached concerning the future of Customs and Excise as a prosecuting authority. [HL1171]

The report by His Honour John Gower QC and Sir Anthony Hammond KCB QC was delivered to me on 5 December 2000. I have lodged a copy of the report in the Library, and copies of the report are available on request to the Solicitor for HM Customs and Excise.The report concludes that the Customs and Excise Solicitor's Office should retain its prosecution function but that in exercising this function, including the giving of advice to investigating officers, it must be truly independent and be seen to be so. To that end, the report has also concluded that in relation to the prosecution function the Solicitor should be accountable to the Attorney-General rather than to the Commissioners and that the solicitor/client relationship between the Commissioners and the Solicitor should cease in relation to this function. Where cases are referred to the Solicitor's Office with view to prosecution, the decision on whether to do so will rest with the appropriate lawyer after consultation with, where necessary, an administrator on matters of policy and public interest. These recommendations are supported by a number of associated recommendations on detailed structural and financial aspects.The Government have carefully considered all these recommendations. They accept all the recommendations in principle, but, given the significant resource implications associated with some recommendations, have opted for a phased approach to implementation.The Government have had particular regard to the need to ensure that adequate resources are made available to the Solicitor's Office to enable it properly to conduct the large and complex drugs and other prosecutions which were the main focus of the report, and which are conducted by the Special Casework Division of that Office (SCD). They have therefore decided to afford this area of work the greatest priority.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many registered agricultural holdings there are in the United Kingdom; how many June 2000 agricultural census forms were dispatched by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food; how many were returned completed; and whether it was a legal requirement that the forms should be completed and returned for that particular census. [HL1036]

Information requested is provided in the table:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend to introduce legislation to outlaw religious descrimination following two independent research reports published by the Home Office. [HL1052]

The Government are committed to implementing the Article 13 EC Employment Directive outlawing discrimination in employment and training on grounds which include religion and belief by autumn 2003. The Government will consult on this in due course, taking account of the research reports.Both reports will help to raise awareness of people's experience of religious discrimination, and of the sensitive and sometimes complex issues involved in tackling it.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they intend to publish the review of extradition they announced on 2 March 2000. [HL1185]

My right honourable friend the Home Secretary has today published a consultation document entitled The Law on Extradition: A Review, and copies have been placed in the Library.My right honourable friend the Home Secretary announced the review to Parliament on 2 March last year in the course of his statement on Senator Pinochet. It is the outcome of an exercise started in 1997 to consider the legislative requirements of two European Union conventions on extradition. However, it developed into a much more extensive inquiry, following the adoption at Tampere in October 1999 of the principle of mutual recognition of judicial decisions by the member states of the European Union.The consultation document makes far-reaching proposals in relation to all aspects of current extradition law and practice. The greatest changes are proposed in respect of the United Kingdom's procedures for dealing with extradition requests received from member states of the European Union and Schengen states. Our present procedures for dealing with extradition requests from these states contain cumbersome controls and outdated requirements, some of them derived from 19th century extradition legislation. Such procedures are no longer necessary, nor do they provide an efficient means to deal with the growing difficulties caused by organised and international crime.For these extradition partners a simple backing of warrants procedure is proposed. This would replace the current multi-staged system, in which all extradition requests are examined by both the Secretary of State and the courts, with a single, streamlined hearing before a district judge (Sheriff in Scotland). The documentation required to support an extradition request would also be significantly simplified, to reduce the current burdens placed on our European partners in their efforts to bring fugitives to justice. The proposals retain a statutory right of appeal, in order to ensure that fugitives' rights are protected; but also propose that the grounds for appeal be tightened to eliminate time-consuming delays where fugitives appeal on grounds which are not relevant or are more properly for consideration by the court of trial.The simplified requirements of a backing of warrants scheme would put the mutual recognition principle into practice in the field of extradition. Mutual recognition may be defined as the judicial decisions of one jurisdiction being recognised as valid in another, with the minimum of formality.The review recognises that, while major reforms are required to our extradition procedures in respect of out closest neighbours, there is also a clear operational need to reform the procedures for dealing with requests from our extradition partners outside the European Union. Here, a final decision in the case by the Secretary of State would be retained, but there would be a significant reduction in the present duplication of my role and that of the courts in deciding cases, with the aim of making extradition quicker and simpler, while protecting fugitives' fundamental human rights.The consultation period for the review proposals is three months. Copies are being made widely available to people and organisations with a professional interest in the subject. Members of the public will be able to apply for a copy from the Home Office, or obtain one from the Home Office website at

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they intend to take to amend the fees for gaming and lotteries. [HL1170]

We have today laid before Parliament two orders under the Gaming Act 1968 and one under each of the Lotteries and Amusements Act 1976, and the Gaming (Bingo) Act 1985.The Gaming Board and the Home Office review gaming fees and the fees for society and local authority lotteries every year. The National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee have made recommendations about how these fees are set. They have called for the creation of a more reliable basis for determining the costs of the relevant licensing and police authorities and achieving their full recovery, and for the elimination of cross-subsidies among and between the various gaming industry and lottery sectors.The Government have accepted these recommendations and acted upon them. The amended fees in the four orders are based upon estimates by the Gaming Board for Great Britain of the cost of each service and demand for it during the financial year 2001–02.The four orders will bring revised fees into effect from 1 April 2001. The table sets out the current and the new levels of all the fees.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Dawn Primarolo on 5 February (HC 412–413W), why no accurate estimates have been made of the potential cost to public funds of extending Section 33 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 to cover museums and galleries; and whether they will research and publish such figures. [HL656]

In his Budget speech, the Chancellor announced a new scheme that will allow the main national museums and galleries to provide free admissions and still recover the VAT they incur on the things that they buy. This will remove the VAT incentive for museums to charge for admissions. The Government estimate that the new scheme will cost around £15 million per year.

asked Her Majesty's Government:With reference to Article 99 of the Treaty of the European Communities, whether they will list (a) any recommendation by qualified majority vote made by the Council of Ministers on a proposal from the Commission authorised in paragraph 4 of Article 99; (b) any decision in (a) which was subsequently made public by qualified majority vote on a proposal from the Commission to make its recommendations public; and (c) the detailed rules for the multilateral surveillance procedure adopted by the Council under Artcle 99.5. [H969]

On 12 February, the Council of Ministers, acting on a proposal by the Commission, issued a recommendation to the Irish Government, under Article 99 (ex Article 103) paragraph 4 of the Treaty Establishing the European Community. The Council of Ministers also decided to make its recommendation public.As provided for under Article 99 (ex Article 103) paragraph 5, Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/97 sets out a framework covering the content, the submission,

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their response to the recommendations in the British Tourist Authority report

The Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting, Janet Anderson, has set up a working group of industry representatives and government officials to consider the recommendations in the First Impressions report. The group will determine the priorities and responsibilities for encouraging the implementation of these recommendations, and will report progress to the Minister.The group, whose first meeting took place on 7 March, is chaired by Veronica Palmer, a board member of the British Tourist Authority and Director-General of the Confederation of Passenger Transport.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any National Lottery grant has been made to any Irish Republic group. [HL880]

A number of National Lottery grants have been made to organisations based in the Republic of Ireland to provide benefits or services within the United Kingdom. A list of these is in the following table: