asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend to reduce the size of the prison population in England and Wales; and, if so, by what means. [HL2506]

We need to ensure that we can perform the basic duty to protect the public by punishing people for the crimes they have committed while ensuring we engage in rehabilitation to reduce reoffending and prevent crime. To this end we are committed to a radical rethink of the sentencing framework so as to give clarity and direction to the courts and avoid the damaging effects of prison overcrowding. Prison must be used as effectively as possible and targeted where it is most necessary. It should be used for incapacitating dangerous, violent and other serious offenders, but prison sentences should be as long as necessary for punishment and public protection and no longer.The reform of the probation service, with its central focus on reducing reoffending, means that rigorously enforced community sentences are a real and tough alternative to imprisonment. We want to build on this work to provide sentencers with more than two stark options, imprisonment or a community sentence. We are looking at intermediate disposals such as intermittent custody and a strengthened suspended sentence. On community sentences the courts need to be able to mix and match within a generic sentence so that we can get it right for the individual. As part of the work taking forward the recommendations of the Halliday report on the sentencing framework we are looking at new forms of community penalties that allow the sentencer this flexibility. We aim to encourage greater use of community penalties for some non-violent offenders such as those convicted of theft and handling or fraud.Home detention curfew and a rigorous assessment process play an important role by enabling some prisoners to be released from prison while still subject to restrictions placed on their liberty. This facilitates a smoother and more effective integration back into the community and helps offenders to secure employment as soon as possible.We are addressing the recent increase in the female prison population by taking forward the Government's strategy for female prisoners. A cross-government women's offenders reduction plan is currently being developed by a multi-agency team drawn from across the criminal justice system, which is based in the Home Office. The aim of the programme is to strengthen policy, programme, research and spending partnerships across government to reduce women's offending. This includes linking criminal justice work with broader government efforts to tackle social exclusion, particularly as it affects women at risk of offending.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress is being made with respect to full implementation of the provisions of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. [HL2743]

The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 has now been implemented with the following exceptions.The Government intend to lay a draft Section 12 order (maintenance of a reasonable intercept capability provision) before Parliament following the Easter recess. The Part 1 interception code of practice is due to be laid before Parliament before the Easter recess. The Government intend to commence the Part I, Chapter II (communications data) provisions in the spring. The Part II surveillance codes of practice are due to be laid before Parliament prior to the Easter recess. The intention is to commence Part III of RIPA in the latter half of 2002.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether passports are no longer stamped at ports of entry in cases where entry clearance visas have been granted prior to the holders' arrival in the United Kingdom; and, if so, whether they have considered the implications for the internal control of foreign nationals. [HL2761]

Entry clearances issued after 2 October 2000 confer leave to enter. These new style entry clearances are activated upon passing through the arrivals control in the United Kingdom. The passport would normally be endorsed on the first presentation of the entry clearance only.An immigration officer conducts a process of verification on each arrival, for example, to establish that the person is the rightful holder of the document. He will also check the personal details of an arriving passenger against the Immigration Service Warnings Index, a computer system which provides information for the purpose of immigration control, national security and the prevention of crime.The immigration officer may also extend his examination for the purpose of establishing whether the entry clearance was obtained on the basis of false information, failure to disclose material facts, or because there has been a change of circumstances since it was issued. The entry clearance may be cancelled in such circumstances.The entry clearance (visa) indicates on what basis and for how long entry has been granted and contains other information such as whether the holder is required to register with the police. Where a person subsequently comes to adverse notice, the conditions of entry are apparent from the endorsement on the visa.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why they continue to destroy the carcasses of cattle under the over 30 month scheme when equivalent schemes elsewhere in the European Union test carcasses individually and allow uninfected animals into the food chain. [HL2554]

The arrangements reflect the different history and incidence of BSE between the UK and other EU member states. The over 30 month rule was introduced in the UK in 1996 to exclude beef from older cattle from the food chain and thereby reduce the risk of consumer exposure to BSE. The over 30 month scheme (OTMS) was also introduced in 1996 to provide an outlet for cattle which could no longer enter the food chain by virtue of the rule.The Food Standards Agency is responsible for assessing whether the OTM rule is still necessary, and the agency has indicated that it intends to undertake a review of the future of the rule. In the light of this review the Government will consider whether any changes should be made to the OTMS; any such changes would need to be agreed with the European Commission and the member states.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a suitable turbo-prop engine exists for the A400M military transport aircraft or whether it will be necessary to produce an entirely new design; and, if so, what are the related project risks; and [HL2735]What is the estimated cost of developing the turbo-prop engines to be fitted to the A400M military transport aircraft. [HL2736]

The prime contract with Airbus Military is for development and production of the A400M, including its turbo-prop engines, and specifies performance guarantees that Airbus Military must achieve. No existing turbo-prop engine achieves the power or efficiency required for the A400M aircraft. Any technical risks in developing a turbo-prop engine lie with Airbus Military.The integrated nature of the contract specifies the overall A400M capability to be delivered by Airbus Military; no separate engine development costs are identified.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the draft performance regime for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link Phase 2 operations, involving Railtrack, Eurostar, a domestic passenger operator and freight operators, designed by Union Rail and the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions' consultants, Mott Parsons Gibb. [HL2571]The Minister of State, Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (Lord Falconer of Thoroton): The performance regime for Section 2 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link has not yet been finalised. When it has been agreed it will be for the Office of the International Rail Regulator to decide whether details of the regime should be published in accordance with the Railways Regulations 1998 and relevant European directives.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What efforts they are making to encourage employers to address work-related road safety as part of their management of health and safety at work in the light of the recommendations of the independent Work-Related Road Safety Task Group published on 22 November 2001; and [HL2682]When they and the Health and Safety Commission expect to respond to the Work-Related Road Safety Task Group's recommendations; and [HL2683]Whether they will invite the Health and Safety Commission to reappraise its current priorities to ensure that sufficient resources are available to begin work on the Work-Related Road Safety Task Group's main recommendations. [HL2634]

We have asked the Health and Safety Commission to consider the recommendations of the task group and its resource implications and to report to Ministers in May 2002. We will need to consider that advice carefully, and part of our considerations will, of course, include how best to ensure that employers address at-work road safety issues.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What responses they have received to the consultation paper

The period for reply to proposals outlined in the Government's consultation document Modernising the British Transport Police closed on 4 January 2002. Copies of all responses received by Friday 8 February will be placed in the Library of the House unless the respondent has requested that their reply remain confidential. The Government are currently considering all the responses and intend to publish a summary of them together with the Government's reply to the points raised in due course.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why there is no peformance information on air travel, or usage or performance information on Heathrow Express services, in

Information on airline punctuality at UK airports is produced by the Civil Aviation Authority. Summary data are published in table 7.2 of Transport Statistics Great Britain 2001, which is in the Library.The Heathrow Express is not a rail franchise and is therefore not regulated by the Strategic Rail Authority. It is operated as part of the British Airports Authority Heathrow business and is not subject to the performance measures which apply to rail franchise holders. Patronage figures for Heathrow Express have been published in the BAA Annual Report. These show that passenger journeys increased from 4.4 million in 1999-2000 to 5 million in 2000-01.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will obtain and publish usage and performance information in respect of those public transport services not currently covered by Transport Statistics; and what would be the additional cost of doing this. [HL2730]

The range of transport statistics collected by the department has been determined by the needs of successive governments and external users. There is a requirement for the statistics to be reviewed regularly to ensure that the statistics being produced remain relevant and that the burden on data suppliers is not excessive.Many government statistics have been designated by Ministers as

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they agree with the report by the Scottish Council on Bioethics that there is a scarcity of independent research on the safety of the morning-after pill; and, if so, what action they intend to take to correct this. [HL2737]

We do not agree with the conclusions reached in the report by the Scottish Council on Bioethics. Levonelle-2 containing levonorgestrel 0.75mg (the morning-after pill) is authorised in the United Kingdom as a prescription only medicine for emergency contraception within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse or failure of a contraceptive method. This followed advice from the independent expert scientific advisory body, the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM), which was satisfied as to the quality, safety and efficacy of the product in this indication. Substantial independent evidence reviewed by CSM included two World Health Organisation sponsored pivotal studies. One study involving approximately 2,000 women in 14 countries, including the UK, has been published in the Lancet (1998). The other, published in Human Reproduction (1993), involved 880 women. CSM has also considered evidence from a study of the effects of self-administering emergency contraception (New England Journal of Medicine, 1998). Copies are available in the Library.There is considerable experience of worldwide use with levonorgestrel. It has been available in the UK in other contraceptives and hormone replacement therapy products for 30 years, although only more recently for emergency hormonal contraception. It has been used for emergency contraception in other parts of the world since the 1980s and between 9 million and 23 million women have taken it. No major safety issues have been identified.The safety of all newly licensed medicines in the UK is monitored closely by the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) and CSM through the yellow card scheme. This was extended to community pharmacists in November 1999 in order to improve safety monitoring of over the counter medicines. The MCA continues to monitor the safety of levonorgestrel 0.75mg and will review any potential safety issues in the light of any new evidence which may emerge.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When the term of secondment to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport of Mr Stuart May, special adviser for hospitality, ended; and what are their plans for making a new appointment to this post. [HL2698]

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they plan any public attractions of a permanent nature in London or Merseyside to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee. [HL2705]

The Government have no such plans. It is The Queen's wish that there should be no undue public expenditure on the Jubilee celebrations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which organisations and individuals who have applied to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commisson for financial assistance to pursue a human rights issue have been refused financial assistance; and why they were refused. [HL2291]

This is a matter for the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. The chief commissioner has been asked to write to the noble Lord. A copy of his letter will be placed in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How the work of the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman in terms of quality, impartiality and public confidence is evaluated; who carries out such evaluation; and when. [HL2341]

The Police Ombudsman's annual business plan published in July 2001 states that her office, "will work with the public, the police and Government in setting benchmarks and indicators for the performance of her Office as a corporate body". The ombudsman's office has suggested the following indicators as starting points:

• Percentage of complaints referred appropriately for informal resolution which leads to a satisfactory outcome in the view of the complainant.
• Percentage of complainants satisfied with how they have been dealt with by the Police
• Ombudsman, measured independently of the Police Ombudsman.
• Percentage of police officers satisfied with their treatment when under investigation by the office measured independently of the Police Ombudsman.
• Confidence of the public and the police in the police complaints system measured independently of the Police Ombudsman.

In the ombudsman's corporate statement the vision is for a police complaints service in which the police and public have confidence and the objectives refer to the building of satisfaction and establishing a robust quality assurance process. The research and policy directorate of the ombudsman's office monitors awareness and confidence in her office using survey information, and to date two surveys have been conducted with data collected through a module in the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency's omnibus survey.The ombudsman is required to make an annual report to Parliament through the Secretary of State on the discharge of the functions of her office, and the first report for the 17 months up to March 2002 is expected in June.

What steps the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman is proposing to establish confidence in his office in Northern Ireland among both the police service and the general public. [HL2393]

The Police Ombudsman has advised that her office has taken forward a number of initiatives aimed at the general public and t he Police Service of Northern Ireland and designed to establish confidence in her Office. These are:

(a) An information leaflet giving details of how to make a complaint against the police and how complaints are dealt with.

(b) A programme of lectures and seminars for community and voluntary groups, schools, colleges and youth organisations and academic audiences. Staff also take part in training events for PSNI recruits.

(c) An up-to-date website containing copies of each of the ombudsman's research reports and press releases.

(d) Actively engaging with the police in developing working arrangements and relationships underpinning the role of the office.

(e) A corporate statement with the vision of a police complaints service in which the public and the police have confidence and with objectives referring to the building of satisfaction and establishing a robust quality assurance process.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will list all those consultants and advisers who have worked for the Office of the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman since its creation; what was the basis on which they were selected; and how much they were paid. [HL2394]

The Police Ombudsman advises that the advisers/consultants engaged by her office since its creation, the cost of each and their purpose are as follows:

Name of Consultant/Adviser	Nature of consultancy/adviser	Amount Paid £
Mediation Network for Northern Ireland	Organisation development and mediation skill training for staff	8,250.00
Bond Solon	Court room skills training arranged by Metropolitan Police Service	2,643.75
A V Browne	Design and printwork and printing of letterheads, paper, publicity for launch office etc	102,539.48
A V Browne	Design and placement of recruitment advertisements in newspapers	56,106.03
Capita Business Services Ltd.	Police complaints training	1,532.21
Deloitte & Touche	Advice and support in the implementation of IT systems	71,965.23
Department of Finance and Personnel-NI Statistics and Research Agency	Advice and assistance in conducting surveys	7,755.00
Elite Training Services Ltd	Provision of IT training	1,132.70
Johns Elliot, Solicitors	Provision of legal advice	3,712.99
Knowledge Pool	Provision of IT training-sole provider of training in business objects	5,346.26
Metropolitan Police Service	Training in forensic science, crime scene management etc	89,200.00
Forensic agency for Northern Ireland	Forensic science training, advice and the provision of a forensic science service	17,596.81
Morrow Communications	Provision of media service to information officer	5,272.29
Professor M Punch	Input to training programme— specialist knowledge	651.18
University of Ulster	Translation services	4,908.99
Mr D Young	Advice on maintenance and support of Internet/Internet site	425.00
Uppercare Communications Ltd	Advice on maintenance and support of Internet/Internet site	4,292.64

The selection of advisers and consultants is in line with the ombudsman's office procurement procedures and financial delegation set by the sponsoring department—the Northern Ireland Office.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many cases the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman has considered since the office was created; how many ombudsman's reports have been forwarded to the Secretary of State; what is their opinion of the quality of those reports; what action they have taken; and what further action they will take on these reports. [HL2395]Lord Williams of Mostyn: The Police Ombudsman advises that since the creation of her office on 6 November 2000 to 31 December 2001, a total of 4,254 complaints have been received. Of these, 3,116 have been resolved and the remaining 1,138 are currently in the process of investigation.The Police Ombudsman has forwarded a total of 14 investigation reports, as she is required to do, either under Section 61 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 or Article 20 of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (Complaints etc) Regulations 2000. The reports cover the discharge of baton rounds and personal protection weapons, deaths where there may have been police involvement, fatal road traffic accidents and other matters of public interest involving police conduct issues.The ombudsman's reports received thus far have shown that the actions of the police were legal and within the permitted guidelines and practices in the prevailing circumstances. In those reports where recommendations have been made by the ombudsman concerning police matters, some of these have been acted upon, while others are under consideration by the Chief Constable and the Policing Board.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which Bills they have referred to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission since 1999; and what has been the comment in each case. [HL2342]

Since 1999, the Government have referred two Bills for comment to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. These were the Police (Northern Ireland) Bill and the Terrorism Bill.The commission has also commented on the following Bills and Acts:

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many affirmative instruments were tabled during the Parliament of 1997-2001; and [HL2559]How many affirmative instruments tabled during the Parliament of 1997-2001 were debated:

The information sought is a matter of public record. Details of the number and type of instruments tabled and their handling by the House of Commons can be found in the sessional returns published annually by the House of Commons. The sessional returns for the 1997-2001 Parliament can also be found on-line at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pakm/cmhocpap.htm.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many affirmative instruments tabled during the Parliament of 1997-2001 were the subject of a vote

The following information has been supplied by the House of Commons Journal Office.

Affirmative instruments laid before the House of Commons and subject to vote on the Floor of the House or in Standing Committee, Session 1997-98 to 2000-01
Session	Affirmatives laid	Divisions in House (%)	Divisions in Standing Committee (%)	Total divisions (%)
1997-98	225	6 (2.7%)	16 (7.1%)	22 (9.8%)
1998-99	178	3(1.7%)	18 (10.1%)	21 (11.8%)
1999-2000	180	5 (2.8%)	6 (3.3%)	11 (6.1%)
2000-01	123	9* (7.3%)	8 (6.5%)	17 (13.8%)
Total	706	22 (3.1%)	48 (6.8%)	70 (9.9%)

*—of which four were deferred to the following sitting Wednesday.

asked her Majesty's Government:How many of the affirmative instruments tabled during the Parliament of 1997-2001 were defeated on a vote

None. Instruments considered in Committee in the House of Commons cannot be defeated on a vote since the motions for their approval etc are subsequently decided by the House of Commons as a whole.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many affirmative instruments tabled during the Parliament of 1997-2001 were withdrawn for redrafting following criticism

The following information has been supplied by the House of Commons Journal Office.

Instruments subject to affirmative resolution withdrawn from consideration 1997-98 to 2000-01:
Session	Number of instruments withdrawn
1997-98	17
1998-99	7
1999-2000	8
2000-01	7
Total	39

Records of the reason for withdrawal are not held centrally.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many negative instruments were voted upon during the Parliament of 1997-2001.

The following information has been supplied by the House of Commons Journal Office.

Negative instruments laid before the House of Commons and subject to vote on the Floor of the House or in Standing Committee, Session 1997-98 to 2000-01
Session	Negatives laid	Divisions in House (%)	Divisions in Standing Committee (%)	Total divisions (%)
1997-98	1,591	2 (0.1%)	3 (0.2%)	5 (0.3%)
1998-99	1,266	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.2%)	4 (0.3%)
1999-2000	1,241	3 (0.2%)	6 (0.5%)	9 (0.7%)
2000-01	717	3* (0.4%)	2 (0.3%)	5 (0.7%)
Total	4,815	9 (0.2%)	14 (0.3%)	23 (0.5%)

asked her Majesty's Government:How many negative instruments were withdrawn for re-drafting during the Parliament of 1997-2001 following criticism

The following information has been supplied by the House of Commons Journal Office.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many negative instruments have been defeated on a vote in the House of Commons during the Parliament of 1997-2001; and what percentage of the total number of such instruments this represents. [HL2625]

None.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What plans they have to upgrade the management of occupational road risk for their own employees. [HL2685]

The importance of managing occupational road risk is recognised by the Government. The responsibility for managing risks is delegated to departments and agencies. However, through the Revitalising Health and Safety Initiative departments and agencies are working together to share best practice and improve standards.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many of their employees were killed or seriously injured in work-related road accidents during 2000-01; and what targets they have set for reducing such casualties over the next five years. [HL2686]

The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. No specific targets have been set for reducing casualties arising from work-related road accidents. However, the Government are fully committed to the aims set out in the Revitalising Health and Safety strategy statement. These include a target to reduce the incidence rate of fatal and major accidents at work by 10 per cent by 2010. There is also a separate road safety target to reduce by 40 per cent the number of people killed or seriously injured in road accidents by 2010.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Under what authority the Chief Dental Officer for Scotland has acted against General Dental Council guidelines and decided that, when sedation is provided within the National Health Service by a dentist or anaesthetist, it is to be limited to the use of a single drug. [HL2526]

This is a matter for the Scottish Parliament. Issues relating to general dental services are devolved.