asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Chancellor on 27 March (

The Government will announce their response to the consultation on their proposals on reform of this House before the Summer Recess.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In view of the incident in November 2001 when the police escort for the President of the Irish Republic was required to remove Remembrance Day poppies, what instructions they are giving to members of the Police Service of Northern Ireland concerning the wearing of Remembrance Day poppies. [HL3815]

The instructions in place in November 2001 whereby officers on a voluntary basis wear poppies in their uniform during the appropriate period still apply. The instructions comply with the PSNI neutral working environment policy which follows guidelines set by the Equality Commission.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they consider an organisation to be on ceasefire if in recent years it has carried out any of the following: murders, beatings, identification of targets, purchasing weapons, training other terrorist organisations, or taking part in a raid into a police complex in Northern Ireland. [HL3926]

We keep the ceasefires of all paramilitary organisations under close review, taking into account information from all sources available to us. If it is considered that a ceasefire is not being maintained, the Secretary of State will not hesitate to take whatever action is considered necessary.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will give examples of activities for which paramilitary organisations could be deemed to be breaking their ceasefires. [HL3927]

The Secretary of State's announcement of 12 October 2001 states the reasons for the specification of the UDA, UFF and the LVF. The Secretary of State is regularly briefed by the Acting Chief Constable and continues to keep the status of all ceasefires under review and he will not hesitate to take whatever action is deemed necessary and appropriate in the circumstances.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps they propose to take in relation to Sinn Fein if the IRA is linked to the ongoing targeting of individuals or installations. [HL3929]

A judgement on whether a ceasefire is being observed, or whether a party is committed to non-violence and exclusively peaceful and democratic means, could only be reached in the light of all the circumstances of a particular case. We are not going to hypothesise on the outcome of ongoing investigations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What has been their response to representations from the Government of the Irish Republic concerning breaches of the IRA ceasefire. [HL3930]

There have been no such representations, although the two governments keep in close touch on security-related matters.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What they consider to be the meaning of the Pledge of Office for Members of the Northern Ireland Executive in Annex A, Section B of the Belfast agreement of 1998 when it states that such Members must have a "commitment to nonviolence and exclusively peaceful and democratic means". [HL3931]

It is not possible comprehensively to define these terms. Any question of possible failure of such a commitment would need to be considered in the light of all the relevant circumstances.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they believe there are still active Provisional IRA training camps in the Irish Republic; and, if so, what representations they have made to the Government of the Irish Republic. [HL4083]

As the noble Lord will be aware, the Government do not comment on intelligence matters. However, regular meetings take place between both governments and good cooperation continues between the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Garda.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What additional projects are planned for the Performance and Innovation Unit. [HL4216]

The Prime Minister has asked the Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU) to carry out a project examining the development of electronic networks in the UK over the next decade.The project will look at predicted technology and market developments; the importance of electronic networks to UK productivity and growth and the regulatory challenges for the next decade. The output of the project will be a report to government which will assist with the setting of future government policy and approach, and will contribute to strategic thinking for the new regulator Ofcom.Responsibility for the current performance, development and economic impact of UK electronic networks already lies with groups including the DTI, Oftel, the Office of the e-Envoy, HM Treasury, the Broadband Stakeholders Group and those involved in the Digital TV Action Plan. The PIU has been asked to take a long-term strategic view to complement this existing body of work.The Hon Douglas Alexander, the Minister of State for e-Commerce and Competitiveness at the DTI, will be the sponsor Minister for the project.The scoping note for the project is available on the PIU website (www.piu.gov.uk). The PIU aims to complete its study by Summer 2002.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Attorney General will comment on the role of the Crown Prosecution Service within the Government's street crime initiative. [HL4214]

As part of the cross-government strategy to reduce street crime, a premium service will target likely offenders and crime areas and will ensure that offenders are investigated and prosecuted with skill and determination. Victims and witnesses will be given extra support. Experienced lawyers and detectives will handle cases and they will work closely together. An extra £6 million is being allocated to the Crown Prosecution Service to free up experienced lawyers to concentrate on this work.

asked. Her Majesty's Government:What plans they have to bring in a Bill to ban all clubs from excluding female membership. [HL3321]

The Government have no plans to ban private single-sex clubs, either for men or for women.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made on the Green Paper

I am pleased to announce the publication of (a) the post-consultation report for the Green Paper Towards Effective Enforcement—A single piece of bailiff law and regulatory structure for enforcement, and (b) the summary of responses following the consultation paper on distress for rent proceduresThe Green Paper, published on 9 July 2001, invited comments on the structure for the regulation of enforcement services, a single piece of bailiff law, fees, information and data sharing and a partial regulatory impact assessment. The 84 respondents came from a wide variety of groups concerned with enforcement, including local authorities, public interest groups and enforcement agents. Consultation showed overwhelming support for most of the proposals in the Green Paper. Copies of both documents have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.Delivery will require a legislative opportunity. We intend to publish a White Paper early next year bringing together proposals on both civil enforcement (including regulation of all enforcement agents) and distress for rent.I launched the publication

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many Zimbabwean asylum seekers are being detained; whether the policy of the Government is not to return them to Zimbabwe; and if so, why these people are not being granted temporary admission. [HL4059]

The latest available information on the number of persons detained under Immigration Act powers relates to 29 December 2001. As at that date, 135 Zimbabweans (to the nearest five) were being detained who are recorded as having claimed asylum at some stage, which excludes persons detained in police cells. Forty-five of these were being held at Oakington Reception Centre as part of the fast-track asylum process.Information on Immigration Act detainees as at 30 March 2002 will be published on 30 May 2002 on the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.We have continued, where appropriate, to detain Zimbabwean asylum seekers at Oakington Reception Centre as part of the fast-track asylum process. Aside from such individuals, there will be a small number of people who are detained at present pending removal while persons concerned will normally be granted bail or temporary admission as appropriate while the suspension of removals remains in place.On 15 January 2001, we announced a temporary suspension of returns of unsuccessful asylum applicants to Zimbabwe. We will resume these only when we are satisfied that it is safe to do so, and not before. We are monitoring events in the aftermath of the Zimbabwe presidential election in close liaison with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). There is no set time-scale, but it would be unrealistic to be able to make any decision on a resumption of removals until the immediate post-election situation has calmed down and we have had time to assess properly the risks to returnees and gather and consider the views of FCO and others.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will require the National Asylum Support Service and local authorities to ensure that women asylum seekers who are pregnant receive free milk and vitamins, and in particular that such women who are HIV positive receive free formula milk after giving birth to avoid infecting their children by breastfeeding. [HL4068]

The welfare food scheme is under review and we will continue to monitor the level of support provided to asylum seekers and their families. Asylum seekers in receipt of support from the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) who have a baby are eligible to apply for a one-off maternity payment of £300 to meet the costs associated with the arrival of a baby. In addition the family's level of subsistence is recalculated. For each child under the age of 16 the family receives £33.50 per week.Children of asylum seekers receive the same level of personal allowance as those of parents on jobseeker's allowance or income support. It must be remembered that the full package includes fully furnished accommodation, utility bills and council tax, the costs of which are met centrally. In addition, asylum seekers supported by NASS also qualify for free prescriptions, dental and optical treatment.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will ensure that women asylum seekers who are pregnant are informed about the maternity grant and are helped to claim it, if possible before giving birth. [HL4069]

The grant-aided voluntary organisations that assist asylum seekers to apply for support from the National Asylum Support Service normally also provide information to them about the availability of maternity payments for women who are due to give birth or have recently given birth. This information will also form an integral part of the briefing given to asylum seekers at the Induction Centres, which are currently being trialed. In addition, advice about the maternity payment for asylum seekers can be found on the Home Office web-site.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answers by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 19 March 2001 (

A revised edition of the enforcement manual was issued at the end of last year. A further exercise needs to be conducted to identify those passages whose disclosure might prejudice the effective operation of the immigration control. Once this has been done, we shall consider whether or not the harm likely to arise from their disclosure outweighs the public interest; and whether or not they can be reworded in a form that would allow their publication. We aim to have completed the entire exercise and have the whole of the manual available on the Immigration and Nationality Directorate website www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk by the end of this year. It is possible that some sections will be available before then.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What assessment they have made of unaccounted stocks of Iraqi precursor chemicals, chemical agents and special munitions, based on the findings of the United Nations Special Commission. [HL4158]

In answer to Questions on 12 March, my right honourable Friend the Foreign Secretary said that weapons inspectors were unable to account for 4,000 tonnes of so-called precursor chemicals used in the production of weapons; 610 tonnes of precursor chemicals used in the production of nerve gas; and 31,000 chemical weapons munitions (Official Report, Commons, 12/3/02; col. 744).This information was the best available at the time, and was based on Iraqi declarations to UNSCOM inspectors between 1991–98 and data contained in an UNSCONI report published in 1999.Since he gave this answer, Her Majesty's Government have carried out a more detailed study. This latest assessment of the quantities of material unaccounted for by UNSCOM inspectors which has potential applications in Iraq's chemical and biological weapons programes is as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:In the light of Part 12 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001, they will make export licences for arms and military equipment conditional on the provision by exporters of contract-specific no-bribery warranties. [HL4029]

The Department of Trade and Industry's Export Control Organisation has no plans to make export licences for arms and military equipment conditional on the provision by exporters of contract-specific no bribery warranties.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the independent legal advice received by the management of the National Health Service trust involved in the judicial case of "Ms B" supported the position being taken by "Ms B" herself; whether the National Health Service trust chose to reject that advice; and what were the legal costs incurred by the National Health Service trust in contesting the case through the courts. [HL3716]

The National Health Service trust took the legal advice given by its solicitors and it is understood did not reject the advice. Advice and guidance was also sought from outside experts and other organisations. The trust has always accepted that a competent patient has the right to refuse all forms of treatment and the right to request withdrawal of treatment even if this decision is life-threatening."Ms B" issued legal proceedings in January 2002 and the trust decided that the case should proceed to a hearing so that the court could determine the outcome.The trust's legal costs are in the region of £40,000 plus value added tax and disbursements.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many of those who possess a National Health Service analogue hearing aid would benefit from a digital hearing aid supplied by the National Health Service. [HL3747]

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence looked at hearing aid technology two years ago. Its July 2000 report found that there was insufficient evidence, at that time, to draw conclusions about the benefit of digital over analogue devices. That advice is due to be reviewed in 2002, once the results of the Modernising Hearing Aid Services Project is known.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish the advice that they received which led to their decision to purchase the Lister strain of smallpox vaccine rather than the NYCBH strain. [HL3920]

The choice of smallpox vaccine strain took into account expert advice under the auspices of a specially convened sub-group of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).The advice of the JCVI sub-group was that there was no difference between the two strains on scientific grounds. Vaccines based on both strains were considered to have been effective in the past. However the JCVI sub-group concluded that there was a greater body of evidence to demonstrate the efficacy of the Lister strain rather than for the New York City Board of Health strain and that the smallpox vaccine has been challenged in the field more often by the more severe form of smallpox [

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, when they awarded the contract for smallpox vaccine to PowderJect Pharmaceuticals, they were aware that the company did not intend to manufacture the vaccine itself; and whether they approved the plan to sub-contract manufacture to Bavarian Nordic. [HL3922]

Bavarian Nordic was the only company able to supply vaccines that met the Government's requirements. It was known that its chosen United Kingdom partners, PowderJect, would act as its distributors. At Bavarian Nordic's request, the contract of supply has been entered into with PowderJect.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was meant by the Prime Minister's statement (HC Deb, 17 April, col. 567) that "many companies were asked to tender" for the smallpox vaccine contract. [HL3924]

Detailed confidential discussions were held with five major pharmaceutical companies which were known to have vaccine manufacturing capability either in the United Kingdom or in Europe. Our requirements for the vaccine strain, timing and delivery were made clear to each of the companies, which were then given time to submit their responses.Only one company, Bavarian Nordic, met these requirements. Its chosen UK partners, PowderJect, will act as its distributors in the UK. At Bavarian Nordic's request, the contract of supply has been entered into with PowderJect.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish the high-level targets for the Medicines Control Agency for 2002–03. [HL4215]

The high-level targets for the Medicines Control Agency are included in its annual business plan, copies of which have been placed in the Library today.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 24 April stating that a "delivery mechanism for Culture Online would be in place by the end of the year", what delivery mechanism will be used for Culture Online. [HL4035]

We intend to make an announcement on Culture Online very soon and will give details of the delivery mechanism at that time.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they consider the Arts Council's support of Greenwich Internet Arts organisation spc.org, which has provided a timetable and location for demonstrations in London for 1 May, to be a good use of public money. [HL4057]

SPC.org is an Internet service provider. As such it is equivalent to, for example, Freeserve or Demon. Like any other service provider, it cannot assume responsibility for the material or content routed through its server by subscribers.The Government accept the assurances provided by London Arts that its project grant to SPC.org is specifically directed at supporting the creative and technical needs of artists is and has not been used to support the "ourMayday" website to which the noble Lord refers.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many people are now subject to sanctions on means-tested benefits; and what percentage of (a) the adult population and (b) the total population this figure represents. [HL3887]

Benefit sanctions are not confined to income-related benefits.At 8 November 2001, 6,600 income-based jobseeker's allowance recipients were subject to a sanction. This represents 0.014 per cent of the adult population and 0.011 per cent of the total population of Great Britain, based on the Office for National Statistics population estimates for mid-2000.Between 15 October 2001 and 15 March 2002, community sentence sanctions were applied in 39 cases, and between 30 April 2001 and 29 March 2002, 1,531 lone parents were sanctioned for failing to attend a compulsory personal adviser interview without good cause. These are cumulative figures and a statistically valid comparison with the estimated population at a given point in time cannot therefore be made.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the overall cost, including accommodation, of the programme of workshops to be carried out on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions between now and August. [HL3947]

About £9 million.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What inspections are made of road tunnels in England and Wales; and how frequently they are carried out. [HL4038]

In England, a standard for the inspection of road tunnels, BD 53, was published by the Highways Agency in 1995. This standard describes the procedures to be carried out for the inspection and reported condition of road tunnels on motorways and trunk roads. Standard BD 53 includes the following mandatory schedule of inspections:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What inspections are made of rail tunnels in England and Wales; and how frequently they are carried out. [HL4039]

Railtrack advises that rail tunnels in England and Wales are visually inspected annually by a chartered engineer.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What inspections have been carried out on the Kingsway and Queensway tunnels under the River Mersey in the years 2000, 2001 and 2002 to date; and what were the results. [HL4040]

Two independent external inspections have taken place on each tunnel in the last three years. For both tunnels, the first of these inspections took place in February 2000 and the second took place in February 2002. The inspections were carried out by a consortium of European motoring organisations.The results on both occasions were:Kingsway Tunnel—GoodQueensway Tunnel—AcceptableIn addition, monitoring of conditions and equipment in the tunnels takes place on a continuous basis.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many tunnels in England (road and rail) are specifically fitted with fire precautions; and how many are not so fitted. [HL4041]

There is no central record of the fire precautions taken by each of the tunnel authorities. A range of safety measures are adopted as appropriate for the particular tunnel, its length, location and traffic.Dissemination of good practice in relation to safety and operational management of road tunnels is provided through a twice-yearly UK Tunnel Operators' Forum for road tunnel operators in the UK and Ireland and through a published standard, BD 53/95, for tunnels records and inspections.The department does not hold information on the number of rail tunnels fitted, or not fitted, with fire precautions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

NATS has experienced financial difficulties as a result of the downturn in traffic following the events of 11 September. To relieve NATS' cash flow position, its lending banks and the Government, as the largest shareholder, have agreed to make available a short-term bridging loan to a maximum of £60 million up to 30 September 2002. Normal commercial terms apply to the loan.As part of the long-term solution for NATS finances, the company is currently conducting a search for a new equity investor on a competitive basis.The Transport Act 2000 provides for the maintenance of safe services in the event of financial failure by a company providing services under the Act.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What financial support is available to assist with (a) the creation and (b) the improvements of freight wharves and support facilities on inland waterways. [HL4093]

Financial support is available from my department in the form of freight facilities grant. Typically 50 per cent of the capital cost of creating or improving wharves and associated facilities may be paid. To qualify for grant, applicants must be able to demonstrate clear environmental benefits in the form of lorry journeys saved as a result of the investment. Under extended powers given by the Transport Act 2000, this grant may now also be paid for coastal or short sea shipping freight facilities.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What account they will take of the extra cost of providing public services in rural areas in the local government grant distribution formula in England for 2003–04. [HL4140]

We are working with local government to develop options for fairer and more intelligible grant distribution formulae. This includes issues of concern to rural areas, such as the treatment of sparsity. We will consult on options for reform over the summer and will consider the responses when we come to take decisions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made with the plans for the modernisation of London Underground. [HL4213]

We have been advised by the board of London Regional Transport that London Underground Limited has today signed public/private partnership contracts to modernise and maintain London Underground's infrastructure.There are three contracts, which will each run for 30 years. Those for two of the infrastructure companies will go to Metronet, and the third to the Tube Lines Group.In a statement to the House on 7 February we set out why the Government supported London Transport's decision that it was minded to proceed with the Tube modernisation plans. The Government have consistently set out three key tests that the plans must pass if they are to proceed: that they are not a privatisation; that they should offer value for money; and that they should be safe for both passengers and staff.We are satisfied that the modernisation plans are not a privatisation. The ownership of the assets, and the operation of the public service, stay in the public sector. It is also likely that the assets will continue to be scored on London Underground's balance sheet, in the public sector.We are also satisfied that the arrangements offer value for money, when judged against alternative proposals. At our request, Ernst & Young reviewed London Underground's original value for money assessment and confirmed that, overall, London Underground's methodology for assessing value for money was robust, and that London Underground's recommendation that the PPP proposals deliver value for money, while subjective, was supported by its analysis. Since then, Ernst & Young has reviewed the work done by London Underground to update the value for money assessment in respect of material changes to the contracts. It confirmed that London Underground's approach was consistent with that used for the previous report. We have placed a copy of its update in the Library of the House.The Health and Safety Executive has still to reach a final judgment on London Underground's revised railway safety case. The position therefore remains that the Tube modernisation plans will only proceed if the independent regulator accepts the safety arrangements for both passengers and staff.Subject to approval of the safety case, we share London Regional Transport's belief that the modernisation plans are the right solution and offer significant benefits for Londoners.Fares will continue to be set by the Mayor of London. The modernisation plans do not require fares to rise faster than inflation.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the increased risk of zoonoses as a result of their granting greater access to the countryside; and what is the extra cost to farmers to insure against this. [HL3911]

The new access rights granted by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act will apply only on

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many specified risk material incinerators are more than 10 miles from a licensed landfill site; and where they are located. [HL4014]

This information is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was the level of funding by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and its predecessor to veterinary science research by category for each of the past 10 years. [HL4097]

The level of DEFRA/MAFF-funded research into veterinary science has increased from £20.7 million to £37.5 million per annum over the past 10 years, 1992–93 to 2001–02 inclusive.A summary of annual costs is attached, broken down by disease category.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much was given by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and its predecessor to (i) universities and (ii) institutes for veterinary science for (a) teaching and (b) research in each of the past 10 years. [HL4098]

The level of DEFRA/MAFF-funded research into veterinary science at universities has risen from £1.6 million to £5.6 million per annum over the past 10 years. This reflects an increase in the