asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend by the end of 2002 to publish the report of their inquiry into the case for United Kingdom acceptance of the jurisdiction of the United Nations Human Rights Committee and for specialised human rights treaty bodies to consider complaints against the United Kingdom of breaches of human rights; and for United Kingdom ratification of Protocol 4 to the European Convention on Human Rights. [HL5893]

On 7 March 2002, I announced that my department would lead an interdepartmental review of the United Kingdom's position under various international human rights instruments. The terms of reference for the review were:"To review the United Kingdom's position on international human rights instruments in the light of experience of the operation of the Human Rights Act, the availability of existing remedies within the UK, and law and practice in other EU Member States; and to report by Spring 2003."The review is now well under way and is examining, among other matters, the case for acceding to the right of individual petition to the United Nations Human Rights Committee and other specialised human rights treaty bodies; and for United Kingdom ratification of Protocol 4 to the European Convention on Human Rights. The review is on schedule to report to Ministers by Spring 2003.I would expect to be able to report the outcome shortly thereafter.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What plans they have to open additional Immigration Appellate Authority hearing centres. [HL6060]

There are extensive plans to open new hearing centres as part of the Immigration Appellate Authority's (IAA) expansion programme. The IAA has been tasked with increasing its capacity from the current 4,500 asylum appeals per month to 6,000 cases per month from November 2002.Centres are planned for Newport, Stoke-on-Trent, North Shields, Bradford and Manchester, opening between November 2002 and June 2003. In addition to the new locations, the hearing capacities of existing centres in Birmingham and Hatton Cross are being increased. A new administrative support centre is also opening in Leicester.The precise timescales for the expansion programme remain subject to planning and lease considerations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Following the impounding of cars and the prosecution of drivers in Llanelli, Dyfed, for using a mixture of cooking oil and methanol as fuel, what rate of duty should have been paid on this alternative non-fossil fuel. [HL5918]

Any substance, whether or not it is a mineral oil, is subject to excise duty where it is used as a road fuel. This duty is normally charged at the rate of the fuel for which that substance is substituting. Because cooking oil can only be used in some diesel-engined cars, it will normally be liable at the rate set for ultra-low sulphur diesel, which is 45.82p per litre. Some cooking oil may meet the specification for biodiesel for duty purposes. To support the growth of the biodiesel industry the Government introduced a reduced duty rate in this year's Budget for biodiesel used as a road fuel, which is 25.82p per litre.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they will publish the Government's proposals for implementing the European Union's Insurance Mediation Directive. [HL6059]

As the Economic Secretary to the Treasury announced in the House of Commons on 12 December 2001 (WA 890–891W) the Government propose to give the Financial Services Authority (FSA) responsibility for regulating general insurance and reinsurance mediation. The Government have today published a consultation document that sets out the intended approach to regulating the sale of general insurance products following adoption on 30 September 2002 by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers under the co-decision procedure of the Insurance Mediation Directive (the directive).The consultation document explains that the FSA will regulate the following activities: introducing, proposing or carrying out other work preparatory to the conclusion of contracts of insurance or reinsurance; assisting in the administration and performance of such contracts, in particular in the event of a claim; and concluding contracts of insurance or reinsurance.The directive requires the regulation of mediation activities in relation to all contracts of insurance. However, it provides certain exemptions for insurance sold as part of a package, including travel insurance sold with a holiday and extended warranties that are contracts of insurance.It is for the UK Government to decide whether to regulate those insurances that are exempted from the directive and the Government have decided to defer a decision on whether the FSA should regulate extended warranties pending the outcome of the Competition Commission inquiry into extended warranties for electrical goods.As to travel insurances that are sold with a holiday, we need carefully to weigh the consumer protection issues against regulatory costs. The Government also need to weigh fairly the competition issues between those intermediaries that sell travel insurance direct and travel agents that sell insurance alongside a holiday. The Government have decided, therefore, to consult on whether to give the FSA responsibility for regulating these products. There are three options:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Lord Bach on 24 September, whether they will now compare, in number and percentage terms the incidence of "symptoms and signs of ill-defined conditions" (SSIDC) among Gulf veterans who were (a) regular and (b) reservist members of the Armed Forces deployed to liberate Kuwait. [HL5770]

The Answer to which the noble Lord refers concerns mortality. In the period 1 April 1991 to 30 June 2002, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is aware of five Gulf veterans having died who were regulars at the time of the Gulf Conflict and whose deaths have been coded by the Office for National Statistics to the World Health Organisation's International Classification of Diseases, (ICD) 9th revision, (1977) Chapter XVI, Symptoms, Signs and Ill-defined Conditions (SSIDC). Four of these deaths occurred overseas, and despite inquiries by MoD staff, the precise cause of the deaths has not been established. In the remaining case, the body of the deceased was found some three weeks after death. The coroner recorded a verdict of misadventure and the cause of death as unascertainable.The MoD is not aware of any deaths so coded for reservists who served in the Gulf during the conflict. In the control group there were 11 deaths, all of whom were regulars, coded to ICD 9 Chapter XVI for similar reasons of insufficient cause data.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Lord Bach on 24 September, how many Gulf veterans with war pensions related to their service in the Gulf War were

As at 30 June 2002, there had been 5,257 claims from ex-service personnel who served in the Gulf. While the Veterans Agency requires confirmation of service when considering a claim for war pensions, information relating to regular or reserve service and details of deployment are not recorded for statistical purposes. Therefore, this information requested is not available in the format required; it could be obtained only at disproportionate effort.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What to date have been the legal costs for the Ministry of Defence in cases involving pension appeals by Gulf war victims. [HL5773]

To date counsels' fees for legal services in connection with war pension appeals involving Gulf war veterans amount to £3,250.41.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What consultations they have had with other relevant governments about their pension policy for nuclear test veterans. [HL5873]

There has been no consultation with other governments regarding pension policy for nuclear test veterans.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will take action to alleviate the position referred to by the Court of Appeal as "harsh" in its judgment of 29 May in

The case of Matthews v Ministry of Defence, which tested the compatibility of Section 10 of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947 with the claimant's rights under Article 6(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights, was heard in the Court of Appeal on 22 and 23 April 2002. A unanimous judgment was handed down by Lord Phillips, Master of the Rolls, on 29 May. The Court of Appeal found in favour of the MoD but granted leave for the claimant to take the matter to the House of Lords. A date has not been set for the hearing.When Parliament debated the repeal of Section 10, the question of retrospection was considered, and motions to allow all past and present members of HM Forces to pursue compensation claims for injury or death were moved. They were defeated or withdrawn. The view then, as it is now, was that there is no logical point at which to draw a line, short of trying to cover all types of injury going back to 1947, and this would create more examples of unfairness and injustice. The Government, therefore, have no plans to introduce legislation to allow ex-service personnel suffering illness or injury before May 1987 to be paid common-law compensation.Compensation in the form of a war pension is, however, available to all former members of HM Forces suffering from service-attributable illness or injury. War pensions are paid by the Veterans Agency and are non-discretionary, not means-tested, and are made on a no-fault, tax free and retrospective basis. They are uprated annually.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the justification for requiring European wireless operators to provide 3G coverage using only W-CDMA handsets and network, rather than permitting them to use the 3G technology known as CDMA2000 that is becoming available in Asia and the United States. [HL5889]

W-CDMA was not mandated by Brussels nor any EU national government, including the UK. W-CDMA was the technology freely chosen from a range of IMT-2000 standards (including CDMA2000) by the companies that obtained licences for 3G in the UK auction of spring 2000.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many absconders there have been from the Dennis Hill unit at Bethlem Hospital site in the last three years. [HL5350]

Since 1999, there have been a total of 10,800 episodes (episodes means that there could be more than one absconsion by the same person) of leave from the Dennis Hill Unit, which means that 99.93 per cent of patients' leave (excluding the absconsions) has passed, been approved and undertaken in line with the trust's policy.Since the creation of South London and Maudsley NHS Trust on 1 April 1999, only 0.7 per cent of the total number of absconsions were classed as unauthorised.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 22 July

Unaudited in-year monitoring information relating to the performance of National Health Service bodies against key financial duties is collected centrally by the Department of Health. We have no plans to publish this information. The audited information in respect of performance against these financial duties for 2001–02 will be published in NHS bodies' individual annual accounts. This information will be available centrally in autumn 2002.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What percentage of hospital bed occupancy represents the ideal balance that would enable hospitals to manage both routine surgery and emergency situations most effectively; what is the current such percentage target for National Health Service hospitals; and to what extent this target is currently being achieved. [HL5908]

There is no national target set on bed occupancy. As part of routine capacity planning each National Health Service trust needs to establish the levels of occupancy required for different specialties and types of care depending on their own particular circumstances. Appropriate levels of occupancy will depend on a number of factors, including specialty, the balance between emergency and planned admissions and the size of the hospital.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action programme for the United Kingdom was agreed at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Regional Ministerial Conference on Ageing held in Berlin on 11 to 13 September. [HL5860]

At the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Regional Ministerial Conference on Ageing held in Berlin in September, UNECE Ministers adopted the regional implementation strategy for the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing 2002.A copy of the regional implementation strategy has been placed in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have any plans to meet formally with a range of representatives from the Christian broadcasting industry to discuss the statutory ban on religious organisations holding several categories of broadcasting licence in the context of their consultations on the draft Communications Bill. [HL5858]

We have no plans to do so.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When the decision was taken to place closed circuit television cameras at the East Belfast interface at Short Strand; why they are not in place; and when they will be. [HL5848]

On 13 September 2002 my honourable friend the Minister of State at the Northern Ireland Office announced in a press release that CCTV cameras were to be installed in East Belfast interface areas.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What proposals there are to erect closed circuit television cameras at Cluan Place in East Belfast; and what is the timescale for this work. [HL5854]

I refer the noble Lord to the Answer I gave to the noble Lord, Lord Laird, today. [HL5848]

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which officials or ministers appointed William Mackessy to a post in the Northern Ireland Office in Belfast; what that post was; when he was appointed; and what attempts, including positive or negative vetting, were made to ascertain his security status. [HL5861]How and when they learned that William Mackessy was performing duties in the Northern Ireland Office over and above those he was required to perform by his employers. [HL5862]Whether William Mackessy was disciplined by the Northern Ireland Office; which officials or ministers were involved in that process; what the alleged offences were; and what was the outcome of the disciplinary process. [HL58631]Which officials or ministers decided to transfer William Mackessy to the Government of Northern Ireland; when this happened; and to whose department in the devolved administration he was transferred, and why. [HL5864]Whether officials or ministers in the Northern Ireland Office reported William Mackessy to the police or any other agency. [HL5865]

I am responding to these Questions to the extent that the rules of sub judice make it appropriate for me to do so, given the criminal charges which William Mackessy is facing.Mr Mackessy was appointed to the Northern Ireland Office, on secondment from the Department of Finance and Personnel, on 3 April 2000 as a Support Band Grade 2 Messenger. The normal security vetting that applies to all personnel appointed to the Northern Ireland Office was carried out and Mr Mackessy received security clearance.Concern was expressed about Mr Mackessy's conduct in the NIO on one occasion. An investigation by his line management, and reported to the department's central personnel section, did not produce any firm evidence to substantiate that concern. Therefore, no disciplinary action was taken. As part of the investigation, further vetting checks were made with the police.In October 2001 the Compensation Agency, an agency of the NIO, required a messenger to fill a temporary vacancy. Mr Mackessy was moved to the post. At the stage when he became surplus to the agency's requirements, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) had declared a number of vacancies for messengers which they needed to fill urgently. Mr Mackessy transferred to DETI on 19 November 2001 to fill one of those vacancies. The transfer was arranged through normal personnel channels.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What role the Government of the Republic of Ireland have in dealing with affairs in Northern Ireland through the British-Irish Inter-Governmental Secretariat. [HL5927]

The British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference and Secretariat were established by the British-Irish Agreement, which took effect on Thursday 2 December 1999.The conference and secretariat bring together the two governments to promote bilateral co-operation at all levels on all matters of mutual interest within the competence of both governments.