asked Her Majesty's Government:How they can know that United Nations personnel on peacekeeping operations are fully accountable for their actions; and whether any alleged breaches by such personnel are dealt with in accordance with the rule of law. [HL1735]

United Nations peacekeeping operations and their personnel are accountable, through the commander of the operation in the field, the Department of Peace-Keeping Operations at UN Headquarters and the UN Secretary-General, to the Security Council.UN peacekeeping personnel are obliged to act in accordance with international humanitarian law and may be subject to prosecution for any breaches which they commit.

asked Her Majesty's Government;What stage has been reached in the investigations of mass graves at Dasht-e-Leili in Afghanistan; whether they are co-operating with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the Afghan Human Rights Commission for this purpose; and what precautions are being taken to protect the evidence at Dasht-e-Leili. [HL1779]

Our embassy in Kabul has discussed our concerns about the alleged human rights abuses at Dasht-e-Leili with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the Afghan Human Rights Commission. We support the UN's two-stage approach to the investigation: forensic investigations and dignified reburials now, followed, at a later stage, when the security situation improves, by more detailed witness interviews and investigations. It is important that further investigations should only take place when it is possible to protect potential witnesses. We understand that a UN-led investigation may start in the next few months.The site is visited weekly by staff from the UN office in Mazar-e-Sharif.Following their visit to Dasht-e-Leili in January this year, Physicians for Human Rights reported that there had been no deterioration or destruction of the site at Dasht-e-Leili. The UN view is that there is no need for static protection of the site.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What help the Foreign and Commonwealth Office gave to Mr Derek Bond while he was held in detention in South Africa. [HL1960]

We provided Mr Bond with all proper consular assistance during his detention in South Africa.Our consular staff in Durban were notified of Mr Bond's arrest on 7 February. They immediately contacted the South African police. During his detention, consular staff arranged medical support for Mr Bond and visitor access for his wife. Our consular staff in Durban maintained close contact with Mr and Mrs Bond throughout. Consular staff put pressure on the US authorities to resolve issues regarding Mr Bond's identity. Consular staff assisted with arrangements for Mr Bond's release and return to the UK and were at the airport to meet him on his arrival in Britain.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What representation they intend to make to the American Government about the conduct of the Federal Bureau of Investigation with reference to the detention of Mr Derek Bond in South Africa. [HL1961]

During Mr Bond's detention, our High Commission put pressure on the US authorities to resolve quickly the issue of Mr Bond's identity.We do not know whether Mr Bond's lawyers intend to pursue this matter with the US authorities. We stand ready to provide Mr Bond with any further consular assistance we properly can.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What would be the cost to public funds of' obtaining information concerning the number of police officers above the rank of inspector currently suspended in England and Wales; and what is the amount of salary and other emoluments being paid to them. [HL 1626]

I estimate the cost of this exercise to be over £1,000. This figure is based on an estimated average unit salary cost and an estimated time to collect this information in each of the 43 police forces. This estimate does not include the cost of transmitting the information or the cost to the Home Office of coordinating and collating it.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In light of recent advice from the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (N I SCC) about potential threats to key commerical information technology systems, whether appropriate steps are being taken to protect the integrity of the Government's own information technology systems. [HL1849]

Each department and agency is responsible, under its Minister, for maintaining its own appropriate levels of protective security. To help meet this responsibility, protective security policy is decided, and advice and guidance provided, through a Cabinet Office committee structure. In addition, the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (NISCC) helps departments to secure their systems by disseminating reports of significant electronic attack threats from a wide range of sources.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In light of recent advice from the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (NISCC) about potential threats to key commercial information technology systems, what practical assistance they are offering to appropriate commercial interests to facilitate an effective response to the risk. [HL1850]

Central government assistance to those systems that are considered to be part of the critical national infrastructure is by way of the Unified Incident Reporting and Alert Scheme (UNIRAS I, which is part of the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (NISCC).UNIRAS is the UK Government CERT (Computer Emergency Response Team) and receives reports of significant electronic attack incidents, threats, new vulnerabilities and countermeasures from its customer base and other commercial, government and international sources. It then validates, amends (where appropriate) and disseminates the information back to its customers through e-mail alerts and warnings. In addition, UNIRAS provides a helpdesk for its customers, giving advice on IT security incidents, particularly internet related problems; and collates reports of IT security incidents supplied by its customers and issues regular statistics. These reports are suitably amended to protect commercial or departmental sensitivies.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made towards establishing the special arrangements for victims of trafficking outlined in Chapter 5 of the White Paper

The Government are pleased to accounce new measures to support female victims of human trafficking for sexual exploitation in the UK.The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum (NIA) Act 2002 introduced a new offence that commenced on 10 February 2003 of "trafficking a person for the purpose of controlling him or her in prostitution".From today, safe accommodation and a range of services will be provided to support female victims of human trafficking through a non-governmental organisation. A six-month pilot scheme located in London will cater for approximately 25 women, on a rolling basis, who meet the criteria for access to the services, including a willingness to come forward and co-operate with the authorities in the combating of international organised crime that could lead to prosecutions of criminals.We will consider, in light of individual circumstances, whether it would be appropriate to allow such victims who have co-operated to remain here. Where they are to return home, we will assist them to do so, providing them with initial counselling, ensuring that they have suitable accommodation to return to and providing help to enable them to reintegrate into their own community and find employment.We are also publishing a new best practice toolkit for the police, immigration officers arid others who deal with illegal immigrants and trafficking victims. The toolkit will help them to identify victims and to provide practical advice on how to deal with them appropriately.The Sexual Offences Bill, introduced into the House of Lords on 28 January 2003, also proposes new comprehensive offences of trafficking for sexual exploitation to replace the stop-gap offence introduced by the NIA Act 2002 of trafficking in prostitution. These new offences tackle the movement of people into, within and out of the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation and will carry maximum penalties of 14 years' imprisonment. The offence relating to trafficking within the UK applies equally to UK nationals trafficked from place to place in the UK and to foreign nationals brought here and then moved around from place to place within the UK. This is the first time that the trafficking of UK nationals within the UK has been tackled in legislation.Internationally, we are committed to addressing the issue of trafficking by our involvement with the EU framework decision on combating the trafficking of human beings and the UN protocol to prevent,

suppress and punish trafficking. We believe the trafficking provisions in this Bill meet the requirements of the EU decision and the UN protocol, and indeed go further in that they criminalise trafficking for a sexual offence

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they intend to announce an independent review of the operations of the National Asylum Support Service (NASS). [HL2065]

The Government have previously announced an independent review of the operations of the National Asylum Support Service (NASS). The independent review has now been established with the following terms of reference:To review the organisation, management and staffing and expertise within NASS to identify changes necessary in the short to medium term to enable it consistently to achieve the appropriate standards of operational and administrative performance. Consideration of the staffing arrangements should include the balance between permanent, consultant and agency staff and the match between the skills of the staff and the job to be done, including the handling of complex and publicly sensitive projects and business. Consideration of the organisational arrangements should extend to relations with the linkage necessary between procurement and project terms.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Under what circumstances they consider it constitutionally appropriate for ministers to criticise publicly the decisions of the judiciary. [HL1803]

The Government unequivocally support the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. These are in no way diminished by the fact that when the courts make a decision adverse to a government department it is open to a Minister to say publicly that he does not accept the decision and intends to test it on appeal.Ministers do not normally comment publicly on the decisions of the courts in cases in which they are not involved, but they may sometimes do so, if, for example, a particular decision leads Ministers to be of the opinon that the law has not been interpreted by the courts in accordance with Parliament's intentions and needs to be clarified or otherwise amended.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they will take to address the concern expressed by the Civil Justice Council in its report on Full Costs Recovery that the present level of fees discourages access to the courts, particularly on the part of the low-wage employees and small business proprietors not eligble for legal aid. [HL1804]

My department is taking forward a wide-ranging programme of work on fees in civil court cases which will examine all the issues raised by the Civil Justice Council in its report on Full Costs Recovery. I welcome its contribution to the debate and my officials are already speaking to the council. The fee policy principles which the Lord Chancellor announced to this House on 19 November 1998 state that "Fees should not prevent access to justice" and that "Protection must be provided for litigants of modest means". This is afforded through exemption from fee payment for individuals qualifying for tax credits. Those who do not qualify for tax credits but would otherwise suffer hardship in meeting a fee may apply to the court for remission, whether or not they are a litigant in person or a litigant in person trading as a firm.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether there are circumstances in which a resident of the Irish Republic could receive United Kingdom legal aid; and, if so, what they are. [HL1869]

There are no nationality requirements for using the courts in the United Kingdom. The availability of public funding or legal aid follows the same basic principle. An applicant for legal aid or public funding in any of the three jurisdictions within the United Kingdom (England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland) may be made by any individual regardless of nationality or residence. However, the applicant must pass the relevant merits and means criteria for the civil or criminal schemes within each jurisdiction, and the legal proceedings for which legal aid or public funding is sought must originate within the relevant United Kingdom jurisdiction.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What representations they have made to the Government of Israel about the wall now being built in the West Bank inside the 1967 Armistice line; and what status they expect the wall to be accorded in the road map for peace. [HL1780]

The British Government have raised with the Government of Israel our concerns about the "security fence". The seizure of Palestinian land, the isolation of Palestinian villages and the creation of a further physical obstacle to the two-state solution are unacceptable. While we fully understand Israel's need to take steps, within the law, to protect itself from terrorist attack, lasting security can be achieved only through a negotiated peace.A final settlement must provide for a viable Palestinian state to exist alongside Israel, both within secure and recognised borders. We look forward to 'the Quartet publishing its roadmap, which will set out a phased progamme leading to a final settlement within three years, soon. It is important that, in implementing the roadmap, all parties refrain from actions which obstruct the search for peace.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will now ratify the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, with the first and second protocols to the convention; and, if not, what are their reasons for delay. [HL1827]

Ratification of the convention and protocols would require primary legislation, and extensive consultation is needed on legal, operational and policy issues relating to implementation of the protocols. Once this is complete, we hope to be in a position to ratify.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether in their recent discussions with the Irish Republic's Government the prospect of a war with Iraq featured; and, if so, whether they are content with the Irish response. [HL1870]

My right honourable friends the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs meet their Irish counterparts regularly in a number of fora. Discussions have covered a range of topics, including Iraq. All EU countries are committed to the full and effective disarmament of Iraq in accordance with Resolution 1441 of the United Nations Security Council. This position was reaffirmed most recently by the Extraordinary Meeting of the European Council on 17 February, which stated that the Iraqi regime must co-operate immediately and fully and would bear sole responsibility for the consequences if it failed to take this last chance to resolve the crisis peacefully.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the total area of United Kingdom sovereign bases in Cyprus proposed to be transferred if there is an agreement there; what area in each of the United Kingdom bases is involved; and what areas will be transferred to each of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot states as proposed in the United Nations plan. [HL1884]

The UK has offered to the UN to cede a total of 45 square miles of SBA territory as part of the UN settlement proposals. The UK made this offer after considering what practical help we could offer the UN Secretary-General in his efforts to secure a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Cyprus problem in time for a reunited Cyprus to sign the Treaty of Accession with the EU on 16 April. If there is no agreement within the UN timetable, or if the proposals are rejected in referenda on either side of the island, this offer to the UN, along with the remainder of the UN proposals, will become null and void.The area that the UK has offered to the UN to cede comprises 10 square miles in the Western Sovereign Base Area and 35 square miles in the Eastern Sovereign Base Area. Approximately 10 per cent of the total area involved would be transferred to the Turkish Cypriots and 90 per cent to the Greek Cypriots.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they last had a meeting with representatives of the Council of the Turkish Cypriot Associations in the United Kingdom; and with which other Turkish Cypriot Organisations they have had meetings during 2003. [HL1885]

Officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are in regular contact with representatives of both the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot communities.The Southern European Department wrote to the Chairman of the Council of the Turkish Cypriot Associations on 7 January inviting representatives to discuss recent developments. To date there has, unfortunately, been no reply.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any British companies are involved directly or indirectly in exploiting the natural resources of Tibet. [HL1929]

BP Amoco is indirectly involved in a project on Tibet, having invested $580 million in PetroChina, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation. PetroChina is building the 950km Sebei-Lanzhou pipeline from the Tibetan plateau to north west China. The project is one of 10 under the Beijing Government's Develop the West policy. BP is also investing in Sinopec, which hold the rights to Tibet's Lunpola field, the world's highest oil field. I am aware of no other projects.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What increase in the use of slug pellets they have recorded or estimated on (a) farmland, (b) gardens and (c) horticultural holdings over the past 10 years; what is the decline in song thrush population over the same period; and whether they have any evidence of a correlation between the two. [HL1662]

Pesticide products such as slug pellets are assessed by the Pesticides Safety Directorate for their environmental effects. This includes the evaluation of their toxicity to birds and possible effects on reproduction. Products which are likely to cause a direct and unacceptable impact on the environment do not receive approval for sale or use.Data are regularly collated and reported on the use of molluscicides for agriculture and horticulture in the pesticide usage survey reports. Surveys are conducted on a rolling programme and not all crops are surveyed each year. These reports are available in the House Libraries.The song thrush population has declined steeply within the past 25 years, occurring in both woodland and farmland, but that on farmland is substantially greater. The recent breeding bird survey and common bird census trends suggest that the decline has levelled off since the mid-1990s.Evidence suggests that the decline may have been driven by lower survival rates of birds in their first year and/or by a decline in the number of breeding attempts that pairs are (on average) able to make in each season. This may be related to food availability both in the winter and in the breeding season. Decreasing song thrush abundance has been linked to agricultural intensification, but woodland-specific factors such as drainage and the depletion of the shrub layer may also be implicated.However, research shows that increasing pesticide use may reduce food availability and indirectly contribute to the decline in 20 species of song birds, including the song thrush. In areas of mixed farmland landscapes, woodland and grassland provide important foraging habitats. In arable landscapes where these habitats are scarce the birds used gardens and arable fields in the breeding season. Thus in landscapes dominated by arable farmland, reductions in invertebrate availability due to pesticide application (as well as other factors of intensification) may affect song thrushes.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they intend to take to encourage a reversal of the decline in load factors at coal-fired generation plant fitted with flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) equipment and the increase in coal burnt at plant without FGD; and [HL1786]What plans they have to impose stricter sulphur dioxide emission limits on coal-fired generators that do not have abatement plant fitted. [HL1788]

No reliable estimate can yet be made and other factors will also influence this market. The implementation option under the revised Large Combustion Plants Directive (2001/80/EC) for plants licensed before 1987 has not yet been decided. From 2008, those plants must either comply with emission limit values or operate within a national emission plan as established by the directive. Under both, operators can opt to adopt less stringent emission limits subject to committing to closure once they have operated for a maximum of 20,000 hours between 2009 and 2015. Once the implementation decision is taken, all operators, including those with coal-fired generating capacity, must choose whether to close or comply with the measures required by the directive. Those choices have yet to be taken.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much coal-fired generation capacity they expect to be taken out of the market as a result of the implementation of the Larger Combustion Plant Directive. [HL1787]

No reliable estimate can yet be made and other factors will also influence this market. The implementation option under the revised Large Combustion Plants Directive (2001/80/EC) for plants licensed before 1987 has not yet been decided. From 2008, these plants must either comply with emission limit values or operate within a national emission plan as established by the directive. Under both, operators can opt to adopt less stringent emission limits subject to committing to closure once they have operated for a maximum of 20,000 hours between 2008 and 2015. Once the implementation decision is taken, all operators, including those with coal-fired generating capacity, must choose whether to close or comply with the measures required by the directive. Those choices have yet to be taken.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action is being taken to reduce the amount of sulphur dioxide and other polluting substances being released into the atmosphere from the generation of electricity in coal-fired power stations. [HL1795]

Coal-fired power stations are currently regulated by the integrated pollution control (IPC) regime. IPC was established by the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and regulates industrial pollution through a system of authorisation. IPC is being superseded by the integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) regime, established by an EC directive of the same name. Installations that came into operation before 31 October 1999 will be regulated by IPPC from 2006. New installations or those undergoing substantial change will be required to apply for an IPPC permit with immediate effect.IPC requires operators to demonstrate that they will use the best available techniques not entailing excessive cost (BATNEEC) for their activities. BATNEEC has to be applied to prevent or minimise the release of prescribed substances and to render harmless any such substances which are released to air, water and land. If releases are made to more than one environmental medium, the best practicable environmental option is applied. The regulator assesses BATNEEC on a site-by-site basis and keeps authorisations under review. Depending on the characteristics of the plant, BATNEEC may include the use of flue gas desulphurisation.In an IPPC permit application, operators are required to demonstrate that they will use the best available techniques (BAT) to control pollution from their activities. BAT aims to prevent, and where that is not practicable, to reduce to acceptable levels, emissions from the activities. BAT also aims to balance the cost to the operator against the benefits to the environment, and is assessed by the regulator on a site-by-site basis, taking into account European guidance on what constitutes BAT for that sector.The Government's policies for reducing air pollution were published in January 2000 in

asked Her Majesty's Government:What contracts have been awarded to the Capita Group by the Department for Education and Skills. [HL1807]

My department has awarded a number of contracts with Capita for a range of different services. These are as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will initiate a joint inspection by Ofsted and the new Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection to establish whether health and education authorities are adequately addressing children's health needs in a way which meets their educational needs. [HL1956]

There are no plans at present to require joint inspections by Ofsted and the proposed new Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection. Plans for the new commission will be contained in a Bill to be placed before Parliament in due course. More broadly, the Government are encouraging all those in education, health and social services to work together to support improvements in the way children's special educational needs are identified and met.A national service framework for children is being developed to promote an integrated approach to supporting children with disabilities and SEN, ensuring that services are designed around the needs of individual children and their families. Children's trusts will pilot new models of local joined-up working in planning, commissioning and delivering services for children with SEN and disabilities, and the forthcoming Green Paper on Children and Young People at Risk will look across government to address a number of key issues concerning preventive strategies and early intervention.In relation to early intervention, we are promoting more coherent practice in co-ordinating services for disabled children aged 0–3 and their families through the Together from the Start guidance for education, health and social services professionals and our Early Support pilot programme, which will test the principles of the guidance and related guidance on early intervention/support services for deaf children and their families in practice. The programme is currently supporting 27 individual projects involving a variety of agencies at both local and national level. We recently announced additional funding of £12 million to extend the programme to March 2006.We intend to publish later this year an SEN action programme setting out the Government's objectives and priorities for special educational needs. It will build on current activity and focus on improving outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and their families. Improving multi-agency working will be the key theme.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by Baroness Ashton of Upholland on 27 February (

The money was paid from funds voted to the department for 2002–03 within the Department for Education and Skills Vote 1, Request for Resources 1, line A. Details of this provision are on page 20 of Central Government Supply Estimates 2002–03 published in May 2002 (HC795).

asked Her Majesty's Government:What help has been given in the past, or will be given in the next 12 months, through the Arts Council or other body, to Stagetext which makes theatre accessible to people with hearing loss. [HL1938]

Stagetext has received support from the Arts Council over the past two years in recognition of its groundbreaking work in enabling access to theatre for people with a hearing loss. In 2001–02, Stagetext received £20,000 to develop its business plan. In 2002–03, it received £20,000 to test ways in which regional captioned performances can best be supported and £8,000 to develop a good practice guide for venues interested in captioning. The Arts Council is currently in discussion with Stagetext about future funding for the organisation.Stagetext has also been very successful in attracting support from other funders, such as the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and the Linbury Trust.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much grant was given to English Heritage for the years 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. [HL1939]

The government grant-in-aid allocation to English Heritage was £114.9 million in 1999–2000, £116.8 million in 2000–01, £110.4 million in 2001–02, and £116.4 million in 2002–03.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How, in the event of any decision to give effect to the Office of Fair Trading report on the deregulation of pharmacy services, the Department of Health would be able to deliver managed healthcare services using pharmacy, as outlined in

We are considering the report from the Director General of Fair Trading and its findings and recommendations carefully, including the impact on our policy objectives set out in Pharmacy in the Future.We have sought views from a wide range of interests, including community pharmacy and general practitioners, the National Health Service, patients and consumers. Their views and those of other interested parties will help inform the government response, which my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry is co-ordinating.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What equality and diversity data are available on the make-up of general practitioners, nurses and consultants in the National Health Service.[HL1905]

Data on the National Health Service workforce are collected in a set of annual censuses (as at 30 September), one for NHS hospital and community health services (HCHS) medical and dental staff, one for NHS HCHS non-medical staff and one for general medical practitioners, their patients and their staff. Each census includes information about a range of equality and diversity factors, as set out below, alongside information about the type of work carried out (such as medical grade or speciality).

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the current estimates of the anticipated loss (due to resignations and retirements) of general practitioners and nurses over the next two years; and how many replacements will be recruited from abroad. [HL1906]

The Department of Health does not currently collect information on leaving rates for either general practitioners or nurses.Current training places are more than sufficient to replace leavers in the nursing and GP workforce. We anticipate however that international recruitment will make a significant contribution to the planned increases in the GP and nursing workforce.

asked Her Majesty's Government :How many minority ethnic nurses apply for jobs in the National Health Service but fail to make shortlists; and what are the reasons therefor. [HL1907]

This information is not held centrally. National Health Service organisations are individual employers and as such will need to comply with all legislation regarding recruitment practice.NHS organisations will keep records of individual interviews and the reasons why applicants were unsuccessful but this information would not be routinely supplied to the Department of Health.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What benefits have arisen from the Vital Connection launched by the National Health Service in 2000; whether any of the initiatives have been monitored for effectiveness; and whether there is any intention to publish the results. [HL1908]

The Vital Connection laid the foundations for mainstreaming equality, diversity and inclusiveness in every part of the National Health Service. This objective was reinforced by the NHS Plan, published in July 2000, which introduced the Improving Working Lives Standard. The standard makes it clear that every member of staff is entitled to work in an organisation which can prove it is improving diversity and tackling discrimination and harassment.All NHS employing organisations are required to demonstrate progress against the equality targets set in Vital Connection as part of the Improving Working Lives assessment and accreditation process. Most NHS employing organisations are required to be accredited as putting the Improving Working Lives Standard into practice by April 2003.The Positively Diverse Programme, introduced in 2001, further supports NHS organisations to implement equality and diversity and the targets in Vital Connection. Some 147 NHS organisations are now using the Positively Diverse Programme.The Human Resources Directorate is currently examining its equalities and diversity programmes, including the Improving Working Lives Standard and the Positively Diverse Programme as part of the department's continued efforts to strengthen the delivery of equality and diversity within the NHS.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish the statistical basis for the Secretary of State for Health's statement in his speech on 5 February that National Health Service management costs are falling. [HL1922]

Information on National Health Service management costs is published and available in the NHS annual financial management accounts.Management costs as a percentage of NHS expenditure during the period 1998–99 to 2001–02 are set out as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was the aggregate value of payments made to National Health Service Trusts by the Compensation Recovery Unit of the Benefits Agency under the terms of the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Act 1999 for each quarter between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2002; and [HL1957]

Under the terms of the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Act 1999 insurers have 14 days following the settlement of an insurance claim in which to make payment of NHS charges, provided they have received a certificate of NHS charges notifying them of amounts due. Where they have not been notified they must apply to the Compensation Recovery Unit (CRU) for a certificate of charges within 14 days of claim settlement and once this is received the insurer has 14 days in which to make a payment.The following figures show the number of settled claims and total amounts of CRU recovered from insurance companies in respect of these claims which were paid to NHS trusts in England, Scotland and Wales for each quarter between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2002.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What plans they have to increase National Health Service charges and the value of optical vouchers. [HL2077]

We have today laid before the House regulations to increase National Health Service charges in England from 1 April 2003. There will be a cash increase in the prescription charge of 10p from £6.20 to £6.30 for each quantity of a drug or appliance dispensed.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Privy Seal on 6 February (

No. As explained in my previous Answer on 6 February, Her Majesty's Government do not have a copy of the paper.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Privy Seal on 10 February (

Of the £16.2 million announced on 3 July 2002, £4 million only was committed for spending in 2002–03 and 2003–04, with the balance to be addressed in future budgetary allocation decisions.On 19 February 2003, the Minister with responsibility for finance and personnel announced planned allocations from the Strategic Investment Programme over the five-year period to 2007–08. These included £3.0 million for the reconfiguration of ambulance control and communications sytems, half of which is profiled for 2004–05; and £ 26.1 million for other actions to modernise and improve the ambulance service. Annual expenditure on these will be profiled once decisions have been reached on the best approach to financing them.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When the current business plans for all the North/ South Implementation Bodies will be passed by the North/South Ministerial Council; and whether all the business plans and all the decisions relating to the implementation bodies will be placed in the Library of the House. [HL1758]

The operating plan for the Trade and Business Development Body (InterTradeIreland) has been approved by the two governments under the agreement between the British and Irish Governments on 19 November. The business plans for the remainder of the implementation bodies will be prepared by each body for subsequent approval by the two governments.Decisions made by the two governments under the agreement of 19 November will shortly be placed in the Library. It is not the intention to place business plans in the Library. The annual report and accounts for each implementation body will be laid before Parliament as required by the North/South Co-operation (Implementation Bodies) (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the projected budgets of the implementation bodies for the year 2003; and what percentage increase or decrease these represent over 2002. [HL1760]

The details requested are given in the table below.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether there is a future for the Lisburn-Antrim railway line after the current funding runs out in March 2003. [HL1775]

The future of rail services on the Lisburn to Antrim line has been uncertain since the Railways Task Force produced its report in September 2000. On the basis of the data available, the case for the continuance of regular services on this line is not compelling. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland with responsibillity for Transport, Angela Smith MP, intends to make a written statement on this matter in the near future.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many people were killed as a result of traffic accidents in Northern Ireland during the month of January in each year since 1998; and what plans they have to reduce the figure. [HL1914]

The number of people killed as a result of a road traffic collision in the month of January in each year since 1998 is provided in the table below. Also provided are end-of-year figures for the total number of deaths in each of the previous five years.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which Minister in the Cabinet Office is responsible for supervising the answering of Questions for Written Answer, bearing in mind that of the 52 Questions which remained unanswered after the standard period of two weeks at 4 March, 11 are the responsibility of the Cabinet Office; and whether the Minister concerned will bring in outside advisers to ensure that all questions are answered within two weeks. [HL2046]

I have overall responsibility for monitoring progress in answering Questions for Written Answer in the House of Lords.I regret the number of questions that currently remain unanswered. However, in order to provide a full and accurate reply, it is sometimes necessary to await the outcome of consultation and discussions.It is my practice to review outstanding questions weekly with ministerial colleagues and raise any delays with the relevant Minister. I also remind them of the need, wherever possible, to respond to Written Questions within the 14-day timescale.I continue to look at further ways of improving this performance.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why they are offering Rail Research UK £7 million to offer strategic advice to the rail industry (as reported in the Observer on 2 March); and whether this is likely to duplicate strategies which the Strategic Rail Authority is required to produce under the Transport Act 2000. [HL1973]

Rail Research UK is being set up by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPRSC) as a centre for railway systems research and as part of the council's objective to support high quality research in the engineering and the physical sciences that is in tune with industry's needs.The centre involves 12 research groups from seven UK universities and will be jointly led by the Universities of Birmingham and Southampton. It will concentrate on providing a strong engineering base for railway systems research and achieving a safer and more reliable railway whilst reducing the impact on the environment.Rail Research UK's role will complement the statutory requirements placed upon the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) by providing evidence-based research for the development of a safer and more reliable rail system.