asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether Section 69(3)(b) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 permits the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to issue a statement criticising the United Kingdom Government in connection with the war in Iraq; whether they accept the view of the commission that the war in Iraq is a violation of international law; and whether public authorities are permitted to engage in such criticism. [HL2270]

Section 69(3)(b) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 states that the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission shall advise the Secretary of State of legislative and other measures which ought to be taken to protect human rights on such occasions as the commission thinks appropriate. The Government are satisfied that, in providing advice on this matter, the commission has not gone beyond its remit. The legal basis for war in Iraq was set out in the Attorney-General's Written Answer of 17 March, col. WA3. This remains the Government's view.The Government always consider and value advice from public bodies, such as the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, whether it is supportive or critical.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps have been taken to create a tri-lingual logo for the North/South Ministerial Council; and when such logo will be in place. [HL2327]

Administrations North and South agreed the current logo for the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) and the Joint Secretariat, with titles in English and Irish, in April 2001.In July 2002 the Joint Secretariat was asked to consult with both administrations on a tri-lingual logo for the council and the secretariat. Work on a revised logo has been completed by officials and will be submitted to the two administrations following the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the affairs of the North/South Ministerial Council can be scrutinised by the Northern Ireland Ombudsman. [HL2328]

The North/South Ministerial Council is not subject to investigation by the Assembly Ombudsman for Northern Ireland.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the current purpose of the First Minister's and Deputy First Minister's office in Northern Ireland. [HL2357]

The Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister is a fully functioning department of the Northern Ireland administration with a wide range of responsibilities. The strategic objectives of the department include supporting Ministers and the institutions of government; building a programme for government and modernising government programme; and promoting better community relations, a culture of equality and rights, and targeting social need and promoting social inclusion.During suspension of the devolved institutions the staff who provide direct support and advice to the First Minister and Deputy First Minister have been redeployed to other duties. Otherwise the department continues to discharge functions which have been conferred on it by statute or added to by the Northern Ireland Assembly from time to time. In particular the department is concerned with economic policy issues such as the Reinvestment and Reform Initiative incorporating the Strategic Investment Board, rights and equality issues including the establishment of the Office of the Commissioner for Children and Young People as well as the promotion of modernisation and the development of electronic delivery of public services and information.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much Waterways Ireland spent on entertainment and public relations in 2000, 2001 and 2002. [HL2358]

Details of Waterways Ireland's expenditure on entertainment and public relations are as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why over 40 per cent of local authorities have not reviewed their policies, and 65 per cent of those have not reviewed their travelling people policies, to ensure compliance with the Human Rights Act 1998, as shown in the recent study by the Cardiff Law School; and what steps they will take to ensure that local authorities do comply with the Act, particularly with regard to travelling people. [HL2431]

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not have direct responsibility for ensuring that local authorities review their policies to comply with the Human Rights Act. However, the forthcoming joint ODPM/Home Office guidance on managing unauthorised camping will, among other things, remind local authorities of their duties under the Human Rights Act. A victim of an act of a public authority which is not in compliance with the Human Rights Act has a right to bring legal proceedings in connection with the breach.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was the outcome of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's review of its Focus Programme. [HL2565]

My honourable friend, Mr Rammell, in his reply of 12 December to a question by my honourable friend Derek Wyatt, in another place (Official Report, col. 459W) concerning the FCO's IT systems, promised a further announcement on the FCO's Focus Programme.We reviewed all the FCO's information and communications technology programmes earlier this year, in the light of the financial constraints we face. Given the relative low priority of the Focus Programme and a substantial increase in its estimated cost from £23.5 million of £42 million over six years (reflecting significant changes to the scope of the programme which involved a greater training requirement, enhanced security arrangements and, post-11 September, a considerable extra investment in back-up and disaster recovery), we decided to negotiate the cancellation of the contract for the Focus Programme. Agreement was reached with Fujitsu and the cancellation took effect from 31 March 2003.At the point of cancellation, the FCO had spent in the region of £9.5 million on the Focus Programme. From this expenditure, we will retain a global electronic directory and a facility allowing on-line discussion groups to help cross-departmental team working. The directory will provide the FCO with savings estimated at £2.5 million over the next five years. We will also be using one of the software licences brought as part of the Focus Programme to develop a new FCO Intranet.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any goods subject to the EU arms embargo have recently been approved for export to Bosnia. [HL2566]

In September 2002 the Government issued a licence for the export of military listed components for use by the Canadian contingent of the Stabilisation Force (SFOR). The components are for logistical purposes. They will be used for the specific purpose of repairing palletised load handling system vehicles used for transporting containers.Bosnia and Herzegovina is subject to an EU arms embargo (imposed by Common Position 96/184/CFSP). The embargo was put in place mainly to ensure the safety of international troops and civilian personnel deployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This decision does not affect the Government's continued support for the EU Common Position on arms exports to Bosnia and Herzegovina.The decision was made in accordance with our practice occasionally to make an exemption to our interpretation of the embargo by approving exports of non-lethal military goods to humanitarian, media or peacekeeping organisations where it is clear the embargo was not intended to prevent those exports and there is a strong humanitarian case for them.Her Majesty's Government fully support the Canadian element of SFOR and recognise their legitimate need for the right tools and reliable vehicles to carry out their job effectively. The decision underlines HMG's continued support for the work being done by SFOR in maintaining security and development in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have evaluated the effect on the Department for International Development's programmes of (a) Uganda's; and (b) Rwanda's defence spending in the Congo. [HL2516]

The Government have been actively involved in promoting peace in the Great Lakes region. We have given full support to the inter Congolese Dialogue, which successfully concluded at its recent plenary session in Sun City, South Africa, providing for the early establishment of a transitional national government in the DRC, with a view to democratic elections in two years' time. The UK is an active member of the international committee tasked with supporting this process.The UK, through the FCO, has also been actively supporting the United Nations Observer Mission to DRC (MONUC), which is currently considering how best to deploy its mandated peace-keepers on the ground in the DRC. We are also a major contributor to the Multi-Country Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme for the Great Lakes. In Rwanda, contributions totalling £5.047 million were made from the Africa Conflict Prevention Pool in 2002–03 to support the World Bank Rwanda Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme.In the next few weeks, we hope to agree with Government of Rwanda a Memorandum of Understanding covering UK support for Rwanda's security sector reform process. The MoU sets out how the UK could support the reform of the police, military, paramilitary and intelligence services, and the civilian structures responsible for their oversight and control, to improve the security of poor and vulnerable Rwandans.In Uganda we are actively engaged with a systematic review of defence policy and the resulting needs. The process is fully owned by the Ugandans and a draft White Paper on Defence is due in mid-2003. The paper will address both defence needs and the affordability of the various options set against the government's poverty reduction goals. In the interim we continue to engage with the government over the scale of their defence expenditure to ensure that these poverty reduction programmes are not affected.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made in setting up a pilot project between the United Kingdom and Cuba in the Democratic Republic of Congo to explore how Cuban doctors might be engaged in the fight against AIDS; and what is the timetable for the start up of this project [HL2546]

The FCO recently funded a scoping visit to the DRC by a UK/Cuban consultancy team to review the Cuban proposal and consider longer-term collaboration between the two countries on this project. Prospects for developing a pilot project from the scoping visit are currently under review by the FCO, as is the possibility of the Cubans working with established international NGOs in DRC. No start date for the project has as yet been set.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether funding will be made available from the Department for International Development, for the proposed Cuba-Africa hepatitis and HIV vaccines project in Africa. [HL2547]

Our approach to funding work on vaccine development is to support multilateral efforts, for instance through the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), for which we are providing £14 million over five years. We also support the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) for which we are providing £35 million over five years focusing on research, development of new vaccines and effective delivery of services. We will not therefore support the Cuba-Africa project.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they will publish their response to Lord Carlile of Berriew's report on the operation of the Terrorism Act 2000. [HL2615]

Lord Carlile of Berriew QC prepared a report on the operation in 2001 of the Terrorism Act 2000, which was laid before the House on 26 November 2002.We are grateful to Lord Carlile for his detailed report and have considered his recommendations fully. Following consultation within the department and with other relevant departments and agencies we are pleased to place our response to Lord Carlile's recommendations in the Library today.The Home Secretary also wrote to Lord Carlile last month outlining progress on recommendations made in his report on Sections 21 to 23 in Part 4 of the Antiterrorism Crime and Security Act 2001. We shall also be placing this response in the Library today.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a guardian ad litem can be appointed for a person aged over 18; if so, whether this is possible in cases where no legal action is pending; and whether they consider that the roles of trustees and guardians are sufficient for the protection of persons lacking full mental capacity. [HL2496]

A guardian ad litem (or next friend or litigation friend) can be appointed for any adult under mental incapacity in any civil or family proceedings in the High Court or county courts and in proceedings in the Court of Protection. Protection outside the context of court proceedings is afforded by a variety of mechanisms, including the power of the Court of Protection to appoint a receiver.My noble and learned friend the Lord Chancellor has made some proposals for changes in the law in this area, outlined in the policy document

asked Her Majesty's Government:What further representations the Department for Work and Pensions has received from the chairman of Rehab UK about the future of its Tyne and Wear centre on brain injury; what reply they have sent; and what action they are taking to vouchsafe the future of the centre. [HL2307]

My right honourable friend the Minister for Work received letters from the chairman of Rehab UK dated 14 and 26 November 2002, to which he sent a single reply on 20 December 2002. The reply reaffirmed our support for rehabilitation services in general, and brain injury rehabilitation in particular, while recognising the need to balance provision against the needs of other groups of disabled people. I understand that the chairman of Rehab UK has written a further letter to the Minister for Work.Jobcentre Plus has a contract with Rehab UK to provide work preparation programmes for people with brain injuries from its Tyne and Wear centre. However, as contractors are subject to competitive tendering, it would not be appropriate for Jobcentre Plus to vouchsafe their future viability.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much revenue the National Health Service receives from charges to patients for non-clinical services such as bedside televisions, amenity beds, cancellation charges (dentistry), and for providing access to medical records. [HL2423]

The amount of revenue received by the National Health Service for charging for non-clinical services such as amenity beds is not separately identifiable in NHS trusts' accounts.There is currently no regular collection of information on the income generated from access to health records under the Data Protection Act 1988.The NHS makes no revenue from the introduction of bedside televisions into hospitals. This is a free good to the trust, provided by private, licensed suppliers who charge the patient direct for the service.The NHS also makes no revenue from charges for the cancellation of dentist appointments as this is a matter between the dentist and the patient. The income is not part of the General Dental Services income.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the NHS Bank has advanced any money to National Health Service bodies on the basis that the money will not be repaid to the bank; and, if any money has been advanced on that basis, in what sense the NHS Bank operates as a bank; and [HL2432]What are the terms and conditions on which monies have been paid or committed by the NHS Bank to National Health Service bodies up to 31 March 2003. [HL2433]

All funds provided by the NHS Bank in 2002–03 have been non-recurrent allocations and are not expected to be repaid.The NHS Bank will be considering further the terms and conditions attached to any funds provided in 2003–04.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will name the 30 health authorities that were assessed as managing significant financial difficulties at the end of 2001–02 as shown at paragraph 4.11 of the Comptroller and Auditor-General's report on the National Health Service Summarised Accounts 2001–02 (HC 493); and [HL2434]Whether they will name the 46 National Health Service trusts that were assessed as managing significant financial difficulties at the end of 2001–02 as shown at paragraph 4.17 of the Comptroller and Auditor-General's report on the National Health Service Summarised Accounts 2001–02 (HC 493). [HL2436]

The information requested relates to the Department of Health's own internal assessment of National Health Service trusts and health authorities which are judged to be managing significant financial difficulties. We have no plans to publish this information.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will name the 31 National Health Service trusts that incurred in-year deficits in excess of 0.5 per cent of turnover as referred to in paragraph 4.15 of the Comptroller and Auditor-General's report on the National Health Service Summarised Accounts 2001–02 (HC 493). [HL2435]

The requested information is as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will name the 17 National Health Service trusts that failed to absorb a 5.5 per cent cost of capital as referred to in paragraph 4.20 of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the National Health Service Summarised Accounts 2001–02 (HC 493), and indicate which of those trusts failed for technical reasons [HL2437]

The requested information is as follows.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress is being made with the job evaluation exercise carried out for the purposes of Agenda For Change in respect of the professions allied to medicine. [HL2512]

Job evaluation is being used to compare job demands across a wide range of National Health Service jobs and match common NHS jobs with the pay bands in the proposed new NHS pay structure. We and staff organisations have developed a number of nationally agreed profiles to reduce the need for local NHS organisations to carry out individual job evaluations when the new pay system is introduced (subject to the outcome of staff organisations' consultations).Eighteen profiles for allied health professional jobs have already been agreed and published. Further profiles are currently being discussed to ensure that a wide range of allied health professional jobs are covered.

asked Her Majesty's Government:To what use the results of the job evaluation exercise being carried out for the purposes of Agenda For Change will be put. [HL2513]

Under the proposed agreement for a new National Health Service pay system, a new NHS job evaluation scheme will be used as the basis for measuring the relative weight of NHS jobs and allocating them to pay bands. The scheme is currently being used to evaluate a number of the most common NHS jobs and help produce national profiles for these jobs. Subject to ratification of the proposed agreement following consultation, these profiles will be used to help match individual posts to the pay bands in the new pay structure.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What has caused the delay in answering the concerns of the National Farmers' Union over plans for the disposal of fallen stock following the ban on burial of carcasses on farms. [HL2353]

The Government have been in discussion with the NFU and representatives of the collection and disposal industries since April 2002 with a view to developing a national fallen stock collection service. Failure to make more rapid progress was because no agreement could be reached on how the service should be funded. The farming unions were calling for a scheme that was fully funded by government. This was not possible, both because it would have contravened state aid rules and because it is government's view that industries, including the agricultural industry, should be responsible for disposing of their own waste. Agreement has now been reached with the industry on a shared funding approach which farmers will be invited to join on a voluntary basis.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are expected to be the public sector financial and manpower costs of implementing European Union Regulation 2000/0259 on the disposal of fallen stock; and [HL2412]How they propose to enforce European Union Regulation 2000/0259 on the disposal of fallen stock where it applies to poultry; and [HL2413]What is the present strength of the State Veterinary Service; and by what it is to be increased to administer European Union Regulation 2000/0259 on the disposal of fallen stock. [HL2414]

The EU animal by-products regulation insofar as it relates to disposal of fallen stock including poultry will be enforced by local authorities. It is not possible to estimate the total cost of this enforcement activity which will depend on the level of compliance. The State Veterinary Service has 279 permanent veterinarians and 56 casual veterinarians.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What guidance they have issued to local authorities experiencing particular problems with motorised vehicles using unmetalled rights of way since the passage of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. [HL2490]

In 1998 the Government published practical guidance on managing the use of vehicles on rights of way called Making the Best of Byways, and issued it to all local authorities. Within the next 12 months we propose to issue an updated version of this guidance.