asked Her Majesty's Government: What is the current position with the board of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). HL411]

My right honourable friend the Minister for Children, Young People and Families (Margaret Hodge) has today announced in a Written Answer that Baroness Pitkeathley OBE has been appointed as chairman of CAFCASS, with effect from 11 December 2003. In order for her to take the service forward, all but one member of the existing board have agreed to resign. The Government are grateful to them for their willingness to stand down and for their commitment and hard work since CAFCASS was launched.As an interim measure Baroness Pitkeathley will be assisted by a temporary board comprising:

asked Her Majesty's Government: What percentage of the working population in Northern Ireland are government employees. [HL183]

Information from the Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) can be used to estimate the number of government employee jobs. The latest figures relate to June 2003 and indicate that 120,401 out of a total of 667,610 employee jobs (18.0 per cent) were in Northern Ireland central government departments or in bodies under the aegis of Northern Ireland central government departments.UK central government, local government councils and public corporations account for a further 91,259 jobs. The total number of public sector jobs in Northern Ireland in June 2003 was therefore 211,660 which represents 31.7 per cent of all employee jobs.

asked Her Majesty's Government: How long cross border implementation bodies can continue without the existence of a Northern Ireland Executive. [HL271]

I refer the noble Lord to the Answer given on 11 June 2003 (Official Report, WA 43)

asked Her Majesty's Government: In the review of the Belfast agreement announced by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether the cost effectiveness and impartiality of the North/South Ministerial Secretariat in Armagh over the past two years will be scrutinised. [HL273]

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs wrote jointly to the parties in the Assembly on 2 December 2003 inviting them to submit views in regard to the agenda and conduct of the review. In the light of the views received from the parties, the two Governments will then finalise and present proposals in early January.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What actual or contingent liabilities will remain for payment from public funds in connection with the Millennium Dome and its site after the commercial deal between Millennium Dome Limited, Anschutz Entertainment Group and the Government becomes unconditional, as expected by June 2004.[HL23]

The contracts which were signed between English Partnerships, Meridian Delta Ltd, AEG and Quintain in May 2002 provide for AEG to have a 12-month period, after the transaction becomes unconditional, during which to commence construction of the Arena. This is needed to allow time for the necessary construction contracts to be procured.Although theoretically construction inside the Dome might have been able to begin as soon as the deal went unconditional, commercial practicalities do not allow this and English Partnerships has budgeted in accordance with the May 2002 contracts to continue to pay core Dome costs for the period after the deal has gone unconditional and until construction of the new arena starts. Similarly while the arena is under construction English Partnerships has also budgeted to pay a reduced level of costs. Those costs will cease on practical completion of the arena.The details of English Partnerships' ongoing costs of Dome upkeep after the MDL deal has gone unconditional are dependent on practical arrangements within the overall terms of the contracts agreed in May 2002. Other costs in relation to the Dome—that is, any remaining decommissioning costs and the costs of the sale process—will cease when the deal with MDL goes unconditional.All of English Partnerships' costs in relation to the Dome will be recovered from sale proceeds.I will update the House further and provide more information on costs when negotiations are concluded and the deal with MDL has gone unconditional.

asked Her Majesty's Government: When they will be producing a Fire and Rescue National Framework as proposed in the White Paper, Our Fire and Rescue Service (June 2003).[HL410]

In June the Government published the White Paper Our Fire and Rescue Service. It set out a package of reforms designed to improve the service and to save more lives. Today the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is publishing a draft Fire and Rescue National Framework that will outline how to implement the White Paper's proposals. It sets out the Government's objectives for the Fire and Rescue Service and what fire and rescue authorities should do to achieve these outcomes. It also sets out what the Government will do to improve the service and what support it will provide to fire and rescue authorities. In due course, the expectations in the framework will also help to shape the Audit Commission's fire and rescue comprehensive performance assessment.The framework is based on a partnership approach. The Government are committed to giving fire and rescue authorities adequate support and flexibility to help them to meet the specific needs of their local communities. For this reason we are initially issuing it in draft form and welcome comments and suggestions by 12 March 2004 on both the proposals in the draft framework and how to make the future versions as helpful and relevant as possible. We aim to publish the first national framework in spring 2004.The legislation announced in the Queen's Speech will place the framework on a statutory footing. It will require the Government to report to Parliament on the extent to which fire and rescue authorities are acting in accordance with the national framework and any steps the Government have taken to ensure that they do.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bach on 9 October (WA 67), whether, and, if so, when the companies supplying the Ministry of Defence with pertussis vaccines for use in vaccinating British troops in the 1990–91 Gulf conflict were informed by the ministry of the unlicensed use for which they were purchased; and where, in the view of the Law Officers, legal liability lies in cases where unlicensed use of a vaccine is held to have damaged the health of a service man or woman to whom it was administered or to have constituted a significant health hazard. [HL76]

I will write to my noble friend in answer to his question about pertussis vaccines and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House. There is a longstanding convention that neither the substance of Law Officers' advice, nor the fact that they have been consulted, is publicly disclosed. This is consistent with paragraphs 2 and 4(d) of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What the new rates are for war pensions and allowances. [HL369]

The rates of war pensions and allowances are uprated annually in April, based on the retail prices index (RPI) in the previous September. The RPI at September 2003 was 2.8 per cent and this is the amount by which war pensions and allowances will be increased.The uprating of war pensions and allowances for 2004 will take place from the week beginning 12 April 2004.The new rates are shown in the following table:

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether it is the case that proposals for the Olympic Games would result in some 350 businesses being displaced in the Stratford area; and, if so, what action they will take to alleviate the problem. [HL16]

The masterplan for the regeneration of the lower Lea Valley offers development models which will come into effect whether London's bid for the Olympic Games is successful or not. To realise the full potential benefits of the regeneration work, some 350 businesses may be affected, with some possibly needing to be relocated. This process is being managed by the London Development Agency, working closely with local business groups that are in direct contact with all the businesses which may be affected by the plan. There will of course be consultation for all those affected.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Which European Union member states apply (a) an exemption; and (b) a reduced rate of VAT on the construction of community sports facilities. [HL196]

Member states can only introduce VAT rules that are compatible with the EC Sixth VAT Directive. There is no provision within that directive to apply either an exemption or a reduced rate to the services of constructing community sports facilities.

asked Her Majesty's Government: When they expect to bring the draft Money Laundering Regulations 2003 into effect; and [HL204]

The Money Laundering Regulations 2003, together with amending orders for the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Terrorism Act 2000, were laid before Parliament on 28 November 2003. The regulations and amending orders will come into force from 1 March 2004.The majority of the responses to the Treasury's consultation on draft regulations, issued in November 2002, were broadly supportive of the approach taken in the draft and some included a number of constructive suggestions to improve the regulations. A regulatory impact assessment was placed in the House Library when the regulations were laid, and this will also be made available on the Treasury website. The RIA contains details of cost estimates and changes to the draft regulations following consultation.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What plans they have to review the BBC's Royal Charter. [HL368]

The BBC's Royal Charter—the seventh in the history of the corporation—is due to expire on 31 December 2006. We have today launched the first phase of a process of review that will result in a strong BBC, independent of government, from the end of the current charter and beyond. That period will be marked by continuing rapid advances in technology, and changes in society, culture and practice—the way people receive and make use of broadcast content. Charter review will be characterised by our openness, our efforts to engage as broad a section of the population as we can, and our commitment to listen to what people have to say. We are being helped in this by Lord Burns who will provide us with independent advice throughout.Charter review is not a single process. It will take a range of existing and planned work, including Ofcom's review of public service television, the independent review of BBC online and the forthcoming reviews of the BBC's new digital services. But it will also feature widespread public involvement, built around a three-phase process of consultation. Phase one starts today, based on a very broad consultation document—

asked Her Majesty's Government: What steps they are taking to ensure that the Commission for Health Audit and Inspection will continue the review of ethnic diversity currently undertaken by the Commission for Health Improvement in ts corporate reviews of National Health Service trusts. [HL250]

The Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection will continue the Commission for Health Improvement's policy of assessing National Health Service trusts' progress towards meeting the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

asked Her Majesty's Government: When they will increase the fees for care services, currently regulated by the National Care Standards Commission. [HL409]

The fees for care services currently regulated by the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) will be increased in April 2004. A table of the new fees is as follows.Regulatory fee income is to assist with the funding of the NCSC, with the intention of achieving full cost recovery after five years, with a review in 2004. The policy on regulatory fees—including the intention of full cost recovery and the consequences for later years—was established following consultation in 2001. The fee structure also makes the costs of regulation transparent and borne by those who stand to benefit from more consistent national minimum standards so that pressures will apply to the regulatory process to ensure that it continues to be effective and efficient.Next April, the Commission for Social Care Inspection will take on the NCSC's role of regulating independent social care providers. The regulation of private and voluntary healthcare providers will move from the NCSC to the Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection. The new commissions will further strengthen the system for inspecting those services.Individual letters are being sent to all providers of care services regulated by the NCSC to notify them about the increases.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether a large number of post offices are unable to supply game licences; and whether this will be taken into account in decisions on the prosecution of those who have been unable to obtain a licence and who are then found to be shooting without a game licence. [HL200]

The Post Office has informed the department that this autumn's supply problems have been resolved and there are now adequate stocks of all game licences to meet anticipated demand.All post offices are able to arrange the issue of a game licence but not all offices stock licences on their premises. This is an operational matter for individual post offices and would normally reflect past demand. Large, directly managed post offices are most likely to keep stocks of licences. Location details of these offices can be obtained using the Post Office Helpline (0845 722 3344).The Post Office, in liaison with Defra officials, is currently exploring options for improving the availability of licences in the future.The Game Licences Act 1860 (Section 4) requires that every person taking or killing game, or assisting in such activities, takes out a licence to kill game under this Act. The penalty for acting without a valid licence is level 2 on the standard scale.Whether or not extenuating factors, such as the availability of licences, are taken into account during the legal process is a matter for the police, Crown Prosecution Service and, ultimately, the courts to decide.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What limitations there are, if any, on non- departmental public bodies making representations to government departments on issues of public policy. [HL145]

There are no restrictions on non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) making representations on matters within their remit to government departments.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What action they propose to ensure that central and local government websites comply with their guidelines for interoperability and accessibility; and [HL149]How they respond to the recent survey from Business2WWW suggesting that all but five of 62 government websites tested failed to comply with government standards on metadata and the e-Government Metadata Framework; and [HL150]How they respond to the recent survey from Business2WWW suggesting that 58 of 62 government websites tested failed to meet the Priority 1 requirements; and [HL151]How they respond to the recent survey from Business2WWW suggesting that the websites of the Prime Minister, the Home Office, the Community Legal Service and others were all less than 1 per cent compliant with current guidelines for access to the disabled. [HL152]

Evaluating the accessibility of a website is a complex issue and experts in this area, such as the RNIB, City University and AbilityNet advise that it cannot be undertaken by automated testing alone. The e-Envoy has recently had discussions with Business2WWW about how their latest automated testing is undertaken and upon what criteria the reported results are based.The e-government Metadata Framework was superseded by the e-Government Metadata Standard in 2001 (e-GMS). e-GMS is mandatory for new public sector IT systems and the number of sites meeting the standard will therefore improve as sites are replaced or upgraded.The e-Envoy encourages compliance through provision of guidance and good practice. Compliance is the responsibility of individual departments and local services and is self-regulatory through the use of National Computing Centre services and the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

asked Her Majesty's Government: What proposals they have on the form and content of citizenship ceremonies. HL322]

The White Paper, Secure Borders, Safe Haven: Integration with Diversity in Modem Britain, published in February 2002, set out the Government's proposals for enhancing the significance of the acquisition of British citizenship. The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 duly included provisions which, when brought into force at the start of 2004, will require all adult applicants for British citizenship to take an Oath of Allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen and Pledge of Loyalty to the United Kingdom at a citizenship ceremony.On 25 July we published a consultation document which set out the Government's provisional views on the form and content of that citizenship ceremony. The 12-week period of consultation closed on 17 October and 145 responses were received.Broadly, the responses supported the proposal that national symbols such as the Union flag and national anthem should feature in ceremonies throughout the United Kingdom and that these should be augmented with local features and symbols. A small minority of responses did not support the idea. The Government themselves remain strongly of the view that it would be right for these United Kingdom symbols to be used, given that the citizenship being bestowed is that of the United Kingdom as a whole. Other countries like Canada, Australia and New Zealand certainly believe it appropriate to display national symbols at these events. We would encourage those who disagree to reflect further and to consider this issue from the viewpoint of the new citizens and what they might reasonably expect of a British citizenship ceremony, rather than impose their own views on what is appropriate.There was a positive response to the suggestion that local authorities might wish to impart their own flavour on ceremonies taking place in their area, and to the notion that prominent and recognised members of the local community might take part in ceremonies and formally welcome new citizens to their area. The suggestions on what form this local flavour might take recognised the importance of local adaptations not detracting from the dignified, celebratory and meaningful nature that government intend for citizenship ceremonies. Many areas proposed that they would involve local schools and community groups in their ceremonies.In terms of the musical content of ceremonies, the majority supported the playing of the national anthem immediately after the taking of the Oath and pledge. Many areas said that they also intended to play recognised and appropriate pieces of music as new citizens entered and left the ceremony. A list will be given in the guidance for local authorities and registrars.The consultation document proposed a form of words for the ceremony welcome speech and for the address given by the local dignitary. The majority of responses supported the notion of standardisation of the main portions of these addresses, but said that they would ensure that any local additions did not detract from the formal welcome to both the UK and the local area.In terms of a commemorative gift, most thought that a commemorative certificate bearing that area's coat of arms or logo would be most appropriate. There was a unanimous view that any gift given must be meaningful of the event. A small percentage of respondents took the view that there was no need for a gift as such in that the grant of citizenship was in itself a gift.The Government are grateful to all of those individuals and organisations who took the time to read and respond to this document. The nature of the comments give us reason to believe that our proposals carry general suppport. We shall therefore proceed broadly in line with the format set out in the consultation document.The cost of the ceremonies will be included in an increased nationality fee, the details of which have been included in a statutory instrument to be laid today, which will mean no additional charge to the taxpayer.Details are in the attached table.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they support the early construction of the Thames Gateway Bridge; and when they expect to make an announcement. [HL156]

The Mayor of London has asked government for assistance with the Thames Gateway Bridge, in respect of both gaining the powers required to construct the bridge, and additional financial support. An announcement will be made in due course.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they will set out the approximate maintenance and renewal expenditure by (i) Railtrack; (ii) Network Rail; and (iii) the Strategic Rail Authority, for the year 2002–03 for the following sections of railway—

The information is not available in the form requested. However, Section 5 of the Network Rail's 2003 annual return to the Rail Regulator, published on 31 July, includes details of actual maintenance and renewal expenditure in 2002–03 for the total network and by region; and of actual renewals spend on each of Network Rail's 45 strategic routes. I will arrange for a copy to be placed in the Library of the House.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether the actual (as opposed to the timetabled) railway service being provided at Congleton station since September conforms with the passenger service obligation agreed by the train operating companies involved. [HL185]

First North Western and Virgin Cross Country have specified passenger service requirements to serve Congleton station. These consist of seven and three weekday services respectively in each direction between Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke-on-Trent. Actual service on this line was disrupted due to essential engineering works to upgrade the West Coast Main Line during September through early October. A replacement bus service was provided during the line closure that met the PSR.