asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their view of the opinion of the Eire Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Brian Cowan, expressed on 3 February, that the Belfast agreement is "part of the Irish Constitution"; and whether any change to the Belfast agreement would require amendment of the lrish Constitution. [HL1195]

The Belfast agreement is a political agreement between the British Government, the Irish Government and those Northern Irish political parties represented at the talks concluded on 10 April 1998. The nature of the relationship between the Belfast agreement and the constitution of the Irish Republic is a matter for the Irish Government.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What requests they have received from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for additional resources to care for refugees from Darfur, Sudan, now on the territory of Chad; and in particular for resources to upgrade the airport and associated facilities at Abeche, in eastern Chad, to accommodate the volume of traffic needed by humanitarian agencies. [HL1439]

DfID is one of the largest donors to UNHCR operations in Chad for Sudanese refugees, having provided £1 million in October 2003 in response to the initial 16 million dollar (approximately £9 million) appeal. We are aware that the UNHCR is airlifting relief supplies to Abeche in eastern Chad for its operations there. We are not aware of any specific request from UNHCR for resources to upgrade the airport although there is no reason why funds given to UNHCR should not be used for this purpose. Last week a DfID humanitarian adviser visited Chad and held discussions with relief agencies including the UNHCR team working in Abeche. We remain ready to provide further assistance if necessary.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will reallocate some development aid funds from Sudan to Chad. [HL1525]

As a result of the conflict in Darfur in western Sudan, refugees have been crossing the border into eastern Chad. It is estimated that there are now 110,000 Sudanese refugees in Chad and that over 650,000 people have been displaced within the Darfur region.In response to this crisis, we have contributed over £6 million in humanitarian assistance to United Nations (UN) agencies and international non-governmental organisations. This includes £1 million for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' work in Chad. We are considering further contributions for organisations working on both sides of the Chad/ Sudan border.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What talks they have held with the Acholi community and the Ugandan President following recent atrocities in northern Uganda, and with what results; and whether they have provided development assistance for monitoring and conflict resolution. [HL1534]

Resolution of the conflict in northern Uganda is a priority for the UK and this is an issue in which the Prime Minister is taking a close interest. The conflict was discussed in detail during the meeting between the Prime Minister and President Museveni, when the president visited London at the end of January.The DfID office and British High Commission (BHC) in Uganda are in regular contact with representatives of the Acholi community, including religious, traditional and political leaders to facilitate a peaceful resolution to the conflict. Immediately following the massacre in Lango region on 21 February, DfID was in contact with the leaders of the Acholi community and provided support for discussions between them and community leaders in other parts of northern Uganda focused on easing tribal tensions. It has not yet been possible for BHC and DflD to meet with President Museveni following the recent atrocities.The UK recognise that although there has to be a security response against the brutalities of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a sustainable peace is not possible through military means alone. For this reason, the UK together with the international community are supporting alternative conflict resolution strategies to the use of force. We are, for example, encouraging President Museveni to strengthen his Presidential Peace Team. We are also supporting amnesty activities and the Amnesty Commission, which encourages LRA combatants to give up their arms. We are exploring a number of avenues for improving local dialogue about peace, including through local FM radio. Between 2001 and 2003 DfID spent £0.9 million in support of conflict reduction and peace programmes. We anticipate spending a further £1.6 million between now and March 2005.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the answer by the Baroness Ashton of Upholland on 23 February (HL Deb, col. 4), whether they will publish a table showing for each of the age groups 18–25, 26–35, 36–45, 46–55, 56–65,

Table A—Age and Numeracy below level 1
Base: All respondents with numeracy scores
	Total	16–19	20–24	25–34	35–44	45–54	55–65
	(n=8040)	(n=461)	(n=631)	(n=1764)	(n=2092)	(n=1551)	(n=1538)
% below Level 1	47	50	49	43	44	46	53
Number below Level 1 (millions)	15.0	1.2	1.5	3.0	3.2	3.0	3.0

The full table, which was published on page 179 of the survey, is reproduced below for information

Table 3.A5—Age and numeracy level
Base: All respondents with numeracy scores
	Total	16–19	20–24	25–34	35–44	45–54	55–65
	(n=8040)	(n=461)	(n=631)	(n=1764)	(n=2092)	(n=1551)	(n=1538)
	%	%	%	%	%	%	%
Entry level 1 or below	5	6	4	4	5	6	8
Entry level 2	16	15	14	14	15	16	19
Entry level 3	25	29	30	24	24	24	26
All below Level 1	47	50	49	43	44	46	53
Level 1	28	27	27	28	29	27	27
Level 2 or above	25	23	24	29	27	26	20

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the current shortfall in pilots in the Army, the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy. [HL1396]

At 1 January 2004, the overall shortfall of trained pilots in the Royal Navy was 25¹(3.8 per cent). Pilots in the Army were near full manning with a shortfall of 10¹ (1.5 per cent), while in the Royal Air Force, the shortfall of junior officer pilots was 75¹ (4.8 per cent) of the requirement.

The Skills for Life survey, which was published by the department last October, includes a full breakdown of numeracy level for different age groups in the working population. Table A below is an edited table, showing the number and percentage of those in each age group below level 1, equivalent to a lower grade GCSE, in numeracy. These figures are based on the 2001 census figures of 31.9 million adults aged 16–65. Figures for those aged over 65 are not currently available, as this kind of research focuses on the working population.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many servicemen or women were required to leave the armed services for failing compulsory drug tests over the past five years. [HL1442]

The number of service personnel who were discharged from the Armed Forces over the last five calendar years for failing a compulsory drugs test is as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was the average cost of providing a car and driver to enable government Ministers to carry out official duties; and, if separate figures are available, what was the average cost for (a) a Cabinet Minister and (b) a Minister outside the Cabinet, for the latest year for which figures are available. [HL1319]

The responsibility for the provision of ministerial cars and drivers has been delegated under the terms of the Framework Document to the Government Car and Despatch Agency. I have asked its chief executive, Mr Nick Matheson to write to the noble Lord. Copies of his letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much private and public sector funding was allocated in the 10-year Transport Plan for rail freight; and, for each year, how much has been spent. [HL1410]

When the 10-year plan was launched, funding for rail freight comprised, roundly, £½ billion from the private sector and £3½ billion from the public sector.£69 million was provided for freight in 2001–02 including £16 million from the private sector, and £49 million in 2002–03 including £15 million from the private sector.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have concluded their review of the use of tax strips for alcohol excise duty. [HL1478]

Treasury Ministers and their officials are continuing to consult the industry on both the impact of tax stamps for spirits and the industry's proposed package of alternative measures for reducing fraud.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their estimate of the compliance cost for United Kingdom businesses in terms of (a) one-off costs and (b) annual costs if tax strips for alcohol excise duty were introduced; and [HL1479]On which businesses or business sectors the costs of compliance with tax strips for alcohol excise duty would fall if they were introduced; and [HL1480]What are the cash flow implications for United Kingdom businesses of the introduction of tax strips for alcohol excise duty, analysed by business sector. [HL1481]

The Government announced in the Pre-Budget Report that they intend to introduce tax stamps for early 2006 as part of a reinforced strategy to tackle alcohol fraud. Tax stamps would apply only to spirits, as that is the sector in which fraud is estimated to be particularly high. The Government have also invited the industry to put forward alternative proposals which would be equally effective in tackling fraud. Both the practicalities of tax stamps and possible alternative proposals are being considered now in detailed discussions with the industry.The costs of compliance for different sectors of the industry would depend on the measures taken to implement tax stamps, and on any measures the Government might introduce to offset that impact. The Government have said that they would consider how the current deferment arrangement for spirits duty could be extended as far as practical in recognition of the cash flow effects of purchasing tax stamps, and freezing spirits duty for the remainder of this Parliament.A full regulatory impact assessment will be produced if the Government proceed with this measure. This would make clear which business sectors would incur compliance costs, and what the nature and scale of those costs (one-off, annual, cashflow) would be.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their estimate of the loss of alcohol excise duty each year due to fraud; and what are the assumptions on which the estimate is based. [HL1482]

HM Customs and Excise's latest estimate of the revenue loss (including duty and VAT) from alcohol fraud in 1999–2000,2000–02 and 2001–02 are available in its annual report published in December 2003, (HC52). An estimate for 2002–03 is not yet available.The assumptions used to produce these estimates are set out in Customs' paper

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any countries operate effective tax strip systems for alcohol excise duty; and, if so, which. [HL1483]

Tax stamps have been introduced in 40 different countries for a variety of reasons ranging from quality assurance to tackling alcohol fraud.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What issue is to be discussed in Cabinet Committee on Tuesday 10 February which requires the Lord Chancellor to give precedence to that duty rather than attend the House. [HL1251]

It is established practice under Exemption 2 of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information not to disclose information relating to the proceedings of the Cabinet and its committees.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress they have made to fulfil their commitment to develop and publish

Good progress has been made to fulfil the Government's commitment to develop and publish a Framework for Vocational Rehabilitation by late summer 2004. The Government are currently working with stakeholders to take forward the following work strands: drawing out the key messages from existing reviews and research into vocational rehabilitation; learning the lessons from what we currently do; and gathering additional information from stakeholders.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Lord Sainsbury of Turville, since appointment as Minister for Science and Innovation, has been present at any meeting or participated in any telephone conversation with Ministers or officials in which genetically modified foods were mentioned or discussed. [HL1477]

No. Since my appointment as Minister for Science in July 1998, I have not taken part in any government decisions or discussions relating to GM food policy, including the Sci-Bio Committee where I actively remove myself from any discussions taking place on GM food issues and I see no papers on this subject.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In each of the past five years (a) how many individuals were sentenced to community service; and (b) how many hours in total of community service were awarded by the courts. [HL1215]

The available information, from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database, shows the number of persons sentenced to community punishment orders imposed by courts in England and Wales, and the total hours of community punishment awarded for each of the years 1998 to 2002, is as follows:

Persons sentenced to community punishment orders1 and total number of hours of community punishment imposed by all courts in England and Wales, 1998 to 2002
Year	Persons sentenced to community punishment1	Total number of hours awarded1
1998	69,749	7,373,633
1999	70,330	7,358,844
2000	69,224	7,200,420

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much has been spent by the Probation Service and the Prison Service respectively on "cognitive skills" programmes; and whether they will give comparative statistics of the reconviction rates of persons who undertook these programmes, and of their control groups. [HL1249]

The expenditure on cognitive skills programmes for the two services is given below.

Probation Service
£ million	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04
Existing baseline			15	31	45
SR2000			15	111	25
Total			30	42	70
1The figures for 2002–03 and 2003–04 reflect the virement of funds as agreed with Hilary Benn in October 2002, ie a reduction of £20 million.

The table shows annual expenditure (including some training costs), the money was spent on a suite of accredited programmes that tackle substance abuse, sex offending, violence and generic cognitive skills programmes. The completion target for 2003–04 is 15,000 offenders.

Prison Service
£ million	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04
Comprehensive Spending Review	7.3	8.4	8.9	8.9	8.9
Crime Reduction Programme	0.7	1.1	1.5	—	—
Spending Review 2000	—	—	—	3.6	11.6
Total	8.0	9.5	10.4	12.5	20.5

The table above relates to investment in establishments on offending behaviour programmes since 1999–2000. This includes generic "cognitive skills" programmes and specialist programmes for violent and sex offenders [but not drug programmes].

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they consider that civil partnerships between parents who wish to make a commitment to be responsible parents, but who are either unable or unwilling to marry, could help to increase the number of children enjoying the benefits of a stable family. [HL1389]

Same-sex couples, some of whom bring up children together, currently have no opportunity to obtain a legal status for their relationship. The civil partnership proposals would give them this opportunity. The Government agree that stable families provide the best environment for children, and the associated rights and responsibilities of civil partnership would help same-sex couples to provide and care for their families.The Government recognise that marriage is the best foundation for opposite-sex couples raising children and remains the choice of the majority of people in Britain. Opposite-sex couples who wish to obtain legal recognition for their relationships already have the choice of marriage. There are no plans to allow opposite-sex couples to register a civil partnership.