asked Her Majesty's Government:When the Eire Government informed the Northern Ireland Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure of its contribution towards the Ulster-Scots Agency's budget for 2004; how much was that contribution; and what is the figure agreed by the North/South Ministerial Council replacement procedure. [HL1633]

The 2004 budget for the Ulster-Scots Agency was set after consultation between the sponsor departments and the agency. The chief executive was advised on 30 October 2003 that the Ulster-Scots Agency's budget for 2004 would be in the region of £1.67 million. The Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (DCRGA) advised the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) on 13 November 2003 that the 2004 abridged estimates had been published and the amount allocated for the North/South Language Body was 14.633 million euros. There was no breakdown for the Irish Language Agency or the Ulster-Scots Agency. The budget figure agreed for the Ulster-Scots Agency by the North/South Ministerial Council under the interim procedure was £ 1.704 million.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the 2004 budgets for the Cross-Border Implementation Bodies; what percentage change these represent over 2003; and what change in the proportion contributed by each government. [HL1669]

The approved budgets for 2004 for each of the North/South Implementation Bodies and the percentage change compared to the 2003 budgets are set out in the table below. The proportion contributed by each government remained unchanged for all of the bodies except the Special EU Programmes Body, for which the northern contribution to the budget was increased from 55 per cent in 2003 to 56 per cent in 2004.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why the budget of the Waterways Ireland Cross-Border Implementation Body was increased by 6.3 per cent between 2002 and 2003; what information was used to facilitate the increase; and whether the proportion of contributions has changed. [HL1715]

Waterways Ireland operates in euros. Its budget for 2002 was set at 37.24 million euros or £21.99 million using an exchange rate of 0.59.The budget for 2003 was set in euros at 35.89 million euros or £22.61 million using an exchange rate of 0.63. Unfortunately, the Answer given by my predecessor the late Lord Williams of Mostyn on 10 March 2003 (

asked Her Majesty's Government:What funding they provided for the major Irish festival in west Belfast in 2003; from what sources and on what basis the funding was provided; and when were the applications for funding received. [HL1885]

In 2003 Féile an Phobail (Féile), often described as the West Belfast Festival, received government funding totalling £583,480 through the Department of Social Development (DSD), Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL), Department of Finance and Personnel (DFP) and Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI). The following table sets out the funding source, the basis of the funding, the date the application was received and the amount of government funding allocated in 2003.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What measures they consider should have been taken, or should now be taken, to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in Darfur. [HL2222]

DfID is very concerned about the humanitarian situation in Darfur and is working to bring about improvements. The UN and other international agencies are now present in some areas of Darfur, though limited access means limited ability to protect the most vulnerable and respond to needs. A key concern is protection of civilians. DfID has contributed over £8 million in response to the crisis and seconded four humanitarian officers to the UN to reinforce its response. Ceasefire talks in N'Djamena are a welcome first step to resolving the crisis.

asked the Leader of the House:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 11 March (

This information is only available from 23 January 2002.From 23 January 2002 to 22 January 2004, 9,013 Questions for Written Answer were tabled. Of these, 5,384 (60 per cent) were answered within the two-week deadline. The table below gives a breakdown by department (for completeness, I have included both the Scotland and Wales Office).I continue to review all outstanding Questions with my ministerial colleagues on a weekly basis and am pleased to say that since 22 January 2004 to date, 1,341 Questions for Written Answer have been tabled, of which 74 per cent have been answered within the two-week deadline—a big improvement on the previous figures.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have intervened in proceedings pending before the Supreme Court of the United States; and, if so, for what reason and upon what issues. [HL1406]

The Government have intervened in two cases currently pending before the US Supreme Court.The Government, together with the Australian and Swiss Governments, filed an amicus brief on 23 January 2004 in the

asked Her Majesty's Government:What assessment they have made of the extent to which the borders between (a) Kosovo and Albania and (b) Kosovo and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia are adequately secured; and who controls these borders. [HL2046]

Responsibility for border control points in Kosovo is held by the Kosovo police service under the authority of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo. Responsibility for the border security of Kosovo, including adjacent to the border with Albania and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, rests with the NATO-led Kosovo Force. On the Macedonian side of the border, responsibility for border crossing points rests with the Macedonian border police, and for the rest of the border with the First Army Brigade. On the Albanian side of the border, the Albanian police are responsible for border control. We assess that Kosovo's borders with both Albania and Macedonia are adequately secured.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answers by the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean on 6 October 2003 (

In accordance with our obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998, we are not in a position to give details requested in parts (a) to (d) of the question. I am withholding this information under exemptions 12 and 15 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.We have received no indication from their families or lawyers that any of the British residents detained at Guantanamo Bay are British nationals or have the status of British protected persons. The Government are therefore not in a position to provide them with consular or diplomatic assistance

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they support the establishment of an academy to train European Union-based diplomats, so as to complement the work of the national embassies in promoting European Union initiatives, including its common foreign and security policy. [HL2167]

The intergovernmental conference at the end of 2003 did not discuss the proposal from the Convention on the Future of Europe's External Action Working Group for the creation of an EU diplomatic academy. The Government would want to see details of any proposal before considering support.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have made representations to Syria concerning recent killings by their security forces and about long-standing denial of citizenship and passports to numbers of ethnic minorities. [HL2188]

Our embassy in Damascus is monitoring events in the north-east of Syria following the recent disturbances in Qamishli. We have raised our concerns about the disturbances, and the standing of the Syrian Kurdish population with the Syrian authorities. While we welcome the current calm we will continue to closely monitor the situation.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which programmes funded by the Home Office and its sponsored bodies can be accessed by sports organisations to promote (a) social inclusion; (b) crime reduction; (c) drug reduction; (d) social cohesion; and (e) anti-racism. [HL1944]

Home Office funding that could be accessed by sport organisations includes: Positive Activities for Young People, Positive Futures, the Building Safer Communities Fund, the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's Purposeful Activity for Asylum Seekers and the Youth Justice Board's Youth Inclusion Programme. Although Home Office funding does not go directly to sports organisations, sport is recognised as a key mechanism for engaging individuals and communities. Indirectly sports clubs and organisations contribute much to the development of active and safe communities.For example, diversionary schemes that engage young people in sports or recreational-based constructive activity targeted to steer those young people most at risk away from crime are a key to the Government's programme for reducing youth crime.Positive Activities for Young People (PAYP) is a national scheme to provide developmental activities during all school holiday periods for young people at risk of becoming involved in offending.PAYP received £25 million single pot funding for 2003–04, to which the New Opportunities Fund, Department for Education and Skills and the Home Office contributed, bringing together funding streams previously going into Connexions Summer Plus, Splash, Splash Extra and community cohesion activities.The programme aims to reduce youth offending and encourage and support young people to return to education or training. The emphasis is on providing quality sports, arts and creative activities that are not only appealing but focussed on the young person's individual needs, equipping them with new skills, improving their self-esteem and breaking down ethnic and cultural barriers. Key worker support—provided through the Connexions service—helps those most at risk.Another programme is Positive Futures, which is a national sport and activity-based programme for young people and is addressing the multiple issues associated with problematic substance misuse. It is targeted at marginalised young people in the 10–19 age range living in the top 20 per cent most deprived communities, according to the indices of multiple deprivation.Although Positive Futures is primarily a drug prevention programme it addresses issues of social inclusion, crime reduction and community cohesion. 20 per cent of the 14,000 project participants last year were from black and minority ethnic communities.Positive Futures brings together in one programme the support of a number of government departments and agencies including the Home Office, Department of Health, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Connexions (Department for Education and Skills), Sport England, Youth Justice Board and the Football Foundation.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Statement by the Baroness Scotland of Asthal on 15 March (HL Deb, col. 119), what specific measures they intend to take to secure "the improvement of the initial decision-making process" in refugee cases; and whether they will earmark funds for this purpose. [HL1962]

The Government are committed to delivering high quality decisions at all stages of the asylum system. Many improvements have already been made, including setting a specific target for decision quality, introducing quality assurance systems involving both internal and external assessment, enhanced training and use of language testing.We are determined to build on these improvements to ensure that the highest standards are consistently achieved. We are discussing with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees how they might work with us to provide an additional external assessment of the quality of decisions. We are looking at other ways of strengthening the quality of assurance systems, including sampling a cohort of the same cases at each stage of the initial decision process. We are developing greater external input to our training from other organisations with specialist skills and have introduced the Independent Country Information Advisory Panel to ensure that the country information is as accurate, objective and up to date as possible. These and other measures will continue to drive up the quality of initial decisions.Despite the rapid fall in the number of asylum applications in 2003, down to 49,370 and 41 per cent lower than in 2002, we have maintained the resources available for decision-making on asylum claims. This has enabled us to reduce the backlog of outstanding applications to 24,500—the lowest level for a decade—and to increase the investment in initial and refresher training for asylum caseworkers.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will add the political wing of Hamas to the proscribed list of terrorist organisations in light of that group's recent announcement that it was responsible for recruiting, training and deploying the British suicide bombers who killed three Israelis and injured many others in 'Mike's Place' bar in Tel Aviv in April 2003. [HL1967]

Decisions to proscribe and de-proscribe are and will continue to be taken only after the most careful consideration and on the basis of the best possible security and other appropriate advice. That will remain the basis for all decisions in the future.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Hollis of Heigham on 9 March (

It is not possible to identify these costs separately within the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's expenditure.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the areas of Home Office policy within the scope of work done by Dr Matt Cavanagh, special adviser to the Home Secretary; and whether those areas include the Government's policies or practices as regards equality of opportunity, or legislation and practice regarding race relations, immigration and asylum or the functions of the proposed Equality and Human Rights Commission. [HL2032]

Dr Cavanagh is responsible for advising the Home Secretary on the development and communication of policy and practice in the following areas: immigration, nationality, and asylum; race and community cohesion; citizenship and active communities; Europe; research and statistics.Equal opportunity policy cuts across most government departments and is a government policy rather than the responsibility of any single department though the Home Office has specific responsibility for race equality and social cohesions.Work on the proposed Equality and Human Rights Commission involves several government departments, including the Home Office, and is co-ordinated by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

asked Her Majesty's Government:What plans they have for future development of HM Prison Maghaberry in relation to asylum seekers. [HL2066]

We have no plans for future development of Her Majesty's Prison Maghaberry in relation to asylum seekers.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are satisfied that current facilities in HM Prison Maghaberry are appropriate for the detention of those seeking asylum in the United Kingdom. [HL2067]

We are satisfied that the current facilities in Her Majesty's Prison Maghaberry are appropriate for the accommodation of immigration detainees who wish to remain in Northern Ireland rather than be transferred to an Immigration Service removal centre in Great Britain.The location of immigration detainees at HMP Maghaberry is separate from the main prison population and every effort is made to cater for their needs. These detainees are managed as untried prisoners with a more favourable regime, which is more akin to that of enhanced prisoners.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are satisfied that all alternatives to HM Prison Maghaberry as a location for those seeking asylum in the United Kingdom have been examined. [HL2068]

We have no plans at present to end the use of Her Majesty's Prison Maghaberry for the very small numbers of immigration detainees who express a preference to remain in Northern Ireland rather than be transferred to an Immigration Service removal centre in Great Britain. The small numbers of individuals concerned, usually fewer than 10 at any one time, would not be sufficient to make a dedicated detention facility in Northern Ireland viable to establish or operate.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action has been taken to implement the recommendations of the 2002 Joseph Rowntree Foundation study,

Since the study was published in 2002, the respective responsibilities of the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) and local authorities have been clarified in the House of Lords (R v Westminster City Council (ex parte NASS)). On 25 March 2004, the Home Office issued a consultation document on proposals for the support of asylum seekers with care needs. The consultation document aims at establishing a clear process for asylum seekers with care needs so that they can receive appropriate care and that the most vulnerable cases are recognised, and suitable care organised, at the earliest opportunity.NASS has special teams that deal with complex and specific cases of need.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether in the context of the Children Bill they will withdraw their reservation to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, as regards children affected by immigration legislation; and, if not, why not. [HL2092]

The Government have no plans to withdraw the United Kingdom's immigration and nationality reservation to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. No child in the United Kingdom is deprived of UN rights but entry to the United Kingdom solely to claim such rights should not be permitted. It would not be right for the immigration rules to be utilised simply in order to make use of convention rights when there already exists in United Kingdom law comprehensive provision for the care and protection of children. The Children Bill does not alter the Government's conclusion that the reservation is necessary to maintain an effective immigration control.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many offences of failing to stop after a road traffic accident resulting in injury were committed in the five years prior to 1 October 2001; and [HL2146]How many offences of failing to stop after a road traffic accident resulting in injury have been committed since October 2001 when this became an arrestable offence; and how many drivers have been arrested; and [HL2147]If no statistics exist in respect of failing to stop after a road traffic accident resulting in injury, what measures they will put in place to ensure that such statistics are collected. [HL2149]

Within England and Wales information on the number of offences committed by drivers and the number of drivers arrested for the offence of failing to stop after road traffic accident is not collected centrally.Available information given in table A shows the number of offences proceeded against by result for the offence of failing to stop after an accident under the Road Traffic Act 1988 Section 170 (4) from 1997 to 2001, England and Wales (latest available).There are no current plans to separate those offences of failing to stop after an accident, which result in injury from those resulting in damage or both.For Scotland available information, given in table B, is taken from the Scottish Executive Justice Department's court proceedings database, and shows the number of persons proceeded against, and the number of crimes recorded by the police, where the main crime/offence was failing to stop or report a road traffic accident.There are no current plans to separate those offences which result in injury from those which result in damage or both injury and damage.As failing to stop after a road traffic collision is not a recordable offence the Police Service of Northern Ireland does not therefore record these statistics. The offence is not an arrestable offence in Northern Ireland and there are no plans at present to record such information.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How drivers arrested for failing to stop after a road traffic accident resulting in injury have been identified, through fingerprints or DNA, as having been involved in other criminal activities. [HL2148]

Such records are not kept centrally within England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Scotland of Asthal on 5 March (

The Government consider that the activities referred to in the reply given on 5 March will lead to an improving awareness among the public of attempts to perpetrate fraudulent activities.We are aware of the reports from the Association of Payment Clearing Services (APACS) as to the recent period when there were an increasing number of phishing e-mails reported. We continue to monitor such incidences and work together with industry and law enforcement to ensure that there is an appropriate response in relation to all such occurrences of attempted fraudulent activity.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which interested organisation they intend to consult with regard to the proposed review of firearms legislation. [HL2204]

We are keen to receive views from everybody with an interest in the future regulation of firearms and will be distributing the consultation paper widely. It will also be available on the internet.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What air defence capability at sea is provided by the Harrier GR7/9; and [HL1793]Whether the Harrier GR7/9 has an all-weather night air defence capability; and [HL1794]What beyond visual range air-to-air capability is provided by the Harrier GR7/9. [HL1795]

The Harrier GR7/9's principal roles are ground attack and reconnaissance, not air defence. The short range infra-red guided AIM 9L sidewinder missiles it carries are for self-defence. This capability can be employed at night, but relies on the pilot being able to acquire a target aircraft, for instance using forward-looking infra-red or night vision goggles. There is no current intention to equip the GR7/9 with a beyond visual range air-to-air capability.

Bay asked Her Majesty's Government:How many persons are now held at the United Kingdom's detention facility in Shaibah, Iraq; what are their nationalities; and how many of those held in Shaibah have been held there or elsewhere in Iraq for (a) at least three months, (b) at least six months and (c) at least nine months. [HL1879]

As at 24 March 2004, the UK held 81 internees in the divisional temporary detention facility in Shaibah. The nationalities of these internees are: one Egyptian. one Sudanese, one Syrian, three Saudi Arabians and 75 Iraqis. Forty-eight have been interned for at least three months, 18 for at least six months, and two for at least nine months. Those internees who are interned by the UK prior to the opening of the divisional temporary detention facility on 15 December 2003, were held in an internment facility near Umm Qasr.Whether any or these internees have been held previously anywhere else in Iraq by other authorities, is a matter for those authorities.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many overseas personnel, and from which countries, received language training at the Defence School of Languages in each of the past three years. [HL1898]

The number of overseas students trained at the Defence School of Languages for the last three years is:

of Manchester asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answers by the Lord Bach of 4 and 5 March (

In setting the level of the benefits paid to widows and widowers under the new Armed Forces Compensation Scheme due account has been taken of the taxable nature of income payments. It would not be appropriate to seek to reclassify them.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What plans there are to make the Army's new command leadership and management courses for non-commissioned officers available to members of the Territorial Army. [HL1991]

A study is currently being conducted to identify how best to integrate the Territorial Army into command leadership and management training. Initial findings from the study are likely to be available later this year.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will give details of the current staff levels of British Army training support units, training units and training teams outside the United Kingdom and Germany; and [HL2042]What plans they have for British Army training support units, training units and training teams outside the United Kingdom and Germany. [HL2043]

The current staffing levels of those permanent army training units, based outside the United Kingdom and Germany, are listed below. There are no current plans to alter their present role.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What compensation claims have been paid to Kenyan civilians since November 2002 as a result of claims made against the Ministry of Defence. [HL2229]

The Ministry of Defence has paid £5 million compensation to Kenyan civilians since November 2002 for injury and death allegedly caused by munitions left on ranges by members of HM Forces while on exercise in Kenya. The first 233 claims were settled by way of mediation in July 2002 for £4.5 million with payments made in or after November 2002. The second tranche of 1,046 claimants were paid £500,000 in February 2004 following a mediation meeting in November 2003.In addition, minor amounts of compensation have been paid in relation to road traffic accidents. Details of these payments are not held centrally and can only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What guidance they will give to local authorities about the review of cases where children have been placed on "at risk" registers as a consequence of disputed medical evidence, even though that evidence may not have been tested in the courts. [HL1994]

We have no plans to issue further guidance to local authorities which relates to the review of children who have been placed on the child protection register as a consequence of disputed medical evidence which may not have been tested in the courts.The local authority circular, LAC(2004)5, which was issued on 25 February 2004, provided guidance to councils about the action needed in the light of the judgment of the Court of Appeal in the criminal case of

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they received any complaints relating to issues of conflict of interest in the allocation of a contract to Health Care Projects, a subsidiary of Skanska Innisfree, for the rebuilding of St Bartholemew's and the Royal London Hospital under the private finance initiative; and, if so, whether consideration was given to such complaints before or after the signing of the contract. [HL1810]

We do not accept that any conflict of interest has arisen in the appointment of Skanska/Innisfree as the preferred bidder for the redevelopment project at the Barts and the London NHS Trust. Throughout the entire procurement process the trust has been open and transparent about the involvement of former trust staff with Skanska/Innisfree.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many registered diabetics there are in the area covered by South Tyneside Primary Care Trust; and of these how many are aged (a) 0–4; (b) 5–14; (c) 15–24; (d) 25–34; (e) 35–44; (45–54; (g) 55–64; and (h) 65 or over. [HL1926]

This information is not available in the form requested. However, the Health Survey for England estimates that the number of people with diabetes in England is as follows:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in the interests of consumer choice, they will seek improvements to European Commission Regulation 1829/2003 by requiring the labelling of meat and milk to show whether or not it has been produced from genetically modified animal feed. [HL2018]

European Commission Regulation 1829/2003 will be reviewed two years after adoption. This will provide an opportunity to discuss revisions to the regulation for example the labelling of milk and meat from animals fed genetically modified animal feed.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to ministerial undertakings to consult the Haemophilia Society on all aspects of

As part of the Department of Health's ongoing dialogue, officials from the departments of health in England, Scotland and Wales met with representatives from the Haemophilia Society and other patient groups on 26 March 2004 to discuss the implementation of the ex gratia payment scheme, and in particular the application process.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What proportion of pharmacies have facilities to obtain information about a customer's medical history in private. [HL2028]

This information is not held centrally.However, the Office of Fair Trading's report

asked Her Majesty's Government:As a result of the Health Ombudsman's February 2003 report on National Health Service continuing care:

The Department of Health does not collect information on the setting in which people receive continuing care or the number of individuals who have requested a further review by a panel hearing. The position on the total number of investigations, the number of people recompensed, rejected for recompense or remaining outstanding will be reviewed after the end of March 2004.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether there are any differences between the European Social Charter 1961 and the revised charter which create potential obstacles to ratification of the revised charter by the United Kingdom; and, if so, whether they will identify the nature of the obstacles. [HL2036]

Some of the new and extended provisions of the revised social charter are not clearly defined and appear to require open-ended commitments from governments. The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) considered the application of the revised charter by the first states that had ratified it, for the first time in 2002–03. In its conclusions on the first national reports, the ECSR stated that it will progressively determine its interpretation of the amended and new provisions and has asked the relevant countries for a range of additional information to help it do so. The UK Government hope that definitions will be clearer following forthcoming interpretations from the ECSR in 2004–06, to help to inform its decisions on which of the new or extended provisions of the revised charter it can accept with a view to ratification.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend to locate offices of the Pension Protection Fund in southern England; and, if so, how this can be reconciled with the Lyons report recommendation for an enforced presumption against London and south-east locations for new government bodies and activities. [HL2129]

When considering the location of the Pension Protection Fund we took into account the principles of the Lyons review before reaching a decision.The Department for Work and Pensions is acutely aware of the need to consider location as part of the business requirements and is already widely dispersed. Further departmental relocation proposals out of London and the south-east are included in the Lyons review.In reaching a decision to locate the Pension Protection Fund in southern England we looked at three independent criteria:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they propose to withhold the proposed acquisition of Alvis by General Dynamics from European merger scrutiny for reasons of national security; and, if so, whether they propose to require assurances from General Dynamics as to the future operation of Alvis before reaching a conclusion on this proposal. [HL1986]

No decision has yet been reached regarding the Government's position on the regulatory scrutiny of the proposed merger.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What discussions they have had with the local authorities and any other organisations in the area before any closure of sub-post offices in Northern Ireland is proposed. [HL2077]

These are operational matters for Post Office Ltd and my honourable friend the Minister for Energy, E-Commerce and Postal Services has asked the chief executive to respond direct to the noble Lord.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Competition Commission has investigated the current level of legal fees; and, if not, whether any such investigation is planned. [HL2130]

The Competition Commission has not recently investigated legal fees.Decisions on whether any features of a market require investigation on competition grounds are primarily a matter for the Office of Fair Trading.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Sainsbury of Turville on 22 March (

My previous response stated that any attempt to estimate the level of imports of biomass or its source would be highly speculative and the data unreliable. Consequently, it would be also doubtful that we could make any such calculations on transportation costs in terms of average carbon equivalent emissions per MWh of electricity generated as they would again be based on unreliable and not readily available data.However, a recent study carried out in support of the Renewables Innovation Review made a comparision of the CO

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Department of Trade and Industry is ceasing to collect statistics under its home and leisure accidents surveillance system and to provide the accompanying inquiry service; and, if so, for what reasons. [HL2164]

My honourable friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield, the then Consumer Minister, announced withdrawal of support for the home and leisure accidents surveillance system on 2 May 2003, due to increased pressure on resources and the need to focus on DTI core priorities.Statistics to the end of 2002, the last in the series, were published by DTI on 18 December 2003.However, the DTI continued to provide the inquiry service until 1 January 2004 and since then the Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents has been contracted to provide this service for a period of a further five years.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In view of the number of accidents involving people falling on wooden floors and requiring attendance at hospital, what action they will take to improve advice given by wooden floor manufacturers and fitters to inform the public better. [HL2165]

The rising trend in home accidents involving wooden floors is a reflection of the increasing popularity of this type of flooring. The Department of Trade and Industry has no plans to take any specific action with regard to the instructions provided by manufacturers or fitters. As with other similar flooring surfaces, such as ceramic tiles and vinyl, consumers should take the normal precautions to reduce the risk of falling accidents. These include wearing slip-resistant footwear, avoiding polishing under rugs and mats and mopping up immediately any spilled liquid.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, when they advise miners and widows who miss the cut-off date of 31 March 2004 in the British Coal respiratory disease litigation that claims can still be made at common law, they will also advise them that unsuccessful claimants would be liable for all legal costs. [HL2244]

The DTI will continue to provide a freephone helpline, which will give claimants details of the claims process. Claimants will be advised to contact a solicitor to process a claim and they will be informed that they need to raise the issue of costs with their solicitor.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why they have taken six years to settle 117,000 claims under the British Coal respiratory disease litigation; why three-quarters of claims remain outstanding, and when they expect the final settlement of all claims. [HL2245]

Delays have been caused by, among other reasons, duplicate claims and solicitors and clients not accepting initial offers. Claims are prioritised to ensure payment to miners who are living and of the 520,000 claims received to date, 227,000 were received in the past six months.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What has been the total administrative and legal expenditure under the British Coal respiratory disease litigation as at 31 March 2004 broken down into payments made to (a) claims handlers; (b) medical service providers; (c) Coal Health Claims Unit; Department of Trade and Industry; (d) Nabarro Nathanson, the department's solicitors; (e) the Solicitors Co-ordinating Group: and (f) solicitors representing individual claimants. [HL2247]

To date, the total administrative cost of the British Coal respiratory disease litigation liabilities for claim handlers and medical services is £323 million. It is not possible to break this figure down into separate diseases or individual contractors, as the information remains commercial in confidence. To date, we have paid £275.2 million to solicitors with regard to British Coal disease work. The administrative cost of the coal health claims unit is estimated to be £1.7 million for the financial year 2003–04.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why, under the British Coal vibration white finger litigation, they now require elderly miners and widows to produce witness statements from former colleagues, when successive Ministers have given assurances that the miners' word would be taken. [HL2246]

The assurances my noble friend is referring to relate to claims in respect of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), whereby if a claimant submits his work history and other documentation supporting his claim, then his word would be taken. This is subject to the claimant's legal representative explaining what steps they had taken to obtain corroborating witness statements and that there is no contradiction in the evidence. This applies to claims submitted by elderly miners and widows.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they are taking, following the recent ruling by the Law Society, to require solicitors who have double charged to make full repayment, with judgment rate interest, of all fees unlawfully deducted from compensation awarded to miners and widows under the High Court schemes for vibration white finger and respiratory disease. [HL2248]

My honourable friend the Member for Edinburgh South, as the Minister responsible for coal health claims, has written to solicitors asking them to repay any fees taken from clients on top of the fee they received from the DTI. Those who have failed to reply to my honourable friend's letter have been removed from the DTI's list of solicitors and have been referred to the Law Society.The Government welcome the decision taken by the Law Society, as the solicitors regulator, that it was against their code of practice for solicitors to charge clients for making compensation claims where the DTI is meeting solicitors' costs. DTI officials continue to meet with the Law Society to progress matters.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in connection with the British Coal respiratory disease and vibration white finger litigation, they will now instruct their claims handlers that cheques be drawn in favour of the miner or widow claimant, thereby preventing solicitors double charging and others deducting unlawful fees from awards of compensation. [HL2249]

As a matter of course cheques issued by IRISC, the department's claims handlers, are drawn in the name of the claimant. Cheques are issued in the name of another individual or organisation only where signed authority from the claimant has been received.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will now refer the conduct of solicitors who have double-charged in the British Coal vibration white finger and respiratory disease litigation to the Serious Fraud Office; and, if not, why not. [HL2264]

Conduct of solicitors is being dealt with by their regulator, the Law Society. Those firms of solicitors who have failed to confirm that they are not double charging have been referred to the Law Society.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many common law vibration white finger claims have been lodged with the Department of Trade and Industry in respect of living miners since 31 October 2002, the cut-off date in the British Coal litigation; how many of those claims were settled by payment; and what was the total compensation paid. [HL2265]

As at 28 March 2004, 1,785 claims have been submitted since the vibration white finger scheme was closed to live claimants on 31 October 2002. 1,547 were from live claimants and 238 from the families of former miners. Of the 1,785, 840 have been denied, the remainder have not been settled because they are being investigated at present.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will cancel the exclusive handling agreement for miners' respiratory claims between the Department of Trade and Industry and the Union of Democratic Mineworkers (Nottingham Section), given that such claims are marketed for profit through Vendside Limited. [HL2266]

The agreements with the UDM/Vendside ceased with the closure of the schemes.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether compliance with Department of Trade and Industry guidelines has had an adverse effect on the performance of their claims handlers in respect of miners' and widows' respiratory and vibration white finger claims; and when those guidelines will be made available for scrutiny, as agreed by the Minister responsible for coal health claims.[HL2267]

Claims under both schemes are processed in accordance with the claims handling agreements, agreed with the miners' solicitors.My honourable friend the member for Edinburgh South, the Minister responsible for coal health claims, circulated to members of the Coal Health National Monitoring Group copies of the vibration white finger group 3 guidelines earlier this year. He agreed to provide members with copies of previous copies of the guidelines shortly. The guidelines have led to a uniform and consistent approach to the handling of group 3 claims and the number of claims being reviewed per month has increased since the beginning of this year.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Department of Trade and Industry entered into an exclusive handling agreement for mining claims with Vendside Limited, as claimed by that company; if not, whether the department approved the assignment of any such handling agreement entered into with the Union of Democratic Mineworkers (Nottingham Section) to Vendside Limited; and whether they will make all relevant documentation available for inspection. [HL2268]

The claims handling agreements entered into with the UDM/Vendside Ltd are identical to those reached with the claimants solicitors group in all aspects except the costs tariff, which is lower under the UDM/Vendside Ltd agreements.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many art galleries have received grant aid in the north-west of England during the years 2001, 2002,2003 and 2004 to date. [HL2126]

The numbers of art galleries in the North West receiving Exchequer-funded grants from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are as follows (records are kept for financial years):

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Answer by the Lord McIntosh of Haringey on 23 March (HL Deb, col. 588), whether civil servants were involved in briefing the

I refer the noble Lord to what I said in the House on 23 March. Consistent with convention, the Government do not comment on leaked reports.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What facilities form part of the English Institute of Sport; where the funds for the construction of sites came from; who owns the sites; and what were the incomes charged to national governing bodies of sport for the use of facilities in 2002–03 and 2003–04. [HL2177]

The table lists all of the facilities that form part of the English Institute of Sport.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What assessment has been made of the impact of the charging arrangements by national governing bodies of sport on the use of facilities that form part of the English Institute of Sport. [HL2178]

The costs of elite governing body use of the English Institute of' Sport sites are met through governing bodies' world class performance plans and a lottery-funded facility hire programme.This ensures that governing bodies have autonomy in deciding the most suitable location for their athletes to train and facility owners have confirmation that there will be funding available to cover their overheads.Facility owners have to apply to Sport England to access the facility hire budget and each application is assessed to ensure maximum benefits are derived from the funding. In addition Sport England monitors the grants to measure their effectiveness on an ongoing basis for the duration of the grant period.The programme is in its infancy, but the early indications are that governing bodies are gaining sufficient access to sites and facility owners are able to meet their requirements effectively as there is sufficient funding in place to cover their costs.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the policy and practice of the Inland Revenue regarding the deduction from liablity to tax of financial incentives paid to United Kingdom companies or individuals to foreign governments or foreign corporations, or their officers, employees or agents, to encourage them to enter into commercial contracts or other profitable arrangements with United Kingdom firms. [HL2180]

Section 577A of the Taxes Act 1988 provides that, when computing taxable profits, a business is not allowed relief for expenditure incurred on illegal payments. A financial incentive paid by a company or an individual to a third party for business purposes will not be deductible if the making of that payment constitutes a criminal offence in the UK, or would do so if the payment were made in the UK.The Inland Revenue's policy and practice is to apply the legislation as intended.

asked Her Majesty's Government:From where the funds will be found to finance the hid for London to host the 2012 Olympic Games in the event of the bid failing. [HL2304]

The memorandum of understanding between the Government and the Mayor of London, presented to Parliament in June 2003 as Command Paper CM 5867, states that "DCMS and the London Development Agency propose to contribute to the costs of the bid organisation and associated planning in equal shares to July 2005 to a combined limit of £30 million." London 2012 is also seeking private sector funds to support the bid.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether consideration has been given to London residents receiving preferential access to tickets for the 2012 Olympic Games in the event of a successful hid for London to stage the event. [HL2305]

There are no plans for London residents to benefit from a preferential ticketing policy. However, a number of events such as the marathon, road cycling and triathlon are likely to be able to accommodate large numbers of local people watching free of charge.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What would happen if the estimated cost of £2.375 billion required to stage the 2012 Olympic Games, in the event of a succcessful hid, overran; and whether the Government would cover the deficit. [HL2308]

The up to £2.375 billion funding package described in the memorandum of understanding between the Government and the Mayor of London published in June 2003 makes allowance for the potential public sector contribution to support the staging of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This is in addition to private sector sources of funding such as sponsorship and television rights. Beyond this, the Government, as stated in the memorandum of understanding and reiterated in a departmental minute presented to Parliament on 2 December 2003, have given a commitment to be the ultimate guarantor for the Games. On current contingency plans, the Goverment would expect to discharge this responsibility, should it arise, in a sharing arrangement to be agreed as appropriate with the Mayor of London and for their part seeking additional National Lottery funding. These expectations will be further reviewed in summer 2005.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How members of the public, or litigants in United Kingdom courts, can obtain particulars of any Act of Parliament or any part thereof arising from a directive of the European Community and Union, together with references thereto; and what are the likely costs of doing so. [HL2074]

Transposition notes are currently produced to accompany legislation that requires transposition into UK law, except where it can be demonstrated that the resources required to produce a transposition note are significantly greater than can be justified by the resulting added benefit to the reader. They set out how the main elements of a directive have been, or will be transposed into UK law. They are available in print from departments and should also be accessible via departmental websites.The full text of UK legislation which transposes EU directives into UK law can currently be accessed at no charge using the search engine on the HMSOnline website (www.hmso.gov.uk), where entry of details of the directive will provide a link to the legislation which transposes the directive into UK law. This can be, however, a cumbersome arrangement for users and Her Majesty's Stationery Office, as part of its plans for the future development of Legislationonline later this year, plans to deliver an improved facility for users where they will be able to link directly from the full text of the UK legislation to the full text of the directive as published on the Europa website.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish information on the main areas of work delegated by Ministers to each special adviser, identifying the main areas of departmental policy with which each special adviser is concerned. [HL2080]

The Code of Conduct for Special Advisers sets out the main areas of work to be undertaken by special advisers. A copy of the code of conduct is in the Library of the House.In addition, in their response to the ninth report of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, the Government agreed that where a special adviser has a particular expertise or works mainly in a particular area of the department's work this will be indicated in the annual statement to Parliament on the numbers and pay bands of special advisers by department and the overall salary cost.The list for 2003–04 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the current financial year.

asked Her Majesty's Government: (a) Whether special advisers are recruited on the basis of criteria and procedures laid down by individual Ministers, or whether the criteria and procedures are agreed by Ministers collectively; and (b) what are the criteria and procedures which have been used by Ministers (whether individually or collectively) in recruiting their special advisers. [HL2081]

Since their inception in the early 1970s, it has been the nature of special adviser appointments that they should be outside the rules of fair and open competition as they are personal appointments made by the Minister at his or her request to meet particular needs. For these positions, Ministers seek a combination of political and personal commitment, relevant expertise and personal trust and confidence. It is because of this combination of qualities required for the job that the Civil Service order in council and the Civil Service Commissioners' recruitment rules recognise that it is necessary to exempt such posts from the normal Civil Service recruitment rules.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How the annual number of complaints received by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration compares with the annual number of complaints received by parliamentary ombudsmen in other European and Commonwealth countries, taking into account population sizes in those countries; and [HL2181]Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 17 March (

Information on the number of complaints received by the Parliamentary Ombudsman is set out in her annual report. Information on the number of complaints received by parliamentary ombudsmen in other countries is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.However, I have written to the noble Lord offering him a factual background briefing from the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration on the handling of complaints by equivalent ombudsman schemes in other countries.I understand that France operates a similar scheme to that operated in this country in terms of access to the ombudsman.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bassam of Brighton on 17 March (