asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will make urgent representations to the Government of Angola, on behalf of Dr Sarah Wykes, a campaigner for Global Witness, seeking her release from custody and safe return to the United Kingdom. [HL2785]

Dr Sarah Wykes returned to the United Kingdom on 19 March. This was as a result of a decision by the Angolan Attorney-General to grant Dr Wykes permission to return to the United Kingdom on the condition that she returns to Angola if the judicial authorities there request it.

I have been following Dr Wykes’s case very closely since her initial detention on 18 February. Indeed I pressed for a speedy resolution to the matter with the Angolan Vice-Minister of Internal Affairs when I saw him in London on 19 February. Dr Wykes was given all appropriate consular assistance throughout.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How much money has been allocated per head of the area's population in each of the last five years to the Arts Council of (a) England, (b) Wales; (c) Scotland; and (d) Northern Ireland. [HL2696]

Grant-in-aid allocations per head of the area's population for the past five years are set out in the tables for (a) England, (b) Wales (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland.

These figures do not include funding from the National Lottery. Census population figures include children and adults.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What advice, support and assistance they are giving, and plan to give, to Blackpool to develop and carry out an alternative strategy for regeneration in the resort which does not involve setting up a new casino. [HL2294]

A number of government departments and all the regional agencies are working with Blackpool to support regeneration in the town. There is the recognition that the casino decision has had an impact on Blackpool's plans to stimulate its regeneration through tourism. The North West Development Agency (NWDA) is working with Blackpool Council, English Partnerships and the Urban Regeneration Company ReBlackpool to agree a long-term strategy that would enable Blackpool to build on the importance of leisure and tourism and to develop a more sustainable economy. English Partnerships, the Housing Corporation and Government Office for the North West are already working closely with Blackpool Council on a strategy to create a more balanced and stable housing market with a greater choice of housing and tenure.

My honourable friend the Minister for Local Government and Communities is to meet Blackpool Council in the near future.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will place in the Library of the House any documents pertaining to the exercise of discretion under Article 4(4) of the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986 with respect to registration as a British national (overseas) for applications made (a) in the United Kingdom; (b) in Hong Kong; and (c) at consular posts. [HL2802]

There is no current guidance on the exercise of discretion in connection with registration as a British national (overseas) under Article 4(4) of the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986, as the final deadlines for registration were in September 1997. The guidance issued to overseas staff at that time is therefore no longer relevant; however, a copy of that guidance will be placed in the Library for reference purposes.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 5 March (WA 6), what estimate they have made of the number of houses sold from the estate of a resident on death in order to pay the costs of care provided by a local authority.[HL2576]

Information about the sale of property to pay for residential care is not collected centrally nor is it automatically collected locally where a person arranges their care privately. It is not, therefore, possible to estimate the number of homes sold for this purpose.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many cases were referred to the List 99 Teachers Misconduct Team in England and Wales in 2003, 2004 and 2005; and [HL2654]

How many letters of written warning were issued in England and Wales to teachers for inappropriate sexual behaviour towards pupils in 2003, 2004 and 2005. [HL2655]

The number of cases in England and Wales referred to and concluded by the department's List 99 team in the relevant years is set out in the table below:

The department may issue written warnings to school staff in connection with a range of misconduct—for example, impropriety and theft— and inappropriate sexual behaviour towards children. The number of written warnings issued to staff in schools by the List 99 Teachers Misconduct Team in each of the relevant years was as follows:

Due to the way in which information is currently recorded, it is not possible to indicate the number of these cases where staff in schools were issued with written warnings for inappropriate sexual behaviour. The department does not maintain records of written warnings issued to staff by employers as a result of local disciplinary proceedings, as this is a matter for the employer concerned.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many people did not answer police bail in each of the last five years in Northern Ireland.[HL2631]

The Police Service of Northern Ireland has advised that the information requested by the noble Lord would require a manual trawl of prosecution files and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether their policy on cannabis reflects the possibility that cannabis is capable of relieving severe pain suffered by victims of arthritis.[HL2624]

Because of evidence of risks of harm, cannabis-based products are controlled drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act. The most recent advice to the Home Secretary on the requirements for controls from the Advisory Committee on the Misuse of Drugs was published in January 2006.

Currently cannabis-based medicinal products are not licensed under the Medicines Act in the United Kingdom but are available for prescription under named patient arrangements. Responsibility for prescribing under these circumstances falls to the clinician.

If clinical trials were to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of cannabis extract in relieving the pain associated with arthritis, this drug could be licensed and made available in the same way as other analgesics available for treating arthritic pain.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How much money has so far been contributed by the Department of Trade and Industry's research programmes to the development of second-generation biofuels. [HL2711]

The DTI has spent around £438,000 on second-generation biofuels since 2002 via the Technology Programme and the New and Renewables Energy Programme.

In addition, research council expenditure on bioenergy since 1997 is more than £20 million, including support for research into biofuels, biomass and light harvesting in biological systems.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What sums the renewables obligation buy-out fund has distributed during each year of the operation of the renewables obligation scheme; and, in each case, to what organisations; and [HL2461]

What has been the total revenue raised for dispersal by the Government through renewables obligation buy-out payments during each year of the operation of the renewables obligation scheme. [HL2462]

The detail of revenue raised for dispersal by the Government through renewables obligation buy-out payments and the sums distributed, and to whom, is shown in the table below:

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the debate on 15 March (Official Report, cols. 826-28), whether they will grant a referendum to the British people on any proposed European Union treaty which proposes a new European Union foreign secretary, a more permanent President of the Council and the re-weighting of votes in the Council. [HL2793]

Under the UK’s constitutional arrangements, it is ultimately for Parliament to decide whether to hold a referendum given the particular circumstances of the issue. On certain issues, the Government have recommended that particular arrangements should be subject to a referendum, but there is no requirement to hold one.

There is no consensus among EU member states on the way forward regarding the constitutional treaty. The German presidency will present a report to the June European Council on the state of discussions on the future of Europe. The Government make no presumption on the outcome of these discussions. Their approach was set out in my right honourable friend the Minister for Europe's Written Ministerial Statement of 5 December 2006 (Official Report, Commons, cols. 10-11WS). This remains the Government's position.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the debate on 15 March (Official Report, cols. 826-28), whether they will veto or grant a referendum to the British people on any proposed European Union treaty which proposes to grant legal personality to the European Union superior to that of the member states. [HL2794]

Under the UK’s constitutional arrangements, it is ultimately for Parliament to decide whether to hold a referendum given the particular circumstances of the issue. On certain issues, the Government have recommended that particular arrangements should be subject to a referendum, but there is no requirement to hold one.

There is no consensus among EU member states on the way forward regarding the constitutional treaty. The German presidency will present a report to the June European Council on the state of discussions on the future of Europe. The Government make no presumption on the outcome of these discussions. Their approach was set out in my right honourable friend the Minister for Europe's Written Ministerial Statement of 5 December 2006 (Official Report, Commons, cols. 10-11WS). This remains the Government's position.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

In respect of fires in which a gas cylinder is suspected to be present, whether it is standard practice for fire services to declare a 200-metre radius exclusion zone for 24 hours to allow cylinders to cool down; and whether there is a quicker way to render such gas cylinders safe. [HL2829]

It is standard practice for fire and rescue services, in liaison with the police, to consider setting up an initial hazard zone, extending to a maximum of 200 metres from a cylinder that has been involved in a fire. Identification of the type of cylinder is then undertaken and an appropriate operational plan put in place. If the cylinder cannot be identified or it is confirmed to be an acetylene cylinder, the following action is recommended.

A 200-metre hazard zone should be introduced and the cylinders should be left in situ for a minimum period of 24 hours following removal from any heat source. Cooling water should be applied to the cylinder for the whole 24 hours where the situation permits.

The incident commander, following a dynamic risk assessment, may reduce the size of the hazard zone within this 24-hour period. The assessment will take account of:

the nature of the incident;

the nature of the surrounding/adjacent risks;

the risks to firefighters providing cooling water sprays;

the adequacy of any shielding;

the nature and effects of any cooling water;

the environmental impact;

whether the cylinder walls are cool; and

specialist advice.

Currently there are no other methods in use within the UK to render acetylene cylinders safe that have been involved in fire. However, research is being undertaken by stakeholders to assess methods utilised in other countries. These stakeholders include Her Majesty's Government, the Chief Fire Officers’ Association, the Highways Agency and the British Compressed Gas Association.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they are taking to ensure that junior doctors are not disadvantaged in applying for specialty registrar posts by the Medical Training Application Service's technical difficulties. [HL2501]

Recruitment to specialty and general practitioner training programmes this year is, for the first time, through the online Medical Training Application Service (MTAS) and to a nationally agreed timetable. This process consists of two recruitment rounds.

For the very small number of applicants who had problems submitting their application forms via MTAS by the deadline, there was a process in place for their cases to be considered by a scrutiny panel. Individuals have been notified directly of the results of this process, and 20 applicants were allowed to submit late applications.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they are taking to ensure that experienced junior doctors do not leave the National Health Service if they are unable to secure an appropriate training post as a result of the move to the Modernising Medical Careers training system. [HL2502]

Junior doctors will be able to apply for other National Health Service medical jobs advertised by NHS trusts and for places on specialty training programmes as vacancies arise. NHS employers are working with stakeholders to ensure that support can be offered to applicants who do not secure a training post and that they can readily access other suitable NHS medical jobs.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How junior doctors can appeal against a decision not to shortlist them for training posts; and [HL2503]

How those doctors who do not secure posts in the current Medical Training Application Service round can obtain feedback on their performance in interview; and [HL2504]

How those doctors who do not secure posts in the current Medical Training Application Service round can view the scores afforded to their application forms. [HL2505]

Recruitment to specialty and general practitioner training programmes this year is, for the first time, through the online Medical Training Application Service (MTAS) and to a nationally agreed timetable. This process consists of two recruitment rounds.

The independent review group led by Professor Neil Douglas has recommended that applicants who have not been invited to an interview should be given the opportunity to have their application form reviewed by a trained medical adviser.

The review group has also recommended that further advice and information should be made available as quickly as possible for applicants. The department has accepted that this will include:

information about competition ratios by specialty, entry level and geography;

the process and timetable for making applications in the second round plus generic guidance about what panels will be looking for;

generic feedback on how applicants can improve their applications for the second round;

information about sources of support for applicants; and

enhanced frequently asked questions on the MTAS website, building on feedback from the first round.

The next stage of the review will consider what further arrangements might be needed for the support and care of applicants. Applicants who believe that they have been disadvantaged by the way their application has been managed can lodge a complaint at the end of the second round.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How the Medical Training Application Service is auditing the scoring of application forms to ensure consistency of standards. [HL2506]

There is national guidance and training delivered for selectors and assessors undertaking recruitment to ensure consistency of standards. Postgraduate deans are responsible for ensuring that these standards are maintained. The Medical Training Application Service (MTAS) system provides for an audit of such scores.

The review under way will also test the functionality of the MTAS IT requirements. The review panel has also commissioned an audit of the long- and short-listing process managed by the deaneries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How the Medical Training Application Service is detecting those applications for posts that were completed with the assistance of an outside agency. [HL2530]

There is a procedure written by the London postgraduate deanery, which advises recruiters how to question appropriately the probity of an application should there be concerns that applications have been substantially formulated around the content provided by a third party. The procedure has been issued to all recruiters involved in selection to specialty training programmes through the Medical Training Application Service.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How the Medical Training Application Service is providing for those doctors who, despite having been assured prior to application that such clashes would not occur, fail to obtain a post because the interview dates clashed in the specialty applied for. [HL2531]

The small number of applicants who were short-listed for specialties with interview slots taking place at the same time were advised to contact deaneries directly to rearrange interviews accordingly. The London postgraduate deanery provided a central service for all applicants who needed to rearrange interviews.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their response to the Modernising Medical Careers scheme.[HL2623]

Modernising Medical Careers (MMC) is a policy agreed by Ministers in the four United Kingdom health departments. It will improve the quality and safety of patient care through more structured, competency-based training, focusing on clinical and more generic skills designed to meet the needs of patients and the service.

We have acknowledged that there have been shortcomings this year in the recruitment and selection process that supports MMC and are taking forward action to address these issues.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many samples of blood were tested to detect Panton-Valentine leukocidin community-associated methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus by the Health Protection Agency Centre for Infections located at Colindale in the last 12 months; and how many samples tested positive.[HL2643]

The latest data available are for 2005 and show that:

6,549 isolates of all types of staphylococcus aureus were referred to the Health Protection Agency Staphylococcus Reference Laboratory for testing, including both methicillin-sensitive staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)strains;

1,277 of these were from blood samples;

toxin gene testing was requested on 196 of the staphylococcus aureus from blood cultures (these included both MSSA and MRSA); and

eight of the 196 samples were identified as Panton-Valentine leukocidin-positive MRSA.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

On what basis the Deputy Prime Minister proposed that affordable homes would be available. [HL2660]

The Design for Manufacture competition was opened on 1 April 2005. Its purpose is to provide a showcase of how to build cost-effectively across a range of housing types without sacrificing quality.

It aims to stimulate fresh thinking on a scale that will help the industry break out of the research and development cycle, facilitating the mainstreaming of modern construction for volume developments in a way that others can follow.

The target for the competition is that a minimum of 30 per cent of housing units should be high-quality 76.5 square metre homes built at a construction cost of £60,000 or less, with larger and smaller homes built at a similar cost-efficiency. To identify what might be a challenging but achievable figure for the core costs of constructing a home, a series of data sets, such as those produced by the RICS Building Costs Information Service and the Tender Price Index of Social Housing, were used as well as real-life case studies. The sale prices of homes will include the cost of the land as well as the construction cost and associated new infrastructure.

Prices in different neighbourhoods can be very variable, depending on particular characteristics of the location, the local market and the individual properties to be sold. They will be determined by the developers at the time the homes go on sale.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many energy inspectors have been trained to date; and how many will be trained by June; and [HL2088]

How many energy inspectors will be required to provide sufficient coverage for every property being put on sale from June. [HL2089]

Previous estimates have projected demand for home inspectors (HIs) and domestic energy assessors (DEAs) from June 2007 to fall within a range between 1,600 and 4,300. Further analysis has been completed, informed by the HIPs area trials and other survey work. We now estimate that around 2,500 assessors will be needed from June, rising to around 3,000 by the autumn and 4,000 to 4,500 by the end of the year. More assessors will be needed during 2008 to produce EPCs for commercial buildings and for those in the private and social rented sector.

Home inspectors and domestic energy assessors will be able to produce energy performance certificates. Currently, 1,085 HIs have completed their HI examinations, with several hundred more nearing the end of their training.

Since training courses for new domestic energy assessors (DEAs) became available in late January, more than 2,700 candidates have registered for or begun training. The DEA diploma course takes eight to 12 weeks, so the first candidates are now completing their courses. Eighty-six have completed the course and hundreds more will do so in the next few weeks. We estimate that between 2,500 and 3,000 assessors and inspectors will be available to undertake assessments from l June.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How they intend to respond to the request from the Council of Mortgage Lenders that the 1 June implementation of home information packs be delayed. [HL2661]

The Government have already responded to the CML directly on this issue. We remain on track to deliver and do not feel that a delay beyond the 1 June implementation date is warranted.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

In respect of the Department for Work and Pensions, (a) on how many occasions in the last year malicious programs have compromised departmental computer systems; and, for each occasion, how many machines were affected; how long it took to remove the programs from the system; and what was the impact on the department's activities; (b) what penetration tests have been carried out of information systems over the last year and what were the results, indicating in each instance whether the tests were carried out independently of the providers of the system concerned; and (c) on how many occasions in the last year the departmental management team has considered information risk. [HL2438]

In the past year, the computer systems at the Department for Work and Pensions have been compromised by malicious programs on two separate occasions. On the first occasion a significant number of Jobpoints were found to have no anti-virus software installed and a number of these machines were infected with a virus. On the second occasion a web server was found to have been compromised with malicious software. The malicious programs were removed in both cases as soon as practicable, and all Jobpoints now have up-to-date anti-virus software installed. Neither incident had a significant detrimental impact on the day-to-day running of the Department for Work and Pensions operations. Further to this, there are a number of instances where malicious software has been automatically cleansed (by the anti-virus software) from Department for Work and Pensions systems; however, in these instances no impact was experienced. Collection of further information on these instances would require a disproportionate allocation of resources.

Since January 2006 there have been 28 penetration tests performed on Department for Work and Pensions information systems. Medium weaknesses were discovered in three cases, minor weaknesses in six cases and no weaknesses were discovered for the remainder. Plans are in place to address all outstanding weaknesses. Full details are tabled in appendix A.

Consideration of risk is integral to all aspects of the design, development and operation of our processes. In addition, regular updates on information risk are produced and several forums are dedicated to the management of information risk.

The Planning, Performance and Risk Sub-Committee is a sub-committee of the Department for Work and Pensions executive team. It meets each month and has a risk-based agenda.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Which hospitals maintain all or the bulk of their electronic patient records off-site; and whether the information security risks have been properly assessed in each case. [HL2477]

Comprehensive information is not available in the form requested. Such information as is available has been placed in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What guidance is provided by the Department of Health to local health authorities, National Health Service trusts, primary care trusts, other health bodies and general practitioners on information risk management. [HL2478]

National Health Service organisations have been provided with comprehensive guidance on information security risk management through the NHS information governance toolkit. The toolkit is a web-based resource developed by the department and managed by the department’s NHS “Connecting for Health” agency, which enables organisations to measure their compliance with a range of requirements and best practice in line with the relevant International Organisation for Standardisation (IOS) standard, ISO 17799. Further details can be found at www.connectingforhealth.nhs.uk/infogov.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether the conditioning of detainees by hooding, ordering them into a stress position and deprivation of sleep to sustain the impact of detention prior to interrogation, as described at the recent court martial, is in accordance with the requirements of the Geneva Conventions; and, if so, whether it is allowed explicitly or implicitly by those conventions. [HL2726]

Court martial proceedings at the Bulford Court Martial Centre in respect of soldiers from the Queen's Lancashire Regiment, now the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, have not yet concluded. It would be inappropriate to answer this question at present, as to do so risks prejudicing the outcome of those proceedings.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will now disclose the claimed separate intelligence on the alleged attempt by Iraq to buy yellowcake from Niger cited by Lord Butler of Brockwell in his review of the intelligence used to justify the invasion of Iraq. [HL2592]

As reported by Lord Butler of Brockwell in his review of intelligence on weapons of mass destruction,

“The British Government had intelligence from several different sources indicating that [a visit to Niger by Iraqi officials in 1999] was for the purpose of acquiring uranium. Since uranium constitutes almost three-quarters of Niger’s exports, the intelligence was credible. The evidence was not conclusive that Iraq actually purchased, as opposed to having sought, uranium and the British Government did not claim this”.

The Government have fully accepted Lord Butler's report. There are no plans to disclose the intelligence.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

To how many destinations worldwide Manchester airport offers direct flights; and how this compares with the number of flights offered by other airports in the north of England. [HL2751]

The data requested can be found in annex A of the Air Transport White Paper Progress Report 2006 on the Department for Transport's website at www.dft.gov.uk.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment they have made of the scientific evidence on the distances over which acoustic disturbances, caused by seismic detonations in oil surveys in the oceans, can affect marine life. [HL2730]

Since 1999 Her Majesty's Government have made frequent assessments of the nature, spatial extent and potential effects on marine life of noise from oil industry seismic surveys, both in response to specific applications for consent to undertake such surveys and as part of the DTI's programme of strategic environmental assessments (SEAs) prior to further oil and gas licensing. The latter assessments are documented in the environmental reports for each SEA, and each subsequent report is updated to include any relevant new information on noise characteristics, propagation, receptors such as marine mammals, potential effects and mitigation measures, including the results of research commissioned by HMG. All the SEA environmental reports and the underpinning studies are available from the website www.offshore-sea.org.uk.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Baroness Andrews on 19 February (WA 188), whether their encouragement of diversity in the public sector to assist cohesion extends to the formation of white associations, men's associations, straight groups, a multiplicity of Christian and other religious groups and sects and other organisations; and, if so, what form such encouragement takes. [HL2535]

All staff are free to set up associations, provided they are not contrary to the aims or values of the department concerned. The Government will give active encouragement to staff associations representing groups of employees where there is evidence that those groups are suffering disadvantage in outcomes of HR processes in comparison to the workforce as a whole. The form that that encouragement takes may vary from department to department but may include, for example, financial support or facility time for officers of associations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether it is relevant to their decision-making process in foreign and domestic affairs for them to know the proportions of Sunni and Shia Muslims respectively ordinarily resident in the Great Britain. [HL2807]

The Government recognise the need to understand the diversity of Muslim communities in the UK. Denominational differences are more complex than the Sunni/Shia distinction. Characteristics of subcategories such as Brelwi, Deobandi and Imami, and cross-cutting trends such as Sufism, are also important. The Government also recognise that British Muslims’ experiences differ according to other interrelated factors including ethnicity, gender, age and geographical location. Foreign-policy decisions are not affected by the domestic composition of the UK population.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Davies of Oldham on 6 March (WA 38), with which train operators and suppliers of materials they had discussions over importing materials for the Stratford Olympic site by rail or water.[HL2620]

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has held discussions with a range of organisations. However, the contracts for the transportation of materials for the Olympic park site have yet to be procured so commercial details cannot be disclosed at this stage. The ODA’s procurement policy stipulates that it has a statutory obligation to comply with the EU public procurement directives and the UK public contracts regulations 2006. The ODA’s approach to procuring the required resources in relation to material transfer on the Olympic park site will be consistent with these statutory obligations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will recommend a buffer zone of at least 500 metres between an opencast mining site and domestic residences to protect public health and environmental well-being. [HL2712]

The Government have no plans to introduce a planning policy recommending a uniform buffer zone for opencast mining sites in England. They consider that the interests of the occupants and users of neighbouring properties and of the environment are better served by the present practice of considering the specific impacts of individual proposed mining schemes in the light of all the local relevant circumstances, as part of the preparation of an environmental impact assessment for an application for planning permission.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What representations they have made to the Government of the Philippines about the recent spate of extra-judicial killings and the arrest of the leader of the opposition in the Philippine Congress, Congressman Satur Ocampo. [HL2775]

We continue to be concerned about extra-judicial killings in the Philippines. We welcome the visit by Philip Alston, UN special rapporteur on extra-judicial killings, to the Philippines in February and will encourage the Philippine Government to follow any recommendations that Professor Alston might make. We have not made representations to the Philippine Government about the arrest of the deputy minority leader of the House of Representatives, Congressman Ocampo.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment they have made of the arrangements in place for the conduct of the forthcoming elections in the Philippines. [HL2776]

The Philippines is a democratic country with systems in place to promote free and fair elections. We have discussed the mid-term elections with the Philippine Government and electoral authorities and are encouraging a transparent and fair electoral process. Representatives from our embassy in Manila will observe the polling on 14 May.

At the last general election, we funded a visit to the UK by an official from the Philippine Commission on Elections to observe the election process. We are also funding a project supported by the International Federation on Election Systems on the laws and regulations on campaign finance and reporting drafted by the Lawyers’ League for Liberty.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their response to the view of the Equalities Review Panel that the Press Complaints Commission should review its complaints mechanisms so as to consider complaints about coverage on the basis of discrimination or prejudice against, or stereotyping of, groups as well as individuals; and, if so, whether they will offer the Commission technical help in drafting the necessary amendments to their code.[HL2619]

The Government support self-regulation for the press. The content of the editors’ code of practice is therefore a matter for the Press Standards Board of Finance's code committee. Should it request help in drafting any amendment, we would be happy to provide it. The code’s current main provision for protecting groups of people from discrimination is the overarching reach of the clause on accuracy.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they propose to reallocate the Northern Ireland Office political adviser Phil Taylor to another department. [HL2657]

No. The Secretary of State’s special adviser Philip Taylor will be taking special leave without pay from 1 May to work on the Secretary of State's campaign for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party. Prior to that, he will be on leave from the Northern Ireland Office from the beginning of April.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What was the effect on United Kingdom manufacturing jobs in 2006 of the increase in that year in the United Kingdom's deficit with the rest of the world on its trade in goods. [HL2422]

Workforce jobs in UK manufacturing fell by 53,000 to 3.26 million between December 2005 and December 2006; the UK's trade in goods deficit increased from £68.8 billion to £83.7 billion between 2005 and 2006.

It is inappropriate to draw a direct link between the balance of trade in goods and manufacturing employment, given that the relationship can be affected by a number of differing factors.

Our main competitors, France, Germany and the US, have experienced a downward trend in manufacturing employment in recent years. Sometimes these countries had a balance of trade in goods surplus; sometimes they had a deficit, at the same time as falling manufacturing employment.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What proposals they have to increase the funding of the Ulster-Scots Agency; and when they propose that the agency will have parity of funding with the Irish Language Agency. [HL2697]

Following on from the commitment made by the Government in respect of Ulster Scots in the St Andrews agreement, the Government and the Irish Government have agreed that additional resources of £0.5 million will be made available to the Ulster-Scots Agency in 2007-08, £0.75 million in 2008-09 and £1 million in 2009-2010. The latter two years' additional funding is subject to the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review in Northern Ireland. The budgets for the Ulster-Scots Agency and the Irish Language Agency, Foras na Gaeilge, are determined in accordance with their agreed annual business plans.