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Written Answers
Wednesday, 14 January 2004.
North/South Language Body: Budget
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20 November (WA 358) whether the Answer confirms that the Language Implementation Body's budget for 2003 was set by a department of the Eire Government and notified to the appropriate department in the United Kingdom.[HL270]
The Lord President of the Council (Baroness Amos): My answer of 20 November (WA 358) does not confirm that the Irish Government set the language body's budget for 2003.
Northern Ireland: Civic Forum
Lord Kilclooney asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What has been the total cost of the civic forum created by the Belfast agreement; and what it has achieved.[HL512]
| Northern Ireland Civic Forum(1) | |
| 2000–01 | 145,000 |
| 2001–02 | 450,000 |
Note(1):
Includes cost of salaries, administration, meetings, members' expenses, printing of reports and researchers.
The civic forum has provided input to the following issues being taken forward by Northern Ireland departments: the review of post-primary education; promoting social inclusion: consultation on future priorities; draft bill of rights; a commissioner for children for Northern Ireland; investing in health; draft programme for government 2001–02; draft programme for government 2002–03; review of community relations policy; task force on employability and long-term unemployed; victims strategy; and a response to the review of the Parades Commission.
The civic forum also published two reports: The regional strategy for promoting social inclusion was published in June 2002; and the report entitled Can do Better—Educational Disadvantage in the context of life long learning was launched in September 2002.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether there is any provision in the legislation implementing the Belfast agreement by which the Eire Government can unilaterally take decisions on behalf of Cross-Border Bodies and of the United Kingdom Government.[HL562]
14 Jan 2004 : Column WA84
Baroness Amos: There is no such provision.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Which Cross-Border Bodies have had their budgets for 2004 settled; and in each case (a) how much they requested in their business plans; (b) how much was agreed; and (c) what is the percentage change from the 2003 budget.[HL596]
Baroness Amos: Budget recommendations for 2004 have been agreed for four of the six North/South Implementation Bodies. Details of the amounts requested in the 2004 business plans, the amounts recommended and the percentage change from the 2003 budget are set out in the table below. The budget recommendations will be considered in the context of the respective spending review processes north and south.
| North/South Implementation Body | Amount Requested in Business Plan (£m) | Amount recommended (£m) | % Change from 2003 Budget |
| Waterways Ireland | 31.70 | 31.70 | +40.0 |
| InterTradeIreland | 9.00 | 9.00 | 0.0 |
| Special EU Programmes Body | 2.02 | 2.02 | 0.0 |
| Food Safety Promotion Board | 6.08 | 6.08 | +12.0 |
Northern Ireland: Nomenclature
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Why the annual report for 2002 of the North/South Ministerial Joint Secretariat refers to Northern Ireland as "the North"; whether this is the correct title for Northern Ireland; and, if not, why it was used.[HL597]
Baroness Amos: I refer the noble Lord to the answer given on 18 November 2003 (WA 272).
Northern Ireland: Civil Servants
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether there are circumstances in which Northern Ireland civil servants take instructions on policy matters from the Eire Government.[HL601]
Baroness Amos: No. Northern Ireland civil servants act at all times under the direction and control of their departments and Ministers.
Special Public Bill Procedure
Lord Brightman asked the Leader of the House:
- Whether she will consider reviving the use of the Special Public Bill procedure (unused since 1995) in order to involve the public in suitable Bills.[HL604]
Baroness Amos: The option of referring a Bill to a Special Public Bill Committee remains open for use in appropriate cases. There are no plans at present to use it in this Session.
Another way to involve the public in scrutiny of suitable Bills is through pre-legislative scrutiny committees. The Government have published, or announced plans to publish, 10 draft Bills this Session in order to give Parliament the opportunity to conduct pre-legislative scrutiny.
Fire Safety
Lord Brookman asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many uniformed fire service officers from the Fire Service Inspectorate are currently working in conjunction with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Buildings Division to develop fire safety standards supporting the proposals outlined in the fire service White Paper and with the British Standards Institution and other safety standard bodies to improve fire safety in buildings.[HL689]
The Minister of State, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (Lord Rooker): Currently, two inspectors from Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate work in conjunction with Buildings Division to develop fire safety standards in buildings.
Lord Brookman asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What plans they have following the disbandment of the Fire Safety Advisory Board to establish a forum involving fire service bodies, the Fire Service Inspectorate and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Buildings Division and Fire Policy Division to ensure structured dialogue between those engaged in the design and construction of buildings and those who fight fires in them.[HL690]
Lord Rooker: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister plans to continue, in developing the fire aspects of building regulations policy, the effective involvement of all relevant stakeholders including the fire service bodies and Her Majesty's Fire Service Inspectorate and the relevant divisions of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will seek the advice of the statutory Building Regulations Advisory Committee and consult the recently established Practitioners' Forum and Business and Community Safety Forum for the Fire and Rescue Service.
Iraq: UK Service Personnel Non-combatant Injuries
The Countess of Mar asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many regular, reserve and territorial members of Her Majesty's Armed Forces have been evacuated from Iraq since 19 March for non-combatant injuries and illnesses; and what were the categories of those injuries and illnesses.[HL243]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Bach): Around 1,760 Service personnel have been aeromedically evacuated with non-combatant injuries from Iraq since 19 March 2003. Of these, around 280 are either reserve or territorial forces. The following table breaks this down into injury type:
| Injury Type | Percentage of Total Evacuation Number |
| Limb Injury | 23.3 |
| Trauma | 13.7 |
| Spinal | 10.9 |
| Psychiatric | 9.6 |
| Surgical Non-Trauma | 8.0 |
| Knee Injury | 5.6 |
| Genito-Urinary | 5.6 |
| Dermatology | 3.4 |
| Respiratory | 3.2 |
| Opthalmology | 3.0 |
| Gastro-Intestinal | 2.9 |
| Neurological | 2.5 |
| Ear, Nose, Throat | 2.0 |
| Cardiology | 1.8 |
| Women's Health | 1.6 |
| Dental and Maxillo-Facial | 1.0 |
| Oncology | 0.7 |
| Metabolic | 0.6 |
| Haematology | 0.3 |
| Men's Health | 0.2 |
| Tropical Disease | 0.1 |
| Total | 100.0 |
Ministry of Defence: Assets
Lord Vivian asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the total of Ministry of Defence resource assets in cash terms; how much the Ministry of Defence pays for these assets; and what is the surplus or shortfall in the Ministry of Defence budget in cash terms.[HL356]
Lord Bach: The value of the Ministry of Defence's assets is set out each year in its annual report and accounts. The most recent information is set out in the annual report and accounts for 2002–03 (HC 1125 of 30 October 2003), Schedule 3 (page 93) of which provides balance sheet values at 31 March 2003. Supporting information on how asset values are derived is provided in notes 1.10 to 1.36 to the accounts on pages 98 to 102.
The primary costs to the department of holding its assets for that year comprised the notional cost of capital charge, depreciation charged in year on tangible fixed assets and amortisation charged in year on intangible assets. Details are set out at Schedule 2 to the accounts on page 92 and notes 7 and 8 on pages 110 and 111.
Surpluses and shortfalls in the detailed allocation of resources to particular programmes or budgetary areas identified in the first six months of the financial year were remedied through the department's winter supplementary estimates (HC 15 of 27 November 2003). Further adjustments will be made as necessary in spring supplementary estimates.
Copies of both publications are available in the Library of the House. Both include a table describing the cash consequences of resource provision voted by Parliament (Schedule 1 on pages 88–89 of the accounts, and the resource to cash reconciliation on page 208 of the winter supplementary estimates).
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