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Kenya
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received about the ill-treatment and torture of children in Kenya; and if he will make a statement. [23464]
Mr. Tony Lloyd: We are concerned by reports of incidents involving police brutality in Kenya, particularly those where young children appear to be involved. We shall be raising the cases highlighted by Amnesty International with the Kenyan authorities. More generally we continue to raise with the Government of Kenya our concerns about human rights abuses in that country and our desire to see police officers guilty of such offences brought to justice.
Algeria
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards Algeria. [23562]
Mr. Fatchett:
We share the widespread revulsion at the barbaric massacres in Algeria and continue to condemn the violence. Following close consultation with our EU Partners, the Algerian Government has agreed to our proposal, as EU Presidency for a Troika Ministerial visit to Algeria, from 19 to 20 January 1998. I will lead the mission and will continue the political dialogue
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between the EU and Algeria which was established at the time of the Algerian Foreign Minister's talks in Luxembourg in November 1997.
Mr. Gray:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the occasions on which Mrs. Gaynor Regan has accompanied him at public expense since 2 May; and if he will make a statement. [23533]
Mr. Robin Cook
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: There have been no such occasions.
Mr. Grieve:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the cost to public funds of each occasion on which Mrs. Gaynor Regan has accompanied him on his official duties. [23488]
Mr. Robin Cook
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: There has been no cost to public funds.
Mr. Letwin:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he sought the advice of his Permanent Under-Secretary of State about the participation of Mrs. Gaynor Regan on official visits organised by his Department. [23487]
Mr. Robin Cook
[holding answer 16 January]: Yes.
Mr. Viggers:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the purpose of his return to the United Kingdom from the Indian sub-continent during Her Majesty the Queen's visit to Pakistan and India; and what was the cost of the travel involved. [23625]
Mr. Robin Cook
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: It was agreed with Buckingham Palace that I should accompany Her Majesty on her State Visits while she was in the capital cities of both countries and calling on members of their central governments. I was therefore in Islamabad on 7 and 8 October and in Delhi on 13 and 14 October, and not in attendance in the intervening period. It would not have been an effective use of the time of myself or my officials to stay on when I had no official business. These arrangements were agreed in July, long before the State Visit. The travel costs for myself and two officials for Pakistan were £4,211 and for India £11,547. On the outward journey to Pakistan we travelled on The Queen's aircraft.
Mr. Viggers:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the journeys overseas by the spouse or partner accompanying him since 1 May were in every case authorised in advance by the Prime Minister. [23572]
Mr. Loughton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he sought the permission of the Prime Minister in accordance with paragraph 69(a) of the Ministerial Code for Mrs. Gaynor Regan to accompany him on overseas visits at public expense. [23723]
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Mr. Brady:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he sought the Prime Minister's prior assent for each overseas visit made by Mrs. Gaynor Regan when accompanying him at public expense. [23382]
Mr. Robin Cook
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: Yes, except when Ms Gaynor Regan accompanied me to Dublin on 3 November when there was no cost to public funds.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had since 1 May 1997 with representatives of the Indian government in respect of the threats to the tiger population in that country; and what were the outcomes of those decisions. [22950]
Mr. Fatchett:
I met the Indian Environment Minister during my visit to India in June last year and expressed my support for the work of the Global Tiger Forum which stemmed from an Indian initiative. We continue to maintain close links with the Forum and will invite the Secretary General to the next meeting of the CITES Standing Committee to be held in London in March, where the plight of the tiger will be a major item on the agenda.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the income from the sale of land occupied by GCHQ in Hong Kong; and where that money has been deployed. [23396]
Mr. Fatchett:
After deduction of sales costs, a total of £12,451,316.54 was transferred to the Treasury from the sale of property owned by Her Majesty's Government and used by GCHQ in Hong Kong. The property consisted of 20 houses purchased by the British Government to accommodate GCHQ staff at Hong Lok Yuen.
Mr. Rooney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the application for entry clearance made by Zia Ul Haq at Karachi, reference KA 173579 will be determined. [24008]
Mr. Fatchett:
We have asked our High Commission in Karachi to provide a detailed account. My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, will write to the hon. Member within one week of receiving that account.
Helen Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what guidance he has given to Ofsted on the frequency with which school inspections should be carried out. [23314]
Mr. Byers
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: HM Chief Inspector of Schools was given a legal duty to secure the inspection of all maintained schools in the
19 Jan 1998 : Column: 436
four-year period ending on 31 July 1997 in respect of secondary schools and 31 July 1998 in respect of primary and other schools. Thereafter, the Education (School Inspection) Regulations 1997 provide for schools to be inspected at intervals of no more than six years from the end of the school year in which their previous inspection took place. In the case of failing schools and schools with serious weaknesses, HM Chief Inspector secures more frequent inspections.
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment for what reasons schools taking part in the literacy summer schools project are not required to use standardised tests of reading before and after the project takes place. [22796]
Mr. Byers
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: The Department carried out a full evaluation of last year's scheme using National Curriculum Key Stage 2 tests, and also a qualitative survey of participants. A summary report of the evaluation is available in the Library. The Department is considering how best to evaluate this year's expanded scheme.
Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the number of trained teachers who qualified in (a) Australia, (b) New Zealand, (c) Canada and (d) South Africa who were teaching in maintained schools in London on (i) 1 January 1997 and (ii) 30 September 1997. [23610]
Mr. Byers
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: The information requested is not available.
Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the percentage of the intake for each maintained grammar school from outside the boundary of the local authority in which it was situated in (a) 1995, (b) 1996 and (c) 1997. [23609]
Mr. Byers
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: The information requested is not held centrally.
Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the percentage of the intake from maintained primary schools at each maintained grammar school in (a) 1995, (b) 1996 and (c) 1997; and if he will make a statement. [23607]
Mr. Byers
[holding answer 16 January 1998]: The information requested is not collected centrally.
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