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Human Rights
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what written guidance on the Human Rights Act 1998 has been prepared by the Northern Ireland Office; and if he will place a copy in the Library. [103826]
Mr. George Howarth: No specific written guidance on the Human Rights Act has been prepared by the Northern Ireland Office. The various forms of guidance that have been produced by the Home Office and the Cabinet Office are adequate for staff in the Northern Ireland Office and its associated public bodies.
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which individual in the Northern Ireland Office has been tasked with responsibility for implementing the Human Rights Act 1998. [103827]
Mr. George Howarth: It is not appropriate for me to name individual officers. The Human Rights Unit in the Northern Ireland Office is responsible for co-ordinating the Department's preparations for the implementation of the Act, under the direction of senior officials.
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what arrangements have been made to prepare non-departmental public bodies for the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998. [103833]
Mr. George Howarth: The public authorities for which the Northern Ireland Office is responsible have been alerted to the requirements of the Act, and will be provided with appropriate training. An inter-departmental working group has been established to monitor progress being made by individual public bodies in preparing for the Act and to identify any issues on which a joint approach would be most effective.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what additional resources have been made available to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission for consultation on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. [103835]
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Mr. George Howarth:
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is defined as a non departmental public body and is funded by means of a grant in aid. The Commission's grant in aid for each of its first three years is £750,000. This figure represents the Government's considered judgment as to the amount of funding that would be needed in order to allow the Commission to discharge its functions effectively.
No additional resources have been made available to the Commission for its consultation exercise on the scope for defining a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. The Bill of Rights exercise has always been part of the Commission's remit as set out in statute. It was taken into account when the original grant in aid was determined and the Government therefore expect it to be funded within the allocated resources.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will lay the designation order specifying which additional public bodies are to be obliged to develop equality schemes in order to comply with section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998; and which bodies external to the public service he consulted when determining which organisations to designate under the proposed designation order. [103813]
Mr. George Howarth
[holding answer 17 January 2000]: In compiling the designation order, the Secretary of State consulted with the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland. This consultation raised a number of queries that are still receiving attention. When these have been resolved, the Secretary of State will be in a position to lay the designation order before Parliament.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he took in response to the report of the United Nations' Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, presented to the United Nations in 1998. [103819]
Mr. George Howarth
[holding answer 17 January 2000]: My right hon. Friend the Member for Redcar (Marjorie Mowlam), then Secretary of State, met Mr. Param Cumaraswamy, UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers on 14 April 1999 to discuss the issues which he raised in his report presented to the United Nations in 1998. A copy of the statement that she issued afterwards is available in the Library.
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The report called for an independent inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane. In February 1999 the Government took receipt of alleged new evidence into the murder. We undertook to consider this very carefully before deciding whether any further action was necessary. The DPP(NI) decided to ask the Chief Constable to look into the allegations and a further police inquiry was announced on 28 April into the murder and related issues. A person has been charged with Mr. Finucane's murder. We will be in a better position to decide what, if any, further action is needed when the police investigation and criminal proceedings have been completed.
Mr. Cumaraswamy refers in his report to the introduction of the new Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. On 11 October 1999, the Government announced the appointment of Mrs. Nuala O'Loan as Police Ombudsman Designate for Northern Ireland. The Ombudsman will have complete control over the Police Complaints system. She will be required to carry out independent investigations into serious complaints against the police. The Police Ombudsman has been appointed on a designate basis until the new office is established. This interim period will enable the Ombudsman Designate to have a direct say in the structure, staff and ethos of the office. This highlights the independence of the office.
The report also comments on audio/video recording in the holding centres. The police have a statutory Code of Practice which governs video recording and the detention, treatment, questioning and identification of terrorist suspects. A statutory Code of Practice on audio recording became mandatory on 24 May 1999. It is a disciplinary offence for a police officer to breach either of the Codes of Practice. Full audio recording and video recording of all interviews of persons in custody now takes place. The Chief Constable of the RUC has invited the Law Society to be involved in the training of Detective Officers who are involved in such interviews.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list those properties held by his Department and agencies responsible to him which are (a) wholly and (b) mainly unoccupied at present, giving locations and when they became so unoccupied in each case. [105312]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
The information is as follows:
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Note:
The above refers to those areas solely the responsibility of the DETR or its agencies in the buildings referred to.
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19 Jan 2000 : Column: 445W
Mr. Wigley:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Government's policy in regulating the use of (a) jet-skis and (b) other powered water craft. [103179]
Mr. Meacher:
The responsibility for the management of jet-skis and other powered watercraft is primarily for local authorities. Local byelaws, either inland or on the coast, give authorities the power to regulate such craft, for instance by imposing strict speed limits which result in the exclusion of many watercraft from specific areas. Speed limits already apply in some areas, such as parts of the Broads.
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