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China
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will support the resolution on China's human rights record at the next UN commission on human rights. [1739]
Mr. MacShane: No UN member state has yet announced an intention to table a resolution on China at the next session of the UN commission on human rights, to be held in Geneva in March and April 2002. We will consider with EU partners a common approach to any resolution nearer the time.
Council of the European Union
Mr. Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the forthcoming business in the Council of the European Union for July and the major European Union events for the period between 31 July and December. [2510]
Peter Hain: The information is as follows:
- July 10—ECOFIN Meeting—Brussels
- Draft Agenda
- 1. Work Programme of the Presidency
- Presentation and public discussion
- 2. Adoption of provisional agenda
- 3. (poss) Adoption of "A" points list
- 4. Follow-up of the European Council of Goteborg
- 5. Public finances in the E.M.U.
- Report of the Commission
- 6. Fiscal policy of the European Union
- Communication of the Commission
- Orientation debate
- 7. Calendar of the Tax Package
- Adoption
- 8. Miscellaneous
- PM Euro Group
- Other business
- 5–6—Liège—Informal Employment and Social Affairs Council
- 13–14—Brussels—Regional Territories Council (Informal)?
- 16–17—Brussels—General Affairs Council
- 20—Brussels—Budget Council
- 23–24—Brussels—Agriculture Council
- No agenda for the above are available yet.
The following are the principal events in the EU between 1 August and December 2001 (certain relevant events are also included: the list is based on the information available at the date of issue).
4 Jul 2001 : Column: 167W
British Overseas Territories (Citizenship)
Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take steps to give British citizenship to the inhabitants of St. Helena and other former dependent territories. [1941]
Mr. Bradshaw: The British Overseas Territories Bill, which will grant British citizenship to all British Dependent Territories citizens in qualifying territories, was given a first reading in the House of Lords on 21 June. The Second Reading is scheduled for 10 July. The Bill was published on 22 June. Copies of the Bill, with Explanatory Notes, are available from the Libraries of both Houses.
National Missile Defence
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions have taken place with the Greenland Prime Minister on the ABM Treaty. [331]
4 Jul 2001 : Column: 168W
Mr. Bradshaw: There have been no discussions between my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and the Greenland Prime Minister on the ABM Treaty.
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from pressure groups in (a) Denmark and (b) Greenland about the use of Thule bases for National Missile Defence. [338]
Mr. Bradshaw: I am not aware of any representations from pressure groups in Denmark or Greenland being made to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary about the use of Thule base for Missile Defence.
Passports
Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received concerning the sale of passports in Eastern Europe by the Belgian Government; and if persons who have secured passports in this way have the right of entry into the UK. [2027]
4 Jul 2001 : Column: 169W
Peter Hain: The Belgian MFA has carried out an internal inquiry into allegations made by a former employee of the Belgian Embassy in Sofia regarding the sale of visas at the Embassy. Although passports were not included in the allegations, we understand that the inquiry also looked into passports. The inquiry found no evidence to support the allegations and concluded that no rules had been broken. Separately, a judicial inquiry was launched in 1997 into the allegations and is still under way. It will be for the Belgian Procurator General to decide the outcome in this case.
Visas issued by the Belgian authorities allow access to the countries in the Schengen zone, which covers all EU countries except the UK and Ireland. They therefore do not permit entry to the United Kingdom, which maintains its own frontier controls and does not participate in Schengen visa arrangements.
TREASURY
Private Finance Initiative
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has carried out into (a) cost savings and (b) efficiency savings in total Government expenditure through the use of the Private Finance Initiative; and if he will make a statement. [1382]
Mr. Andrew Smith: The information that has been requested is not kept centrally. The nature and diversity of PFI projects would make any global figure broken down in the way requested ambiguous.
However, there have been two substantive reports on PFI, since its inception, which have indicated that PFI is delivering value for money. The independent Arthur Andersen and Enterprise LSE Report stated the average percentage estimated saving against conventional procurement for the sample of projects they looked at, averaged 17 per cent. Also the NAO report on "PFI and value for money" found an average cost saving of 20 per cent. or just under £1 billion in total, across seven projects examined by the NAO up until December 1999. This saving is measured against the conventional procurement route.
Car-sharing
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the additional number of journeys made by car-sharing in 2002–03 as a consequence of introducing a new passenger rate for authorised car mileage in the March 2001 Budget. [1392]
Mr. Boateng: The Government are introducing a tax exempt rate of 5p per mile per passenger carried on a business trip from 2002–03 onwards to help employers encourage their employees to car-share wherever possible.
The Inland Revenue does not have a specific estimate of the additional number of journeys which will be made by car-sharing in 2002–03 owing to this, but will be evaluating the effects of this measure over time.
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