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21 Oct 2003 : Column 517W—continued
SCOTLAND
Bechtel
Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the contracts for consultancy and work carried out by Bechtel in each year since 1997, stating in each case (a) the nature of the work, (b) the value of the contract and (c) the duration of the contract; and if he will make a statement. [133019]
Mrs. McGuire: The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Since that date no consultancy or other work has been carried out by Bechtel for the Office.
CABINET OFFICE
Government Websites
24. Miss Begg: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the design of government websites is focused on the needs of the general public. [132955]
Mr. Alexander: The Cabinet Office publishes "Guidelines for UK Government Websites", a best practice guide for the design and management of websites.
The guidelines were last updated in December 2002 to reflect advancements in technology and to clarify and extend the range of advice.
Public Appointments
Rob Marris: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what age restrictions there are on public appointments. [132956]
Mr. Alexander: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave earlier to my hon. Friends the Members for Preston (Mr. Hendrick) and South Ribble (Mr. Borrow).
Ministerial Responsibilities
Mr. Chope: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will revise the list of ministerial responsibilities published by his office in July so that the Ministries are set out in the same alphabetical order as in previous editions of the same publication. [133535]
Mr. Alexander: The List of Ministerial Responsibilities (LMR) is now available in both electronic and paper form. LMR now lists Departments in alphabetical order consistent with the style adopted in previous editions. Copies have been placed in the Library of the House and the Vote Office. A copy is also being sent direct to the hon. Member.
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DEFENCE
AWE Aldermaston
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the purposes are of the refurbishment of buildings and other infrastructure at AWE Aldermaston; and what estimate he has made of the final cost. [132439]
Mr. Ingram: The refurbishment and replacement of older facilities and the decommissioning of those no longer required at AWE is an on-going programme of work to meet safety, regulatory and operational requirements. This work also offers potential environmental and efficiency benefits.
The costs of this work are included in the overall incentivised price of the 25-year AWE Management and Operation contract. It will be for AWE to determine the scope and level of investment necessary to maintain the infrastructure that will underpin the ability both to deliver the requisite contract outputs and to generate the efficiencies that we expect the incentivised arrangements will produce.
Challenger 2 Tank
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what future plans there are for the digitalisation of the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank fleet; what the predicted cost of digitising the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank fleet is; and when the digitisation of the Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank fleet is due to start. [133708]
Mr. Ingram: The digitisation of Challenger 2 will be achieved through the installation and integration of Bowman radios, Platform Battlefield Information Systems Application (P BIS A) and the Commander's Crew Station Screen with the current fire control and sighting systems within the tank. This work will be completed by the Design Authority Alvis Vickers Ltd. The approved cost for the Bowman project is £2.073 billion (resource cost, VAT inclusive, for the Demonstration and Manufacture phases) and the approved cost for the Combat Infrastructure and Platform BISA (CIP) project is £410 million (P BISA is an integral part of the CIP project). Both projects involve digitisation of a number of platforms over-and-above Challenger 2, it is therefore not possible to determine the elements attributable to a specific platform. The programme to digitise the Challenger 2 fleet is due to start in January 2004.
Colchester Garrison
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether (a) the Ministry of Defence and (b) Her Majesty's Treasury will receive a payment from Annington Homes as a result of the sale of former Ministry of Defence dwellings and land at the Colchester Garrison; and if he will make a statement. [132816]
Mr. Caplin: Under the terms of the 1996 Sale Agreement between the Ministry of Defence and Annington Homes, the Exchequer benefits from a Profit Share arrangement when properties that have become surplus are returned to the owners (Annington) and sold. This arrangement applies for the first 15 years
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following the 1996 sale and is based on a sliding percentage scale of the profit made by the Company after allowable overheads have been deducted.
Compensation Claims
Mr. Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much compensation has been paid by his Department in each year since 1990. [132736]
Mr. Caplin: Records going back to 1990 on how much compensation has been paid by the Ministry of Defence are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, the information sought in relation to compensation paid, which includes legal costs, since financial year 1997–98 is shown in the following table.
| Compensation paid (£ million) | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 70 |
| 1998–99 | 76 |
| 1999–2000 | 83 |
| 2000–01 | 88.5 |
| 2001–02 | 91.5 |
| 2002–03 | 104 |
The increase in the value of settlements in recent years is mainly attributable to changes in the level of general damages recommended to the courts by the Judicial Studies Board and a change in the multiplier used to calculate future losses as directed by the Lord Chancellor. For a breakdown of the figures, as well as further details regarding compensation issues associated with the Ministry of Defence, I refer my hon. Friend to the Department's Claims Annual Report, a copy of which is placed in the Library of the House each year.
Postal Services
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to continue with free postal and parcel services for armed forces personnel on detached duties abroad. [133157]
Mr. Ingram: A scheme to allow only those personnel deployed on Operation Telic to be sent small packets up to 2 kg in weight free of charge commenced on 17 April 2003. The service is kept under review.
Ministry of Defence Police
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the accountability of the Ministry of Defence Police. [132445]
Mr. Caplin: The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) are accountable to the Secretary of State, and therefore to Parliament for their actions. The role of the MOD Police Committee is now comparable to that of a police authority, mirroring best practice where appropriate. The committee focuses on strategic advice and governance, and holds MDP to account on a wide range of issues including complaints and discipline and the use of the extended jurisdiction granted to the MDP under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. A number of independent members sit on the committee.
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The Chief Constable's Annual Report and Accounts as well as his annual Key Targets are in the public domain. The Chief Constable now also provides an annual Operational Report. When this is available a copy will be placed in the Library of the House. The Chief Constable can be called before Select Committees if required and constituents of Members of Parliament may raise questions with the Secretary of State for Defence and the Chief Constable on the force and its activities.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when his Department expects to publish the second stage of the Quinquennial Review of the Ministry of Defence Police; and if he will make a statement. [132446]
Mr. Caplin: We have no plans to publish material relating to the second stage of the Ministry of Defence Police Quinquennial Review, as most of the issues relate to internal Ministry of Defence Police matters. This concerned governance and accountability, with particular reference to the MOD Police Committee.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the timetable is for implementing provisions of the Police Reform Act 2002 concerning the Ministry of Defence Police; and if he will make a statement. [132447]
Mr. Caplin: The Police Reform Act 2002 includes four sections that are specific to the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP). Three sections of the Police Reform Act 2002 have been implemented already. These allow for MDP officers to serve with other police forces under the direction of the chief officer of the force with which they are serving; place inspections by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary on a statutory basis; and allow potential recruits to the MDP to use firearms without a certificate for the purpose of assessment.
The final section concerns disciplinary procedures for the MDP, and the process to change these procedures is nearly complete. I expect the new procedures to be laid before Parliament early next year.
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