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Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Which preferred bidder terms were not met by 14 February by Legacy plc.[HL851]
Lord Falconer of Thoroton: I cannot go into the details as these were commercial negotiations between the Government and Legacy plc and the sale process is still ongoing.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What advice they have received from the Competititon Team formed by English Partnerships regarding the procedure which should be followed for the sale of the Millennium Dome site.[HL1303]
Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The Government have received comprehensive advice on this issue, and continue to do so.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they will admit Legacy plc as a bidder in the new process to sell the Millennium Dome site; and, if so, whether Legacy plc will be required to satisfy the same level of scrutiny as was required during the previous bidding process.[HL1304]
Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The new process will welcome proposals from any interested party, and the terms of the process will apply to all interested parties equally. Legacy plc are entitled to put forward proposals, as participation in the previous competition will not rule out involvement in the new process.
NMEC: £47 Million Grant
Baroness Anelay of St Johns asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How much of the grant of £47 million made by the Millennium Commission to the New Millennium Experience Company in September 2000 had been drawn down by 19th March 2001.[HL1305]
Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) has so far drawn down £10 million of the £47 million grant from the Millennium Commission. Thirty-seven million pounds remains.
Community Legal Service
Lord Grenfell asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What directions they intend to issue regarding the budget and scope of the Community Legal Service.[HL1557]
The Lord Chancellor (Lord Irvine of Lairg): I have today issued three directions. The first is a budget direction for the CLS, as required under Section 5 of the Access to Justice Act 1999. The budget for 2001-02 includes the following provisions:
- the same budget as in 2000-01 for controlled work and new services, of £232 million;
- within that budget, £5 million for the new Partnership Innovation Budget, and an increase in other support grants (from £1.5 million to £5 million);
- as last year, a minimum of £20 million to be spent on services provided by not-for-profit bodies; and
- an increase in the budget for high-cost cases, from £1 million to £4.5 million.
The third direction revises the circumstances in which cases that are normally excluded from scope can be funded. The main changes from my first direction, made in April 2000, are:
- excluded cases involving the liberty of the applicant will be funded, in line with the Government's obligations under the Human Rights Act;
- it will be easier to take action for professional negligence, even where the original service was provided in an area of law that is outside the CLS's normal scope;
- the treatment of cases against public authorities has been revised to make it easier to bring actions for judicial review or serious wrongdoing, and to match the direction to the way the Funding Code treats equivalent work that is in scope; and
- the treatment of mixed cases has been clarified, to restore the Government's original intention that only cases where the excluded element is minor or incidental to the main issue can be funded.
Foot and Mouth Disease: Extra Veterinary Staff
Lord Inglewood asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What steps are being taken to "call up" retired veterinarians to assist in the foot and mouth crisis.[HL1258]
The Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Baroness Hayman): The number of veterinary staff involved in the control and eradication of foot and mouth disease is being supplemented in a number of ways.
- (i) Retired members of the State Veterinary Service are working as temporary veterinary inspectors.
- (ii) Forty-eight veterinary staff have been seconded from the Ministry of Defence, the Veterinary Laboratory Agency and other government departments.
- (iii) Following contacts with veterinary practices and advertisements in the Veterinary Record, over 500 applications for temporary veterinary inspector posts have been received.
- (iv) Final year veterinary students are being signed up as casual animal health officers to work with established staff to assist with surveillance patrols.
- (v) Over 100 veterinary staff have arrived or are due to arrive from the official veterinary services in 11 overseas countries.
Foot and Mouth Disease: Cumbria
Lord Inglewood asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What are the names of the farms in Cumbria which have had an outbreak of foot and mouth disease; on which date the outbreak was confirmed; and what are the date or dates when the stock on them was slaughtered.[HL1295]
Baroness Hayman: By 2 April, there had been 372 confirmed cases of foot and mouth disease in Cumbria. The location and date of each outbreak is listed on the MAFF website (http://www.maff.gov.uk) and the information is available in the Libraries of the House.
Because of the exceptionally high number of infected premises in Cumbria, it has in some cases been difficult to achieve the target of slaughter within 24 hours of disease being reported. With additional resources, including help from the armed forces, now deployed, the planning co-ordination and management of the process has been improved.
Foot and Mouth Disease: Livestock Welfare Disposal Scheme
Lord Hanningfield asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they will give higher priority to making possible voluntary slaughter schemes for livestock which have been at risk of contact with foot and mouth disease and cannot now be moved because the farms are in a restricted area, as took place in Norfolk and Suffolk following the outbreak of swine fever.[Hl1346]
Baroness Hayman: The Livestock Welfare Disposal Scheme was opened to applicants on 22 March 2001. As with the Pig Welfare Disposal Scheme in Norfolk and Suffolk last year, this voluntary slaughter scheme is intended to help resolve serious animal welfare difficulties arising from disease control measures which cannot be alleviated by movement under licence or in other ways. It is not a market support measure. The generous rates of payment announced will apply
for two months and be reviewed before expiry of the period. The Government will meet the costs of transport, slaughter and disposal of animals under the scheme.State Veterinary Service: Staffing
Lord Hardy of Wath asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What are the number of veterinary surgeons and the number of officials involved in agricultural support and advice employed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in 1967, 1979 and at the end of 2000.[HL1356]
Baroness Hayman: The number of veterinary surgeons employed by the State Veterinary Service in 1967 could only be identified at disproportionate cost. The other information sought (full-time equivalents) is as follows:
- 1979--597.5
- 2001--286.0*
*The State Veterinary Service currently employs as a permanent staff 286 veterinary surgeons, of whom 220 are field veterinary officers.
Foot and Mouth Outbreak, South Africa
Baroness Blatch asked Her Majesty's Government:
- When knowledge of the outbreak of the foot and mouth disease (Pan Asian Strain) in South Africa was brought to the notice of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.[HL1410]
Baroness Hayman: The Ministry was notified of the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa, by a fax from the South African Department of Agriculture Veterinary Service on 19 September 2000. The European Commission also advised member states at the Standing Veterinary Committee meeting on 19/20 September 2000.
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