NOTICES AND ORDERS OF THE DAY
Items marked † are new or have been altered.
WEDNESDAY 7TH JANUARY
At half-past two o’clock
*The Lord Harrison—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what more they can do to reduce school fires, both caused by arson and accidental.
*The Lord Greaves—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to take action to deal with threats and intimidation arising from websites which provide personal details of active opponents of fascist and racist parties.
*The Lord Lamont of Lerwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Lord Chancellor will discuss with the Lord Chief Justice the recent overturning of certain convictions in relation to babies in cot deaths.
*The Lord Clinton-Davis—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what instructions have been given to United Kingdom airlines concerning sky marshals.
*The Earl Russell—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will confirm that the levels of social security benefits will remain independent of any numeracy or literacy tests.
The Baroness Finlay of Llandaff—To call attention to the arrangements for cancer registration in England and their role in support of the National Health Service Cancer Plan; and to move for papers. [Balloted debate]
The Lord Tombs—To call attention to the possibility of power interruptions in the electricity supply industry; and to move for papers. [Balloted debate]
Harbours Bill [HL]—Second Reading [The Lord Berkeley]
In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Lord Berkeley to move, That the bill be committed to a Committee of the Whole House.
THURSDAY 8TH JANUARY
[At eleven o’clock]
*The Baroness Howe of Idlicote—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the Children’s Society report Playing the Game on the experiences of young black men in custody.
*The Lord Hoyle—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations took place between Royal Mail and the relevant trade unions before the reduction in managers was announced, which is to take place by March 2004.
*The Lord Ezra—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the outcome of the Treasury’s two consultations, in July 2002 and August 2003, on economic instruments to improve household energy efficiency.
*The Lord Sheldon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they propose to take in a forthcoming Civil Service Bill concerning the exercise of executive powers by special advisers.
Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Bill [HL]—Second Reading [The Lord Sainsbury of Turville]
In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Lord Sainsbury of Turville to move, That the bill be committed to a Grand Committee.
European Parliamentary and Local Elections (Pilots) Bill—Second Reading [The Lord Filkin]
†In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Lord Filkin to move, That the bill be committed to a Grand Committee.
The Baroness Harris of Richmond—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Report from the Select Committee on the European Union, Proposals for a European Border Guard (29th Report, HL Paper 133), what legal controls and parliamentary oversight they believe should apply to new European Union structures for co-ordinating border management and to joint operations between the Member States.
MONDAY 12TH JANUARY
The Rt Hon Dame Brenda Hale DBE
will be introduced as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary
David Triesman, Esq
will be introduced as a Baron.
*The Lord Dubs—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what will be the extent of the proposed consultation on changes to the Honours System.
*The Lord Clement-Jones—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what professional protection of the title “Health Visitor” will exist after 1st April 2004.
*The Lord Faulkner of Worcester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will support the resolution passed by the European Parliament on 18th December 2003 to maintain the European Union embargo on trade in arms with the People’s Republic of China.
The Lord Lloyd of Berwick—To move, That this House takes note of the Report from the Committee on the Speakership of the House.
TUESDAY 13TH JANUARY
The Rt Hon Sir Robert Carswell
and
The Rt Hon Sir Simon Brown
will be introduced as Lords of Appeal in Ordinary.
*The Lord Ahmed—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to impose a levy on companies that are making profits in the United Kingdom but outsourcing their work to foreign countries for cheap labour.
*The Lord Burnham—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether courts martial have been abolished in the armed forces and, if so, what is intended to replace them.
*The Baroness Greengross—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in light of the deaths of Mr and Mrs Bates of Tooting and the handling of personal data relating to Ian Huntley, they have any plans to clarify the way the Data Protection Act 1998 protects vulnerable people of all ages.
†*The Lord Wallace of Saltaire—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will support more active British and European Union engagement in assisting political and economic transition in Georgia and in supporting its territorial integrity, in the light of the recent Presidential election.
The Lord Bach—To move, That this House takes note of the Defence White Paper: Delivering Security in a Changing World (Cm 6041).
The Lord Hooson—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will explore the potential of harnessing tidal power to produce electricity; and in particular whether they will set up a full study of the feasibility and cost of harnessing the tides in the Severn estuary.
In the Moses Room
At 3.30 pm
Gender Recognition Bill [HL]—Grand Committee [The Lord Filkin]
WEDNESDAY 14TH JANUARY
*The Lord Blaker—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further steps they propose to take in connection with the situation in Zimbabwe.
†Liaison—The Chairman of Committees to move, That the 3rd Report from the Select Committee, Session 2002-03, be agreed to. (HL Paper 183)
The Lord Geddes—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to redistribute light dues in an equitable manner across all users.
In the Moses Room
At 3.30 pm
Energy Bill [HL]—Grand Committee [The Lord Whitty]
THURSDAY 15TH JANUARY
*The Lord Butler of Brockwell—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they propose to ensure that changes in National Health Service funding do not adversely affect provision of medical services in universities.
*The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further developments they propose in support of London’s bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.
Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill [HL]—Committee [The Lord President (Baroness Amos)]
[It is expected that the Grand Committee on the Gender Recognition Bill will continue at 3.15 pm in the Moses Room]
FRIDAY 16TH JANUARY
The Baroness Prashar—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the Joint Committee on Human Rights on The Case for a Human Rights Commission (6th Report, Session 2002-03, HL Paper 67).
Smoking in Public Places (Wales) Bill [HL]—Second Reading [The Baroness Finlay of Llandaff]
In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Baroness Finlay of Llandaff to move, That the bill be committed to a Committee of the Whole House.
Air Traffic Emissions Reduction Bill [HL]—Second Reading [The Lord Beaumont of Whitley]
In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Lord Beaumont of Whitley to move, That the bill be committed to a Committee of the Whole House.
Wild Mammals (Protection) (Amendment) Bill [HL]—Second Reading [The Lord Donoughue]
In the event of the bill being read a second time, the Lord Donoughue to move, That the bill be committed to a Committee of the Whole House.
TUESDAY 20TH JANUARY
*The Lord Ashley of Stoke—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their proposed timescale for the draft Disability Discrimination Bill.
WEDNESDAY 21ST JANUARY
The Lord Bishop of Southwell
TUESDAY 27TH JANUARY
†*The Lord Montagu of Beaulieu—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that road and police authorities follow the guidelines that speed cameras are only employed conspicuously on dangerous stretches of road.
WEDNESDAY 4TH FEBRUARY
†*The Lord Rotherwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the largest amount of illegal meat seized in the United Kingdom at any one time in the year 2003; and what prosecutions followed.
NO DAY NAMED
PART I
The Lord Thomas of Gresford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they accept the legitimacy of pre-emptive armed attack as a constituent of the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter; and, if so, whether they will define the principles upon which it will be exercised.
The Lord Northbourne—To call attention to the Government’s progress in fulfilling their commitment to be “tough on the causes of crime”; and to move for papers.
The Lord Fowler—To call attention to the role of the Global Fund in combating the world-wide spread of HIV/AIDS; and to move for papers.
The Baroness Cox—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy on recent developments in Sudan.
The Lord Howe of Aberavon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in light of the Prime Minister’s initiative to attract more overseas students to the United Kingdom, whether they plan to make entry and visa arrangements for such students more user-friendly.
The Baroness Stern—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the independence and accountability of H M Inspectorate of Prisons are not compromised.
The Lord Dholakia—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will establish an independent inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Joseph Scholes at Stoke Heath Prison.
The Baroness Walmsley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what provisions are being made to improve vetting arrangements to prevent persons unsuitable to work with children from gaining employment with children in the United Kingdom and across the European Union.
The Lord Gray of Contin—To move, That this House takes note of the Energy White Paper, published in February 2003, entitled Our Energy Future—Creating a Low Carbon Economy.
The Lord Harrison—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will respond to the recent report by the Theatres’ Trust entitled Act Now: Modernising London’s West End Theatres.
The Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the European Union is developing its policy towards Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus.
The Lord Faulkner of Worcester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to improve relations with Taiwan.
The Lord Lloyd-Webber—To call attention to the place of music in education; and to move for papers.
The Lord Pearson of Rannoch—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether direct taxation has been ceded to the European Union under the existing European treaties.
The Lord Rea—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the total costs to date in economic and human terms of the recent conflict in Iraq and the likely future costs of the occupation, reconstruction and rehabilitation of Iraq.
The Baroness Hooper—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to make changes in the Overseas Territories following the meeting of the Overseas Territories Council 2003.
The Lord Moynihan—To call attention to the case for a new Government policy for sport and recreation; and to move for papers.
The Lord Norton of Louth—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to recommend the greater use of Special Public Bill Committees in the House of Lords.
The Lord Norton of Louth—To call attention to the case for improving contact and understanding between the two Houses of Parliament; and to move for papers.
The Lord Norton of Louth—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to review the method of determining members’ allowances in local authorities.
The Lord Northbourne—To call attention to the case for more public recognition of, and support for, the role of parents in the care and education of the nation’s children; and to move for papers.
The Baroness Sharp of Guildford—To call attention to political involvement in decisions affecting the university and research sectors; and to move for papers.
The Baroness Massey of Darwen—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the British Medical Association report Adolescent Health, with particular regard to obesity and sexual health.
The Baroness Boothroyd—To call attention to the case for tighter regulations relating to the free treatment of National Health Service tourists; and to move for papers.
Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2003—The Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer to move, That an Humble Address be presented to Her Majesty praying that the Order, laid before the House on 11th December, be annulled (S.I. 2003/3242).
The Lord Alton of Liverpool—To call attention to the provisions in statute that permit conditions such as cleft palate and cleft lip to be regarded as “serious handicaps” for the purposes of terminating the lives of the unborn after 24 weeks gestation; and to move for papers.
The Lord Ahmed—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they support strengthening of the United Nations.
The Lord Astor of Hever—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether enough is being done within the educational process to attract young engineers to industry, and in particular to the automotive and motorsport industries.
The Lord Greaves—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress is being made on the introduction in England of the access provisions in Part I of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.
The Earl Russell—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why they found it necessary to announce in 1999 a target for the eradication of child poverty, which they have now had to abandon.
†The Baroness Rawlings—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy on recent developments in Georgia.
†The Baroness Rawlings—To call attention to the political situation in Brazil; and to move for papers.
†The Baroness Rawlings—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy on recent developments in Hong Kong.
†The Countess of Mar—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they subscribe to the World Health Organisation International Classification of Diseases for myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) under ICD 10.G93.3—neurological disorders.
PART II
MOTIONS FOR BALLOTED DEBATE
[Ballot on 21st January for debate on 11th February]
The Baroness Hooper—To call attention to recent developments in Latin America; and to move for papers.
The Lord Lea of Crondall—To call attention to the Report prepared for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Railways by Professor Phil Goodwin, What Future for Rail?; and to move for papers.
The Lord Sheldon—To call attention to the state of the Civil Service; and to move for papers.
The Lord Harrison—To call attention to the Public Library Service of the United Kingdom and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s publication, A Framework for the future; and to move for papers.
The Lord Blaker—To call attention to the situation in Zimbabwe; and to move for papers.
The Baroness Howe of Idlicote—To call attention to the extent of direct marketing to children and the case for limiting its effects on society, children and families; and to move for papers.
The Baroness Greengross—To call attention to the health of women at all stages of their lives; and to move for papers.
The Lord Butler of Brockwell—To call attention to the changes in National Health Service funding affecting the provisions of general medical services for students, in particular the effect on general practitioners’ surgeries on university sites.
The Earl of Sandwich—To call attention to the efforts made by NATO to help the people of Afghanistan to defeat terrorism and improve security within the terms of the Bonn Agreement and of the revised United Nations mandate; and to move for papers.
The Lord Hoyle—To call attention to the level of consultation within Royal Mail between management and trade unions; and to move for papers.
PART III
SELECT COMMITTEE REPORTS
[The date in brackets is that on which the Report was published]
The Viscount Colville of Culross—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the Religious Offences Committee on Religious Offences in England and Wales (HL Paper 95). [10th June, Session 2002-03]
The Lord Jopling—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, following the Report from the Select Committee on the European Union, EU—Effective in a crisis? (7th Report, HL Paper 53), they are content with the current capability of the civilian aspects of the European Security and Defence Policy. [5th March, Session 2002-03]
The Lord Patel—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the Science and Technology Committee on Science and the RDAs: SETting the regional agenda (5th Report, HL Paper 140). [16th July, Session 2002-03]
The Lord Slynn of Hadley—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the Joint Committee on the Draft Corruption Bill (HL Paper 157). [31st July, Session 2002-03]
The Lord Radice—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the European Union Committee on Is the European Central Bank Working? (42nd Report, HL Paper 170). [30th October, Session 2002-03]
The Lord Scott of Foscote—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Report from the Select Committee on the European Union, If At First You Don’t Succeed...Takeover Bids Again (28th Report, HL Paper 128), whether they regard the proposed European Union Takeovers Directive as being, on balance, in the interests of the United Kingdom; and, if not, what changes they regard as necessary or desirable to the terms of the proposed Directive. [Session 2002-03]
The Lord Grenfell—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the European Union Committee: Annual Report from the Committee (44th Report, HL Paper 191). [27th November]
The Lord Woolmer of Leeds—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the European Union Committee on Towards a Single Market for Finance: The Financial Services Action Plan (45th Report, HL Paper 192). [2nd December]
The Earl of Selborne—To move, That this House takes note of the Report of the European Union Committee on European Union Waste Management Policy (47th Report, HL Paper 194). [10th December]
QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER
[Tabled on 6th January, or unanswered after 21 days]
[The Government Department responsible for
answering each Question is shown in brackets]
26th November
The Lord Hoyle—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there are plans to privatise the Iraqi oil industry. [FCO] (HL30)
27th November
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Cabinet Office Strategy Unit disbanded the sub-group of their Advisory Group on the draft Analytical Report on alcohol; and whether they will publish the paper submitted by Professor Sir Michael Marmot, a member of the sub-group. [CO] (HL92)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 18th November (WA 273) concerning the 2003 budget for the Ulster Scots Agency, who agreed to the budget in February; and whether an appropriate business plan was considered and agreed. [NIO] (HL100)
1st December
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they accept the findings of the report No Half Measures by the Alcohol Harm Reduction Group on the impact of alcohol misuse on the police, ambulance services, accident and emergency departments and fire services; and how the extension of opening hours under the Licensing Act 2003 will contribute towards a reduction of these problems. [DoH] (HL146)
The Lord Peston—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any examples of price cutting of the cover price of newspapers and periodicals at the retail level; and, if so, whether they will identify the examples. [DTI] (HL161)
2nd December
The Lord Glentoran—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many QUANGOs currently exist in Northern Ireland; and how much they cost. [NIO] (HL180)
The Baroness Scott of Needham Market—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance has been issued to (a) chief constables; (b) local government chief executives; and (c) other public sector senior managers regarding their own and their employees’ membership of the British National Party, the National Front or organisations proscribed by law; and whether they will place a copy of such guidance in the Library of the House. [CO] (HL187)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 352), whether they do not expect any underspend from either section of the Language Implementation Body for 2003. [NIO] (HL188)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 354) concerning the budget of the Language Implementation Body, whether they will list the various stages in the administrative procedures for the setting of the 2003 budget, including dates of discussion, the persons involved, the location and the outcome. [NIO] (HL190)
The Lord Marlesford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what date the charge for a game licence was last increased; and what the present charge would be if it were to be increased by the change in the consumer price index since that date. [DEFRA] (HL201)
3rd December
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 357), why the physical competence test for the Police Service of Northern Ireland was moved to the training stage for recruits; and whether it is still a condition of entry to the police. [NIO] (HL219)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA350) concerning the supply of final accounts for Cross Border Implementation Bodies, why there was a delay in the accounts for 2000 for Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission; and whether they regard the delay as satisfactory. [NIO] (HL222)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 10th November (WA 154), who has custody of the archives of the Patten Commission on policing; whether those archives contain the legal opinion referred to in paragraph 15.11 of the Patten report; whether the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has a copy of the legal opinion; and whether they will consider placing a copy of the legal opinion in the Library of the House. [NIO] (HL223)
The Lord Smith of Leigh—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have about the increasing number of children recorded as “at risk”; and whether the recently announced increase in funding matches this growing demand. [DfES] (HL242)
The Countess of Mar—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many regular, reserve and territorial members of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces have been evacuated from Iraq since 19th March for non-combatant injuries and illnesses; and what were the categories of those injuries and illnesses. [MoD] (HL243)
4th December
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have about the identification of civilians killed or injured in the recent Samarra engagement by coalition forces in Iraq. [FCO] (HL251)
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the population in (a) Baghdad; (b) Basra; and (c) the rest of Iraq currently have access to sewage systems which are fully functioning; and what proportion are using sewage systems in which sewage is not being treated. [FCO] (HL252)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they propose to prevent law enforcement officers and other public servants from holding membership of known racist organisations and organisations proscribed by law. [HO] (HL257)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the recent Russian Memorandum for the resolution of constitutional and other issues in the Republic of Moldova. [FCO] (HL259)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 358), whether the answer confirms that the Language Implementation Body’s Budget for 2003 was set by a department of the Eire government and notified to the appropriate department in the United Kingdom. [NIO] (HL270)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Eire government announced the 2004 budget allocations for the Cross Border Language Implementation Body unilaterally in November; and why the proper procedure was not used. [NIO] (HL272)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 2nd April (WA 132), on what basis the budgets for the Cross Border Bodies for 2003 were set. [NIO] (HL274)
8th December
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy towards the payment of compensation to Iraqi citizens for deaths, injuries and property damage caused by the coalition forces; and what are the practices currently employed by United Kingdom personnel and by other coalition partners. [FCO] (HL294)
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of the numbers of those (a) killed; and (b) wounded or maimed in Iraq as a result of the activation of unexploded munitions, including cluster bombs, since the end of the war in 2003. [FCO] (HL295)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they had advance knowledge of the announcement of the 2004 budget for the Cross Border Language Implementation Body; and, if so, what action they took in response. [NIO] (HL300)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what business case the Eire government used to set the budget for 2004 for the Language Implementation Body; and who had approved the budget at the time of announcement in November. [NIO] (HL302)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they agree with the view of Lord Palmerston expressed in 1865 that there are many occasions when it is proper and for the convenience of the House that the opinions of the Attorney General should be made known. [LSLO] (HL303)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on which occasions since 1865 the advice of the Attorney General has been publicly disclosed. [LSLO] (HL304)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the reason for publishing the summary of the views of the Attorney General on the legality of the war against Iraq; and why they have since consistently declined requests for information as to whether the Attorney General gave any fuller advice on the legality of the war. [LSLO] (HL305)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the views expressed by international lawyers and Kofi Annan that the invasion of Iraq was contrary to international law, they will now publish the full advice of the Attorney General so that his reasons may be open to public scrutiny. [LSLO] (HL306)
The Lord Stone of Blackheath—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to investigate fully the links between bereavement and youth offending. [HO] (HL307)
The Lord Stone of Blackheath—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what resources they currently make available to provide help for young offenders who have suffered a significant bereavement. [HO] (HL308)
The Lord Corbett of Castle Vale—To ask Her Majesty’s Government with which countries in the Caribbean the United Kingdom has prison transfer agreements; and, listed by country, how many prisoners have so far been transferred. [FCO] (HL316)
The Lord Corbett of Castle Vale—To ask Her Majesty’s Government with which countries in the Caribbean the United Kingdom is negotiating prison transfer agreements; and when it is anticipated these negotiations will be concluded. [FCO] (HL317)
9th December
The Lord Palmer—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total cost over the last twelve months of publishing all government publications, excluding staff costs; how many of these publications were distributed freely; what was the average circulation of these publications; what, if any, revenues were raised by charging for any of these publications; and what were the equivalent figures for 1997. [CO] (HL325)
The Baroness Byford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, when an on-shore wind farm is constructed on mountain, moor, heath or downland, the area it covers remains open access; and whether it is legally possible for on-shore wind farms to be constructed on common land. [DEFRA] (HL345)
The Lord Vivian—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the total of Ministry of Defence resource assets in cash terms; how much the Ministry of Defence pays for these assets; and what is the surplus or shortfall in the Ministry of Defence budget in cash terms. [MoD] (HL356)
10th December
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, when foreign aid grants are re-directed from CARE to the Afghan Ministry of Education, they will ensure continuity of funding for the children in schools in Afghanistan sponsored by CARE under the Community Organised Primary Education Programme. [DfID] (HL373)
The Lord Jopling—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what public funding is currently directed to research into Huntington’s Disease. [DoH] (HL375)
The Lord Campbell-Savours—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will request a report from management at the Southport and Ormskirk Hospital on the employment of South African surgeons supplied by NETcare and the nature of representations made by the British Orthopaedic Association on this matter. [DoH] (HL389)
The Lord Campbell-Savours—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will request a report on the experience of the Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority in accessing potential patients to be operated upon by South African medical professionals and on the employment of these medical personnel. [DoH] (HL390)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have (a) to make it possible for both qualified and registered chiropodists and podiatrists to dispense Lamisil and other related “over the counter” dispensed medicines; and (b) to enable qualified and registered chiropodists to give a complete service so that their patients can be assured that they receive the medicines they are directed to use. [DoH] (HL398)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 8th December (WA 39) and 10th September (WA 123), why the answers did not explain the necessity of providing a car for the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body when other Chief Executives of Cross Border Bodies were not provided with a car as part of their remuneration package. [NIO] (HL405)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what dates the final versions of the 2004 business plans for Cross Border Bodies were provided to the appropriate departments. [NIO] (HL406)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the first Chief Executive of the Special European Programmes Body was suspended; and why he was subsequently re-instated, before he then resigned within a week. [NIO] (HL407)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether a letter of apology was issued to the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body for his suspension, once he was re-instated. [NIO] (HL408)
11th December
The Lord Hoyle—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their current position concerning the Board of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). [DfES] (HL411)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in order to achieve continuity of spiritual care and equality of care for those concerned, they will arrange for chaplaincy services in prisons and special hospitals to be provided by the same means in both classes of establishment. [HO] (HL422)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to amend the Prison Act 1952 in the foreseeable future; and whether the Act can be ignored where it is expedient to do so, in the absence of any likely challenge in the courts. [HO] (HL423)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government from which countries, apart from Zimbabwe, asylum seekers who no longer have rights of appeal are denied benefit and the right to work in the United Kingdom but are not forced to return. [HO] (HL426)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 10th December (WA 63) and 11th June (WA 44) on the Ulster Scots Agency budget, whether the correct procedure was used in assessing the budget in this case. [NIO] (HL435)
The Lord Christopher—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many appeals were made to the Civil Service Appeal Body by staff (including industrial staff) of the Ministry of Defence in each of the years 1994-2002 and in the year 2003 to date; and, over the same periods—
(a) what was the total of such appeals for the whole civil service; and
(b) what percentage of the whole civil service (including industrial staff) was represented by staff of the Ministry of Defence. [CO] (HL441)
15th December
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what improvements there have been in meeting the special needs of children with autism since the first statutory provision specifically for them; and what assessment they have made of still unmet needs. [DfES] (HL448)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what improvements there have been in meeting special needs of children with dyslexia since the first statutory provision specifically for them; and what assessment they have made of still unmet needs. [DfES] (HL449)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government by what processes the Health Professions Council ensures that applicants for “grandparenting” are required to demonstrate their fitness to provide legal, safe and effective practice as a chiropodist or podiatrist; and what assurances they have had from the Council that “grandparenting” procedures do not undermine public safety by allowing people who have failed approved courses to be admitted to the register. [DoH] (HL450)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what redress is available to patients with diabetes who find that they have been treated by a chiropodist or podiatrist who was untrained and unqualified to deal with the special needs of diabetic patients. [DoH] (HL451)
[As amended on 16th December]
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government where legal liability lies in cases where unlicensed use of vaccines is held to have damaged the health of the vaccinated person or to have constituted a significant health hazard. [DoH] (HL452)
The Lord Davies of Coity—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what legal action is open to the Health Professions Council to prevent an applicant who failed a podiatry degree course from being included on the register and practising as a podiatrist. [DoH] (HL454)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total cost of the package awarded to the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body on his resignation, including ex gratia payments, pension contributions, car provision and advance salary payments. [NIO] (HL456)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the expenditure of the Special European Union Programmes Body on (a) outside consultants; and (b) staff costs in each year since its inception. [NIO] (HL457)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to provide further support for victims of civil unrest in Northern Ireland. [NIO] (HL460)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will ask the International Organisation for Migration to report on the welfare of the 29 asylum seekers from Zimbabwe who have accepted the Organisation’s assistance to be voluntarily repatriated since April 2003. [FCO] (HL461)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many police officers have been dismissed for racist behaviour since the publication in 1999 of the Macpherson Report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. [HO] (HL464)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the policies and procedures relating to disciplinary action against police officers make it difficult for those charged with racially discriminatory behaviour to be dismissed. [HO] (HL465)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they will take to enable police constabularies and authorities to take effective disciplinary action against police officers engaged in racist behaviour. [HO] (HL466)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many police officers dismissed for unacceptable racist behaviour have been reinstated by the Home Secretary since 2000. [HO] (HL467)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are satisfied with the powers available to chief constables to eliminate racist behaviour among police officers. [HO] (HL468)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what work permits have been issued to professional sportsmen and women from January 1997 to December 2003 inclusive. [HO] (HL473)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, why it is necessary to permit Catholic sixth form colleges to discriminate against non-Catholics in their admission policies in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved. [DTI] (HL475)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, what is the “minimum percentage of Catholic students” that Catholic sixth form colleges should be permitted to require in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved. [DTI] (HL476)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, what proportion of students at the Catholic sixth form colleges are non-Catholics. [DTI] (HL477)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, whether their proposal would permit a Christian Foundation school or college to discriminate against Jewish students in order to preserve their Christian character and ethos. [DTI] (HL478)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 will ensure that the admission arrangements for Catholic sixth form colleges do not discriminate in a way that is incompatible with the United Kingdom’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and European Community law. [DTI] (HL479)
16th December
The Lord Freyberg—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many charities there are in the United Kingdom; and how many of these are (a) incorporated trading and incorporated non-trading charities; and (b) unincorporated trading and unincorporated non-trading charities. [HO] (HL493)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many work permits for the United Kingdom have been issued outside the “sector-based scheme”, since they came into office; and how many were temporary. [HO] (HL496)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what will the anticipated yearly incomes and expenditure flows be for each year up to and including 2013-14 under the financial model used to estimate public subsidy required by the London 2012 Olympic Games. [DCMS] (HL500)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 15th December (WA 91) about the 2003 budget for the Ulster Scots Agency, why the information requested was not provided; and whether they will now provide it. [NIO] (HL503)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the total cost of the Civic Forum created by the Belfast Agreement; and what it has achieved. [NIO] (HL512)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government in what way Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive were answerable for their decisions to the elected members of the Northern Ireland Assembly prior to its dissolution. [NIO] (HL514)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the generation and supply of electricity in Northern Ireland are adequate for the expected demand for electricity in the next five years. [NIO] (HL516)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proposals there are for reorganisation of local government in Northern Ireland. [NIO] (HL517)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf conflict received only the first anthrax-pertussis injection; how many received the first and second; and how many the first, second and third. [MoD] (HL518)
The Lord Jenkin of Roding—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Lord Sainsbury of Turville has ceased to have any responsibility for dealing with energy matters in this House. [DTI] (HL520)
The Lord Jenkin of Roding—To ask Her Majesty’s Government who will answer for the Department of Trade and Industry on energy matters in the House of Lords. [DTI] (HL521)
6th January
The Lord Smith of Clifton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the terms of reference and job specification of the new Director General of Higher Education, Sir Alan Wilson. (HL658)
The Lord Smith of Clifton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the terms of reference and job specification for the proposed holder of the Office for Fair Access in Higher Education. (HL659)
The Lord Wedderburn of Charlton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to legislate on the duties of skill and care of the directors of public companies; and, if so, whether Parliament will be afforded the opportunity to debate and amend the proposals which the Government intend to make. (HL660)
The Lord Hayhoe—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in 2003 in implementing the National Programme for Information Technology in the National Health Service with particular reference to London; and whether any significant setbacks have arisen. (HL661)
The Baroness Goudie—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking nationwide to counterbalance the negative effects of a significant bereavement on young people. (HL662)
The Baroness Goudie—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to implement a nationwide bereavement strategy to help children who experience a significant bereavement. (HL663)
The Baroness Goudie—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will take steps to ensure that every school has a teacher who is trained in bereavement counselling. (HL664)
The Baroness Goudie—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans for all youth offending teams to include an officer who is specifically trained in, and aware of, all aspects of issues relating to bereavement counselling. (HL665)
The Baroness Goudie—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures are in place to help families cope with, and to stay united, during times of bereavement. (HL666)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to publish up-to-date anonymised information on its terrorism website on—
(a) each certification under Part 4 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 setting courts duration and current status, including the outcome of any appearance before the Special Immigration Appeals Commissions including bail hearings or appeals (giving both the determination and a link to the full open reasons); and
(b) the number of detentions there have been under the Terrorism Acts and their outcomes (for example, prosecution, certification under Part 4 release). (HL667)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will seek to establish framework agreements with the main countries involved in the deportation from the United Kingdom to them of suspected international terrorists to minimise the delay in dealing with individual cases. (HL668)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will reconsider the case for offences aggravated by religious hatred in the context of broader mainstream legislation designed to protect the range of targets of hate crime. (HL669)
The Lord Taylor of Warwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to ensure that British workers will not lose the right to opt out of the 48-hour working week clause negotiated by the United Kingdom in 1993. (HL670)
The Lord Taylor of Warwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to repair the national shortage of raw materials which contributes to the growth in costs in the construction industry. (HL671)
The Earl Russell—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will monitor the level of water disconnections among (a) those on means tested social security benefits; and (b) those subjected to benefit sanctions. (HL672)
The Lord Tebbit—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what objective tests they expect to be applied following the enactment of the Gender Recognition Bill in the determination of the sex of persons who are litigants in civil actions or the accused in criminal actions where that is a relevant matter under the law. (HL673)
The Lord Tebbit—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it will be possible for biological male persons whose births have been registered as female under the Gender Recognition Bill to be charged with, and found guilty of, rape of a female person. (HL674)
The Duke of Montrose—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are able to trace recent purchasers of plants susceptible to phytophthora ramorum from nurseries that have been found to be infected; and to what extent they undertake this. (HL675)
The Duke of Montrose—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by the Lord Whitty on 6th January which indicates that the number of nurseries with material infected by phytophthora ramorum has doubled since the Written Answer by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 12th February 2003 (HC Deb, col. 852-3W), whether they would consider issuing for the reassurance of the public certificates of freedom from the disease to nurseries that have had no evidence of infection. (HL676)
The Lord Mason of Barnsley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action is contemplated by the Environment Agency to deal with the problems caused by cormorants, in particular the spreading of the ligula tapeworm as revealed by the Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Group; and whether the Environment Agency will carry out surveys of trout lakes to ascertain the extent of the disease. (HL677)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of the Northern Ireland Executive for Education budget in the last financial year was spent on administration of the Area Boards; and what was spent on the provision of education. (HL678)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of the Northern Ireland Executive for Health budget in the last financial year was spent on administration of the Area Boards; and what was spent on the provision of health. (HL679)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 18th December 2003 (WA 162) concerning the pension provision for staff of Cross Border Implementation Bodies, what was the outcome of the meeting on 15th December 2003. (HL680)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 8th September 2003 (WA 6) concerning the budget of the Cross Border Implementation Bodies set up under the Belfast Agreement, whether it is possible to change proportionality of the budgets between the British and Irish Governments; and, if so, whether this will be undertaken in respect to the 2004 budgets. (HL681)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, when a member of the House of Lords requests a civil servant to forward his or her views to a Minister, whether there is an obligation on the civil servant to undertake such a task. (HL682)
QUESTIONS FOR WRITTEN ANSWER AWAITING ANSWER
6th JANUARY 2004
[Tabled on the dates shown]
[The Government Department responsible for
answering each Question is shown in brackets]
26th November
The Lord Hoyle—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there are plans to privatise the Iraqi oil industry. [FCO] (HL30)
27th November
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Cabinet Office Strategy Unit disbanded the sub-group of their Advisory Group on the draft Analytical Report on alcohol; and whether they will publish the paper submitted by Professor Sir Michael Marmot, a member of the sub-group. [CO] (HL92)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 18th November (WA 273) concerning the 2003 budget for the Ulster Scots Agency, who agreed to the budget in February; and whether an appropriate business plan was considered and agreed. [NIO] (HL100)
1st December
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they accept the findings of the report No Half Measures by the Alcohol Harm Reduction Group on the impact of alcohol misuse on the police, ambulance services, accident and emergency departments and fire services; and how the extension of opening hours under the Licensing Act 2003 will contribute towards a reduction of these problems. [DoH] (HL146)
The Lord Peston—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any examples of price cutting of the cover price of newspapers and periodicals at the retail level; and, if so, whether they will identify the examples. [DTI] (HL161)
2nd December
The Lord Glentoran—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many QUANGOs currently exist in Northern Ireland; and how much they cost. [NIO] (HL180)
The Baroness Scott of Needham Market—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance has been issued to (a) chief constables; (b) local government chief executives; and (c) other public sector senior managers regarding their own and their employees’ membership of the British National Party, the National Front or organisations proscribed by law; and whether they will place a copy of such guidance in the Library of the House. [CO] (HL187)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 352), whether they do not expect any underspend from either section of the Language Implementation Body for 2003. [NIO] (HL188)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 354) concerning the budget of the Language Implementation Body, whether they will list the various stages in the administrative procedures for the setting of the 2003 budget, including dates of discussion, the persons involved, the location and the outcome. [NIO] (HL190)
The Lord Marlesford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what date the charge for a game licence was last increased; and what the present charge would be if it were to be increased by the change in the consumer price index since that date. [DEFRA] (HL201)
3rd December
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 357), why the physical competence test for the Police Service of Northern Ireland was moved to the training stage for recruits; and whether it is still a condition of entry to the police. [NIO] (HL219)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA350) concerning the supply of final accounts for Cross Border Implementation Bodies, why there was a delay in the accounts for 2000 for Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission; and whether they regard the delay as satisfactory. [NIO] (HL222)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 10th November (WA 154), who has custody of the archives of the Patten Commission on policing; whether those archives contain the legal opinion referred to in paragraph 15.11 of the Patten report; whether the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has a copy of the legal opinion; and whether they will consider placing a copy of the legal opinion in the Library of the House. [NIO] (HL223)
The Lord Smith of Leigh—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have about the increasing number of children recorded as “at risk”; and whether the recently announced increase in funding matches this growing demand. [DfES] (HL242)
The Countess of Mar—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many regular, reserve and territorial members of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces have been evacuated from Iraq since 19th March for non-combatant injuries and illnesses; and what were the categories of those injuries and illnesses. [MoD] (HL243)
4th December
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have about the identification of civilians killed or injured in the recent Samarra engagement by coalition forces in Iraq. [FCO] (HL251)
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the population in (a) Baghdad; (b) Basra; and (c) the rest of Iraq currently have access to sewage systems which are fully functioning; and what proportion are using sewage systems in which sewage is not being treated. [FCO] (HL252)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they propose to prevent law enforcement officers and other public servants from holding membership of known racist organisations and organisations proscribed by law. [HO] (HL257)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the recent Russian Memorandum for the resolution of constitutional and other issues in the Republic of Moldova. [FCO] (HL259)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 20th November (WA 358), whether the answer confirms that the Language Implementation Body’s Budget for 2003 was set by a department of the Eire government and notified to the appropriate department in the United Kingdom. [NIO] (HL270)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Eire government announced the 2004 budget allocations for the Cross Border Language Implementation Body unilaterally in November; and why the proper procedure was not used. [NIO] (HL272)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 2nd April (WA 132), on what basis the budgets for the Cross Border Bodies for 2003 were set. [NIO] (HL274)
8th December
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy towards the payment of compensation to Iraqi citizens for deaths, injuries and property damage caused by the coalition forces; and what are the practices currently employed by United Kingdom personnel and by other coalition partners. [FCO] (HL294)
The Lord Judd—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of the numbers of those (a) killed; and (b) wounded or maimed in Iraq as a result of the activation of unexploded munitions, including cluster bombs, since the end of the war in 2003. [FCO] (HL295)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they had advance knowledge of the announcement of the 2004 budget for the Cross Border Language Implementation Body; and, if so, what action they took in response. [NIO] (HL300)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what business case the Eire government used to set the budget for 2004 for the Language Implementation Body; and who had approved the budget at the time of announcement in November. [NIO] (HL302)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they agree with the view of Lord Palmerston expressed in 1865 that there are many occasions when it is proper and for the convenience of the House that the opinions of the Attorney General should be made known. [LSLO] (HL303)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on which occasions since 1865 the advice of the Attorney General has been publicly disclosed. [LSLO] (HL304)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the reason for publishing the summary of the views of the Attorney General on the legality of the war against Iraq; and why they have since consistently declined requests for information as to whether the Attorney General gave any fuller advice on the legality of the war. [LSLO] (HL305)
The Lord Alexander of Weedon—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the views expressed by international lawyers and Kofi Annan that the invasion of Iraq was contrary to international law, they will now publish the full advice of the Attorney General so that his reasons may be open to public scrutiny. [LSLO] (HL306)
The Lord Stone of Blackheath—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to investigate fully the links between bereavement and youth offending. [HO] (HL307)
The Lord Stone of Blackheath—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what resources they currently make available to provide help for young offenders who have suffered a significant bereavement. [HO] (HL308)
The Lord Corbett of Castle Vale—To ask Her Majesty’s Government with which countries in the Caribbean the United Kingdom has prison transfer agreements; and, listed by country, how many prisoners have so far been transferred. [FCO] (HL316)
The Lord Corbett of Castle Vale—To ask Her Majesty’s Government with which countries in the Caribbean the United Kingdom is negotiating prison transfer agreements; and when it is anticipated these negotiations will be concluded. [FCO] (HL317)
9th December
The Lord Palmer—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total cost over the last twelve months of publishing all government publications, excluding staff costs; how many of these publications were distributed freely; what was the average circulation of these publications; what, if any, revenues were raised by charging for any of these publications; and what were the equivalent figures for 1997. [CO] (HL325)
The Baroness Byford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, when an on-shore wind farm is constructed on mountain, moor, heath or downland, the area it covers remains open access; and whether it is legally possible for on-shore wind farms to be constructed on common land. [DEFRA] (HL345)
The Lord Vivian—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the total of Ministry of Defence resource assets in cash terms; how much the Ministry of Defence pays for these assets; and what is the surplus or shortfall in the Ministry of Defence budget in cash terms. [MoD] (HL356)
10th December
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, when foreign aid grants are re-directed from CARE to the Afghan Ministry of Education, they will ensure continuity of funding for the children in schools in Afghanistan sponsored by CARE under the Community Organised Primary Education Programme. [DfID] (HL373)
The Lord Jopling—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what public funding is currently directed to research into Huntington’s Disease. [DoH] (HL375)
The Lord Campbell-Savours—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will request a report from management at the Southport and Ormskirk Hospital on the employment of South African surgeons supplied by NETcare and the nature of representations made by the British Orthopaedic Association on this matter. [DoH] (HL389)
The Lord Campbell-Savours—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will request a report on the experience of the Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority in accessing potential patients to be operated upon by South African medical professionals and on the employment of these medical personnel. [DoH] (HL390)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have (a) to make it possible for both qualified and registered chiropodists and podiatrists to dispense Lamisil and other related “over the counter” dispensed medicines; and (b) to enable qualified and registered chiropodists to give a complete service so that their patients can be assured that they receive the medicines they are directed to use. [DoH] (HL398)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 8th December (WA 39) and 10th September (WA 123), why the answers did not explain the necessity of providing a car for the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body when other Chief Executives of Cross Border Bodies were not provided with a car as part of their remuneration package. [NIO] (HL405)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what dates the final versions of the 2004 business plans for Cross Border Bodies were provided to the appropriate departments. [NIO] (HL406)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the first Chief Executive of the Special European Programmes Body was suspended; and why he was subsequently re-instated, before he then resigned within a week. [NIO] (HL407)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether a letter of apology was issued to the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body for his suspension, once he was re-instated. [NIO] (HL408)
11th December
The Lord Hoyle—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their current position concerning the Board of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). [DfES] (HL411)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in order to achieve continuity of spiritual care and equality of care for those concerned, they will arrange for chaplaincy services in prisons and special hospitals to be provided by the same means in both classes of establishment. [HO] (HL422)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to amend the Prison Act 1952 in the foreseeable future; and whether the Act can be ignored where it is expedient to do so, in the absence of any likely challenge in the courts. [HO] (HL423)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government from which countries, apart from Zimbabwe, asylum seekers who no longer have rights of appeal are denied benefit and the right to work in the United Kingdom but are not forced to return. [HO] (HL426)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 10th December (WA 63) and 11th June (WA 44) on the Ulster Scots Agency budget, whether the correct procedure was used in assessing the budget in this case. [NIO] (HL435)
The Lord Christopher—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many appeals were made to the Civil Service Appeal Body by staff (including industrial staff) of the Ministry of Defence in each of the years 1994-2002 and in the year 2003 to date; and, over the same periods—
(a) what was the total of such appeals for the whole civil service; and
(b) what percentage of the whole civil service (including industrial staff) was represented by staff of the Ministry of Defence. [CO] (HL441)
15th December
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what improvements there have been in meeting the special needs of children with autism since the first statutory provision specifically for them; and what assessment they have made of still unmet needs. [DfES] (HL448)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what improvements there have been in meeting special needs of children with dyslexia since the first statutory provision specifically for them; and what assessment they have made of still unmet needs. [DfES] (HL449)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government by what processes the Health Professions Council ensures that applicants for “grandparenting” are required to demonstrate their fitness to provide legal, safe and effective practice as a chiropodist or podiatrist; and what assurances they have had from the Council that “grandparenting” procedures do not undermine public safety by allowing people who have failed approved courses to be admitted to the register. [DoH] (HL450)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what redress is available to patients with diabetes who find that they have been treated by a chiropodist or podiatrist who was untrained and unqualified to deal with the special needs of diabetic patients. [DoH] (HL451)
[As amended on 16th December]
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government where legal liability lies in cases where unlicensed use of vaccines is held to have damaged the health of the vaccinated person or to have constituted a significant health hazard. [DoH] (HL452)
The Lord Davies of Coity—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what legal action is open to the Health Professions Council to prevent an applicant who failed a podiatry degree course from being included on the register and practising as a podiatrist. [DoH] (HL454)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total cost of the package awarded to the Chief Executive of the Special European Union Programmes Body on his resignation, including ex gratia payments, pension contributions, car provision and advance salary payments. [NIO] (HL456)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the expenditure of the Special European Union Programmes Body on (a) outside consultants; and (b) staff costs in each year since its inception. [NIO] (HL457)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to provide further support for victims of civil unrest in Northern Ireland. [NIO] (HL460)
The Lord Avebury—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will ask the International Organisation for Migration to report on the welfare of the 29 asylum seekers from Zimbabwe who have accepted the Organisation’s assistance to be voluntarily repatriated since April 2003. [FCO] (HL461)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many police officers have been dismissed for racist behaviour since the publication in 1999 of the Macpherson Report into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. [HO] (HL464)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the policies and procedures relating to disciplinary action against police officers make it difficult for those charged with racially discriminatory behaviour to be dismissed. [HO] (HL465)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they will take to enable police constabularies and authorities to take effective disciplinary action against police officers engaged in racist behaviour. [HO] (HL466)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many police officers dismissed for unacceptable racist behaviour have been reinstated by the Home Secretary since 2000. [HO] (HL467)
The Lord Ouseley—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are satisfied with the powers available to chief constables to eliminate racist behaviour among police officers. [HO] (HL468)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what work permits have been issued to professional sportsmen and women from January 1997 to December 2003 inclusive. [HO] (HL473)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, why it is necessary to permit Catholic sixth form colleges to discriminate against non-Catholics in their admission policies in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved. [DTI] (HL475)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, what is the “minimum percentage of Catholic students” that Catholic sixth form colleges should be permitted to require in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved. [DTI] (HL476)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, what proportion of students at the Catholic sixth form colleges are non-Catholics. [DTI] (HL477)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, as regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, whether their proposal would permit a Christian Foundation school or college to discriminate against Jewish students in order to preserve their Christian character and ethos. [DTI] (HL478)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 will ensure that the admission arrangements for Catholic sixth form colleges do not discriminate in a way that is incompatible with the United Kingdom’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and European Community law. [DTI] (HL479)
16th December
The Lord Freyberg—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many charities there are in the United Kingdom; and how many of these are (a) incorporated trading and incorporated non-trading charities; and (b) unincorporated trading and unincorporated non-trading charities. [HO] (HL493)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many work permits for the United Kingdom have been issued outside the “sector-based scheme”, since they came into office; and how many were temporary. [HO] (HL496)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what will the anticipated yearly incomes and expenditure flows be for each year up to and including 2013-14 under the financial model used to estimate public subsidy required by the London 2012 Olympic Games. [DCMS] (HL500)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 15th December (WA 91) about the 2003 budget for the Ulster Scots Agency, why the information requested was not provided; and whether they will now provide it. [NIO] (HL503)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the total cost of the Civic Forum created by the Belfast Agreement; and what it has achieved. [NIO] (HL512)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government in what way Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive were answerable for their decisions to the elected members of the Northern Ireland Assembly prior to its dissolution. [NIO] (HL514)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the generation and supply of electricity in Northern Ireland are adequate for the expected demand for electricity in the next five years. [NIO] (HL516)
The Lord Kilclooney—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proposals there are for reorganisation of local government in Northern Ireland. [NIO] (HL517)
The Lord Morris of Manchester—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf conflict received only the first anthrax-pertussis injection; how many received the first and second; and how many the first, second and third. [MoD] (HL518)
The Lord Jenkin of Roding—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Lord Sainsbury of Turville has ceased to have any responsibility for dealing with energy matters in this House. [DTI] (HL520)
The Lord Jenkin of Roding—To ask Her Majesty’s Government who will answer for the Department of Trade and Industry on energy matters in the House of Lords. [DTI] (HL521)
17th December
The Baroness Nicol—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to change the way they handle project licence applications under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. [HO] (HL524)
The Baroness David—To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they will publish the summary report on responses to the new legislative proposals on asylum reform. [HO] (HL525)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the Department for Education and Skills’ budget for school sport and physical education for each year since 1996-97. [DfES] (HL529)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the average time per week spent by pupils on physical education and school sport for each year since 1996-97. [DfES] (HL530)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the names and budgets of the physical education and school sports programmes run jointly by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education and Skills. [DfES] (HL531)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many committees and sub-committees have been established for the physical education and school sports programmes run by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education and Skills; and what is their membership. [DfES] (HL532)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government which new school sport facilities have been built with funds from the New Opportunities Fund’s £750 million Physical Education and Sport Programme. [DfES] (HL533)
The Lord Moynihan—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are (a) the budget allocated, (b) the amount awarded; and (c) the money spent by the New Opportunities Fund’s £750 million Physical Education and Sport Programme. [DfES] (HL534)
The Lord Higgins—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any money paid for horse passports has been paid to the Government; and, if so, by what authority the money has been levied. [DEFRA] (HL535)
The Baroness Byford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the monitoring and reporting programme established under the United Kingdom Biodiversity Action Plan was devised after consultation with the European Union; and whether there are standardised data gathering and monitoring across the European Union. [DEFRA] (HL537)
The Baroness Byford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many and which countries have ratified the International Treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, adopted on 3rd November 2001; and how many and which countries have repudiated it. [DEFRA] (HL538)
The Baroness Byford—To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the cost of registering an enduring power of attorney is £220; whether there is any provision for reducing that cost in cases of hardship; and what payment methods are available. [DCA] (HL540)
The Baroness Masham of Ilton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what legislation applies to the worrying of stock by dogs. [DEFRA] (HL544)
The Lord Ashley of Stoke—To ask Her Majesty’s Government which factors influenced the change in cost of digital hearing aids from a selling price of £2,500 to £70 for the National Health Service. [DoH] (HL545)
The Lord Ashley of Stoke—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the prospects of a reduced price in the cost of National Health speech processors for cochlea implants. [DoH] (HL546)
The Lord Ashley of Stoke—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider streamlining the number of hospital units in the National Health Service carrying out cochlea implants with a view to cost reduction. [DoH] (HL547)
The Lord Lester of Herne Hill—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish the report by Judge Peter Cory on allegations of official collusion in the murder of Pat Finucane and five other murders, if necessary in a suitably redacted form to avoid prejudicing continuing investigations or to put at risk members of the security and intelligence services. [NIO] (HL549)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many persons, of what nationalities, are now held under the Terrorism Acts in maximum security prisons; whether some detainees are held in other prisons; and how long in all cases they expect to detain them. [HO] (HL551)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many persons have been held under the Terrorism Acts, without trial, for one year and two years respectively. [HO] (HL552)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many detainees under the Terrorism Acts have been released to go to other countries; and how many have tried but failed to find countries to accept them. [HO] (HL553)
The Lord Hylton—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered prosecuting Mr Abu Qatada and the other detainees under the Terrorism Acts for incitement to violence, conspiracy to commit crime or other offences; if not, why not; and if so, what were their reasons for not prosecuting. [HO] (HL554)
The Lord Alton of Liverpool—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the claim that some techniques, such as the freezing of embryos, and the practice of growing embryos in the test tube for extra days prior to transfer, have not been sufficiently tested in animals prior to their use in humans. [DoH] (HL556)
The Lord Alton of Liverpool—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the claim that the lack of laboratory research into in vitro fertilisation means scientists are experimenting on children. [DoH] (HL557)
The Lord Alton of Liverpool—To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to license research projects involving the creation of human sperm and human eggs from human embryonic stem cells; and what assessment they have made of the safety of such research. [DoH] (HL558)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, under the care and maintenance policy in place for Cross Border Implementation Bodies, it is possible for a decision to be taken to relocate a headquarters to a different area. [NIO] (HL559)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government in the financial year 2002-03 what was the proposed budget for the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman; and how much was spent. [NIO] (HL560)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Lord President on 11th December (WA78) concerning Cross Border Implementation Bodies, why the information requested was not provided; and whether they will now indicate how long such bodies can exist without a Northern Ireland Executive in place. [NIO] (HL561)
The Lord Laird—To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there is any provision in the legislation implementing the Belfast Agreement by which the Eire government can unilaterally take decisions on behalf of Cross Border Bodies and of the United Kingdom Government. [NIO] (HL562)
The Lord Rotherwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the second brucellosis case in Britain this year, what new measures they will be implementing. [DEFRA] (HL563)
The Lord Rotherwick—To ask Her Majesty’s Gover | 
