HC Deb 07 December 1995 vol 268 c338W
Mr. Donohoe

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many mobile telephones there are available in his Department for the use of Ministers. [4265]

Mr. Hanley

The Department has four mobile telephones and four car telephones exclusively for the use of Ministers.

Mr. Donohoe

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times mobile telephones used by Ministers in his Department have been cloned during(a) the last six months, (b) the last 12 months and (c) the last 18 months; and which Ministers within his Department have had their mobile telephones cloned. [4266]

Mr. Hanley

The then Minister of State, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Grantham, (Mr. Hogg), has his car telephone cloned twice: in October 1994 and June 1995. New numbers were allocated on both occasions.

A programme is under way to replace Ministers' analogue telephones with digital units which will reduce the risk of cloning.