§ Angus RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of(a) the extent of demolition and destruction of infrastructure in (i) the West Bank and (ii) the Gaza Strip in 2003 and (b) the cost of repair to housing and infrastructure due to damage associated with actions by the Israeli Defence Forces; and if he will make a statement. [134429]
§ Mr. MacShaneVarious agencies, including the World bank and United Nations, do maintain audits of destruction and damage to Palestinian infrastructure resulting from Israel Defence Forces (IDF) action. The Office of the Special Co-ordinator in the Occupied Territories (UNSCO) estimates that 2,986 Palestinian homes have been destroyed, and 29,197 homes partially destroyed or damaged, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip between October 2000 and August 2003. These figures do not take into account the demolition or destruction of other civil and private Palestinian property, or infrastructure, including water supplies, roads and cultivated land. Reliable figures for this year are not yet available. It is also difficult to give an accurate figure for the total cost of repair to Palestinian infrastructure.
Reports by these agencies and other NGOs indicate widespread damage and destruction to Palestinian infrastructure throughout the Occupied Territories. I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 29 October 2003, Official Report, column 282W. We have raised our serious concerns with the Government of Israel and will continue to do so.
£000 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 Organic farming 411 573 833 867 931 1,116 908 1,481 2,039 2,087 2,127 1,809 Conventional agriculture1 80,368 86,714 84,819 83,963 84,863 83,644 84,641 86,032 80,265 81,004 82,947 82,546 GM risk assessment (ex-DETR) — — — — — 316 263 296 427 1,681 1,885 2,578 GM risk assessment (ex-MAFF) — — — — } 1,769 1,876 2,718 439 471 525 625 GM foods/-non-food products — — — — 2,602 3,246 3,223 2,842 1 Agriculture figures include R&D expenditure on arable crops, livestock, plant and animal health, horticulture, environmental protection