Iraq (Hansard, 24 June 2004)

§ Harry Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development who decided upon the payments from the Development Fund for Iraq to the US Army Corps of Engineers; what it was for; who the principal contractors were; who decided who the principal contractors would be; and if he will make a statement. [179797]

§ Hilary Benn
Procurement and contracting under the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) are the responsibility of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA).
The CPA has contracted the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to carry out certain emergency and essential work in Iraq, which is co-funded by the DFI and the US Government. Most of the DFI contracts, and most of the contract value, for which the USACE is responsible are in rebuilding gas and hydro-electric power plants and oil infrastructure. The principal contractors to date are: Fluor Intercontinental, Washington International, CH2MHILL, Parsons Iraqi Joint Venture and Kellogg Brown and Root.

§ Harry Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list those who have had sole-sourced contracts funded by the Development Fund for Iraq; which contracts are of a value of $1,000,000 or more; and if he will make a statement. [179798]

§ Hilary Benn
A list of sole-sourced contracts funded by the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) is not available at this time.
The International Advisory and Monitoring Board (IAMB) is currently undertaking an audit of DFI sole-sourced contracts on behalf of the international community. As a member of the Program Review Board of the DFI, the UK has been a strong advocate of international competitive tendering wherever possible.

§ Harry Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much has been purchased under the wheat purchase programme funded by the Development Fund for Iraq; at what cost; who was contracted to supply it; what the world price for wheat was at the time of purchase; over what time scale the wheat is supplied; under which disbursement heading it is included; how it is distributed within Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [179799]

§ Hilary Benn
The Government of Iraq established the public food distribution system in 1990. This system of untargeted rationing has proved to be hugely costly to the Government and has undermined the country's domestic agriculture. DFID hopes to work with the Iraqi Interim Government and other donors to help reform this system, to the benefit of both Iraq's consumers and farmers, as soon as conditions allow.
The amount of wheat actually purchased by the Government each year depends on the content of the "ration basket", which is decided by the Ministry of Trade (MOT) each month, depending on domestic production and existing stocks within the country. Published MOT budget information does not show the breakdown of the costs of individual public food distribution items but it is estimated that 3.5 million metric tonnes of wheat flour is required annually for the standard ration basket. Over the 12 months since the 1486W creation of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), if all of Iraq's public distribution system needs had been met from imports at world prices, the cost would have been around $700 million. This is likely to be an over-estimate since there would be some domestic purchases and use of stocks.
The major suppliers of wheat to Iraq are Australia and the US.
International export prices for wheat vary greatly depending on grade and freight distances but an average figure for 2003–04 is about $200/tonne.
The MOT is responsible for purchasing grain from overseas and from domestic producers, for organising the milling contracts and the transport of the milled wheat flour to food agents.
The following process describes how the food ration is distributed:

1. The MOT announces the food basket for the month and calls forward food agents to collect the ration;

2. Food and flour agents collect the coupons from households and go to the sales centre of warehouses/mills, where they receive an invoice;

3. Food agents collect foodstuffs from the warehouses/ distribution centres;

4. Wheat flour is transported to flour/food agents, which is paid for by the MOT;

5. Households then collect the ration from the food/flour agents and pay the nominal fee.

§ Harry Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on what dates the Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority Program Review Board has met; which meetings were attended by the representative of the Government of the United Kingdom; what votes were conducted at these meetings; what the result was of each vote; and how the UK representative voted on each occasion. [179801]

§ Hilary Benn
The Program Review Board (PRB) meets once or twice each week. Precise dates are shown on the minutes of each meeting which are published on the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) website: iraqcoalition.org/program_review_board. The UK is represented at all PRB meetings.
The PRB votes on each project proposal. The minutes do not record the vote of individual members. Proposals pass on a majority or unanimous vote.
The UK votes in a manner consistent with UNSCR 1483, which established the Development Fund for Iraq (DPI) to be "used in a transparent manner to meet the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people, for the economic reconstruction and repair of Iraq's infrastructure, for the continued disarmament of Iraq, and for the costs of Iraqi civilian administration, and for other purposes benefiting the people of Iraq". In its voting the UK aims to support the intentions of the Iraq Ministries of Finance and Planning and to promote the principles of international competitive tendering.

§ Harry Cohen
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 14 June 2004,Official Report, columns 668–69W, on Iraq, if his Department will obtain a copy of the US Government Agency audits of sole-sourced contracts funded by the Development Fund for Iraq; what 1487W provision there is for consideration of the copy audits when the Coalition Provisional Authority no longer exists; who approves contractors for expenditure proposals approved by the Development Fund for Iraq Program Review Board; and if he will make a statement. [179802]

§ Hilary Benn
The external audit of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) has been delegated by UN Security Council Resolution 1483 (2003) to the International Advisory and Monitoring Board (IAMB). The IAMB acts on behalf of the international community and has requested copies of certain US Government audit reports as part of its current work programme. The IAMB undertakes to make all its proceedings and final reports public (within 30 days of being finalised). UN Security Council Regulation 1546(2004) paragraph 24 provides for the continuation of the IAMB after the dissolution of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the return to Iraqi sovereignty.
The approval of contractors for expenditure proposals endorsed by the Program Review Board of the Development Fund for Iraq is undertaken by the CPA.