Written Statement of 25 March 2003

NORTHERN IRELAND

  Fire Authority
  The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr. Desmond Browne)
  The Annual Report and Statement of Accounts for the Fire Authority of Northern Ireland for the financial year 2001–02 were published today.

  Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

  Illegal Imports
  The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Margaret Beckett)
  The Government has today published a draft revised Action Plan on illegal imports for 2003–04.

  A core element of the action plan reflects the transfer of responsibility for anti-smuggling controls to HM Customs and Excise, which will take effect from 11 April. The new arrangements will make a significant difference as Customs will bring to bear their resources, skills and experience in intelligence, prevention and detection of prohibited goods to help reduce the flow of illegal imports of meat.

  The draft action plan takes account of experience gained in implementing the action plan in 2002–03, and of insights gained from the risk assessment for the import of illegal meat and meat products contaminated with foot and mouth disease virus into Great Britain and subsequent exposure of GB livestock, which we are also publishing today.

  The report on the risk assessment makes clear that there were significant deficiencies in the data available and therefore there are large uncertainties associated with the results. We are therefore publishing the report as "Work in Progress" and inviting further expert comment or data that might help refine the risk assessment.

  These developments reaffirm the Government's commitment to strengthened controls on illegal imports. We have shown that we are willing to play our part. But it remains the case that those who use the countryside also have a responsibility to help prevent the spread of pests and diseases.

  Copies of the revised draft action plan and the risk assessment report will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses and on the Defra Illegal Imports website (www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/illegali/).

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  Export Licences (Bosnia)
  The Minister for Europe (Mr. Denis MacShane)
  The Government have approved the export of four military-listed portable explosive detectors to the NATO Stabilisation Force (SFOR) headquarters in Sarajevo. Bosnia-Herzegovina is subject to an EU arms embargo, from which only de-mining equipment and the transfer of small arms to the police are specifically exempt. The embargo was put in place to ensure the safety of international troops and civilians deployed locally. SFOR requires this equipment for the protection of its premises and personnel.

  This decision was made in accordance with our practice occasionally to make an exemption to our interpretation of the embargo by approving exports of non-lethal military goods to humanitarian, media or peacekeeping organisations where it is clear that the embargo was not intended to prevent those exports and there is a strong humanitarian case for them.

  HMG fully supports SFOR and recognises its legitimate need for the right equipment to carry out its job safely and effectively. The decision underlines HMG's continued support for the work being done by SFOR in maintaining security and development in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

  Export Licences (Iran)
  The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Mike O'Brien)
  Previous statements to his House have indicated that all export licence applications for strategically controlled goods to Iran are considered at a regular meeting of specialist officials, the Iran Working Group. The recommendations made have then been given ministerial consideration within each relevant Department. Ministers in the relevant departments, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, have decided they no longer need routinely to consider these recommendations. The routine meeting will no longer convene to consider export licence applications.

  Officials will now consider any export licence applications for Iran within their relevant Government Departments, meeting and submitting to Ministers only where necessary. This is in common with processing for other countries, including those of weapons of mass destruction concern.

  This is solely procedural change in order to streamline the export licensing process and to reduce delays for UK exporters. The Government will continue rigorously to assess Iran export licence applications on a case by case basis against the UK's national restrictions, with special attention paid to the risk of weapons of mass destruction proliferation, and against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

  Local Government Finance
  The Minister for Local Government and the Regions (Mr. Nick Raynsford)
  I have today placed tables containing the council tax figures for England for 2003–4 in the Library of the House. These show the average council tax per dwelling will be £908 in 2003–4, compared with £804 in 2002–3.

  The average council tax in 2003–4 for band D dwelling (occupied by two adults) will be £1,102, compared with £976 in 2002–03.

  This equates to an average increase in council tax between 2002–03 and 2003–04 of 12.9 per cent.

  Firefighters' Dispute (Armed Forces Emergency Cover)
  The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr. John Prescott)
  I am pleased to announce that the Armed Forces personnel deployed on firefighting duties have been stood down on the grounds that no further strike dates will be announced before the Fire Brigades Union re-called conference on 15 April. The FBU would then be required to give seven days' notice of any further strike.

  Local Government Reorganisation
  The Minister for Local Government and the Regions (Mr. Nick Raynsford)
  In December, the Government published for consultation a draft of the guidance that we intend to give the Boundary Committee for England in the event that we direct them to carry out local government reviews in any of the English regions.

  The draft guidance indicated that for the purpose of assessing the relative cost differential of different unitary structures of local government, we would develop a cost model, which would be made available to the Boundary Committee, and others, should they choose to use it. We said that we would consult on any model before it was finalised. Accordingly, I yesterday sent a paper with details of the work undertaken for us by Price Waterhouse Coopers, to the Local Government Association (LGA), the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accounting (CIPFA) and the Boundary Committee for England. This sets out proposals for a model, which we will be discussing with those bodies.

  I have placed copies of the paper in the Libraries of the House.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Public Service Agreement
  The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mr. David Blunkett)
  Technical notes, for the Home Office Public Service Agreement (PSA) targets for the 2002 Spending Review period, have been published today. Copies are available in the Library and online at www.homeoffice.gov.uk/.
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  In common with those of other Government departments, the Home Office technical notes define the terms used in the targets, their territorial scope, measurement systems which will be used, and criteria for success. The purpose of the technical notes is to enable Parliament, and the public, to judge progress against the Home Office targets. The measurement systems will be used by the Department, and its partners, to manage delivery of the new, challenging targets.

  The Home Office PSA targets were presented to Parliament on 15 July 2002 as part of the Command Paper "2002 Spending Review: Public Service Agreements" (Cm 5571).

WORK AND PENSIONS

  Benefit Fraud (Coventry)
  The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Malcolm Wicks)
  On behalf of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate (BFI) inspection report on Coventry City Council was published today and copies of the report have been placed in the Library.

  The report finds administrative problems and poor performance in the council's Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit administration and counter-fraud service. This dates back to the installation of a new Housing Benefit processing IT system in February 1999, and the Large Scale Voluntary Transfer of its housing stock to a Housing Association in September 2000. The report concludes that the council had not planned, managed or implemented these changes effectively.

  The council had not adopted the Verification Framework, verification of claims to housing benefits was weak, and management checks of work were inadequate. The council gave priority to processing new claims with only 12 per cent. of renewal claims processed on time and, to avoid gaps in payment, claims were allowed to overrun the maximum benefit period.

  The report finds a backlog of work, with over 9,000 items outstanding at the time of the BFI on-site inspection in October 2002. There were also delays in dealing with appeals and overpayments, and the amount of outstanding debt had risen to £4.6 million.

  Although the council's Benefit Fraud Unit had been restructured in October 2001, the quality of fraud investigations was poor and there were delays throughout the process, including at the prosecution stage.

  Members and Chief Officers are aware of the failings and are actively trying to improve the service.

  The report finds some good practices, including the security of payment cheques and a Benefits Advice Line open 5½ days a week giving welfare benefits advice.

  In 2001–02, Coventry City Council administered approximately £87 million in housing benefits, approximately 28 per cent. of its total gross revenue expenditure.
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  The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and further to improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter-fraud activities.
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  My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is now considering the report and will be asking the council for its proposals in response to the findings and recommendations of the BFI.