Written Statement of 26 February 2004

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

  Commission for Africa
  The Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn)
  The Prime Minister is today launching a new initiative—the Commission for Africa—to take a fresh look at the challenges Africa faces. The Commission aims to generate increased support for the G8 Africa Action Plan and the New Partnership for African Development (NePAD).

  The Commission will conclude its work and report next spring. The Commission will set out the facts on Africa and its assessment of policy on Africa (both within Africa and internationally): where it has worked; where it has failed; where more could be done; and where more support is needed from the international community

  The commissioners will be politicians and opinion formers, drawn from developed countries and Africa. Gordon Brown, Hilary Benn, Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia, K.Y. Amoako (Head of the UN Economic Commission for Africa), Trevor Manuel (South African Minister of Finance), Michel Calmness's (President Chirac's Africa Personal Representative) and Sir Bob Geldof are already confirmed as commissioners. The Prime Minister will chair meetings of the Commission and will agree the final report. The international Development Secretary will oversee the ongoing work of the Commission on the Prime Minister's behalf.

  The commissioners, supported by a secretariat, will consult a wide range of experts and thinkers on each issue. The process will be open with public seminars and meetings to discuss the themes and issues. We hope that many organisations will contribute to this work. Each commissioner will host meeting hold debates and call for papers on the theme he/she is leading. The full Commission will meet once or twice before the report is finalised to discuss and agree its overall direction.

  Over the next 12 months the commissioners will take forward discussions on the key challenges to Africa's development. The themes of the report—and commissioners' responsibilities—will be decided at the first meeting of the Commission in April, but are likely to include some or all of the following: the economy (including development finance, economic integration and trade); education; conflict resolution and peacebuilding; health; the environment; HIV/AIDS; governance; and culture.

  The Commissioners' work will help inform the UK's agenda for Africa during its G8 and EU presidencies next year.
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ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

  Framework for Sustainable Development (Government Estate)
  The Minister for the Environment (Mr. Elliot Morley)
  The Government is publishing the fifth part of the"Framework for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate (Framework)" on energy today. This will be available from the sustainable development in Government website. Copies of the website, on CD-Rom, will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

  The energy section of the framework breaks new ground: it sets a Government-wide commitment to reduce carbon on the Government estate that will make an important contribution to the UK's Kyoto target, and will help to deliver our Energy White Paper commitments. The framework will now require all estate management contracts to take account of measures and opportunities for reducing carbon emissions and collecting energy data.

  Our ongoing work on the framework defines a set of cross-Government targets for sustainable development, and outlines the mechanisms by which Departments will be expected to achieve them. These challenging targets give a clear indication of the Government's continued determination to take a lead in the practical implementation and achievement of sustainable development.

  The framework for sustainable development on the Government estate can be viewed at www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/sdig/improving/index.htm.

CABINET OFFICE

  Civil Defence Grant
  The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Mr. Douglas Alexander)
  The aggregate of civil defence grants to be made for the financial year 2004–05 is £19,038,00. Some £100,000 will be retained as discretionary grant for special projects and special events deemed of benefit to the wider civil protection community in England and Wales. The remaining £18,938,000 will be allocated to individual authorities as set out below.

  Local Authority

  Grant Allocation 2004–05 (£)

  Anglesey/Ynys Mon

  61,342

  Barking & Dagenham

  75,969

  Barnet

  80,694

  Barnsley

  76,076

  Bath & North East Somerset

  90,011

  Bedfordshire

  136,511

  Bexley

  78,758

  Birmingham

  187,380

  Blackburn with Darwen

  70,658

  Blackpool

  66,662

  Blaenau Gwent

  63,083

  Bolton

  82.674

  Bournemouth

  70,122

  Bracknell Forest

  63,899

  Bradford

  125,756

  Brent

  86,592

  Bridgend

  68,323

  Brighton & Hove

  81,172

  Bristol

  98,486

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  Local Authority

  Grant Allocation 2004–05 (£)

  Bromley

  84,980

  Buckinghamshire

  200,557

  Bury

  71,195

  Caerphilly

  73,088

  Calderdale

  74,574

  Cambridgeshire

  163,057

  Camden

  84,175

  Cardiff

  87,322

  Carmarthenshire

  73,858

  Ceredigion

  64,143

  Cheshire

  189,969

  Conwy

  64,811

  Cornwall

  189,279

  Corporation of London

  60,145

  Coventry

  77,776

  Croydon

  90,666

  Cumbria

  216,116

  Darlington

  63,899

  Denbighshire

  71,434

  Derby

  76,503

  Derbyshire

  220,459

  Devon

  217,294

  Doncaster

  85,516

  Dorset

  175,886

  Dudley

  82,908

  Durham

  213,601

  Ealing

  90,344

  East Riding of Yorkshire

  72,166

  East Sussex

  208,288

  Enfield

  88,198

  Essex

  315,112

  Flintshire

  77,741

  Gateshead

  79,140

  Gloucestershire

  189,960

  Greater Manchester FCDA

  64,060

  Greenwich

  86,482

  Gwynedd

  67,698

  Hackney

  88,145

  Halton

  68,137

  Hammersmith and Fulham

  76,719

  Hampshire

  298,996

  Haringey

  85,624

  Harrow

  65,726

  Hartlepool

  64,650

  Havering

  77,685

  Herefordshire

  70,229

  Hertfordshire

  310,886

  Hillingdon

  81,386

  Hounslow

  80,742

  Hull (Kingston upon Hull)

  72,265

  Isle of Wight

  72,230

  Isles of Scilly

  53,708

  Islington

  83,424

  Kensington and Chelsea

  74,788

  Kent

  339,586

  Kingston upon Thames

  67,654

  Kirklees

  95,431

  Knowsley

  74,359

  Lambeth

  87,789

  Lancashire

  315,233

  Leeds

  172,987

  Leicester

  88,896

  Leicestershire

  192,957

  Lewisham

  83,978

  Lincolnshire

  212,793

  Liverpool

  97,648

  London FEPA

  151,825

  Luton

  59,894

  Manchester

  147,667

  Medway

  81,547

  Merseyside FCDA

  73,332

  Merthyr Tydfil

  60,998

  Merton

  72,053

  Middlesbrough

  71,355

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  Local Authority

  Grant Allocation 2004–05 (£)

  Milton Keynes

  81,404

  Monmouthshire

  62,154

  Neath Port Talbot

  70,259

  Newcastle Upon Tyne

  102,823

  Newham

  88,226

  Newport

  68,616

  Norfolk

  276,813

  North East Lincolnshire

  71,624

  North Lincolnshire

  69,532

  North Somerset

  71,248

  North Tyneside

  74,091

  North Yorkshire

  244,523

  Northamptonshire

  239,260

  Northumberland

  188,122

  Nottingham

  86,321

  Nottinghamshire

  210,927

  Oldham

  79,294

  Oxfordshire

  202,459

  Pembrokeshire

  66,735

  Peterborough

  72,214

  Plymouth

  81,708

  Poole

  66,635

  Portsmouth

  74,467

  Powys

  85,886

  Reading

  67,386

  Redbridge

  82,566

  Redcar and Cleveland

  69,693

  Rhondda Cynon Taff

  82,319

  Richmond upon Thames

  69,424

  Rochdale

  77,310

  Rotherham

  81,654

  Rutland

  56,443

  Salford

  72,386

  Sandwell

  88,413

  Sefton

  84,015

  Sheffield

  96,386

  Shropshire

  153,834

  Slough

  68,566

  Solihull

  73,716

  Somerset

  164,359

  South Gloucestershire

  76,183

  South Tyneside

  71,516

  South Yorkshire FCDA

  84,356

  Southampton

  77,470

  Southend

  71,966

  Southwark

  77,343

  St Helens

  73,333

  Staffordshire

  226,842

  Stockport

  79,992

  Stockton-on-Tees

  73,877

  Stoke-on-Trent

  74,413

  Suffolk

  221,786

  Sunderland

  101,107

  Surrey

  297,388

  Sutton

  73,126

  Swansea

  78,933

  Swindon

  71,355

  Tameside

  77,310

  Telford and Wrekin

  72,385

  Thurrock

  68,666

  Torbay

  67,440

  Torfaen

  64,876

  Tower Hamlets

  93,509

  Trafford

  75,754

  Tyne & Wear FCDA

  34,892

  Vale of Glamorgan

  72,385

  Wakefield

  86,667

  Walsall

  83,639

  Waltham Forest

  83,532

  Wandsworth

  79,155

  Warrington

  72,804

  Warwickshire

  181,722

  West Berkshire

  67,815

  West Midlands FCDA

  60,386

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  Local Authority

  Giant Allocation 2004–05 (£)

  West Sussex

  225,386

  West Yorkshire FCDA

  61,593

  Westminster

  86,804

  Wigan

  84,497

  Wiltshire

  194,786

  Windsor and Maidenhead

  66,796

  Wirral

  89,861

  Wokingham

  66,525

  Wolverhampton

  82,030

  Worcestershire

  186,835

  Wrexham

  72,926

  York

  72,220

  To determine the individual allocations the following formula was adopted:
  Each authority received £.53,000. Each county council received £12,000 in respect of each shire district within the authority's boundaries. These flat-rate payments accounted for approximately 65 per cent. of the aggregate grant, in recognition of the fact that every authority, regardless of size and population, would incur similar unavoidable costs in conducting the basic civil protection function.
  The remaining 35 per cent. of the aggregate grant was distributed according to the Bellwin threshold, using population size as a proxy for the scale of civil protection that authorities need to undertake.
  This formula is retained by agreement with the Local Government Association.

PRIME MINISTER

  COE/WEU (Information Bulletin)
  The Prime Minister (Mr. Tony Blair)
  I have placed in the Library today the latest Information Bulletin on the activities of the United Kingdom Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Assembly of Western European Union covering the period November to October 2003.

NORTHERN IRELAND

  Independent Monitoring Commission (Abduction Incident)
  The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr. Paul Murphy)
  On Friday 20 February the Police Service of Northern Ireland made a number of arrests in connection with an alleged assault and abduction. The case is sub judice.

  Four people now face serious charges, including grievous bodily harm, possession of articles likely to be of use to terrorists and unlawful imprisonment. The PSNI are following a number of very definite evidential lines, including video material and the items, clothing and other forensic material recovered at the scene. The Chief Constable of the PSNI has made it clear to me that he is satisfied that there was Provisional IRA involvement in the incident.

  These events are a matter of serious concern. As far as the overall situation is concerned, my assessment of the various paramilitary organisations' ceasefires, in the
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  light of information I have received, remains unchanged. But all the indications are that there has been a serious breach of the requirement set out by the British and Irish Governments in paragraph 13 of the joint declaration for an end to all forms of paramilitary activity.

  Such behaviour is wholly unacceptable. As the Government has repeatedly made clear, parties cannot be half-in, half-out of the democratic process. All paramilitary activity must stop.

  These developments have inevitably had a serious impact on this week's discussions with the Northern Ireland political parties within the review of the operation of the Belfast agreement. At those meetings, we listened carefully to the views of the parties and, in particular, to their concerns about the implications of these events for the establishment of the trust and confidence required to achieve a successful outcome to the review and to restore devolved Government in Northern Ireland.

  Both Governments are now asking the Independent Monitoring Commission, which was established in January, to examine Friday's incident in the context of the preparation of its first report on paramilitary activity. We have also asked the Commission to bring that report forward from July to May. The report is expected to take account of all paramilitary incidents and activities within its remit since the Commission's establishment. The Commission is obliged by law not to do anything in carrying out its functions that might have a prejudicial effect on any legal proceedings.

  Both the British and Irish Governments are very clear that the achievement of a sustainable basis for political progress in Northern Ireland requires a full and permanent cessation of all paramilitary activity. As part of the wider agenda of the review, it is vital that we intensify engagement with the parties on this core issue, and we envisage that next week there will be a significant focus on it.

  Prison Service
  The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Jane Kennedy)
  On 8 September 2003. the Secretary of State formally accepted the recommendations of the Steele Review of Safety at Maghaberry Prison. The review recommended that prisoners with paramilitary affiliations should be accommodated separately from each other, and from the rest of the prison population, on a voluntary basis.

  One aspect of implementation has been the development of a prisoner compact, which makes clear the routine and facilities available to separated prisoners and what will be required of them in return. These proposals were issued for public consultation in December.

  The Government have considered the representations made and, have made some adjustments to the compact where these do not reduce the ability of prison staff to maintain good order. The revised compact is published today and I have placed copies in the Libraries of both Houses. This is the compact that will set the parameters of the regime in the separated facilities.
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  As I have made clear on numerous occasions, no-one wants a return to the conditions that pertained at Maze where staff were threatened, intimidated and subjected to brutal attacks and where prisoners could threaten and intimidate other prisoners with impunity.

  Many have voiced their concerns that separation could ultimately lead us back to a Maze style regime. I am determined that that should not happen. I firmly believe that the additional security measures which have been incorporated at Maghaberry, taken together with this Compact, will ensure that it does not.

  Another of the Steele Review's recommendations was that we should consider the appointment of a prison ombudsman. We will be bringing forward proposals for public consultation shortly.

  The publication of the compact now clears the way for full implementation of Steele's recommendations. Most of the physical work required in Maghaberry has now been completed and staff training is well underway. The Prison Service aims to achieve full implementation by the middle of March.

  Police and Criminal Evidence Review
  The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Jane Kennedy)
  A review of the Police amp; Criminal Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 and the accompanying codes of practice is being undertaken by officials in the Northern Ireland Office.

  The review, which aims to bring the existing PACE legislation and the codes of practice in Northern Ireland into line with that in England and Wales, will adopt much of the new or amended legislation and revisions to the codes of practice introduced by the Home Office as a result of their fundamental review of PACE in 2002.
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  It is my intention to issue a draft Police amp; Criminal Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order and associated codes of practice for consultation in autumn 2004 with the aim of them becoming operational by summer 2005.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

  2012 Olympic Games
  The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr. John Prescott)
  London's bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games is focused on the Olympic Park in the Lower Lea Valley. The London Development Agency submitted an outline planning application for the Park and four ancillary applications to the Joint Planning Authorities Team (representing Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest London Boroughs) on 30 January 2004. Decisions on these, and any subsequent applications, are matters for the local authorities concerned. However, it is possible that decisions in relation to these applications could fall to be determined by me as First Secretary of State (either on appeal or if applications were to be called in). I and other Ministers in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister have other policy responsibilities, including the delivery of development and regeneration in the Thames Gateway and the role that the London Olympics bid might play in achieving these objectives. In order to ensure that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's "Guidance on Propriety Issues in the Handling of Planning Casework" is followed, I have decided that any planning decisions arising for the First Secretary of State in respect of development related to the Olympics bid will be dealt with by my hon. Friend the Member for Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper). She will not be involved in any other matters relating to the Olympics bid.

  Commission for Africa
  The Lord President of the Council (Baroness Amos)
  My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for International Development has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

  The Prime Minister is today launching a new initiative—the Commission for Africa—to take a fresh look at the challenges Africa faces. The commission aims to generate increased support for the G8 Africa Action Plan and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NePAD).

  The commission will conclude its work and report next spring. The commission will set out the facts on Africa and its assessment of policy on Africa (both within Africa and internationally): where it has worked, where it has failed; where more could be done; and where more support is needed from the international community.

  The commissioners will be politicians and opinion-formers, drawn from developed countries and Africa. Gordon Brown, Hilary Benn, Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia, KY Amoako (Head of the UN Economic Commission for Africa), Trevor Manuel (South
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  African Minister of Finance), Michel Camdessus (President Chirac's Africa personal representative) and Sir Bob Geldof are already confirmed as commissioners. The Prime Minister will chair meetings of the commission and will agree the final report. The International Development Secretary will oversee the ongoing work of the commission on the Prime Minister's behalf.

  The commissioners, supported by a secretariat, will consult a wide range of experts and thinkers on each issue. The process will be open with public seminars and meetings to discuss the themes and issues. We hope that many organisations will contribute to this work. Each commissioner will host meetings, hold debates and call for papers on the theme he or she is leading. The full commission will meet once or twice before the report is finalised to discuss and agree its overall direction.

  Over the next 12 months the commissioners will take forward discussions on the key challenges to Africa's development. The themes of the report—and commissioners' responsibilities—will be decided at the first meeting of the commission in April, but are likely to include some or all of the following: the economy (including development finance, economic integration and trade); education; conflict resolution and peacebuilding; health; the environment; HIV/AIDS; governance; and culture.

  The commissioners' work will help inform the UK's agenda for Africa during its G8 and EU presidencies next year.