The Northern Ireland Assembly - Written Answers to Questions: Tuesday 8 February 2000

asked the Office of the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister what discussions the First Minister has had with the Chief Constable in regard to progress in the investigations into the Omagh bomb incident.

Policing and security are not devolved matters. However, the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister have had discussions with the Chief Constable on a range of security matters, including the Omagh investigation.

asked the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure what guidance he has given the lottery-awarding bodies in Northern Ireland to reflect local circumstances in making allocations of grants.

The Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure (Mr McGimpsey): I have not yet issued any guidance to lottery-distributing bodies in Northern Ireland.

The national lottery is a reserved matter, and overall responsibility rests with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport in London. Policy and financial directions were issued to the Arts and Sports Councils in Northern Ireland by the former Department of Education Northern Ireland, which acted as an agent for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. This responsibility will now pass to my Department, and at an appropriate time I will consider whether there is a need for further guidance in relation to the distribution of lottery proceeds. Current guidance reflects the need to take account of local circumstances in making allocations of grants.

Mr Shannon asked the Minister of Education if he is aware of the crisis in the provision of secondary state school places in the mid-Down area and, if so, if he will clarify what he intends to do to address the situation.

The Minister of Education (Mr M McGuinness): The statutory responsibility for determining the level of secondary school provision in the area is a matter in the first instance for the South Eastern Education and Library Board. I understand that the board is currently carrying out a major review of school provision in its area and that this will consider the overall demand for places in the mid-Down area.

asked the Minister of Education to list the amounts paid to the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools for the years 1997-98 and 1998-99 under each of paragraphs 11, 13, 14, and 15 of schedule 8 to the Education Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1989.

All grant aid from the Department of Education to the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools is payable under paragraph 15 of the Education Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1989.

The amounts payable in the financial years 1997-98 and 1998-99 in respect of expenditure by the Council on (i) staff salaries and (ii) members’ emoluments, and in respect of (iii) total recurrent expenditure and (iv) total capital expenditure were as follows:

	1997-98 £	1998-99 £
(i) Staff salaries	1,213,706	1,260,295
(ii) Members’ emoluments	31,240	28,674
(iii) Total recurrent expenditure	1,617,000	1,638,000
(iv)Total capital expenditure	92,984	97,802

asked the Minister of Education how many full-time non-teaching posts are currently retained by the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to list the buildings associated with the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety on which the national flag will be flown.

The Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Ms de Brún): The issue of the flying of flags at public buildings has been raised with the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister, and I have decided to suspend the flying of the British national flag alone at Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety buildings until the matter is resolved.

Tógadh ceist fholuain na mbratach ar fhoirgnimh phoibli leis an Chéad-Aire agus an LeasChéad-Aire, agus rinne mé an cinneadh go gcuirfear foluain bhratach náisúnta na Breataine leis féin ar fionraí ar fhoirgnimh na Roinne go dtí go dtiocfar ar réiteach an ábhair seo.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to make a statement about her departmental responsibilities for tackling drug abuse.

My Department’s responsibilities cover both prevention and treatment aspects of drug misuse. Through the Health Promotion Agency, information and education materials have been developed to highlight the dangers associated with drug misuse. The four health and social services boards provide a range of services, including health promotion, detoxification, counselling and testing for hepatitis C and HIV.

In addition, guidance for doctors and other health professionals is provided on the management of drug misuse.

Clúdaíonn freagracht mo Roinne idir chosc agus chóireáil ar ghnéithe mí-usáide drugaí. Le hAisínteacht Fhorbairt na Sláinte, forbraíodh ábhair eolais agus oideachais le daoine a chur ar an eolas faoi na contúirtí a bhaineann le mí-úsáíd drugaí. Cuireann na ceithre boird sláinte agus leasa shóisialaigh réimse seirbhísí ar fáil agus ina measc tá cur chun cinn na sláinte, díthocsainiú, comhairliú do heipitíteas C agus VEID.

Mar bharr air sin, tá treoir curtha ar fáil do dhochtúirí agus do phroifisiúnaigh eile sláinte ar bhainistiú mí-úsáide drugaí.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety if she will consider restoring some of the acute beds closed in the 1980s to help to reduce waiting lists.

I am very concerned about the size of our waiting lists and the length of time that many people are having to wait for essential hospital treatment. This situation is unacceptable and is one of a number of interlinked problems currently facing our hospital services which I am considering as a matter of urgency. In deciding on the way forward, I shall be looking at all available options, including the question of capacity.

Tá mé iontach buartha faoi fhad na liostaí feithimh agus faoin fhad ama a chaithfidh daoine fanacht le cóireáil riachtanach ospidéil. Tá na cúrsaí seo doghlactha ach níl ann ach ceann de fhadhbanna idirnascaithe atá os coinne ár seirbhísí atá mé ag tabhairt faoi mar ábhar práinne. Agus mé ag mach namh ar an bhealach chun tosaigh, beidh mé ag amharc ar na roghanna uile atá ar fáil agus ceist na hacmhainne ina measc siúd.

asked the Minister of Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment to make a statement about the equality testing his Department has in place to ensure that entrants to the Walsh visa programme are representative of the community as a whole.

Minister of Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment (Dr Farren): The Department has ensured that information concerning the programme is available to all sections of the community through the job centre network across Northern Ireland. Public press notices have been placed in all three local daily newspapers, and all MLAs have personally received programme information for dissemination in local constituencies. The objective of this is to establish a community-wide awareness base to generate applicants and entrants from all areas and sections of the community. The Department will monitor the community background of applicants to encourage balanced participation rates.

asked the Minister for Regional Development to list all Assembly Members who have made representations to him about improvements and upgrades of the A26.

The Minister for Regional Development (Mr P Robinson): Representations about improvements and upgrades of the A26 route have been made to me by Rev Dr Ian Paisley MP MEP MLA and yourself.

asked the Minister for Regional Development what his policy is on the use of motorcycles to reduce congestion and whether he plans any concessions to motorcyclists in recognition of the vital part they play in reducing congestion.

The document ‘Moving Forward: Northern Ireland Transport Policy Statement’, which was published in November 1998 by the then Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland, outlined a range of issues which would be addressed in the regional transport planning process. The document indicated that consideration would be given to the contribution motorcycles can make and specific measures to assist motorcyclists. My policy and plans in this area will be developed as part of this process.

asked the Minister for Social Development to outline the current position regarding investigations into disability living allowance and Social Security Agency fraud, and if he will make a statement.

The Minister for Social Development (Mr Dodds): Fraud is wrong. It penalises the people most in need. Money lost through fraud would be better spent helping to improve housing, health and a wide range of public services.

The Social Security Agency is committed to reducing the level of fraud and error, not only in disability living allowance but in all benefits. To help it to achieve this aim, the agency published a strategy document — ‘Tackling Fraud and Error in Social Security’ — which details a wide-ranging, innovative programme of initiatives to reduce fraud and error throughout the social security system. The agency has earmarked over £40 million to be invested in this programme of work over the next three years.

The research carried out to date provides a sound benchmark, indicating that the level of fraud across all the benefits, excluding pensions, is about 3%, or £73 million. An additional 300 staff are now employed on security- and fraud-related duties. In the past two years the agency has saved the taxpayer about £73 million in prospective benefit fraud.

The level of fraud in disability living allowance is about 2·4% of disability living allowance benefit expenditure, which equates to about £8·4 million.

Current initiatives in disability living allowance include a risk assessment of cases to secure benefit processes. The work focuses on securing the gateway, by requiring supporting evidence before a decision on a new claim is made and the carrying out of periodic reviews of existing claims.

The agency will continue to seek new ways of ensuring that resources are targeted effectively at known areas of risk and that money lost through fraud and error is kept to a minimum.