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Written Answers
16 FEBRUARY 1984
been no such discussions with the French Governt. I am not aware that holders of passports describ... hem as British overseas citizens have encountered difficulty in entering France on that account.
In respect of Canada, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces in another place on 16 November 1983.
Hong Kong (International Conventions)
Mr. Parry asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report the International Labour Organisation conventions which have been signed by the United Kingdom but not ratified by the Hong Kong Government.
Mr. Luce: The United Kingdom Government are currently bound by 69 international labour conventions. The Hong Kong Government have made declarations on 66 of these conventions in the following form:
(i) to apply the convention without modification (29
conventions);
(ii) to apply the convention with modification (16 conven-
tions);
(iii) To reserve the Hong Kong Government's decision (21
conventions).
Of these 66 Declarations, 65 currently apply. The Hong Kong Government's declaration on the application of a convention concerning labour inspection superseded their earlier declaration the application of another convention concerning labour inspectorates in non- metropolitan territories.
on
The Hong Kong Government have made no declaration on the application of the following three international labour conventions ratified by the United Kingdom:
No. 80 Final Articles Revision Convention, 1946. No. 83 Labour Standards (non-metropolitan territories)
Convention 1947.
No. 116 Final Articles Revision Convention 1961.
Mr. Parry asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will state what international conventions on human rights have been signed by the United Kingdom but not ratified by the Hong Kong Government.
Mr. Luce: Of the International conventions relating to human rights to which the United Kingdom is a party, contained in the United Nations list of instruments on human rights, the following five have not been applied to Hong Kong.
The convention relating to the status of refugees of 1951. The protocol of 1953 amending the slavery convention
signed at Geneva on 25 September 1926.
The convention against discrimination in education of
1960.
The protocol of 1967 relating to the status of refugees. The protocol of 1962 instituting a conciliation and good offices commission to be responsible for seeking a senlement of any disputes which may arise between states parties to the convention against discrimination in education.
All the others to which the United Kingdom is a party apply to Hong Kong, subject, in some cases, to certain reservations and declarations which were published on ratification.
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Mr. Parry asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs why the United Nations conven- tion relating to the status of refugees which has been ratified by the United Kingdom is not observed in Hong Kong.
Mr. Luce: The 1951 United Nations convention and 1967 protocol relating to the status of refugees were not extended to Hong Kong. Nonetheless, the Hong Kong Government co-operate fully with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
GCHQ, Cheltenham
Mr. Winnick asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many employees at Government communications headquarters had, at the latest date for which figures are available (a) agreed to give up their union membership, (b) accepted the £1,000 payment for so doing, (c) asked for a transfer to a comparable job elsewhere, and (d) refused to give up their union membership.
Sir Geoffrey Howe: It is not the practice, for security reasons, to disclose the numbers of GCHQ staff or to give information from which those numbers could be deduced. The number of GCHQ staff opting to remain has continued to increase since I told the hon. Member for Battersea (Mr. Dubs) on 8 February that a substantial number had done so. The number asking for a transfer remains minimal.
Mr. Canavan asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether it is the Government's intention that equal pay legislation will continue to apply to employees at Government communications headquarters.
Sir Geoffrey Howe: Yes.
ENVIRONMENICK OZzis
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
Metropolitan Police FEB 1934
Dr. Cunningham asked the Secretary of State for the Environment why he considers that the Government's grant-related expenditure assessment method used for local authorities outside the metropolitan area would be meaningless and misleading if applied to the Metropolitan police.
Mr. Patrick Jenkin: The police GRE formula used in the 1984-85 settlement was derived using only information about areas lying outside the Metropolitan Police District. Furthermore, it would not be appropriate to use the local authority method to calculate the Metropolitan police GRE, because the receiver is not a local authority.
Dr. Cunningham asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish in detail the statistical basis of the calculation of the grant-related expenditure assessment for the Metropolitan police in 1984-85, explaining how this differs from (a) the method employed in 1983-84 and (b) the method used for other police authorities in 1984-85.
Mr. Patrick Jenkin: The GRE for the Metropolitan police in 1984-85 has, as in 1983-84, been set equal to their budgeted expenditure (net of police specific grant) as approved by the Home Secretary, as police authority for the Metropolitan police district. The method of calculating
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