§ Mr. Michael Brownasked the Prime Minister how many new non-departmental public bodies have been established since May 1979; and at what cost to public funds.
§ The Prime MinisterThe following new bodies have been established since May 1979:
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Department and Body Approximate Annual Cost £ Department of Education and Science Trustees of the National Heritage Memorial Fund *3,212,000 Advisory Committee on Business Sponsorship of the Arts (Office of Arts and Libraries) — Advisory Committee on Micro Electronics in Industry 3,000 Review of Youth Service Provision in England †121,000 Department of Employment Group Industry Advisory Committee (for the Health Services) 5,000 Certification Board for Diver Training 2,000 Department of the Environment London Housing Staff Commission 6,000 Property Services Agency Advisory Board 5,000 Merseyside Urban Development Corporation ‡16,285,000 Department of Health and Social Security Working Group on Rickets 7,000 Steering Group on Health Service Information 72,000 London Advisory Group 90,000 Advisory Group on Hepatitis 5,000 Informal Working Group on Effective Prescribing 9,000 Working Group on Laser Safety 1,000 Home Office Joint Committee for Refugees from Vietnam ††42,000 Department of Industry Information Technology Focus Committee 25,000 Space Consultative Committee — Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise Committee to Review the Powers of the Revenue Departments 32,000 Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Departments Visiting Committee, Hydebank Wood 13,000 Community Service Committee 2,000
Department and Body Approximate Annual Cost £ Scottish Office Council for Tertiary Education in Scotland 13,000 Standing Advisory Committee on List D Schools 2,000 Health Education Co-ordinating Committee — Department of Trade Pilotage Commission ‡‡‡8,000 National Metrological Coordinating Unit ††††195,000 Welsh Office Housing Management Advisory Panel ‡‡1,500 In addition, the process of rationalising previous arrangements has led to the creation of the following bodies, which result from amalgamations, reconstitutions, or replacements.
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Department and Body Annual Financial cost/saving £ Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Farm Animal Welfare Council 85,000 cost Ministry of Defence Independent Board of Visitors for Royal Naval Detention Quarters and the Military Corrective Training Centre No net additional cost Department of Employment Retail Food and Allied Trades Wages Council 10,000 saving Retail Trade Wages Council (Non-Food) 87 Committees for the Employment of Disabled People (replaced 220 Disablement Advisory Committees) 60–100,000 saving Approximate Annual Department and Body Cost/saving Foreign and Commonwealth Office Advisory Panel on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation no net additional cost Crown Agents for Overseas Governments and Administrations **no net additional cost Department of Health and Social Security Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens no net additional cost Social Security Advisory Committee 136,000 cost Home Office Advisory Committee on Animal Experiments ††6,000 cost Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Departments Northern Ireland Council for Educational Development 38,000 cost Scottish Office Scottish Crop Research Institute no net additional cost Health Departments United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting, plus 4 National Boards †††no net additional cost * Part of grant is made by Department of the Environment. † Total cost for expected life of review—18 months. ‡ The anticipated cost to public funds of Merseyside Urban Development Corporation for 1981–82 is £16,285,000, ofwhich£1,107,000 represents administrative costs. †† Cost in 1979–80. ‡‡‡ Estimated expenditure to July 1980. †††† Total cost to April 1981, when financing passed from central Government to local authorities. ‡‡ Approximate cost to date. ** Under the Crown Agents Act 1979 the Crown Agents for Overseas Governments and Administrations assumed on 1 January 1980 a commencing capital debt to the Minister of Overseas Development, now Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, of £30 million in respect of the property and rights transferred to them from the unincorporated Crown Agents. Interest is payable on this debt, during an initial period of five years, which may by order be extended to seven years, the rate of interest is such as the Secretary of State may from time to time determine.
††† These bodies were set up under the Nurses, Midwifes and Health Visitors Act 1979. After a transitional period they will replace nine nursing bodies (the General Nursing Councils for England and Wales, and for Scotland; the Northern Ireland Council for Nurses and Midwives; the Central Midwives Boards for England and Wales, and for Scotland; the Council for the Education and Training of Health Visitors, and the Scottish Advisory Committee to that Council, the Panel of Assessors for District Nurse Training; the Joint Board for Clinical Nursing Studies).
Note: The lists above do not include bodies (such as the Docklands Urban Development Corporation and the Broadcasting Complaints Commission) which the Government have decided to set up but which