HC Deb 19 March 1979 vol 964 cc453-4W
Mr. Teddy Taylor

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Cathcart on 12 March, whether the estimate given on 23 March that the cost of holding the referendum in Scotland would be £880,000 is likely to be the final figure.

Mr. Millan

No indication of the final cost can yet be given: it will not be known until the various claims have been submitted and processed.

Mr. Teddy Taylor

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Cathcart on 12 March, whether records were kept of the cost to public funds of the visits made by Government Ministers and their advisers to Scotland to speak at meetings designated to obtain support for the proposed Assembly during the recent

11 to 12 years, 12 to 13 years, 13 to 14 years, 14 to 15 years, 15 to 16 years and over 16 years are learning two or more foreign languages; and in each case what proportion this is of the total age group.

Mr. McElhone

I regret that the information requested by my hon. Friend is not available in the exact form he asks for, but the following information is available for education authority schools in Scotland at September 1977:

referendum; and if he will list these visits and the cost to public funds which arose in each case.

Mr. Foot

I have been asked to reply.

Costs associated with Ministers' official activities in Scotland and with officials advising them on these activities would, of course, fall to be met from public funds in the normal way; information about these costs is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate costs.