Safety Fences (Hansard, 15 May 1987)

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley

Yes. The current specification for the manufacture of welded angled beams, issued in 1985, is being replaced with one for formed beams that do not require welding. This change will avoid the problems that have occurred with some existing welded beams. The new specification will apply initially to contracts for new work and maintenance. The need for more extensive replacement of existing welded beams will be assessed when detailed investigations of these beams, currently in progress, are complete. The Department will shortly be inviting comments on a revised specification for welded beams, which may be adopted in future in addition to that for formed beams.

The Department's code of practice for routine maintenance has been amended to increase the frequency of inspections to safety fences. The copy of the code in the Library has been amended accordingly. Some planned inspections are also being brought forward.

Size of holdings	Number of holdings	Per cent. of total	Number of shares in (millions)	Per cent. of total
(i)1–399	525,698	24.5	104	1.7
(ii)400–799	965,509	45.1	443	7.4
(iii)800–1,599	629,432	29.4	505	8.4
(iv) 1,600–1,000,000 and more	21,008	1.0	4,948	82.5
Totals	2,141,647	100	6,000	100
Category (iv) includes the Government shareholding of 2,988 million shares, or 49.8 per cent, of total shares.

As my previous answer made clear, this is properly a matter for British Telecom. Its 1986 annual report gives the most recent available figures on categories of shareholdings. A copy of this is available in the Library of the House.