Written Answers of 5 December 1988

TRANSPORT

  M1-M6 (Commercial Traffic)
  Mr. Heddle
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish his Department's projection of the increased volume of commercial traffic on the M1 and the M6 following the opening of the Channel tunnel in 1993.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  The Department prepares forecasts of national traffic. Where specific trunk road improvements are being assessed, local traffic forecasts are prepared. Projections are not otherwise made for specific roads.

  Drivers (Disqualification)
  Mr. Beggs
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take action to ensure that individuals convicted and disqualified from driving in any part of the United Kingdom will be denied the right to drive throughout the United Kingdom during their period of disqualification.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  Northern Ireland (like the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man) has an entirely separate driver licensing system to that for Great Britain.

  (a) National Roads £ millions

  (b) Local roads £ millions (price base Autumn 1978)

  Current1

  Capital1

  Current2

  Capital

  1974–75

  86

  620

  689

  566

  1975–76

  101

  640

  664

  557

  1976–77

  106

  547

  617

  522

  1977–78

  101

  398

  610

  346

  1978–79

  115

  392

  661

  318

  11979–80

  116

  51

  404

  475

  608

  633

  372

  410

  1980–81

  49

  469

  617

  407

  1981–82

  65

  479

  663

  349

  1982–83

  52

  543

  657

  394

  1983–84

  57

  512

  654

  400

  1984–85

  61

  516

  643

  385

  1985–86

  59

  493

  639

  390

  1986–87

  67

  494

  681

  406

  1987–88

  58

  549

  3682

  3370

  1 Structural maintenance of national roads was reclassified as capital expenditure in 1983. Figures in the series 1979–80—1987–88 reflect this classification while figures in the series 1974–75—1979–80 do not.

  2 excludes local authority professional and technical support.

  3 approximate estimate based on quarterly data.

  Traffic Congestion (London)
  Mr. Bowls
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with London borough councils about the causes and cures of recent widespread traffic jams in inner London; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  The Department has regular contact with the police, London borough officers and the traffic signals control unit about traffic conditions. In the highly interdependent London network, congestion is often caused by incidents (breakdowns, accidents,
  2
  British courts have no jurisdiction in Northern Ireland on driver licensing matters, and disqualifications imposed on the mainland are not valid there. There are at present no plans to change these arrangements.

  Bus Drivers
  Mr. Spearing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list any changes in the terms and conditions of employment of bus drivers employed by London Buses Limited, bearing on their health and the safety of bus passengers, since he assumed responsibility for London Regional Transport.

  Mr. Portillo
  Limits on public service vehicle drivers' hours of duty are prescribed by law to ensure safety. The requirements are standard for all bus operators. Other terms and conditions of employment are matters for the operators themselves.

  Roads (Expenditure)
  Mr. Prescott
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the level of both capital and current expenditure by(a) central Government and (b) local government on Britain's roads in each year since 1974–75.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  Expenditure figures for local roads spending prior to 1978–79 are not readily available in cash. In order to give (as nearly as practical) a consistent series of data, the following table gives expenditure for 1974–75 to 1979–80 on a price base of November 1978 (source Cmnd 7841), and expenditure for 1987–88 (source, Transport Statistics Great Britain) adjusted for the change in GDP since the third quarter of 1978–79.

  roadworks) on local roads. Because traffic volumes are high, minor incidents can have a widespread knock-on effect.

  Mr. Bowis
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the impact of the partial closure of Battersea bridge on the traffic flow in inner London.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  This is primarily a matter for the London borough of Wandsworth as the highway authority and for neighbouring authorities.

  Crash Barriers
  Sir Michael McNair-Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has for installing crash barriers on duel carriageway stretches of the A34 particularly at Gore hill in Berkshire.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  We have a major programme to install central reserve safety fencing along the dual carriageway lengths of the A34 between the M3 at Winchester and Oxford. Work is due to start early in the new year. It will take about two years to complete. Precise timing of the Gore hill section depends on overcoming certain technical difficulties.

  Severn Bridge
  Mr. Aspinwall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will invite tenders for the second Severn bridge.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  The Department has sent a notice to the Official Journal of the European Communities for publication today asking groups of firms interested in bidding:

  Academic year beginning in

  1979

  1980

  1981

  1982

  1983

  1984

  1985

  1986

  1987

  API

  Universities

  7·4

  7·5

  7·2

  6·8

  6·6

  6·8

  6·9

  7·0

  7·3

  PSHE

  5·0

  5·2

  5·9

  6·5

  6·6

  6·9

  7·0

  7·0

  7·3

  All higher education

  12·4

  12·6

  13·1

  13·4

  13·2

  13·7

  13·9

  14·0

  14·6

  QPI

  Universities

  50·4

  50·3

  47·7

  44·4

  40·7

  41·3

  41·8

  43·2

  44·9

  PSHE

  33·6

  34·8

  39·5

  42·4

  40·9

  41·5

  42·0

  42·9

  44·5

  All higher education

  84·0

  85·0

  87·1

  86·8

  81·5

  82·8

  83·9

  86·1

  89·4

  Note:

  1 Provisional figures.

  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report the young mature entry index and the older mature participation index from 1979 to the most recent date for

  Academic year beginning in

  1979

  1980

  1981

  1982

  1983

  1984

  1985

  1986

  19871

  Young Mature Entry Index

  All higher education

  8·8

  7·6

  7·5

  7·2

  6·9

  7·2

  7·8

  7·4

  7·5

  Universities

  2·7

  2·4

  2·0

  1·7

  1·5

  1·6

  1·7

  1·7

  1·7

  P.S.H.E.

  6·1

  5·2

  5·5

  5·5

  5·3

  5·6

  6·1

  5·8

  5·8

  Older Mature Participation Index

  All higher education

  0·218

  0·219

  0·245

  0·246

  0·261

  0·261

  0·272

  0·281

  0·295

  Universities

  0·054

  0·051

  0·052

  0·046

  0·048

  0·051

  0·053

  0·056

  0·057

  P.S.H.E.

  0·165

  0·168

  0·193

  0·199

  0·213

  0·208

  0·219

  0·226

  0·238

  1 Provisional figures.

  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many advanced level secondary school pupils from(a) local education authority maintained secondary schools and (b) private sector maintained secondary schools, applied for a place at

  Cambridge

  Maintained

  3Direct grant

  Independent

  FE Institutions

  Scottish and Irish

  Other and OSEAS

  Total

  1979

  Applications

  2,410

  697

  1,385

  110

  211

  416

  5,229

  Acceptances

  906

  363

  733

  24

  99

  114

  2,239

  4
  (i) for the design, construction financing and operation and
  (ii) for the design and construction only
  of a second Severn crossing to submit themselves for selection as tenderers. This initial selection process has been introduced at the request of the industry to cut down wasted effort in preparing a full tender. Applications to be considered for selection must be returned to the Department of Transport by mid-January. The groups selected to submit full tenders will be announced towards the end of February. Guidelines for these tenders will be published in the spring.

EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

  Students (Statistics)
  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report the age participation index and qualified participation index for each year since 1979 (a) for universities only, (b) for PSHE institutions only and (c) for all higher education institutions.

  Mr. Jackson
  The information required is as follows:

  which the figures are available (a) for all higher education institutions, (b) for universities only and (c) for P.S.H.E. only.

  Mr. Jackson
  The information required is as follows:

  Oxford university and at Cambridge university in each year since 1979; and how many, from each sector, each university finally accepted.

  Mr. Jackson
  The information requested is shown in the following table.
  5

  Cambridge

  Maintained

  3Direct grant

  Independent

  FE Institutions

  Scottish and Irish

  Other and OSEAS

  Total

  1980

  Applications

  2,403

  688

  1,375

  122

  214

  405

  5,207

  Acceptances

  947

  387

  732

  29

  99

  128

  2,322

  1981

  Applications

  2,251

  654

  1,341

  105

  147

  443

  4,939

  Acceptances

  774

  372

  668

  25

  48

  134

  2,021

  1982

  Applications

  3,774

  ..

  2,910

  217

  280

  621

  7,802

  Acceptances

  1,154

  ..

  1,328

  47

  99

  164

  2,792

  1983

  Applications

  3,678

  ..

  2,806

  221

  309

  714

  7,728

  Acceptances

  1,223

  ..

  1,332

  55

  123

  166

  2,899

  1984

  Applications

  3,358

  ..

  3,031

  174

  337

  836

  7,736

  Acceptances

  1,117

  ..

  1,456

  48

  120

  244

  2985

  1985

  Applications

  3,365

  ..

  3,557

  205

  333

  1,043

  8,503

  Acceptances

  1,160

  ..

  1,564

  53

  108

  213

  3,098

  1986

  Applications

  2,895

  ..

  3,701

  207

  286

  1,300

  8,389

  Acceptances

  1,027

  ..

  1,550

  60

  110

  382

  3,129

  11986

  Applications

  3,506

  ..

  3,495

  ..

  ..

  1,337

  8,338

  Acceptances

  1,230

  ..

  1,410

  ..

  ..

  380

  3,020

  1 In earlier years FE institutions, Scottish and Irish schools were shown separately. For 1987 they are included under maintained or independent as appropriate.

  2 Information for 1988 is not readily available.

  3 Direct grant schools were abolished in 1980–81.

  Oxford

  Maintained

  Direct grant1

  Independent

  Sixth form college

  Other and OSEAS

  Total

  1979

  Applications

  3,489

  815

  2,035

  ..

  433

  6,772

  Acceptances

  1,320

  408

  975

  ..

  85

  2,788

  1980

  Applications

  3,661

  644

  2,133

  ..

  460

  6,898

  Acceptances

  1,378

  299

  1,058

  ..

  79

  2,814

  1981

  Applications

  3,924

  670

  2,093

  ..

  306

  6,993

  Acceptances

  1,414

  280

  1,051

  ..

  91

  2,836

  1982

  Applications

  4,138

  ..

  2,925

  ..

  476

  7,539

  Acceptances

  1,404

  ..

  1,325

  ..

  111

  2,840

  1983

  Applications

  3,638

  ..

  2,980

  727

  356

  7,701

  Acceptances

  1,088

  ..

  1,265

  248

  85

  2,686

  1984

  Applications

  3,306

  ..

  3,045

  775

  437

  7,563

  Acceptances

  1,122

  ..

  1,359

  262

  110

  2,853

  1985

  Applications

  3,282

  ..

  3,819

  687

  342

  8,130

  Acceptances

  1,098

  ..

  1,684

  234

  104

  3,120

  1 Direct grant schools were abolished in 1980–81.

  Oxford

  State

  Independent

  Others

  Total

  19861

  Applications

  3,680

  3,096

  861

  7,637

  Acceptances

  1,395

  1,324

  221

  2,940

  67

  Oxford

  State

  Independent

  Others

  Total

  1987

  Applications

  3,278

  3,065

  847

  7,190

  Acceptances

  1,399

  1,415

  256

  3,070

  1988

  Applications

  3,979

  3,743

  990

  8,712

  Acceptances

  1,448

  1,535

  243

  3,226

  1 The classification used by Oxford changed in 1986.

  Teachers
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will implement the International Labour Organisation rulings on the rights of employees to negotiate with their employers in relation to teachers; and if he will make a statement.

  Mrs. Rumbold
  I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 11 November at column 318.

  Education Reform
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what effect he expects that state schools that opt out and function independently will have on preparatory schools; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Butcher
  Schools which become grant-maintained will remain within the maintained sector of education, and will increase the diversity of provision available to parents within that sector. There will be no direct effect on preparatory schools although ultimately we expect that increased diversity and competition will encourage all schools (including preparatory schools) to maintain and improve their standards and responsiveness to those they serve.

  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the effect of the Education Reform Act on school-theatre and museum and theatre visits.

  Mr. Butcher
  My right hon. Friend has no reason to believe that the level of school visits to theatres and museums need change markedly as a result of the provisions of the Education Reform Act. The Act clarifies earlier legislation in establishing that schools may not charge for any provision offered during school hours, with the exception of individual music tuition. Charges may be made for visits and activities provided outside school hours, unless these are required for a prescribed examination syllabus or for the national curriculum. Restrictions on charging do not prevent local authorities and schools from seeking voluntary contributions in support of particular activities and we expect that parents will continue to support activities which they regard as educationally worth while.

  Student Loans
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will reconsider the limitations on mature students, particularly those nearing or at retiring age in respect of the Government's proposals in the White Paper on "Student Top-up Loans," where 8
  anyone commencing higher education at the age of 40 years or over will have to repay the loan up to and until the age of 60 years.

  Mr. Jackson
  The Government have invited comment on the repayment regime but we want students up to the age of 50 to have the benefit of loans. Under our proposals the annual repayments made by graduates approaching the age of 60 will be no more and no less than repayments made by younger graduates in the same economic circumstances. Any debt still outstanding at the age of 60 will be cancelled.

  Veterinary Schools (Research)
  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what have been the sources of funding in veterinary schools over the last five years;

  (2) what revenue from commercial sources has been derived from publicly funded research in veterinary schools over the last five years.

  Mr. Jackson
  Universities (of which veterinary schools are component parts) receive general funding in the form of block grant from the University Grants Committee and from various other sources. It is not possible to identify how elements of that income flow to individual faculties and schools. The available data on specific income (for research contracts and other services) in veterinary science are shown below. Information is not available on the revenue from commercial sources derived from publicly funded research.

  £ thousands

  1984–85

  1985–86

  1986–87

  A. Research Grants and Contracts

  Research Council Grant

  1,066

  1,049

  1,154

  Other Central Government

  1,062

  1,370

  1,686

  United Kingdom Public Corporations

  71

  17

  24

  Other United Kingdom Industry and Commerce

  373

  426

  452

  United Kingdom Charitable Bodies

  922

  1,074

  1,838

  Overseas1

  85

  202

  265

  Other Sources

  107

  87

  271

  Total Grants and Contracts

  3,686

  4,223

  5,690

  B. Income from other services rendered

  Total1

  1,542

  1,627

  1,846

  C. Total Specific income From veterinary science

  5,228

  5,850

  7,836

  1 Includes income from commercial sources.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the research objectives of veterinary schools.
  9
  Mr. Jackson
  Such objectives are for each university to determine.

  Scientific Equipment
  Mr. Simon Hughes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information is available to his Department regarding expert estimates of the annual percentage increase in real terms of costs of scientific equipment needed for priority areas of research identified by the Advisory Board for the Research Councils; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  My right hon. Friend receives advice each year from the Advisory Board for the Research Councils on the sums to be allocated to each of the research councils in support of priority areas of research. This includes provision for scientific equipment and takes account of cost movements and of changes in the nature and standard of equipment which is available.

  Mr. Simon Hughes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he expects to receive advice from the Advisory Board for the Research Councils arising from the board's commissioned survey of scientific equipment provision; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  I understand that the ABRC has not yet received the report of the survey it has commissioned on scientific equipment provision, and that it is unlikely that the board will offer my right hon. Friend advice on this matter before next spring.

  Correspondence
  Mr. Straw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will place in the Library his letter and attachment of 28 November sent to the hon. Member for Blackburn in answer to his question of 19 October.

  Mr. Kenneth Baker
  Copies of my letter and attachment have been placed in the Library.

  Grant-maintained Schools (Ballots)
  Mr. Straw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list in the Official Report the names, areas and type of those schools in respect of which he received a notification by 30 November concerning a governors' resolution or parent petition for a ballot for a grant-maintained school, the schools being ones affected by a section 12 and 13 proposal undecided on 4 August; and what was the total number of schools so affected.

  Mr. Kenneth Baker
  Notification of a governors' resolution or parent petition for a ballot has been received in respect of the following 18 schools which were subject to published section 12 or 13 proposals published by but undecided on 4 August:

  School

  LEA

  Type

  Queensbury

  Bedfordshire

  13-18 County Mixed Comprehensive

  Ravensbourne

  Bromley

  11-18 County Girls Comprehensive

  Ramsden

  Bromley

  11-18 County Girls Comprehensive

  Netherthorpe

  Derbyshire

  11-18 Voluntary Controlled Mixed Comprehensive

  Chesterfield

  Derbyshire

  13-18 County Boys Comprehensive

  Frances Bardesley

  Havering

  11-18 County Girls Comprehensive

  Gaynes

  Havering

  11-18 County Mixed Comprehensive

  Forest Lodge

  Havering

  11-18 County Mixed Comprehensive

  Sir James Altham

  Hertfordshire

  11-18 County Mixed Comprehensive

  10

  School

  LEA

  Type

  Hadham Hall

  Hertfordshire

  11-18 County Mixed Secondary

  London Nautical

  ILEA

  11-18 County Boys Comprehensive

  Wilmington Grammar

  Kent

  11-18 County Boys Grammar

  Wilmington Grammar

  Kent

  11-18 County Girls Grammar

  South Park

  Lincolnshire

  11-18 County Mixed Comprehensive

  Blessed Hugh More RC

  Lincolnshire

  11-16 Voluntary Aided Mixed Secondary

  Queen Elizabeth's

  Rochdale

  14-18 Voluntary Controlled Mixed High

  Audenshaw

  Tameside

  11-16 County Boys Comprehensive

  Droylsden

  Tameside

  11-16 County Girls Comprehensive

  Student Unions
  Mr. Amess
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will place in the Library the correspondence between his Department and the National Union of Students concerning automatic membership of student unions; and if he will make a statement;

  (2) what recent representations he has received from the National Union of Students regarding the automatic membership of student unions; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: The NUS has made no recent representations. The last exchange of correspondence between the NUS and Ministers on this subject followed a meeting which I held with the NUS on 29 February. This exchange preceded the announcement of the survey and I do not think that it would now be appropriate to place it in the Library.

  Mr. Amess
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the returned questionnaires for his review of student unions; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: No.

  Mr. Amess
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what was the total number of questionnaires for his Department's review of student unions(a) sent out and (b) returned, and what is the percentage of the latter to the former;

  (2) how many questionnaires for his review of student unions were sent to (a) student unions, (b) institutions of higher and further education and (c) the National Union of Students; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: Questionnaires were issued to 70 institutions in Great Britain. Each institution received four copies but it was for each to determine, against the definition of a student union used for the survey, how many separately completed questionnaires to return. Institutions were invited to involve their local union(s) in completing the questionnaire but no questionnaires were issued direct to local unions for return to the Department. A copy was sent to the NUS for information.

  By 1 December a total of 86 returns had been received from 68 institutions. Returns from the remaining two institutions are expected within a few days.

  Mr. Amess
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his policy towards treating the National Union of Students as a representative negotiating body; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  [holding answer of 2 December 1988]: The Department consults as appropriate, but does not negotiate, with the National Union of Students.

  Natural Environmental Research Council
  Mr. Bermingham
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what he assesses will be the impact of funding cuts for the Natural Environmental Research Council on working on practical projects involving volunteers in the area of nature conservation: and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Jackson
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: The staff reductions NERC has announced include one post concerning bat ecology, where work done in the past has involved volunteers. Otherwise, volunteers are involved only on projects commissioned by customers, and their future involvement will be dependent on customer support.

ENVIRONMENT

  Civil Defence
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what grants were authorised to be paid by his Department for capital works carried out under the Civil Defence (Water Supplies) Regulations 1949 in each of the financial years 1985–86 to 1987–88 inclusive; to which authorities they were paid; and for what purposes;

  (2) what grants were authorised to be paid by his Department for capital works carried out under the Civil Defence (Sewerage) Regulations 1949 in each of the financial years 1985–86 to 1987–8, inclusive; to which authorities they were paid; and for what purposes.

  Mr. Moynihan
  Grant authorised by the Department since 1985–86 for capital works relating to water authority civil defence functions has been for structural and accommodation works for emergency control centres, as follows:

  Water authority

  Financial year

  Amount of grant (75 per cent. of cost)£

  Anglian

  1985–86

  3,794

  1986–87

  102,750

  1987–88

  19,156

  Severn Trent

  1987–88

  173,905

  Southern

  1987–88

  4,050

  Wessex

  1985–86

  2,639

  1986–87

  18,731

  1987–88

  128,974

  Yorkshire

  1985–86

  4,908

  1986–87

  23,625

  1987–88

  262,267

  TOTAL

  744,799

  Wildlife and Countryside Act
  Mr. Hind
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on his proposals to amend section 53 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 following the decision in the case of Rubinstein and another v. Secretary of State for the Environment.
  12
  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  Our intention is to introduce legislation, when a suitable opportunity occurs, to return to the situation that was assumed to exist prior to the judgment in the Rubinstein case. This will enable surveying authorities, on the discovery of evidence, to make orders correcting mistakes in the recording of rights of way on the definitive map.

  Water Quality (Nottingham)
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment on how many individual occasions the level of(a) nitrate (b) aluminium and (c) other substances in Nottingham water supplies has exceeded the levels in EEC drinking water directives.

  Mr. Moynihan
  I understand from the water authority that within the last 12 months there have been no individual occasions when aluminium has exceeded the limits laid down in the EC drinking water directive in the city of Nottingham drinking water supplies.

  The nitrate standard has been marginally exceeded (at times of peak demand) from a source serving about 2,000 people in the city but this does not constitute a risk to health.

  A single sample failed to meet the directive requirements relating to iron.

  Toxic Waste
  Mr. Devlin
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the Government's policy on the import of foreign toxic waste into the United Kingdom for treatment.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Wyre (Mr. Mans) on 23 November at columns 4-5.

  Toxic Chemical Incinerators
  Mr. Devlin
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many toxic chemical incinerators there are in the United Kingdom; and what are their locations.

  Mr. Virginia Bottomley
  There are three merchant incinerators in the United Kingdom which process toxic chemical wastes: at Ellesmere Port (Cheshire), Fawley (Hampshire) and Pontypool (Gwent). These are subject to the control of Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution. In addition, the inspectorate, together with Her Majesty's industrial pollution inspectorate (in Scotland) and the alkali and radiochemical inspectorate (in Northern Ireland) exercise control over 77 chemical incinerators which burn only waste generated on the site by a related industrial process.

  Raptors (Illegal Sales)
  Mr. Hinchliffe
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will seek to obtain information from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds relating to the prices commanded by illegally sold British birds of prey.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  No. Although the Department's licensing and registration functions are useful inhibitions to the sale of illegally taken birds of prey, it has no direct responsibility for enforcing the law prohibiting their illegal taking, which is a matter for the police. I therefore have no reason to seek information about the prices at which birds of prey are sold.

  Lowland Heath
  Mr. Nicholas Baker
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met representatives of voluntary conservation bodies to discuss the draft flora, fauna and habitat directive; and if he will make a statement.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  My noble Friend, the Minister for Housing, Environment and Countryside, met representatives of voluntary conservation bodies to discuss the draft directive on 18 November. I explained the current position on the directive in my answer to my hon. Friend, the Member for Bedfordshire, North (Sir T. Skeet) on 29 November, at column 200-20.

  Nuclear Waste (South Yorkshire)
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what investigations have been made in the county of South Yorkshire to see if the soil strata is suitable for low or high-level nuclear waste; and how many suitable sites have been discovered.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  UK Nirex Ltd. is responsible for the field work necessary to identify potential sites for a deep disposal facility for low and intermediate-level radioactive waste. No part of the United Kingdom is ruled out at this stage.

  Heat-generating (high-level) radioactive waste is being stored at British Nuclear Fuels works at Sellafield for about 50 years until levels of radioactivity have declined sufficiently to facilitate disposal. No work is being undertaken to identify potential disposal sites for this type of waste.

  PCB Levels
  Mr. Murphy
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution proposes to publish the report arising from the investigation, undertaken two years ago, and carried out jointly by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution and the university of East Anglia, into national background levels of PCBs and including an investigation into the area surrounding ReChem international (Pontypool).

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  During the period 1985 to 1987 the hazardous waste inspectorate, now part of Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution, conducted a national survey into background levels in soils of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzo-furans (PCDFs). A summary of that work was published this year in the third report of the hazardous waste inspectorate and the full technical report will be published in 1989.

  A further study, which involves more detailed sampling around potential sources of PCBs, including the ReChem International incinerator at Pontypool, has begun. The full results of this study are expected in two years' time. In the interim, preliminary findings will shortly be communicated to local authorities concerned.

  Housing Corporation
  Mr. Soley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of additional staffing requirements for the Housing Corporation for the financial year 1988–89.
  14
  Mr. Trippier
  My Department is currently discussing with the Housing Corporation its additional staffing requirements for 1988–89 for new responsibilities under the Housing Act 1988. Final decisions have yet to be taken.

  Lead Shot
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what steps he is taking to encourage the development of non-toxic alternatives to lead shot;

  (2) what is his Department's policy on the substitution of steel for lead shot in game shooting; and if he will make a statement.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  We have asked the Nature Conservancy Council to assess any potential danger to wildlife from the residues from lead shot and to consult interested parties. In addition, the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) has set up a working group to co-ordinate research into all aspects of the use of lead shot. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has undertaken research into the effect of residues from lead shot in animal feedstuffs. We are encouraged to see that both BASC and the Gun Trades Association are assessing the use of steel and other materials as possible substitutes for lead shot. Decisions on the continued use of lead shot will be made as and when the results of all these studies are available.

  Football Club Membership Scheme
  Mr. Lester
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the response of the football authorities to his proposed national football membership scheme.

  Mr. Moynihan
  The football authorities contributed fully in the working party which I chaired on the national membership scheme and agreed the report which the working party produced. They have made clear that they are opposed to the principle of the scheme but I am very glad that both the new president of the Football League and the chief executive of the Football Association have recently repeated their willingness to co-operate with the Government in producing a workable scheme. I look forward to discussing the details of the scheme further with them.

  Croxteth Hall
  Mr Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the future of Croxteth hall and Country park, Liverpool.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  We are awaiting the Merseyside residuary body's proposals on detailed arrangements for ensuring the future of Croxteth hall and country park. We hope to make a statement shortly.

  Truscon RD27 Houses
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what recent representations he has received from Liverpool city council about the possible repurchase of Truscon RD27 houses situated in Storrington avenue, Liverpool; and what his response has been.

  Mr. Trippier
  Liverpool city council have applied for consent to repurchase three privately owned Truscon
  15
  RD27 type houses at Storrington avenue and the Department's officials recently wrote to the council about the repurchase terms. It is now for Liverpool city council to take the matter forward.

  Planning Applications
  Mr. Malins
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many planning applications were received by the London borough of Croydon in each of the last 10 years; how many were granted; how many appeals were made; how many appeals were allowed; and how many appeals were refused.

  Mr. Chope
  The information available in the Department is given in the tables.

  London Borough of Croydon

  Table 1—Applications under section 29 of the Town and Country

  Planning Act 1971

  Year

  Decided

  Granted

  1982–83

  11,400

  11,182

  1983–84

  2,101

  1,812

  1984–85

  2,178

  1,809

  1985–86

  2,163

  1,746

  1986–87

  11,775

  11,426

  1987–88

  2,456

  1,997

  1 Three quarters of the year only.

  Table 2—Planning appeals under sections 35 and 37 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971

  Year

  Received

  Allowed

  Dismissed

  1984–85

  79

  22

  47

  1985–86

  117

  38

  47

  1986–87

  128

  50

  45

  1987–88

  136

  54

  67

  National Park Year

  Decided

  Allowed

  Dismissed

  Withdrawn

  Number

  Percentage

  Number

  Percentage

  Peak District

  1984–85

  23

  6

  26·1

  17

  73·9

  3

  1985–86

  25

  5

  20·0

  20

  80·0

  7

  1986–87

  38

  9

  23·7

  29

  76·3

  6

  1987–88

  38

  9

  23·7

  29

  76·3

  5

  Exmoor

  1984–85

  7

  4

  57·1

  3

  42·9

  0

  1985–86

  6

  4

  66·7

  2

  33·3

  0

  1986–87

  4

  2

  50·0

  2

  50·0

  1

  1987–88

  4

  0

  —

  4

  100·0

  1

  Northumberland

  1984–85

  2

  0

  —

  2

  100·0

  0

  1985–86

  0

  0

  —

  0

  —

  0

  1986–87

  0

  0

  —

  0

  —

  0

  1987–88

  0

  0

  —

  0

  —

  1

  Dartmoor

  1984–85

  32

  6

  18·8

  26

  81·2

  2

  1985–86

  29

  8

  27·6

  21

  72·4

  4

  1986–87

  22

  9

  40·9

  13

  59·1

  3

  1987–88

  24

  7

  29·2

  17

  70·8

  0

  Lake District

  1984–85

  17

  6

  35·3

  11

  64·7

  1

  1985–86

  37

  18

  48·6

  19

  51·4

  5

  1986–87

  37

  16

  43·2

  21

  56·8

  1

  1987–88

  76

  34

  44·7

  42

  55·3

  2

  Yorkshire Dales

  1984–85

  22

  7

  31·8

  15

  68·2

  2

  1985–86

  21

  6

  28·6

  15

  71·4

  1

  1986–87

  14

  4

  28·6

  10

  71·4

  3

  Planning Controls
  Mr. Wray
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which are the current planning controls now protecting water authority lands from developers because of(a) their outstanding natural beauty, (b) their value to urban or rural communities as spaces of recreation or as environmental protection, and (c) their character as national parks.

  Mr. Chope
  The Town and Country Planning Acts and subsidiary legislation, and the Government's planning guidance, apply to water authority land as they do to land in other ownership. The Town and Country Planning General Development Order grants planning permission, subject to limitations, for development by water authorities for the purpose of their functions.

  Planning Appeals
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the number of planning appeal decisions which were(a) allowed, (b) dismissed, (c) withdrawn and (d) undetermined in each of the English national parks, including the Broads authority in each of the last five years; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined.

  Mr. Chope
  [holding answer 2 December 1988] The available information in respect of the English national parks is given below. Similar information in respect of the Broads authority area is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
  17

  National Park Year

  Decided

  Allowed

  Dismissed

  Withdrawn

  Number

  Percentage

  Number

  Percentage

  1987–88

  15

  4

  26·7

  11

  73·3

  0

  North Yorkshire

  Moors

  1984–85

  28

  8

  28·6

  20

  71·4

  3

  1985–86

  23

  3

  13·0

  20

  87·0

  1

  1986–87

  17

  11

  64·7

  6

  35·3

  4

  1987–88

  31

  12

  38·7

  19

  61·3

  0

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the number of planning appeal decisions which were(a) allowed, (b) dismissed, (c) withdrawn and (d) undetermined in England in each of the last five years; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined;

  (2) if he will give for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of planning appeal decisions which were allowed, dismissed, withdrawn and undetermined, respectively in England; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined;

  (3) if he will give for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of planning appeal

  Year

  Decided

  Allowed

  Dismissed

  Withdrawn

  In hand on 31 March

  Number

  Number

  Per cent.

  Number

  Per cent.

  Number

  Number

  1984–85

  12,714

  4,161

  32·7

  8,553

  67·3

  2,109

  8,049

  1985–86

  14,130

  5,581

  39·5

  8,549

  60·5

  2,143

  9,615

  1986–87

  15,613

  6,208

  39·8

  9,405

  60·2

  2,533

  11,325

  1987–88

  18,474

  6,955

  37·6

  11,519

  62·4

  3,173

  12,160

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the number of planning appeal decisions which were(a) allowed, (b) dismissed, (c) withdrawn and (d) undetermined on green belt land in each of the last five years; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined.

  Mr. Chope
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

  Football Matches (Arrests)
  Mr. John Marshall
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has anything to add to his answer of 30 November, with regard to division 3 and 4 football matches at which no arrests were made in the 1987–88 season.

  Mr. Moynihan
  As opposed to individual club information for the season, information about the number of arrests at individual matches for the 1987–89 season is not held centrally. The total number of arrests at division 3 and 4 matches in the 1987–88 season was as follows:

  Total arrests

  Division 3

  866

  Division 4

  929

  18
  decisions which were allowed, dismissed, withdrawn and undetermined, respectively, in each of the English national parks, including the Broads authority; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined;

  (4) if he will give for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of planning appeal decisions which were allowed, dismissed, withdrawn and undetermined, respectively on green belt land; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined.

  Mr. Chope
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: The available information is as follows:

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

  Councillors (Pecuniary Interests)
  Mr. Campbell-Savours
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will list all cases since 1 January 1978 in which successful action has been taken against councillors under section 94 of the Local Government Act 1972 for failure to declare a pecuniary interest in contracts in which local authorities, of which they are members, are engaged.

  The Attorney-General
  As far as it has been possible to ascertain, during the period mentioned no prosecutions have been brought under section 94 of the Local Government Act 1972,

  Sir Harold Cassel
  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Attorney-General if the Lord Chancellor will be taking any action in respect of the comments of Judge Cassel at Knightsbridge Crown court on 29 November; and if he will make a statement.

  The Attorney-General
  His Honour Judge Sir Harold Cassel has retired on medical grounds.

  The judge tendered his resignation on grounds of ill-health in a letter which he sent to the Lord Chancellor on the day before his controversial comments in a case of indecent assault dealt with by him at Knightsbridge Crown court. The Lord Chancellor received the letter on the day of the case. In the light of medical advice, the Lord Chancellor has decided to accept Judge Cassel's resignation.
  19
  In his capacity as head of the judiciary the Lord Chancellor issued a statement in the following terms:
  "It would not be right for me to comment on the sentence passed by Judge Cassel in a recent case of indecent assault. But, having now seen a report of the case, I wish to put on record my personal disapproval of the remarks he made when passing sentence. It is regrettable that a judge should have expressed himself in a way that suggested that there are any circumstances that can excuse or condone indecent assault on children."

  "Satanic Verses"
  Mr. Thurnham
  To ask the Attorney-General what representations he has received requesting prosecution of the publishers of the book, "Satanic Verses"; and if he will make a statement.

  The Attorney-General
  The Director of Public Prosecutions and I have received written representations concerning the contents of the book "Satanic Verses" from a number of individuals, from two hon. Members, and from two organisations writing on behalf of the Moslem community. The director is considering the matter.

CIVIL SERVICE

  Barlow Clowes
  Mr. Alfred Morris
  To ask the Minister for the Civil Service if he will ensure that the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration has available to him any additional staff necessary for the expeditious conclusion of his investigation into the Department of Trade and Industry's handling of the Barlow Clowes affair.

  Mr. Luce
  The Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 provides that the commissioner may appoint such officers"as he may determine with the approval of the Treasury as to numbers and conditions of service."
  My understanding is that the commissioner has already appointed some additional staff with a view to ensuring the completion of his investigation as swiftly as its complexity permits and that he is continuing to keep his resource requirements under review.

WALES

  Water Bill
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what environmental safeguards he proposes to make to the Water Bill in order to protect the public access, recreational and amenity value of the 100,000 acres of land owned by the Welsh water authority.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  The hon. Gentleman will by now have seen the Water Bill, which provides the environmental safeguards he refers to.

  Nursing
  Mr. Michael
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he proposes to take to improve confidence and morale among the nursing profession and ancillary workers in the National Health Services in Wales.
  20
  Mr. Grist
  We continue to recognise the value to the NHS of all the staff who work within the service. I hope that the Government's commitment to the Health Service is a source of encouragement to the staff.

  Employment Measures
  Sir Anthony Meyer
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales of he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Government's employment measure in Wales; and how many were benefiting from them at the latest available date.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  At October 1988 there were 115,130 people benefiting from the Government's employment and training measures in Wales. In the last year unemployment has dropped by 23,000.

  Child Poverty
  Mr. Martin Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make funds available to the Child Poverty Action Group in Clwyd; and what further steps he proposes to take to protect children in(a) Clwyd and (b) the whole of Wales from the effects of poverty.

  Mr. Grist
  No. The Government are directing substantial additional resources towards families eligible for income support and family credit. Next year, a total of £70 million will be made available above a social security uprating based on price rises. This extra expenditure will be to the greater benefit of up to 3 million children in Great Britain and will help to protect children in Wales.

  Road Planning
  Mr. Raffan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he proposes to take following the National Audit Office's report on road planning as it relates to his Department.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  The Public Accounts Committee is expected to take evidence on the report in January. In the meantime we are studying it carefully.

  Public Bodies
  Mr. Rogers
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many appointments he has made to public bodies in Wales in 1987 and 1988; and what total costs are involved in each year in respect of(a) salaries, (b) expenses and (c) other costs.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  Since taking office in June of last year, I have made 300 appointments to public bodies in Wales. The numbers of such appointments for each non-departmental public body concerned, together with details of any salaries paid can be obtained from "Public Bodies", the 1988 version of which will be published on 7 December and a copy will be placed in the Library of the House. The other information requested is not readily available.

  M4
  Mr. Gareth Wardell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take steps to ensure that the M4 will be complete and continuous from England to Pont Abraham by 1992.
  21
  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  Work on the missing section of the M4 between Baglan and Lonlas is expected to start before the end of 1990, as indicated in "Roads in Wales".

  Severn Crossing
  Mr. Stern
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he is yet able to estimate the effect on the Welsh economy of the projected second Severn crossing.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  The existing Severn bridge has been a notable success in contributing to economic growth in south Wales and I am convinced that a second crossing will help to accelerate the economic achievements of the area. Its construction will in due course also offer substantial employment opportunities.

  Gwynedd Area Health Authority
  Mr. Wigley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he last met Mrs. Noreen Edwards, chair of Gwynedd area health authority; and if he will make a statement on the financial problems facing that authority.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  I last met Mrs. Edwards on 30 November together with all other Welsh health authority chairmen. Gwynedd Health Authority—like all health authorities—is statutorily required to ensure that its financial position is in balance. It has submitted various service rationalisation proposals towards this end and these are currently under consideration.

  Labour Statistics
  Mr. Roy Hughes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the latest unadjusted figures for unemployment in(a) Newport, (b) Gwent and (c) Wales; and if he will give the equivalent figures for 1979 on the most nearly comparable basis.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  On 13 October 1988 the number of unemployed claimants in the Newport district, Gwent, and Wales were 6,313, 18,978 and 117,683 respectively. Unadjusted figures for 1979 are not available on a basis that enables a valid comparison to be made.

  Welsh Water Authority
  Dr. Thomas
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he next expects to meet the chairman of the Welsh water authority; and what matters will be discussed.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  I meet the chairman on a regular basis to discuss a range of matters.

  Council House Sales
  Sir Raymond Gower
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many council tenants in Wales have bought their dwellings up to the last convenient date.

  Mr. Grist
  A total of 61,261 council houses and flats have been sold to tenants in Wales between October 1980 and September 1988 under both right-to-buy and voluntary terms.

  Water Authorities (Land)
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the area of land owned by the Welsh water 22
  authority which has been designated as (a) sites of special scientific interest, (b) national parks and (c) areas of outstanding natural beauty.

  Mr. Grist
  The acreage of land owned by the Welsh water authority within national parks in Wales is as follows:

  Acres

  Brecon Beacons

  13,783

  Pembroke

  Nil

  Snowdonia

  5,399

  Major landholdings in areas of outstanding natural beauty are as follows:

  Acres

  Lleyn AONB

  72

  Anglesey AONB

  151

  Clwydian AONB

  206

  There is a total of 32 SSSIs on Welsh water authority landholdings of greater than one hectare (2·5 acres) and the total authority landholdings within such areas is about 51,000 acres.

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the area of land sold by the Welsh water authority as being land surplus to operational requirements for each calendar year since 1983.

  Mr. Grist
  The information is more readily available on a financial rather than a calendar year basis. The acreage of land disposed of by Welsh water since 1 April 1983 is as follows:

  Acres

  1983–84

  222

  1984–85

  240

  1985–86

  113

  1986–87

  492

  1987–88

  323

  1988 to date

  1,001

  Total

  2,391

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the area of land owned by the Welsh water authority which is currently registered under the provisions of the Local Government and Planning Act 1981 as being unused or underused.

  Mr. Grist
  This is a matter for the Welsh water authority. I have asked the chairman to write to the hon. Member.

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is, in respect of each statutory water company, the area of land which has been designated as(a) sites of special scientific interest, (b) national parks and (c) areas of outstanding natural beauty.

  Mr. Grist
  These are matters for the statutory water companies. I have asked the chairman of Chester waterworks company and of the Wrexham and East Denbighshire water company to write to the hon. Member.

  Higher Education
  Mr. Wigley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he has received any representations proposing the corporate status of the institutes of higher education in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  My right hon. Friend has neither received nor expects to receive any representations proposing corporate status for any of the institutions of higher education in Wales. This is a matter for discussion and agreement between the institutions and their maintaining local education authorities.

  Employment Training
  Mr. Rowlands
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his assessment of the budget for Wales for the introduction of employment training in 1988–89; how much has been spent to date; how many places have been allocated for Wales; how many places have been taken up; and of these places taken up, how many are considered to have been those relating to the residual community programme.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  I am satisfied that the financial allocation for Wales for the 1988–89 financial year is sufficient to meet the expenditure employment training will incur during the year. Employment training will offer some 50,000 unemployed adults an opportunity to find and keep work in Wales each year; and it is expected that during 1988–89 about 24,000 will be in training at any one time. In the first two months of the programme over £4 million was spent in Wales. At 30 November 1988 there were 5,996 in employment training in Wales, but it is not known how many of those who were taking part in the former community programme and were eligible to join employment training have done so.

  Mr. Rowlands
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will list the training agents in Wales to whom contracts have been given for the employment training programme.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  The following organisations have been contracted by the Training Agency to operate as employment training agents in Wales:

  Cardiff Chamber of Commerce and Industry Ltd

  Careers Service Adult Guidance Agency (Mid Glamorgan County Council)

  Clwyd Local Education Authority

  Clwyd Training Agency

  Dyfed County Council

  Gwent County Council

  Gwynedd County Council

  Manpower Development Agency

  Maud and Grove Management Associates Ltd

  Powys County Council

  Psychological Consultancy Services

  South Glamorgan County Council

  West Glamorgan County Council.

  Mr. Rowlands
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will list the qualifications and experience of those training agents in receipt of a contract who are operating in Mid Glamorgan.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  Contracts were awarded to training agents in Wales who, in the judgment of the Training Agency, are best able to deliver the assessment, guidance and counselling to meet the quality standards necessary to assist their client groups.
  24
  Mr. Rowlands
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proposals he has to inspect the performance and quality of work of those training agents in Mid Glamorgan in receipt of contracts under the employment training programme.

  Mr. Peter Walker
  It is vitally important that the people who organise and deliver employment training have the necessary skills and competence to do so. Training agents (and training managers) will need to meet stringent criteria as part of the process of obtaining approved training agent status—without which they will not be able to continue with employment training. Training Agency staff will regularly monitor training agents, while helping them develop the skills of their staff, as will the training standards advisory service.

  Planning Appeals
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will give, for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of planning appeal decisions which were allowed, dismissed, withdrawn and undetermined, respectively, in each of the Welsh national parks, and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined;

  (2) if he will give, for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of planning appeal decisions which were allowed, dismissed, withdrawn and undetermined, respectively, in Wales; and if he will express the numbers allowed and dismissed as a percentage of those determined.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  This information is not available.

  Owner-occupied Dwellings
  Sir Raymond Gower
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many dwellings in Wales were owner-occupied at the end of 1960, 1970, 1980, and at the latest convenient date.

  Mr. Grist
  Information is not available in the form requested. Estimates of owner-occupied dwellings at the closest dates to those requested are:

  Dwellings

  April 1961

  374,000

  April 1971

  532,000

  December 1980

  637,000

  December 1987

  777,000

  Dwelling stock estimates in census years are based upon information collected in the census of population for that year. In inter-censal years they are based on the previous census figures adjusted to take account of new house building and demolition.

  Water Pollution
  Mr. Gareth Wardell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if the Welsh water authority has implemented the recommendation in paragraph 7.49 of the 11th report of the Royal Commission on environmental pollution by consulting the relevant industries in their area with a view to increasing the removal of metals from industrial discharges at source and reducing the metal content of sewage.
  25
  Mr. Grist
  The Welsh water authority in exercising its responsibilities for the disposal of sewage sludge takes every opportunity to achieve, by consultation with dischargers, the application of best technology so as to reduce the levels of metal contaminants in sewage and sewage sludge.

  Grant-related Expenditure (Clwyd)
  Mr. Martyn Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what assumptions he used about the pupil-teacher ratio in his calculation of grant-related expenditure for the county of Clwyd;

  (2) what assumption he made about the sum to be allocated for the local element of educational supplementary grant for in-service training in his calculation of grant-related expenditure for the county of Clwyd;

  (3) what assumptions he made about the sum to be allocated for special needs provision in his calculation of grant-related expenditure for the county of Clwyd;

  (4) what assumption he made about the sum to be allocated for nursery provision in his calculation of grant-related expenditure for the county of Clwyd.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  Grant-related expenditure calculations for local authorities in Wales do not form a basis for calculating notional allocations of GRE to any particular service. The GRE determined for each county council is constructed using indicators of need such as numbers of pupils (including those in special schools) rather than indicators of provision such as pupil/teacher ratios. The portion of costs associated with the local education authority training grants scheme not met by specific grant is accounted for in counties' GREs, using pupil numbers as an indicator of need. Nursery provision is part of the component of GRE relating to all children aged one and over but under five, and the indicator used is the population in this age group. All GRE formulae are agreed in consultation with the local authority associations. Full details of the indicators used or the current year are given in the Welsh rate support grant report 1988–89.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

  Ministerial Designation
  Mr. Mudd
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if, on his Department's personalised stationery, he will cause to be printed that his hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Industry and Consumer Affairs is a Member of Parliament.

  Mr. Forth
  I am grateful to my hon. Friend for bringing this important matter to my attention.

  Having thoroughly investigated the matter and established that the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Industry and Consumer Affairs is indeed a Member of Parliament, I have arranged for the Department's stationery to be altered appropriately.

  Mr. Morton Graham
  Mr. Bill Michie
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what action the Office of Fair Trading proposes to take in the case of Mr. Morton Graham, who has been named on the consumer credit licence issued by the Office of Fair Trading, in spite of a criminal conviction for conspiracy to defraud.
  26
  Mr. Maude
  The day-to-day operation of the consumer credit licensing system is the responsibility of the Director General of Fair Trading and I shall ask him to write to the hon. Member.

  FIMBRA (Suspensions)
  Mr. Nicholas Winterton
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) if he will make a statement outlining the information which must be given to members of FIMBRA if they are suspended by that body;

  (2) what steps he has recently taken to ensure that cases of suspension dealt with by FIMBRA are treated efficiently, courteously and discreetly by that organisation;

  (3) if he will make a statement outlining the requirements which are placed upon FIM BRA to provide suspended members with a full and fair hearing at which to put forward their case against suspension;

  (4) if he has any plans to ensure that FIMBRA does not make public the knowledge that individual members have been suspended without providing to the affected member full details of the reasons for that suspension.

  Mr. Maude
  It is a criterion for recognition of a self-regulating organisation under the Financial Services Act 1986 that the organisation's rules and practices relating to the discipline that it exercises over its members must be fair and reasonable and include adequate provisions for appeals. The Securities and Investments Board is responsible for recognising self-regulating organisations and has recognised FIMBRA. I am not aware of any evidence that FIMBRA's rules and practices do not meet the relevant criterion.

  National Engineering Laboratory
  Mr. Ingram
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the consultants who were asked to quote for the study into the operation of the national engineering laboratory at East Kilbride.

  Mr. Forth
  The consultants who were asked to quote for the restructuring study into the national engineering laboratory at East Kilbride are as follows:

  a. Touche Ross

  b. PA Consulting Group

  Mr. Ingram
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the cost of the contract announced on 29 November given to the consultants Touche Ross for their study into the national engineering laboratory at East Kilbride.

  Mr. Forth
  It is not customary to publish the cost of consultancy contracts. This information is commercially confidential.

  World Trade
  Mr. Macdonald
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is his latest estimate of the United Kingdom's share of world trade.

  Mr. Alan Clark
  In the first six months of 1988 the United Kingdom share of the 12 main manufacturing countries' exports of manufactures was 8·2 per cent. It is estimated that our share of total world trade in manufactures in 1988 will be a little over 6 per cent. Our share of world invisible earnings has been rising steadily and our receipts are second only to the United States of America.

  Growish Limited
  Mr. Campbell-Savours
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what progress has been made on investigations into offences under the Companies Act 1985 in respect of Growish Ltd.

  Mr. Maude
  I am not aware of any Companies Act offences committed by Royel Investments Ltd, formerly Growish Ltd, but I shall consider any information the hon. Member may have about the matter.

  Restrictive Practices (Industrial Action)
  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will introduce legislation to amend the restrictive practices legislation to allow the self-employed and small firms to act together when pursuing industrial action.

  Mr. Maude
  [holding answer 1 December 1988]: In its Green Paper on restrictive trade practices policy (CM331) the Government have proposed fundamental changes to restrictive trade practices legislation.

  Under the proposals, agreements which have significantly anti-competitive effects would be prohibited but controls on agreements with no such effects would be relaxed. There would also be provision for restrictive agreements which meet certain criteria to be exempted from the prohibition. It is too early to say how the proposed new legislation will apply to co-operation arrangements between the self-employed and small firms; this will depend to an extent on the object or effect of the particular arrangements.

  My Department is currently developing the proposals in the Green Paper in the light of comments received from interested bodies and the views of organisations representing the self-employed and small firms are being taken into account.

OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT

  Aid
  Miss Lestor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the outcome of the latest OECD development assistance committee's review of the United Kingdom aid programme.

  Mr. Chris Patten
  This review took place on Thursday 1 December. 1 shall arrange for a copy of the press release to be placed in the Library of the House.

  Tanzania (Aid)
  Mr. Cox
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aid projects are at present being discussed with the Government of Tanzania; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Chris Patten
  We have just signed a new grant agreement with the Government of Tanzania for £16 million of balance of payments support to help with the implementation of agreed economic reforms. These funds will be used in the agriculture, transport, industry and health sectors.

  I have also approved the offer of an £8 million grant as cofinancing for the World Bank's industrial rehabilitation
  28
  and trade adjustment credit. This will be available as soon as the credit is signed, which I expect will be early next month. In addition to this assistance, my officials are continuing talks on identifying projects for the use of an £18 million project aid grant.

  Sub-Saharan Africa
  Mr. Franks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next intends to make a visit to sub-Saharan Africa.

  Mr. Chris Patten
  I hope to visit sub-Saharan Africa early next year.

  Buses (Sri Lanka)
  Mr. Bill Walker
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he can yet give the date when the 40 London double deck buses will be sent to Sri Lanka as part of the United Kingdom aid programme.

  Mr. Chris Patten
  The buses are being shipped from Sheerness on 15 December, to arrive in Sri Lanka in early January.

AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD

  Export Refund Computer System
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (I) what is the cost of the International Board for Agricultural Produce computer scheme to date; and if he will make a statement;

  (2) whether the IBAP export refund scheme computer system is still working; and if he will make a statement;

  (3) whether private contractors have been brought in to devise a replacement system for the IBAP export refund computer; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  The costs incurred in developing and implementing the intervention board's external claims computer system from its inception in 1982 to date are estimated at just under £4 million. The bulk of the system covering most commodity sectors was delivered in July to September 1987. This then required substantial modification when new Customs and Community documentation came into effect on 1 January 1988. The system currently in use was delivered in March to July 1988. Before this became available substantial payment delays had built up, and recovering these has been handicapped by technical problems with the software in the system. Substantial progress has however been made. In the first nine months of this year the board processed some 540,000 transactions valued at £440 million. 70 per cent. of commodity sectors and of export refund claims by value are now being paid within two months of becoming payable, and the board is working to extend this to the remaining sectors as soon as possible.

  In August 1988 the board brought in external consultants to assist with the recovery. They recommended that substantial enhancement of the current system was required in the short to medium term. Work to that end is now being undertaken by these consultants.

  The consultants also recommended that this system should be succeeded by a new system able to respond flexibly and effectively to the intervention boards needs in

  29
  the longer term. The board has accepted this recommendation and is initiating a full business and systems analysis which will be undertaken by private sector consultants.

  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether any redundancies have been caused by the workings of the export refund system in the current year.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  I am not aware of any redundancies in exporting firms which can be attributed to the payment delays resulting from this year's changes in the intervention board's external claims computer system.

  Salmonella
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the relationship between salmonella poisoning in eggs and current conditions in battery farms with particular respect to the methods of disposal of dead fowls; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  Modern intensive farming methods pose no more threat of introducing salmonella into eggs than do traditional farming methods. Dead fowls are disposed of in a manner which does not contribute to the problems of salmonella dissemination.

  Departmental Dp Division
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many system professionals are employed in his Department's Dp division; and what is the turnover rate.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  Currently there are 170 functional specialist computing staff at programmer level and above, employed in the Ministry's computer services division at Guildford, of whom some 135 are fully trained. Since the beginning of the current financial year 37 trained staff have left and 40 trainee programmers have joined the division. These are comparable figures to those of previous years.

  Sewage Sludge
  Mr. Gareth Wardell
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish in the Official Report the volume of sewage sludge deposited in each sea dump around the United Kingdom coast over each of the last five years.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  The information requested is as follows:

  '000 wet tonnes

  Location

  1983

  1984

  1985

  1986

  1987

  Off the Tyne

  364·4

  480·5

  456·8

  498·9

  485·0

  Off the Tees

  8·1

  2·0

  7·5

  1·3

  1·6

  Spurn Head

  91·2

  78·3

  89·0

  114·9

  95·1

  Roughs Tower

  138·3

  85·4

  127·1

  112·2

  132·4

  Barrow Deep

  4,150·0

  4,200·0

  4,240·4

  4,543·3

  3,637·6

  South Falls

  98·3

  105·0

  88·4

  50·2

  134·1

  Nab Tower

  202·2

  231·8

  291·8

  288·6

  243·0

  Lyme Bay

  47·7

  44·0

  49·5

  45·4

  48·3

  Off Falmouth

  63·7

  (use of dumpsite discontinued)

  Off Plymouth

  83·0

  103·0

  85·0

  76·9

  81·6

  Bristol Channel

  230·2

  305·2

  262·5

  257·4

  237·9

  Liverpool Bay

  1,299·2

  1,282·9

  1,499·0

  1,541·4

  1,626·0

  Firth of Forth

  219·9

  230·2

  209·6

  172·9

  248·5

  30

  Location

  1983

  1984

  1985

  1986

  1987

  Firth of Clyde

  1,574·5

  1,714·2

  1,686·8

  1,698·7

  1,689·6

  Off Belfast

  289·8

  299·1

  314·4

  275·9

  309·5

  Off Coleraine

  10·5

  11·0

  11·6

  9·5

  —

  Mr. Gareth Wardell
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if his Department has considered ways and means of assisting the further reduction of the heavy metals load in sewage sludge.

  Mr. Donald Thompson
  In recent years substantial reductions have been achieved in heavy metal concentrations, which are well within the trace limits permitted by the international dumping conventions. The levels of heavy metals in sewage sludge for sea disposal have been strictly controlled by the provisions of the Dumping at Sea Act 1974 and its successor legislation, part II of the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985. The Government are seeking further reductions in metal concentrations; water authorities are required to draw up action plans incorporating reviews of authorisations that they have granted for discharge to sewers of industrial effluent containing heavy mentals.

  The Government also intends to improve the control of sewage sludge spread on agricultural land by introducing statutory regulations next year backed up by a code of practice, both designed to provide an appropriate level of environmental protection.

  Agriculture White Paper
  Mr. Boswell
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the future of the annual review of the Agriculture White Paper.

  Mr. MacGregor
  My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and I have decided to extend and improve the information which has up to now been published in the White Paper on the annual review of agriculture. The new publication will be designed to give data on the state of the agricultural industry in the United Kingdom. It will contain enhanced information on commodities and on the general financial situation of the industry. The new document will be published annually and copies will be made available in the Library of the House.

  It will, however, no longer be published as a White Paper. The origin of that practice is that, before our accession to the European Community, the annual review led to the determination of commodity price guarantees for the coming year, which we published as part of the White Paper. Since our accession, the emphasis has shifted towards the annual negotiation of agricultural prices in the European Community, and the annual review White Paper has effectively become a compendium of agricultural statistics. It is therefore appropriate to discontinue publication in the form of a White Paper.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Missing Persons
  Mr. Janner
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) men, (b) women, (c) boys under 18 years of age and (d) girls under 18 years of age

  31
  were reported as missing during each of the last five years for which records are available; and how many and what percentage in each category were subsequently traced.

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  The only readily available information relates to persons recorded by the Metropolitan police missing persons bureau. I understand from the commissioner that these records are incomplete in respect of persons who are reported missing to other police forces and persons who reappear within a short time of being reported missing. The information for the Metropolitan police district is given in the following table. Further details of missing persons are given in the commissioner's annual report.

  Persons reported missing during the year and proportion of each yearly total who were traced by the end of that year.

  Metropolitan Police District

  Number of persons

  Under 18

  18 and over

  Year

  Number reported missing

  Percentage traced end of year

  Number reported missing

  Percentage traced by end of year

  Males

  1983

  1,340

  93

  682

  92

  1984

  1,416

  92

  1,007

  83

  1985

  1,283

  96

  1,009

  87

  1986

  1,291

  92

  1,069

  81

  19871

  1,504

  92

  1,719

  78

  Females

  1983

  1,534

  90

  642

  89

  1984

  1,733

  93

  950

  88

  1985

  1,699

  94

  931

  88

  1986

  1,586

  95

  964

  85

  19871

  1,623

  91

  1,609

  80

  1 New counting procedures were introduced from the beginning of 1987: hence the figures for previous years are not comparable.

  Mr. Janner
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will ask chief officers of police in England and Wales to supply him with such information regarding missing persons and their subsequent tracing, alive or dead, as is conveniently available.

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  Responsibility for investigating reports of missing persons is an operational matter for individual chief officers of police. Records of missing persons are held locally, and may be circulated to other forces or to the missing persons bureau at New Scotland yard as chief officers consider necessary. There is no requirement upon chief officers to provide the Home Office with statistics relating to missing persons. Information could be collated only by means of a special exercise which would involve disproportionate expense.

  Security Services
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to the need for authorisations for the security services to access computer records and systems; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Hurd
  The conditions under which personal data may be disclosed for the purpose of safeguarding national security are provided in section 27 of the Data Protection Act 1984. It would be for the data user to respond to any request for access made in accordance with the Act.

  Schizophrenia
  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many inmates in Her Majesty's prisons are known, and diagnosed, to be schizophrenia sufferers.

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  This information is not available centrally.

  Mr. Mohammed Arshad Mehar
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department why Mr. Mohammed Arshad Mehar, date of birth 1 March 1958 and Ref: C 484704, of 45C Park Street, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, a Pakistani national who applied in September 1987 for an extension of his visa, 888760, to enable him to continue with his work as a specialist chemical worker, had his passport returned by hand to his wife a few days ago without any visa extension or any indication of the Home Office decision on his application; if he will consider the application for the extension of stay in the United Kingdom; if he will complete this in order that Mr. Mehar can return to Pakistan for an urgent family matter and then return to the United Kingdom thereafter; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Renton
  Mr. Mehar's passport was returned without further endorsement because he wished to travel urgently and it was not possible to complete his application. Inquiries in this case have not yet been completed but I shall write to the hon. Member as soon as a decision is reached.

  NUS (March)
  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis's estimate of the number of Socialist Workers party members present in the breakaway section of the National Union of Students march of Thursday 24 November.

  Mr. Hurd
  As I said in my reply on 29 November to the hon. Member for Newham, South (Mr. Spearing) at column 174, the faction which first broke away amounted to about 1,000 demonstrators many of whom were thought to be members of the Socialist Workers' party. The action of this group encouraged several thousand others to follow suit.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis's estimate of the number of police officers injured during the National Union of Students march of 24 November, the types of injury and the numbers that had to go to hospital, and the numbers of students injured, the types of injury and the numbers that had to go to hospital.

  Mr. Hurd
  As I said in my reply on 29 November to the hon. Member for Newham, South (Mr. Spearing) at column 174, it is estimated that 72 police officers were injured, and seven demonstrators of whom the commissioner is aware. There is no central record available of how many were taken to hospital, but it is understood that most injuries were minor. One woman police constable suffered concussion, spent four nights in hospital, and is

  33
  now experiencing severe memory loss. I have received separately a letter describing a serious leg injury to one of the demonstrators.

  Security Service
  Mr. Richard Shepherd
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department under what statutory powers members of the Security Service have, in the past, entered on or interfered with property as defined in the Security Service Bill.

  Mr. Hurd
  It is not the practice to comment on the operations of the Security Service.

  There have been no statutory provisions giving the Security Service special powers in this respect.

  Smoke Detectors
  Mr. Thurnham
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to encourage pensioners to install smoke detectors in their homes; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  A television advertising campaign to encourage the public, including pensioners, to install smoke alarms in their homes is planned to start on Boxing day.

THE ARTS

  Ethnic Minority Support
  Mr. Robert G. Hughes
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what measures he has taken to promote the arts and culture of black and Asian British people.

  Mr. Luce
  I fully support the Arts Council's action plan for ethnic minority arts, which provides for a minimum of 4 per cent. of the council's expenditure to be committed in this field.

  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many ethnic minority musicians or musical organisations the Arts Council funded on a revenue or annual basis in 1987–88.

  Mr. Luce
  Fourteen organisations.

  Mr. Vaz
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what proportion of total Arts Council expenditure was spent on ethnic minority arts in 1987–88.

  Mr. Luce
  The Arts Council report on ethnic minority arts, due in the new year, will show the exact proportion.

  Ms. Abbott
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many ethnic minority film, video and broadcasting projects were funded on a revenue basis by the Arts Council in 1987–88.

  Mr. Luce
  Seven.

  Autumn Statement
  Mr. Knapman
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what representations he has received following his recent arts settlement announcement following the Autumn Statement.
  34
  Mr. Luce
  The arts organisations which I sponsor welcomed my three-year funding strategy and its recent extension to 1991–92, and they are responding positively to the opportunities which the strategy presents.

  Incentive Funding Scheme
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many Liverpool arts projects, funded by Merseyside Arts Association, have made applications to the Arts Council under the incentive funding scheme.

  Mr. Luce
  Three Liverpool organisations funded by Merseyside Arts applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding; one of these receives the majority of its funding from the Arts Council.

  Mrs. Golding
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many west midlands arts companies, currently funded by the West Midland Arts Association have applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding.

  Mr. Luce
  A total of 14 organisations funded by West Midlands Arts applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding; three of these are also funded by the Arts Council.

  Mr. Andrew Smith
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many arts organisations in(a) Oxford and (b) the area covered by the Southern Arts Association, who are currently clients of Southern Arts, have applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding.

  Mr. Luce
  Six organisations funded by Southern Arts applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding; one of these receives joint funding; none are Oxford organisations.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many arts companies in Wales, currently funded by the Welsh Arts Council, have applied to the Arts Council of Great Britain for help under the incentive funding scheme.

  Mr. Luce
  Thirteen.

  Mr. Battle
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many arts organisations in Leeds who are clients of the Yorkshire Arts Association have applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding.

  Mr. Luce
  Four.

  Mr. Boyes
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will list the photographic organisations who have applied to the Arts Council for help under the incentive funding scheme.

  Mr. Luce
  Eight applications were made by the following organisations:

  Blackfriars Photography Project;

  Cambridge Darkroom;

  Camerawork;

  Creative Camera;

  F Stop Photography;

  Photographers' Gallery;

  The Photography Workshop; and

  The Untitled Gallery.

  Ms. Mowlam
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many arts companies who are clients of Northern Arts have applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding.
  35
  Mr. Luce
  A total of 13 organisations funded by Northern Arts applied to the Arts Council for incentive funding; three of these are jointly funded by the Arts Council and Northern Arts.

  Young People (Books and Plays)
  Mr. Harry Greenway
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will run a competition for contemporary authors of books and plays for young people; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Luce
  This is a very interesting idea which I hope might be taken up. I am concerned to increase access to the arts; encouraging young people is an important part of this.

  Museums and Galleries
  Mr. Quentin Davies
  To ask the Minister for the Arts how many new museums and galleries have been opened in the last 12 months; and how many are expected to open in the next 12 months.

  Mr. Luce
  The Museums Association database indicates that at July this year there were 2,400 museums and galleries in the United Kingdom, and that 10 per cent. of those had opened since 1982, a rate of about 40 per year. There is every indication that interest in the creation of new and specialist museums continues.

  Initiatives and Schemes
  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will publish a table listing all the initiatives and schemes launched by(a) the Office of Arts and Libraries and (b) the Arts Council in each of the last three years the administration of which has not been devolved to regional arts associations.

  Mr. Luce
  No. The Arts Council's annual reports for 1986–87 and 1987–88, its three-year plan and awards and schemes folder for 1988–89 have been placed in the Library. The council operates only schemes which are essentially national in character. The Office of Arts and Libraries administer only the business sponsorship incentive scheme and the arts marketing scheme.

  Regional Arts Associations
  Mr. Sedgemore
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what plans the Arts Council has to devolve the responsibility for more clients to the regional arts associations.

  Mr. Luce
  The Arts Council constantly reviews the division of responsibility between itself and the regional arts associations.

  Arts (Economic Importance)
  Mr. Maclennan
  To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he will make a statement on the findings of the report entitled "The Economic Importance of the Arts in Britain", from the Policy Studies Institute.

  Mr. Luce
  I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. and learned Member for Fife, North-East (Mr. Campbell) on 19 October at column 879.

  Mappa Mundi
  Mr. Colin Shepherd
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will use his powers to prevent the departure from the United Kingdom of the Hereford Mappa Mundi in the event of its purchase by a buyer who seeks to export it.

  Mr. Luce
  I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I have given this afternoon to the hon. Member for Southwark and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes). Should a sale prove necessary, and an application for an export licence be made, this will be dealt with under our existing procedures. I cannot anticipate decisions on export applications.

  Welsh Arts Council
  Mr. Wigley
  To ask the Minister for the Arts when he last met the chair of the Welsh Arts Council and what matters were discussed.

  Mr. Luce
  I met the chairman of the Welsh Arts Council on 9 November when we discussed matters of mutual concern.

  Dramatic Arts
  Mr. Bowis
  To ask the Minister for the Arts when he next intends to visit a drama college to discuss funding of the dramatic arts.

  Mr. Luce
  I visited the Guildford school of acting and dance on Friday 18 November. I have no plans to visit other drama colleges at present.

  Statues
  Mr. Nicholas Baker
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will encourage the erection of statues to prominent public figures of the past in inner cities.

  Mr. Luce
  I see this as a matter for local communities to decide.

  Rural Arts Centres
  Miss Emma Nicholson
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he has visited any rural arts centres; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Luce
  I have visited the Piers art centre in the Orkneys and the Brewery arts centre in Kendal and the Eden court theatre in Inverness this year; I have previously visited the Beaford centre in the hon. Member's constituency and also met its director in my office this year; all are good examples of arts centres which make a vital contribution to the life of rural communities. In March this year I visited the Newent library which doubles as an arts venue for small scale performances.

  Library Services
  Mr. Blunkett
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if his Department has undertaken any research into the link between the quality and availability of free library services and the needs of the unemployed or low-waged undertaking part-time study.

  Mr. Luce
  No. Some research in this area has been supported by the British Library research and development department.

  Touring
  Mr. Jack
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what moneys for touring have been set aside by the Arts Council for the next financial year.

  Mr. Luce
  I have made £6 million available for incentive funding and additional touring in the United Kingdom in 1989–90. The Arts Council will be determining the precise allocation of this sum in due course. In the current financial year the sum set aside for additional touring is £1·5 million.

  Private Funding
  Mr. Thurnham
  To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will make a statement about the current level of private funding for the arts.

  Mr. Luce
  [holding answer 30 November 1988]: There are no precise figures available, but the most important source of private funding for the arts remains the box office. The PSI report on the economic importance of the arts indicates a figure of some £433 million spent on admission to arts venues (museums and galleries; built heritage; theatres and concerts; and cinemas). In addition, business sponsorship brings in around £30 million annually to the arts and I expect this figure to grow in the future. Information is not held centrally on private donations but evidence suggests that some are substantial.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  British Subjects (Murder)
  Mr. Bradley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British subjects were murdered in foreign countries in 1986, 1987 and 1988 to date, by country.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  Not all deaths of British citizens who die overseas, whether in suspicious or other circumstances, are reported to British consular officers. However, according to records held by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 80 British citizens have been murdered, or are suspected to have been murdered, overseas between 1 January 1986 and 30 November 1988. The breakdown by year and country is as follows:

  1986

  1987

  1988

  Afghanistan

  —

  1

  —

  Antigua

  —

  —

  1

  Australia

  —

  4

  —

  Belgium

  —

  1

  —

  Bermuda

  —

  —

  1

  Botswana

  —

  1

  —

  Canada

  1

  —

  1

  Colombia

  1

  —

  —

  Cyprus

  —

  —

  1

  Djibouti

  —

  1

  —

  Dominican

  Republic

  —

  1

  —

  France

  3

  1

  —

  Germany

  (Federal Republic)

  2

  1

  1

  Greece

  1

  1

  —

  Indonesia

  —

  —

  1

  Israel

  1

  1

  —

  Jamaica

  1

  —

  —

  Jerusalem

  1

  —

  —

  38

  1986

  1987

  1988

  Kenya

  —

  —

  1

  Malta

  —

  —

  1

  Netherlands

  —

  —

  1

  Pakistan

  —

  —

  2

  Philippines

  1

  2

  2

  Saudi Arabia

  —

  1

  1

  South Africa

  2

  1

  1

  Spain

  3

  3

  3

  St. Lucia

  —

  —

  1

  Sudan

  —

  —

  5

  Thailand

  —

  1

  3

  Turkey

  —

  1

  1

  Uganda

  —

  2

  —

  USA

  2

  3

  3

  Zaire

  —

  1

  —

  Zimbabwe

  1

  1

  —

  TOTAL:

  20

  29

  31

  Hong Kong (Vietnamese Refugees)
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response he intends to give to the recent urgent representations from Miss Lydia Dunn, senior member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, concerning the situation of Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We are urgently considering, with the Home Secretary, all aspects of the problem, including those raised by Miss Dunn. The reply will inter alia emphasise the priority that we attach to achieving a comprehensive solution to the problem as soon as possible and the considerable efforts that we are devoting to this end.

  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Vietnamese refugees there are currently in Hong Kong; and what are the comparable figures for the same period in each of the last 10 years.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  On 30 November there were 25,197 Vietnamese boat people in Hong Kong, of whom 15,323 were refugees. Figures at the end of November since 1979 are as follows:

  Year

  People

  1979

  53,236

  1980

  23,980

  1981

  13,135

  1982

  12,787

  1983

  12,950

  1984

  12,254

  1985

  9,577

  1986

  8,047

  1987

  9,331

  Iraqi Diplomats (Expulsion)
  Mrs. Dunwoody
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the reasons for the recent expulsion of Iraqi diplomats; and if he will place in the Library any copies of correspondence with the ambassador.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  On 18 October we requested the withdrawal of three diplomats from the Iraqi embassy and served an exclusion order on a fourth, all for activities
  39
  incompatible with their status. It has been the invariable practice of successive Governments not to comment on details of security and intelligence matters.

  Palestine
  Mr. Cummings
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, in the light of the decisions taken at the Palestine National Council meeting in Algiers, the Government will now seek a meeting at the highest level with the Palestine Liberation Organisation in order to advance the peace process.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We keep contact at official level with the PLO, which is aware that it must remove ambiguities in certain of its policies if further and wider contact is to be considered.

  Namibia
  Mrs. Ann Winterton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what specific steps are being taken by his Department to establish in Namibia a system which will protect the rights and freedoms of the different ethnic and social groups in that country following its independence;

  (2) if he will make it his policy to promote the adoption of a pre-independence constitution in Namibia in order to protect the rights of minority ethnic and social groups following independence;

  (3) if he will make a statement outlining his policy on and involvement in those current efforts in Namibia which are designed to bring about national reconciliation and a pre-independence constitution;

  (4) if he will make it his policy to discuss with leaders of all the different ethnic and political groupings in Namibia the possibility of bringing about in that country national reconciliation and a pre-independence constitution.

  (5) what steps he is taking to ensure that ethnic and social groups other than SWAPO continue to be represented in the Government of Namibia following independence.

  Mrs. Chalker
  We continue to support Namibian independence on the basis of the UN plan endorsed by Security Council resolution 435. We are satisfied that the existing provisions of the plan, in particular the constitutional principles agreed in 1982, provide sufficient safeguards for all ethnic and social groups in Namibia. The UN plan also provides for a transition period before independence in which an elected assembly will draw up a constitution.

  Ethiopia
  Mr. Latham
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a statement on any diplomatic steps being taken by Her Majesty's Government to bring about an end to hostilities between the Government of Ethiopia and the guerrilla fighters in Tigray and Eritrea.

  Mrs. Chalker
  When my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State met the Ethiopian Foreign Minister on 11 September, he urged him to seek a negotiated settlement based on genuine regional autonomy. In the declaration on the Horn of Africa issued on 24 October, we and our EC partners called for such a settlement.

  Khmer Rouge
  Dr. Moonie
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he intends to take to prevent the Khmer Rouge from occupying Kampuchea's seat in the United Nations.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We see no reason to change our present policy, shared by the great majority of United Nations members, of supporting retention of Democratic Kampuchea's credentials at the United Nations. This policy signifies neither recognition of the coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea, nor support for the Khmer Rouge.

  Convention Against Torture
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when Her Majesty's Government will ratify the United Nations convention against torture; and whether the relevant declarations under article 21 and article 22 of this convention will also be made in order fully to recognise the competence of the committee against torture.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We intend to ratify the United Nations convention against torture later this month. We are still considering what reservations/declarations we shall need to submit.

  Zimbabwe
  Dr. Glyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many former residents of Zimbabwe now resident in the United Kingdom are affected by the exchange controls imposed by the Government of Zimbabwe; and what action he proposes to take to assist such people to regain control of their funds.

  Mrs. Chalker
  We cannot be sure of the number of former residents of Zimbabwe now resident in the United Kingdom who are affected by the existing controls. In their exchange control regulations the Zimbabwe authorities have made provision for special consideration of individual cases on hardship grounds. Whenever appropriate, we continue to make representations on individual cases in order to take advantage of this provision. I raised a number of cases with Zimbabwe Ministers during my visit there last month.

EMPLOYMENT

  Worker Representatives
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the current European Economic Community discussions on worker representatives on the boards of companies; and whether such measures fall to be dealt with under the majority voting procedures set out in the Single Act.

  Mr. Cope
  The Government are opposed to European Community proposals which would require statutory employee participation as such participation is more effective on a voluntary basis. The only relevant European Community proposal currently under discussion for which a legal base has been proposed is the fifth company law directive. The proposed legal base would entail qualified majority voting.

  Coal Industry (Accidents)
  Mr. Illsley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has received any representations regarding the accident rate of companies contracted to British Coal; and whether he will make a statement.

  Mr. Nicholls
  I have received no direct representations on this subject. However, accident trends are regularly discussed at meetings between British Coal, trade unions and Her Majesty's inspectorate of mines and quarries and the proposed new legislation to replace the Mines and Quarries Act 1954 is intended to improve safety standards for all persons employed at mines, including contractors.

  Mr. Illsley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the total of underground fatal and major accidents among(a) British Coal employees and (b) employees of companies contracted to British Coal.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The information requested is tabled for the years 1986–87 and 1987–88.

  1986–87

  1987–88

  British Coal employees

  Fatal

  13

  8

  Major injuries

  727

  560

  Contracted employees

  Fatal

  —

  1

  Major injuries

  45

  52

  Source: British Coal. Accidents reported under the Reporting of Incidents, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrence Regulations 1985 do not distinguish between British Coal Corporation employees and those of contractors.

  Redundancy Payments (Women)
  Ms. Richardson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether legislation will be introduced this session to increase the age limit up to which women can receive a statutory redundancy payment from 60 to 65 years, as announced by the Minister of State on 29 October 1987.

  Mr. Cope
  Yes. The proposal is included in the Employment Bill.

  Tourism
  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many tourism development action programmes were established in the last two years; and where.

  Mr. Lee
  During this period 12 new tourism development action programmes have been established covering the following areas: Bridlington, Carlisle, Cornwall, Forest of Dean, Isle of Wight, Lancaster, Nottingham, Norwich, Portsmouth, Shropshire, Torbay and Tyne and Wear.

  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will set out the numbers of hotels and tourism-related establishments that have benefited from receiving section 4 grants in the year 1987 and the amounts of those grants as applied through each tourist board region.

  Mr. Lee
  Offers of section 4 assistance by regional tourist board region for 1978–88 are given in the table. Figures for the 1987 calendar year could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.42

  Tourist board

  Number of Projects

  Total value of S4 offers (£ thousand

  Cumbria

  39

  469

  East Anglia

  34

  502

  East Midlands

  31

  759

  Heart of England

  47

  1,049

  London

  12

  1,030

  Northumbria

  26

  1,480

  North West

  73

  2,062

  South East England

  44

  1,221

  Southern

  52

  922

  Thames and Chilterns

  30

  880

  West Country

  157

  3,125

  Yorkshire and Humberside

  64

  1,346

  Total

  609

  14,845

  Health and Safety
  Mr. Terry Patchett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether the Government will ratify International Labour Organisation convention 161 and recommendation 177 on occupational health services.

  Mr. Cope
  [holding reply 2 December 1988]: The Government have deferred a decision on whether to ratify International Labour Organisation convention 161 and to accept recommendation 171 on occupational health services for a period of three years because of anticipated developments in this field. At the end of that time we expect to receive further advice from the Health and Safety Commission.

SCOTLAND

  Mental Illness
  Mr. Goodlad
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on research into(a) mental disorders and (b) schizophrenia in the last year.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  The figure for research into mental disorders funded by the Scottish Home and Health Department in 1987–88 is £176,300. Of this amount £21,950 is for projects specifically related to schizophrenia.

  Mr. Goodlad
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he gives any guidance to mental illness hospitals on the retention of patients whose condition is unlikely to improve similar to the other advice contained in the Department of Health's policy paper on mental illness services, Cmnd. 9674; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  Decisions about the treatment of individual patients involve issues of clinical judgment. Nearly all NHS mental illness hospitals in Scotland have facilities for those patients who require long-term care in conditions of medium security. My right hon. and learned Friend has not issued any specific guidance in this area.

  Psychiatric Nurses
  Mr. Goodlad
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many community psychiatric nurses there have been in Scotland in each of the last two years.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  This information is not held centrally, but arrangements are under discussion to make it available for the first time next year.

  Civil Defence
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the numbers of members of staff employed for emergency planning in district authorities whose salary costs are funded either wholly or partly by Scottish Office civil defence grant.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  There are no such district council posts which are funded by civil defence grant.

  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many members of staff are employed by each regional and island authority(a) as emergency planning officers and (b) as emergency planning team administrative and support staff.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The available information is in respect of grant-aided emergency planning posts. The number of staff employed by regional and islands authorities in such posts at 30 September was as follows:

  Region or Islands Authority

  Emergency Planning Officers

  Clerical/Support Staff

  Borders Region

  4

  1

  Central Region

  4

  2

  Fife Region

  4

  1

  Dumfries and Galloway Region

  4

  2

  Grampian Region

  3

  2

  Highland Region

  6

  2

  Lothian Region

  5

  2

  Strathclyde Region

  11

  5

  Tayside Region

  5

  2½

  Orkney Islands

  2

  0

  Shetland Islands

  1

  1

  Western Isles

  1

  0

  TOTAL

  50

  20½

  YTS
  Mr. Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many YTS places are currently available in the Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway area.

  Year to 31 March

  3Science budget

  Public sector commissions

  Staff total

  Full-time

  Part-time

  £K (cash figures)

  1988

  1,347

  394

  67·5

  64·5

  3

  1987

  1,378

  544

  72·5

  70·5

  2

  1986

  1,256

  472

  78

  75

  3

  1985

  1,024

  655

  84

  82

  2

  1984

  1,001

  628

  92

  88

  4

  1983

  860

  772

  101

  95

  6

  1982

  1,037

  783

  98

  92

  6

  1981

  990

  456

  100

  95

  5

  1980

  906

  1—

  101

  101

  0

  1979

  817

  —

  99

  98

  1

  1978

  540

  —

  95

  94

  1

  1977

  418

  —

  96

  94

  2

  1976

  618

  2—

  100

  94

  6

  1975

  557

  —

  103

  97

  6

  1 Separate figures for public funds are not available prior to the year ending March 1981. The total from public and private funds was (£K): 1980, 399; 1979, 383; 1978, 268; 1977, 264.

  2Information on commissions prior to the year ending March 1976 could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  3 Includes Capital Expenditure.

  Forestry
  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether the Government's target of 33,000 hectares of new planting per year has been met to date.
  44
  Mr. Lang
  On 11 November 1988, the latest date for which information is available, there were 1,172 unfilled YTS places in the Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway area.

  Greater Glasgow Health Board
  Mr. Galbraith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if the Lord Advocate will investigate the disappearance of pacemakers from Greater Glasgow health board with a view to proceedings.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  This matter is being investigated by Strachclyde police and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal, Glasgow in due course.

  Marine Biology
  Mr. Wray
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what information he has on the main research projects on marine biology carried out in the North sea by Scottish research institutes and laboratories for each year since 1974; and if he will list those projects.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  Information in the form requested is not collected or held by the Department. Details of research carried out by the DAFS marine laboratory, Aberdeen, have been given in its triennial reports for the period 1973–84 and annual reports for 1985–86 and 1986–87. I am arranging for copies of these reports to be placed in the Library.

  Mr. Wray
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is, for each year since 1974, the amount of public funds given to the Scottish Marine Biology Association and its laboratory at Dunstaffnage.

  (2) what is the number of staff in full-time and part-time jobs in the marine laboratory at Dunstaffnage for each year since 1975.

  Mr.Jackson
  I have been asked to reply.

  The information is as follow:

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The Government's target has not yet been met. However, some 29,000
  45
  hectares of new planting was achieved in the year to 31 March 1988, and the figure for the current year is expected to be of the same order.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps the Government are taking to ensure that long-term confidence in both the forestry and wood processing industries is not adversely affected by low planting levels.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The Government have made clear their continued support for the expansion of the forestry industry, and substantial grants are available under the woodland grant scheme and the farm woodland scheme. A close watch will be kept on planting trends.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps the Government are taking to ensure that the 70,000 hectares estimated by the Forestry Commission to have been cleared for planting under the previous taxation/grants scheme will be fully utilised.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  Under the transitional arrangements announced on 15 March 1988 by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, tax reliefs will continue to be available until 1993 in respect of planting approved under those Forestry Commission grant schemes which have been closed to new applications. The amount of such planting that actually takes place will depend on the decisions of a large number of individual landowners.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will list the total number of hectares:(a) approved for planting under the woodland grant scheme in each of the Forestry Commission conservancy areas and (b) awaiting approval for planting under the woodland grant scheme.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The information is as follows, covering the period from the 15 June 1988, when the woodland grant scheme was first opened to applications, to 31 October 1988:

  Conservancy

  Area approved for planting (including replanting) under the Scheme (hectares)

  Area awaiting approval for planting (including replanting)under the Scheme (hectares)

  North England

  207

  1,366

  East England

  106

  3,055

  West England

  226

  1,330

  Wales

  302

  675

  North Scotland

  2,262

  5,727

  Mid Scotland

  751

  2,894

  South Scotland

  344

  4,782

  Totals

  4,198

  19,829

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the likely impact of the Environmental Assessment (Afforestation) Regulations 1988 (S.I. 1988 No. 1207) on applications for grant aid for new forestry planting.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  An environmental assessment is intended to provide information that will be helpful in deciding on the likely effects of a forestry proposal on the environment, and the need for one should not be taken as indicating a presumption against 46
  afforestation. The number of assessments called for is unlikely to be large, and the regulations are not expected to have a significant effect on the level of applications for planting grants.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the Government's main objectives contained in the report forwarded to the European Commission in terms of Council regulation (EEC) No. 3528/86.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  Reports are submitted annually by member states to enable the European Commission to obtain a picture of tree health throughout the Community, and to provide data on a consistent basis for the situation to be monitored from year to year.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the total amount of hectares of forest lost or damaged by(a) atomospheric pollution and (b) natural phenomena since 1980 in each of the Forestry Commission conservancy areas.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  (a) The Forestry Commission has conducted nationwide surveys of forests since 1984 in order to assess tree health in relation to air pollution. The surveys rely mainly on the criterion of "crown density" as a measure of tree condition because no loss of forest areas has been observed in Britain which can be ascribed specifically to air pollution. The results of the latest surveys are contained in a report which was published by the Commission on 1 December copies of which are being placed in the Library of the House.

  (b) Certain insects can damage forest trees. by far the largest cause of loss being the pine beauty moth which has killed or severely damaged 263 hectares of Lodgepole pine in North Scotland Conservancy since 1980. Wind damage is another cause of tree loss, but the only significant forest windblow since 1980 has been in East. England Conservancy where some 16,000 hectares of woodland were blown down by the October 1987 storm.

  Mrs. Margaret Ewing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about the environmental safeguards which apply to the location of forestry, as stated in his reply to the hon. Member for Dumfries, Official Report, 17 March, columns 670-1.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The Forestry Commission's woodland grant scheme places emphasis on the need for planting to be carried out in an environmentally sensitive way. Applicants are required to give proper attention to landscaping, wildlife conservation, the management of water courses and the protection of ancient monuments, as appropriate. Every planting proposal is carefuly scrutinised by the Forestry Commission with such aspects in mind, and the existing consultation arrangements also provide a safeguard, particularly for areas of special environmental importance. In addition, the Commission may call for an environmental assessment for those proposals which they consider are likely to have a significant effect on the environment.

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the arrangements whereby the Forestry Commission pays the domestic rates of its tied cottages; and if he will make a statement.
  47
  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The Forestry Commission follows the Civil Service pay and conditions code in the rent charged for its key houses (tied cottages). These rents include an element to cover general and water rates. Tenants of key houses pay a standard rent in respect of their tenancy and the commission pays the general and water rates.

  Schools
  Mr. Norman Hogg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of Scottish schools he expects will opt out of local authority control.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  The legislation we are to introduce will enable parents generally to opt for self-governing status for their schools. Recent polls suggest that a significant number will welcome the opportunity offered by this measure.

  Mr. Norman Hogg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received from parents, teachers or educational organisations concerning the likely effects of primary school testing upon remedial pupils; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  A number of respondents to the consultation paper "Curriculum and Assessment in Scotland: a Policy for the 90s" referred to the position of pupils with special educational needs. As the consultation paper makes clear it will be for education authorities, in consultation with parents, to decide whether pupils recorded as having special educational needs would benefit from participation in the tests.

  Mr. Norman Hogg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish figures showing the numbers of primary schools in Scotland currently undertaking their own schemes of assessment for English and mathematics.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  Assessment is an integral part of teaching and my right hon. and learned Friend would expect some form of assessment in these subjects to be carried out in every primary school. Current policy is designed to improve the quality of consistency of that assessment.

  Mr. Norman Hogg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will outline the curricula guidelines which he intends to introduce for Scottish primary schools in those subjects apart from English and mathematics.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  My right hon. and learned Friend has asked the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum to review existing guidance in each subject area and, where appropriate, to develop revised guidelines. their reports are expected to be completed by the end of 1990.

  Further Education
  Mr. Norman Hogg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what responses he has received from industry concerning funding of the proposed technology academies in Scotland.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  We have already announced our welcome for the decision by Trusthouse Forte to contribute £1·5 million to sponsor the first technology academy in Scotland.

  In addition to this commitment, we have received a number of very positive approaches from the private sector. These are being treated in confidence at this stage.

  Mrs. Ray Mitchie
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many students who are studying at Scottish universities, central institutions and colleges of education and who are in receipt of an SED award take(a) three years or less to complete their degree, (b) four years to complete their degree, (c) five years to complete their degree and (d) six or more years to complete their degree; and what proportion of female students are in each category.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  The information requested is not readily available.

  Roads
  Mr. Home Robertson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the road traffic accidents involving injury or death on the Al in Scotland for the past three years, giving the date, location and extent of injury for each accident.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  This information is being collected and will be sent to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

  Mr. Home Robertson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he intends to publish his Department's report on A roads south of Edinburgh.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  I expect to receive the technical report from the consulting engineer in January.

  Thereafter, I intend to make a statement on its findings and on our proposed way ahead. There will then be a period for comment before we reach final decisions.

  Hospital Services
  Mr. Home Robertson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will call for a report from the chairman of Lothian health board on the future provision of acute hospital services and accident and emergency services in east Lothian.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  Lothian health board is currently reviewing its acute service and accident and emergency needs and, following public consultation, proposals covering future requirements throughout the area of the board will be submitted to the Secretary of State. Public consultation is planned for early next year.

  Cockenzie Power Station
  Mr. Home Robertson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will call for a report from the chairman of the South of Scotland Electricity Board on the board's policy for the operation of Cockenzie power station, including the estimated coalburn for each of the next three years, the current stock of coal at Cockenzie, and the origin of that stock and of future supplies.

  Mr. Lang
  No, the operation of Cockenzie power station is a commercial matter for the South of Scotland Electricity Board. I have, however, asked the chairman to write to the hon. Gentleman.

  Coal Industry (Employment)
  Mr. Home Robertson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on future trends in the level of employment in the coal industry in the Lothian region.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  I have been asked to reply.

  The number of jobs in the coal industry depends on several factors, including the reduction of costs to competitive levels.

ENERGY

  Berkeley Power Station
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when reactor I at Berkeley power station was last refuelled.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  The last refuelling of reactor 1 was between the dates given in my reply to the hon. Member on 14 November 1988 at column 425.

  Esturial Barrages
  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list all the feasibility studies being carried out into barrages across United Kingdom estuaries for schemes to produce electricity.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  The Department of Energy is supporting feasibility studies of tidal energy barrages on the Severn, Mersey and Loughor estuaries, with two other possibilities under consideration.

  Standing Charges (Pensioners)
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will introduce legislation to provide that pensioners will be exempted from paying standing charges on their power bills in line with consumers who use solid fuel for heating purposes; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  No.

  Sellafield (Discharges)
  Mr. Butler
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) what was the discharge of total alpha activity to the sea from Sellafield in (i) 1974 and (ii) the latest available year;

  (2) what was the discharge of total beta activity to the sea from Sellafield in (i) 1974 and (ii) the latest available year.
  50
  Mr. Michael Spicer
  Discharges to sea from Sellafield in 1974 and 1987 (the latest available year) were as follows:

  TBq

  1974

  1987

  Alpha

  170

  2·2

  Beta

  7,200

  89

  Further reductions in discharge levels are expected in the early 1990s upon completion of BNFL's effluent treatment plant investment programme.

  Bristol Channel (Oil Exploration)
  Mr. Hinchliffe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what were the findings of the oil exploration activities carried out in the Bristol channel.

  Mr. Peter Morrison
  To date the results of hydrocarbon exploration in the Bristol channel and adjacent waters have been disappointing with no discoveries of either oil or gas.

  West Burton B
  Mr. Ashton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to annouce his final decision on the West Burton B power station in Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave him on 3 November at column 713.

  Arkwright Colliery
  Mr. Skinner
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) whether he will make it his policy to hold discussions with British Coal regarding the escape of methane gas at Arkwright colliery with a view to ensuring that British Coal accepts total liability for claims made by the families and others concerned;

  (2) what recent inquiries he has made of British Coal regarding payments of compensation to families and others affected by the escape of methane gas at Arkwright colliery; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Michael Spicer
  This is a matter for British Coal. However it has kept me regularly informed of the situation at Arkwright, following the emission of methane. I understand that British Coal has already made a £100 ex gratia interim payment to all the families who had to be evacuated. This is an advance against the settlement of reasonable future claims, which British Coal has agreed to pay on a "good neighbour" basis. Legal liability is ultimately at matter for the courts to decide.

NATIONAL FINANCE

  Financial Management Initiative
  Mr. Tim Smith
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the contribution that the financial management initiative has made to securing value for money in public expenditure.

  Mr. Brooke
  The financial management initiative is seeking to improve the basis on which resources are managed by Departments. I regret that it is not possible to quantify the contribution that it is making to improving
  51
  value for money, nor to distinguish that contribution from the effect of other actions to increase the efficiency with which resources are used. There is however general agreement that the FMI has made a significant impact by clarifying responsibilities, securing a greater awareness of costs and by providing a framework for other reforms.

  The "Next Steps" initiative, which the Prime Minister announced on 18 February 1988 at column 1149, builds on and carries forward the principles of the FMI in relation to executive functions. The Government remain committed to maintaining the momentum of their overall programme for improving value for money.

  Recruitment
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a White Paper on measures to deal with recruitment into the Civil Service; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Brooke
  There are no plans to issue a White Paper on Civil Service recruitment. My Department keeps Civil Service recruitment policies under continuous review, to ensure that they are responsive to changes in both the needs of Departments and in the general labour market, bearing in mind the need to ensure value for money.

  Computer Projects
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on monitoring of the costs of Civil Service computer projects.

  Mr. Brooke
  Individual Departments are responsible for monitoring the costs of their computer projects to ensure financial propriety and value for money.

  Capital Allowances
  Mr. Barry Field
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has had concerning the abolition of capital allowances from guest houses and small hotels.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Capital allowances have not been abolished. Annual writing down allowances remain available for construction costs of guest houses and small hotels which satisfy certain minimum criteria and for capital expenditure on machinery or plant for business use. Rates of allowance now correspond more close with rates of commercial depreciation. A number of representations have been received from the hotel industry about the withdrawal of incentive first year and initial allowances.

  Tax Office, Londonderry (Explosion)
  Mr. William Ross
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give details in the Official Report as to the extent of the disruption caused to the collection of taxes and to tax records as a result of the recent explosion in the tax offices in Londonderry; and whether any delays in the collection of taxes will result.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  There was a temporary disruption to normal working in the tax and collection offices in Londonderry while alternative premises were being made ready.
  52
  Mr. William Ross
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost of repairing the damage caused to the Inland Revenue building in Londonderry by the recent terrorist explosion there.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  The building itself is beyond repair. Other arrangements to accommodate staff and work for the time being have been made.

  Personal Pensions
  Mr. John Marshall
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement on what proposals he has for making PEP's more attractive to the investing public.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  The scheme is kept under review.

  Pensioners
  Mr. Rooker
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his best estimate of the number of pensioners liable for income tax in the current year.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Estimates are available for single people aged 65 and over and married couples in which one or both members are aged 65 and over. In 1988–89, 2·6 million of these tax units are liable to income tax, approximately one third of all aged tax units. This estimate is based on a projection of the 1985–86 survey of personal incomes and is therefore provisional.

  Secret Services (Expenditure)
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the expenditure on the secret services vote for each previous year for which figures are available taking 1988–89 as 100.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Outturn figures are published in the annual appropriation accounts. The figures for the secret service vote for the last five years in the form requested are:

  £million

  1983–84

  62·4

  1984–85

  66·3

  1985–86

  71·4

  1986–87

  81·1

  1987–88

  91·7

  Note: Based on 1988–89 Estimates provision of £113·2 million = 100.

  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer under which headings other than class XX vote 3 Cabinet Office: Secret Services, expenditure on the secret services is accounted for.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  In the interests of national security, successive Governments have declined to publish the information requested.

  Earnings
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report the relevant allowances referred to in annex 7 of Cmnd. 9756 in each case in terms of local currency and as a percentage of average adult male earnings or the nearest available equivalent together with the marginal and

  53
  average rates of tax for single persons and one-earner married couples with such earnings; and if he will add (a) the average and marginal rates for a two-earner married couple where the wife's earnings are the average for an adult female and (b) the amount of child benefit or child allowance.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Information on the level of tax thresholds and on the marginal rates of tax in some of the countries mentioned in annex 7 of Cmnd. 9756 is published in the Inland Revenue's note "International Comparisons of Direct Tax on Employment Income" a copy of which is available in the Library.

  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the current married man's tax threshold as a percentage of adult manual workers' average earnings currently as calculated in chart 2.4 of Cmnd. 9756; and what is his latest estimate of the number of families who would now receive at least 80 per cent. of their present income if they did not work at all.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  In 1988–89, the married man's tax allowance is 37·3 per cent. of average adult manual earnings. The number of families who would receive at least 80 per cent. of their current income if they did not work is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Security.

  Taxation
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer in what respect his latest proposals for separate taxation of husbands and wives differ in principle from those given in paragraph 3.4 of Cmnd. 9756; and what is the gain or loss to the Revenue from the change at current tax and allowance levels.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Information about the new system of independent taxation for husband and wife and its costs is given in the Financial Statement and Budget report 1988–89, pages 39 and 46.

  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the net gain or loss to the Revenue from(a) reducing the standard rate of income tax by 5p, (b) raising the ceiling for means-tested income support by 25 per cent. and (c) increasing the state pension by 10 per cent.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  The direct revenue cost in a full year, at 1989–90 income levels of a 5p reduction in the basic rate of tax is about £7·5 billion. If introduced for 1989–90 the change would reduce tax receipts by about £7 billion in that year. A 10 per cent. increase in the basic state pension would lead to an increase of about £2 billion in the amount of pensions paid in 1989–90. An estimate of the cost of increasing the level of income support could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether he has come to a decision on the option in paragraph 4.16 of Cmnd. 9756 of restricting the additional personal income tax allowance to those in receipt of one-parent and other appropriate benefits; and if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing what the effect of such a change would be in terms of the number of allowances claimed and the savings to the Revenue;
  54
  (2) if he has come to a decision on the option in paragraph 4.15 Cmnd. 9756 of converting the additional personal income tax allowance into increased social security provision; and if he will provide an estimate of (a) the amount of revenue which could be transferred to the social security budget in this way and (b) what increase in benefits would be required to ensure that nobody is worse off as a result of the change.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Section 30 of the Finance Act 1988 changed the rules for the additional personal allowance so that from April 1989 unmarried couples with children will be able to quality for only one additional personal allowance between them. No consequential changes in social security benefits were made and there are no plans for further changes in the allowance.

  Mr. Anthony Coombs
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what tax reliefs are available towards the costs of company employees studying for vocational or professional qualifications in the United Kingdom; and what information he has on such allowances in France and West Germany.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  [holding answer 29 ,November 1988]: There are tax reliefs for employees' job-related training which exempt from income tax training costs met by employers and by employees themselves provided certain conditions are satisfied. Last year we were able to introduce a new relief for employees whose employers pay for the cost of retraining in new skills and for self-employment.

  Details of the tax reliefs for training available in France and Germany, together with those of a number of other major industrial countries, including the United Kingdom, are available in a report published last May by the PICKUP programme of the Department of Education and Science. I believe that my hon. Friend already has a copy.

  Mortgages
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the amount of the mortgage taken out by the median mortgagor claiming mortgage interest relief, the increase since May in the rate of interest, the amount of interest payable in a full year, and the total amount of relief at the standard rate payable in a full year at the standard rate of income tax.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  In 1988–89 the estimated median mortgage is £22,000. The mortgage interest rate has increased since May from 9·75 per cent. to 12·75 per cent.; and increase of three percentage points. The gross amount of interest payable in a full year at 1988–89 levels by the median mortgagor is £2,550; the amount of relief at the basic rate of income tax is £640 leaving a net interest payment of £1,910 in 1988–89.

  National Insurance Contributions
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much is paid by the top 5 per cent. of taxpayers in employees' national insurance contributions; and what would be the gain to the Revenue by removing the upper earnings limit.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  The top 5 per cent. of taxpayers, including employees and the self-employed, are provisionally estimated to pay about £1·4 billion in national
  55
  insurance contributions in 1988–89. I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 31 October at columns 500-01 for the Revenue effect of abolishing the upper earnings limit.

  Tax Allowances
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he proposes to extend the proposed married couples' income tax allowance to single parents in the form of an additional personal income tax allowance when separate taxation of husbands and wives is introduced in 1990–91.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  The additional personal allowance for those with single-handed responsibility for children will continue to be available after independent taxation is introduced in April 1990. The additional personal allowance and the new married couple's allowance will be equal in value.

  Deposit Takers
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for (a) banks, (b) building societies and (c) other licensed depositors the percentage of advances to gross deposits together with the percentage held in, respectively, cash, call money and discounts, special deposits and investments; and if he will provide corresponding figures for 1958, 1968, 1976 and 1978.

  Mr. Lilley
  The information requested is available as follows:

  a. for Banks—in various issues of the Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin, (Table 3.1 in the latest edition).
  No figures are available for 1958.

  b. for Building Societies—in the BSA (Building Societies Association) Bulletin, Table 6, and also in Financial Statistics, Table 7.7. Figures for earlier years are available in "A Compendium of Building Society Statistics", published by the Building Societies Association.

  c. for other deposit takers—no separate information is available.

  Capital Gains Tax
  Mr. Tim Smith
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the yield from capital gains tax on the sale of shares in unquoted companies for the latest year for which figures are available.

  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Receipts in 1987–88 from capital gains tax from individuals and trusts were £1,380 million. It is estimated that 40 to 50 per cent. was derived from ordinary shares quoted on the United Kingdom stock exchange, about 20 per cent. from other shares and securities, and the rest from other property. I regret that finer analyses to isolate the yield from the sale of shares in unquoted companies are not available. Analyses are not available for the yield within corporation tax from gains on the sales of such shares by companies.

  Fraud
  Mr. Ian Bruce
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the detection of fraud by the Inland Revenue; and what tax has been recovered by such fraud investigations in the last financial year for which figures are available.
  56
  Mr. Norman Lamont
  Since 1979 more Inland Revenue resources have been deployed, not just on fraud detection but on tax investigation work generally. This, together with improved case selection and working methods, has increased the yield—tax, interest and penalties—from such compliance work from £111 million in 1979 to £877 million in 1987–88. In the year to 31 March 1988 tax of £495 million was recovered through fraud investigations.

  EEC (Overdraft Loans)
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement outlining the powers which are available to the European Economic Community to seek overdraft loans from member states; and under what powers such demands have been met by Her Majesty's Government.

  Mr. Brooke
  The Commission is empowered to request overdraft facilities under article 12(2) of Council regulation 2891/77. This article allows the Commission to overdraw its accounts with member states to meet a prospective cash deficit. The member states share the overdraft in proportion to the estimated budget revenue due from each of them.

  Member states are legally obliged to comply with properly constituted requests under article 12(2). The Government therefore meet such requests directly from the Consolidated Fund in accordance with article 2(3) of the European Communities Act 1972. Repayment of any drawing under the overdraft facility is made by deduction from future own resources payments. The article 12(2) facility does not affect the total amount which the Community is authorised to spend during the year.

  EEC (IGA Payments)
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date the IGA payments failed to be made in consequence of the recent European Council decision; what member states have failed to make the necessary payments; what sums are involved; and if such member states are obliged in terms of the agreement to pay interest on late payments.

  Mr. Brooke
  Member states are not obliged to make payments under the 1988 IGA until they have obtained the necessary approval from their national legislatures. This means that there is no fixed date on which the initial payments are due. Information relating to the timing of payments by individual member states is not generally available. There is no explicit provision in the IGA for interest charges. It would be for the Commission to consider whether to claim interest in the event of any default.

  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer why Her Majesty's Government agreed to make an advance payment to the EEC of their non-value added tax own resources because of the EEC's cash flow problems created by the non-payment of IGA by certain member states; what other member states were invited to make such advance payments; and under what powers the EEC has asked for such facilities from individual states.

  Mr. Brooke
  The last date on which the Government made an advance payment of non-VAT own resources was 21 November. At that time the Commission was
  57
  experiencing cash flow difficulties because most member states, including the United Kingdom, had not paid their contributions under the IGA. The Government were satisfied that the Commission's request for this advance—as for advances made earlier in the year—complied with article 10(2) of Council regulations 2891/77. All such requests are made simultaneously to all member states; none is singled out.

  EEC (Expenditure)
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total amount of the expenditure authorised in the EEC budget for the EEC's current financial year; what measures have been introduced to prevent the EEC from overspending its budget by means of seeking advance payments under regulation 2891/77 or in delaying payments to member states which would normally fall to be made; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Brooke
  The 1988 budget, as amended, provides for expenditure of 43,820 mecu (around £29,213 million). In its amending letter to the 1989 preliminary draft budget the Commission estimates that there will be underspending of some 1,300 mecu (around £867 million) in 1988. Advance payments made under article 10(2) of regulation 2891/77 do not increase the total amount which the Community is authorised to spend in any given year. The Brussels European Council in February agreed on measures to improve budgetary management and to strengthen the principle of annuality.

  Industrial and Manufacturing Investment
  Mr. Meacher
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the level of(a) industrial investment and (b) manufacturing investment in each of the last 20 years, including the latest information for 1988, at current and at 1988 prices.

  Mr. Major
  The information requested is as follows. The latest figures produced by the DTI for investment at constant prices use 1985 as the base year.

  Fixed capital expenditure—£ million current prices

  Industrial investment2

  Manufacturing(including leased assets)1

  1968

  2,717

  1,569

  1969

  3,040

  1,774

  1970

  3,550

  2,090

  1971

  3,835

  2,102

  1972

  2,174

  1,969

  1974

  6,243

  3,062

  1973

  4,984

  2,357

  1975

  6,777

  3,646

  1976

  7,770

  4,146

  1977

  9,593

  5,083

  1978

  11,755

  6,170

  1979

  14,618

  7,154

  1980

  15,719

  7,309

  1981

  15,307

  6,235

  1982

  16,732

  6,521

  1983

  17,372

  6,822

  1984

  20,988

  8,427

  1985

  25,063

  10,265

  1986

  25,735

  9,982

  1987

  30,224

  10,945

  Unadjusted

  1988 Q1

  7,787

  2,889

  58

  Industrial investment2

  Manufacturing (including leased assets)1

  Q2

  8,018

  2,978

  4Q3

  8,360

  3

  1 Separate figures for assets leased to manufacturers were only collected from 1975.

  2 Manufacturing, construction, distribution and financial industries.

  3 Figures for assets leased to manufacturers at current prices not yet available.

  4 Provisional.

  Source:
  Monthly Digest of Statistics (CSO) and British Business:; 25 November 1988.

  Fixed capital expenditure—£ million at 1985 prices

  Industrial investment2

  Manufacturing (including leasted assets1

  1968

  15,499

  9,195

  1969

  16,599

  10,026

  1970

  17,730

  10,808

  1971

  17,352

  9,865

  1972

  16,388

  8,582

  1973

  18,019

  9,178

  1974

  18,933

  10,053

  1975

  16,849

  9,666

  1976

  16,601

  9,263

  1977

  17,778

  9,828

  1978

  19,558

  10,716

  1979

  21,546

  11,157

  1980

  19,892

  9,920

  1981

  17,692

  7,735

  1982

  18,525

  7,603

  1983

  18,751

  7,541

  1984

  22,059

  8,923

  1985

  25,057

  10,259

  1986

  24,697

  9,576

  1987

  27,603

  10,050

  Seasonally adjusted

  1988

  Q1

  7,299

  2,638

  Q2

  8,016

  2,873

  3Q3

  7,529

  2,721

  1 Separate figures for assets leased to manufacturers were only collected from 1975.

  2 Manufacturing, construction, distribution and financial industries.

  3Provisional.

  Source: DTI capital expenditure press notice.

  Inflation
  Mr. Harry Greenway
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the average annual rate of inflation between March 1974 and May 1979 and for the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Lilley
  The average rate of retail price inflation between March 1974 and May 1979 was 15·5 per cent. per annum. Inflation between October 1983 and October 1988 has averaged 4·9 per cent. per annum.

  Tobacco Tax
  Mr. Michael Brown
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if his Department will be supporting the clauses within the European Community draft directives on the approximation of taxes on cigarettes, to subject all tobacco products to excise levy; and if he will support
  59
  amendments to exempt any specific categories of tobacco products which are currently subject to United Kingdom excise tax;

  (2) what is his policy towards the implementation of the European Community draft directives on the approximation of taxes on cigarettes and manufactured tobacco other than cigarettes which would result in a reduction of the retail price of cigarettes and other tobacco products.

  Mr. Lilley
  [holding answer 2 December 1988]: We have made it clear that we do not consider the European Commission's proposals for the approximation of indirect taxes to be necessary for the completion of the internal market. As such changes require the unanimous agreement of the member states before becoming law, there is no question of these proposals being forced upon us.

  Value Added Tax
  Mr. Nicholas Bennett
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on proposals by the European Commission to end value added tax zero rating on voluntary activities conducted in village halls.

  Mr. Lilley
  [holding answer 1 December 1988]: There is no value added tax zero rating for voluntary activities in village halls, as such. What I think my hon. Friend has in mind is the judgment of the European Court of Justice published on 21 June which found that certain of the United Kingdom's zero rates were not permissible under EC VAT law; this may affect goods and services bought by village halls. We have been consulting widely with interested parties, including representatives of village halls, about how best this judgment can be implemented. All the representations that we have received will be taken fully into consideration in reaching decisions. An announcement will be made in due course.

  Family Income
  Sir Ian Gilmour
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give figures showing the net incomes, including family credit, of a married man with two children aged four and six years, where the father's weekly earnings are £100, £150, £200, £250, £300, £400, £500, £750, £1,000 and £2,000, assuming no mortgage or superannuation tax reliefs and in each of the following circumstances(a) existing system, 1988–89, (b) child benefit abolished, £500 million of the savings on child benefit put into family credit and the rest used to finance a further cut in the standard rate of income tax, (c) child benefit abolished, £1,000 million of the savings put into family credit and the rest used to finance a further cut in the standard rate of income tax, and (d) ditto, but with all the savings from child benefit used to finance a further cut in the standard rate of income tax.

  Mr. Lawson
  [holding answer 30 November 1988]: The table below shows the net income of a married man with two children aged four and six at the various levels of gross earnings specified. The first column relates to the tax and benefit system in force in 1988–89; the second column reflects the position which would have arisen in 1988–89 if child benefit had been abolished and all of the savings had been used to finance a cut in the basic rate of tax.

  I regret that it is not possible to provide comparable figures under the other two options requested since insufficient information has been provided about the way in which the family credit system would be changed.
  60

  Net weekly income1 (£per week)

  Gross earnings £ per week

  Current tax and benefit regime

  Child benefit abolished and basic rate of tax reduced

  100

  121·02

  118·20

  150

  133·19

  120·54

  200

  166·19

  154·84

  250

  199·19

  189·14

  300

  232·19

  223·44

  400

  306·74

  300·59

  500

  374·22

  369·37

  750

  524·22

  519·37

  1,000

  674·22

  669·37

  2,000

  1,274·22

  1,269·37

  1 Net weekly income equals gross earnings less income tax less national insurance contributions plus child benefit plus family credit plus housing benefits based on the assumption that the family are local authority tenants paying average rent and rates.

SOCIAL SECURITY

  Housing Benefit
  Mr. Flannery
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether he will adjust the weighting of private sector housing benefit claims to reflect the complexity of the liaison between the local authority and the rent office.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Discussions on the allocation of housing benefit administration costs subsidy for 1989–90 are currently taking place between the Department and the local authority associations. It has been agreed in those discussions that the weighting used for private sector housing benefit cases for 1989–90 should not be adjusted to take account of the new rent officer arrangements. For future years, the weighting used will be reconsidered in the light of data on the operation of the new arrangements.

  Stolen Pension Books
  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Mossley Hill,Official Report, 28 November, concerning stolen pension books, if he will now reinstate the urgent needs allowances for pensioners left destitute after their pension is stolen.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  No. A pensioner whose pension has been stolen and is unable to manage until his next payment of pension is due may apply for a crisis loan from the social fund in the same way as can any other person who has had money stolen and has insufficient means to meet their immediate needs.

  Computerisation
  Mr. Kirkwood
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the projected costs of the computer operational strategy; whether the costs conform to budget; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Robin Cook
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what is his Department's(a) original and (b) latest estimate of the cost of the operational strategy computerisation project;

  (2) what are his Department's (a) latest and (b) original estimates of the annual savings from implementing the operational strategy computerisation project.
  61
  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The 1982 publication "Social Security Operational Strategy: A Framework for the Future", a copy of which is in the Library, provided broad estimates that, at November 1981 prices, the operational strategy would cost £720 million and produce net savings of £1,160 million over the 20 years to 2001–20.

  Our latest estimate, at 1987–88 prices, is that the Department's total investment will be in the order of £1,200 million. These costs have been, and are expected to be, contained within the moneys allocated to the Department annually and as shown in the Public Expenditure White Paper. The strategy is already producing small savings in administration costs and these are expected to rise to around £150 million per annum by 1995.

  These estimates are not directly comparable because the original figures were calculated for a group of projects significantly different in scope and content from those now under development or in operation.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what contact has been made with those concerned with the supply to local Department of Social Security offices of computer equipment and software since the social fund was introduced; and what penalty payments manufacturers or suppliers have been required to make because of dissatisfaction with equipment and software.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The Department maintains regular contact with its suppliers by means of monthly contract meetings. The principal contractor has assigned staff to support the Department and they frequently attend at the development centre. Initial bedding-in problems are not uncommon with new systems and those experienced by the social fund computer systems are now being satisfactorily resolved. No circumstance has arisen in which it has been necessary to consider the imposition of penalty payments.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what complaints he has received from local Department of Social Security offices about the breakdown rate of computers; and how many complaints from Department of Social Security offices in Bradford have been received.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  A number of complaints have been received from local offices about the social fund microcomputer system. These include instances of system non-availability due to software problems and malfunctions due to hardware faults which do not result in total system failure because of the availability of back-up computers. The release of new software in July 1988 has led to significant reductions in software difficulties.

  Offices in Bradford have reported faults on the computer since April 1988 but none of these has resulted in a complete breakdown in the system.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what complaints he has received about difficulties experienced by local Department of Social Security offices about problems in inputting data about crisis loans into computer systems.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  A number of complaints were received from local offices in the early stages of the new social fund microcomputer system. These related mainly to the unreliability of the early versions of software. There have been no specific complaints about inputting crisis loans data to the computer system.
  62
  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list, by type and system. microcomputer equipment issued to local Department of Social Security offices; what is the total cost, to date, of supplying such equipment; and in how many cases such equipment has been supplemented or replaced.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The Department uses British Telecom Merlin M4000 microcomputers in its local offices to help with the administration of the social fund and income support. Local offices also use a small number of microcomputers to provide general administrative support. The equipment was supplemented earlier this year to enable the systems to handle the newly introduced income support in place of supplementary benefit, its predecessor benefit. In addition, the part of the system which helps local office staff locate beneficiaries' casepapers is currently being upgraded to provide additional memory and other enhancements. The total costs of these systems to date is £27 million.

  This investment has brought significant improvements in efficiency and has provided local offices with useful computer assistance whilst our mainframe computerisation programme has been under development.

  Mr. Robin Cook
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what has been the total expenditure on computer consultants in connection with the operational strategy computerisation project.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The total expenditure on computer consultants' fees, from April 1982 until March 1988, was £45·455 million.

  Credit Transfer
  Mr. Kirkwood
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish in the Official Report the proportion of each of the main benefits paid to recipients by credit transfer over the last five years.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The information required is shown in the following table:

  Proportion of retirement pensioners and child benefit recipients paid by credit transfer

  Retirement pension per cent.

  Child Benefit per cent.

  December 1984

  8·63

  2·57

  December 1985

  10·75

  4·45

  December 1986

  12·95

  6·30

  December 1987

  14·65

  8·00

  December 1988

  17·30

  11·11

  Mr. Kirkwood
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he is taking to promote credit transfer as opposed to post office counter transactions; what budget is allocated to the promotion of credit transfer; what recent representations he has received from the Post Office about the potential effect on the financial viability of rural sub-post offices; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  All existing retirement pensioners have been invited by letter to opt for payment by credit transfer. By February 1989 similar invitations will have been sent to all recipients of child benefit. New claimants to retirement pension and child benefit are offered a choice of payment by credit transfer or order book. No specific
  63
  budget is allocated to the promotion of credit transfer. Any such costs are met from the social security publicity budget of £12·77 million for 1988–89. No representations have been received recently from the Post Office about the potential effect of credit transfer on the viability of rural sub post offices.

  Disabled Persons (Lodgings)
  Mr. Soley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security who will be responsible for meeting the care costs of disabled people in supported lodgings after April 1989.

  Mr. Scott
  From next April people in lodgings, including supported lodgers, will receive normal income support and housing benefit in place of the present special payments of income support which include help with accommodation costs. These changes will mean that many disabled people in supported lodgings will be better-off, after meeting charges for accommodation and the provision of care, than under existing benefit arrangements. Existing claimants who might otherwise lose benefit overall will be given cash protection whilst they remain in a supportive environment. The overall effect will be to provide an estimated £1 million extra for supported lodgers as a whole. There will thus be no overall reduction in the level of help to this group.

  Family Credit
  Mr. French
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he will list the reasons why the family credit unit requires audited accounts from self-employed applicants;

  (2) if he has any plans to allow self-employed applicants for family credit to provide documentary evidence other than audited accounts as proof of income.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to the hon. Member for Caernarfon (Mr. Wigley) on 19 October at columns 895-96. The Family Credit (General) Amendment No. 4 Regulations 1988 which were laid before Parliament on 14 November to come into force on 5 December remove the requirement that only audited accounts are acceptable. In respect of claims for family credit made on or after 5 December a profit and loss account which has not been audited will be acceptable provided that it covers a period of not less than six months and not more than 15 months and is for a period ending not more than 12 months prior to the date of claim.

  Community Care
  Mr. O'Brien
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the guidelines set down by his Department for consultation between Social Fund officers or his Department and local authority social services officers for the allocation of community care grants.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Guidelines on consultation between the Department and local authority social services and social work departments are contained in paragraphs 1046-1050 of the social fund manual. A copy of the manual is in the Library.

  Mr. O'Brien
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the procedure for social fund officers or his Department to make more community care grant 64
  provisions for people being transferred from health authority accommodation to local authority accommodation; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Guidance and directions for the award of community care grants appear in the social fund manual, a copy of which is in the Library.

  The guidance makes it clear that community care grants may be awarded to people being resettled in the community but not to those moving from one form of residential care to another. It also emphasises the importance of liaison between the Department and local authorities.

  Social Fund
  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what manual checks are being made by local Department of Social Security offices on social fund expenditure; when such checks were introduced; and in how many local offices such checks are being made.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  There are no prescribed manual checks of social fund expenditure.

  Some local offices may maintain clerical records as an aid to local management but no information is available as to the extent of such unofficial record keeping.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received about the reliability of social fund data; and what action he has taken to resolve doubts about the reliability of social fund data.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  We have received a small number of representations from hon. Members about the reliability of the social fund data. Major budgetary errors were corrected in version five of the social fund software which was issued in July. After release of version six of the software later this month we expect that in general statistical reports will accurately record the present month's figures. However, some cumulative year-to-date figures will continue to be unreliable because of problems in earlier months.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he proposes to announce next year's budgets for the social fund for each of his Department's local offices.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  We hope to make an announcement early in the new year.

  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if the Audit Commission has expressed any concern or made representations about the reliability of social fund data.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  No.

  Local Offices
  Mr. Madden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what information he has as to the reasons why amounts of community grants paid by local Department of Social Security offices in Bradford vary substantially;

  (2) what examination he has undertaken into the apparent inconsistencies between local Department of Social Security offices in spending budgets allocated under the social fund, including between Department of Social Security offices serving the same district.
  65
  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  There are a number of possible reasons for differences between the amounts of community care grants paid by the three Bradford offices. The total amounts paid will depend on the number of eligible applications, the purpose of the application, the amount applied for, the relative priorities of different applications and the discretion of social fund officers in deciding whether or not to award a payment.

  We are monitoring expenditure by local offices on the social fund, and regional teams have been set up to monitor the quality of decision-making by social fund officers. Social fund officers are expected to exercise their discretion flexibly within the framework of the law and the Secretary of State's directions and having regard to the guidance in the social fund manual. As the social fund is a locally managed discretionary scheme, absolute consistency in spending between different local offices is therefore not feasible.

  Pensioners
  Mrs. Ray Michie
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many Scottish pensioners who are in receipt of income support are in receipt of transitional addition; and what is the average level of transitional addition paid.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  I regret that the information requested is not available.

  Sir Ian Gilmour
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will update the reply to Sir Brandon Rhys Williams, the former hon. Member for Kensington,Official Report, 14 July 1987, column 451, in respect of pensioners' gross weekly incomes other than the state basic pension.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  [holding answer 28 November 1988]: The table shows the number of pensioners with income other than retirement pension of any category at the levels specified.

  Gross income excluding pension (£ per week at 1986 prices)

  Single Pensioners (thousands)

  Married couples (thousands)

  less than £5

  480

  120

  5-10

  370

  120

  10-15

  490

  200

  15-20

  550

  200

  20-30

  1,000

  300

  30-40

  340

  250

  40-50

  310

  180

  50-60

  160

  130

  60-70

  110

  100

  70-80

  60

  60

  80-90

  60

  80

  90-100

  60

  60

  100-150

  110

  270

  150-200

  80

  100

  200-250

  30

  70

  250-300

  20

  20

  300-350

  10

  40

  350-400

  1

  10

  400-450

  1

  1

  450-500

  1

  1

  over 500

  1

  20

  Total

  4,160

  2,330

  The updated table shows a slight increase in the number of pensioner units in receipt of additional income.
  66
  Note: Pensioners are defined as individuals in a tax unit which receives some form of retirement pension. Figures are for single pensioners or for married couples where the husband is aged 65 or over.
  1 Indicates less than 10,000 cases.
  Source: Family Expenditure Survey 1986.

DEFENCE

  Challenger
  Mr. Jack
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list in the Official Report the value of work undertaken by each company supplying any components or undertaking assembly work for the Challenger I tank in the United Kingdom.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  This is a matter for the manufacturer and is commercial in confidence, but a significant proportion of the tank by value is understood to be "bought out".

  Helicopter Crash (Falklands)
  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the dates and format of official contact between the Royal Air Force or his Department and the dependants or next of kin of the seven airmen killed in the Chinook helicopter crash in the Falklands on 27 February 1987.

  Mr. Freeman
  It is not practicable to list here each individual official contact with each of the dependants and next of kin of the seven RAF personnel killed in the Chinook accident in the Falkland Islands in February 1987. It is the aim of the service, following the death of a member of the Royal Air Force, to provide to the next of kin as much moral and practical support as may be needed or requested. This aim has been met according to the circumstances, needs and wishes of each of the next of kin.

  Initial contacts took the form of visits by senior officers, letters of condolence from both the Royal Air Force and the Air Force Department and consultation over the funeral arrangements.

  As is customary, a serving RAF officer was appointed as visiting officer to each of the widows, to help in her care and support and to ensure that everything possible was done to help her to adjust to life without her husband. The fiancee of one of the casualties was afforded similar support. Assistance is still available if required.

  From a practical financial standpoint, there has been considerable direct contact with the next of kin by the Department over pensions, gratuities, estates, probate and tax.

  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provision his Department has made for the continued education of the dependants of the seven airmen killed in the Chinook helicopter crash in the Falklands on 27 February 1987.

  Mr. Freeman
  No specific provision has been made, but a child's forces family pension is payable in respect of each eligible dependent child of the deceased until the child reaches the age of 17 or ceases full time education if later. It is not, however, a condition of payment that the pension should be used in respect of the child's education.
  67
  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what review his Department has conducted of the air-safety of Chinook helicopters following the fatal air crash in the Falklands on 27 February 1987;

  (2) what was the cause of the fatal Chinook helicopter crash in the Falklands on 27 February 1987.

  Mr. Freeman
  As the hon. Member is aware, the county coroner of Oxford is conducting an inquiry into this tragic accident. The Royal Air Force has in the usual way conducted its own inquiry, the results of which have been made known to the coroner. Measures identified by the board of inquiry to improve the safety of Chinook helicopters in service with the Royal Air Force have been taken. In accordance with the usual practice, I shall place a copy of the military aircraft accident summary in the Library of the House as soon as the inquest is completed.

  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects a compensation settlement to be granted to the widows and dependants of the airmen killed in the Chinook helicopter crash in the Falklands on 27 February 1987.

  Mr. Freeman
  Claims on behalf of the dependants of five of the Royal Air Force personnel who lost their lives on 27 February 1987 were commenced by solicitors acting on their behalf in August 1987. Since then, correspondence has continued between the solicitors and the Ministry of Defence's claims branch, who are awaiting the completion of all necessary inquiries into the incident, including an inquest by HM coroner. Once these have been concluded, it should be possible to come to a decision very quickly on any ex-gratia compensation which might be payable.

  Service Personnel (Dependants)
  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provision for financial support his Department has made for Royal Air Force personnel, killed whilst on duty, separate to that provided by the various service charities including the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Freeman
  Royal Air Force personnel killed whilst on duty are entitled to benefits under the armed forces pension scheme. The scheme makes provision for short term families' pensions, equal to the deceased service man's basic pay, to be awarded to widows and dependent children for periods ranging from three to nine months depending upon family circumstances. Subsequently, long term widows' and children's pensions are awarded to those eligible. These are index-linked and remain in payment in the case of the widow for life provided that she remains unmarried, and in that of the children until the age of 17 or completion of full-time education if later. In the case of those who are unmarried a lump sum gratuity is paid into the deceased service man's estate.

  In addition to these provisions, widows may be entitled to benefits under the war widows scheme administered by the Department of Social Security.

  Mr. Conway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the number and value of any compensation ex-gratia payments made by him to dependants of service personnel who fail to qualify under the provisions of the Crown Proceedings (Armed Forces) Act 1987.

  Mr. Freeman
  One claim from the dependant of a decease service man has been settled, at a cost of 68
  approximately £130,000 on an ex-gratia basis as a result of an incident during the period between 8 December 1986, when the Government announced their intention to repeal section 10 of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947, and 15 May 1987, when the Crown Proceedings (Armed Forces) Act 1987 became law. A number of such claims are still awaiting settlement, and are the subject of discussions between the Ministry of Defence and the claimants or their legal advisers.

  Royal Navy (Tobacco)
  Mr. Speed
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will review the facility whereby male Royal Navy personnel are eligible to purchase specially produced low priced cigarettes and tobacco while serving in United Kingdom shore establishments.

  Mr. Freeman
  The Admiralty board has recently reviewed this concession—known as the "Blue Liner" concession. Mindful of its responsibility to promote the health and physical fitness of personnel in the Royal Navy, the board has concluded that in the light of medical evidence about the consequences of smoking, it would be inappropriate for the concession to continue. They have decided accordingly that the price of these "Blue Liners" should be increased progressively in order to discourage use of the concession which will be finally withdrawn at the end of 1991. The price will be increased first in April 1989, followed by two further increases in January 1990 and January 1991 to bring prices much closer to those charged for proprietary brands. The extra revenue realised by these price increases will be paid into the fleet amenities fund and will be used specifically to provide benefits for naval personnel.

  Queen's Own Highlanders (HIV Tests)
  Mr. Salmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the most recent tests for antibodies against the human immunodeficiency virus were performed on the men of the Queen's Own Highlanders, who returned to Scotland from Kenya in December 1986; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Freeman
  It is not my Department's policy to disclose specific details of medical cases, which are confidential. I can confirm that tests have been carried out in 1987 and 1988.

  Research
  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what sources of funding are available for research in veterinary schools.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  The MOD has funds available for research in support of the Defence research programme, including extramural research work at higher education institutions. At present there are no agreements placed with veterinary schools.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if classified research is carried out for his Department in British universities;

  (2) what approximate proportion of the published results of research funded by his Department is classified;

  (3) if the results of the research into aerobiology being undertaken by his Department at Bristol university will be shared with other nations;
  69
  (4) what are the research objectives of his Department in the field of aerobiology.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  My Department's sole objective in carrying out research into aerobiology is to provide information which should assist in the provision of effective protective measures against the threat that chemical or biological weapons might be used against the United Kingdom armed forces. Work carried out at universities is generally not classified and publication is a matter for the universities concerned.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the figures for funding of research by his Department in British universities over each of the past five years.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  Expenditure over each of the last five years on research with British universities and further education establishments is as follows:

  £ million

  11984–85

  10

  11985–86

  13

  11986–87

  15

  21987–88

  15

  21988–89

  16

  1 Actual.

  2 Estimated.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total budget of his Department for research.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  In 1988–89 we expect to spend a net total of £403 million on research.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total current annual funding for research by his Department in British universities.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  In 1988–89, we expect to spend £16 million on research with British universities and further education establishments.

  Ms. Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what projects in British universities his Department currently is funding in the field of aerobiology; and what further projects he expects to fund.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  The Chemical Defence Establishment has no projects currently placed with universities or other higher education institutions in the field of aerobiology. There is one proposal being considered.

  Chieftain Tank (Replacement)
  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if, in discussing bids tendered for the contract to replace the Chieftain tanks, he has considered the introduction of penalty clauses in relation to delivery dates and conformity with specification.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  All relevant factors are being considered.

  Military Bases and Establishments (Scotland)
  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the Army bases and establishments in Scotland which are currently in use.
  70
  Mr. Freeman
  The Army bases and establishments in Scotland which are currently in use are as follows:

  REGULAR ARMY BASES/ESTABLISHMENTS

  Location

  Craigiehall Edinburgh

  The Castle Edinburgh

  Highland House Perth

  Benbecula Hebrides

  Kentigern House Glasgow

  Livingston West Lothian

  NATO FSS Salado Bridge, Kinross

  Buchan Grampian

  Collarfirth Hill Shetland

  Mormond Hill Shetland

  Mossy Hill Shetland

  Saxa Vord Shetland

  Fort George Inverness

  Redford Edinburgh

  Sauchiehall Street Glasgow

  Balhousie Castle Perth

  St. Lukes Aberdeen

  Stirling Castle

  Rhu Dunbartonshire

  Strathearn Road Edinburgh

  Forthside Stirling

  AGIOS Union Street Aberdeen

  Bank Street Dundee

  Rutland Square Edinburgh

  Queen Street Glasgow

  Bridge Street Inverness

  Garelochhead Dunbartonshire

  Barry Buddon Angus

  Cameron Barracks Inverness

  Cultybraggan Perthshire

  Drip Bridge Stirling

  Inchterf Glasgow

  Kirkcudbright

  JSMTC Bases Ballachulish

  Kingussie

  Tulloch

  Dundonnel

  QVS Dunblane

  TA BASES/ESTABLISHMENTS

  Principal Locations

  Don Street Aberdeen

  Prince Charles Barracks Aberdeen

  Gordon Barracks Aberdeen

  Montrose Road Arbroath

  Commerce Street Brechin

  Main Street Brora

  Glencryan Road Cumbernauld

  Yeomanry House Cupar

  Ferry Road Dingwall

  Latta Street Dumbarton

  Duckburn Park Dunblane

  Perth Road Dundee

  Oliver Barracks Dundee

  Mid Craigie Road Dundee

  Park Wynd Dundee

  Elgin Street Dunfermline

  Queen Street Dunoon

  Cooper Park Elgin

  Brechin Road Forfar

  Belford Road Fort William

  Baltimore Road Glenrothes

  Central Avenue Grangemouth

  Lassen House Invergowrie

  Gordonville Road Inverness

  Union Street Keith

  RAF Kinloss Kinloss

  Hunter Street Kirkcaldy

  Weyland Park Kirkwall

  High Street Laurencekirk

  Fort Charlotte Lerwick

  RAF Leuchars Leuchars

  North Street Leven

  RAF Lossiemouth Lossiemouth

  Broomfield Road Montrose

  Queens Barracks Perth

  71

  Catto Drive Peterhead

  City Road St. Andrews

  Forthside Stirling

  Meadowforth Stirling

  Church Street Stornaway

  Princes Street Thurso

  Dempster Street Wick

  Yeomanry House Ayr

  Torpichan Street Bathgate

  Quarry Street Coatbridge

  Nunfield House Dumfries

  Whitemoss East Kilbride

  Dalmeny Street Edinburgh

  Forrest Hill Edinburgh

  Redhall View Edinburgh

  Chesser Crescent Edinburgh

  East Claremont Street Edinburgh

  Colinton Road Edinburgh

  Alnwickhill Edinburgh

  Gilmore Place Edinburgh

  McDonald Road Edinburgh

  Great King Street Edinburgh

  Paton Street Galashiels

  Crow Road Glasgow

  Houldsworth Street Glasgow

  Yorkhill Parade Glasgow

  Jardine Street Glasgow

  Walcheren Barracks Glasgow

  Pearson Hall Glasgow

  Eastvale Place Glasgow

  Carmunock Road Glasgow

  Cameronian House Hamilton

  Union Street Hawick

  Dreghorn Irvine

  Grange Road Livingstone

  Muir Street Motherwell

  Hight Street Paisley

  Eastfield Penicuik

  Highholm Street Port Glasgow

  Glasgow Road Rutherglen

  Belleview Road Stranraer

  Portland Street Troon

  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the Royal Air Force bases and establishments in Scotland which are currently in use.

  Mr. Freeman
  The Royal Air Force bases and establishments in Scotland which are currently in use are as follows:

  Operational Airfields

  RAF Leuchars

  RAF Lossiemouth

  RAF Kinloss

  Other RAF Establishments

  RAF Benbecula

  RAF Buchan

  RAF Machrihanish1

  RAF Pitreavie Castle

  RAF Prestwick

  RAF Rosehearty

  RAF Saxa Vord

  RAF Stornoway

  RAF Tain

  RAF Turnhouse

  United States Contingency Wartime Hospitals2

  RAF Arbroath

  RAF Kirknewton

  RAF Lanark

  United States Communications Facilities2

  Aberdeen

  RAF Edzell

  RAF Inverbervie

  RAF Kinnabeer

  Latheron

  Fort Murkle

  RAF Thurso

  72
  1 The Royal Air Force is the major user, with United States Forces facilities on the Station.

  2 Facilities made available to the United States Forces, and under the command of the Royal Air Force.

  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the Royal Navy shore-based establishments in Scotland which are currently in use.

  Mr. Freeman
  Royal Navy and Royal Marine establishments in Scotland are as follows:

  Establishment

  Aberdeen

  University Royal Navy Unit

  Aberdeen

  Royal Navy/Royal Marines Careers Office

  Aberdeen

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Arbroath

  Royal Marines Base Condor

  Ayr

  RN Air Station (HMS Gannet)

  Campbelttown

  NATO POL Depot

  Cape Wrath

  Naval Bombardment Range

  Coulport

  Royal Navy Armament Depot

  Crimond

  Wireless Telegraphy Station (Peterhead)

  Crombie

  Royal Navy Armament Depot

  Dundee

  Royal Navy Reserve HQ

  Edinburgh

  Royal Navy Stores Depot

  Edinburgh

  Joint Maritime Operations Training School

  Edinburgh

  Royal Navy Reserve Centre

  Edinburgh

  Royal Navy/Royal Marines Careers Office

  Elgin

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Fairlie

  NATO Salvage Depot

  Faslane

  Clyde Submarine Base

  Garelochhead

  Royal Navy Oil Fuel Depot

  Glasgow

  Royal Navy Reserve Centre

  Glasgow

  Royal Navy/Royal Marines Careers Office

  Glasgow

  Royal Marine Reserve

  Glen Douglas

  Nato Armament Depot

  Greenock

  Royal Navy Reserve Centre

  Greenock

  Clyde Marine Services Base

  Invergordon

  Her Majesty's Oil Fuel Depot

  Inverness

  Royal Navy/Royal Marines Careers Office

  Inverness

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Kyle of Lochalsh

  Regional Naval Officer

  Loch Ewe

  Royal Navy Depot

  Loch Ewe

  NATO POL Depot

  Loch Striven

  NATO POL Depot

  Lathalmond

  Royal Navy Stores Depot (Fife)

  Orkney

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Perth

  Royal Navy Aircraft Workshop

  Rosneath

  Royal Navy Degaussing Range

  Rosyth

  Royal Navy/Royal Marines Regional Careers Office

  Rosyth

  Naval Maritime HQ

  Rosyth

  Her Majesty's Naval Base

  Shetland

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Stranraer

  Royal Navy Auxiliary Service HQ

  Strathcyde

  University Royal Navy Unit

  Thurso

  Royal Navy Auxailiary Service HQ

  Thurso

  Nuclear Reactor Training Establishment (HMS Vulcan)

  Procurement
  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of expenditure incurred by the procurement division of his Department is spent within Scotland.

  Mr. Sainsbury
  I refer the hon. and learned Member to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Merionnydd Nant Conwy (Dr. Thomas) on 18 April at column 334. However it should be noted that this information is based on the billing addition of the main contractors and some or all of the work might be carried out by the companies subsidiaries and subcontractors in another region.

  Expenditure
  Mr. Menzies Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of defence expenditure is currently being incurred within Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Freeman
  Defence expenditure is not accounted for on a regional basis.

  Lance Missile (Warhead)
  Ms. Ruddock
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if any decision has been taken by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation to deploy a new warhead for the Lance missile.

  Mr. Freeman
  The possible deployment of a follow-on to Lance is one of the matters under consideration by NATO as part of its current review of theatre nuclear forces; no decisions have been taken.

HEALTH

  Competitive Tendering
  Mr. Cox
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list all contracts for domestic services let by competitive tendering to outside operators within each of the regional health authorities in England and Wales, together with their annual costs, for the period 1 October 1985 to 30 September 1988, and the cost of provision for the same services in each case in the last year before competitive tendering was introduced.

  Mr. Mellor
  We do not hold information centrally in the form requested. From 1 October 1985 to 30 September 1988 some 100 contracts for domestic services were awarded to outside contractors. Estimated annual net savings against previous costs, total around £12 million.

  Information about Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

  Rights of the Child Convention
  Mr. Dickens
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he will make it his policy to implement recommendations of the forthcoming United Nations convention on the rights of the child in so far as they relate to his responsibilities.

  Mr. Mellor
  A working group, on which the United Kingdom is represented, began the second reading of the draft convention in Geneva on 28 November.

  The draft covers a range of issues of interest to several Government Departments. The United Kingdom has played a leading part in discussions on the drafting of the convention and we hope to be in a position to ratify its recommendations on completion.

  Civil Defence
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the joint DHSS/MOD planning group guidance to regional health authorities on the reception and allocation arrangements for armed forces' casualties to the National Health Service in war.
  74
  Mrs. Currie
  I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 19 April at column 375. The answer is still no.

  Retford Hospital
  Mr. Alexander
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will direct Trent regional health authority not to sanction the sale of land adjoining Retford hospital in the light of the terms of the conveyance dated 26 November 1928 which required the purchasers and their successors in title to hold, use and enjoy the same so long as may be desirable for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Retford and District hospital.

  Mrs. Currie
  No. It would be inappropriate to issue such a direction. The district health authority's legal advisers have examined the deeds of conveyance. Their advice is that the deeds do not contain any restriction preventing the sale of the land but they are complex and a search is being made by the Land Registry in order to resolve any doubt.

  The proceeds from the sale of this surplus land will be used to maintain and improve the delivery of health care in Bassetlaw and the sale proceeds will bring significant benefit to the Retford community.

  Residential Care
  Rev. Martin Smyth
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what response he has had from regional and district health authorities to circular HC(88)43; and if he will make a statement about his efforts to promote co-operation between authorities and organisations representing those in residential care.

  Mrs. Currie
  HC(88)43 entitled "Health Services Development—Resource assumptions and planning guidelines" provides health authorities with guidelines for their plans for 1989–90. Regional health authorities' proposals for that year are not due to arrive at the Department until February 1989. We have therefore had no substantive response from health authorities yet. The circular asks health authorities, in planning the care of people with mental handicaps, mental illness, physical or sensory disabilities, and the care of elderly people, to take the views of consumers and the voluntary organisations which represent them into account. Following Lady Wagner's report (Residential Care—A Positive Choice) we are considering ways of making residential care more responsive to consumer choice.

  Health Authorities
  Mr. James Lamond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list National Health Service capital expenditure projects costing more than £1 million which have been completed in the Oldham district health authority during the last 14 years and those projected in the next five years.

  Mrs. Currie
  We do not hold this information on small-scale developments centrally. The hon. Member may wish to pursue his inquiries with Mr. R. B. Martin QC, chairman of North Western regional health authority.

  Ophthalmology
  Mr. James Lamond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has any information concerning the
  75
  average waiting list times and numbers of patients currently on the waiting lists for ophthalmological procedures in (a) the Oldham health authority, (b) the health authorities covering the Greater Manchester area and (c) on average in England and Wales.

  Mr. Mellor
  The available information is given in the table. Questions about Wales are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

  Ophthalmology Departments, NHS hospitals, England

  Number of Patients1 on in-patient waiting list at 31 March 1988

  Median waiting time of patients treated2 during quarter ending 31 March 1988

  Oldham DHA

  712

  20 weeks

  Greater Manchester area3

  5,772

  Not available

  Average for the 152 DHAs in England Which Provide

  420

  in-patient treatment

  approx.

  11 weeks

  1On a comparable basis with previous statistics.

  2In-patients and day cases.

  3Aggregate of 12 DHAs.

  General Medical Council
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set up an independent committee to investigate the way in which the General Medical Council deals with complaints against doctors and to make recommendations for the future; and if he will include on the committee representatives from his own Department, the Ombudsman's office, the Lord Chancellor's office, the Association of Community Health Councils, the Patients Association and the Consumers' Association.

  Mr. Mellor
  The GMC is an independent statutory body. In 1987 it established a working party to review the procedures of the council in relation to disciplinary cases in which it is alleged that a doctor has seriously neglected or disregarded his professional responsibilities to patients. The GMC sought evidence from organisations representing patients and the health professions.

  We have no plan to set up a separate independent committee.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the current membership of the General Medical Council; how many members are(a) elected doctors and (b) lay people; and if he will take steps to increase the number of lay people on the General Medical Council so that there is no majority of elected doctors.

  Mr. Mellor
  The GMC has 50 medically qualified elected members and 13 nominated members of which 11 are lay members. In addition there are 34 appointed members who are medically qualified.

  The Medical Act 1983 provided that there should be a majority of elected members over other members. We have no plans to change the legislation.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to require the General Medical Council to deal with all complaints referred to it rather than rely on its present policy of first requiring a National Health Service investigation that establishes that there is a serious case.

  Mr. Mellor
  No. Under the provisions of the Medical Act 1983 the GMC is empowered to consider and 76
  determine cases of serious professional misconduct in whatever way it considers appropriate. I understand that the GMC has no general policy of referring complaints to the relevant NHS authority but that each case is looked at on its merits. However, where appropriate the council will advise complainants if a matter appears suitable for investigation by the NHS.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information about medical complaints made to the General Medical Council regarding doctors working in(a) private medicine, (b) the National Health Service, (c) the prison medical service, (d) the forces medical service, is routinely passed on to his Department; in the last year for which figures are available, how many such complaints were received by the General Medical Council; and how many were rejected by (i) General Medical Council staff, (ii) the preliminary screener, (iii) the preliminary proceedings committee, (iv) the professional conduct or health committees.

  Mr. Mellor
  Information at this level of detail is not routinely passed to the Department. The council publishes a summary of information in its annual report, copies of which are in the Library.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will require the General Medical Council to adopt identical procedures for handling all the medical complaints it receives, regardless of whether they concern doctors operating in the National Health Service, in private medicine or in the prison or forces medical services.

  Mr. Mellor
  I understand that the General Medical Council adopts identical procedures in respect of all registered doctors.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that the General Medical Council involves lay people in every stage of its disciplinary procedures.

  Mr. Mellor
  It is for the General Medical Council to determine its procedures, but there are lay members on each General Medical Council committee which considers cases in which a question of serious professional misconduct arises.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that all complainants to the General Medical Council are kept fully informed of any action that is taken.

  Mr. Mellor
  I understand that the General Medical Council routinely informs complainants of the action taken to deal with their complaint.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that transcripts are made of all hearings before the professional conduct committee of the General Medical Council, and that these are made available to all interested parties at reasonable cost.

  Mr. Mellor
  The GMC is required to arrange that a shorthand writer is appointed to take notes of hearings before the professional conduct committee. The solicitor to the council is required to provide on request a transcript of those parts of the proceedings at which the parties are entitled to be present. The charges levied for such transcripts are a matter for the GMC.
  77
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that the General Medical Council treats the falsification of a patient's notes as a matter of serious misconduct.

  Mr. Mellor
  The 1987 annual report of the GMC refers to a statement approved by the council on this matter. The council considers deliberate falsification of case notes to be unethical and a doctor so doing is liable to disciplinary proceedings if reported to the council.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors with qualifications obtained only from other European Economic Community countries have been registered by the General Medical Council; what proportion this is of all registered doctors; and, in the past five years, what has been the rate of change of applications for registration from European Economic Community trained doctors.

  Mr. Mellor
  We have figures only for the period June 1976 to December 1987 in which the GMC registered 3,301 doctors who obtained their qualifications in other EC states. We do not have information on how many have taken up practice or remained on the register and this figure cannot be directly compared with the total of 136,959 doctors registered.

  The figures for EC doctors registered in the past five years and the rates of change are given in the table.

  Registrations

  1per cent.

  1983

  325

  + 40

  1984

  300

  - 8

  1985

  332

  + 11

  1986

  443

  + 33

  1987

  995

  + 125

  1 Increase/decrease on previous year.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors with qualifications obtained only from countries outside the European Economic Community have been registered by the General Medical Council; what proportion this is of all registered doctors; and, in the past five years, what has been the rate of change of applications for registration from non-European Economic Community trained doctors.

  Mr. Mellor
  I regret that we do not have information on the total number of doctors on the medical register who qualified outside the European Community. Since 1980 a total of 21,596 such doctors have been registered. We do not have information on how many took up practice or remained on the register and this figure cannot be directly compared with the total of 136,959 doctors registered at the end of 1987.

  The number of overseas doctors registered in the last five years and the rates of change are given in the table.

  Year

  Registrations

  Percentage1

  1983

  1,996

  -11

  1984

  2,052

  +3

  1985

  1,991

  -3

  1986

  1,955

  -2

  1987

  2,151

  +10

  1 Increase/decrease on previous year.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision there is for the General Medical Council or 78
  any other body to ensure that all doctors trained in other parts of the European Economic Community or in non-European Economic Community countries meet standards of professional training equivalent to those laid down by the royal colleges.

  Mr. Mellor
  Under the terms of the Medical Act 1983 the General Medical Council accepts for registration the primary qualifications laid down in EC directives for recognition within member states. The Act also specifies that doctors from non-EC countries must have qualifications which the council can accept as equivalent to those required for United Kingdom registration. The General Medical Council also has a general function to assess which postgraduate EC qualifications are equivalent to United Kingdom counterparts. There are no equivalent formal provisions for doctors who have obtained postgraduate qualifications in non EC-countries, but the medical royal colleges are considering ways of assessing the post graduate qualifications of non-EC doctors applying under their sponsorship schemes.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health in the past five years, whether the General Medical Council has provided him with information regarding the cases that have come before their professional conduct committees; and whether any of these originated from an individual's complaint.

  Mr. Mellor
  The GMC routinely notifies the Department of those cases heard by the professional conduct committee which result in a sanction affecting the doctors registration.

  The minutes of the professional conduct committee are published by the GMC and indicate whether a case originates from an individual complaint.

  Doctors
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what procedures there are to ensure that practising doctors keep abreast with advances in medical knowledge; and to what extent these are controlled by his Department.

  Mr. Mellor
  Every registered medical practitioner is responsible for keeping up to date with medical knowledge appropriate to his or her chosen specialty. We allocate funds for the provision of courses and other educational activities and for the expenses of attending such activities. The content of educational activities is largely determined by the profession itself.

  As the White Paper "Promoting Better Health" states (paragraph 3.48), we propose to introduce a new postgraduate education allowance payable to family doctors who maintain regular programmes of education and training throughout their careers.

  Tonometry and Perimetry
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he proposes to discuss tonometry and perimetry with the professional organisations.

  Mr. Mellor
  We are seeking the views of the professional bodies on the duties to be placed on sight testers as part of our consultations on implementing the optical provisions of the Health and Medicines Act. We shall consider any proposals they may make for conducting an examination of the eye to detect injury, disease or abnormality.

  Glaucoma
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if, in addition to the arrangements he is making for blood relatives of those who have glaucoma to be identified and advised to have an eye test, he will provide for these tests to be free.

  Mrs. Currie
  Yes, the proposals on these arrangements which have been issued for consultation envisage that identified close relatives of those with glaucoma would be given a free eyesight test.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he anticipates any increase or decrease in the numbers of people suffering from glaucoma in the next five years; and which age groups will be most affected.

  Mrs. Currie
  The prevalence of glaucoma increases with age. Due to an increasingly aging population it is likely that the numbers of people suffering from glaucoma will increase in the next five years. The age group most affected will be those over 60.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his estimate of the number of people who go blind from glaucoma as a result of failure to have the disease detected at an early stage.

  Mrs. Currie
  The figures giving the number of registrations due to blindness caused by glaucoma are collated only every 10 years.

  In the year ending 31 March 1981, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 1,149 new blind registrations as a result of glaucoma. We do not have information on how many of these resulted from failure to detect the disease at an early stage. However, people with a close relative who has glaucoma who are themselves over the age of 40 should ensure that they have a regular eye check.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of new cases of glaucoma are detected by optometrists or ophthalmic medical practitioners.

  Mrs. Currie
  We do not hold this information centrally.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many new cases of glaucoma are detected each year on average;

  (2) how many people suffer from glaucoma; and how many of them are being medically treated.

  Mrs. Currie
  I regret that we do not hold information centrally on the number of people suffering from glaucoma, or on the numbers detected each year on average.

  The estimated total number of in-patient admissions treated in National Health Service hospitals in England for glaucoma in 1985, the latest year for which data are held centrally, was 13,510.

  Sight Tests
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his estimate of the effect of charges for sight tests on the numbers of people seeking these tests.

  Mr. Mellor
  The free NHS sight test will continue to be available to nearly 40 per cent. of the population,80
  including those less well off and competition in the optical market should keep any private fees at modest levels. Opticians will determine the level of any fees for those not entitled to an NHS sight test. We believe that people will continue to have periodic sight tests as at present.

  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many eye sight tests are carried out each year under the National Health Service.

  Mr. Mellor
  I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Romsey and Waterside (Mr. Colvin) on 14 November 1988 at column 476 which lists the number of sight tests in the years 1978 to 1987.

  Blindness
  Mr. Ashley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the most common cause of blindness in Britain.

  Mr. Mellor
  The most common cause of registered blindness in England at all ages is degeneration of the macula and posterior pole. For children up to 15 years of age the most common cause is congenital abnormalities of the eye, and for the 16 to 64 group it is diabetic retinopathy.

  Negligence Claims
  Mr. McCrindle
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he has any plans to review the system for dealing with negligence claims; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Mellor
  We have no current plans to review the system for dealing with negligence claims. Negligence is determined in the courts. The civil justice review has examined court procedures. Its recommendations to speed up and to reduce the costs of litigation are under consideration.

  Nurses
  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish a list showing how nurses and midwives were regraded in each district health authority in the Merseyside region and the guidelines used in this regrading exercise; and if he will specify (a) the amount of finance allocated to Southport and Formby health authority and the national average sum allocated to health authorities and (b) the grades awarded to Southport and Formby health authority and those awarded nationally.

  Mr. Mellor
  I refer the hon. Member to my replies to my hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire, Moorlands (Mr. Knox) on 28 November 1988 and to the hon. Member for Warrington, North (Mr. Hoyle) on 2 December 1988.

  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the number of nurses employed within each regional health authority.

  Mr. Mellor
  The overall numbers of nursing and midwifery staff (including agency staff) in each regional health authority at 30 September 1987 are given in the table.
  81

  Nursing and midwifery staff (including agency staff1) England 30 September 1987

  Regional health authority

  Wholetime equivalent2

  England

  404,040

  Northern

  27,540

  Yorkshire

  30,390

  Trent

  37,970

  East Anglian

  15,980

  North West Thames

  27,790

  North East Thames

  34,320

  South East Thames

  30,780

  South West Thames

  23,930

  Wessex

  23,160

  Oxford

  17,180

  South Western

  27,430

  West Midlands

  43,180

  Mersey

  22,020

  North Western

  37,250

  London Post Graduate Special Health Authorities

  5,140

  Source: Department of Health Annual Census of NHS Non-Medical Manpower.

  1Includes all qualified registered and enrolled nurses, midwives, learners and unqualified nursing staff.

  2Figures are independently rounded to nearest ten (10) wholetime equivalents.

  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what instructions have been issued by him to members of employing authorities who formally hear the appeals from nurses arising from the regrading exercise.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  None, except that appeals should not be heard from staff who are not working normally so long as they continue their industrial action.

  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will specify for each region how many nurses have registered a formal appeal within the regional health authority since June:

  (2) if he will specify for each of the last three years how many nurses lodged formal appeals within each region.

  Mr. Mellor
  We do not hold this information centrally.

  Mr. Bernie Grant
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department is monitoring the regrading exercise for nurses, on the basis of racial or ethnic origins; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Mellor
  No.

  Mr. Bernie Grant
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints of racism on the reallocation of the grades for nurses his Department has received; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Mellor
  None.

  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to meet staff side representatives to discuss the negotiations over nurses and midwives and to accept their requests for binding arbitration.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  I am meeting representatives of the Royal College of Nursing today and representatives of the Royal College of Midwives on 7 December. I am not prepared to meet representatives of those trades unions whose members are taking part in industrial action over the current regrading exercise while that industrial action continues.
  82
  I should also make it clear that negotiations over the terms and conditions of nurses' and midwives' employment are a matter for the relevant Whitley council. I cannot take over the role of the Whitley council management side and direct meetings between me and trade union leaders should not be seen as a substitute for Whitley council discussions. In any event, I see no scope for arbitration over the details of a regrading exercise which has now been satisfactorily completed after years of negotiation with trades unions which wanted a new grading structure.

  HIV-2
  Mr. Bermingham
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health when it is expected that a permanent scheme for testing for the presence of HIV-2 antibodies in blood samples will be introduced.

  Mr. Mellor
  I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 2 December.

  Cook-chill Catering
  Mr. Hinchliffe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what charge the public health laboratory service laboratory at Seacroft, Leeds, is proposing to make to the Wakefield health authority for monitoring its cook-chill catering;

  (2) if he will list those members of staff of the Leeds public health laboratory service who advised the Yorkshire regional health authority on the safety of cook-chill catering.

  Mrs. Currie
  We do not hold the information requested.. I suggest that the hon. Member writes to the chairman of the public health laboratory service board.

  Listeria Monocytogenes (Conference)
  Mr. Hinchliffe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if any representative of Her Majesty's Government or the public health laboratory service attended the major conference on listeria monocytogenes at Rohnert Park, California, between 2 and 5 October.

  Mrs. Currie
  No. However, representatives have attended other relevant international conferences.

  Committee on Safety of Medicines
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many of the reports of suspected adverse reactions received by the Committee on Safety of Medicines during 1986 and 1987 were submitted by pharmaceutical companies.

  Mr. Mellor
  In 1986 around 1,700 and in 1987, 1,778.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give a breakdown of the £460,000 spent by the Committee on Safety of Medicines during 1987–88.

  Mr. Mellor
  The expenditure was as follows:

  £

  Members' fees and expenses

  95,000

  Communications with doctors: "Current Problems"

  85,000

  83

  £

  Viewdata

  34,000

  Follow-up of yellow cards

  15,000

  Other means

  9,000

  Other administrative expenses

  25,000

  Contingency Reserve—not spent

  197,000

  460,000

  Note: £29,000 of the reserve originally earmarked for the production costs of a video, "Help Make Medicines Safer"—to encourage doctors to report adverse reactions—was met from another DHSS budget. Reserves were also held in case an urgent safety warning to doctors had been needed.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health on which dates during 1986 and 1987 the Committee on Safety of Medicines met; and how many members were present on each occasion.

  Mr. Mellor
  The committee met on the following dates in 1986 and 1987.

  Date

  1Members present

  1986

  30 January

  20 (3)

  27 February

  15 (1)

  26 March

  17 (2)

  30 April

  16

  29-30 May

  20 (2)

  26 June

  16

  24 July

  19 (4)

  25-26 September

  18 (3)

  23 October

  15

  20 November

  16

  18 December

  17 (1)

  1987

  29 January

  18

  26-27 February

  23 (4)

  26 March

  20

  30 April

  17

  27-28 May

  23 (3)

  25 June

  18

  23 July

  17

  24 September

  17 (2)

  29-30 October

  19 (2)

  26 November

  20

  17 December

  20

  1 For all or part of proceedings.

  Note: The number in brackets is the number of those present who were appointed as temporary members for the meeting in question.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health who is the present chairman of the Committee on Safety of Medicines; who is responsible for the appointment; what is the term of office of the chairman; and if it is renewable.

  Mr. Mellor
  Professor William Asscher BSc, MD, FRCP, dean of St. George's hospital medical school, London. The appointment was made by Health Ministers for a renewable period of three years which expires on 31 December 1989.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many of the current members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines are women; whether he has any plans to increase the number of women members; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Mellor
  One. Officials have invited a number of medical, pharmaceutical and other bodies including the Medical Women's Federation, the Women into Public Life 84
  Campaign and the Women's National Commission, to make suggestions for membership appointments to the committee, as well as to the Medicines Commission, Committee on Review of Medicines and Committee on Dental and Surgical Materials, to serve from January 1990. We will appoint the members we consider best qualified to carry out the committee's statutory functions. The letter inviting names for nomination includes the following:
  "Ministers would be pleased to increase the proportion of women members on these bodies, so women with appropriate expertise and experience would be particularly welcome."
  A copy of the letter has been placed in the Library.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide an attendance record for each of the members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines during 1986 and 1987.

  Mr. Mellor
  The names of the members of the Committee on Safety of Medicines in 1986 and 1987 (a new term of appointment began on 1 January 1987) and their attendance record are given in the table.

  Name of Member

  Meetings Attended

  Possible Attendance

  Professor A. W. Asscher

  21

  22

  Professor T. G. Booth

  8

  211

  Professor A. M. Breckenridge

  21

  22

  Professor C. M. Castleden

  7

  111

  Professor J. G. Collee

  11

  211

  Mr. W. M. Darling

  9

  111

  Professor J. W. Dundee

  9

  111

  Professor P. H. Elworthy

  22

  22

  Professor A. T. Florence

  16

  22

  Professor Sir Abraham Goldberg

  11

  111

  Professor D. G. Grahame-Smith

  10

  111

  Professor M. W. Greaves

  16

  22

  Dr. J. M. Holt

  10

  111

  Professor David Hull

  7

  111

  Professor H. S. Jacobs

  16

  22

  Dr. W. A. Jerrett

  11

  211

  Professor M. J. S. Langman

  9

  312

  Professor D. H. Lawson

  9

  211

  Mr. F. E. Loeffler

  11

  211

  Dr. E. Mayne

  10

  211

  Professor J. O'D McGee

  10

  211

  Professor A. E. M. McLean

  11

  312

  Professor S. R. Meadow

  10

  211

  Dr. S. A. Montgomery

  11

  211

  Professor G. Nuki

  10

  211

  Dr. B. L. Pentecost

  18

  22

  Professor M. D. Rawlins

  19

  22

  Dr. J. W. G. Smith

  6

  111

  Professor M. P. Vessey

  19

  22

  Dr. D. M. B. Ward

  8

  111

  Professor H. K. Weinbren

  10

  111

  1 1986 only.

  2 1987 only.

  3 Member in 1987; appointed for only one meeting in 1986.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he has any plans to increase the budget of the Committee on Safety of Medicines.

  Mr. Mellor
  Budget allocations for 1988–89 are still under consideration.

  Tranquilliser Addiction
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will introduce legislation to enable him to fund local groups formed to combat tranquilliser addiction.
  85
  Mr. Mellor
  My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State has powers under section 64 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 to make grants to voluntary organisations. These grants are usually made to national organisations for their headquarters costs rather than to local bodies.

  Health authorities also have powers to make grants to voluntary organisations. They are responsible for the development of services locally, which may include funding voluntary organisations. We have allocated £9·5 million in the current financial year to regional health authorities specifically for the development of services for those experiencing problems with drugs, including prescribed drugs such as tranquillisers.

  Hypothermia
  Mr. Nigel Griffiths
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give the estimated numbers of people dying from hypothermia and the number of other cold-related deaths for each year since 1980; and if he will outline the steps being taken by his Department to reduce the numbers of such deaths.

  Mrs. Currie
  The numbers of deaths where hypothermia is recorded on the death certificate, either as primary or secondary cause of death, for England and Wales, are as follows:

  Year

  Number of Deaths

  1980

  596

  1981

  685

  1982

  664

  1983

  538

  1984

  555

  align="right"1985

  827

  1986

  837

  1987

  1559

  1988

  2363

  1 Provisional.

  2 Provisional figure, to end of November.

  Many causes of death are cold-related, in that the number of deaths from them increases in winter. However, hypothermia is the only cause that can be directly identified as a cold-related disease from mortality statistics.

  We have again this winter launched the "Keep Warm Keep Well" campaign, in co-operation with Age Concern, Help the Aged and Neighbourhood Energy Action to offer advice on sensible self-help and the help available from statutory and voluntary services. I have sent a copy of the campaign booklet to the hon. Member and placed copies in the Library. Further copies can be obtained by telephoning the winter warmth helpline on 0800 289404.

  Midwives
  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will meet representatives of midwives working in the Merseyside regional health authority's area to discuss their grievances concerning regrading.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  I shall be meeting national representatives of the Royal College of Midwives, including the president and the general secretary, on Wednesday 7 December. I cannot intervene directly in individual grievances which can be resolved by employing 86
  authorities following the agreed appeal process. I suspect that much of the sense of grievance felt by some midwives in Merseyside is caused by misunderstanding of the basis of the grading exercise which the Royal College of Midwives and other trades unions agreed to.

  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether any account was taken of length of service or clinical experience when regrading midwives by the Mersey regional health authority.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  The Health Service trades unions and management agreed that the grading of midwifery posts should be determined on the basis of the duties and responsibilities of postholders at 1 April 1988. The grading definitions reflect the different levels of clinical experience and responsibility called for in different posts and the grades allocated to midwives therefore take account of their clinical skills. Because the agreement entered into by the Royal College of Midwives and the other parties specified that posts and not individuals were being graded, length of service was not taken into account in determining grading.

  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deliveries were carried out by midwives in each of the last five years; and what percentage this is of the total number of deliveries.

  Mr. Mellor
  We do not hold this information centrally.

  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what account is taken when regrading midwives of the training and completion of a certificate in midwifery by practitioners.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  All holders of midwifery posts are required to possess the qualification of registered midwife (RM) and this is the only registrable qualification which is needed to practise as a midwife. Possession of this qualification entitles the holder of a midwifery post to be placed at least as grade D in the new grading structure —agreed by Health Service trade unions and management.

  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many years' experience a midwife needs before she achieves grade G.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  Health Service trades unions and management have agreed that grading should be determined by the duties and responsibilities of the post held by the individual not by the number of years he or she may have spent in midwifery practice. Therefore the grading definitions do not prescribe periods of experience.

  Organ Transplants
  Sir Michael McNair-Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the latest figures for organ transplants in the United Kingdom, organ by organ; and what has been the variation in availability of organs over the past five years.

  Mrs. Currie
  The latest figures provided by the United Kingdom Transplant Service of organ transplants in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1988 to 25 November 1988 are as follows:

  Organs

  Kidneys

  1,500

  Hearts

  255

  Heart/Lung

  93

  87

  Organs

  Lungs

  16

  Livers

  219

  Corneas

  11,336

  1 Estimated figure.

  It is not possible to give precise figures for the variation in availability of organs. However, the number of kidney transplants roughly reflect the variation in donor organ availability. The full-year figures for kidney transplants for the last five years were:

  Year

  Kidneys

  1983

  1,144

  1984

  1,443

  1985

  1,336

  1986

  1,493

  1987

  1,485

  From January 1989, health authorities will be asked to audit all deaths in intensive care in order to assess the number of potential organ donors.

  Foreign Patients (Treatment)
  Mr. Bernie Grant
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Tottenham,Official Report, 30 November, which countries have arrangements which enable them to refer patients for free treatment in the United Kingdom under the National Health Service; what these arrangements are; and why these arrangements do not apply to British dependencies in the Caribbean.

  Mr. Mellor
  There are bilateral health agreements between the United Kingdom and 25 other signatories. Generally these provide only for immediately necessary treatment for conditions arising during the course of a visit. However, seven of these agreements allow for patients to be referred to the United Kingdom specifically for treatment free of charge. The grounds for allowing this vary:for the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Malta and Gibraltar, the referral provision aims to achieve a balance of costs of providing health care to visitors on each side; similar considerations apply in the agreement with Yugoslavia;
  88
  for the USSR, the provision is to enable patients from both countries to benefit from certain highly specialised care;
  for the Falkland Islands, the provision was made to take account of the particular difficulties faced by the islanders in obtaining specialist care following the conflict with Argentina.

  We are not aware of similar considerations applying in the case of residents of the British territories in the Caribbean.

  Mental Illness
  Mr. Goodlad
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list by health regions the mental hospitals which are scheduled to(a) open and (b) close in (i) the current and (ii) the next year.

  Mrs. Currie
  [holding answer 28 November]: The table lists the mental illness hospitals which are, so far as we are currently aware, scheduled to open or close in (i) 1988–89 and (ii) 1989–90.

  Regional Health Authority

  Open

  Close

  Yorkshire

  —

  Broadgate (ii)

  Trent

  —

  St. John's Lincoln (ii)

  North-East Thames

  East Ham Memorial (ii)

  —

  South Western

  Glenside (i)

  Horton Road (i)

  West Midlands

  —

  Powick (i)

  Oxford

  Campbell (ii)

  —

  (i) 1988–89.

  (ii) 1989–90.

CIVIL SERVICE

  Agency System
  Mr. Rowe
  To ask the Minister for the Civil Service whether he can announce any further progress on the setting-up of the agency system.

  Mr. Luce
  Two agencies have been set up, about 30 more have been announced and more are in the pipeline. I shall be making a progress report to the House before too long.