§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the projected costs of 609W creating facilities at Southampton in the event of moving the environmental research vessel support base from Barry.
Mr. JacksonI understand that the Natural Environment Research Council estimates the capital cost of creating the relevant new facilities in Southampton for the research vessel services from Barry and the Deacon laboratory from Wormley at about £21 million over four years at 1988–89 prices. Offsetting savings from land sale receipts and expenditure on work otherwise needing to be committed will total some £11 million.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what budget his Department has allocated in(a) cash terms and (b) adjusted to 1989 prices to the research vessels support service base at Barry for each of the years 1979 to 1988; and what figure is projected for 1989.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many jobs he estimates will be shed at Natural Environment Research Council establishments and vessels during 1989; where these job losses will be located; where any new posts are to be located; and how many of the deleted posts he estimates will be vacated by(a) redundancy and (b) relocation.
Mr. JacksonThe Natural Environment Research Council identified 160 posts, the majority of which were in marine sciences, to be shed during the financial year to 31 March 1989. In consequence, 38 staff will be made compulsorily redundant, the remainder of the posts having been shed through voluntary redundancy. I understand that in 1989–90 further posts will have to be lost; it is hoped to limit these to 60, through voluntary redundancy. The locations of the posts concerned are not yet known.