Written Answers of 2 February 1990

PRIME MINISTER

  EC Membership
  Mr. Hunter
  To ask the Prime Minister if she will make a further statement on the Government's policy about European countries not currently members of the EEC applying for membership of the EEC.

  The Prime Minister
  According to the EEC treaty (article 237), any European state may apply to become a member of the Community. However, we agree with the general view within the Community that—until at least 1993—the emphasis must be on consolidation, not enlargement. The Community's priority must be completion of the single market.

  Mice
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Prime Minister if she will be raising the issue of the European Commission's proposed appointment of a European mouse care expert at the forthcoming European summit; and what assessment she has made of the value of the Commission's encouragement of inter-community trade in mice and rats.

  The Prime Minister
  There is no such proposal. I assume that the hon. Member is referring to a proposal for a Council regulation on animal health conditions governing trade in rodents. These proposals are of real concern as they are relevant to Her Majesty's Government's fight against rabies. The Government's assessment of it was set out in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's explanatory memorandum 9715/89 of 27 November 1989, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

  Football Spectators Act 1989
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Prime Minister what has been the cost to the Cabinet Office of the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989 through Parliament.

  The Prime Minister
  It is not possible to identify separately the cost to the Cabinet Office attributable to this legislation.

  Food Poisoning
  Mr. Michael
  To ask the Prime Minister what split of responsibilities has been decided between the Department of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food regarding areas of overlap in responsibility for problems relating to food poisoning.

  The Prime Minister
  Departmental responsibilities for food safety have not been changed. Food safety is a shared responsibility, as reflected in the Food Safety Bill. Most 364
  food safety regulations are jointly signed by the Secretary of State for Health and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The Department of Health leads on food hygiene and microbiological contamination except in respect of milk production and distribution, hygiene of meat and meat products, and eggs, where the lead is with MAFF. The Department of Health also operates a hazard warning system to deal with emergencies when unfit food poses an immediate hazard to health. MAFF leads on emergency measures under the Food and Environment Protection Act when a pollution incident threatens the food supply and leads on chemical contamination but takes advice on health risks from the Department of Health. There is close liaison between both Departments and consultation with relevant outside interests.

  Transport (Official Duties)
  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Prime Minister (1) how many miles she travelled in 1989 on official business in a motor vehicle;

  (2) when she last travelled on a public omnibus on official business.

  The Prime Minister
  For reasons of practicality and security it is difficult for me to travel by public transport on official business. I do so when a suitable opportunity arises. Information on miles travelled in a motor vehicle is not available.

  Civil Servants (Posts)
  Mr. Dalyell
  To ask the Prime Minister if she will make it her policy to consult all departments before authorising the acceptance of a post by any senior civil servant.

  The Prime Minister
  No. There are well established procedures for dealing with the acceptance of outside appointments by civil servants.

  Projects (Funding)
  Mr. Dalyell
  To ask the Prime Minister what is her policy towards making the offer of funding for a project conditional on the association of a civil servant with that project.

  The Prime Minister
  Public funding for expenditure projects is allocated on the basis of the merits of individual proposals and the need to obtain the best value for money for the taxpayer.

TRANSPORT

  Communications Infrastructure
  Mr. Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the policy of his Department on the provision of future fixed-link improvements in communications infrastructure from(a) public funds and (b) the private sector.

  Mr. Portillo
  In deciding what public funds are to be spent on transport infrastructure, the Government take account of the demands of other areas of Government expenditure; but will increase capital investment where this is justified. The amount of public expenditure provided for investment in rail and national road schemes over the next three years is over 60 per cent. higher in real terms than in the three years up to the end of 1989–90.
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  Although the public sector will for the foreseeable future account for the majority of infrastructure funding, as indicated in "New Roads by New Means", I am always looking to secure the benefits which the private sector can bring in terms of innovation, enterprise and management efficiency. Road infrastructure measures are judged on their individual merits. For example, the M25 Dartford-Thurrock crossing and the Channel tunnel are projects at the construction stage which show how the private sector can make a valuable contribution towards the provision of transport infrastructure.

  Air Traffic Distribution
  Haselhurst
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the reasons for maintaining the air traffic distribution rules which determine priority between classes of air transport carrier using airports in the London area.

  Mr. McLoughlin
  The 1985 White Paper, "Airports Policy", noted that as airports become busier the need may arise for a form of regulation to distribute traffic rationally between the airports of a single system. The present traffic distribution rules for airports serving the London area were made in 1986, following advice from the Civil Aviation Authority. Last July, in response to a request for fresh advice on London air traffic distribution policy, the authority recommended only minor modifications to the existing rules. My right hon. Friend decided not to make those modifications, arid awaits the authority's further and more wide-ranging advice, due this summer, on the adequacy of United Kingdom airport capacity in the longer term.

  Mr. Haselhurst
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has had access to independent legal opinion on the legality under United Kingdom and European Economic Community law of any future rule designed to give preference in slot allocation at Gatwick to scheduled traffic at the expense of charter traffic; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. McLoughlin
  We have no plans to make such a rule, and have sought no advice on how the law might bear on it.

  Wales (Railways)
  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has received any requests for further investment in the valley lines of south Wales.

  Mr. Portillo
  No.

  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has received any representations proposing the re-opening of railway stations and lines in Wales.

  Mr. Portillo
  My right hon. Friend has received a number of such representations. The opening or re-opening of stations or railway lines to passenger services is for the British Railways Board to decide, in the light of the objectives set for it by the Government.

  Pilotage Exemption Certificates (Portsmouth)
  Mr. Barry Field
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to announce a decision on the charges imposed on the use of pilotage exemption certificates at Portsmouth, following the inspector's report conducted by Mr. James Fitzpatrick.

  Mr. McLoughlin
  The inspector has submitted his report to the Secretary of State following the public inquiry held on 17 October 1989. This is now being considered and a decision will be announced as soon as possible.

  Road Building
  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications of the recently announced £12 billion road building programme for(a) atmospheric pollution levels, (b) the greenhouse effect, (c) existing sites of special scientific interest,(d) existing areas of outstanding natural beauty and(e) populations of native flora and fauna; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Atkins
  The Government's road building programme will contribute to reducing pollution and CO2 emissions from vehicles by cutting down on congestion and removing traffic from unsuitable roads and communities.

  Wherever possible, roads are kept away from protected areas such as sites of special scientific interest and areas of outstanding natural beauty. When there is a risk that a proposed scheme will affect such an area it is examined with particular care to establish that a new or improved road is needed, and that the route has been chosen to do as little damage to the environment as possible. Every effort is made to blend the road into the landscape and to take all reasonable measures to minimise any adverse effects, including appropriate measures to preserve flora and fauna.

  Mr. Fearn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if it remains Government policy to match the level of their road building programme with the anticipated level of future traffic demand.

  Mr. Atkins
  Forecasts of traffic demand are an important, but not the only, factor in considering road schemes and programmes. There have always been cases where traffic demand could not be met for economic or environmental reasons. This was set out clearly in "Roads for Prosperity" (Cm. 693, May 1989), which stated in paragraph 27 that"it is not possible or economic to remove all congestion".
  The need for substantial investment on the major inter-urban network remains. This is the basis on which the expanded programme was drawn up. It remains the Government's judgment of what needs to be done.

NATIONAL FINANCE

  USA Budget
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the economic impact on the United Kingdom economy of the proposed United States of America budget.
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  Mr. Ryder
  Assessments of the fiscal position of major trading partners and the consequences for the United Kingdom economy are made routinely as background to the Industry Act forecast.

  Trade Deficits
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of gross domestic product are the trade deficits of the United States of America and of each of the European Community countries, in descending order, for the latest year for which figures are available.

  Mr. Ryder
  Data on trade balances and nominal gross domestic product for the United States and each of the European Community countries are published in the IMF's international financial statistics each month.

  Tobacco Products
  Mr. Parry
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the incidence of taxation of tobacco products in the United Kingdom and in other Economic Community member states; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Ryder
  [holding answer 31 January 1990]: The table shows the combined burden of excise duty and VAT on cigarettes in each of the EC member states. Cigarettes represent over 90 per cent. of the Community market in tobacco products. Information on the incidence of taxation on the other tobacco products (cigars, smoking and chewing tobacco) is not readily available.

  Cigarettes

  Total tax burden on most popular brand

  Country

  ECUs per 1,000 cigarettes1

  Denmark

  137·89

  Ireland

  95·19

  United Kingdom

  90·84

  Germany

  71·39

  France

  51·34

  Netherlands

  50·99

  Belgium

  50·17

  Italy

  44·77

  Luxembourg

  36·84

  Portugal

  32·51

  Spain

  22·79

  Greece

  21·74

  1 Source: EC Commission; as at 1 April 1989.

  Stamp Duty
  Mr. Allan Stewart
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the yield from and cost of collection of stamp duty in the current financial year.

  Mr. Lilley
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]: The latest forecast of receipts from stamp duties for 1989–90 was given in the reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley) on 30 November 1989, (Official Report, column 431–32). The cost of collection is expected to be around 0·3 percent. of those receipts.

  Capital Gains Tax
  Mr. Allen Stewart
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the yield from and cost of collection of capital gains tax in the current financial year.
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  Mr. Lilley
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]: The latest available forecast of receipts from capital gains tax for 1989–90 was given in the reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South-East (Mr. Nice) on 23 January 1990, Official Report, column 622. The cost of collection is expected to be around 1·4 per cent. of those receipts.

THE ARTS

  Museums and Galleries
  Mr. Carrington
  To ask the Minister for the Arts what is the increase in the provision for the maintenance of museums and galleries in the current financial year; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Luce
  The current year's provision for the building and maintenance programmes at the national museums and galleries which I sponsor is £48 million. This represents a real terms increase of 50 per cent. since 1979–80 and an increase of £3 million on the previous year's allocation.

  I announced on 16 November 1989 that this provision will rise to some £64 million in 1992–93. This will bring the total provision for building and maintenance over the next three years to over £180 million.

  Arts Funding (North-West)
  Mr. Thurnham
  To ask the Minister for the Arts it he will meet North West Arts representatives to discuss the implications of the Wilding report on funding of the arts.

  Mr. Luce
  I discussed Mr. Wilding's report with representatives of North West Arts on 23 January.

  Arts Funding
  Mr. Colvin
  To ask the Minister for the Arts when he intends to make a statement on the results of his consultations with the regional arts associations on the Wilding report.

  Mr. Luce
  I shall make an announcement as soon as I have had an opportunity to consider carefully all the responses to Mr. Wilding's report.

  Science Museum
  Mr. Fisher
  To ask the Minister for the Arts (1) what was the income from admission charges at the Kensington site of the science museum for the period October 1988 to October 1989;

  (2) what was the total cost of (a) setting up the admission charging system in equipment and staff and (b) running the admission charging system between October 1988 and October 1989 at the Kensington site of the science museum;

  (3) what were the admission figures at the Kensington site of the science museum for the periods (a) October 1987 to October 1988, (b), October 1986 to October 1987, (c) October 1985 to October 1986, (d) October 1984 to October 1985 and (e) October 1983 to October 1984,

  (4) what were the admission figures for the Kensington site of the science museum for the period October 1988 to October 1989 (a) in total, (b) for those paying the full admission price and (c) for each exempt or partially exempt category.
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  Mr. Luce
  [holding answer 29 January 1990]: I am advised that the estimated number of admissions at the science museum, including outstations, for the years 1983 to 1989 are as follows:

  Year

  Admissions

  1983

  4,784,000

  1984

  4,510,103

  1985

  4,607,852

  1986

  4,824,906

  1987

  4,732,784

  1988

  3,861,433

  1989

  2,607,724

  The staffing and administration of the arrangements for the collection of admission charges at the science museum are matters for the museum's trustees. I understand, however, that not only has the science museum generated a substantial income of just over £1 million from the introduction of admission charges, but has done so with the museum being free of charge, or accessible at reduced rates, to 65 per cent. of all visitors.

  I also understand that the science museum intends to invest its admissions income in improved visitor facilities.

  I shall ask the director of the science museum to write to the hon. Member about the other points raised.

WALES

  Employment Training
  Dr. Thomas
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will identify the relevant costs per head for employment training trainees participating in the programme through training managers that operate nationally and locally in the voluntary sector.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  Information on the cost per trainee in employment training for training managers which are voluntary organisations is not available.

  Training Managers
  Dr. Thomas
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what changes in supplementary grants to local training managers and those that negotiate their supplementary grants with their area office occurred in 1989–90.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  In 1989–90 there has been no change in the range of supplementary grants available to training managers, local or national. Each training manager's level of supplementary grant was reviewed and agreed in contracts for 1989–90.

  School Building
  Mr. Nicholas Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give details of the(a) bids and (b) allocations for capital expenditure in respect of school building for each Welsh local education authority since 1974.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  The information is not available in the form requested. Capital allocations to local education authorities are formula rather than bid-based.

  Capital allocations since 1984–85 are unhypothecated between services. The public expendidure provisions for education capital at an all-Wales level for those years are shown in the table. Figures for previous years were not produced on a comparable basis.
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  Constant1988–89 prices

  1984–85

  37

  1985–86

  37

  1986–87

  38

  1987–88

  44

  1988–89

  46

  1989–90

  48

  Welsh Language
  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the present number of school students that are currently educated through the medium of the Welsh language, in each county education authority in Wales both primary and secondary.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  At September 1988 the number of pupils educated through the medium of Welsh was as shown in the table:

  Primary1

  Secondary2

  Clwyd

  6,674

  2,871

  Dyfed

  15,102

  4,629

  Gwent

  704

  52

  Gwynedd

  18,817

  11,785

  Mid Glamorgan

  6,319

  3,178

  Powys

  1,292

  1,287

  South Glamorgan

  2,621

  986

  West Glamorgan

  3,029

  1,198

  1 Includes full-time part-time pupils in classes taught solely through the medium of Welsh or in classes where some of the teaching is through the medium of Welsh.

  2 Includes pupils in Welsh-speaking secondary schools as defined in section 3(7) of the Education Reform Act 1988.

  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will make it a statutory requirement for all Welsh principal local authorities to publish notices and forms bilingually.

  Mr. Wyn Roberts
  My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has no plans to do so.

  Radiation (North Wales Coast)
  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether the Welsh Office will carry out a detailed study of possible radiation hot spots along the north Wales coast as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Grist
  No. Recent reports that hot spots of radioactivity were detected in north Wales have been investigated by Government scientists and the tests showed that the radiation dose rates were not above background levels.

  Cardiff Bay Barrage
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will place copies in the Library of agreements he reached with Welsh Water in relation to the allocation of unforseeable costs arising from the achievement of new or unexpected water quality standards within the artificial lake to be created by the proposed Cardiff bay barrage, via the K factor, the cost pass-through formula to customers, as distinct from the shareholders;

  (2) what agreement he has reached with Welsh Water in respect of the K factor, cost pass-through mechanism, for

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  any costs involved in meeting new or enhanced water quality standards within the artificial lake created by the proposed Cardiff hay barrage, that are not met by the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation; and if he will publish details;

  (3) what agreements he reached with Welsh Water Cyf, or Welsh Water Authority prior to its privatisation to allocate all unforseeable costs related to water quality standards in the inland lake created by the proposed Cardiff bay barrage to Welsh Water customers through the K factor, the cost pass-through mechanism and not to its shareholders;

  (4) when he reached agreement with Welsh Water Authority or Welsh Water Cyf to allocate any unforseeable costs related to the achievement of new or unexpected water quality standards within the lake to be created by the proposed Cardiff bay barrage to the customers of Welsh Water, through the K factor, the cost pass-through mechanism and not to its shareholders.

  Mr. Grist
  The Cardiff Bay Barrage Bill currently before the House seeks to ensure that any reasonable costs incurred by organisations or individuals as a result of the construction of the barrage that would not otherwise occur are met by the promoters of the Bill.

  The Bill therefore provides that the costs of carrying out necessary works or operations outside the inland bay to maintain prescribed water quality standards in the inland bay will be met by the promoters in the 20-year period following the commencement of impoundment. The period is in line with all other such undertakings in the Bill.

  The cost of works undertaken within the inland bay to maintain water quality will be the responsibility of the promoters.

  These provisions were fully recognised and made known at the time of flotation of Welsh Water. The prospectus set out that expenditure arising from changes to discharge consents resulting from the construction of the barrage to the extent not covered by the promoters would be eligible for consideration by the Director General of Water Services for specific K adjustment in the normal way. These arrangements are described in section 9 of the prospectus, a copy of which was placed in the Library in November 1989.

  Part IV of condition B of the licence appointing water and sewerage undertakers, a copy of which is also in the Library, fully sets out the mechanism by which K may be adjusted.

  Water Supply (Disconnections)
  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the latest figures for the number of people who were disconnected from their water supplies in Wales.

  Mr. Grist
  The information is not available in the form requested. The latest available figures are for 1988–89, when in the Welsh Water Authority's water supply area a total of 1,249 domestic and non-domestic customers were disconnected.

  The figures do not reflect the new procedures that each water undertaker is required to follow before disconnecting domestic customers under their conditions of appointment, which came into force on 1 September 1989.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

  Select Committees
  Mr. Wray
  To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission, what was the total funds made available by the Commission for overseas travel by Select Committees in the financial year 1989–90; how much of this was specifically for European travel; and what are the corresponding figures, for the financial year 1990–91.

  Mr. Beith
  The total funds made available for overseas Select Committee travel in the financial year 1989–90 was £495,980 of which £60,000 was earmarked exclusively for visits to Community countries. The equivalent figure for the financial year 1990–91 is £505,400 of which £100,000 is set aside for travel to Community countries.

  Vote Office Bundle
  Mr. Vaz
  To ask the Lord President of the Council if he has any proposals to reduce the size of the Vote Office bundle.

  Sir Geoffrey Howe
  I have recently received an undertaking from the Chairman of the Accommodation and Administration Sub-Committee that once the Procedure Committee's study of matters affecting the Order Paper is completed and any recommendations for change agreed, the Sub-Committee is prepared to conduct a comprehensive examination of the Vote bundle itself.

  Football Spectators Act 1989
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what is his estimate of the cost to Parliament of the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989; and if he will give a breakdown of these costs.

  Sir Geoffrey Howe
  It is not possible to identify separately the costs arising from the preparation and consideration of any particular piece of legislation.

  Non-smoking Areas
  Sir John Stanley
  To ask the Lord President of the Council whether he will give consideration to the establishment of non-smoking areas in the Westminster Hall canteen, the Strangers Cafeteria, the Harcourt Room and the Strangers Dining Room.

  Sir Geoffrey Howe
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]: The upper part of the Westminster Hall Cafeteria has for some time been designated as a no-smoking area. The crowded nature of the Strangers Cafeteria does not lend itself to the establishment of a no-smoking section. There are no areas in the Harcourt Room or the Strangers Dining Room reserved for non-smokers, but notices displayed in both rooms request diners to refrain from smoking before 1.30 pm at lunchtime and before 9 pm in the evening. No-smoking areas have also been identified for the catering facilities to be established in phase 1 of the new parliamentary buildings. It remains the Catering Sub-Committee's policy to increase the number of no-smoking areas in all its outlets as further opportunities arise.

EMPLOYMENT

  Minimum Wages
  Mr. Tony Lloyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give details of research his Department has commissioned into the minimum wage proposals of the social charter; and if he will place the findings in the Library.

  Mr. Howard
  My Department has commissioned no external research into the minimum wage proposals of the social charter. Officials in the Department have carried out work to estimate the costs of imposing a national minimum wage in Britain. A note explaining the method used has been placed in the Library.

  Training
  Ms. Short
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how much has been allocated since 1987 by the European social fund to each of the Manpower Services Commission and Training Agency training and employment measures; what proportion these allocations represented of total Great Britain European social fund allocations; and what sums have been applied for in 1990, for each individual Training Agency programme.

  Mr. Eggar
  The figures for the European Commission's individual ESF allocations to the Manpower Services Commission, Training Commission and Training Agency for the years 1987 to 1989 inclusive can only be provided at disproportionate cost. The decisions of the European Commission on funding for these years have been placed in the Library.

  The amounts applied for by the Training Agency for 1990 are as follows:

  Programme

  Amount £ million

  Employment Training

  206·17

  Youth Training Scheme

  111·40

  Enterprise Allowance Scheme

  78·32

  Work Related Further Education

  12·50

  Business Growth Training

  14·74

  Mrs. Gorman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to introduce outside consultants to evaluate the effectiveness of the Government's employment training programmes including YTS; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr Nicholls
  There is an extensive programme of research and evaluation covering the full range of the Government's employment and training schemes including YTS. External consultants and researchers play a major part in this programme.

  Tourism
  Mr. Lee
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest estimate of the spend per head of(a) Japanese and (b) North American visitors.

  Mr. Nicholls
  During the first two quarters of 1989 Japanese residents spent an estimated £429 per visit to the United Kingdom. For the same period, residents of North America spent an estimated £456 per visit.

  Mr. Lee
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest estimate that he has of the amount of new 374
  investment under way in the tourism and hospitality industries; and what regional analysis is available of this figure.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The table gives the latest figures published by the English Tourist Board of the amount spent on tourism projects (worth £0·5 million or more) which were completed during the period July to December 1989, and those still under construction on 31 December 1989.

  Tourism investments completed and under construction, by tourist board region

  Tourist board region

  Completed during July-December 1989 £ million

  Under construction on 31 December 1989 £ million

  Cumbria

  —

  73

  Northumbria

  —

  135

  North West

  72

  583

  Yorkshire and Humberside

  38

  631

  Heart of England

  70

  283

  East Midlands

  38

  176

  Thames and Chilterns

  8

  125

  East Anglia

  98

  114

  London

  84

  674

  West Country

  80

  215

  Southern

  37

  172

  South East

  26

  438

  Total England

  551

  3,619

  Mr. Lee
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest estimate that he has of the number of new jobs being created in the tourism and hospitality industries.

  Mr. Nicholls
  Between September 1988 and September 1989, the number of employees in employment in tourism-related industries in Great Britain rose by 44,000 to 1,374,000. In addition, it is estimated from the labour force survey that there were 204,000 self-employed workers in tourism-related industries in spring 1988, 4,000 more than in spring 1987.

  Supplementary Grants
  Dr. Thomas
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what changes in supplementary grants to local training managers and those who negotiate their supplementary grants with their area office occurred in 1989–90.

  Mr. Nicholls
  In 1989–90 there has been no change in the range of supplementary grants available to training managers, local or national. Each training manager's level of supplementary grant was reviewed and agreed in contracts for 1989–90.

  Health and Safety Executive
  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many staff of the Health and Safety Executive in the grade deputy superintending inspector possess formal health and safety qualifications; and what percentage of those in that grade this represents.

  Mr. Nicholls
  There are currently 38 staff in the grade of deputy superintending inspector. All of these have secured the formal qualification awarded on the successful conclusion of the training of a factory inspector; and five (13 per cent.) have additionally an externally validated health and safety qualification.
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  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the Health and Safety Executive directorate of information and advisory services budget for the year 1989–90.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The gross budget for 1989–90 allocated to the directorate of information and advisory services (part of Resources and Planning Division) was £3·9 million. The Health and Safety Commission's planned use of resources was described in its "Plan of Work for 1989/90 and beyond" published on 3 May 1989.

  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what formal qualifications in occupational health and safety are held by the Health and Safety Executive's chief inspector of factories and the three deputy chief inspectors of factories.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The chief inspector of factories and his three deputy chief inspectors underwent the full two-year training programme, concluding in an examination in all aspects of health and safty conducted by the Civil Service Commission, which was the required formal qualification for all inspectors of factories.

  Mr. Andrew F. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the average length of time taken for inspector (specialists), within the technology division of the Health and Safety Executive, to be promoted to the grade principal specialist inspector, for the last year for which figures are available; and what was the average length of time taken in 1978.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The average length of time taken for inspector (specialist) within the technology division of the Health and Safety Executive to be promoted to the grade of principal specialist inspector for the promotion board held in December 1988 was seven years six months.

  Comparable information for 1978 is not available.

  Stroboscopic Light
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if his Department has carried out a recent review of the health and safety implications of flicker or stroboscopic light sources.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The Health and Safety Executive has recently supported a research project undertaken by the Medical Research Council's applied psychology unit in Cambridge which included an investigation into the effects of flickering fluorescent lighting on people working with this type of illumination.

  Dirty Stonework
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information his Department has on health hazards resulting from dirty stonework.

  Mr. Nicholls
  The Employment Department has no evidence of any health hazards resulting directly from dirty stonework.

  Labour Statistics
  Mr. Leighton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information he has as to the number of workers refused employment because of non-membership of a trade union.
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  Mr. Nicholls
  There is no requirement for workers who are refused employment on the grounds of non-membership of a trade union to report such refusals to my Department. In any case, such a requirement would be of limited value. It would not, for instance, provide information which would take account of vacancies filled by way of arrangements to which non-members of unions are denied access. Nor could it take into account those workers who decide not to apply for a particular position because they are aware of the operation of a closed shop.

  British Refugee Council
  Mr. Lester
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make representations to the European Commission in Brussels about the adverse financial effect on the British Refugee Council of delays in making European social fund payments.

  Mr. Eggar
  I understand from the European Commission that the Council's outstanding payments have been authorised and payment can be expected soon.

NORTHERN IRELAND

  Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
  Mr. McCusker
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how may cattle showing symptoms of bovine spongiform encephalopathy were detected and brought to the attention of the Department of Agriculture during 1989; and how many cattle were detected at slaughterhouses and meat plants in 1989.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  During 1989, 54 cattle showing symptoms suggestive of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) were brought to the attention of the Department of Agriculture. Thirty of these were confirmed as BSE cases on post-mortem. Four of the suspect cases were found in the course of routine official inspection of all animals presented at slaughterhouses. Of these only one proved positive.

  Sewage Sludge
  Mr. McCusker
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what tonnage of sewage sludge has been dumped around the coast of Northern Ireland by the Department of the Environment water service during the past five years.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  Complete statistics for 1989 are not yet available but the figures for sewage sludge from water service treatment works which was dumped in the coastal waters of Northern Ireland during the years 1984–85 are as follows:

  Tons

  1984

  310,203

  1985

  326,022

  1986

  285,436

  1987

  309,489

  1988

  291,904

  Concessionary Fares
  Rev. Martin Smyth
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland under what statute transport undertakings in Northern Ireland are able to offer concessionary fares; and what arrangements are made to reimburse them for the cost of such schemes.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  The concessionary fares scheme in Northern Ireland, sponsored by the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland and administered by the passenger transport undertakings, is provided under article 5 of the Transport (NI) Order 1977. The Department reimburses the undertakings on the basis of claims which are subject to audit.

  Rev. Martin Smyth
  To ask the' Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what categories of person are currently eligible for consessionary fares on Ulsterbus, Citybus and Northern Ireland Railways; and what are the numbers in each category who have used concessionary fares in the last year.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  The concessionary fares scheme provides unlimited travel at half fare at all times on all scheduled services by road and rail throughout Northern Ireland for passengers over 65-years-old, children up to the age of 16 years and war disabled pensioners. Registered blind people are entitled to free travel.

  The passenger transport undertakings do not maintain records of the number of people in each category who are entitled to half fare concession. Taken together there were about 17·7 million passenger journeys by public transport at half fare in the last year. There are 1,163 registered blind person passes in issue at present.

  Rev. Martin Smyth
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether consideration was given to including a concessionary travel scheme for disabled people in the draft Transport (Amendment) Northern Ireland Order 1989 similar to that provided for in the London Regional Transport Act 1984; what representations were received on the question of a concessionary scheme for the disabled; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  Article 5 of the Transport (Northern Ireland) Order 1977 already makes satisfactory statutory provision for concessionary travel schemes in Northern Ireland. The draft Order has been given a general welcome. Such representations were not made.

  Transport Consultation
  Rev. Martin Smyth
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what time was allowed by his Department for the submission of views by individuals and organisations on the draft Transport (Amendment) Northern Ireland Order 1989; and if he will list those organisations who submitted their views.

  Mr. Peter Bottomley
  A proposal for a draft Order was published on 20 November 1989. The consultation period ended six weeks later on 29 December.

  Ten organisations responded:

  The Southern Education and Library Board

  The General Consumer Council for Northern Ireland

  Northern Ireland Council on Disability

  Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company

  South Eastern Education and Library Board

  378

  Western Health and Social Services Board

  Northern Health and Social Services Board

  The Royal Ulster Constabulary

  North Eastern Education and Library Board

  Ulsterbus

  Teachers
  Mr. Beggs
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will establish a teaching council representative of teachers in Northern Ireland to work in partnership with Government on professional matters related to the teaching profession and the raising of educational standards.

  Dr. Mawhinney
  I am satisfied that the current arrangements for matters such as the standards of qualifications and entry to the profession and responsibility for teachers' probation and recognition are working satisfactorily. There are no plans for changes of the type suggested by the hon. Member.

  On the general issue of raising educational standards, I look forward to a continuing partnership with the teaching profession to achieve the objectives set out in the Education Reform (NI) Order 1989.

  Non-smokers
  Mr. Amos
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what provisions are being made in all the offices and other places under his Department's control for the convenience and comfort of non-smokers; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy for non-smokers.

  Mr. Cope
  [holding answer 29 January 1990]: The Northern Ireland Civil Service, with the support of the Trade Union Side of the Whitley council, introduced in 1987 a formal policy on smoking in Government premises.

  Under the terms of this policy smoking is specifically prohibited in:

  1. Conference rooms when used for meetings with civil servants;

  2. Training rooms;

  3. Lifts;

  4. Official cars;

  5.Kitchens, other cooking facilities, mess rooms and food stores;

  6. Public counters and security/reception points.

  A mechanism was also established by which, through local agreement, the occupants of buildings could introduce further measures.

  In recognition of members of staff who choose to continue smoking, smoking rooms have been provided in those buildings where smoking at the workplace has been restricted or banned.

  The policy is monitored on a continuous basis.

  With regard to the Home Civil Service element in the Northern Ireland Office, management endorse the ideal of non-smoking as a safeguard to health. However, HCS staff occupy accommodation which is shared with other Government Departments, and it is also difficult to secure extra space for designated smoking areas. Smoking is not permitted in areas such as lifts. The matter is kept under review.

  Educational Maintenance Allowance
  Mr. Hume
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the operation of the educational maintenance allowance and its future.
  379
  Dr. Mawhinney
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]: In August 1988, I announced that I had decided to let the educational maintenance allowance scheme continue to operate in its present form until I had had an opportunity to assess the effects, if any, of changes brought about by the introduction of the new social security benefits in April 1988. This examination is still being undertaken.

  Council for Catholic Maintained Schools
  Mr. Pawsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth will receive a reply to his letter dated 13 December 1989 referring to the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools.

  Dr. Mawhinney
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]: I signed the reply to the hon. Member's letter on 31 January 1990.

SOCIAL SECURITY

  Nursing and Residential Homes
  Mr. Alton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how much has been spent on keeping residents in nursing homes and in residential care homes throughout England and Wales since 1984.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  I regret that the figures are not available in the form requested. The figures as collected for Great Britain are shown in the table:

  Supplementary benefit/Income support Residential care and nursing homes expenditure and caseloads—1984–1989

  Numbers of claimants

  Annual equivalent expenditure (nearest £ million)

  Residential Care Homes (RCH)

  December 19841

  —

  —

  December 1985

  55,000

  259

  February 1986

  70,000

  328

  May 1987

  85,000

  438

  May 1988

  103,000

  556

  May 1989

  119,000

  658

  Nursing Homes (NH)

  December 19841

  —

  —

  December 1985

  15,000

  89

  February 1986

  20,000

  129

  May 1987

  32,000

  233

  May 1988

  44,000

  322

  May 1989

  57,000

  446

  1 Figures for 1984 not collected separately. RCH and NH combined: Claimants 42,000, Annual equivalent expenditure£200 million.

  [Due to the effects of rounding when separating categories, combined figures may vary slightly from previously published totals.]

  Community Charge
  Sir Rhodes Boyson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will provide examples of the effects of community charge benefit on the levels of gross earnings in 1990–91 at which families with children are free of the poverty trap assuming two-parent families with one, two, three and four children, community charge per adult of £200, £300, £400, £500 and £600, and that family credit entitlement is taken up in full.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  I regret that the information requested is not available.
  380
  Mr. Nicholas Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether he has any plans to raise the present upper limit on the amount of capital which may be held by community charge payers before they become ineligible for any rebate; and if he will make a statement.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  We have no such plans. The upper capital limit of £8,000 strikes the right balance between helping those people who need assistance to pay their community charge and protecting the interests of taxpayers.

  Attendance Allowance
  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether he will place in the Library a copy of the latest draft of the proposed claim form for terminally ill persons claiming attendance allowance.

  Mr. Scott
  We intend to put a draft claim form to the organisations involved in the care of terminally ill people and to terminally ill people themselves to ensure that we have found the most acceptable and sensitive form of wording. Once we are satisfied on this point, copies of the form will be placed in the Library.

  Pensioners
  Mr. Soames
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he intends to reply to the hon. Member for Crawley's question for priority answer on 18 January, concerning Her Majesty's Government's policies for caring for pensioners.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  I refer my hon. Friend to my reply given today.

  Mr. Soames
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the past achievements and present objectives of Her Majesty's Government's policies for caring for pensioners.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  [holding answer 18 January 1990]: The Government have always attached the highest priority to the interests and needs of elderly people, and will continue to do so. We believe that our record demonstrates the depth of our commitment in caring for pensioners. We would particularly point to the improving economic circumstances of pensioners brought about by the wide range of successful Government policies aimed at creating a stable economic environment.

  This success led to an increase in average pensioners' total net income of 23 per cent. in real terms between 1979 and 1986. The increases during the same period of the value of income from savings of 64 per cent. and occupational pensions of 56 per cent. are particularly encouraging. This demonstrates the vital importance to elderly people of the economic policies which the Government have pursued, and will continue to pursue. We think it is fair to say that the elderly are not a homogeneous group with wholly common interests and circumstances and our policies recognise this. For example, we are conscious that not all pensioners have benefited from sources of incomes other than their state pension. In recognition of that the package of measures introduced last October directed an extra £200 million towards 2·6 million individuals in greatest need—the less well-off, elderly and disabled pensioners on income

  381
  support and housing benefit. However, many people wish to continue in work beyond pension age and the abolition of the retirement pension earnings rule, also last October, allows them the freedom to choose to do so and receive their pension.

  In addition, many pensioners may benefit from the changes to personal taxation to be made from this coming April.

  These are, we believe, all good examples of the sound policies which have enabled pensioners to share in the increased wealth of the nation.

  Finally, the depth of our commitment may be measured by the levels of spending on the provision of benefits and services for the elderly; spending on social security benefit rose by 24 per cent. in real terms between 1979 and 1989–90; spending on health services for the elderly rose by 29 per cent. between 1978 and 1987 and spending on social services for the elderly rose by 21 per cent. between the same dates. This Government are committed to continuing to look after the interests of elderly people.

  Social Security Claimants
  Dr. Godman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will give for the Greenock and Port Glasgow local offices of his Department the statistical information he has to date regarding the different reasons given by social fund officers for refusals to claimants for(a) budgeting loans, (b) crisis loans and (c) community care grants; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Scott
  [holding answer 25 January 1990]: Provisional figures for the period 9 April 1989 to 31 December 1990 are set out in the table.

  The table gives the number of times that a reason for decision is used by social fund officers for determining a nil award for community care grants, budgeting and crisis loans.

  An application can be refused for more than one reason. The total number of reasons for decision used will be equal to or greater than the number of applications refused. Information on the numbers of applications processed and awarded is available in the Library.

  I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 19 May 1989, (Official Report, column 327–28), which gave the data for April 1988 to April 1989 for these offices.

  Grants Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Budgeting loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Crisis loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Office:

  Port Glasgow 1989–90

  Savings over £500 meet the full cost

  1

  0

  0

  Not in receipt of IS

  n/a

  109

  0

  Not in receipt of IS for 26 weeks

  n/a

  154

  0

  Not in receipt of IS and not likely to qualify

  90

  0

  0

  Item(s) excluded by Direction

  18

  67

  0

  Applicant excluded

  1363

  7

  2

  Applied for less than £30 (not travelling expenses)

  7

  7

  0

  382

  Grants Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Budgeting loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Crisis loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Adjusted amount less than £30 (not travelling expenses)

  2

  6

  0

  Total debt exceeds £1,000

  0

  1

  1

  Previous application and decision for this item

  54

  45

  1

  No serious risk to health or safety

  0

  0

  3

  Inability to repay

  0

  73

  6

  Help available from another source

  5

  7

  2

  Priority too low to meet from the budget

  26

  173

  1

  Alternative available to the whole application

  10

  3

  1

  Loan refused because CCG awarded

  0

  95

  0

  Direction 4 not satisfied

  228

  0

  0

  Others not covered above

  24

  21

  6

  1 Input errors have caused this figure to be inflated.

  2 This information has been collected for two months only. Previously it was included in "Others".

  Grants Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Budgeting loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Crisis loans Number of times a reason for refusal used

  Office:

  Greenock 1989–90

  Savings over £500 meet the full cost

  9

  2

  0

  Not in receipt of IS

  n/a

  233

  0

  Not in receipt of IS for 26 weeks

  n/a

  321

  0

  Not in receipt of IS and not likely to qualify

  148

  0

  0

  Item(s) excluded by Direction

  27

  79

  4

  Applicant excluded

  1

  0

  1

  Applied for less than £30 (not travelling expenses)

  9

  24

  0

  Adjusted amount less than £30 (not travelling expenses)

  3

  23

  0

  Total debt exceeds £1,000

  0

  0

  0

  Previous application and decision for this item

  50

  152

  1

  No serious risk to health or safety

  0

  0

  111

  Inability to repay

  0

  59

  3

  Help available from another source

  2

  3

  2

  Priority too low to meet from the budget

  8

  624

  4

  Alternative available to the whole application

  2

  3

  1

  Loans refused because CCG awarded

  0

  92

  0

  Direction 4 not satisfied

  165

  0

  0

  Others not covered above

  592

  90

  5

  1 This information has been collected for two months only. Previously it was included in "Others".

ENERGY

  BNFL (Contracts)
  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what recent export contracts have been awarded to British Nuclear Fuels plc; and what permissions have been sought by British Nuclear Fuels plc under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 to carry out exports.

  Mr. Baldry
  Within the past two years, British Nuclear Fuels plc has been awarded export contracts amounting to some £80 million for providing a variety of nuclear services including uranium processing and enrichment, design and engineering work, and transport of spent fuel. Following the increase in capacity available to overseas customers for the first 10 years of reprocessing in its thermal oxide reprocessing plant (THORP), the company has also secured orders for over 80 per cent. of this additional capacity. Of these exports only those which involve the disposal of fissile material require approval by the Secretary of State for Energy under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965.

  All exports of nuclear materials, equipment and technology are made within the guidelines set out in the statement by the then Foreign Secretary, James Callaghan, on 31 March 1976 at columns 514–16.

  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether there have been any changes in the arrangements for operating the return to sender options in contracts for reprocessing nuclear fuel from overseas as set out in his answer to the hon. Member for Great Grimsby (Mr. Mitchell),Official Report, 2 May 1986, column 500.

  Mr. Baldry
  There have been no changes to the arrangements mentioned by the hon. Member.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Hoax Alarm Calls (Deaths)
  Mr. Martlew
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of the general public in the past 10 years have been killed; and how many have been injured by vehicles of the emergency services whilst responding to hoax alarm telephone calls.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  One hundred and three police officers in England and Wales were killed in the course of duty during the last 10 years as a result of criminal action or accidents. Details of the circumstances surrounding these deaths are not held centrally. It is not therefore possible to determine whether an officer was killed whilst responding to a hoax alarm telephone call. Details of officers injured on duty are also not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

  Firearms
  Mr. Martyn Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the total number of firearms certificates on issue in England and Wales as at 31 December 1988; and when he will be able to supply detailed statistics in the form previously made available by his Department.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The number of firearms certificates on issue in England and Wales as at 31 December 1988 was 384
  155,468. This information is included in table 2 of the Home Office statistical bulletin, issue 18/89, "Statistics on the operation of the Firearms Act 1968 England and Wales 1988". The bulletin also contains further information about the number of firearms certificates. A copy of this bulletin is in the Library, as are those relating to previous years.

  Boundary Commissions
  Mr. Summerson
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will indicate the matters relating to the boundary commissions on which he is prepared to answer questions.

  Mr. Waddington
  The boundary commissions are independent bodies operating under statute. I answer questions relating to those matters which are my responsibility (for example, making appointments to and meeting the costs of the English and Welsh commissions, and the consideration of their reports) and I will, as appropriate, answer questions relating commonly to all four parliamentary boundary commissions. Customarily I also answer questions seeking information about the commissions' work; this information is in the public domain and is available directly from the commissions. So far as the local government boundary commissions for England and Wales are concerned, I receive reports on electoral arrangements and will answer questions on my consideration of those.

  Burglaries (Rochdale)
  Mr. Callaghan
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many burglaries and attacks on the person there were in 1987 and 1988 in the borough of Rochdale.

  Mr. John Patten
  The information readily available to the Home Office is for recorded crime in the Greater Manchester police force area and is published annually in table 2·5 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales". More detailed information, for areas within Greater Manchester such as Rochdale, is published annually in the report of the chief constable for Greater Manchester. Copies of these publications are in the Library.

  Vice Rings
  Mr. Sillars
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will call for a report from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis as to whether the Metropolitan police have requested assistance from Scottish police in respect of vice rings.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that no such request has been made in recent months.

  Brixton Prison
  Mr. Sheerman
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will ask the chief inspector of prisons to carry out a full inquiry into the recent spate of suicides and deaths in suspicious circumstances in Brixton prison.

  Mr. Mellor
  I refer the hon. Member to my reply to a question from my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Burton (Mr. Lawrence) on 1 February 1990.
  385
  All deaths in prison custody are the subject of a coroner's inquest and any death in suspicious circumstances would be a matter for the police to investigate.

  Drugs
  Mr. Butler
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his best estimate of the current number of(a) opiate abusers and (b) non-opiate abusers in the United Kingdom.

  Mr. Mellor
  Information about the numbers of drug addicts notified to the Home Office in 1988 was published in Home Office statistical bulletin, issue 13/89, "Statistics of Drug Addicts notified to the Home Office, United Kingdom, 1988", a copy of which is in the Library. Notification applies only to certain controlled drugs, mainly opiates, but including cocaine, and many misusers will not have sought treatment and so will not have been notified. The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has estimated that there may be between 75,000 and 150,000 misusers of notifiable drugs in the United Kingdom, and as many again misusing a variety of non-notifiable drugs such as amphetamine (but excluding cannabis) on an experimental or occasional basis.

  Mr. Butler
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number and weight of seizures of(a) cocaine, (b) crack and (c) heroin in each of the last five years.

  Mr. Mellor
  Information about seizures by the police and Customs of cocaine and heroin from 1978 to 1988 was published in table 2.4 of Home Office statistical bulletin issue 30/89, "Statistics of the Misuse of Drugs: Seizures and Offenders Dealt with, United Kingdom, 1988", a copy of which is in the Library. Comparable information is not yet available for 1989.

  Crack is a form of cocaine which was not analysed and reported separately before 1987 and has not, so far, been recorded separately in published statistics. Seizures of crack by the police and Customs and reported to the National Drugs Intelligence Unit since 1987 are as follows:

  Year

  Seizures

  Grams

  1987

  12

  6·7

  1988

  27

  113·7

  1989

  1139

  243

  1 Provisional figures.

  Immigration Policy
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with his European Community counterparts about(a) immigration policy and (b) racism after 1992.

  Year

  Technology

  Computers

  Crowd Control

  1980

  Japan

  Australia

  Saudi Arabia

  1981

  United Arab Emirates

  Kuwait

  Singapore

  Australia

  United Arab Emirates

  1982

  Sri Lanka

  Sweden

  Hong Kong

  Egypt

  India

  Qatar

  Sri Lanka

  386
  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  For details of the most recent of the regular reports to the House on the meetings of immigration Ministers, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Hampstead and Highgate (Sir G. Finsberg) on 20 December 1989 at column 276. As to racism, the Government participated in the joint declaration against racism and zenophobia by the EC institutions in June 1986. A draft resolution, submitted to Parliament as COM(88) 318 Final under a Home Office memorandum in October 1988, is still under consideration.

  Children (Crimes)
  Mr. Hanley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has on (i) the incidence of crime committed by children between(a) the age groups of five to 11 years and (b) 12 to 16 years, (ii) the time at which these crimes are committed; immediately after school hours, during school hours and during weekends and holidays and (iii) an analysis of the crimes committed together with regional variations.

  Mr. John Patten
  The earliest age at which a juvenile can be brought to court in criminal proceedings is 10 years. Information on the number of persons in the age groups 10–13 and 14–16 proceeded against at magistrates courts and the Crown court can be found in the "Criminal Statistics England and Wales 1988", supplementary volumes 1 and 2, tables SI.1(B), S2.1(B) and S1.1(C), S2.1(C), analysed by offence, sex and court disposal. Supplementary volumes 3 and 5 give a further breakdown by police force area, commission of the peace area and petty sessional division. Copies of these volumes may be found in the Library.

  Data on the times and dates when offences occur are not collected centrally.

  Police
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will list for each year since 1979, the countries from Latin America and from nondemocratic states, that have sent delegations of police officers or military to study the police technology, crowd control techniques and computers used by United Kingdom police forces.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The table gives details of all centrally recorded visits by police officers and associated civilian personnel from overseas to study police technology, computers or crowd control techniques since 1980:
  387

  Year

  Technology

  Computers

  Crowd Control

  1983

  Oman

  New Zealand

  Pakistan

  Sri Lanka

  Israel

  Japan

  1984

  Gabon

  Australia

  Australia

  Kuwait

  Zimbabwe

  Singapore

  Canada

  Pakistan

  Oman

  1985

  Greece

  Kenya

  Turkey

  Australia

  Australia

  Japan

  1986

  Indonesia

  Australia

  Canada

  Tanzania

  Australia

  Guyana

  1987

  North Cyprus

  Uruguay

  Zambia

  Mexico

  1988

  France

  Portugal

  France

  Malawi

  Kenya

  Botswana

  India

  West Germany

  Australia

  Belgium

  Hungary

  Netherlands

  Netherlands

  1989

  Brazil

  Israel

  Nigeria

  Spain

  India

  Brazil

  Portugal

  Australia

  Pakistan

  United Arab Emirates

  Saudi Arabia

  Tunisia

  Sri Lanka

  Australia

  Belgium

  Civil Defence Grant Aid
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total amount of civil defence grant aid for(a) staff costs, (b) building works and (c) other costs in the financial years from 1983–84 to 1988–89; what is the projected sum for 1989–90 received by each local authority in south Yorkshire; and if he will express the costs in real terms.

  Mr. John Patten
  Payments of civil defence grant in the financial years from 1983–84 to 1988–89 are not recorded in the form requested, and the information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

  Total grant payments made in cash terms to local authorities in each of the years in question were as follows:

  Year

  £ million

  1983–84

  9·406

  1984–85

  9·170

  1985–86

  11·861

  1986–87

  13·431

  1987–88

  19·740

  1988–89

  21·780

  The projected total grant payment to South Yorkshire fire and civil defence authority in 1989–90, which is based upon information about forecast expenditure provided by that authority in October 1989 and is subject to final scrutiny, is £396,000. Information on grant payments to district councils in south Yorkshire will not be available until later this year.

  Football Spectators Act 1989
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the cost to his Department of the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989 through Parliament.

  Mr. Waddington
  The central staff costs incurred by my Department on the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989 were approximately £80,000. This excludes other costs, which cannot readily be separately identified.

  Nottinghamshire Police Authority
  Mr. Alexander
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what amount of grant has been given to the Nottinghamshire police authority in each year since 1979.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Payments of police grant were made as follows:

  Year

  £

  1978–79

  9,905,741

  1979–80

  12,639,235

  1980–81

  14,822,138

  1981–82

  17,976,392

  1982–83

  20,569,628

  1983–84

  23,731,818

  1984–85

  245,426,033

  1985–86

  23,713,300

  11986–87

  27,248,372

  1987–88

  28,329,014

  1988–89

  30,624,673

  1 The rate of police grant was increased from 50 per cent. to 51per cent. from 1986–87.

  389
  2 In addition to the above payments, Nottinghamshire police authority has received £23,840,404 in special grant arising from additional expenditure incurred in policing the coal strike; the bulk of this was paid in 1984–85.

  Low-alcohol Drinks
  Mr. Beith
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will list the alcohol percentages used for legal definitions of low-alcohol drinks in all those European Economic Community and European Free Trade Association countries which have such definitions.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Information about labelling and licensing practices in these countries is not readily available. I will write to the hon. Member.

  Sentenced Prisoners
  Mr. Bermingham
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the prison population in England and Wales for the latest available date; and how many of those prisoners had been sentenced by(a) a Crown court and (b) a magistrates court; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Mellor
  [holding answer 25 January 1990]On 26 January 1990 there were 46,630 prisoners in prison service establishments in England and Wales.

  Details of sentencing courts are published annually in "Prison Statistics, England and Wales" (table 1.15 of the latest volume, for 1988 (Cm. 825)), copies of which are in the Library. The latest available information is for June 1989 and is given in the table:

  Population under sentence in prison service establishments on30 June 1989: by court sentencing

  Court sentencing

  1Number

  Crown Court

  33,100

  Magistrates court

  3,400

  Other courts

  100

  Not recorded

  1,500

  Total sentenced population

  38,000

  1 Provisional figures.

ENVIRONMENT

  Councillors
  Ms. Walley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about the changes in the Local Government Act abolishing payments for loss of earnings and affecting councillors' allowances, and in particular on their impact on the full participation of elected council members in council business and the implications for local democracy; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  My right hon. Friend has received a number of representations from local authority associations, from local authorities, and from individual councillors about the proposed changes to the system of councillors' allowances. My hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and Inner Cities met the chairmen and leading members of the local authority associations on 25 January to discuss these proposals. Since the meeting he has written to the chairmen of the local authority assocations and offered to consider any modifications to 390
  the proposals—within the basic framework that has already been established—which they are able to agree by 16 February. We are anxious to secure the fairest possible distribution of the total available resources and thereby to ensure that people from all walks of life will continue to be able to serve as councillors without suffering undue hardship.

  Councillors' Allowances
  Mr. Brandon-Bravo
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will bring forward proposals for local authority councillors' allowances to take into account the size of the council; and if he will make a statement;

  (2) whether he will consider introducing greater allowances for elected councillors for those local authorities with populations in excess of 200,000 as against ex-rural district councils; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Knowles
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he will make it his policy in considering changes to the scheme of local councillors' allowances to take account of the special situation of ex-county boroughs;

  (2) whether he will make it his policy to take account in any changes to the scheme for local councillors' allowances of the position of the ex-county boroughs with populations in excess of 200,000;

  (3) whether, in considering changes to the scheme of local councillors' allowances, he has considered the size of population of the local authority area;

  (4) whether, in considering the suggested changes to the scheme of local councillors' allowances, he proposes to distinguish between district authorities with under 100,000 population and those with populations over 200,000.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  In discussions with the local authority associations we have made it clear that if they wish to propose a distribution of the total amounts available to particular types of authority by population bands we shall be ready to consider it. No such proposals have so far been received. However, following a meeting with the chairmen and leading members of the local authority associations on 25 January my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and Inner Cities has offered to consider any modifications to the proposals—within the basic framework that has already been established—which they are able to agree by 16 February. He has indicated that such modifications could be in respect of the distribution of the total resources, and it is open to the associations to propose population banding.

  Mr. Brandon-Bravo
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what allowances are available to elected members of(a) district councils in rural areas and (b) county boroughs; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  All councillors, whatever the type of authority, are currently entitled to either attendance or financial loss allowance, and travel and subsistence allowances, in respect of approved duties at a rate set by the authority, subject to maxima prescribed by the Secretary of State. In addition, a council may pay special responsibility allowances within prescribed maxima, which vary according to the type of authority and the population of its area.

  Building Maintenance (Tenders)
  Mr. Thornton
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing for each metropolitan local authority the number of tenders received in 1989 for day-to-day building maintenance contracts from(a) local authority direct labour organisations and (b) private building contractors.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  This information is not available. Local authorities are not required to provide details of these tenders to my Department.

  Canals and Waterways
  Mr. O'Brien
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what grants from his Department are available to voluntary organisations to help with the work of restoring canals and waterways; and if he will make a statement;

  (2) what grants his Department has made to local authorities for help in restoring canals and waterways; what is the total amount of each grant; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  [holding answer 29 January 1990]Derelict land grant may in certain cases be paid to both public and private sector bodies; including voluntary organisations towards the cost of canal and waterway restoration. It is normally available only where the work forms part of a wider reclamation scheme and is limited to the reclamation element in the restoration scheme. The Department has made derelict land grant available to local authorities for water-related reclamation schemes, but it is not possible to distinguish the amounts of grant paid in respect of the canal or waterway involved.

  Grants may also be made to voluntary organisations under the Department's special grants programme towards their management costs.

  Under the urban programme grant is paid to local authorities in support of a wide range of projects. In 1988–89 grant-eligible expenditure of £796,029 was approved to help with restoring canals and waterways.

  Grants from the European regional development fund (ERDF) are available through the Department for infrastructure schemes in assisted areas where the cost of the works is wholly or substantially financed by public authorities. Work undertaken by a voluntary organisation may be eligible depending on whether its obligations to carry out such works are incorporated in its articles of association or trust deeds.

  Local authorities also have power in section 114 of the Transport Act 1968 to assist the maintenance or improvement of any inland waterway in or near their area.

  Radioactive Waste Conference
  Dr. Thomas
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if his Department will be(a) represented or (b) presenting a paper at the radioactive waste conference to be held at the Gloucester hotel, London, on 5 and 6 February.

  Mr. Trippier
  The Department will be represented at the conference by three officials from Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution. The head of HMIP's northern region will present a paper on the regulation of radioactive waste in the United Kingdom.

  Football Spectators Act 1989
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the cost to his Department of the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989 through Parliament.

  Mr. Moynihan
  The central staff costs incurred by my Department on the introduction and passage of the Football Spectators Act 1989 were approximately £130,000. This excludes ministerial and other costs which we are unable to identify separately.

  Chemicals (Clearance and Control)
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has any plans to review the clearance of and controls on existing chemicals.

  Mr. Trippier
  The Department of the Environment and the Welsh Office published a consultation paper on statutory powers to evaluate and control the environmental hazard of existing chemicals in April 1989. The Secretary of State for the Environment announced on 20 December 1989 that further provisions on the control of chemicals forming a legal framework for the evaluation of potentially harmful effects on human health or the environment would be introduced in the Environmental Protection Bill.

  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to introduce a benign list clearance system for new chemical substances.

  Mr. Trippier
  New chemical substances are subject to the provisions of the Notification of New Substances Regulations 1982 which implement European Communities directive No. 79/831/EEC. The regulations require that specified information on the properties and use of new substances is provided to the Department of the Environment and the Health and Safety Executive. The information is evaluated to assess any potential risk to man or the environment resulting from the use of the substance and where necessary appropriate action is taken.

  Badgers
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to make provision for the protection of badger setts.

  Mr. Trippier
  It is an offence to destroy a badger sett if badgers may be unavoidably killed or injured as a result. A recent survey has shown that the badger is not under threat of extinction, not likely to become so and there are therefore no conservation grounds for extending the already substantial degree of protection afforded to badgers to the badger sett.

  Marine Nature Conservation
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what arrangements he intends to make for the completion of a marine nature conservation review.

  Mr. Trippier
  The marine nature conservation review is a long term programme to provide a descriptive framework of British marine ecosystems and is being
  393
  conducted by the Nature Conservancy Council. This review commenced in 1987 and the Nature Conservancy Council has always envisaged that it would take 10 years to complete. I am satisfied with the Nature Conservancy Council's arrangements for its completion, although it is for the council to decide where its priorities lie.

  Water Supply (Disconnections)
  Ms. Harman
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the latest figures for the number of people who were disconnected from their water supplies in England.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  The latest available figures are for 1988–89, when a total of 13,967 domestic and non-domestic customers in England were disconnected for non-payment of charges. The figures do not therefore reflect the new procedures which each water company is required to follow, under their conditions of appointment, before disconnecting domestic customers.

  Water Meters
  Mr. O'Brien
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will withdraw the £240,000 payment by the Government to the compulsory meter trial in the Normanton constituency in view of the statement made by Sir Gordon Jones, chairman of Yorkshire Water, that domestic metering of water may not now take place; and if he will make a statement;

  (2) what assessment he has made of the value for money of the Government's 50 per cent. contributions to South Normanton in the light of the announcement that meters may not be used in Yorkshire for assessing water charges for domestic customers; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  [holding answer 1 February 1990]I understand that, although Sir Gordon Jones has expressed a personal preference for charging domestic customers on the basis of a flat rate charge in the future, the board of Yorkshire Water has made no decision as to a future method of charging to replace charging by rateable values. Whatever method of charging is adopted by Yorkshire Water, it will not affect the Government's decision to contribute towards the cost of the South Normanton trial, which, together with the other metering trials, will provide information to the Director General of Water Services and the water industry generally on a wide range of metering issues. The Government consider that the lessons learnt from all of the trials will help ensure that those companies who decide to adopt metering in place of charging by rateable values will do so cost effectively and with the least inconvenience to customers.

  Mice
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what facilities he intends to provide for the European Community Commission's European mouse care expert in order to facilitate his work in this country.

  Mr. Gummer
  I have been asked to reply.

  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to his related questions today.

EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

  Student Loans
  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many representations he has had regarding student loans and the effect they might have on those students studying four and five year courses such as medicine.

  Mr. Jackson
  We have received some 5,100 letters about top-up loans, including many referring to long courses and many supporting the principle that students should contribute towards their own living costs.

  Mr. Livsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has been in further correspondence with the banks since they pulled out of the student loans scheme.

  Mr. Jackson
  There has been no correspondence with the banks since the transfer of ownership of the Student Loans Company.

  Foreign Language Students
  Mr. Viggers
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the number of students pursuing (a) a degree, (b) an A-level and (c) a GCSE, or nearest appropriate equivalent, in (i) French, (ii) German, (iii) Spanish, (iv) Portuguese, (v) Italian, (vi) Japanese, (vii) Chinese and (viii) Russian for 1970, 1975, 1980 and 1985 and any estimate he has for 1990.

  Mr. Jackson
  The available information is given in the tables.

  (1) Universities in Great Britain Numbers of full-time first degree students on courses

  Academic year beginning

  19721

  1975

  1980

  1985

  1988

  French

  3,583

  3,668

  4,296

  3,501

  3,256

  German

  1,810

  1,729

  1,853

  1,552

  1,521

  Italian

  259

  241

  274

  245

  273

  Spanish

  637

  516

  539

  461

  510

  Portuguese

  2

  7

  9

  10

  1

  Russian

  633

  519

  403

  497

  527

  Chinese

  119

  124

  133

  259

  304

  Japanese

  36

  35

  38

  67

  82

  1 Earliest year available.

  (2) Public sector Numbers of full-time and part-lime first degree students on courses1

  As at November

  1970

  1975

  1980

  1985

  1988

  French

  116

  193

  291

  559

  725

  German

  29

  75

  117

  204

  164

  Italian

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  1

  Spanish

  38

  56

  154

  221

  270

  Portuguese

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  Russian

  46

  69

  61

  69

  98

  Chinese

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  50

  Japanese

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  nil

  1 England and Wales in 1970 and 1975. England only for 1980,1985 and 1988.

  395

  (3) School leavers in EnglandExamination attempts at A-level

  Thousands

  Academic years

  1976–771

  1979–80

  1984–85

  1987–88

  French

  19·4

  20·4

  18·8

  15·4

  German

  6·7

  7·4

  6·8

  5·8

  Italian

  0·5

  0·4

  0·3

  0·4

  Spanish

  1·9

  2·1

  2·1

  1·7

  Portuguese

  Not known

  Russian

  0·4

  0·3

  0·3

  0·3

  Chinese

  Not known

  Japanese

  Not known

  1 Earliest year available.

  (4) School leavers in England Examination attempts at GCSE1, 0-level and CSE

  Thousands

  Academic years

  1976–772

  1979–80

  1984–85

  1987–88

  French

  217·6

  239·9

  254·1

  229·6

  German

  54·8

  66·1

  70·5

  64·4

  Italian

  2·0

  2·6

  2·1

  1·8

  Spanish

  12·2

  14·1

  14·2

  13·9

  Portuguese

  Not known

  Russian

  2·1

  1·6

  1·4

  1·2

  Chinese

  Not known

  Japanese

  Not known

  1 Including GCSE from 1987–88.

  2 Earliest year available.

  Schools (Information)
  Mr. Hardy
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if head teachers are not now required to submit precise information in regard to educational provision under the 1989 Information Regulations; and why detailed questions are presented;
  (2) if he will advise head teachers that there is no need for them to provide particularly precise information when responding to the 1989 Information Regulations;

  (3) what is his estimate of the time which head teachers will need to devote to provide a response to the 1989 Information Regulations concerning the submission of statistical information regarding educational provision in their schools;

  (4) what is his policy on whether head teachers should respond with a broad brush when submitting information concerning educational provision under the 1989 Information Regulations.

  Mrs. Rumbold
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley) on 29 January at column 31

  BNFL (Sponsorship of University Appointments)
  Mr. Dalyell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the university appointments currently sponsored by British Nuclear Fuels plc.

  Mr. Jackson
  This information is not collected by the Department.

  Cash Limits
  Mr. Hanley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether there are any changes to the cash limits for his Department's votes.
  396
  Mr. MacGregor
  The cash Limit for XII, vote 5 will be increased by £1,489,000 from £815,875,000 to £817,364,000.A total of £1,191,000 of the increase reflects the take-up of the entitlement to carry forward capital underspend under the end-year flexibility arrangement,as announced by my right hon.Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 20 july 1989.A total of £548,000 of the increase reflects an adjustment to the level of grant following an administrative error in the payment of 1988–89 grant to the Science and Engineering Council.Increased expenditure on fees paid under the Animals(Scientific Procedures)Act 1986 accounts for a further £4,000.

  These increases are offset by a reduction of £254,000 in the grant to the Agricultural and Food Research Council(AFRC) to the Institute of the Plant Science Research following the institute's retention of proceeds from the sale of the Plant Breeding Institute

SCOTLAND

  Social Security Benefit
  Mr. Jack
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of the Scottish population of 16 years and over receive any form of social security benefit payment or pension; and if he will make a statement containing numerical information on this matter.

  Mrs. Gillian Shephard
  I have been asked to reply.

  In 1988 about 2·5 million adults in Scotland (65 per cent.) were in receipt of some form of social security benefit. This figure includes both partners of all couples in receipt of benefit but excludes dependent young people aged 16 to 18 as well as children under 16. The total includes about 1·1 million adults in families receiving child benefit and about 800,000 pension recipients.

  Source Administrative Statistics and the Family Expenditure Survey.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

  Family Law
  Mr. Robert G. Hughes
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party intends to report its interim deliberations for consultation.

  Mr. Key
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party intends to report its interim deliberations for consultation.

  Mrs. Fyfe
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party intends to report its interim deliberations for consultation.

  The Attorney-General
  The role of the family law and administration working party is to oversee and where necessary co-ordinate advice to Ministers on matters within the announced rolling programme to review family law and administration. Accordingly it is not expected itself to publish reports or consultation documents.

  Mr. Day
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the rolling programme of family law reform promised in the later stages of the Children Act 1989.
  397
  Sir George Young
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the rolling programme of family law reform promised in the later stages of the Children Act 1989.

  Mr. McAvoy
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the rolling programme of family law reform promised in the later stages of the Children Act 1989.

  The Attorney-General
  The Government's rolling programme of review of family law and its administration includes:

  (a) implementation of the Children Act 1989, including a review of court procedures;

  (b) consideration of the Law Commission's report on divorce when it is received and with it the future provision of conciliation and reconciliation services;

  (c) consideration of the law relating to financial provision in family cases;

  (d) consideration of the Law Commission's report on domestic violence and rights to occupy the family home when received;

  (e) the future provision and organisation of the services which provide independent and expert advice to the courts in family proceedings or which provide representation for the child or his interests; and

  (f) consideration, in the light of other changes, of the jurisdiction of the courts in family matters.

  The Government have set up an interdepartmental working party, the family law and administration working party, to oversee and, where necessary, to co-ordinate advice to Ministers on implementation of the Children Act 1989 and matters falling within the rolling programme.

  Mr. Rowe
  To ask the Attorney-General if the family law and administration working party is considering the future of welfare and conciliation services; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Gregory
  To ask the Attorney-General if the family law and administration working party is considering the future of welfare and conciliation services; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Squire
  To ask the Attorney-General if the family law and administration working party is considering the future of welfare and conciliation services; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Doran
  To ask the Attorney-General if the family law and administration working party is considering the future of welfare and conciliation services.

  The Attorney-General
  The role of the family law and administration working party is to oversee and where necessary co-ordinate advice to Ministers on matters within the announced rolling programme to review family law and business. Work is in hand in the responsible Departments on the future of welfare and conciliation services but it is too early to say what the results may be.

  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party last met; and what matters were discussed.

  Mr. Hayes
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party last met; and what matters were discussed.

  Mr. Vaz
  To ask the Attorney-General when the family law and administration working party last met; and what matters were discussed.
  398
  The Attorney-General
  The family law and administration working party last met in November 1989, when it discussed the parliamentary passage of the Children Bill and progress towards the Bill's implementation, including training in the handling of children's cases.

  Mr. French
  To ask the Attorney-General if he has any proposals to increase the rate at which divorce hearings and child custody hearings are processed.

  The Attorney-General
  It is the aim of the Government that child custody cases should be processed expeditiously. When the Children Act 1989 comes into force it will re-emphasise the importance of avoiding delay in determining any issue relating to the upbringing of a child and will facilitate the imposition of timetables in such proceedings.

  Mr. French
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will introduce legislation to provide for indexing of maintenance payments in divorce proceedings to the retail price index.

  The Attorney-General
  No. The Government are, however, reviewing the arrangements for assessing, collecting and enforcing maintenance payments; and means of keeping the levels of maintenance awards up to date is one of the major aspects being addressed.

  Mr. French
  To ask the Attorney-General what information he has on the length of time taken to process(a) divorce hearings and (b) child custody hearings; and if he will make a statement.

  The Attorney-General
  The length of time a divorce hearing or child custody hearing takes from application to completion is subject to several factors, including the action of the parties.

  The only measurement of time recorded is the interval between a request from the parties for a hearing, or at the instigation of the court, and the next date with sufficient time available to hear the case. It is not possible to distinguish between divorce or child custody hearings and other civil cases.

  Mr. Waller
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the future of welfare services and their role in resolving matrimonial disputes.

  The Attorney-General
  I refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I have given today to the questions on the rolling programme of family law reform.

  Mr. Ian Bruce
  To ask the Attorney-General when proposals from the family law and administration working party on the future of welfare and conciliation services will be available for consultation.

  Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones
  To ask the Attorney-General when proposals from the family law and administration working party on the future of welfare and conciliation services will be available for consultation.

  Mr. Graham
  To ask the Attorney-General when proposals from the family law and administration working party on the future of welfare and conciliation services will be available for consultation.

  The Attorney-General
  The role of the family law and administration working party is to oversee and where
  399
  necessary co-ordinate advice to Ministers on matters within the announced rolling programme to review family law and administration. Accordingly it is not expected to publish reports or consultation documents. Work is in hand in the responsible Departments on the future of welfare and conciliation services but it is too early to say what the results might be.

  Mr. Paice
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the future of the conciliation services.

  Mr. Devlin
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the future of the conciliation services.

  The Attorney-General
  I refer my hon. Friends to the answer I gave on 29 January at column 27.

  Divorce Laws
  Mr. Nicholas Bennett
  To ask the Attorney-General what plans have been formulated for a reform of the divorce laws; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Knapman
  To ask the Attorney-General what plans have been formulated for a reform of the divorce laws; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Vaz
  To ask the Attorney-General what plans have been formulated for a reform of the divorce laws.

  The Attorney-General
  The Law Commission is reviewing the law of divorce and is expected to report later this year. It would be premature to reach any conclusions until its proposals have been considered in detail.

  Crèches
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will list by location where crèche facilities are provided for working mothers employed in his Department; and if they have to make any payment for this service.

  The Attorney-General
  Crèche facilities are not provided at the legal secretariat to the Law Officers or the Serious Fraud Office. The Crown prosecution service is encouraging the establishment of crèche facilities where this is justified by demand and local CPS offices are encouraged to co-operate with other Departments. The Treasury Solicitor's Department provides accommodation in Queen Anne's chambers for a holiday play scheme, run in conjunction with the Cabinet Office, and which offers 32 places for five to 12-year-olds. A payment of £5 per day per child is required for this service. The Treasury Solicitor's Department is actively considering a crèche and hopes to establish such facilities in conjunction with the Charity Commission when its property division relocates to Taunton in August 1991.

  Welfare Services
  Mr. McCartney
  To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the future of welfare services and their role in resolving matrimonial disputes.

  The Attorney-General
  I refer the hon. Member to the answer which I have given today to the questions on the rolling programme of family law reform.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  Local Government Pensioners
  Mr. Andrew Bowden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received concerning the level of pensions paid to retired Kenya local government officers.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We have received representations on behalf of retired Kenya local government officers on a number of occasions, both from the retired officers themselves and through hon. Members.

  Mr. Andrew Bowden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will estimate the cost of extending United Kingdom pension increase arrangements to(a) all expatriate local government pensioners and (b) local government pensioners formerly employed in Kenya.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We do not hold sufficient information about these groups of pensioners to enable us to provide meaningful estimates.

  Mr. Andrew Bowden
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans his Department has to assume responsibility for pensions paid to retired Kenya local government officers.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  None. I refer my hon. Friend to the answer which my right hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development gave him on 16 January.

  Ethiopia
  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the Government's policy on giving(a) emergency famine relief to Ethiopia and (b) assistance for long-term development.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We shall continue to respond generously to the renewed threat of famine in Ethiopia and the hon. Member will be aware of the most recent commitment of relief aid announced by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development on 31 January at column 189 As to the question of assistance for longer-term development, the Government's policy remains as stated in their observations (column 432) on the report of the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs on famine in the Horn of Africa and, in particular, in the response (page 6) to the recommendations contained in paragraph 101 of the report.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will give details of the £0·7 million provided for food-growing programmes in Ethiopia referred to by the Minister for Overseas Development on 29 January,Official Report, column 16; and whether the Government will support agricultural rehabilitation programmes in Ethiopia, sponsored by British voluntary agencies.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  The figure stated by my right hon. Friend represents anticipated expenditure in the current financial year against overall commitments totalling £2·6 million in respect of four community-level, agricultural rehabilitation and development projects being implemented by British non-governmental organisations
  401
  (CARE Britain, Farm Africa and SOS Sahel) and a commitment of up to £400,000 in respect of a research project designed to produce improved strains of teff (an indigenous cereal crop). Two further NGO proposals are under consideration and we remain ready to consider any others which may be submitted.

  Development Assistance
  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was United Kingdom official development assistance as a percentage of gross national product for each year from 1979 to 1989; what is the estimated percentage for 1990; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  United Kingdom official development assistance as a percentage of gross national product for each year from 1979 is given in the table. The figure for 1989 is not yet available, nor is an estimate for 1990.

  Net overseas development aid as percentage Gross National Product

  Year

  Per cent.

  1979

  ·51

  1980

  ·35

  1981

  ·42

  1982

  ·37

  1983

  ·35

  1984

  ·33

  1985

  ·33

  1986

  ·31

  1987

  ·28

  1988

  ·32

  Source British Aid Statistics.

  Arms Exports
  Mr. Hardy
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action he will take in order to implement the resolution on arms exports unanimously adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in September 1989.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We already apply stringent licensing controls to all proposed arms exports; the sale of equipment judged likely to be used for internal repression, for example, would not be allowed. We are now taking part in the United Nations study group promoting transparency in international transfers of conventional arms, which had its first meeting in New York on 22 to 26 January.

  PHARE
  Ms. Quin
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on British involvement in the Poland and Hungary Assistance for Economic Restructuring, PHARE, programme with reference to that priority sector of the programme which concerns environmental issues.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  We strongly support the work of the Group of 24 in providing co-ordinated help to Poland and Hungary, under the chairmanship of the European Commission. The European Community has so far provided £210 million for aid to Poland and Hungary in 1990, some £35 to £50 million of which has been earmarked for expenditure on the environment. United Kingdom experts participated in two recent fact-finding 402
  missions to Poland and Hungary to assess environmental priorities in those two countries. Proposals based on their reports are in preparation. We shall continue to urge that resources and expertise are deployed according to a scientifically based assessment of those countries' needs.

  Ivory
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a further statement on how the existing 600-tonne stock of ivory in Hong Kong was acquired.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  Hong Kong's ivory stock was acquired in the normal process of trade. Most was imported in the raw form from all major sources, either directly or through intermediaries.

  Hong Kong
  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much elephant ivory and rhino horn has been seized by the authorities in Hong Kong during the last six months.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]In the last six months, the following has been seized by the authorities in Hong Kong:

  Number of seizures

  Quantity

  Elephant ivory

  27

  2·16 tonnes

  Rhino horn

  2

  21·2 kilogrammes

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much ivory has been exported from Hong Kong in the last six months; to which countries it was exported; and how much of such ivory was(a) worked and (b) raw.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]Since 1 June 1989, Hong Kong has exported 4·8 tonnes of worked ivory and 50 tonnes of raw ivory. The principal destinations were China, Macau, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, India, Thailand, South Korea, the Federal Republic of Germany and Mexico.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if all the current ivory stock in Hong Kong is marked and registered in accordance with CITES requirements.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]All ivory stock in Hong Kong that may be traded is marked and registered in accordance with CITES requirements.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give details of the steps being taken by the Hong Kong authorities to monitor the disposal of the ivory stocks which can be traded during the next six months.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]All traders are required to take out possession licences for all commercial ivory and personal effects in excess of 5 kg. Details of stocks are entered into the computer data base of the CITES management authority. The authority has to be notified of transfers of stocks between traders and their stock balance is varied accordingly. An export licence is required for any trader to export ivory, either in raw or in
  403
  worked form. An export licence will be granted to the trader only if the ivory in question is from the trader's legally registered stock from CITES approved sources and the destination of the export is not a CITES party which exercises a ban on ivory imports.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has as to whether all the current ivory stock in Hong Kong was legally acquired.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]: The Hong Kong authorities have inspected all the ivory stocks in the territory. They have found no evidence that the stocks were illegally acquired.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the exact current stock of ivory in Hong Kong which may be traded in the next six months; and how much of it is(a) worked and (b) raw.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]: The current stocks of ivory in Hong Kong that may be traded in the next six months are 104 tonnes of worked ivory and 254 tonnes of raw ivory.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what will happen to that Hong Kong ivory not disposed of by the end of the six months exemption to the current trade ban.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 22 January 1990]: Under the CITES ban, all commercial exports of ivory will cease. Ivory not disposed of by the end of the six months exemption period could not be legally exported as no licence for this would be issued by the Hong Kong authorities. It will remain in Hong Kong.

  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs where the legally held ivory in Hong Kong came from.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 30 January 1990]: The Hong Kong authorities believe that Hong Kong stocks are likely to include ivory originating from all major sources, either directly or via intermediary countries.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the shipment records of Hong Kong ivory recently given an exemption from the ivory trade ban will be open to inspection by the public.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 29 January 1990]: Commercial documents such as bills of lading and export licences are not open to public inspection.

  Mr. Tony Banks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Hong Kong authorities have received from the ivory trade to extend the six-month exemption on the sale of ivory.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  [holding answer 29 January 1990]: No representations have been received since the exemption was announced.

  EEC Overseas Territories
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the names and populations of overseas territories of members 404
  of the EEC; if he will futher indicate what plans there are to allow persons from such territories the right of abode within the EEC; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Maude
  [pursuant to his reply, 22 January 1990, c. 527–28]: The following additions should be made to the list of United Kingdom dependent territories:

  Territories

  Numbers and Year

  Pitcairn

  56 (1989)

  Ascension (Like Tristan Da Cunha, adependency of St. Helena)

  No indigenous population

DEFENCE

  Defence Expenditure
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his latest information on defence budget reductions(a) proposed and (b) implemented by (i) the United States of America, (ii) Hungary, (iii) NATO as a whole and (iv) the Warsaw pact as a whole.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  Member states of NATO report their budgetary plans each summer in their response to the NATO defence planning questionnaire. The plans reported in 1989 generally provided for budget increases. We expect the plans reported by the United States in 1990 to reflect the Administration's proposals now before Congress for reductions in defence spending over the next five years.

  With the exception of Romania, all Warsaw pact countries have announced reductions in defence spending and there is evidence that these reductions are being implemented. Hungary, whose contribution to total Warsaw pact defence expenditure is very small, announced a reduction of about one quarter in its defence budget for 1989.

  Mr. Harry Greenway
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has made any estimate of the likely increase or decrease in expenditure of(a) North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and (b) Warsaw pact countries over the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  The plans reported last year to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation by member states generally provided for modest real increases in defence expenditure in the years immediately ahead. All Warsaw pact countries, with the exception of Romania, announced cuts in defence expenditure in 1989 to take effect in that and subsequent years. We are monitoring the implementation of these announcements.

  Mr. Rathbone
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what additional review of defence expenditure he is carrying out in the light of developments in Warsaw pact countries.

  Mr. David Nicholson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what evaluation he has made of the implications of developments in eastern Europe for United Kingdom defence spending.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  There are no plans to reduce defence expenditure.

  British Army of the Rhine
  Mr. Butler
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of(a) the capital costs and (b) the revenue savings of reducing the number of men in the British Army of the Rhine.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  We have no current plans to reduce the number of men in the British Army of the Rhine, and it is not our practice to speculate on hypothetical possibilities concerning future force levels.

  Ambulance Service
  Mr. Skinner
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the cost of the armed services covering civilian ambulance services.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  Up to 31 December 1989 extra costs in the region of £1·9 million have been reported for recovery by the Ministry of Defence from the Department of Health, the Scottish Home and Health Department and the Welsh Office.

  Skye Toll Bridge
  Mr. Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the stipulations which his Department has imposed upon the design of the proposed Skye toll bridge and the reasons for so doing.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  My Department has asked that the bridge should have a minimum height clearance of 34 m above mean high water springs, or 36 m if a tidal gauge is installed. This is to ensure that the channel can be used by ships of up to and including destroyer or frigate size as well as by the vessels of the Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service, which regularly use the channel en route to the range at Raasay.

  Britannia
  Mr. Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the clearance height required by the royal yacht Britannia.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  The royal yacht requires a clearance of approximately 130ft (39·62m), or 122ft (37·18m) if the mast is "scandalised".

  Mr. Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the number of occasions in each of the past few years on which the royal yacht Britannia has passed through the Kyles of Lochalsh.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  The royal yacht has passed through the Kyles of Lochalsh on three occasions in the past five years: once each in 1986, 1988 and 1989.

  TA Depot, Govan
  Mr. Sillars
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received from Govan Initiative arising out of its secure communities project which referred to excessive noise levels from the Territorial Army depot adjacent to the Teucharhill housing scheme; and what action has been taken.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  None.

  Defence Support Agencies
  Mr. Sean Hughes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the organisational and financial differences between defence support agencies run on next steps lines and next steps executive agencies such as the Defence Research Agency and the Meteorological Office.

  Mr. Neubert
  Organisationally the main difference will lie in the relationship between the chief executive and the Minister. In the case of next steps executive agencies, the chief executive is personally and directly accountable to the Minister, for his or her performance. This is the relationship which will apply in the cases of, for instance, the Meteorological Office and the Defence Research Agency.

  Other defence support organisations must, however, remain fully embedded within the defence chain of command, for the reasons that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence gave in the House of Commons on 18 October, column 155. In these cases, the chief executive will be accountable to Ministers, through the chain of command.

  In most other respects it will not be possible to differentiate the characteristics of defence support agencies from the normal next step agencies. The aim of both is to secure improved management and better results. Each agency will have different requirements and the policy and resources framework in each case will be tailored to the individual circumstances of the organisation concerned.

  Cash Limits
  Mr. Bendall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he can announce any changes to the defence cash limits and running costs limit for 1989–90.

  Mr. Archie Hamilton
  Subject to parliamentary approval to the necessary spring Supplementary Estimates the following changes will be made:

  (1) Defence Cash Limits

  £'000s

  Class and Vote

  Current Cash Limit

  Increase/Decrease

  Revised Cash Limit

  I, 1

  8,349,433

  +130,282

  8,479,715

  I, 2

  8,339,159

  +260,841

  8,600,000

  I, 3

  1,202,721

  +9,606

  1,212,327

  I, 4

  1,816,030

  +52,518

  1,868,548

  I, 5

  441,372

  +43,858

  485,230

  These changes, totalling £497,105,000, reflect the take-up of part of the entitlement to carry-forward of capital underspending under the end-year flexibility scheme (announced by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 20 July 1989, Official Report, columns 258–62) and the additional arrangements for defence procurement (announced on 16 January 1990 by my right hon. Friend the Member for Bridgwater (Mr. King), Official Report, columns 135 and 136). These increases will be charged to the reserve.

  The changes also take account of a transfer of £800,000 from the Department of Transport (class VIII, vote 2) to class I, vote 1, reflecting the transfer of responsibility for the costs of royal flights in civil aircraft (announced by my right hon. Friend the Member for Southend, West (Mr. Channon) Official Report, 18 May 1989, column 280), and a further transfer of £34,000 from the Cabinet Office:

  407
  Office of the Minister for the Civil Service (class XX, vote 1) in respect of the challenge funding scheme for senior management development training. These changes will not add to the planned total of public expenditure.

  (2) Running Costs Limit

  The running costs limit for the Department will be increased by £2,034,000 from £5,149,347,000 to £5,151,381,000 reflecting both the transfer of £34,000 in respect of challenge funding and an increase of £2,000,000 for the running costs element of the additional expenditure incurred by the Ministry of Defence in providing assistance in the ambulance dispute.

AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD

  Pet Foods
  Mr. Matthew Taylor
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the use of those bovine offals currently banned for use in products for human consumption is permitted for use in pet foods; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether pet food manufacturers can currently use without restriction brine offals currently banned from human consumption.

  Mr. Maclean
  Spongiform encephalopathies have never been recorded in domestic pets. Moreover, the industry's policy is not to use these materials. There is thus no need for regulatory action.

  Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
  Mr. Matthew Taylor
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will state(a) when the first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy was positively identified, (b) when bovine spongiform encephalopathy was made a notifiable disease, (c) when offals from cattle were banned for use for human consumption, (d) when compensation for farmers for bovine spongiform encephalopathy-infected cattle was introduced, (e) when research into the possibility of transmission of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy infective agent from generation to generation was begun; and (f) if he will make a statement about the sequence of events, and their respective timings.

  Mr. Maclean
  It was made notifiable in June 1988 as soon as research and field investigation had established a clear clinical picture and techniques had been developed to obtain a definitive diagnosis. Without such action it is not possible to deal with any disease, let alone a new disease never previously reported in cattle.

  The feeding of ruminant-based rations to ruminants was banned from July 1988 as soon as studies had confirmed this to be the most likely cause of the disease.

  In April 1988 the Government set up an independent working party under the chairmanship of Sir Richard Southwood to look at BSE, in particular at any human health implications. An interim recommendation was made in June 1988 that, although there was no evidence of a risk to humans, as a precautionary measure all cattle suspected of having BSE should be slaughtered and
  408
  destroyed to take them out of the food chain. The Government acted promptly on this and the slaughter policy began on 8 August that year.

  A research committee under the chairmanship of Dr. David Tyrrell was established to advise on research in relation to BSE and the other transmissible spongiform encephalopathies following another interim recommendation. In January this year the Government announced that over £12 million would be spent over the next three years as part of a comprehensive programme of research which had been started as soon as the disease was first identified. The Southwood report was published in February last year. It welcomed the Government's action to deal with the disease, including the prompt implementation of its interim recommendations, and concluded that the risk of transmission to humans was "remote". All its final recommendations have been implemented.

  The Government's commitment to protecting and reassuring the public following the emergence of BSE is clearly shown by the action taken, which includes, in addition, the ban from November 1989 on the use of certain offals which, although not recommended by Southwood, represents a further safeguard to consumers.

  Mice
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how his Department intends to liaise with the European Community Commission's mouse care expert;

  (2) whether he was consulted on the European Community Commission's proposal to appoint a mouse care expert to raise the productivity of the European Community market on mice and rats; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Gummer
  There is no proposal to appoint a European mouse care expert. I assume that the hon. Member must be referring to a proposal for a Council regulation on animal health conditions governing trade in rodents. These proposals are of real concern as they are relevant to Her Majesty's Government's fight against rabies and if adopted will require staff resources to be devoted to ensuring that its requirements are being fulfilled. The Government's assessment of it was set out in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's explanatory memorandum 9715/89 of 27 November 1989 a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

  Cereals
  Mr. Barry Field
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the benefits which will accrue to the cereals sector from the current year's grants from the European Community for the improvement of marketing and processing facilities.

  Mr. Maclean
  Awards made by the Commission under European Community regulation 355/77 to projects aimed at improving the marketing and processing of agricultural products are announced in June and December each year. The first awards for 1990 will be announced in June.

  For 1989 the Commission announced awards totalling £1,714,160 to seven projects in the cereals sector in the United Kingdom.

  European Community Grants
  Mr. Moss
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what benefits will accrue to Cambridgeshire from the current year's grants from the European Economic Community for the improvement of marketing and processing facilities.

  Mr. Maclean
  Awards made by the Commission under European Community regulations 355/77 aimed at improving the marketing and processing of agricultural products are announced in June and December each year. The first awards for 1990 will be announced in June.

  For 1989 the Commission announced three awards for projects in Cambridgeshire; one in the cereals sector for £210,012, one in the horticulture sector for £323,312 and one in the pigmeat sector for £533,658.

  Nitrate-sensitive Areas
  Mr. Ron Davies
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects to announce the level of compensation payable to farmers in nitrate-sensitive areas.

  Mr. Maclean
  We are currently examining the detailed costs of the measures proposed in each area, and will make a statement as soon as this examination is complete.

  Salmonella
  Mr. Colvin
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a further statement on his consideration of the testing of imported eggs for salmonella.

  Mr. Maclean
  I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Billericay (Mrs. Gorman) on 11 December 1989 at column 522.

  Scrapie
  Mr. Matthew Taylor
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make scrapie a notifiable disease; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Maclean
  I have no plans to do so. The disease, which has been present in the national flock for well over two centuries, is endemic in a sheep population of over 10 million and there is no test in the live animal. Intensive study has shown that there is no epidemiological relationship between scrapie and the human encephalopathies.

  Carcases
  Mr. Matthew Taylor
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will now outlaw the use of animal carcases as foodstuffs for pigs.

  Mr. Maclean
  There is no scientific evidence to indicate that such action is necessary. Pigs are omnivores, unlike cattle and sheep, which are ruminants. They are in particular likely to have had heavy exposure to the bovine spongiform encephalopathy agent through the feeding of meat and bone meat derived from ruminants without any ill effect. The Southwood report acknowledged the importance of the feed ban for ruminants but did not recommend it be extended to pigs and poultry.

  Milk Quotas
  Mr. Andy Stewart
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he intends to set a deadline for the notification of milk quota transfers in England and Wales.

  Mr. Gummer
  Following discussions with the industry I have decided to make use of the powers provided by the Dairy Produce Quotas Regulations 1989. Quota transfers notified after 23 April, even if they are notified as having occurred in the previous quota year, will not affect the calculation of supplementary levy liability in respect of that quota year.

  Food Poisoning
  Mr. Michael
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what part is played by his Department in identifying the causes of trends in figures in the incidence of food poisoning in the United Kingdom;

  (2) what responsibilities lie with his Department in regard to monitoring trends in figures in the incidence of cases of food poisoning.

  Mr. Maclean
  My Department co-operates with the Department of Health in identifying areas where action may be needed to minimise the risk of contamination of food at the point of production, for example in relation to salmonella in eggs. The Department also provides any support which may be needed by the Department of Health in monitoring and interpreting trends in the incidence of food poisoning.

  Dredge Spoil
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the percentage of mercury contamination in dredge spoil in(a) the Tyne estuary and (b) Liverpool bay.

  Mr. Gummer
  Information on the trace metal composition of dredged materials licensed for disposal at sea is held on a public register maintained by my Department. For the Tyne estuary the concentration of mercury in dredged materials is 0·0001 per cent. In the Mersey estuary concentrations in dredged materials range from 0·0001 to 0·0006 per cent. (1 to 6 mg/kg dry weight).

  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the contamination of heavy metals of dredge spoil in(a) the Tyne estuary and (b) Liverpool bay; what monitoring of release of heavy metals in dredge spoil in these areas is being or has been carried out; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Gummer
  Licences for the disposal of dredged material at sea are granted for one year and details of trace metal concentrations and other information are placed on a public register held in my Department. For recurrent dredging operations, these data are reviewed annually and locations are resampled at least every three years in accordance with guidelines set down by the Oslo commission. There are currently four licences for the disposal of material in Liverpool bay and three licences for disposal at a site three and a half miles off the mouth of the Tyne estuary.
  411
  The Ministry has conducted a programme of both laboratory and field investigations on the fate of heavy metals in dredged materials. The Ministry has also conducted a survey of trace metal contamination in the Tyne estuary and has identified areas where, in the event of dredging, the sediments are not suitable for disposal at sea. Results of the field monitoring surveys have been published in the fisheries research technical report series and are in the Library of the House.

  Further work on the quality of fish and shellfish in these and other coastal areas is published in "Aquatic Environment Monitoring Report No. 16", a copy of which is also in the Library of the House. These investigations have shown that, in the case of mercury in Liverpool bay which has been subject to historical industrial inputs, the concentration of mercury in a range of fish satisfies the EC environmental quality standard of 0·3 mg/kg wet weight. For other heavy metals in both locations, concentrations are well below national standards for food quality.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

  Girobank
  Mr. Barry Field
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects to announce the completion arrangements for the sale of Girobank.

  Mr. Forth
  The Post Office and Alliance and Leicester building society are engaged in detailed negotiations with a view to completing the sale as soon as practicable. The sale is a complex matter and it was invevitable that it would take some time to complete.

  Fraud (Liability)
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information he has on the extent of the potential liability of banks to recompense members of the public as a result of frauds being perpetrated by agents tied to life assurance subsidiaries of banks.

  Mr. Redwood
  The statutory responsibility of the principal of a tied agent under the Financial Services Act is limited to the latter's actions in carrying on investment business for which the principal has accepted responsibility in writing. The liability of the principal's parent company depends on the nature of the parent-subsidiary relationship. If both are limited companies, the liability of the parent, whether or not a bank, is that of any limited liability company to a limited liability subsidiary.

  Garston Amhurst
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether Companies House records on Garston Amhurst Associates Holdings Limited are up to date.

  Mr. Redwood
  There is no company currently registered under the name Garston Amhurst Associates Holdings Limited. There are, however, five similarly named companies on the register which are listed in the table, together with details of their current filing position in relation to annual returns and accounts.
  412

  Outstanding documents

  Company name

  Annual accounts

  Annual returns

  Garston Amhurst Associates (Bristol) Limited

  1988

  1987–88

  Garston Amhurst Associates (Financial Management) Limited

  1988

  1986–88

  Garston Amhurst Associated (Financial Services) Limited

  1988

  1988

  Garston Amhurst Associates (General) Limited

  1988

  1986–88

  Garston Amhurst Associates (London) Limited

  1988

  1987–88

  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) if he will commence an inquiry under the Companies Act into Garston Amhurst Associates Holdings Limited, its directors and its auditors;

  (2) what information he has about the auditors of Garston Amhurst Associates Holdings Limited;

  (3) what information he has on the corporate entity called Garston Amhurst or Garston Amhurst Associates Group Holdings Limited and its directors.

  Mr. Redwood
  I am aware of recent developments concerning GAA Group Holdings Limited and other companies in the Garston Amhurst Associates Group.

  On 25 January 1990 the Securities and Investments Board presented petitions for the winding up of the following group companies of which the Official Receiver was appointed provisional liquidator on the same day:

  GAA Group Holdings Limited

  Garston Amhurst Associates (London) Limited

  Garston Amhurst Associates (Bristol) Limited

  Garston Amhurst Associates (Financial Services) Limited

  Garston Amhurst Associates (Financial Management) Limited

  These companies have been drawn to the attention of the Serious Fraud Office by the Securities and Investments Board and the Serious Fraud Office has confirmed that an inquiry into them is in progress.

  In the circumstances I have no plans to exercise investigatory powers in relation to those companies and I cannot comment further.

  Comecon (Joint Ventures)
  Mrs. Gorman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received about the need for property rights and a coherent law of contract for individuals within Comecon countries engaging in joint ventures with western countries.

  Mr. Redwood
  My Department has received many and various comments to this effect. The lack of property rights and a coherent law of contract is of course a primary feature of the Communist system and a great disincentive to investment as well as to personal initiative. Measures to reduce or remove this disincentive have already been implemented in Hungary and are under active consideration in Poland and Czechoslovakia as well as in other Comecon countries. I welcome all such measures and on my visits to the USSR and Poland in March will emphasise the relevance of a proper legal framework to successful inward investment.

  Bank Accounts (Monitoring)
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has any proposals to improve the clearing banks' arrangements for monitoring the use of client bank accounts under the Financial Services Act.

  Mr. Redwood
  The extent of the responsibility of institutions at which client money accounts under the Financial Services Act are lodged is set out in section 55(4) of that Act, and I have no plans to review this legislation.

  Securities and Investments Board
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has to strengthen the present arrangements of the Securities and Investments Board for monitoring the rule book of LAUTRO.

  Mr. Redwood
  The Securities and Investments Board's arrangements for monitoring the regulatory bodies it has recognised are a matter for the board.

  LAUTRO
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he has taken to ensure that the rules of the self-regulatory body known as LAUTRO are adequate to protect the public against fraud.

  Mr. Redwood
  Responsibility for ensuring that LAUTRO's rules provide the appropriate level of protection for investors lies with the Securities and Investments Board.

  Tied Agents
  Mr. David Shaw
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to amend the Financial Services Act to make it clear that the liability for monitoring tied agents rests with the life insurance company which has entered into the contractual arrangements which result in the tied arrangement.

  Mr. Redwood
  The Financial Services Act already makes the principal of a tied agent responsible for the latter's actions in carrying on investment business for which the principal has accepted responsibility in writing. The Securities and Investments Board and the various self-regulatory bodies established under the Act are responsible for making and enforcing rules to ensure compliance with this requirement.

  Public Safety
  Mr. Nigel Griffiths
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what assessment he has made of the circumstances in which decision-making involving public safety could be compromised because of the lack of openness to scrutiny by the public or the scientific community of the computer codes which may be involved in that decision-making;

  (2)what steps the Government are taking to ensure that decision-making involving public safety is in no way compromised by the commercial secrecy of computer codes which may be involved, directly or indirectly, in that decision-making;

  (3)whether he has identified any occasions on which decision-making involving public safety has been
  414
  compromised because of the lack of openness to scrutiny by the public or the scientific community on computer codes which were involved in that decision-making.

  Mr. Forth
  In my reply to the hon. Member on 6 November 1989 I described the steps which the Government are taking to encourage the development of suitable standards and guidelines, both at national and international levels, and in particular the work of the Inter-departmental Committee on Software Engineering (ICSE) and its working group on safety-related software, of which my Department and the Health and Safety Executive share the secretariat.

  On the relevance of any commercial secrecy pertaining to computer codes, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Member for Teignbridge (Mr. Nicholls), (Official Report, 2 November 1989, column 358): under section 20 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, inspectors have powers to make any necessary examination or investigation.

  On the question of openness to scrutiny, the public and the scientific community have the opportunity to contribute to the development of the standards which will be used by regulatory bodies and their inspectorates in assessing the safety of systems which rely on computer codes. These standards are evolving and their coverage in the software field is being made more complete. I know of no occasion on which public safety is known to have been endangered by shortcomings in the existing arrangements for software inspection.

  RENAVAL Programme
  Mr. Trotter
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make an application for support for Tyne and Wear from the European Community's RENAVAL Programme.

  Mr. Ridley
  In view of clarification I have received about the relationship between RENAVAL grants and other structural funds' support for British industrial areas, I have decided to make to the European Commission a RENAVAL application for Tyne and Wear. My Department will be discussing the proposed programme of measures with the European Commission, local authorities and others concerned.

  Mr. Holt
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make an application for support for Langbaurgh from the European Community's RENAVAL programme.

  Mr. Ridley
  In view of clarification I have received about the relationship between RENAVAL grants and other structural funds' support for British industrial areas, I have decided to make to the European Commission a RENAVAL application for Middlesbrough and Langbaurgh districts. My Department will be discussing the proposed programme of measures with the European Commission, local authorities and others concerned.

  Company Financial Statements
  Mr. Stevens
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he will implement section 15 of the Companies Act 1989 to enable listed companies to issue summary financial statements.

  Mr. Redwood
  My Department has today sent draft regulations to interested organisations for their detailed
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  comments, and copies have also been placed in the Library. The proposals take account of the responses to the earlier public consultations and I hope that the response to the proposals will allow regulations to be made early in March, to come into force early in April.

  Companies Act 1989
  Mr. Jack
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what further plans he has to commence the provisions of the Companies Act 1989.

  Mr. Redwood
  I have signed an Order which commences certain parts of the Act, including the provision under which regulations will be made for listed companies to issue summarised financial statements to their shareholders. The Order will also complete the commencement of part III (Investigations and Powers to Obtain Information) and part VI (Mergers and Related Matters) of the Act. The effective commencement dates of the provisions commenced in this Order range from 2 February to 1 April 1990. In addition, I plan to make a further Order within the next month to commence the main accounting and certain other provisions of the Act.

  Eastern Europe
  Ms. Quin
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if his Department has commissioned any research into the implications and opportunities for British industry to supply equipment and goods to countries of eastern Europe to help repair environmental damage in those countries; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Forth
  The European Commission is co-ordinating the Group of 24's package of assistance to Poland and Hungary and consideration is being given to extending the coverage of this assistance to the rest of eastern Europe.

  Within the EC's 300 million ecu for Poland and Hungary, specific provision is available to facilitate environmental protection. My Department is encouraging British business fully to exploit these multilateral funds.

  Information on specific export opportunities is available under the Department's export intelligence service.

  Recycling
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to his answer of 24 January,Official Report, column 699, if he will list the more than 40 recycling experts who are providing advice to the Government on recycling matters, and indicate what organisations, if any, they represent and why they were selected.

  Mr. Forth
  The composition of the advisory group has changed slightly since I announced its formation on 22 September 1989. The present members are:

  Mike Cohen—Director, Business and the Environment Unit, DTI.

  Frank Argent—NAWDC.

  Professor Graham Ashworth—The Tidy Britain Group.

  Alex Bennett—Plastics and Rubber Institute/Austin Rover Group.

  Dr. Robin Bidwell—Environmental Resources Ltd.

  Harold Clayton—Hydro Polymers.

  Jeff Cooper—Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee.

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  Dr. Bill Cook—British Glass Manufacturers Confederation.

  Claire Cheney—The Retail Consortium.

  Adrian Chalk—Reedpack.

  Richard Davis—INCPEN.

  Deidre Dowie—Convention of Scottish Local Authorities.

  John Elkington—SustainAbility.

  Andy Elmer—Association of Metropolitan Authorities.

  Lord Ezra—UK Reclamation Council.

  Brian Etheridge—Association of District Councils.

  Rod Fox—Plas. Tech.

  Jo Gordon—National Council for Voluntary Organisations.

  Pippa Hyam—Friends of the Earth.

  Dr. Alastair Hay—Leeds University.

  Dr. David Harris—Aluminium Federation.

  Ron Jones—British Plastics Federation.

  Brian Kermode—Association of County Councils.

  Brian Lymbery—UK2000.

  Richard Leveton—British Battery Manufacturers Association/Duracell Batteries.

  Cameron McLatchie—Packaging and Industrial Films Association.

  John May—British Steel.

  David Perchard—David Perchard Associates.

  David Peacock—British Paper and Board Industry Federation.

  Dennis Smith—Food and Drink Federation.

  Peter Stokes—Coca-Cola.

  Brian Stone—The Can Makers.

  John Winward—Consumers Association.

  Members were invited for their individual experience of recycling matters, as well as being representatives of the organisations to which they belong. Several additional experts have been added to this list to sit on working parties examining specific subjects or products.

  Single Market
  Mr. Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which representatives from the United Kingdom attended the meeting with Commissioner Millan on 25 January to discuss the EEC Commission/university of Louvain report on the impact of the single market on regions.

  Mr. Redwood
  [holding answer 30 January 1990]: I understand that the following British representatives attended the meeting:

  Greater Manchester

  Councillor Brotherton

  Merseyside

  Councillor O'Hara, Rimmer and Watts

  South Yorkshire

  Councillor Salt, Welch Knight and Cooper

  West Yorkshire

  Councillor Tricket (Leader, Leeds City Council)

  West Midlands

  Councillor Davis (Vice-chairman, West Midlands regional Forum)

  Fife

  Councillor MacDougall (Leader, Fife regional administration).

  Mice
  Mr. Austin Mitchell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assistance he proposes for the encouragement of intra-Community trade in mice and rats and for participating in the efforts of the European Community mouse care expert to raise the productivity of the United Kingdom in mice and rats as the single market develops.

  Mr. Gummer
  I have been asked to reply.
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  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to his related questions today.

HEALTH

  National Health Service
  Mr. Vaz
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many National Health Service hospitals he has visited in the last 12 months; and if he will name them.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  I have visited the following National Health Service hospitals since the start of 1989:

  Hammersmith Hospital

  Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge

  Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham

  Bealeys Hospital, Bury

  Hope Hospital, Salford

  Seacroft Hospital, Leeds

  Countess of Chester Hospital

  Hoylake Cottage Hospital

  Bassetlaw District General Hospital, Worksop

  The London Hospital

  Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle

  The Freeman Hospital, Newcastle

  Newcastle General Hospital

  Anaesthetics
  Sir Michael McNair-Wilson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many persons died as a result of being given anaesthetics before operations for each of the last five years; and what percentage they constituted of those anaesthetised during that period.

  Mr. Freeman
  Information is not available in the exact form requested since of over 3 million cases operated on in National Health Service hospitals in England each year, a very small number, which cannot be readily identified, will not involve any form of anaesthetic. Information about the number of deaths possibly associated with anaesthesia is given in the table:

  Categories of deaths coded under the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) ninth revision

  E855.1

  E855.2

  E876.3

  E938

  1984

  2

  0

  0

  3

  1985

  3

  0

  3

  3

  1986

  0

  2

  2

  1

  1987

  0

  4

  0

  0

  1988

  1

  1

  2

  1

  Source: OPCS death registrations.

  E855.1. Accidental poisonings by other drugs acting upon the central and autonomic systems: includes either, gaseous anaesthetics, intravenous anaesthetics, halogenated hydrocarbon derivatives, thiobarbiturates.

  E855.2. As above for local anaesthetics; includes cocaine, lidocaine, procaine and tetrocaine.

  E876.3. Cases of misadventure during medical care.

  E938. Other central nervous system depressants. Correct drug properly administered, but adverse reaction to it.

  HIV Infection
  Mr. Butler
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has on the rates of HIV infection among heterosexuals with no other risk factors in sexually transmitted disease clinics in London.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  There are published papers (Loveday et al,British Medical Journal, Vol. 298, 18 February 1989, 419–422 and Evans, B. A. et al, British
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  Medical Journal, Vol. 296, 13 February 1988), which suggest that the identified prevalence of HIV infection among heterosexuals with no other risk factors in sexually transmitted disease clinics in London in 1987 was rather less than 1 per cent. The numbers in these studies were small and should be treated with great caution. Copies of the papers are available in the Library.

  Ambulance Service
  Mr. Atkinson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he proposes to publish the report on stress in the ambulance service.

  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  Consideration of the final report of the working party on the problems of long-serving ambulance men and women has not yet been completed. I shall consider the question of publication when it has been.

  Disabled Persons
  Mr. Hannam
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to monitor the implementation of sections 5 and 6 of the Disabled Persons (Services, Consultation and Representation) Act 1986; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Freeman
  The Department's social services inspectorate has carried out a number of exercises to monitor the implementation of the Act. The findings of an inspection of the operation of all sections of the Act in force, and a more specific study of the progress of six authorities towards implementation of sections 5 and 6, are due to be published shortly.

  Hoax Alarm Calls (Deaths)
  Mr. Martlew
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many ambulance men in the past 10 years have been killed; and how many have been injured whilst responding to hoax alarm telephone calls.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  This information is not held centrally.

  NHS (Land and Buildings)
  Mr. Ralph Howell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the valuations of National Health Service land and buildings as at the latest available date.

  Mr. Freeman
  A valuation of the National Health Service estate was undertaken in 1987 and the figures are available in the Library. New valuations are now in hand in preparation for the introduction of capital charging in 1991.

  Food Poisoning
  Mr. Michael
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will outline his statutory responsibilities and those of his Department in relation to food poisoning.

  Mr. Freeman
  Statutory responsibilities in relation to food poisoning lie in the Food Act 1984, the Public Health (Control of Diseases) Act 1984 and the National Health Service Act 1977.

  Mr. Michael
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what part is played by his Department in identifying the causes of trends and figures in the incidence of food poisoning in the United Kingdom;
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  (2) what responsibilities lie with his Department in regard to monitoring trends in figures in the incidence of cases of food poisoning.

  Mr. Freeman
  The Department works together with other health and agriculture departments, local authorities and the public health laboratory service to monitor and interpret trends in the incidence of food poisoning and to identify their causes as a basis for considering Government and other action required to protect the health of the public.

  Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease
  Mr. Terry Davis
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease have been diagnosed in the United Kingdom during each of the last 10 years.

  Mr. Freeman
  When this illness was last studied in detail for England and Wales (1980–84 inclusive), the incidence of identified and confirmed Creutzfeldt Jakob disease was 0·49 per million. The purpose of the study to be conducted by Dr. R. G. Will, referred to in my reply to the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Davies) on 10 January at column 665, is to make a more accurate assessment of cases of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease than that available from death certificates alone. Since 1979, Creutzfeldt Jakob disease has been given on death certificates as the underlying cause of death in about 30 deaths a year in England and Wales.

  AIDS
  Mr. Key
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he intends to publish updated short-term predictions of HIV infection and AIDS in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.

  Mrs. Virginia Bottomley
  The report of a working group, "Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome in England and Wales to end 1993: Projections Using data to end September 1989" has today been published by the public health laboratory service and a copy has been placed in the Library.

  The report concludes that the predicted incidence of AIDS in homosexual men is lower than previously calculated, and that as a result of behavioural change, the
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  probable number of this group infected with HIV is also lower than previously estimated. But the potential for widespread dissemination of HIV still remains, particularly amongst heterosexuals and injecting drug users. The range of future predictions for these groups is wide. This is because the predictions for the continued rate of spread of the epidemic depend on the extent to which individuals change their behaviour, and this is difficult to foresee.

  We are at a critical stage in the HIV epidemic, and behavioural change amongst heterosexuals and injecting drug users will be crucial in keeping down the incidence of HIV infection. It is also essential that behavioural changes amongst homosexual men are sustained and reinforced in the future.

  We must not allow ourselves to become complacent, or to relax our guard. This report reinforces the messages which we have been giving for some time:
  if the spread of HIV goes unchecked the potential outcome could be devastating..
  if people take sensible precautions, and avoid high risk activities, the virus has less opportunity for spreading..
  we must continue the work to increase awareness about the serious risks of heterosexual transmission..

  The work being carried out by the Health Education Authority and by district health authorities and other local agencies to educate and inform people is therefore vital, so that these behavioural changes take place before it is too late.

  We are grateful to Professor Day and members of the working group for their work in preparing revised predictions of HIV infection and AIDS in England and Wales which updates the predictions made by Sir David Cox, published in November 1988.

  Ambulance Dispute
  Mr. Pendry
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the cost per ambulance worker of his Department's advertising campaign informing them of their pay offer.

  Mr. Freeman
  [holding answer 8 January 1990]: The cost of the Department's advertising campaign in the national daily press on 27 and 28 November 1989 was £241,441.

  It is not sensible to estimate the cost per ambulance man or woman, particularly as the advertisements would have been seen by many other people.