§ Mr. David ShawTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the achievements of(a) his policies and (b) his Department in helping small businesses over the last 12 months as against 627W the previous 12 months; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors those achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.
§ Mr. HowardThe Government continue to help small businesses, through improvements to the business climate, through deregulation and through specific programmes of support and assistance.
During the past 12 months my Department has substantially increased the resources it devotes to taking forward the Government's deregulation initiative and has taken a number of steps to help small businesses. We have proposed legislation which aims to clarify the law on Sunday trading; we have withdrawn draft fire regulations which representatives of some small businesses feared would be unduly burdensome and we are preparing new regulations which take account of these concerns; we have undertaken consultation exercises on greyhound racing and liquor licensing; and we have set in hand a full review of all regulations affecting business for which the Home Office has responsibility. We propose to remove the restrictions on weekday shop opening hours in England and Wales (and throughout the week in Scotland) as soon as parliamentary time permits.
The main deregulatory achievements in 1991 were in betting and gaming. The greyhound industry was given greater flexibility to set deductions according to market forces by increasing from 17.5 per cent. to 29 per cent. the maximum permitted amount which may be retained by the operators of a totalisator on a dog racecourse. Gaming clubs were allowed to increase from one to two the number of multiple bingo games that can be played on a Saturday.
The target is to complete the current review of H ome Office regulations by April 1994. Targets have also been set for other work such as consultative exercises and developing proposals for legislation. In addition the Home Office will contribute to the Department of Trade and Industry's central record of Government regulations against which progress on deregulation is being monitored.
The work on deregulation complements continuing efforts to assist firms who wish to bid for Home Office business. Over the last 12 months we have again revised and reissued a booklet entitled "Selling to the Home Office" which details the Home Office's purchasing needs and gives specific contact points for initial approaches. A central contact point for general enquiries is also available. It is Home Office policy to give encouragement and assistance to small businesses wherever possible. The Home Office does not hold statistical information regarding the volume of business placed with small firms.