Written Answers of 18 June 1993

HOUSE OF COMMONS

  Clerks
  Mr. Frank Field
  To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission, what is the number of Clerks in the Department of the Clerk of the House; and how many are in grades with a higher salary than that to which a Member of Parliament's salary is linked.

  Mr. Beith
  Sixty and 35 respectively.

  Day Nursery
  Mrs. Roche
  To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee when he expects a day nursery to be installed and operating within the precincts of the Palace of Westminster.

  Indeterminate sentence prisoners released on licence for terrorist murder of civilians

  Number released by years served

  Released on licence

  11–12

  12–13

  13–14

  14–15

  15–16

  16–17

  17–18

  18–19

  Total released

  1991

  Loyalist

  —

  —

  1

  1

  4

  4

  —

  1

  11

  Republican

  1

  —

  —

  1

  2

  1

  1

  —

  6

  1992

  Loyalist

  —

  2

  3

  6

  9

  4

  1

  —

  25

  Republican

  —

  —

  —

  —

  3

  3

  —

  2

  8

  Notes:

  1. Prisoners sentenced to detention during the Secretary of State's pleasure are included.

  2. The table excludes licensees in whose cases the period served for retribution took into account significant assistance given to the authorities and prisoners whose licences have been revoked.

  Coronary Angiogram Procedures
  Dr. Hendron
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what limits have been placed on the number of coronary angiogram procedures which can be performed each week in the Royal group of hospitals; and what effect these are having on the volume of candidates being considered for coronary artery bypass grafting.

  Mr. Ancram
  Cardiologists at the Royal group of hospitals treat patients on the basis of clinical need. The present capacity of the coronary catheterisation unit at the Royal group of hospitals, which performs coronary angiograms, is being fully utilised. No artificial restrictions have been placed on the number of procedures performed.

  Cardiac Surgery
  Dr. Hendron
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how the waiting list for cardiac surgical operations in Northern Ireland has increased or decreased during the last 12 months.
  736
  Mr. Michael M. Martin
  The Administration Committee is currently considering this matter, and has begun preparations for a survey to be conducted of potential demand for a nursery or a child care voucher system.

NORTHERN IRELAND

  Clubs (Registration)
  Mr. Trimble
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he intends to review the legislation relating to the registration of clubs.

  Mr. Ancram
  Yes. Following widespread consultation locally, a review is already in progress.

  Terrorists
  Mr. Trimble
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many(a) loyalist and (b) republican prisoners were released on licence from indeterminate sentences for the terrorist murder of civilians in 1991 and 1992; and if he will indicate in each case the number of years served.

  Mr. Mates
  The information is as follows:

  Mr. Ancram
  The total number waiting in Northern Ireland for treatment in the cardiac surgery specialty fell by 205 between March 1992 and March 1993 from 964 to 759.

  Dr. Hendron
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how the average waiting time for those people waiting for their first appointment with a cardiac surgeon has increased or decreased during the last 12 months.

  Mr. Ancram
  The information is not available. Information on waiting time for first appointments was not collected centrally until this year.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

  Departmental Buildings
  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the buildings currently owned or rented by his Department, together with(a) the estimated value, (b) the annual rent and (c) the annual maintenance cost of each building in the current financial year.
  737
  Mr. Waldegrave
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment on 8 June,Official Report, column 194 In addition to arrangements made by Property Holdings, projected expenditure by the Office of Public Service and Science during 1993–94 on maintenance in buildings occupied by the Department is £651,000.

  Scientific Links (Japan)
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to his oral answer to the hon. Member for Rochford (Dr. Clark) on 7 June,Official Report, columns 17–18, how many members the advisory group on scientific links with Japan and Pacific rim nations will have; what criteria he will use to choose the members of the advisory group; and if he will make it his policy to ensure the scientific implications of civil nuclear collaboration and co-operation is included on the agenda of the first meeting.

  Mr. David Davis
  The composition of the advisory group has not yet been decided. It will include representatives of industry, academia and Government who have extensive experience of scientific co-operation with this region. No agenda has yet been drawn up for the first meeting, but it will look at the whole range of science and technology relations, to identify areas where co-operation can be strengthened.

  Citizens Charter
  Dr. Wright
  To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the total cost to date of all the public information published and distributed as a consequence of the citizens charter programme.

  Mr. Waldegrave
  A key aim of the charter is that customers should have ready access to public services through clear and effective information. It is not possible to provide a total cost for all the charter-related information published and distributed: charters, charter standard statements and explanatory leaflets have been issued by a wide range of public service providers, including Government Departments, agencies, natio-nalised industries and local authorities.

HEALTH

  Respiratory Stress Syndrome
  Mr. Nigel Evans
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children have died from respiratory stress syndrome in each year since 1983.

  Mr. Sackville
  Numbers of deaths (underlying cause) from respiratory distress syndrome ICD1 769 for the years 1983 to 1991 is contained in the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys publication "Mortality statistics: cause" series DH2 nos. 10–18; copies of which are available in the Library. The information for 1992 is shown in the table.
  738

  Number of deaths from Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ICD 769)1 for England and Wales, 19922

  Age group3

  Number

  Under 1

  8

  1 International Classification of Diseases, ninth revision.

  2 Data from 1983 to 1992 are not comparable due to the changes to cause of death coding in 1986. From 1986 the number of deaths by cause excluded neonatal deaths, ie deaths of babies aged under 28 days. A new neonatal death certificate was introduced in January 1986, from which it is not possible to assign an underlying cause of death. Consequently, table 2 in series DH2 does not include neonatal deaths except in the figures for all causes.

  3 Deaths occurred only in those aged under one.

  Battens Disease
  Mr. Nigel Evans
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have died from Battens disease in each year since 1983.

  Mr. Sackville
  The information is shown in the table.

  Deaths from Battens disease (underlying cause of death) in England and Wales, 1983–92

  Year

  Number

  1983

  8

  1984

  5

  1985

  6

  1986

  8

  1987

  7

  1988

  6

  1989

  5

  1990

  7

  1991

  8

  1992

  3

  Intensive Care Cots
  Mr. Nigel Evans
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures she is taking to increase the number of neonatal intensive care cots available in NHS hospitals.

  Mr. Sackville
  Health care provision, including neonatal intensive care facilities is a matter for decision by purchasing health authorities in the light of their assessment of local needs. The Clinical Standards Advisory Group, set up by the United Kingdom Health Departments, was asked to examine access to and availability of a number of specialised services, including neonatal intensive care, following the introduction of the national health service reforms. Its report and the Government's response will be published shortly. Health authorities will need to take account of these in planning future provision.

  Bone Marrow Transplants
  Mr. Nigel Evans
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bone marrow transplants have been carried out in each year since 1983.

  Mr. Sackville
  This information is not available centrally.

  Psychiatric Patients
  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will give the percentage on average of NHS psychiatric patients in private hospitals in each of the last five years.
  739
  Mr. Sackville
  This information is not available centrally.

  Market Testing
  Ms Mowlam
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list all the market tests that have taken place in her Department since November 1992 and indicate, in each case, whether the result was the maintenance of in-house provision, or whether the service was contracted out.

  Mr. Sackville
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Dundee, East (Mr. McAllion) on 15 February at col.76.

  Since then, the market test of the 1994 health survey has been completed. The contract has been awarded jointly to Social and Community Planning Research and University College, London. The health survey has previously been conducted by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys.

  Condoms
  Ms Perimarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the approximate budget for condoms in each region and in total for NHS family planning clinics in each of the last five years; and what percentage of this budget was used to provide condoms for general practices.

  Mr. Sackville
  This information is not available centrally.

  Drugs
  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the expenditure on drugs by the family health services in England in 1992–93.

  Dr. Mawhinney
  The final outturn for 1992–93 is not yet available, but the latest supply estimate for the year was £2,660 million.

  Health Expenditure
  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of gross national product was spent on health in the EC as a whole, the United Kingdom and the USA in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

  Mr. Sackville
  Total national health service expenditure in the United Kingdom as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) in each year since 1988–89 is shown in the table. GDP has been used rather than gross national product for consistency with other sources of information on public spending. Figures for the European Community and the United States of America are not available on a comparable basis.

  United Kingdom health service expenditure as a percentage of GDP

  Year

  Gross expenditure as a percentage of GDP

  1988–89

  5.1

  1989–90

  5.1

  1990–91

  5.3

  1991–92

  5.7

  11992–93

  6.1

  740
  1 Forecast Outturn

  Help Us to Help You Campaign
  Ms Lynne
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money she expects to save by the Help Us to Help You campaign; what mechanisms are or will he put in place to monitor the savings that are being made by the campaign; what is the total budget for the Help Us to Help You campaign; and how much of that budget has already been spent.

  Dr. Mawhinney
  Help Us to Help You is an initiative to help the development of local campaigns to promote messages about how people can help the health service improve its efficiency and effectiveness and thereby help other patients. It will be for the national health service locally to decide on the exact form and resourcing of local campaigns. Any savings will depend upon the effectiveness of these local campaigns and cannot be estimated centrally.

  All regional, district and family health service authorities, NHS trusts, directly-managed hospital units and community health councils have been sent copies of a Help Us to Help You information pack which gives advice about how to develop a local campaign. The total cost of producing the Help Us to Help You packs was £31,870. Copies of the packs are available in the Library.

  Hip Operations
  Mr. Dunn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hip operations were carried out during the last 10 years for which figures are available.

  Mr. Sackville
  The information is shown in the table.

  Hip operations in England1

  Year

  [000s]

  1979

  28.8

  1980

  31.7

  1981

  32.8

  1982

  33.2

  1983

  36.2

  1984

  36.9

  1985

  36.5

  1986

  41.0

  1989–90

  50.8

  Sources:

  1979–1986 Hospital Activity Analysis (Total hip replacement and other arthroplasty of hip).

  1989–90 Hospital Episode Statistics (Total prosthetic replacement of hip joint, with/without cement, other replacement of hip joint and prosthetic replacement of head of femur, with/without cement, other replacement of head of femur).

  Information for 1990–91 will be available in the autumn.

  1 Data for 1987–88 and 1988–89 is not available.

OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT

  Street Children
  Mr. Win Griffiths
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the United Kingdom-based non-governmental organisations assisting street children which are receiving funds from his Department in the current year, together with the amount of funding.
  741
  Mr. Lennox-Boyd
  Complete information is not yet available for the current year. However, in 1992–93 we supported, through the joint funding scheme, the following NGOs specifically to assist street children:

  Non-governmental organisation

  £

  Childhope

  34,759

  National Children's Home

  33,176

  World Vision

  117,333

  CAFOD

  13,210

  Oxfam

  17,552

  Mr. Win Griffiths
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total United Kingdom bilateral disbursement for aid to street children in 1991 and 1992; how much was spent in each country receiving this help; and what are the planned contributions, by country, for 1993.

  Mr. Lennox-Boyd
  We help street children through a number of specific activities but, more significantly, by integrating their needs into projects with a wider poverty focus. Information about the location and costs of all projects where street children may be among the beneficiaries could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  Thalidomide
  Mr. Viggers
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representa-tions through the United Nations and other appropriate international bodies to warn of the dangers of thalidomide used in Brazil and elsewhere.

  Mr. Lennox-Boyd
  [holding answer 14 June 19931]: We have consulted the World Health Organisation about the use of thalidomide. WHO has confirmed that it recommends its use for the treatment of certain immunological reactions that may occur in leprosy patients either before or during specific treatment. However, because of its well-known embryopathic effects, WHO stipulates that the drug should be given only to men and postmenopausal women; women of child-bearing age should never be given thalidomide.

  WHO guidance on the use of thalidomide is made available to national Governments, who are responsible for the control of the manufacture, distribution and use of this drug in their own countries.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

  Crown Prosecution Service
  Mr. Fraser
  To ask the Attorney-General how many prosecutions handled by the Crown Prosecution Service have been initiated in magistrates courts in each of the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.

  The Attorney-General
  The figures are not available in the form requested by the hon. Member. I will write to him.

EMPLOYMENT

  Training Credits
  Mr. Hunter
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment which training and enterprise councils are currently using training credits within their adult training programmes.

  Miss Widdecombe
  In 1992–93, the following training and enterprise councils (TEC)s started national develop-ment projects involving the use of training credits in adult training programmes: Bradford; Barnsley and Doncaster; Rotherham; Manchester; South and East Cheshire; Hertfordshire; Birmingham; East London; and South Thames. Good practice from these projects will be available later this year.

  In addition, South and East Cheshire TEC and Northumberland TEC are using training credits and a number of other TECs are considering or developing projects using existing resources.

  Mr. Hunter
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, pursuant to his answer of 6 May,Official Report, column 236, what are the appropriate circumstan-ces in which the Government will encourage training and enterprise councils to consider adult credits.

  Miss Widdecombe
  Training and enterprise councils (TEC)s are required to set out a comprehensive approach to the delivery of adult training in their draft business plans, which are the subject of annual negotiation with my regional directors. The approach adopted by each TEC will depend on the circumstances prevailing in its area, and may include adult credits where appropriate.

  Investors in People
  Mr. Cousins
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many employers in each training and enterprise council area have been given the investors in people award; and what is the accreditation standard for this award.

  Miss Widdecombe
  The number of investors in people recognitions at 14 June by TEC area is as follows:

  Number

  Avon

  5

  AZTEC

  4

  Barnsley and Doncaster

  3

  Bedfordshire

  7

  Birmingham

  6

  Bolton/Bury

  4

  Bradford

  1

  CAMBSTEC

  1

  CEWTEC

  5

  CILNTEC

  1

  Calderdale and Kirklees

  1

  Central England

  3

  CENTEC

  3

  County Durham

  4

  Coventry and Warwickshire

  2

  Cumbria

  1

  Devon and Cornwall

  21

  Dorset

  8

  ELTEC

  2

  Essex

  3

  Gloucestershire

  14

  Greater Nottingham

  1

  Gwent

  4

  HAWTEC

  3

  743

  Number

  Hampshire

  10

  Heart of England

  6

  Humberside

  2

  Kent

  1

  Leeds

  4

  Lincolnshire

  1

  London East

  2

  METROTEC

  5

  Manchester

  1

  Merseyside

  1

  Mid Glamorgan

  3

  Milton Keynes

  1

  NORMIDTEC

  2

  Norfolk and Waveney

  6

  North Derbyshire

  5

  North Nottinghamshire

  5

  North West Wales

  3

  North Yorkshire

  6

  Northamptonshire

  3

  Northumberland

  5

  Rotherham

  1

  SOLOTEC

  1

  Sandwell

  1

  Sheffield

  1

  Shropshire

  4

  Somerset

  2

  South and East Cheshire

  6

  South Glamorgan

  3

  South Thames

  1

  Southern Derbyshire

  3

  Staffordshire

  3

  Suffolk

  2

  Surrey

  3

  Sussex

  3

  Teesside

  4

  Thames Valley Enterprise

  17

  Tyneside

  7

  Wakefield

  1

  Walsall

  1

  Wearside

  2

  West Wales

  5

  Wiltshire

  5

  Wolverhampton

  2

  A copy of the "Investors in People National Standard —Links to Assessment Indicators" will be placed in the Library.

  Economically Inactive Men
  Mr. Hain
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the percentage of economically inactive adult males for each district of England(a) in 1981 and (b) at the latest available date.

  Miss Widdecombe
  The information requested is available from the 1981 and 1991 censuses of population and can be obtained from the NOMIS database in the Library.

  Youth Training
  Mr. Leighton
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many young people were on youth training for each of the last six years.

  Miss Widdecombe
  The information requested is given in the table.744

  Youth Training Scheme/Youth Training1 Numbers in training Great Britain March 1988 to March 1993

  March

  Number

  1988

  375,600

  1989

  376,600

  1990

  343,800

  1991

  314,200

  1992

  290,400

  21993

  288,100

  Source: SPECTRUM, Training and Enterprise Council Operating Agreement (Annex J) and Scottish and Welsh Management Information.

  1 Includes Youth Credits.

  2March 1993 figure is provisional.

  Atomic Weapons Establishment
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what action the Health and Safety Executive is taking to examine the safety of AWE Aldermaston; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  On 13 May 1993 the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced its intention to carry out a comprehensive review of health and safety management systems and standards of risk control at all atomic weapons establishment (AWE) premises, including Aldermaston.

  The review team will include HSE specialist radiation, factory, explosives, and nuclear installations inspectors, employment medical advisers and experts in health and safety management systems.

  A report will be published and HSE will be as open about the findings of the review as national security considerations will allow. HSE does not expect to complete the review until the spring of 1994 at the earliest. AWE and the Ministry of Defence have indicated their full support and their wish to co-operate with the review.

  Coal Mines Fatalities
  Mr. Clapham
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many fatalities per 1,000 man-shifts there were for each of the last 10 complete years for which statistics are available(a) in private coal mines, (b) among sub-contract workers doing work for British Coal and (c) amongst British Coal's employees.

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  A fatality rate based on man-shifts is not available for private mines.

  The table shows the fatalities per 100,000 man-shifts at British Coal Corporation—BCC—mines from 1985–86, the first year for which a discrete rate for BCC mines was calculated by the Health and Safety Executive's—HSE —inspectorate of mines.

  Fatal accidents to sub-contractors at BCC mines are included in the rates shown in the table. Separate records for sub-contractors have not been maintained by the HSE.

  British coal corporation mines

  Year

  Fatal injury rate per 100,000 shifts1

  1985–86

  0.08

  1986–87

  0.05

  1987–88

  0.04

  745

  year

  Fatal injury rate per 100,000 shifts1

  1988–89

  0·08

  1989x2013;90

  0·01

  1990–91

  0·07

  1991–92

  0·08

  21992–93

  0·03

  1 Includes accidents to contractors working at BCC mines.

  2 Provisional.

  Youth Training
  Mr. Callaghan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many young people entered employment in 1992 with no access to training.

  Mr. Boswell
  I have been asked to reply.

  Information on young people entering employment with no access to training is not collected centrally.

WALES

  European Funding
  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent representations he has made to the European Commission on the subject of European funding.

  Mr. Redwood
  My predecessor met with Commissioner Milian on 15 March and also with Commissioners Steichen, Ruberti and Flynn on 2 April to discuss a wide range of issues of mutual interest. He also wrote to Commissioner Matutues since it proved impossible for them to meet. In each instance he invited them to visit

  1988–89

  1990–91

  1991–92

  1992–93

  Local Authorities Grant Receiving Bellwin2

  Grant paid

  Per cent

  Threshold

  Grant paid

  Per cent

  Threshold

  Grant paid

  Per cent

  Threshold

  Grant paid

  Per cent

  Threshold

  £

  1

  £

  £

  1

  £

  £

  1

  £4

  £6

  1

  £

  Dyfed CC

  204,726

  75

  621,000

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Colwyn

  —

  —

  —

  527,726

  85

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  772,017

  95

  14,200

  274,649

  95

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Rhuddlan

  —

  —

  —

  195,892

  85

  14,246

  340,236

  85

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Torfaen

  —

  —

  —

  32,164

  75

  22,307

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Preseli Pembs

  —

  —

  —

  111,683

  75

  16,771

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Swansea

  —

  —

  —

  3,764

  75

  44,882

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Merthyr

  —

  —

  —

  46,573

  75

  14,128

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Ynys Mon

  —

  —

  —

  23,448

  85

  16,069

  7,155

  85

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Neath

  —

  —

  —

  612

  75

  16,046

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Islwyn

  —

  —

  —

  30,659

  75

  15,899

  —

  —

  —

  40,008

  85

  19,800

  Lliw Valley

  —

  —

  —

  3,128

  75

  15,042

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Newport3

  —

  —

  —

  2,838

  75

  32,706

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Aberconwy

  —

  —

  —

  3,292

  85

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  246,352

  95

  13,357

  9,232

  95

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Delyn

  —

  —

  —

  14,137

  95

  16,275

  850

  95

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Clwyd

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  298,041

  95

  —

  —

  —

  —

  Dwyfor

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  13,253

  75

  59,000

  —

  —

  —

  Blaenau Gwent

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  20,813

  85

  23,080

  Rhondda

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  7,940

  85

  23,872

  Cynon Valley

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  —

  24,102

  85

  19,806

  Total

  204,726

  —

  —

  2,014,285

  —

  —

  943,416

  —

  —

  92,863

  —

  —

  Notes:

  1 Percentage rate of eligible expenditure.

  2 There was no Bellwin expenditure in 1989–90.

  3 Newport repaid all its grant in 1991–92 following audited claim (money surrendered to CFER).
  746
  Wales but we must wait and see whether these invitations are taken up. I also intend, however, to visit Brussels later in the year and to meet a number of the Commissioners.

  Cattle Identification
  Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received concerning the issuing of cattle identification documents; and what plans he has to review the administrative arrangements associated with the beef premium scheme in wales.

  Mr. Redwood
  I have received several representations about cattle identification documents and am monitoring the introduction of the new scheme to see what scope exists to simplify arrangements.

  Bellwin
  Mr. Ainger
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how much his Department has paid in each of the last five years under the Bellwin formula to local authorities in Wales; if he will list each receiving authority; how much they received; how much each authority had to spend before receiving any grant; and what percentage the grant represented of that total eligible expenditure by the authority on the particular emergency;

  (2) how much his Department has paid in grant in each of the last five years under the Bellwin formula to local authorities in Wales; and if he will list (a) each receiving authority, (b) how much each authority had to spend up to and beyond the threshold before receiving grant and (c) what percentage the grant represented of that expenditure at (b)

  Mr. Redwood
  The information required is given in the table:
  747
  4 Audited returns for 1990–91; therefore 1990–91 thresholds apply.

  5 Grant in respect of 1987 storms (audited return).

  6 Unaudited class; final claims to be received in 1993–94.

  Flood Damage
  Mr. Ainger
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will disregard emergency expenditure by local authorities on emergencies such as the recent flooding in west and north Wales from his calculations on capping limits for local authority expenditure in 1993–94.

  Mr. Redwood
  Local authorities have set their budgets for 1993–94 and as indicated in the reply given by my predecessor to the hon. Member for Monmouth (Mr. Evans) on 26 April at columns 284–85, the only authority in west or north Wales being considered for capping is Aberconwy borough council. On 21 May Aberconwy borough council challenged the proposed cap and put forward an alternative cap that is the same as its budget for 1993–94. I am still considering the authority's representations and I intend to announce my decision shortly.

SOCIAL SECURITY

  New Age Travellers
  Mr. Aspinwall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what measures are being taken to ensure that benefits payable to new age travellers comply with all the relevant rules.

  Mr. Burt
  New age travellers must satisfy the same conditions of entitlement to benefit as all other people. Those who claim benefit because of unemployment must be available for and actively seeking work, and all claimants are tested by the employment service to confirm that they are taking steps to find employment.

  In order to ensure stricter compliance with Government objectives regulations were introduced in December 1992 to remove entitlement to income support from able-bodied single people and childless couples who do not actively seek work.

  National Insurance
  Dr. Spink
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what would be the change in overall marginal tax rate, including national insurance, for each tax banding, if the national insurance upper earning limit were removed; and how much income that would raise in a full year for the Exchequer.

  Mr. Hague
  If the upper earnings limit for national insurance contributions were removed, the effect on marginal tax rates would be as follows:

  Marginal tas rate including national insurance

  Annual income

  With an upper earnings limit per cent.

  Without an upper earnings limit per cent.

  £3,445—£5,945

  29

  29

  £5,946—£21,840

  34

  34

  £21,841—£27,145

  25

  34

  £27,146—£27,145

  40

  49

  Note

  1. Assumes single person's tax allowance of £3,445.

  2. Assumes that earnings for N1 purposes are spread evenly
  748
  throughout the year.

  3. Annual upper earnings limit for the payment of NI contributions is £21,840.

  Removal of the limit would increase national insurance contribution yield by £2.7 billion in a full year.

  Invalidity Benefits
  Mrs. Ann Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in the Dewsbury constituency are currently in receipt of invalidity payments; and how many were in receipt of invalidity payments in June 1992.

  Mr. Scott
  I understand from Mr. Michael Bichard the chief executive of the Benefits Agency that the information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Prison Staff
  Mr. Callaghan
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which prisons are operating below their establishment for prison officers; and what is the shortfall of staff in each of these prisons.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

  Letter from Derek Lewis to Mr. Jim Callaghan, dated 17 June 1993.

  The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about officer staffing levels in Prison Service establishments.

  The attached annex lists those establishments with fewer officers than their target staffing figures on 30 April. I should add that on I April we devolved to governors responsibility for recruiting prison officers and deciding the number and mix of staff within their running costs budgets.

  Establishments where officer (including principal and senior officers and specialists) staff in post was below the target staffing figure on 30 April 1993.

  Establishment1

  Shortfall on target staffing figure

  Ashwell

  2

  Askham Grange

  2

  Belmarsh

  11

  Brimingham

  11

  Blantyre House

  1

  Brinsford

  1

  Canterbury

  4

  Cookham Wood

  3

  Dartmoor

  1

  Dover

  3

  Downview

  2

  Drake Hall

  3

  East Sutton Park

  1

  Elmley

  4

  Erestoke

  3

  749

  Establishment1

  Shortfall on target staffing figure

  Featherstone

  1

  Feltham

  3

  Full Sutton

  11

  Glen Parva

  2

  Grendon/Spring Hill

  5

  Guys Marsh

  9

  Haslar

  2

  Hewell Grange

  3

  Holloway

  4

  Kringston

  1

  Kirkham

  1

  Leicester

  1

  Lindholme

  4

  Littlehey

  1

  Liverpool

  3

  Manchester

  11

  Moorland

  2

  Morton Hall

  2

  North Sea Camp

  1

  Nottingham

  1

  Onley

  3

  Parkhurst

  2

  Pentonville

  5

  Portland

  9

  Preston

  5

  Pucklechurch

  5

  Reading

  2

  Send

  1

  Shrewsbury

  6

  Stafford

  6

  Standford Hill

  1

  Stocken

  1

  Stocken Health

  3

  Swaleside

  1

  Swansea

  6

  Swinfen Hall

  3

  Wakefield

  6

  Wandsworth

  7

  Whitemoor

  5

  Winchester

  2

  Wormwood Scrubs

  3

  Wymott

  3

  1 Excluding new establishments in the process of being staffed and establishments with accommodation out of use for change of role or for refurbishment: Durham, Eastwood Park, High Down, Hollesley Bay, Lancaster Farms, Woodhill.

  Criminal Records
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his consultation paper on criminal records will be issued; and what provision will be made in respect of article 13 of the EC data protection directive in connection with the provision to prohibit a demand by a third party on a person that he should exercise his right of access to data in order to communicate that data to the third party.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  I expect to publish a consultation document in the course of the summer which, amongst other things, will refer to article 13 of the draft EC directive.

  Market Testing
  Ms Mowlam
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list all the market tests that have taken place in his Department since November 1992 750
  and indicate, in each case, whether the result was the maintenance of in-house provision, or whether the service was contracted out.

  Mr. Charles Wardle
  The Home Office functions which have been subject to market testing or contracting out since November 1992 is listed showing, in cases where the exercise has been completed, whether the result was the maintenance of in-house provision or whether the service was contracted out. The table also shows those market tests which have been discontinued. Except where an outcome is indicated, work is continuing.

  Non-prison market testing

  Hendon Data Centre

  Forensic Science Service Estate Management

  Internal Audit

  Accountancy Advice

  Passport Agency Records Office—discontinued

  Design and Illustration Branch

  Home Office Stationery Supplies

  Computing Services (ED5)

  Headquarters Catering Services

  IND Catering Services

  Library Service—discontinued

  Central Training Branch

  Typing Services

  Record Management Services

  Reprographic Services

  Office Facilities Management (ED1)

  Personnel Management Division Recruitment

  Immigration Service Recruitment (IND PMU)

  IND Statistics Security-Guard Service

  Non-prison contracting out

  Forensic Science Service Waste Disposal—contracted out

  Passport Agency Stationery Supplies

  Passport Agency Production of Blank Passports1

  Prison

  Directorate of Works Headquarters Training

  Dog Service

  Prison Service College Facilities Management

  Registries and Post Rooms

  Prison Service Information Technology Group

  Fleet Management

  Superannuation Administration

  Canteens (Prisoners' shops)

  Warehouse and Distribution—retained in-house

  Manchester Prison

  Prison: contracting-out

  Education2

  Court Escorts—contracted out

  Blakenhurst Prison—contracted out

  1 Contract awarded to HMSO.

  2Just over half has been completed.

  Data Protection
  Mr. Cohen
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy on the principle in article 13 of the EC data protection directive seeking to prohibit a demand by a third party on a person that he should exercise his right of access to data in order to communicate that data to the third party.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  The Government are sympathetic towards the concern which has been expressed about what is known as enforced subject access, but have encountered problems both of principle and practice in devising means of preventing it.

  Bail. Hostels
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the north Yorkshire bail hostel will be used for(a) people who would otherwise be remanded on bail in their own home, (b) people who would otherwise be remanded in custody, (c) ex-offenders not awaiting trial and (d) only for people from north Yorkshire.

  Mr. Maclean
  Bail hostels are solely for bailees who are deemed suitable by the court to reside in a hostel and who might otherwise have to be remanded in custody. They are unlikely to be used for people who could be bailed to their home address. Most of the residents will be local people, but hostels may accept referrals from other areas.

  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision he has made for the payment of compensation to people living in the vicinity of Alexander hotel, York who have suffered financial loss as a result of plans to use the hotel as a bail hostel.

  Mr. Maclean
  None.

  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the suitability of the Alexander hotel in Boroughbridge road in York for use as a bail hostel.

  Mr. Maclean
  The North Yorkshire probation service considered 16 possible sites for a bail hostel. A feasibility study indicated that the Alexander hotel was the best option in terms of operational needs and value for money.

  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the Home Office has decided to open a bail hostel in north Yorkshire.

  Mr. Maclean
  North Yorkshire is one of eight probation areas in England and Wales which does not have an approved bail or probation-bail hostel. Outline approval for a hostel was given in 1991 on the basis that there was a sufficient number of defendants dealt with by the courts in and around York to justify a hostel there, bearing in mind that, when the courts wished to grant bail with a condition of residence in an approved hostel, north Yorkshire probation service had to rely on hostel places in other areas.

  Blakenhurst Prison
  Mr. McAllion
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the projected staffing levels for Blakenhurst prison by job title/function.

  Mr. Peter Lloyd
  [holding answer 17 June 1993]: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

  Letter from Derek Lewis to Mr. John McAllion dated 17 June 1993:

  HM PRISON BLAKENHURST

  The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question on the projected staffing levels for Blakenhurst Prison by job title/function.

  HM Prison Blakenhurst has a Senior Management Team of nine. It is envisaged that when Blakenhurst is operating at
  752
  full capacity it will employ a total workforce of approximately 300 staff of whom 276 will be certificated Prison Custody Officers.

  To achieve optimum effectiveness and efficiency it is the contractor's intention to deploy staff imaginatively and flexibly by matching the requirements of the prison to the actual duties to be performed.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

  Company Investigations
  Mr. Campbell-Savours
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade if the companies investigations branch of his Department will obtain a copy of the book, details of which have been submitted to him.

  Mr. Heseltine
  [holding answer 15 June 19931]: All evidence is carefully considered by the appropriate authorities where matters may lead to investigation by my Department.

  French Security Services
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations he has made to his French counterpart in relation to activities by French intelligence agents in British aerospace and defence firms.

  Mr. Heseltine
  I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on Monday 7 June,Official Report, column 12.

  Matrix Churchill
  Mr. Ainsworth
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what consideration is now being given to payment of compensation to employees of Matrix Churchill who suffered financial loss as a result of the collapse of that company.

  Miss Widdecombe
  I have been asked to reply.

  The Employment Department made payments to former employees of Matrix Churchill last year totalling something over £950,000 covering redundancy payments, arrears of pay, and compensation for lack of statutory notice. The payments made were the normal statutory payments made to employees of insolvent companies under employment legislation.

NATIONAL HERITAGE

  Departmental Expenditure
  Sir Rhodes Boyson
  To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will publish the total amount of expenditure on provision within the responsibility of his Department in(a) England, (b) Greater London and (c) the south-east, excluding Greater London, for each year from 1982–83 distinguishing between current and capital expenditure, though excluding local authority credit approvals/capital allocations.

  Mr. Brooke
  The information is not available within my Department and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. The great majority of this Department's expenditure goes to agencies and bodies sponsored by the Department of National Heritage. My Department seeks to ensure that the money is used in
  753
  pursuit of the aims and objectives of the bodies concerned, but detailed spending decisions are the responsibility of these bodies. No systematic analysis of expenditure by geographical region is made.

  Correspondence
  Mr. Thurnham
  To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will make a statement on the reasons behind current delays in his Department's correspondence.

  Mr. Brooke
  The volume of correspondence, concentrated in one or two areas of particular interest, has been such that there have been unacceptable delays in replies in some cases. But now that my Department is in two locations instead of seven, with the benefits this should bring in terms of information technology and greater ease of communication, I hope that it will be possible to avoid backlogs and quicken the pace at which my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and I reply to letters.

  Charge for a fixed price school meal at January census in cash terms and real terms

  Pence

  Region or Island authority

  1979

  1980

  1981

  1982

  1983

  1984

  1985

  1986

  1987

  1988

  1989

  1990

  1991

  1992

  Borders

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  40 (74)

  42 (72)

  44 (72)

  46 (72)

  48 (71)

  50 (72)

  50 (68)

  50 (64)

  50 (60)

  55 (61)

  60 (62)

  Central

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  35 (65)

  40 (69)

  45 (74)

  45 (70)

  50 (74)

  55 (79)

  58 (79)

  60 (76)

  62 (74)

  68 (75)

  72 (75)

  Dumfries

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  40 (81)

  45 (83)

  50 (86)

  50 (82)

  52 (81)

  55 (82)

  58 (83)

  61 (83)

  60 (76)

  60 (72)

  165 (72)

  165 (67)

  255 (61)

  255 (57)

  Fife

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  40 (74)

  45 (77)

  48 (79)

  50 (78)

  52 (77)

  55 (79)

  50 (68)

  50 (64)

  50 (60)

  50 (55)

  60 (62)

  Grampian

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  42 (85)

  342 (77)

  342 (72)

  345 (74)

  350 (78)

  355 (82)

  358 (83)

  360 (82)

  363 (80)

  Not

  Not

  Not

  445 (83)

  445 (77)

  455 (90)

  460 (94)

  465 (96)

  468 (98)

  470 (95)

  473 (93)

  available

  available

  available

  Highland

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  41 (81)

  50 (92)

  50(86)

  50 (82)

  55 (86)

  55 (82)

  65 (93)

  65 (89)

  70 (89)

  74 (88)

  80 (88)

  85 (88)

  Lothian

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  35 (65)

  45 (77)

  45 (74)

  350 (78)

  350 (74)

  350 (72)

  350 (68)

  355 (70)

  355 (66)

  360 (66)

  370 (72)

  455 (86)

  455 (82)

  455 (79)

  455 (75)

  460 (76)

  460 (72)

  465 (72)

  475 (78)

  Strathclyde

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  40 (81)

  45 (83)

  50 (86)

  53 (87)

  55 (86)

  58 (86)

  61 (88)

  63 (86)

  64 (81)

  67 (80)

  79 (87)

  Not available

  Tayside

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  40 (81)

  45 (83)

  50 (86)

  345 (74)

  50 (78)

  55 (82)

  60 (86)

  60 (82)

  65 (83)

  65 (78)

  65 (72)

  65 (67)

  450 (82)

  Orkney

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  40 (74)

  50 (86)

  50 (82)

  50 (78)

  55 (82)

  60 (86)

  60 (82)

  60 (76)

  70 (83)

  70 (77)

  370 (72)

  475 (78)

  Shetland

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  35 (65)

  35 (60)

  45 (74)

  50 (78)

  50 (74)

  55 (79)

  60 (82)

  60 (76)

  65 (78)

  75 (83)

  75 (78)

  Western Isles

  30 (84)

  35 (84)

  35 (71)

  40 (74)

  45 (77)

  60 (99)

  60 (94)

  65 (96)

  65 (93)

  65 (89)

  70 (89)

  70 (83)

  70 (77)

  75 (78)

  1 Standard meal.

  2 Mini meal.

  3 Primary.

  4 Secondary.

  Notes:

  1. Except where indicated otherwise the same charge applied to both primary and secondary schools.

  2.Prior to 1981 charges for a fixed price meal were set by statutory regulation on national basis.

  3.Price in real terms at 1992–93 prices are shown in brackets.

  Mr. Wicks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the level of public expenditure on the school meal service in each year since 1979 in cash and real terms.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  [holding answer 17 June 1993]:

SCOTLAND

  School Meals
  Mr. Wicks
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the average price of a school meal in(a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in cash and real terms in each year since 1979.

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The average cost to pupils of school meals is not collected centrally. Pupils can obtain either a fixed meal at a set charge or a cafeteria style meal for which the charge will vary depending on the individual pupil's choice. The tables give details of the fixed price meal charge levied by each regional authority in each year since 1979 in cash and in real terms. The level of the charge made is at the discretion of the regional authority.

  The information is as follows:

  755

  Year

  Cash (net expenditure) (£thousands)

  Adjusted to 1992–93 prices using the GDP deflator (£ thousands)

  1978–79

  34,057

  95,064

  1979–80

  37,393

  90,761

  1980–81

  38,495

  77,825

  1981–82

  39,896

  73,553

  1982–83

  40,234

  69,246

  1983–84

  41,828

  68,803

  1984–85

  41,859

  65,532

  1985–86

  42,847

  63,606

  1986–87

  44,368

  64,197

  1987–88

  46,503

  63,393

  1988–89

  46,046

  58,510

  1989–90

  50,119

  59,760

  1990–91

  50,615

  55,875

  1991–92

  59,403

  61,482

  Nursing Homes
  Mrs. Fyfe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps are currently taken to ensure(a) proper inspection of nursing homes' care of elderly residents and (b) regular visits by general practitioners to monitor the health of residents and the carrying out of any necessary treatment, including removal to hospital.

  Mr. Stewart
  Under the Nursing Homes Registration (Scotland) Act 1938, as amended, health boards as registering authorities have a statutory requirement to visit and inspect all nursing homes in their area, including any register or records required, at least twice a year and to carry out spot checks at any reasonable time.

  The person registered must provide or make arrangements for the provision of medical services for any residents in the home and must ensure that arrangements for dealing with medical emergencies of residents are agreed with the health board. Residents are also entitled to receive visits from their own general practitioner on request.

  Strathblane Hospital
  Mrs. Fyfe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to intervene to prevent the closure of Strathblane hospital for respite care for mentally and severely handicapped children.

  Mr. Stewart
  The organisation of hospital and respite care for the Greater Glasgow area is a matter for the health board. No decisions have been made affecting Strathblane

  1981 Census

  1991 Census

  CENSUS DAY

  5 April 1981

  21 April 1991

  Preliminary Report, Scoland

  June 1981

  July 1991

  Region Monitor

  Start

  January 1982

  June 1992

  End

  June 1982

  October 1992

  Scotland Monitors

  July 1982

  December 1992

  Region Reports1

  Start

  September 1982

  December 1992

  Find

  March 1983

  April 1993

  Second Report

  Part 1

  August 1983

  June 19932

  Part 2

  December 1983

  August 19932

  Topic Reports

  Start

  April 1983

  February 1993

  End

  September 1984

  Spring 19922

  756
  hospital, any such proposal would be subject to public consultation and thereafter referred to Ministers for final decision.

  Water Privatisation
  Mr. McFall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions his Department has been holding with Strathclyde regional council on water privatisation.

  Sir Hector Monro
  [holding answer 16 June 19931]: There have been no such discussions.

  Mr. McFall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what information his departmental officials have given to the press concerning discussions between his Department and Strathclyde regional council on water privatisation.

  Monro
  [holding answer 16 June 1993]: There have been no such discussions, and no such information has been given.

  Manoucher Tehrani
  Mr. Galbraith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to review the case of Manoucher Tehrani, former consultant surgeon at Inverclyde royal infirmary; what consideration he has given to the recent papers supplied to him by Mr. Tehrani; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Stewart
  [holding answer 17 June 1993]: My right hon. Friend received certain papers about Mr. M. Tehrani from the Tehrani action group to which he has given consideration. He has concluded that it is not necessary or appropriate for an inquiry to be conducted in relation to the matters raised by the action group.

  Census
  Mr. Donohoe
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the interval between holding and publishing the results of the census in(a) 1981 and (b) 1991; and if he will make a statement on the validity of the results of the 1991 census.

  Mr. Stewart
  [holding answer 17 June 1993]: Census
  results are published as a series of monitors and fuller reports for each region and for Scotland as a whole, followed by a series of reports for specific topics—mainly for Great Britain but with some Scottish reports. Comparison with the 1981 census publication dates is given in the table.
  757
  Owing to some new questions and more detailed analyses, the 1991 Census publications contain roughly twice as many statistics as their 1981 equivalents.

  1Region reports were published in four parts per region for 1981 and two parts for 1991.

  2Planned dates.

  Computer processing of 1991 data was delayed as a result of a problem discovered during a routine data quality audit. Some 400,000 people in Great Britain, who were apparently not students, had completed the question on term time address as though they were students, causing them to be wrongly allocated in initial processing. More information about this problem is given in "Census Newsletter No. 18", a copy of which is in the Library. The full publication programme is still expected to be completed more quickly than was the case for the 1981 census.

  On the validity of the results, the Registrar General included a statement entitled "1991 Census under-enumeration: guidance for users in Scotland" as Annex A to the 1991 "Census Monitor for Scotland", a copy of which is in the Library. This indicated that the main 1991 census tables are in fact more complete than the equivalent 1981 tables and that the effects of under-enumeration in the 1991 census are likely to be unimportant for the majority of users.

  Further information on the coverage and quality of the census results will be published in a series of OPCS reports based on analysis of the census validation survey for Great Britain.

DEFENCE

  Trident
  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the factors that will bear upon his Department's decision as to the number of nuclear warheads that will be deployed on the Trident submarines.

  Mr. Aitken
  We will deploy on Trident only the minimum number of warheads we judge necessary to provide effective deterrence, presenting any potential aggressor with the prospect of unacceptable damage.

  Defence Export Services Organisation
  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how long the contract of the current head of the Defence Export Services Organisation has to run; and what is his annual salary.

  Mr. Aitken
  The present head of Defence Export Services, Sir Alan Thomas, has one year still to run of his five-year contract on secondment from Raytheon Europe Ltd. His current annual salary is £128,150 plus a performance bonus of up to an annual maximum of £30,000.

  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of staff of the Defence Export Services Organisation are seconded from industry; and what functions they perform.

  Mr. Aitken
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West (Mr. Banks) on 18 June 1992,Official Report, column 671.

  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff are employed in each of the overseas offices 758
  of the Defence Export Services Organisation; what is the estimated annual cost of the office in each case; and how many staff are employed in the London office.

  Mr. Aitken
  The following is a breakdown of the DESO overseas offices, the number of staff employed in each office and the 1993–94 estimated cost of each office:

  Office

  Staff numbers

  Estimated costs £'000

  Riyadh

  2

  84

  Kuwait

  1

  76

  New Delhi

  3

  78

  Kuala Lumpar

  7

  154

  Seoul

  3

  65

  Jakarta

  4

  63

  Bangkok

  2

  86

  Ankara

  1

  58

  Note: 263 staff are employed in London.

  Low Flying
  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many low-level flying hours were flown by the RAF in each of the past five years.

  Mr. Hanley
  The total numbers of hours booked—but not necessarily flown—at low level in the United Kingdom by all users of the UK low-flying system in each of the past five years were as follows:

  Year

  Hours booked

  1988

  106,100

  1989

  111,037

  1991

  96,943

  1992

  108,806

  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many representations he has received on the subject of low-level flying; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Hanley
  In the past 12 months we have received 5,698 such representations from members of the public and 272 from hon. Members.

  Challenger Tank
  Mr. Batiste
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he intends to proceed with the Challenger 1 upgrade programme.

  Mr. Aitken
  Studies to examine how best to equip the Army's six Challenger 1 tank regiments have now been completed, and the results are being evaluated. An announcement on the way forward will be made as soon as this evaluation is completed.

  Rosyth Minesweeper Flotilla
  Mr. Salmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 18 May,Official Report, column 146, whether contingency plans exist to

  759
  base the minesweeper flotilla in either Portsmouth or Plymouth if the Royal Navy's surface fleet presence at Rosyth is ended; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Hanley
  We have no plans to end the minor war vessel presence at Rosyth naval base.

  Aldermaston
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what action he proposes to take to improve the safety of AWE Aldermaston following concerns expressed after inspections by the Health and Safety Executive; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Aitken
  AWE is, and will continue to be, subject to independent inspection by the Health and Safety Executive—HSE—under the terms of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The establishment co-operates fully in these inspections and acts upon any recommendations made by the HSE. We will continue to develop safety improvements at AWE wherever possible.

  Royal Naval Engineering College, Manadon
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the investment appraisal study carried out into the Royal Naval engineering college at Manadon.

  Mr. Hanley
  A copy of the consultative document relating to our proposals for in-service first degree engineer officer training conducted at the Royal Naval engineering college at Manadon, Plymouth was placed in the Library of the House on 25 May 1993. This document contains information on the financial implications of our proposals.

  "Panorama" Interview
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what considerations underlay the decision by the Minister for Defence Procurement to decline an interview to "Panorama" for its programme broadcast on 14 June;

  (2) what considerations underlay the decision not to allow the administrative director of AWE Aldermaston to answer questions on "Panorama" on 14 June.

  Mr. Aitken
  My Department chose not to participate directly in the "Panorama" programme because we believed that the treatment would be neither even-handed nor objective.

  Dartmouth Naval College
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of Dartmouth naval college.

  Mr. Hanley
  I have nothing to add to the answer that my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Mr. Hamilton) gave to my hon. Friend the Member for South Hams (Mr. Steen) on 24 March,Official Report, column 612.

  Portland Naval Base
  Mr. Foulkes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the cumulative net present values for the Portland and Devonport options in the investment appraisal which 760
  supported his Department's decision to close Portland naval base; and what is the difference between these options.

  Mr. Hanley
  I refer the hon. Member to the investment appraisal figures given in annex A of the Portland naval base consultative document, a copy of which was placed in the Library of the House on 12 November 1992.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  Bosnia
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many breaches of the UN no-fly zone have taken place over Bosnia since it was established; and if he will list the reported breaches by month.

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  The no-fly zone over Bosnia was established by UN Security Council resolution 781 of 9 October 1992. Between 22 October 1992—when monitoring of the zone began—and 9 June 1993, the UN secretariat recorded 600 violations of the zone, as follows:

  Month

  Number

  22–31 October 1992

  13

  November 1992

  213

  December 1992

  142

  January 1993

  35

  February 1993

  58

  March 1993

  38

  April 1993

  42

  May 1993

  20

  1–9June 1993

  39

  Civil and Political Rights
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the states that have signed(a) the international covenant on civil and political rights, (b) the optional protocol to the covenant and (c) the second protocol to the covenant, indicating the year in which each state signed.

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  The information requested by the hon. Member is contained in the UN publications "Human Rights: Status of International Instruments" and "Human Rights: Status of International Instruments: Chart of Ratifications", the most recent copies of which are available in the Library of the House.

NATIONAL FINANCE

  Public Expenditure White Paper
  Sir Ralph Howell
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were(a) the publication costs and (b) the price to the public, of the public expenditure White Paper in 1979 and its equavalent, including each of the departmental reports, in 1993.

  Mr. David Davis
  I have been asked to reply.

  The price of the Public Expenditure White Paper (Cmnd 7439) was £4.25 in 1979. The combined price of all individual departmental reports and the accompanying statistical supplement to the "Autumn Statement" (Cms 2201–2219) was £261.25 in 1993. HMSO sells complete sets at the discounted price of £175.
  761
  The costs of printing, publishing and distribution were borne by HMSO which aims to recover these from sales revenue.

  Tax Avoidance
  Mr. Stern
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards countering tax avoidance.

  Mr. Dorrell
  The Government remain determined to prevent the growth of tax avoidance to the level that existed before 1979. And over the last 14 years a large number of measures has been introduced to counter avoidance, including some in the present Finance Bill.

  Any taxpayer is entitled to order his affairs within the law to reduce to a minimum the amount of tax which he is likely to pay and is entitled to be protected against retrospective action by the Government or by Parliament which would reduce that right. But there is a point when avoidance can be regarded as improper and unacceptable, deserving to be looked at critically, and deserving to be stopped because it amounts to a defiance of, or an escape from, the underlying intention of the legislation.

  In countering tax avoidance, the Government will continue to use a number of techniques which have proved successful in the past; these include rendering avoidance ineffective from the date of a clear announcment to do so, rather than necessarily waiting for the passage of legislation, and ensuring that Inland Revenue clearance procedures are not abused to the extent that they become part of the mechanism for constructing avoidance schemes.

EDUCATION

  English Grammar
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment the curriculum authorities have made of the importance of a knowledge of grammar and of syntax in contributing to an understanding of English literature.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  This would have been one of the issues considered by the National Curriculum Council in drawing up its recommendations for revisions to the English curriculum, which formed the basis of proposals published by my right hon. Friend in April. In the programme of study for reading, the importance of a knowledge of grammatical structure to the full un-derstanding of literature is recognised from the earliest stage.

  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to improve the teaching of spelling, punctuation and grammar in English.

  Robin Squire
  ; My right hon. Friend has recently published proposals for revisions to national curriculum English which give a strengthened emphasis to spelling, punctuation and grammar. In addition, 5 per cent. of the marks in all GCSE written examinations are now allocated to these matter.

  St. Mary's School, Hendon
  Mr. John Marshall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he expects to determine the application by St. Mary's school, Hendon, to become a grant-maintained school.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  My right hon. Friend expects to make a decision on this application in the very near future.

  Religious and Physical Education
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the calculated percentage curriculum time allocation for(a) religious education and (b) physical education in primary and secondary schools.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  The information requested is available for secondary schools from the 1992 secondary school staffing survey which collected data from representative sample of maintained secondary schools in England. The table shows the percentage of total pupil periods recorded as having been spent on religious education and physical education. No recent information is available for primary schools or 6th form students in schools.

  Year group

  Religious education per cent

  Physical education per cent

  7

  4.2

  9.1

  8

  4.2

  8.9

  9

  4.3

  8.3

  10

  2.8

  7.7

  11

  2.6

  7.2

  Education (Parental Complaints)
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to disseminate the names and addresses of organisations which assist in parental complaints about local education.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  None. Statutory rights of appeal or complaint have been publicised in the parents charter.

  Humanism
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he will make a statement on the inclusion of humanism in agreed syllabuses for religious education.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  Humanism is not a religion and should not be taught in religious education lessons as if it were. A syllabus may, however, include teaching about people, such as humanists, who do not believe in God but nonetheless have a code of moral values; or give examples of secular equivalents to practices which have a religious background, such as the marriage service or the taking of an oath.

  School Syllabuses
  Lady Olga Maitland
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what action he proposes to take in the case of local education authorities which have made revisions to their agreed syllabuses since the Education Reform Act 1988 which in the opinion of the National Curriculum Council fail to meet the legal requirements.
  763
  Mr. Robin Squire
  I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Schools gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Sutton and Cheam on 30 March 1993,official Report column 155.

  Graduation Tax
  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to implement a graduation tax; and if he will make a statement.

  Mr. Boswell
  None.

  School Tests
  Mrs. Roche
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what was the cost of this year's tests for(a) key stage I pupils and (b) key stage 3 pupils.

  Mr. Robin Squire
  The estimated costs of producing and distributing the statutory tests for 1993 in English, mathematics, science and Welsh at key stage 1–17-year-olds—is –1,230,000. The estimated cost of the non-mandatory tests at this key stage is £1,470,000.

  The cost of the statutory tests in English, mathematics, science, technology and Welsh at key stage 3–14-year-olds—is £4,090,000. This includes support materials.

  Bullying
  Mr. Steinberg
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools are using video equipment as a method to control and monitor bullying in schools; and what results have been achieved by these experiments.

  Mr. Forth
  This information is not collected centrally.

TRANSPORT

  Warren Spring Laboratory
  Mr. Chris Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what will be the impact on his budgets for research into air pollution from motor vehicles of recent announcements relating to Warren Spring Laboratory.

  Mr. Key
  Transitional costs of moving work from Warren Spring Laboratory to the new national environmental technology centre will not fall upon the Department's budgets in the area mentioned.

  We shall continue to let contracts to the best available contractors and, if the new centre maintains the same standards as the laboratory, I would expect the volume of work placed there to be at a similar level.

  West Coast Main Line
  Mrs. Dunwoody
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with British Rail about funding and safety of the west coast main line.

  Mr. Freeman
  Re-equipping the west coast main line is an investment priority. I understand that British Rail has set aside funds for design work and plans to begin renewing the infrastructure next year. Decisions on the precise phasing of the renewal programme will need to have regard to public expenditure constraints.
  764
  There is no question of passenger safety being jeopardised in any way: BR has a statutory duty to operate safely.

  Cycling
  Mrs. Roche
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what initiatives his Department is planning to take to improve conditions for cycling in London.

  Mr. Norris
  Most cycling takes place on local authority roads which comprise 96 per cent. of the London network. The remainder are DOT trunk roads.

  We are helping to improve conditions for cycling in London in the following ways:
  —by taking full account of the needs of cyclists when planning trunk road construction and improvements:
  —supporting the 1,000 mile cycle network being developed by London Cycling Forum.
  ¤providing capital funding support for cycle schemes on roads of more than local importance when they comprise or form part of a local safety scheme. The new "package approach" for capital schemes will provide flexibility for boroughs to submit joint bids for road proposals from 1994–95 and should facilitate the development of inter-borough cycle routes;
  —providing advice and guidance to boroughs on the design and construction of cycling facilities via local transport notes and traffic advisory leaflets.

ENVIRONMENT

  Compulsory Competitive Tendering
  Mr. Simon Coombs
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will extend the range of local services put out to compulsory competitive tendering.

  Mr. Baldry
  I refer my hon. Friend to the answer the then Under-Secretary of State with responsibility for local government gave to the Member for Chingford (Mr. Duncan Smith) on 24 May 1993,Official Report, column 366.

  Dockyards
  Mr. Colvin
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those dockyard facilities in the United Kingdom owned and operated by his Department, indicating this type of work undertaken and the numbers of people directly employed.

  Mr. Baldry
  The Department of the Environment does not own or operate any dockyard facilities.

  Local Government Finance
  Mr. Mackinlay
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 15 June at column 543, if he will also deposit in the Library the previous submission of Castle Point borough council dated 17 March referred to in paragraph 1.2 of the submission relating to limitation of council tax dated 27 April which he deposited in the Library.

  Mr. Baldry
  I have today placed copies of this document in the Library.