Written Answers of 30 June 1995

ENVIRONMENT

  Construction Industry
  Mr. Galbraith
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to issue his next consultation document on the Latham report. [31297]

  Mr. Robert B. Jones
  Two consultation documents have recently been issued on legislative proposals arising from recommendations in the Latham report. I have no present plans for any further consultation documents.

  Pollution and Breast Cancer
  Mr. Dafis
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what research projects have been commissioned by his Department to investigate the connection between environmental pollutants and the incidence of breast cancer. [31058]

  Mr. Atkins
  No research projects to specifically investigate the possible connection between environmental pollutants and the incidence of breast cancer have been commissioned by the Department. However, on behalf of the Department, the Medical Research Council's institute for environment and health is carrying out a review of existing literature and scientific opinion on the evidence for changes in human reproductive health, including breast cancer, and effects on wildlife, and to examine the possible links between the production and release into the environment of manmade chemicals, and the observed effects. The institute's report will be published in due course.

  Whatley Quarry
  Mr. Dafis
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will call in Amey Roadstones Corporation's application to expand Whatley quarry.

  [31059]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  This application is currently being considered by Somerset county council. The Whatley quarry article 14 direction is still in place and the Secretary of State will, as he has been requested by a number of representations, consider whether he should call in the revised application for his own determination in due course.

  Office of Water Services
  Mr. Hain
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which consultants, individuals and companies, have been employed by Ofwat since 1993 or are currently employed; on what tasks; how much retainer has been or is paid on a regular basis; and how much they have been paid otherwise for tasks completed or tasks under way. [31364]
  802
  Sir Paul Beresford
  This is a matter for the Director General of Water Services.

  Mr. Hain
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the external directorships held and remuneration received by the water regulator. [31540]

  Mr. Atkins
  The Director General of Water Services holds no external directorships.

  Buying Agency
  Mr. Sykes
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what change has been made to the financial target for the Buying Agency. [31652]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  The Treasury has today laid a minute setting the Buying Agency a target, from 1 July 1995, of 8 per cent. return on capital employed. This replaces the Buying Agency's previous target of a profit after interest in current cost terms of 1.5 per cent. of the total value of goods procured.

OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION

  Indonesia
  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consultations took place before his Department agreed to fund the police management training project in Indonesia; if he consulted(a) the Overseas Development Administration geographical department, (b) the overseas post, (c) the development division and (d) the overseas police adviser; when the project was submitted to his Department for approval; if the submission to his Department was considered by the aid policy department; if the aid policy department considered the question of human rights; what view the aid policy department took of the record of the Indonesian national police in relation to human rights abuses; and on what date ministerial approval was given to the project. [30760]

  Mr. Baldry
  [holding answer 26 June 19951: Appropriate advice, including that on the issue of human rights, was sought from all relevant quarters prior to the project's approval on 22 March 1990.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 13 June,Official Report columns 504-505, under which sub-division of the tropical forest management programme the local application of remote sensing techniques system was supplied to the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry; what was the value of the equipment supplied; how it was funded; and on what date his Department agreed to fund the project to supply the equipment. [30764]

  Mr. Baldry
  [holding answer 26 June 1995]: The equipment was provided under sub-project 2, provincial forest management. It cost £30,000 and was financed from technical co-operation funds. Sub-project 2 was approved on 20 July 1993.

  Mrs Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 13 June,Official Report, columns 504-505, under which

  803
  sub-division of the tropical forest management programme the NASA satellite imagery equipment was supplied to the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry; what was the value of the equipment supplied; how it was funded; and on what date his Department agreed to fund the project to supply the equipment. [30765]

  Mr. Baldry
  [holding answer 26 June 1995]: The NASA satellite imagery, which is digital data used for map making, was provided under sub-project 5. No equipment was bought. The cost of the data was $8,000, and was financed from technical co-operation funds. Sub-project 5 was approved on 1 February 1991.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 15 June,Official Report, column 631, and the ministerial letter of 31 May, in the case of steel bridging, phase 1 project in Indonesia, what was (a) the appraisal date for the Overseas Development Administration and (b) the submission date by the Department of Trade and Industry to the sub-committee on aid and trade; when the project was completed in July 1988; and if he will make a statement on (i) the relationship and (ii) the interval between these dates. [31157]

  Mr. Baldry
  [holding answer 27 June 1995]: This project was appraised by the Overseas Development Administration in February 1983 and presented to the sub-committee on aid and trade in January 1983. There is nothing of significance in the relationship between these dates and the completion date of the project in July 1988.

  Mrs. Clwyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the letter from his Minister of 31 May, what considerations made it necessary to refer to the radio studio's rehabilitation project in Indonesia to the sub-committee on aid and trade on four occasions; and what assessment of the project has been made. [31153]

  Mr. Baldry
  [holding answer 27 June 1995]: When this project was presented to the sub-committee on aid and trade in June 1986, it was combined with that for the Bandung television studios project. Detailed negotiations between the supply company and the Government of Indonesia representatives led to delays as well as changes in the equipment specification. SCAT was apprised of these developments in November 1987 and was also advised that consideration was being given to separating

  European social fund allocations to the United Kingdom (including Community initiatives)

  £million, 1994 prices

  1989

  1990

  1991

  1992

  1993

  19941

  Objective 1

  North West England

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  36

  Scotland

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  6

  Northern Ireland

  56

  54

  53

  59

  61

  39

  Total objective 1

  56

  54

  53

  59

  61

  81

  Objective 2

  North of England

  13

  19

  19

  23

  23

  21

  Yorkshire and Humberside

  12

  17

  17

  20

  20

  19

  East Midlands2

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  5

  South East

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  5

  South West

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  1

  West Midlands

  8

  13

  13

  16

  16

  23

  804
  the two projects. Formal notification of separation was conveyed to SACT in July 1989 and approval was sought for the radio studios project only. Between then and October 1989 negotiations between the contracting parties were completed and SACT was notified of the final contract costs.

  A project completion report was prepared in April 1992. It concluded that the outputs of the implementation phases of the project had largely been met.

EMPLOYMENT

  Voluntary Organisations
  Miss Hoey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many voluntary sector organisations his Department has(a) paid grants to or (b) entered into contracts with in (i) 1993–94 and (ii) 1994–95; and what was the total value of these grants and contracts. [31312]

  Miss Widdecombe
  Information held centrally indicates that in 1993–94 the Department of Employment entered into contracts with 187 voluntary sector organisations. The total value of these contracts was £50,057,200. Figures for 1994–95 will not be available until later this year when I will write to the hon. Member with details.

  Social Fund
  Mr. Robin Cook
  To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list by each objective and by each other Community initiative, including Rechar and Interreg, the value of assistance received under the European social fund both nationally and for each standard region of the United Kingdom for each year since 1989. [31360]

  Miss Widdecombe
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: European social fund allocations to the United Kingdom for the period 1989 to 1994 are given in the following table. Figures on individual Community initiatives by standard region are not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Included in the figures for 1994 are those community initiatives which have so far been approved by the Commission, with the exception of EMPLOYMENT and ADAPT for which no expenditure will be recorded for 1994.
  805

  European social fund allocations to the United Kingdom (including Community initiatives)

  £ million, 1994 prices

  1989

  1990

  1991

  1992

  1993

  19941

  North West England

  24

  36

  36

  44

  44

  25

  Scotland

  12

  17

  17

  21

  21

  22

  Wales

  8

  11

  11

  15

  15

  12

  Total objective 2

  77

  112

  112

  140

  140

  133

  Objective 5B

  North of England3

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  1

  East Midlands4

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  1

  East Anglia

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  1

  South West

  5

  2

  2

  2

  2

  3

  West Midlands

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  1

  Scotland

  5

  3

  3

  2

  2

  2

  Wales

  5

  2

  2

  2

  2

  3

  Total objective 5B

  16

  7

  7

  6

  6

  13

  Total objective 3/4

  354

  255

  262

  309

  457

  389

  Total United Kingdom

  503

  429

  434

  515

  665

  616

  1The figures shown for 1994 include allocations from the following Community initiatives only: Interreg (Northern Ireland)

  Leader (Northern Ireland, Highlands and Islands and Wales)

  Urban (Northern Ireland)

  SMEs (Northern Ireland)

  Allocations for all other Community initiatives are not yet decided.

  2 The 1989–93 allocations are included with those for Yorkshire and Humberside.

  3The Northern uplands SPD also covers parts of Yorkshire and Humberside and north-west England.

  4The Midlands uplands SPD also covers parts of the west midlands.

SOCIAL SECURITY

  Income Support
  Mr. David Martin
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the cost to public funds of increasing the £8,000 capital limit for income support and family credit purposes to(a) £15,000, (b) £20,000, (c) £25,000 and (d) £50,000. [27936]

  Mr. Roger Evans
  Information concerning people with capital above the upper capital limit is not sufficiently reliable to enable accurate estimates of the cost of increasing the limit to be provided.

  It is not possible, even if an estimate were made in these premises, to give an answer with meaning because the question does not contain any alternative premise for the tariff income rule.

  Dr. Marek
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 27 June,Official Report, column 586, on claims by way of arrears of supplementary benefit, what are the reasons the information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. [31995]

  Mr. Evans
  The district of Wrexham and North Wales Coast constitutes the offices of Wrexham, Rhyll, Deeside and Colwyn bay. In June 1994, the office at Wrexham was part of the Mid-Wales and Maelor district. The offices at Rhyll, Deeside and Colwyn bay formed the totally separate district of North Wales Coast.

  To obtain the information requested would involve the offices in recovering their giro records for June 1994; identifying the claimants and locating their clerical records; identifying those cases where the payment issued was supplementary benefit; and, as appropriate, identifying the sums involved.
  806
  Officials estimate that a minimum of 15 minutes would be required to carry out these tasks in respect of each of the 2,720 clerical giro payments issued by these offices in June 1994, at an overall cost of over £8,000.

  Pensioners' Incomes
  Mr. Denham
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the average pensioner income on retirement in(a) 2010 and (b) 2020, relative to average earnings, broken down into the contributions from (i) the state retirement benefit, (ii) state earnings-related schemes, (iii) appropriate personal pension schemes and (iv) occupational pensions; and if he will indicate the assumptions made in these calculations. [30788]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  The information is not available in the form requested.

  Child Support Agency
  Ms Gordon
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the expenditure of the Child Support Agency in each year since its inception on legal fees incurred in defending actions by non-resident parents. [31205]

  Mr. Burt
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Islington, North (Mr. Corbyn) on 25 November 1994,Official Report, columns 889–90.

  Benefit Offices (Play Areas)
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the current plans and facilities in Doncaster and Mexborough district benefit offices in respect of providing play areas. [31094]
  807
  Mr. Roger Evans
  At present, there are no play areas in any of these offices, although baby changing facilities are provided at each location.

  A new benefit office for Doncaster is currently under construction. There is insufficient space within the planned Benefits Agency caller facility for inclusion of a separate play area at this stage. However, the Child Support Agency will be providing toys in its interview rooms at the new office.

  At Mexborough, all caller inquiries are dealt with by BA staff and there are no dedicated CSA interviewing facilities. There are no plans to provide a play area in the BA facility due to insufficient space.

TRANSPORT

  Channel Tunnel Rail Link
  Ms Hodge
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements he is making for revised submissions in the event of changes to the alignment, tunnelling or stations currently proposed for the channel tunnel rail link. [31726]

  Mr. Watts
  The Government have no plans to change the route or stations of the channel tunnel rail link. If the House required any change, the procedures set down in Standing Orders would apply.

  Rail Privatisation
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the current timetable for privatising(a) Railtrack, (b) British Rail's infrastructure maintenance units, (c) British Rail's track renewal units, (d) Signalling Control UK, (e) Interlogic Control Engineering and (f) British Rail Telecoms. [31593]

  Mr. Watts
  Railtrack is to be privatised within the lifetime of this Parliament. BR's infrastructure maintenance units and track renewal units are expected to be sold by the end of the year. Signalling Control UK, Interlogic Engineering and British Rail Telecoms have recently been offered for sale to the private sector; BR aims to complete the sales as soon as possible.

  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the timetable for privatising each of the British Rail train operating units. [31594]

  Mr. Watts
  In December 1994, the franchising director invited interested parties to prequalify in respect of eight franchises; Great Western LTS Rail, South West Trains, Gatwick Express, Network South Central, Intercity East Coast, Midland Main Line and ScotRail. Invitations to tender in respect of Great Western, LTS Rail and South West Trains were issued in May. The franchising director aims to let the first franchises by the end of 1995. He aims to issue further invitations to tender later this year. The remaining franchises are being prepared in accordance with the franchising director's view of their readiness of sale.

  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer on 21 April,Official Report, column 299, if he will set out the current timetable for privatising the British Rail civil engineering design
  808
  offices in (a) Birmingham, (b) Croydon, (c) Glasgow, (d) Swindon and (e) York; and if the BR vendor unit expects to sell all the offices to the same bidder. [31641]

  Mr. Watts
  The BR board's negotiations with bidders for these offices are well advanced. The board hopes to complete most of them shortly; it does not envisage selling all the offices to the same bidder.

  Motorways
  Mr. Sheerman
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made on the effectiveness of concrete crash barriers on motorways. [30491]

  Mr. Watts
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend for Meriden (Mr. Mills) on 29 June,Official Report, column 745.

  Design, Build, Finance and Operate Schemes
  Ms Walley
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the DBFO schemes in operation. [31836]

  Mr. Watts
  No DDFO schemes are in operation.

  Europe-United Arab Emirates Flights
  Sir Teddy Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many air flights per day take place between the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, France and Germany respectively. [31532]

  Mr. Norris
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: On average, the total number of non-stop flights per day between the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, France and Germany respectively is as follows:

  United Kingdom/United Arab Emirates—15

  France/United Arab Emirates—3

  Germany/United Arab Emirates—5

HEALTH

  Hepatitis C
  Mrs. Beckett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research has been conducted by her Department on Hepatitis C in the last 10 years; and at what cost. [30466]

  Mr. Sackville
  The Department of Health is funding two pieces of work at the public health laboratory service. One is a feasibility study to develop a programme of surveys to determine and monitor the prevalence of hepatitis C infection in England and Wales and the approximate cost is £78,000. The other is a project to investigate the economic detection of antibody to hepatitis C virus in pooled serum samples and the approximate cost is £48,000.

  The main agency through which the Government support bio-medical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council which receives a grant in aid from the office of my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

  The MRC has the following programme of research on hepatitis C:
  Hepatitis C; protein crystallography; HSV and bunyavirus suppressor mutations.

  809
  Virological and immunological determinants of liver disease in haemophiliacs infected with hepatitis C virus.
  Hepatitis C infection and blood exposure incidents: preliminary seroprevalence studies.
  Molecular epidemiology of hepatitis C virus in intravenous drug users in West Suffolk.
  Detection and quantitation of hepatitis C virus in vivo.
  Cloning, sequence analysis and expression of divergent genotypes of hepatitis C virus.
  Hepatitis C virus 5 untranslated region as a novel antiviral target.
  Cell and molecular virology of hepatitis C virus/Dengue type 4 chimaeric particles.
  Hepatitis C virus infection: the molecular basis of virus/host interaction.
  Hepatitis C virus in saliva and salivary glands.

  In consultation with the MRC, my Department will be considering the need for further research on hepatitis C.

  Alcohol
  Mrs. Beckett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the safe limit recommended by her Department for men and women for alcohol use daily and weekly in units; and what plans she has to change these recommended limits. [31351]

  Mr. Bowis
  The current sensible drinking message is that drinking less than 21 units per week by men and 14 units per week by women is unlikely to damage health.

  Breakdown of total NHS revenue expenditure 1979–80 to 1993–941

  Year

  Percentage Wages2

  Percentage Drugs3

  Percentage Transport4 5

  Percentage Equipment4 6

  Percentage Other7

  Total revenue expenditure £ million

  1979–80

  57.7

  11.4

  -

  -

  31.0

  6,925

  1980–81

  59.2

  10.7

  -

  -

  30.1

  8,864

  1981–82

  57.9

  11.0

  -

  -

  31.1

  9,891

  1982–83

  56.6

  11.7

  0.5

  4.8

  24.4

  10,739

  1983–84

  56.3

  12.3

  0.5

  4.5

  26.5

  11,397

  1984–85

  55.6

  12.1

  0.4

  4.5

  27.4

  12,191

  1985–86

  55.5

  12.2

  0.5

  4.6

  27.3

  12,873

  1986–87

  55.9

  12.3

  0.4

  4.6

  26.8

  13,810

  1987–88

  56.1

  12.5

  0.4

  4.4

  26.6

  15,162

  1988–89

  56.5

  12.5

  0.4

  4.2

  26.5

  17,005

  1989–90

  56.5

  12.9

  0.5

  4.2

  25.9

  18,236

  1990–91

  56.1

  12.6

  0.5

  3.9

  26.9

  20,102

  1991–92

  49.9

  11.5

  0.4

  3.7

  34.5

  25,302

  1992–93

  48.1

  11.5

  0.4

  3.7

  36.4

  28,551

  1993–94

  46.2

  12.0

  0.4

  3.9

  37.5

  30,364

  Source:

  Annual accounts—1979–80 to 1990–91—and annual financial returns—1991–92 to 1993–94—of regions, districts and special health authorities for the London postgraduate hospitals and family health services authorities, and annual financial returns of NHS trusts—1991–92 to 1993–94.

  Notes:

  1Figures since 1991–92 are not directly comparable with earlier years owing to changes in accounting policy—for example, the introduction of capital charges—as a result of the NHS reforms.

  2Gross pay costs of hospital and community health service staff and family health services authority administration staff, including employers' national insurance and superannuation contributions, but excluding remuneration of FHS contractors.

  3Drugs are based on the cost of HCHS and family health service drugs and appliances—after deduction of pharmaceutical price regulation scheme receipts, etcetera—and costs met through prescription charges but do not include dispensing fees.

  4Not separately identified in financial years 1979–80 to 1981–82 inclusive.

  5Transport and moveable plant.

  6Including associated maintenance costs. Excludes capital expenditure on items of equipment.

  7Including capital charges from 1991–92 inclusive and remuneration of FHS contractors. Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.

  810
  The message is currently being reviewed, in the light of the latest scientific evidence, by the interdepartmental group on sensible drinking.

  Glaucoma
  Mr. Jon Owen Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many glaucoma sufferers there are in Britain. [31402]

  Mr. Sackville
  The information is not available centrally.

  Termination Payments
  Mr. Milburn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to her answer of 19 June,Official Report, column 36, on health authority termination payments, if she will indicate (a) the number, (b) the rank and (c) the amount paid to each individual. [32022]

  Mr. Malone
  Each of the 12 payments listed was to an individual health authority manager: 11 general managers and one senior manager.

  NHS Expenditure
  Mrs. Beckett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of the NHS budget was spent on(a) wages, (b) drugs, (c) equipment, (d) vehicles and (e) other items in each of the last 15 years. [28640]

  Mr. Malone
  [holding answer 15 June 1995J: The available information on revenue expenditure is shown in the table.

  Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Handbook
  Mr. Faber
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the response to the recent publication of the handbook on child and adolescent mental health; and if she will make a statement. [32469]

  Mr. Bowis
  The handbook, copies of which are available in the Library, has been warmly welcomed by all those working in the field as providing a clear statement of the importance of child and adolescent mental health and the need for a variety of agencies to work together to provide a comprehensive and complementary range of services. It was issued in March as part of our programme to help in the development of mental health services for the young, under "The Health of the Nation" initiative, and it has proved to be such a success that we are already having to reprint it within weeks of its launch.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

  Arms Embargo
  Mr. Byers
  To ask the Attorney-General on what dates in 1990 meetings were held with representatives of Customs and Excise to discuss the prosecution of Chris Cowley and Peter Mitchell for allegedly breaking the arms embargo with Iraq and Iran; and on what date senior Treasury counsel provided advice on the question of bringing a prosecution against Mr. Cowley and Mr. Mitchell. [29261]

  The Attorney-General
  [holding answer 19 June 1995]: I reply in relation to meetings and advice involving the Law Officers or their officials. Detailed information relating to the conduct of an individual criminal case is ordinarily confidential but has in this particular case already been substantially disclosed.

  I understand that between April and November 1990 there were a number of conferences between representatives of Customs and Excise and senior Treasury counsel. One member of the legal secretariat to the Law Officers was present at such a meeting held on 25 April 1990. Another member attended two meetings in October 1990.

  My predecessor and I met with the Solicitor to Customs and Excise and counsel on 8 November 1990. I was at that time Solicitor-General. My predecessor also met the chairman of the commissioners of HM Customs and Excise together with their solicitor on 9 November 1990.

AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD

  Nitrate Sensitive Areas
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he plans to announce the arrangements for the continuation of the pilot nitrate sensitive areas. [32577]

  Mr. Waldegrave
  I am pleased to announce that, following our consultations with farmers, details of the 812
  scheme for the continuation of the 10 pilot NSAs, originally designated in 1990, will be available from Monday 3 July. The necessary statutory instrument setting out the measures and associated payment rates will shortly be laid before Parliament.

  The pilot areas are being incorporated within the scheme for the 22 new NSAs launched under the Ministry's agri-environment programme last year, to form a unified scheme of 32 NSAs. Farmers in the areas will be invited to give five-year undertakings to change their farming practices to reduce nitrate leaching, based on the terms and conditions of that scheme.

  The pilot NSA scheme clearly demonstrated that NSA measures are effective in reducing nitrate losses from agricultural land and I look forward to renewing our partnership with farmers in these 10 areas. The level of uptake in the first year of the 22 new NSAs was very encouraging and I am confident that the Ministry's NSA programme will make a major contribution towards ensuring the future viability of the key sources of public drinking water covered by these areas.

  All farmers with land in the NSAs will automatically be sent an information pack about the scheme by their local Ministry regional service centre. Applications to join the scheme this year must be returned to regional service centres by 8 September 1995.

SCOTLAND

  St. Andrew's College, Bearsden
  Mr. Worthington
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what powers he has to intervene if reductions in funding threaten the quality of standards he has imposed on courses at St. Andrew's college, Bearsden. [30492]

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  The Secretary of State does not have any powers under the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 to require conditions to be attached to grants paid by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council to individual institutions. It is for the council to decide how to allocate the resources available to it taking into account its assessment of quality of teaching, and other relevant evidence as to the needs of an individual institution and the higher education institution sector as a whole. Courses of initial teacher training are subject to the approval of my right hon. Friend and must comply with the guidelines issued by the Scottish Office Education Department.

  Staff
  Mrs. Ray Michie
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list for each Department in the Scottish Office, expressed as a number and a percentage,(a) civil servants who have left the service and their grade, (b) voluntary redundancies and their grade, (c) compulsory redundancies and their grade and (d) those given early retirement and their grade for (i) 1991, (ii) 1992, (iii) 1993, (iv) 1994 and (v) 1995. [31290]

  Mr. Lang
  This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  Forestry Commission
  Mr. Tipping
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland on what dates and by whom, sample valuations have been carried out on the Forestry Commission estate, in the last five years. [30817]

  Sir Hector Monro
  [holding answer 28 June 1995]: The Forestry Commission carried out a full open market valuation of its forest estate in 1993. Full details are given in the commission's annual report of the year ended 31 March 1993, a copy of which is in the Library.

  Training
  Mr. McFall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many 16 and 17-year-olds were seeking training places in each division of every regional council in Scotland on 1 June; and what was the number of vacancies. [27576]

  Lord James Douglas-Hamilton
  [holding answer 21 June 1995]: The number of young people under 18 years of age seeking training places and the number of training vacancies on 31 May are shown in the following table. Information is not available to split these figures into smaller areas.

  The number of vacant places on a given day is only a snapshot and does not reflect the total supply of places which would be available over the specified time scale for making offers to young people.

  Careers service area

  Number seeking training

  Number of vacancies

  Borders

  107

  90

  Central

  254

  145

  Dumfries and Galloway

  93

  123

  Fife

  390

  380

  Grampian

  293

  1-

  Highland

  116

  145

  Lothian

  701

  471

  Tayside

  462

  296

  Orkney

  3

  50

  Shetland

  8

  12

  Western Isles

  12

  32

  Argyll

  42

  52

  Ayr

  445

  538

  Dumbarton

  268

  143

  Glasgow

  565

  655

  Lanark

  339

  240

  Renfrew

  262

  253

  Total

  4,360

  13,670

  1Figures are not available for Grampian Enterprise area.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Prisoners (Testing)
  Mr. Beith
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have undergone penile plesythmograph tests; how many of these prisoners have not been convicted of sex offences; and in how many cases home leave or release dates have been altered as a result of the findings of these tests. [30063]

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison 814
  Service, who has been asked to arrange a reply to be given.

  Letter from Brian Landers to Mr. A. J. Beith, dated 30 June 1995:
  The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about how many prisoners have undergone Penile Plesythmograph (PPG) testing; how many of these prisoners have not been convicted of sexual offences; and in how many cases home leave or release dates have been altered or changed as a result of the findings of these tests.
  During the year ending 31 March 1995, 103 prisoners took the PPG test, of whom 10 prisoners had not been convicted of a sexual offence, although sexual offending had been identified as an area of concern.
  In no cases have any prisoners had their home leave entitlements or release dates altered as a result of the findings of the PPG test.

  Young Offenders
  Mr. Jim Cunningham
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many young offenders convicted in the last year were(a) illiterate, (b) released from care, (c) suffering from drug or any other addiction or (d) suffering from mental illness. [30988]

  Mr. Maclean
  The information is not collected centrally on the number of offenders who are illiterate, suffering from drug or any other addiction or who have been released from care.

  Court information collected centrally on mentally disordered offenders is limited to those who have committed a more serious offence and as such have been convicted under sections 37 and 41 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

  In 1993, one male aged between 14 and 18 was convicted of the offence of arson and sent to hospital under section 37(1) of the Mental Health Act 1983. A further male offender within the same age group was found guilty of robbery and sentenced to a hospital order with restriction under sections 37 and 41 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

  Prisoners (Home Leave)
  Mr. Cox
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison inmates serving a sentence of over 10 years' imprisonment have been granted home leave during the last 12 months. [31100]

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  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 Brian Landers to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 30 June 1995:
  The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about how many prison inmates serving a sentence of over ten years imprisonment have been granted home leave during the last twelve months.
  Home leave, as such, has not occurred since 24 April 1995 when the systems of temporary absence were revised. In the 12 months to 24 April 1995 some 680 prisoners serving sentences of over ten years (including life) were granted home leave.

  Doncaster Prison
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the contractor at Doncaster prison has failed to deliver the contracted service; how many times a financial remedy has been imposed against the contract; and if he will make a statement. [31092]

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  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 Brian Landers to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 30 June 1995:
  The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about Doncaster prison.
  Six default notices have been issued by the Prison Service Controller since the prison opened on 20 June 1994. Premier Prison Services have rectified the faults immediately and at their own expense. In the circumstances, financial penalties have not been considered appropriate.

  Prison Officers (Shopping Visits)
  Mr. Cox
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many private shopping visits were made by prison officers on behalf of prison inmates in England and Wales during the week of 12 June. [31101]

  Mr. Michael Forsyth
  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 Brian Landers to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 30 June 1995:
  The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General, to reply to your recent Question about shopping trips by prison officers for prison inmates.
  No private shopping trips by prison officers were made during the week of 12 June. This is in line with the Home Secretary's announcement last December that the practice of prison officers going shopping at the behest of individual prisoners had stopped.

  Immigration (Overstayers)
  Mr. Winnick
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number and percentage of visitors in 1992 and 1993 who overstayed without authorisation having had their appeals upheld. [31979]

  Mr. Nicholas Baker
  The information requested is not available.

  Domestic Violence
  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to collate information centrally about the number of police stations that have or are planning special domestic violence units. [31324]

  Mr. Maclean
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: We recognise the important work carried out by specialist domestic violence units. The extent of provision in this area will be considered by the official and ministerial groups on domestic violence.
  816
  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to collate information centrally about the number of crimes of domestic violence(a) alleged, (b) investigated by the police, (c) prosecuted, (d) resulting in conviction and (e) resulting in a custodial sentence each year, and about the relationships between offender and victim in each of these categories. [31325]

  Mr. Maclean
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: The official and ministerial groups on domestic violence will shortly be looking at ways of improving the statistical knowledge of the nature and extent of domestic violence.

  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the ministerial group on domestic violence will next meet; and if it has already decided when to publish the inter-agency circular on domestic violence. [31326]

  Mr. Maclean
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: Plans are in hand to hold the next meeting of the ministerial group on domestic violence at the earliest possible opportunity. The launch date of the inter-agency circular on domestic violence has not been finalised.

  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to publish the inter-agency circular on domestic violence; and if he will list the individuals and organisations to which it will be sent. [31327]

  Mr. Maclean
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: The proposed inter-agency circular is in the final stages of preparation and will be issued as soon as possible. Although a definitive list of the individuals and organisations to which it will be sent remains to be finalised, it will include the groups referred to in a reply to a question I gave to the hon. Member on 20 January, Official Report, column 696.

  Mr. Boateng
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officials, and of what grade, his Department has employed to deal with the problem of domestic violence in each of the last 10 years. [31328]

  Mr. Maclean
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: Responsibility for work on domestic violence cuts across a number of areas and grades within the Home Office. Since 1993 the work has been co-ordinated by a unit led by a grade 7 in the criminal policy division of the Home Office.

EDUCATION

  Child Labour
  Mrs. Clywd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she will detail the powers of entry available to local education authority child employment officers; and what plans she has to strengthen and extend such powers. [31707]

  Mr. Robin Squire
  Section 28(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933 provides for a local authority to apply to a justice of the peace for an order to give child employment officers powers of entry. This legislation is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of
  817
  State for Health. I understand that she has no plans to strengthen or extend this power.

  Mrs. Clywd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she intends to make funds available to local education authorities in England and Wales specifically to carry out their statutory duty to protect school age children at work. [31708]

  Mr. Squire
  Central Government set the overall framework for the funding of local authority services nationally. It is for each local education authority to determine its own priorities for expenditure. Funding for Wales is a matter for the Welsh Office.

  Mrs. Clywd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment she has made of the work of the child employment departments in Birmingham and North Tyneside in enforcing legislation designed to protect school age children. [31712]

  Mr. Forth
  None.

  Mrs. Clywd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she will instruct all local education authorities to adopt the system of enforcing legislation designed to protect school age children at work in use in Birmingham and North Tyneside. [31709]

  Mr. Squire
  It is for individual local education authorities to consider how best to fulfil their statutory duties in this area in the light of local circumstances.

NORTHERN IRELAND

  Northern Ireland Assembly
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will produce costings for the Northern Ireland Assembly and associated constitutional structures as proposed in the framework document. [31000]

  Mr. Ancram
  It is not possible at this stage to provide costings for a future Northern Ireland Assembly and associated constitutional structures as envisaged in the framework document. Estimates of such costs will only be possible only after the details of the arrangements have been negotiated and agreed with the relevant Northern Ireland parties and the British and Irish Governments.

  Further Education
  Mr. Worthington
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what proposals he has for the safeguarding of adult education and the education of those with special needs after education colleges are incorporated; [31428]

  (2) with whom incorporated further education colleges will be required to discuss their plans for educational activities. [31429]

  Mr. Ancram
  I am aware of the concerns expressed on these issues and I can assure the hon. Member that, if we proceed with the proposals on incorporation, we will consider very carefully with the further education sector the impact on such areas and the need for adequate consultative arrangements.
  818

  EU Funding
  Mr. Worthington
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to ensure that the allocation of further European Union funds in Northern Ireland reflects the level of deprivation and grass roots needs and involvement. [31431]

  Sir John Wheeler
  Regarding the special support programme for peace and reconciliation, the guidelines for the initiative state that all communities should benefit while focusing on the areas and sections of the population suffering most acute deprivation. This is reflected in the programme recently submitted to the European Commission. To ensure that grass roots needs are reflected, the Government have carried out an extensive round of consultation with interested bodies and individuals, which has been invaluable in drafting the programme. Grass roots interests will continue to be involved both through continued consultation during implementation and the mechanisms used to deliver the programme. In implementing the single programme document and Community initiatives programmes agreed for Northern Ireland over the period 1994 to 1999, due consideration is given to addressing deprivation and social need on the basis of specific criteria laid down and approved by the European Commission within the SPD and other programme documents.

  Sunday Observance Act (Ireland) 1695
  Mr. Mallon
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he will take to repeal all of the provisions of the Act for the Better Observation of the Lord's Day, commonly called Sunday, AD 1695. [31288]

  Mr. Moss
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: The Government have no plans at present to repeal all the provisions of the Sunday Observance Act (Ireland) 1695. Ministers are at present considering the responses received to consultation papers published earlier this year on Sunday racing, betting and sport and Sunday trading. If it is decided to relax the current legislative restrictions on these matters, some action to amend, repeal in part or disapply the 1695 Act may be necessary.

  Development Expenditure
  Dr. Hendron
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what is the total expenditure of(a) the Local Enterprise Development Unit and (b) Industrial Development Board in each of the parliamentary constituencies of Northern Ireland for each of the last 10 years; [29972]

  (2) what is the total number of full-time jobs, both from inward investment and expansion of existing companies, created in each constituency for each of the last 10 years as a result of this expenditure. [29974]

  Mr. Ancram
  Information on expenditure and job creations is not recorded in a manner which readily lends itself to analysis by parliamentary constituency. However, an exercise is being undertaken to produce as much as possible of the information in the form requested. My noble Friend hopes to write to the hon. Member about the matter soon. Information on job promotions by district council area is available from IDB and the results of the last 10 years are set out in the table.
  819

  IDB job promotions by district council areas

  District Council Areas

  1985–86

  1986–87

  1987–88

  1988–89

  1989–90

  1990–91

  1991–92

  1992–93

  1993–94

  1994–95

  Antrim

  30

  477

  364

  712

  798

  139

  77

  869

  308

  1,156

  Armagh

  28

  137

  51

  110

  34

  60

  33

  20

  45

  -

  Ballymena

  71

  8

  187

  90

  206

  411

  -

  136

  8

  -

  Ballymoney

  17

  35

  35

  16

  40

  49

  107

  131

  -

  -

  Banbridge

  24

  15

  -

  99

  -

  -

  29

  39

  -

  -

  Belfast

  94

  279

  92

  303

  601

  1,091

  458

  312

  590

  218

  Carrickfergus

  21

  15

  103

  452

  100

  129

  -

  5

  -

  315

  Castlereagh

  141

  168

  124

  95

  404

  68

  84

  -

  -

  14

  Coleraine

  185

  88

  254

  115

  127

  -

  50

  45

  -

  60

  Cookstown

  28

  -

  -

  16

  70

  -

  -

  -

  42

  35

  Craigavon

  506

  434

  808

  169

  417

  474

  716

  683

  162

  977

  Down

  10

  67

  108

  318

  24

  -

  -

  -

  50

  -

  North Down

  74

  75

  108

  14

  147

  -

  54

  -

  -

  85

  Dungannon

  94

  102

  400

  108

  136

  463

  76

  155

  318

  124

  Fermanagh

  162

  35

  245

  296

  76

  156

  101

  200

  20

  191

  Lame

  -

  22

  127

  148

  78

  -

  25

  2

  511

  -

  Limavady

  75

  -

  80

  -

  -

  -

  -

  -

  383

  -

  Lisburn

  232

  255

  123

  1,039

  85

  288

  155

  39

  212

  -

  Londonderry

  650

  227

  393

  432

  827

  371

  103

  1,169

  486

  541

  Magherafelt

  -

  21

  101

  155

  53

  62

  10

  -

  400

  -

  Moyle

  -

  52

  -

  -

  -

  -

  -

  -

  -

  -

  Newtownabbey

  198

  1,178

  523

  720

  743

  46

  114

  -

  681

  306

  Newry and Mourne

  70

  28

  446

  82

  32

  179

  -

  75

  364

  18

  Newtownards

  155

  247

  298

  164

  67

  50

  149

  49

  41

  -

  Omagh

  20

  32

  -

  -

  36

  93

  -

  25

  70

  55

  Strabane

  25

  190

  330

  -

  30

  273

  -

  150

  195

  -

  Totals

  2,910

  4,187

  5,300

  5,653

  5,131

  4,402

  2,341

  4,104

  4,886

  4,095

  Driving Offences
  Ms Mowlam
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of the road traffic offences recorded in Northern Ireland since 1990 were committed by drivers who had been qualified to drive for less than one year. [31046]

  Sir John Wheeler
  The information requested is not available.

  Confidential Telephone Line
  Ms Mowlam
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many calls have been received by the RUC on the confidential telephone number every year since 1985. [31047]

  Sir John Wheeler
  The information is as follows:

  Year

  Number of calls

  1985

  1,406

  1986

  2,300

  1987

  1,953

  1988

  2,948

  1989

  2,321

  1990

  2,841

  1991

  3,819

  1992

  22,062

  1993

  24,442

  1994

  19,189

  19951

  3,783

  1 To 31 May.

  Sexual Offences
  Ms Mowlam
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many(a) sexual offences and (b)
  820
  offences against the person have been reported in Northern Ireland since 1985. [31044]

  Sir John Wheeler
  The information requested is as follows:

  Sexual offences

  Offences against the person

  1985

  653

  3,458

  1986

  834

  4,205

  1987

  817

  4,198

  1988

  779

  3,469

  1989

  935

  3,338

  1990

  790

  3,374

  1991

  877

  3,995

  1992

  973

  4,102

  1993

  1,187

  4,597

  1994

  1,333

  4,793

  Nursery Education
  Mr. Worthington
  To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement about his proposals for nursery education in Northern Ireland. [31430]

  Mr. Ancram
  In 1994, the Government published a comprehensive policy statement on early years provision in Northern Ireland, including their objectives for nursery education.

  As the Prime Minister reiterated recently, the Government are committed to a major expansion of pre-school provision throughout the United Kingdom. Proposals to achieve this in Northern Ireland will be announced shortly.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  International Court of Justice
  Mr. Mullin
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who is the latest British nominee to the International Court of Justice. [31649]

  Mr. Douglas Hogg
  Professor Rosalyn Higgins has been formally nominated as a candidate for election to the International Court of Justice by the national groups at the Permanent Court of Arbitration of 15 countries, including the British. There are no other candidates. The Government fully support Professor Higgins. The vote will take place on 12 July.

  Hong Kong
  Mr. Cox
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions took place during the recent meeting between the British Government and representatives of the Government of China on the future of the death penalty in Hong Kong, after July 1997; and if he will make a statement. [31369]

  Mr. Goodlad
  The death penalty was abolished in Hong Kong by the Crimes (Amendment) Ordinance in April 1993. Under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, the laws previously in force in Hong Kong shall be maintained, save for any that contravene the Basic Law and subject to any amendment by the Hong Kong special administrative region legislature. Reintroduction of the death penalty after 1997 would, therefore, be a matter for the HKSAR rather than the Chinese Central People's Government.

  Nigeria
  Mr. Keith Hill
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 21 June,Official Report, column 302, if he will exceptionally disclose if lethal military equipment of any type has been supplied to Nigeria for peacekeeping since December 1993. [31343]

  Mr. David Davis
  I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave to the hon. Member on 21 June,Official Report, column 302.

WALES

  European Regional Development Fund
  Mr. Gareth Wardell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish the final outturn in Wales of(a) objective 1 areas, (b) objective 3 areas, (c) objective 4 areas and (d) objective 5b areas; and if he will also indicate the underspend on each programme. [29989]

  Mr. David Hunt
  There are no objective 1 areas in Wales. For objectives 3 and 4, separate information for Wales is not available before 1993. In 1993, the final amount claimed from the Commission for Wales was £21.56 million. Underspend information is not disaggregated regionally, and is not yet available for 1993. For objective 5b, the total amount available under the 1992–93 Dyfed Gwynedd Powys programme—some £26 million—was allocated to projects by the end of 1993; since projects are not required to be physically and 822
  financially complete until 31 December 1995, it is not yet possible to indicate any underspend under the programme.

  Sheep Scab
  Mr. Martyn Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the recorded levels of sheep scab in each of the last five years. [31243]

  Mr. Gwilym Jones
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Glanford and Scunthorpe (Mr. Morley) on 25 January 1995,Official Report, column 269.

  Objective 5b Monitoring Committee
  Mr. Davis
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales for what reasons the Countryside Council for Wales is not represented on the objective 5b programme monitoring committee for Wales; and what the EU guideline is on this subject. [30266]

  Mr. Gwilym Jones
  Detailed provisions for the administration of the rural Wales objective 5b programme are for the implementing authority, in this case the Welsh Office. Although the Countryside Council for Wales is not directly represented on the monitoring committee, a member of the council—Mr. Tom Jones—sits on the committee, and the council is represented on the technical group, which has responsibility for considering individual applications for grant assistance. In addition, the council was closely involved with the preparation of the single programming document for rural Wales. These arrangements comply with the terms of the European legislation, which require that the competent environmental authorities are associated with the preparation and implementation of the single programming document.

  NHS Staff
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to note 4 of his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Davies) of 7 June,Official Report, column 254, whether the figure of 193 given as the reduction in the number of administrative and managerial staff below the peak level included clerical staff. [31984]

  Mr. David Hunt
  The reduction of 193 between September 1993 and March 1995 included all staff on administrative and clerical pay scales.

  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to note 4 of his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Davies) of 7 June,Official Report, column 254, (1) what was the peak level of administrative and managerial staff in the health service in Wales; and whether the figures referred to in note 4 for 1994–95 will be comparable to those figures given in column 1 of his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly of 13 December 1994, Official Report, columns 605–606; [31983]

  (2) on what date he expects the publication of the figures for the numbers of administrative and managerial staff in the health service in Wales in 1994–95. [31982]

  Mr. Hunt
  The latest available information on the whole-time equivalent number of administrative and clerical staff in the NHS in Wales was published in a Welsh Office statistical release, "NHS Wales: quarterly
  823
  Statistics", issued on 14 June 1995. Figures for March 1994—when the number of these staff reached their peak—are also shown in the release. Copies were sent to all Members representing constituencies in Wales and were placed in the Library of the House. The figures quoted in the release are comparable with the numbers given to the hon. Member for Caerphilly on 13 December.

  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly of 7 June,Official Report, column 254, what were the total costs of (a) managers, (b) administrators and (c) medical staff in the health service in Wales in 199495; and what were the corresponding numbers of staff in each category. [31981]

  Mr. Hunt
  Information on the costs of staff in 1994–95 is not yet available. Data on medical and dental staff are collected on an annual basis—at 30 September. The latest complete information is given in the following table.

  Staff in post at 30 September 1994

  Administrative and clerical1

  9,905

  Medical and front line support: Directly employed NHS staff2

  34,571

  FHSA contractual staff3

  3,087

  Notes:

  1 Whole-time equivalents. Includes all administrative, clerical and managerial staff employed by health authorities, NHS trusts, family health services authorities and the Welsh Health Common Services Authority.

  2 Whole-time equivalents. Includes:

  —medical and dental staff, working in the hospital and community health service, excluding hospital practitioners and clinical assistants

  — nurses and midwives, excluding pre-registration learners

  —professional and technical staff

  Since 1991, student and pupil nurses have been classified as students and are no longer included in NHS staff figures.

  3Numbers. Includes GPs, principal and assistant dentists, ophthalmic medical practitioners and ophthalmic opticians. Staff directly employed by contractual staff—for example, practice nurses—are not included since complete information is not collected centrally.

  South Glamorgan Health Services
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he has with the chairman of the South Glamorgan health authority concerning the appointment of a panel of independent experts to examine the difference of opinion between the authority and the Cardiff community health council in relation to accident and emergency department and trauma unit relocation from Cardiff royal infirmary to the University hospital of Wales; and if he will make a statement. [31988]

  Mr. David Hunt
  None. Officials were informed of the health authority's proposals to commission an independent review and it is clearly understood that the authority will decide on the review panel's membership and remit.

  Early Retirement
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 18 May,Official Report, column 372, how many members of staff have now accepted
  824
  voluntary redundancy terms; how many have actually left; and how many expected to leave under such terms in the rest of the present financial year. [31991]

  Mr. David Hunt
  Sixty-one staff have accepted voluntary redundancy terms, 52 have left. No firm estimate has been made for the remainder of the present financial year.

  Departmental Staff
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what were the total figures for the numbers of staff employed in his Department for the latest convenient month; and if he will list the figure for the same month in each of(a) 1992, (b) 1993 and (c) 1994 excluding any effects of changes in departmental responsibility. [31985]

  Mr. David Hunt
  The full-time equivalent number of staff employed by the Welsh Office in June 1995 was 2,450. The nearest equivalent figures for previous years, adjusted to relate to current departmental responsibilities were:

  1992: 2,535

  1993: 2,612

  1994: 2,609

  Note:
  Figures prior to 1995 have been adjusted to reflect the current method of counting part-time workers hours as a fraction of the working week.

  Political Advisers
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to appoint a political adviser. [31989]

  Mr. David Hunt
  Michael McManus is still my special adviser.

  Departmental Expenditure
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what date he estimates the final outturn figures for his departmental expenditure for the year 1994–95 to be published; and what is his current estimate of management running cost line final outturn figures for 1994–95 for(a) training and enterprise councils, (b) the office of Her Majesty's inspectorate of schools in Wales, (c) Cadw and (d) the Welsh Office in total. [31986]

  Mr. David Hunt
  The Welsh Office appropriation accounts for 1994–95, including details of administration costs, are due to be published by the National Audit Office in October. Provisional running cost outturn figures for 1994–95 are as follows:

  £ million

  TEC management fees

  9.7

  Cadw

  4.9

  Rest of Welsh Office

  63.1

  Total Welsh Office running costs

  77.7

  The provisional running cost outturn for the office of Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools in Wales, which does not form part of the Welsh Office, is £3.2 million.

  Government Policies
  Mr Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proposals he has to amend current policy on(a) hospital closures, (b) bureaucracy in the health service, (c) public expenditure controls and (d) departments' staffing levels; and what other plans he has to review his predecessor's policies. [31990]

  Mr. David Hunt
  The Government's policies are clear and will continue.

  Countryside Council for Wales
  Mr. Ainger
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many representations he has received from(a) environmental organisations and (b) local authorities supporting his predecessor's announcement of 5 May concerning the future role, responsibilities and staffing of the Countryside Council for Wales. [31767]

  Mr. Gwilym Jones
  The Council of Welsh Districts which was consulted on the implications for its members broadly welcomed it, but with reservations on the question of resources.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

  Utilities (Disconnections)
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many households had their(a) electricity, (b) gas or (c) telephone disconnected as a result of non-payment of bills in (i) York, (ii) North Yorkshire, (iii) Yorkshire and Humberside and (iv) England in each since 1979. [31587]

  Mr. Eggar
  This is a matter for the independent regulators and the companies concerned.

  International Atomic Energy Agency
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what considerations underpin the proposed reduction in staff in man years dedicated to United Kingdom representation at, and work with, the International Atomic Energy Agency on the implementation of nuclear safeguards, as indicated at paragraph 43 of part 2 of his departmental MINIS 95 report on trade policy and export promotion, subsection on export control and non-proliferation—XNP. [31121]

  European regional development fund allocations to the United Kingdom (including community initiatives)

  £ million, 1994 prices

  1989

  1990

  1991

  1992

  1993

  19941

  Objective 1

  North West England

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  50

  Scotland

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  19

  Northern Ireland

  53

  62

  65

  93

  92

  92

  Total objective 1

  53

  62

  65

  93

  92

  162

  Objective 2

  North of England

  37

  47

  43

  62

  64

  62

  Yorkshire and Humberside

  41

  52

  48

  70

  70

  58

  East Midlands

  13

  16

  15

  21

  21

  15

  826
  Mr. Ian Taylor
  There are no plans to reduce staff effort in this area. The man years of staff effort shown for 1994–95 were incorrectly quoted as 3.7 plan and 3.5 outturn. The correct figure for both plan and outturn should have been 3.

  Utilities (Consultants)
  Mr. Hain
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the consultants both individuals and companies, employed by the Office of Electricity Regulation, the Office of Gas Supply and the Office of Telecommunications, since 1993 or currently employed; on what tasks they are or were employed; how much of a retainer has been or is being paid on a regular basis; and how much these consultants have been paid otherwise for tasks completed or tasks under way. [31363]

  Mr. Eggar
  This is a matter for the regulators concerned.

  Small Businesses
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many criminal offences in relation to small businesses have been created in the last three years by statutory instrument in the United Kingdom pursuant to EEC directives. [30991]

  Mr. Jonathan Evans
  [holding answer 28 June 1995]: I regret that I am unable to answer this particular question, since the resources required to do so would incur a disproportionate cost. However, I will write to my hon. Friend on this issue shortly.

  European Regional Development Fund
  Mr. Robin Cook
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list by each objective and by each other community initiative, including Rechar and Interreg, the value of assistance received under the European regional development fund both nationally and for each standard region of the United Kingdom for each year since 1989. [31359]

  Mr. Eggar
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: European regional development fund allocations to the United Kingdom for the period 1989 to 1994 are given in the table. Figures on individual community initiatives by standard region are not readily available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost. Only those community initiatives that have been adopted by the European Commission so far have been included in the figures for 1994.
  827

  European regional development fund allocations to the United Kingdom (including community initiatives)

  £ million, 1994 prices

  1989

  1990

  1991

  1992

  1993

  19941

  South East

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  17

  South West

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  6

  West Midlands

  40

  51

  48

  68

  69

  69

  North West England

  47

  59

  55

  79

  80

  57

  Scotland

  61

  77

  72

  104

  105

  80

  Wales

  30

  38

  36

  51

  52

  35

  Total objective 2

  269

  340

  317

  455

  461

  399

  Objective 5B

  North of England2

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  6

  East Midlands3

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  4

  East Anglia

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  4

  South West

  7

  20

  17

  12

  10

  13

  West Midlands

  0

  0

  0

  0

  0

  2

  Scotland

  12

  31

  24

  18

  16

  9

  Wales

  11

  30

  23

  17

  15

  13

  Total objective 5B

  30

  80

  65

  47

  40

  51

  Total United Kingdom

  352

  483

  446

  595

  593

  612

  1 The figures shown for 1994 include allocations from the following community initiatives only:

  Interreg (Northern Ireland)

  Leader (Northern Ireland, highlands and islands and Wales)

  Urban (Northern Ireland)

  SMEs (Northern Ireland).

  Allocations for other community initiatives will be announced later.

  2 The Northern uplands SPD also covers parts of Yorkshire and Humberside and north-west England.

  3 The Midlands uplands SPD also covers parts of the west midlands.

  Konver II Programme
  Mr. Fatchett
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the progress towards establishing Konver II. [31110]

  Mr. Eggar
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: Further to the answer I gave the hon. Member on 20 March 1995, Official Report, columns 796–97, I understand that most member states' discussions of their programmes with the European Commission are still continuing. I hope that the British programme will be settled in September. It will then be possible to consider applications.

DEFENCE

  Nuclear Weapons Transportation
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library(a) the scenario used, (b) the emergency plan evaluated and (c) a copy of the unclassified version of the departmental report on the effectiveness of the medium-level nuclear weapon road convoy vehicle accident exercise held in Northampton in June 1994. [31070]

  Mr. Soames
  The exercise held in Northamptonshire on 29 June 1994 postulated an accident during the refuelling of a truck cargo heavy duty Mk2. It evaluated the generic contingency arrangements which would apply to any accident in the United Kingdom involving the transportation of nuclear weapons; these arrangements are described in the document "Local Authority and Emergency Service Information on Nuclear Weapon Transportation Contingency Plans", a copy of which is in the Library of the House. The departmental report on the exercise is a classified document.

  Exercise Short Sermon
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the unclassified version of his departmental report evaluating the effectiveness of the Short Sermon nuclear reactor exercise held in Portsmouth in 1994. [31064]

  Mr. Soames
  The departmental report on Exercise Short Sermon 1994 is a classified document.

  Mr. Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the scenarios used for the Short Sermon nuclear reactor emergency exercise held in Portsmouth in 1994; and if he will make a statement on the outcome of the exercise. [31065]

  Mr. Soames
  The full scenario for Exercise Short Sermon 1994 is contained in a classified document, but it postulated a highly unlikely series of events precipitated by a significant external impact on the casing of a nuclear submarine and resulting in serious damage to the submarine reactor. It was part of a routine programme of exercises held each year to test the effectiveness of the MOD's nuclear accident response organisation, and it confirmed that our arrangements are satisfactory.

  WE177 Nuclear Warheads
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence at what date the number of WE177 nuclear warheads reached the level deemed necessary for full operational deployment; and if this figure remained constant until the announced reductions in 1990. [31071]
  829
  Mr. Soames
  Our deployment plans for WE177 were complete by the mid-1970s. I am not prepared to add anything to our previous statements, including those in the "Statement on the Defence Estimates 1995", about subsequent changes.

  Sellafield
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what details of the Operation Overture committee established to look into the 1957 Windscale fire have been placed in the Public Record Office; and if he will make a statement on the relevance of the findings of Operation Overture for the current safety of facilities used by his Department at Sellafield. [31067]

  Mr. Soames
  We have been unable to find any record of a committee of that name. The safety of facilities at Sellafield is a matter for the Department of Trade and Industry and the operators of the Sellafield site.

  Nuclear Safety
  Mr. Llew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how often(a) the Nuclear Powered Warships Safety Committee and (b) the Nuclear Weapon Safety Committee met in each year since 1992; if he will list for each committee (i) the specific subject areas covered and (ii) any reports, guidelines or recommendations provided by these committees; and if he will place unclassified versions of such documents in the Library. [31063]

  Mr. Soames
  The Nuclear Powered Warships Safety Committee and Nuclear Weapon Safety Committee each met three times in the years 1992, 1993 and 1994, and have so far met once in 1995. Sub-groups of both committees are also convened occasionally to discuss technical issues which do not require the attention of the full membership. The subjects addressed by these committees are invariably sensitive and it is not possible to release summaries of committee business or to prepare unclassified versions of paper.

  Mr. Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish a list of all reports, guidelines and recommendations provided by his Department's nuclear weapons safety adviser since 1979. [31061]

  Mr. Soames
  The work of the nuclear weapons safety adviser is invariably highly classified and it would be both impractical and inappropriate to publish such a list.

  Former Service Men (Recall)
  Ms Rachel Squire
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the continuing liability of former service men for recall in respect of(a) early retirement and (b) redundancy. [30970]

  Mr. Soames
  The normal rules for reserve and recall liability apply equally to those service personnel who leave at the end of their commission or engagement, and those who take premature voluntary release. These rules were also applied to those made redundant, with the following exceptions: male and female soldiers with between 12 and 22 years' service received immediate pensions and therefore became Army pensioners with a recall liability until age 60; male soldiers with less than 12 years' service were discharged into the long-term reserve with a recall liability until aged 45; female 830
  soldiers who enlisted after 1 January 1987 were discharged without reserve liability; and other ranks of the Royal Marines on nine-year engagements will serve the balance of their engagements in the Royal Fleet Reserve in addition to their normal three-year liability.

  Bosnia
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has on the shelling by Bosnian Government forces of a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees convoy at Rajlovac; what protection is being provided for such convoys in the area; what representations have been made to President Izetbegovic; and if he will make a statement. [31683]

  Mr. Soames
  On 21 June 1995, a UNHCR convoy came under shell fire while unloading supplies at Rajlovac, a Bosnian Serb suburb of Sarajevo. Bosnian Government forces are believed to have been responsible for the attack, although this has not been confirmed. The protection of convoys is a matter for the United Nations protection force and UNHCR commanders on the ground, and in this instance we understand that an assurance of safe passage had been secured from the Bosnian Serbs and the Bosnian Government. UN officials are believed to have made representations to the Bosnian Government following the incident.

  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has on the situation in respect of UNPROFOR's Canadian troops stationed at Visoko in Bosnia; and if he will make a statement. [31684]

  Mr. Soames
  We understand that Canadian troops at Visoko have experienced restrictions on their freedom of movement since 15 June when Bosnian Government forces launched a number of attacks on Bosnian Serb positions around Sarajevo.

  Merchant Ships
  Dr. David Clark
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will specify the procedures used by his Department to charter merchant ships for operational duties. [31766]

  Mr. Soames
  My Department's operational movements staff provide a statement of requirement to the defence freight market representative on the Baltic exchange. From there the bid is disseminated to brokers both on and off the exchange. In parallel, the statement of requirement is passed to Crown agents contracted to MOD to provide ship suitability assessments. Once the offers have been received and assessed, my Department's movements staff select the most cost-effective and suitable vessel for the task. Ships' ownership, flag officers and crew are taken into consideration when sensitive equipments are to be carried.

  Dr. Clark
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what difficulties his Department has experienced in chartering merchant vessels to transport troops to Bosnia; [31774]

  (2) how many merchant ships his Department has chartered to date to transport the additional British troops deployed to Bosnia; if he will list the name of each vessel together with the country of registration; and if he will make a statement; [31764]
  831
  (3) if his Department has chartered merchant ships to transport British forces to Bosnia through the Baltic exchange; [31765]

  (4) what assessment he has made of the total number of merchant ships required to transport the additional British troops and equipment to Bosnia. [31769]

  Mr. Soames
  No difficulties have been experienced in chartering merchant vessels to transport British equipment to Bosnia—no ships have been chartered solely to carry troops. The one vessel chartered, which was through the Baltic exchange, is the Danish roll-on roll-off Mercandian Senator registered in Copenhagen with Danish officers and crew. The number of ships required for the additional British troops and equipment for Bosnia depends upon the carrying capacity of the vessels offered.

  Dartmouth Naval College
  Dr. David Clark
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 22 June,Official Report, column 379, what is the total annual cost of the Dartmouth naval college. [31776]

  Mr. Soames
  This is a matter for the Naval Recruiting and Training Agency under its framework document. I have asked the chief executive, NRTA, to write to the hon. Member.

  Letter from A. D. Ferguson to Dr. David Clark, dated 30 June 1995:
  The Secretary of State for Defence has asked the Chief Executive of the Naval Recruiting and Training Agency to reply to your Parliamentary Question, about the total annual cost of the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. I am replying on behalf of the Chief Executive who is away on duty.
  The annual running costs for Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth for the last four financial years are as follows:

  FY 1991–92: £15.8M

  FY 1992–93: £18.5M

  FY 1993–94: £19.0M

  FY 1994–95: £17.9M (estimate)

  All figures shown exclude Sea Training costs and VAT.

TREASURY

  Works of Arts
  Mr. Gordon Prentice
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 June,Official Report, column 149, what would be the total liability for inheritance tax or capital transfer tax for the owners of chattels as listed for each year since 1987 if they were to lose their conditional exemption. [30654]

  Sir George Young
  On loss of conditional exemption, tax is charged on the chattels valued at the time the exemption comes to an end. It is not possible to establish the current value of all conditionally exempt chattels and therefore the information requested is not available.

  Mr. Prentice
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 June,Official Report, column 149, what estimate he has made of the number of members of the public who have made appointments to
  832
  view works of art owned by persons who have been granted conditional exemption from inheritance tax or capital transfer tax in each year since 1987. [30653]

  Sir George Young
  No such estimate has been made.

  Mr. Prentice
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 June,Official Report, column 149, if he will make it his policy to collect information on the number of members of the public who have exercised their right to require owners of chattels conditionally exempt from inheritance tax or capital transfer tax to allow viewing of these works of art; and if he will make a statement. [30646]

  Sir George Young
  No. The current arrangements are designed to ensure that qualifying objects are preserved and public access is available, and, for items not on general public display, that information can be obtained by the public on what has been conditionally exempted and how to arrange viewing. There is no statutory power to require owners to keep statistics of the number of people exercising their right to view conditionally exempt chattels.

  Mr. Prentice
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the total number of owners of chattels that are conditionally exempt from inheritance tax or capital transfer tax and can be viewed by appointment. [31037]

  Sir George Young
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 9 June,Official Report, column 940.

  Value Added Tax
  Mr. Wigley
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the Government's long-term strategy in respect of levels of VAT charged; and what assessment he has made of the need for an intermediate VAT band. [31296]

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  The Government's taxation policies are announced in successive Budgets.

  The Chancellor has said that he has no plans to apply the 8 per cent. reduced rate of VAT to anything other than domestic fuel and power.

  Sir David Steel
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to propose a reduction in the levels of VAT on tourist businesses. [31589]

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  No. As I have already made clear, the Government have no plans to apply the reduced rate of VAT to anything other than domestic fuel and power.

  Taxation
  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy not to impose new taxes or increase existing ones without first conducting a study to(a) assess the effects of such a tax on consumer behaviour and (b) assess the revenue effects of such a tax. [31344]

  Sir George Young
  Changes in taxation are made only after an assessment of their effects has been made. Estimates of the direct revenue effects of tax measures are set out in the "Financial Statement and Budget Report", table 5.1 in the 1995–96 FSBR. The wider economic effects are taken into account in the economic forecast, which is also published in the FSBR.
  833
  Mr. Frank Field
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the percentage change of income paid in tax and national insurance between 1974–75 and the latest available date by(a) a single person, (b) a married couple, (c) a married couple with two children and (d) a married couple with four children earning (i) one third of average earnings and (ii) average earnings. [31269]

  Sir George Young
  [holding answer 28 June 1995]: Available information is in the tax benefit reference manual, 1995–96 edition, a copy of which is in the Library.

  Mr. Field
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the change in the tax-free income in real terms between 1974–75 and the latest available date for(a) a single person, (b) a married couple, (c) a married couple with one child, (d) a married couple with two children and (e) a married couple with four children earning (i) one third of an average income and (ii) average earnings. [31268]

  Sir George Young
  [holding answer 28 June 1995]: Available information about tax thresholds and break-even points is in appendix C of "Inland Revenue Statistics 1992" for earlier years and table 2.5 of "Inland Revenue Statistics 1994" for recent years.

  Credit and Store Cards
  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what taxes are imposed on the use of credit and store cards in(a) any other EU countries, (b) the United States of America and (c) Japan. [31321]

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  Within the EU, only Ireland imposes such a tax—a stamp duty on credit cards at the rate of £15 per annum per card. Neither the United States of America nor Japan imposes such taxes.

  Ms Primarolo
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to undertake behavioural work to estimate the effects on the use of credit and store cards of a £10 tax on each. [31345]

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  None.

  Inland Revenue Information Technology
  Mr. Mullin
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when it was originally envisaged that EDS would be given management of the Inland Revenue computer; what changes have been made to the policy; and for what reasons. [31648]

  Sir George Young
  EDS was identified as the preferred supplier for delivering the Inland Revenue's IT services in November 1993. Under the terms of the contract signed by EDS and the Department in May 1994, transfer of staff, equipment and work would be in two phases or tranches. The first tranche, on 1 July 1994, covered operational support services. Development work will, subject to a formal decision by the Inland Revenue on whether to proceed, transfer in the second tranche in January 1996.

  EDS took over management of the project to develop IT support for self-assessment on 19 June 1995. This does not in any way affect the transfer of the second tranche of work.

  Vehicle Excise Duty
  Mr. Malcolm Bruce
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the effect on annual Exchequer revenues of restructuring the rates of vehicle excise duty paid on cars, light vehicles and taxis so that rates are scaled for different engine sizes to(a) £100 per annum for engine sizes of 1500 cc and less, (b) £130 per annum for engine sizes of 1501 cc to 2400 cc, (c) £150 per annum for engine sizes between 2401 cc and 3000 cc and (d) £200 per annum for engine sizes of 3001 cc and above. [30097]

  Mr. Heathcoat-Amory
  [holding answer 22 June 1995.]: The estimated effect would be to reduce revenue by some £350 million.

  Public Expenditure
  Mr. Llwyd
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will disaggregate each figure which comes under Wales, in table 7.7, Cm 2821 into(a) central Government expenditure, (b) local government expenditure financed by local government or unhypothecated central Government support and (c) local government expenditure financed by specific central Government support naming the relevant Department; and if he will make a statement. [29942]

  Mr. Aitken
  [holding answer 29 June 1995]: A disaggregation of each figure under Wales in table 7.7, Cm 2821, into the categories requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Figures for local authority specific grants in Wales are given in tables 4.6 and 4.7 of Cm 2821, and figures for total local authority expenditure in Wales are given in table 4.3 of Cm 2821.

  Private Finance Initiative
  Mr. Betts
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many schemes and to what value have been approved in 1994–95 under the private finance initiative; what are the estimates for the current financial year; how many schemes are currently being considered and at what value; for how long have they been considered, and how many have been in the assessment process for over(a) six months and (b) 12 months; and what was the average length of time taken to assess schemes so far approved. [30824]

  Sir George Young
  [holding answer 28 June 1995]: During 1994–95 one major contract of £400 million was approved under the private finance initiative, in addition to smaller contracts with total value of £50 million to 100 million. Since the beginning of the financial year, the award of three major contracts with a total contract value of £650 million has been approved. Over the course of 1995–96 we expect approximately 50 contracts with a total value of over £5 billion to be approved. It is not possible to assess the numbers of projects under consideration and records are not kept centrally of time taken to assess schemes.

  Single Currency
  Mr. Marlow
  To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out the procedures required in the event of the United Kingdom seeking to accede to a European single currency with particular reference to the requirements with regard to exchange rate mechanism membership, the duration of such membership prior to an application to join the single currency and the time lapse between single currency application and joining. [30808]
  836
  Mr. Kenneth Clarke
  [holding answer 26 June 1995]: The convergence criteria, including the exchange rate criterion, are set out in article 109j(1) of the treaty on European Union. The interpretation of the criteria will be considered by the European Commission and the European Monetary Institute, when preparing their reports to the European Council under article 109j(1), and thereafter by the Council, when it assesses those reports under article 109j(2).

  The timing of the UK notification is set out in article 1 of the United Kingdom protocol to the treaty.