Written Answers of 28 October 1996

OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION

  Aid Projects
  Mr. Colvin
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are taken by the Overseas Development Administration to ensure that all aid projects are assessed for their environmental sustainability. [739]

  Dr. Liam Fox
  All projects are subject to environmental assessment according to the guidelines and procedures set out in the manual of environmental appraisal. ODA has recently revised and updated the manual. It is accompanied by guidance on the major international environmental agreements and their implications for both aid donors and recipients. Copies of both documents have been placed in the Library of the House.

  UN World Hunger Conference
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals Her Majesty's Government intend to place before the UN world hunger conference to be held in Rome in November; and if he will make a statement. [483]

  Dr. Liam Fox
  The Government's principal objective for the world food summit is to work for international consensus on the action needed to reduce hunger and malnutrition in the world. To help achieve this objective, we propose to present to the summit a paper on policy towards food security. In preparing this paper, we have consulted extensively among interested groups in the United Kingdom.

HOME DEPARTMENT

  Mahmood Hussein Mattam
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received relating to the conviction for murder and subsequent hanging in Cardiff in 1952 of Mahmood Hussein Mattam; and if he will now refer the matter to the Court of Appeal. [777]

  Mr. Kirkhope
  On 10 October 1996, solicitors acting on behalf of Mr. Mattam's family submitted a substantial dossier in this case. My right hon. and learned Friend will decide as soon as possible whether any action on his part would be appropriate.

  Police Equipment
  Mr. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the items of new equipment authorised by his Department for use by 20
  (a) the Metropolitan police and (b) other police forces in England and Wales in the last two years; how much training is required by his Department (i) initially and (ii) annually for each piece of equipment; and what assessment he has made of the impact of the introduction of each piece of equipment on the time available to police officers on active duty. [75]

  Mr. Maclean
  My right hon. and learned Friend gave his consent to the following in the Metropolitan police district, in accordance with the Metropolitan Police Town Clauses Act 1829:

  (i) on 23 November 1994, 24 in and 26 in straight batons;

  (ii) on 28 June 1995, expandable three-piece friction lock batons.

  In addition, between 1 March and 31 August 1996, Metropolitan police officers participated in operational trials of CS aerosol sprays with my right hon. and learned Friend's consent. His consent is not required to the introduction of police equipment in other forces.

  Training in the use of equipment is a matter for individual chief officers. An assessment was made of the effect of the introduction of expandable side-handled batons on working days lost by injury to police officers. No conclusions could be drawn because it coincided with a period in which there was a large fall in the number of officers on long-term sick leave.

  Omanga Mangwete
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total cost to his Department of the custody of Omanga Mangwete in the UK prior to his removal to Canada. [165]

  Mr. Kirkhope
  The cost of detaining Mr. Mangwete in the United Kingdom prior to his removal was £21,521.17.

  Asylum Seekers
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of asylum seekers whose application has been rejected but remain in Britain awaiting appeal. [669]

  Mr. Kirkhope
  As at 30 September 1996, an estimated 20,100 refused asylum seekers, excluding dependants, were pursuing appeals.

  Micrea Ilin
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total cost of the custody of Micrea Ilin prior to his release from prison; and what was the cost to his Department of their actions on his case. [164]

  Mr. Kirkhope
  The cost of detaining Mr. Ilin was about £6,630. The cost to the Home Department of our actions in this case could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

ENVIRONMENT

  Construction Industry (Recycling)
  Mr. Spellar
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made in increasing the use of recycled material in the construction industry. [202]

  Mr. Clappison
  There is increasing interest in the use of recycled materials for construction in order to conserve primary aggregates. This has been further encouraged by the introduction of the landfill tax. Reliable data on the extent of usage of recycled materials are not presently available.

  Asylum Seekers
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the administrative cost of implementation of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993 by English local authorities. [668]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  Information about such costs is not available centrally, but I would expect any administrative costs to local authorities of implementing the housing provisions of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993 to have been offset by savings arising from the changes, introduced by the Act, to the duties owed by authorities to asylum seekers under the homelessness legislation.

  Planning Application (Wallsend)
  Mr. Byers
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will call in for determination planning application NT/0925/96 DM made to North Tyneside council for residential development at the Northern Electric sportsground, Wallsend. [782]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  If it is minded to approve this planning application, North Tyneside council will refer it to the Secretary of State for the Environment as a departure from the development plan, and he will then consider whether to call it in. I have asked the Government office for the north-east to write and let the hon. Member know his decision.

  Stockport Unitary Development Plan
  Mr. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects the inspectors' report into Stockport UDP to be published. [73]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  The inspectors' report on objections to the Stockport unitary development plan is expected to be delivered to the council at the end of December this year. It will then be for the council to decide when to publish the report. I have asked the Planning Inspectorate's chief executive to write to the hon. Member.

  Letter from J. Greenfield to Mr. Andrew F. Bennett, dated 25 October 1996:
  The Secretary of State for the Environment has asked me to reply to your question about the Inspector's report from the public inquiry into the Stockport Unitary Development Plan.
  The report is expected to be issued to the Council at the end of December. It will then be for the Council to decide when to publish it.

  Planning Appeal (Stockport)
  Mr. Bennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects a decision to be taken into the appeal by Gladmen Homes to build a nursing home on land at Lisgard lane, Stockport. [74]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  The provision of information on planning appeals is the responsibility of the Planning Inspectorate. In the absence of the inspectorate's chief executive, Mr. Chris Shepley, I have asked the deputy chief executive, Mr. James Greenfield, to write to the hon. Member.

  Letter from J. Greenfield to Mr. Andrew F. Bennett, dated 25 October 1996:
  The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking when a decision is expected on the planning appeal by Gladman Homes for the erection of a nursing home on land at Donelons Yard, Lingard Lane, Bredhury.
  The appeal has now been decided, and I enclose a copy of the inspector's decision letter.

  Footpaths
  Mr. Byers
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to place a duty on local authorities to adopt footpaths. [783]

  Mr. Clappison
  We have no plans to do so.

  Liverpool Airport
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to make a decision on proposals to expand Liverpool airport; and if he will make a statement. [493]

  Sir Paul Beresford
  A decision will be taken as soon as possible on the planning applications made by Liverpool Airport plc for the phased development of Liverpool airport. These were called in for the Secretary of State's determination in June 1994 and a public local inquiry was held from 4 April 1995 to 30 June 1995. The report of the inquiry inspector, which was submitted on 25 July 1996, is being considered.

  It remains our intention, if feasible, to announce decisions simultaneously on the applications for the phased development of Liverpool airport and for a second runway at Manchester airport.

  Carbon Dioxide Emissions
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the net carbon dioxide emissions from Britain(a) in each year since 1990 and (b) in each year up to 2010. [154]

  Mr. Clappison
  Emissions of carbon dioxide, net of the increase in carbon stored in forests and wood products, for the UK are estimated to have been:

  Million tonnes CO2

  1990

  574

  1991

  579

  1992

  563

  1993

  549

  1994

  546

  23
  Projected emissions are subject to greater uncertainty. They are currently estimated to be:

  2000: 545

  2005: 588

  2010: 591

  Waste Disposal
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the proportion of discarded(a) glass, (b) paper, (c) plastic, and (d) biodegradables which have been (i) recycled and (ii) composted in each of the past five years, the current year, and each of the next five. [156]

  Mr. Clappison
  It is not possible to provide information in the form requested. Information on plastic recycling and composting of biodegradables is not held centrally.

  The Department does obtain information from trade associations on the amounts of glass and paper recycled as a proportion of glass and paper consumption in the UK. Figures for the years 1989–1994 are given in the table.

  Glass and paper recycling as a proportion of the consumption of these materials in the UK

  Year

  Glass recycling (per cent.)

  Paper recycling per cent.)

  1989

  17

  28

  1990

  21

  32

  1991

  21

  34

  1992

  26

  34

  1993

  29

  32

  1994

  28

  33

  The Department has not made projections of these figures.

  Housing Rents
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average rent paid by(a) council tenants and (b) housing association and housing trust tenants in each year since 1990. [158]

  Mr. Clappison
  Average weekly rents for council and housing association tenants in England are set out in the table:

  (a) Council tenants1£

  (b) HA tenants2£

  1990

  23.74

  n/a

  1991

  27.29

  n/a

  1992

  30.57

  29.62

  1993

  33.62

  34.03

  1994

  35.68

  37.56

  1995

  38.31

  40.60

  1At 1 April.

  2At 31 March.

  Source:

  Housing subsidy claim forms (council rents), Housing Corporation HAR10/1 return (housing associations).

  Global Temperature Changes
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment from what sources he draws his evidence of global temperature changes; and on whom he relies for the evaluation of this information. [495]
  24
  Mr. Clappison
  The Hadley centre, Bracknell, complies global temperature data and analyses them for indications of change. The result of the Hadley centre's work are published in scientific journals and hence subject to peer review. These results, with the work of other investigators around the world, have been assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change—IPCC—and reported in the IPCC's most recent report, the second assessment of climate change 1995.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

  Goods (Environmental Claims)
  Mr. Martyn Jones
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action he intends to take following the publication of the National Consumer Council report on environmental claims on goods. [240]

  Mr. John M. Taylor
  My Department is currently working with the Department of the Environment to draw up, in consultation with industry and consumer interests, a code of practice for the making of environmental claims.

  Coal Imports
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the country of origin and tonnage of coal imports for 1995. [436]

  Mr. Page
  The information requested is given in the table:

  Coal imports for 1995

  Country of origin

  Thousand tonnes of coal

  Australia

  3,641

  Belgium/Luxembourg

  13

  Canada

  1,364

  Colombia

  2,687

  Czech Republic

  2

  Estonia

  59

  Germany

  131

  India

  9

  Indonesia

  65

  Irish Republic

  25

  Netherlands1

  104

  Norway

  2

  People's Republic of China

  77

  Poland

  1,274

  Republic of South Africa

  1,313

  Russia

  160

  Sweden

  10

  United States of America

  4,858

  Vietnam

  101

  Total

  15,896

  1Imports include extra-EU coal routed through the Netherlands.

  Source:

  Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics 1996.

  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the tonnage of coal imports for each of the last 10 years. [437]
  25
  Mr. Page
  The information requested is given in the table:

  Coal Imports

  Year

  Thousand tonnes of coal

  1986

  10,554

  1987

  9,781

  1988

  11,685

  1989

  12,137

  1990

  14,783

  1991

  19,611

  1992

  20,339

  1993

  18,400

  1994

  15,041

  1995

  15,896

  Source:

  Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics 1996.

  R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd.
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade what(a) grants and (b) other assistance have been given by his Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the last five years. [176]

  Mr. Page
  There is no record of any assistance having been given by this Department to R. R. Donnelley's York plant within the past five years.

  However, R. R. Donnelley's Gateshead plant has received business support assistance through its local training and enterprise council. The total value of this assistance is approximately £21,000.

  Departmental Investigations
  Mr. Byers
  To ask the President of the Board of Trade when his Department began its investigation into the activities and conduct of(a) Butte Mining, (b) Richmond Oil and Gas plc and (c) the Robertson Group; when the investigations were completed; what action was taken; and which Minister dealt with the matter. [785]

  Mr. Lang
  It is not my Department's practice to comment on the affairs of individual companies.

DEFENCE

  Porton Down
  Mr. Livingstone
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the file with the classmark WO 32/20843 recorded at the Public Record Office relating to experiments at the chemical and biological defence establishment is currently retained by his Department; and if he will open it. [724]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  Arrangements are being made to review WO 32/20843 to see whether release into the public domain is now possible. I will write to the hon. Member on completion of the review process.

  Beef Consumption
  Mr. Pawsey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if British beef is purchased by the armed forces for their own consumption in the United Kingdom. [198]
  26
  Mr. Arbuthnot
  The procurement of food for the armed forces is contracted to the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes—NAAFI. My Department does not specify the source of origin from which the NAAFI should obtain beef—or any other meat—but expects it to seek the best market price for the product. There are no constraints on the choice of British meat products, which are considered equally with meat products sourced generally in the open market. The majority of our requirements are, however, for frozen beef which is not readily available from the British market and I understand that on cost grounds the majority of beef joints have been sourced from South America, predominantly Brazil and Uruguay, although a range of beef products including sirloin, foreribs, minced and diced beef are normally procured in the UK along with other meat and poultry produce.

  Mine Clearance (Former Yugoslavia)
  Mr. Cousins
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the cost of mine clearance and detection vehicles and equipment in service with British forces in operations under the NATO, UN and implementation force—IFOR—programmes in former Yugoslavia. [397]

  Mr. Soames
  This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  Married Quarters Estate
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received opposing the sale of military married quarters to a Japanese-led consortium; what plans he has to review the sale; and if he will make a statement. [484]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  My Department has received a number of letters expressing views on the future ownership of the married quarters estate. The sale is proceeding satisfactorily, with exchange of contracts having taken place on 24 September and completion scheduled for 5 November. A copy of my Department's press release announcing the exchange of contracts was placed in the Library of the House.

  Tornado Crash (Blackpool)
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the nine F3 Tornados referred to in his answer of 16 October,Official Report, column 1094, had been refurbished by British Aerospace, Warton, Lancashire, by means of (a) fitting a new mid-section fuselage taken from an F2 Tornado and (b) making good directly the previously damaged fuselage mid-section. [786]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  All nine of the Tornado aircraft to which I referred in my answer of 16 October were refurbished by means of fitting centre fuselage sections taken from Tornado F2 aircraft held in store.

  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the same-day authorisation to fly the F3 Tornado that crashed at Blackpool on 28 September constituted the full normal manufacturers' certificate of airworthiness. [780]
  27
  Mr. Arbuthnot
  The full and normal certification was provided by British Aerospace as contractor in respect of this aircraft, concurrently with the Ministry of Defence authorisation provided by my Department's principal quality assurance officer at British Aerospace, Warton, where the aircraft was being refurbished.

  Future Large Aircraft
  Dr. David Clark
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with his German counterpart concerning the future large aircraft programme. [247]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  When I met State Secretary Simon on Tuesday 3 September, the future large aircraft programme was among the subjects we discussed. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has not recently discussed the future large aircraft programme with his German counterpart.

  Operation Joint Endeavour
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the aims of Operation Joint Endeavour; what part will be played by British military forces; and if he will make a statement. [485]

  Mr. Soames
  Operation Joint Endeavour is the NATO-led implementation force—IFOR—operation in Bosnia. Its primary aim is to implement the military aspects of the Dayton peace agreement. The operation has been conspicuously successful and all the key military objectives have been achieved. Britain is making a major contribution to IFOR through our leadership and status as framework nation for headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps, which commands the land operation, our command of one of the three multinational divisions and a troop contribution which is second only to that of America.

  Departmental Headquarters Refurbishment
  Dr. David Clark
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his plans for refurbishing his Department's main building headquarters using the private finance initiative. [246]

  Mr. Arbuthnot
  Main building was constructed in the 1950s. Many of its key services are now in urgent need of replacement and the accommodation falls far short of meeting today's needs. To correct these deficiencies requires a major programme of work that will provide a modern working environment, maximum utilisation of space and flexibility for the future.

  The Department intends to examine private finance options for the redevelopment and subsequent operation of the building. In due course, we would expect to be inviting ideas for the scheme from potential private sector partners. I hope to be able to make an announcement on the way ahead within the next few weeks.

  Nicola Goode
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to complete his official investigation into the case of Nicola Goode, 2 Victoria heights, Dartmouth who suffered an injury on 2 February 1996 at RAF Halton; and will he make a statement. [257]
  28
  Mr. Soames
  I will shortly write to the hon. Member in respect of his constituent in this case.

SCOTLAND

  Andover Primary School, Brechin
  Mr. Welsh
  To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he will announce a decision on the compulsory purchase order regarding land or the proposed replacement building for Andover primary school, Brechin; and when he received the application for this compulsory purchase order. [248]

  Mr. Raymond S. Robertson
  A decision on this order, which was submitted for confirmation in March 1995, will be made shortly.

SOCIAL SECURITY

  War Widows
  Mr. George
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his Department's policy in respect of the pensions of war widows whose husbands' deaths are assessed to be related to smoking while in prisoner of war camps during the second world war; and if he will make a statement. [498]

  Mr. Heald
  A war widow's pension may be awarded where the late husband's death was due to, or was substantially hastened by, any service in the armed forces. There is no automatic entitlement to a war widow's pension simply because the late husband was a war pensioner.

  The war pensions scheme has never been intended to compensate for the effects of a personal habit such as smoking. Policy on this has not changed. Over more than 40 years, that has been the general policy of successive Governments; it has applied to all those who served including those who were prisoners of war.

  The law does, however, provide for awards in respect of smoking-related conditions where there is a severely disabling mental condition—itself attributable to service and assessed for war pension purposes at a minimum of 50 per cent.—which rendered the individual incapable of exercising personal choice and prevented him from giving up the habit.

  Income Support
  Mr. Winnick
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many(a) of those of adult working age and (b) pensioners are currently in receipt of income support; and if he will list separately the estimated number whose income is less than (i) £6,000 annually and (ii) £5,000 in each group. [223]
  29
  Mr. Heald
  The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table:

  Millions

  Number of income support claimants of adult working age

  4,080

  Number of pensioner income support claimants

  1,588

  Source:

  Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiry November 1995.

  Notes:

  1. Adult working age is between 16 and 60 years for females and up to 65 years for males.

  2. Sample size 5 per cent.

  3. Numbers are rounded to the nearest thousand.

  4. Numbers include all income support recipients of working age irrespective of their circumstances.

  State Pension
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what increase could be paid to recipients of a state pension if it had been consistently uprated in line with earnings since 1980; and what would be the gross cost of this in the current financial year and the cost net of taxation and losses of other benefit entitlement. [159]

  Mr. Heald
  If the basic state retirement pension had been increased in line with average earnings since 1980, the standard rate of basic pension would be increased by £19.10 a week. The gross cost of such an increase is estimated at £8.8 billion in 1996–97. After taking account of the effect on income-related benefits and taxation, the net cost is estimated at £5.5 billion.

  Sources:

  1. Estimates of gross costs provided by Government Actuary Department.

  2. Net costs estimated using standard offset ratios from the Policy Simulation Model 1996–97, which is based upon data from the family expenditure surveys 1991, 1992 and 1993.

  3. Estimates of changes to income tax revenue provided by the Inland Revenue, using a provisional projection of FES 1994–95 data to 1996–97.

  4. Average earnings index, all employees, taken from the new earnings survey for each year.

  Notes:

  1. All estimates are in 1996–97 prices, rounded to the nearest £100 million.

  2. This reply refers to increases in basic retirement pension only.

  Pensions
  Mr. Winnick
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many full-time employees are currently estimated to have no arrangements for pension purposes outside the state pension; and what percentage of the work force this amounts to. [155]

  Mr. Heald
  We estimate that in 1994 approximately 2.8 million full-time employees had no current additional pension arrangement other than the state earnings-related pension; this represents about 17 per cent. of all full-time employees.
  30
  Source:

  1994 general household survey and labour force surveys.

  Note:

  This information refers to current membership of schemes, it does not include employees who have preserved rights from previous membership of an occupational scheme.

  Incapacity Benefit
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many of those claimants of incapacity benefit who failed the all work test were also refused unemployment benefit due to failing to meet the availability for work criteria. [224]

  Mr. Burt
  The information is in the table:

  Number

  Number of claims for unemployment benefits by former incapacity benefit claimants.

  72,564

  Number disallowed unemployment benefits because not available for work or unreasonable restriction placed on availability for work.

  208

  Number disallowed unemployment benefits because not actively seeking work.

  40

  Source:

  Employment Service.

  Note:

  All data from 13 April 1995 to 30 September 1996.

  Child Support Agency
  Sir Roger Sims
  To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what reports he has received recently concerning the performance of the Child Support Agency. [1095]

  Mr. Andrew Mitchell
  My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has recently received two reports, both of which are being placed in the Library today. These are the annual report for 1995–96 from the chief child support officer and the mid-year report of the Child Support Agency.

  The CSA's mid-year report shows that by the end of September maintenance totalling more than £183 million had been collected or arranged by the agency and that it was clearly on course to meet the target of £380 million to £400 million for the year. In September, 80 per cent. of assessments were correct to the nearest penny and 98 per cent. of payments received from absent parents were paid over to the parent with care within 10 working days. In addition, the report shows the agency's commitment to prompt enforcement action by issuing over 25,000 deductions from earnings orders and applying for over 1,000 liability orders against non-compliant absent parents.

  The CCSO's report for 1995–96 shows continued improvement over the standards of adjudication for the first two years of the agency's operation. The CCSO, who is independent of the CSA and Ministers, acknowledges the progress made and the dedication of agency staff at all levels towards securing better standards of adjudication. He also points out that the agency's assessment of accuracy and the assessment of his own monitors are now broadly in line.
  31
  Both reports clearly indicate that the CSA has turned the corner in terms of its performance over the last 18 months and that it continues to make very encouraging progress, with substantial improvements in many areas. We shall be looking to the agency to continue this much-needed improvement, meet its end-of year targets and deliver an ever-improving and more efficient service.

WALES

  BSE
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the impact of ESE on staffing levels in his Department as at 1 April, 1 October and prospectively for 1 April 1997. [778]

  Mr. Hague
  My Department continually keeps under review its staffing requirements for each area of business. Priorities have been established which will enable the BSE work to be taken forward.

  Cattle Farming (Assistance)
  Mr. Barry Jones
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to assist farmers, unable to have their cattle culled as a result of the culling backlog, with the cost of winter feed; and if he will make a statement. [71]

  Mr. Jonathan Evans
  The Government have made a further £29 million available to assist beef farmers and are consulting the industry on how this can be most effectively allocated. The Government have committed a total of £2.5 billion to supporting the agriculture industry.

  Agricultural Holdings
  Mr. Tipping
  To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the number of agricultural holdings and the hectarage of agricultural land in each county in Wales in the year (i) 1994, (ii) 1995 and (iii) 1996. [772]

  Mr. Jonathan Evans
  The information requested is
  shown in the following table. Data for 1996 are not yet available.

  1994

  1995

  County

  Hectares

  Holdings

  Hectares

  Holdings

  Clwyd

  197,581

  3,774

  194,384

  3,506

  Dyfed

  485,021

  11,137

  479,625

  10,580

  Gwent

  92,642

  2,181

  91,176

  2,053

  Gwynedd

  324,976

  4,813

  322,847

  4,490

  Mid Glamorgan

  57,158

  950

  57,398

  891

  Powys

  443,325

  5,679

  443,260

  5,286

  South Glamorgan

  23,832

  501

  23,566

  474

  West Glamorgan

  45,767

  875

  44,759

  796

  Wales

  1,670,301

  29,910

  1,657,013

  28,076

  Source:

  June agricultural census.

  Figures are for main holdings and include estimates for common rough grazing land.

LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

  Illegal Drugs
  Mr. Flynn
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what progress has been made in respect of the use of illegal drugs since the publication of "Tackling Drugs Together". [600]

  Mr. Newton
  Since there are as yet no data beyond 1995, the year in which "Tackling Drugs Together" was published, it is too early to make such an assessment. However, good progress has been made in carrying forward all elements in the strategy which the White Paper set out.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

  Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries have so far failed to sign the comprehensive test ban treaty; when he expects the ban to become international law; and if he will make a statement. [49O]

  Mr. David Davis
  The following countries had not signed the CTBT by 28 October:Afghanistan, Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burma, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Cuba, Czech Republic, Dominica, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, The Gambia, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, India, Iraq, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea (North), Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritius, Moldova, Nauru, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Rwanda, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

  According to article XIV of the treaty, the CTBT will enter into force 180 days after the date of deposit of the instruments of ratification by the 44 states listed in annexe 2 of the treaty, but in no case earlier than two years after its opening for signature.

  Antarctic Treaty
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to the Government of Japan concerning ratification of the Antarctic treaty; and if he will make a statement. [671]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  I refer the hon. member to the answer that I gave him on 22 July,Official Report, columns 39–40, since when there has been further correspondence between British and Japanese officials on detailed technical issues relating to the environmental protocol and we have against urged Japan to ratify the protocol as soon as possible.

  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in discussions with fellow signatories to the Antarctic treaty on the establishment of a secretariat; and if he will make a statement. [672]
  33
  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave on 22 July,Official Report, columns 39–40. There has been no recent discussion.

  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total budget spent in each of the last three years on(a) Britain's responsibility on Antarctica through the Antarctic treaty and (b) grant to the British Antarctic Survey. [225]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  Our only financial responsibility in relation to the Antarctic treaty is contributions to the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. FCO contributions for the last three years were as follows:

  1993–94: £31,685

  1994–95: £31,932

  1995–96: £32,700

  The Natural Environment Research Council is responsible for funding the British Antarctic Survey. The council provided the following information on the NERC grant to the survey in each of the last three years:

  1993–94: £21,436,000

  1994–95: £24,321,000

  1995–96: £26,380,000

  Romania (Human Rights)
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Romania concerning human rights; and if he will make a statement. [670]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  We monitor closely the human rights situation in Romania, as we do in other countries. When appropriate, we raise concerns bilaterally or in company with our EU partners.

  Argentina
  Mr. Tony Lloyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list by date the discussions he has held with representatives of the Argentine Government since January 1991. [674]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary met his Argentine counterpart on the following dates:

  26 July 1995

  27 September 1995

  15 December 1995

  30 January 1996

  28 February 1996

  13 April 1996

  10 June 1996

  29 July 1996

  25 September 1996

  27 September 1996

  34
  His predecessor met the Argentine Foreign Minister on the following dates:

  10 December 1990

  24 April 1991

  26 September 1991

  23 February 1992

  24 February 1992

  22 September 1992

  8 January 1993

  30 March 1993

  1 November 1993

  3 March 1994

  10 May 1994

  5 October 1994

  19 April 1995

  8 June 1995

  Mr. Lloyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what review of the Government's arms policy with regard to Argentina has taken place since January 1991; what factors underlay the review; what classes of equipment were released from embargo as a consequence of the review; what quantities of such equipment have been sold since January 1991; and what information was released to(a) Parliament and (b) industry by his Department in respect of the review. [677]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary's remarks in the House on 24 October 1996,Official Report, column 141.

  As my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary made clear, there has been no relaxation of the embargo and no goods have consequently been released from embargo. However, there have been exceptions allowed under the embargo in specific cases. I also refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to the hon. member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) on 13 June 1996, Official Report, column 263.

  Mr. Lloyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has held with representatives of the Argentine Government since January 1991, in respect of relaxing the arms embargo. [675]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  Argentine representatives have raised their desire to have the arms embargo relaxed on several occasions. I have nothing further to add to the remarks made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary on 24 October,Official Report, column 141.

  Mr. Lloyd
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the British Government's policy on the export of arms and military equipment to Argentina. [676]

  Sir Nicholas Bonsor
  I refer the hon. Member to the remarks made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary on 24 October,Official Report, column 141.

  Helms-Burton Act
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the United States ambassador in respect of the Helms-Burton Act; and if he will make a statement. [481]

  Mr. David Davis
  My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary has discussed the Helms-Burton Act with the United States ambassador and the US Secretary of State, Warren Christopher.

  We consider that this legislation sets a dangerous and unwelcome precedent. It is against the spirit, if not the letter, of international trade law. While we agree with the US objective to promote democracy in Cuba, we disagree fundamentally on the means to achieve this. US sanctions against British companies are not the way forward. We have put firmly on record with the US Administration and Congress bilaterally, and also collectively with our EU partners, our views and our objections to the legislation. The EU has requested World Trade Organisation disputes panel to rule on the issue. Countermeasures are under consideration in Brussels. The Government are determined to do everything possible to protect our legitimate business interests and the law-based international trading system.

EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT

  Drug Abuse Resistance Education
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) on what occasions she has visited the Nottinghamshire DARE programme; and if she will make a statement. [400]

  (2) what estimates she has made of the cost of ensuring all nine-year-olds undertook a 17-week DARE course on social skills. [401]

  Mrs. Gillan
  My right hon. Friend has not visited the Nottinghamshire drug abuse resistance educationDARE—programme, but officials of the Department maintain regular contact with DARE representatives and monitor its progress closely.

  No estimates of requiring the DARE programme to be implemented nationwide have been made. While we encourage inter-agency drug education initiatives, it is for individual schools to decide which approach best suits their needs and circumstances. DARE is one of a number of possible programmes.

  Down's Syndrome Children
  Mr. Byers
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many children with Down's syndrome are being educated(a) in mainstream schools and (b) in special schools in each local education authority; and if she will make a statement. [784]

  Mrs. Gillan
  This information is not collected centrally. Local education authorities are under a duty to educate children with special education needs in mainstream schools, provided this accords with parents' wishes and is compatible with the child receiving 36
  appropriate special educational provision, the provision of efficient education for other children and the efficient use of resources.

  Physical Education Teachers
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many physical education teachers are employed in local education authority schools; and what has been the percentage change since 1979. [502]

  Mr. Forth
  In 1992, there were 24,400 full-time teachers in maintained, including grant-maintained, secondary schools in England who were teaching at least one lesson of physical education—PE—a week. Comparable figures are not available for later years. This represents a decrease of 36 per cent. since 1984, the earliest year for which comparable figures are available.

  Most teachers in maintained primary schools teach some PE.

  Children (Employment)
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment she has made of the educational effects of(a) children in registered work and (b) children working illegally; and if she will make a statement. [174]

  Mrs. Gillan
  Employers must register any children they employ with the local education authority—LEA. If the LEA considers that such employment is affecting a child's fitness to obtain full benefit from his or her education, it is for the authority to prohibit or restrict the child's employment with that employer.

  The Government deplore any illegal employment of schoolchildren. The provisions of the legislation, which among other things forbid a child to work during school hours, or for more than one hour beforehand, are designed to avoid any adverse effect upon his or her education. They should be enforced rigorously.

  R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd.
  Mr. Bayley
  To ask the Secretary of Sate for Education and Employment what(a) grants and (b) other assistance have been given by her Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the past five years. [175]

  Mr. Paice
  R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. has used recruitment services provided by the Employment Service and a variety of training and enterprise council services which will have been funded either wholly or in part by the DFEE. There is no record of any direct grant by the Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the last five years.

  Vocational Qualifications
  Mr Byers
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many people have been awarded each vocational qualification. [781]

  Mr. Paice
  The number of national vocational qualifications, NVQs, Scottish vocational qualifications, SVQs, general national vocational qualifications, GNVQs,
  37
  general Scottish vocational qualifications, GSVQs, and other vocational qualifications awarded for the last three years are set out in the following table:

  Year

  NVQs/SVQs

  GNVQs/GSVQs

  Other VQs

  Total

  1992–93

  194,000

  —

  781,000

  975,000

  1993–94

  240,000

  19,000

  773,000

  1,032,000

  1994–95

  277,000

  48,000

  613,000

  938,000

  Infant School Class Sizes
  Mr. Don Foster
  To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is her estimate of the cost of reducing to a maximum of 30 all maintained infant school classes for pupils of five, six and seven years of age. [170]

  Mr. Robin Squire
  The Department's statisticians estimate that it would have cost between £120 million and £250 million to reduce to a maximum of 30 pupils all single-teacher classes in years 1, 2, and 3 in January 1996. The exact cost will depend on the extent to which children in larger classes could be accommodated in existing smaller classes or grouped together in new classes. The estimated costs are for extra teachers only.

HEALTH

  Cervical Cancer Screening
  Mr. Cousins
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance he has issued as to the acceptance by NHS pathologists as adequate of cervical cancer screening test record cards that do not confirm that visual inspection has taken place; [457]

  (2) if he will place in the Library copies of the guidance he has issued about the adequacy and competence of cervical cancer screening tests; [393]

  Number of adequate smears examined by pathology laboratories in England 1990–91 to 1994–95

  1990–91

  1991–92

  1992–93

  1993–94

  1994–95

  Total adequate smears1(thousands)

  Percent of results requiring follows2

  Total adequate smears1(thousands)

  Percent of results requiring follows2

  Total adequate smears1(thousands)

  Percent of results requiring follows2

  Total adequate smears1(thousands)

  Percent of results requiring follows2

  Total adequate smears1(thousands)

  Percent of results requiring follows2

  England

  3949.2

  7.0

  4252.0

  7.1

  4055.0

  7.1

  4131.0

  7.9

  4150.2

  8.5

  Regional health authority

  Northern

  296.2

  6.3

  302.0

  5.7

  306.7

  6.2

  274.2

  6.5

  287.1

  8.2

  Yorkshire

  227.0

  6.2

  271.9

  5.4

  265.3

  4.8

  302.1

  6.4

  326.3

  7.3

  Trent

  419.2

  5.5

  418.2

  5.7

  398.6

  5.8

  300.9

  7.2

  416.0

  8.0

  East Anglia

  134.3

  5.5

  163.2

  5.6

  167.6

  5.7

  174.7

  6.3

  177.9

  8.1

  North West Thames

  236.0

  4.7

  321.7

  7.3

  292.7

  6.5

  434.7

  7.0

  302.7

  7.9

  North East Thames

  340.0

  9.4

  350.0

  8.9

  329.6

  6.4

  348.0

  7.2

  324.8

  7.9

  South East Thames

  261.4

  7.1

  299.8

  7.4

  299.7

  7.5

  286.0

  7.2

  300.5

  7.2

  South West Thames

  236.2

  6.3

  250.5

  6.1

  243.3

  6.1

  267.5

  7.7

  291.5

  8.3

  Wessex

  193.0

  5.4

  243.7

  6.4

  239.4

  6.3

  265.8

  8.8

  244.6

  9.2

  Oxford

  244.6

  11.9

  237.9

  8.3

  223.3

  7.4

  228.9

  7.0

  228.2

  8.2

  South Western

  254.2

  8.3

  306.6

  7.5

  222.4

  7.7

  233.1

  10.2

  239.8

  9.5

  West Midlands

  483.8

  6.8

  494.2

  7.9

  491.0

  8.4

  436.9

  8.5

  422.3

  8.6

  Mersey

  223.1

  8.0

  208.8

  8.0

  201.4

  8.0

  170.2

  8.1

  219.3

  8.4

  North Midlands

  400.2

  5.1

  383.4

  11.2

  373.9

  12.2

  407.9

  11.6

  369.5

  11.6

  Excludes smears found to be inadequate

  Includes all smears tested found to be positive or abnormal.

  The information is obtained from the central return KC61 which collects information about cervical smears examined by pathology laboratories. The date inlcude all cervical smears examined for whatever reason ie symptomatic as well as screening programme smears.

  38
  (3) what representations he has received as to the adequacy of cervical cancer screening tests where no visual inspection of the cervix has taken place. [494]

  Mr. Horam
  In October 1995, a working party of the Royal College of Pathologists, the British Society for Clinical Cytology and the national health service cervical screening programme produced guidelines entitled "Achievable Standards, Benchmarks for Reporting and Criteria for Evaluating Cervical Cytopathology". These guidelines were launched by the chief medical officer in March this year, together with two further sets of guidelines relating to cervical screening: "Quality Assurance Guidelines for the Cervical Screening Programme" and "Standards and Quality in Colposcopy", and issued to the NHS. No specific representations have been received as to the adequacy of cervical screening where no visual inspection has taken place. However, the importance of visual inspection is emphasised in the British Society for Clinical Cytology's training video and booklet for smear takers "Taking Cervical Smears", which was promulgated to the NHS under cover of EL(94)33. Copies of all guidance documents relating to cervical screening are available in the Library.

  Mr. Cousins
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cervical cancer screening tests were carried out in each health authority area since 1990, indicating in each case the percentage of cases requiring follow-up. [501]

  Mr. Horam
  Information on cervical screening tests is collected from pathology laboratories and is not held at district health authority level. The number of adequate smears examined by pathology laboratories in England in the years 1990–91 to 1994–95 is shown by region in the table. Questions relating to cervical screening in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

  Hospital Information Support System
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to seek compensation in respect of the NHS HISS. [452]

  Mr. Horam
  There is no such thing as a national health service hospital information support system—HISS. In 1989, the NHS executive established a HISS initiative to test out the means of purchasing and implementing hospital-wide integrated computer systems. The 25 NHS trusts sponsored by this initiative demonstrated a number of options for achieving this goal. These were pilot projects and have provided the basis of lessons learned for the future. The National Audit Office report on the HISS initiative published on 17 April 1996 makes no suggestion of waste of money. On the contrary, it recommends further work by the NHS executive to increase the value for money already obtained.

  NHS Trusts (Bed Closures)
  Mr. Redmond
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds in NHS trusts have been closed since 1 April with resource problems cited as the cause. [445]

  Mr. Horam
  The information requested is not available centrally. Information on the average daily number of available beds in each national health service trust is published annually in "Bed availability for England", copies of which are available in the Library. Data for the 1995–96 financial year will be available shortly.

  Long Term Care Report
  Mr. Merchant
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he intends publishing the Government's response to the Health Committee's report "Long Term Care: Future Provision and Funding", HC59 of Session 1995–96. [1082]

  Mr. Burns
  We have published the Government's response today. Copies are available in the Library.

  NHS Funding (Charities)
  Mr. Meale
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what account his Department takes of the quantity of funding received by the health service from charities in determining public expenditure in this area; [491]

  (2) to what extent Government financial policy on the NHS assumes a continued level of charitable contributions to keep the service functioning. [488]

  Mr. Horam
  None.

  Mr. Meale
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it is Government policy to substitute NHS equipment facilities funding in the service with charitable donations. [489]

  Mr. Horam
  No.
  40
  Mr. Meale
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will indicate the levels of money raised in the past three years via charitable donations to supplement funding of the NHS. [487]

  Mr. Horam
  The table shows the total income of funds held on trust by the national health service in England.

  £000s

  1992–93

  256,012

  1993–94

  245,032

  1994–95

  255,702

  Source:

  Summarised account for the trust funds held by regional and district health authorities, NHS trusts and special health authorities for the London postgraduate teaching hospitals and special trustees.

  Note:

  Funds held on trust include both charitable and non-charitable funds.

  Nurses
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses were in NHS hospitals in April 1992; and how many are currently employed. [492]

  Mr. Horam
  The Department of Health's non-medical work force census collects the number of hospital and community health services nursing and midwifery staff as at 30 September each year. Individual hospital units cannot be separately identified in the census, but up until September 1994 nursing and midwifery staff could be sub-divided between those working in hospitals and those working in the community on the basis of their area of work. Areas of work were determined by a combination of the pay scales nurses and midwives were paid on and their occupation codes. Data for September 1992 are available in the Library from the Department of Health's publications: "Health and Personal Social Services Statistics for England", 1995 edition. The sub-division of nursing and midwifery staff between hospital and community areas of work is not possible for the 1995 non-medical work force census—the latest available—and future censuses because of the introduction of new occupation codes.

  Head Lice (Organophosphates)
  Mr. Tyler
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to prevent the use of organophosphates in the treatment of head lice among children. [76]

  Mr. Horam
  Malathion is the only organophosphate authorised for the treatment of head lice. There is no evidence to suggest that malathion is dangerous when used for this purpose. Like all marketed medicines, products containing malathion are continually monitored for safety.

  Computerised Tomography Scanners
  Mr. Meale
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it is his Department's policy that a CT scanner is a necessary piece of equipment for a district general hospital. [486]
  41
  Mr. Horam
  It is not the Department's policy for every district general hospital to have a computerised tomography scanner as a necessary piece of equipment. It is for the purchasers of health care to ensure that they have access to those services necessary to meet the needs of their patients.

  Nurses' Pay
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what pay increases for(a) nursing and (b) ancillary grades has been agreed for the current financial year in the NHS; and what proportion of it has been funded by his Department. [167]

  Mr. Malone
  As recommended by the nursing pay review body, nurses on national terms of service received a 2 per cent. national increase from 1 April 1996, with local negotiations for further increases. Ancillary grade staff on national terms also received a 2 per cent. national increase, with local negotiations. For staff on national health service trust terms and conditions, pay increases are a matter for local negotiation. Pay costs are funded within overall NHS resources.

  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data he collates concerning the pay increases for(a) nursing and (b) ancillary grades by each English NHS trust. [166]

  Mr. Malone
  Executive letter EL(96)63 sets out the information which is collected centrally from trusts about annual pay settlements reached for nursing and ancillary staff on national terms and conditions. Copies of EL(96)63 will be placed in the Library.

  Children (Employment)
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with representatives of local government concerning the employment of children; and if he will make a statement. [172]

  Mr. Burns
  Officials are in regular contact with their counterparts in local government regarding the employment of children.

  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received concerning the employment of children in the United Kingdom. [173]

  Mr. Burns
  I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 21 February 1996,Official Report, columns 163–64.

  Child Care (Vetting)
  Mr. Morgan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the modus operandi of the list held in his Department of individuals deemed unsuitable to work with children; which other agencies have the right to consult that list in their vetting procedures; how frequently the list has been consulted in each of the last five years; and what consultations he has undertaken recently to extend its coverage and use. [779]

  Mr. Burns
  The operation of the consultancy service index, which is the list to which the hon. Member refers, is described in annexe C to circular LAC 93(17), copies of which have been placed in the Library. The service is 42
  currently subject to review and consultations have taken place with the Home Office, Department for Education and Employment and other interested bodies.

  Approximately 55,000 checks against the index are made each year.

  Housing (Refugees)
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the housing of refugee families since August 1996 by English local authorities within the terms of the Children Act 1989. [667]

  Mr. Burns
  Special grant report No. 22 (HC 16) relating to the persons from abroad children's grant was laid before the House on the 23 October. The purpose of this grant is to compensate social services departments for the additional expenditure they incur under the Children Act as a consequence of changes in social security entitlement and local authorities' housing duties towards certain asylum seekers.

TRANSPORT

  North West Regional Railways
  Mr. Gordon Prentice
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure the final version of the North West Regional Railways Ltd. passenger service requirement issued by the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising maintains the current timetable. [581]

  Mr. Watts
  No.

  Motor Car Commuting
  Mr. Robathan
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he plans to deter commuting by motor car. [570]

  Mr. Watts
  The Green Paper stresses the benefits of companies drawing up commuting plans to reduce car dependency. Improved rail services by private operators and better promotion of bus travel will encourage a switch to public transport.

  Helicopters
  Miss Hoey
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to meet the Civil Aviation Authority to discuss helicopter use. [572]

  Sir George Young
  None.

  Rail Privatisation
  Mr. Touhig
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date the decision was made not to pursue proposals for profit participation or revenue risk sharing with bidders for rail franchises. [573]

  Mr. Watts
  The decision not to pursue proposals for profit participation was taken prior to the publication of invitations to tender for the first three rail franchises in May 1995. The decision not to pursue revenue risk sharing was taken in October 1995, after the receipt of indicative bids for those three franchises.

  A2 (Bexley)
  Mr. Evennett
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the A2 road through the London borough of Bexley. [574]

  Mr. Bowis
  I have received representations about a number of issues on the A2 in Bexley.

  Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre
  Mr. Gallie
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects National Air Traffic Services to announce the successful bid for the building and operation of the new Scottish air traffic control centre; and if he will make a statement. [575]

  Sir George Young
  The original timetable for this project assumed an announcement in February 1997. I understand that, in the light of the current Civil Aviation Authority review of the two-centre strategy, a paper will be presented to the CAA board in November on the tenders for the new Scottish centre.

  Public Transport (Disabled Access)
  Mr. O'Hara
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to support those agencies planning to provide travel training for the people with mobility impairments who might wish to transfer to forms of public transport recently made accessible. [576]

  Mr. Alfred Morris
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to support those agencies planning to provide travel training for people with mobility impairments who might wish to transfer to forms of public transport recently made accessible; and if he will make a statement. [398]

  Mr. Bowis
  The Department of Transport works closely with transport operators and with disability organisations on this and many other issues arising from the growing move towards fully accessible public transport.

  The importance of travel training will also be highlighted in guidance issued by the Department in parallel with regulations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 which will set standards to ensure that future public transport is accessible.

  A30
  Mr. Matthew Taylor
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on progress on upgrading the A30 across Goss moor. [577]

  Mr. Watts
  The main road programme includes a scheme to improve the A30 from Bodmin to Indian Queens across Goss moor. The scheme will be brought forward when funds allow.

  Fenchurch Street Rail Service
  Mr. Amess
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent representations he has received on the Fenchurch Street line service. [579]

  Mr. Watts
  I have received two letters this year.

  Cycling Safety
  Mrs. Anne Campbell
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to improve cycling safety. [571]

  Mr. Bowis
  Providing a safer environment for cyclists, as well as more convenient one, will be important for achieving national targets for increasing cycling set out in the national cycling strategy, which was launched in July. The Government will play their part towards achieving this: for example, through our education, publicity and research programmes; through advice to local authorities, and funding for their transport packages and local safety schemes; and through our involvement in the National Cycling Forum, the first meeting of which I am chairing next month.

  Vehicle Parts
  Mrs. Dunwoody
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if German type approval of vehicle parts is sufficient basis for them to conform to British standards. [13]

  Mr. Bowis
  In Britain, most vehicle components are type approved in accordance with the appropriate European standards. Components approved to those standards in Germany are acceptable in Britain.

  Road Signs
  Mr. Spellar
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his Department's policy on road signs announcing distances in miles/yards and kilometres/metres. [203]

  Mr. Watts
  The current Traffic Signs Regulations specify that all distances must be shown in miles and yards. I have no plans to change that.

  Watford Junction (Rail Incident)
  Mr. Chris Davies
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the scheduled departure time for Euston of the train which overshot Watford Junction station on Wednesday 10 July. [122]

  Mr. Watts
  The scheduled departure time from Euston was 08.00.

  Departmental Car Parking Spaces
  Mr. Andrew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the cost of car parking spaces at his Department's building on the basis of equivalent central London charges. [769]

  Mr. Bowis
  There is provision for 23 car parking spaces in the Department's headquarters building, Great Minster house, which houses approximately 1,100 staff. On the basis of equivalent local commercial rates, these would cost some £69,000 per annum.

  Passenger Rail Services
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what plans he has to extend passenger rail services from Matlock to Buxton; and what finance he proposes to make available for this project; [162]
  45
  (2) what plans he has to re-introduce passenger traffic on the Bletchley to Bicester line; what assessment he has made of the quality of the track; and if he will make a statement; [160]

  (3) what plans he has to reintroduce passenger services on the Aylesbury to Bletchley to Bicester line; and if he will make a statement. [161]

  Mr. Watts
  None.

  Noise (Vehicle Sound Systems)
  Mr. Andrew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what are the operational needs of the police to enable them to combat excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles; [221]

  (2) what representations he has received from environmental and enforcement bodies (a) on the scale of the problem of excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles and (b) the most effective way for dealing with it; [222]

  (3) what existing powers and practices exist to enable environmental health officers to combat excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles. [220]

  Mr. Bowis
  Following the failure of a prosecution under regulation 97 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, which relates to excessive noise from vehicles, the Metropolitan police have suggested that the regulation be amended so as specifically to include noise from car accessories, such as stereo systems or radios. This would enable the police to continue to issue fixed penalty notices to offenders.

  In response, I have sought comments from bodies representing environmental, local authority, police and motoring interests to ascertain their views on the scale of the problem and the adequacy or otherwise of existing powers to deal with it. I am currently considering these comments.

  Local authority environmental health officers have powers under part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 as amended by the Noise and Statutory Nuisance Act 1993 to deal with noise of all types from vehicles parked on premises and in the street. I understand that a number of local authorities have also recently brought successful prosecutions for noise from car stereos under the loudspeaker provisions of the Control of Pollution Act 1974.

  Concessionary Travel (London)
  Mr. Bendall
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has had from users and service providers of the London concessionary fares and taxicard schemes regarding the proposals recommended in a review of the operation of those schemes carried out for the London committee on accessible transport; and if he will make it his policy that the present administration of these schemes will not be impaired. [496]

  Mr. Bowis
  I have received representations from the company which is contracted to provide the London taxicard scheme.

  These are matters for the London boroughs and my Department is not able to intervene.

  Passengers Charter
  Mr. Andrew Smith
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will list the proportion and absolute number of rail journeys which failed to achieve the required passengers charter performance standards, with regard to reliability, for all routes monitored by the Central Rail Users Consultative Committee, for each year since 1993; [219]

  (2) if he will list the proportion and absolute number of rail journeys which failed to achieve the required passengers charter performance standards, with regard to punctuality, for all routes monitored by the Central Rail Users Consultative Committee, for each year since 1993. [218]

  Mr. Watts
  The information is not available in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

  Information regarding the punctuality and reliability of train operating companies are provided in the British Railways Board annual report and accounts 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.

  Humber Bridge
  Mr. Michael Brown
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to announce how much Humber bridge debt the Government will write off under the Humber Bridge (Debts) Act 1996. [568]

  Mr. Watts
  I refer my hon. Friend to my reply of 8 July,Official Report, column 65. When the Secretary of State has received, and reached a decision on, the inspector's report into the recent tolls inquiry, he will consider proposals for an order under the Humber Bridge (Debts) Act 1996.

  London Underground
  Mr. Gapes
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he has to improve the London Underground network. [566]

  Mr. Bowis
  London Transport is investing over £1.1 billion in the current year. This is four times as much in real terms as was spent in 1979.

  With substantial support from Government, both through public funding and the private finance initiative, London Underground is undertaking a comprehensive programme of investment both in modernising its existing infrastructure and rolling stock and in constructing the Jubilee line extension.

  Consultants
  Ms Glenda Jackson
  To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all consultants, outside individuals and organisations employed by his Department over the previous 12 months, the nature of their employment, the duration of their employment, and the total cost of their employment to his Department. [1052]

  Mr. Bowis
  I shall write to the hon. Member with details and place a copy in the Library.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

  Parliamentary Questions
  Mr. Campbell-Savours
  To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will review the arrangements for the answering of parliamentary questions by Ministers. [601]

  Mr. Newton
  I have no plans to do so. The arrangements for the answering of parliamentary questions fall within the remit of the Procedure Committee.

  Mr. Harry Greenway
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the length of time devoted to questions to the House of Commons Commission; and if he will make a statement. [593]

  Mr. Newton
  The time devoted to questions to the Commission appears to me to be adequate, but I will of course look with care at any representations my hon. Friend may wish to make to me.

  Parliamentary Calender
  Mr. Winnick
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what plans he has to review the parliamentary calendar. [602]

  Mr. Newton
  I refer the hon. Gentleman to the speech given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 26 June, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

  Oral Questions
  Mr. MacShane
  To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will assess the advantages of moving oral questions to Ministers to the morning. [603]

  Mr. Newton
  No. The Select Committee on Sittings of the House considered this possibility and rejected it.

  Private Motions
  Mr. Spearing
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what proposals he has for enabling hon. Members to move private motions in the current Session. [604]

  Mr. Newton
  None.

  State Opening
  Mr. Mackinlay
  To ask the Lord President of the Council how much time he had to devote to preparing for the state opening of Parliament. [605]

  Mr. Newton
  Apart from work as chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Future Legislation, the amount of time required to change from one suit into another.

  Loyal Address Debates
  Dr. Goodson-Wickes
  To ask the Lord President of the Council what consultations he has had to facilitate the choice of dates and subjects for debates on the Loyal Address. [607]
  48
  Mr. Newton
  The subjects for debate on the Loyal Address and the days on which they are debated are by tradition chosen by the main Opposition party. I refer the hon. Gentleman to page 234 of the 21st edition of Erskine May's "Parliamentary Practice."

  Child Care Facilities
  Mr. Barnes
  To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee what progress has been made concerning the provision of creche facilities and nursery vouchers for hon. Members and their staff. [591]

  Mr. Michael J. Martin
  I have nothing to add to the oral reply given by the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith), representing the House of Commons Commission, on 8 July,Official Report, columns 15–16.

  Catering Staff (Pay)
  Mr. Janner
  To ask the right hon. member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, if he will make a statement on the pay of House of Commons catering staff. [594]

  Mr Beith
  Until this year, the pay rates for staff in the Refreshment Department—RD—catering grades were linked to the rates negotiated between the Treasury and the National Union of Civil and Public Servants, now Public Services, Tax and Commerce. With the introduction of "delegated pay", the Treasury no longer negotiates national pay agreements and the House now has direct responsibility for negotiating the pay rates of all staff, subject to the statutory requirement to keep the pay and conditions of service broadly in line with the civil service.

  A pay increase of 3 per cent. has been negotiated with the unions representing staff of the House in grade 8 and below, to take effect from 1 April 1996. An offer of a 4 per cent. increase in basic pay rates, with no change in the rates paid for overtime, has been put to the unions representing the RD catering grades. Bearing in mind the retention of the existing rates of pay for overtime, this pay offer is very close to the 3 per cent. increase already paid to other staff of the House and is broadly in line with this year's pay settlements in the civil service.

  Access (Constituents)
  Mr. Skinner
  To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee if he will make a statement on the arrangements for constituents to lobby their hon. Members. [606]
  49
  Mr. Michael J. Martin
  I am satisfied with the usual arrangement whereby constituents lobby hon. Members in the Central Lobby. The well-established arrangements for more constituents than can be immediately accommodated in the Central Lobby to lobby hon. Members are set out in the leaflet "Mass Lobbies". I have asked the Serjeant at Arms to send a copy of the leaflet to my hon. Friend.

  Access (Wheelchair Users)
  Mr. Tom Clarke
  To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee if he will introduce arrangements to remove the requirement to be met by a parliamentary passholder in respect of wheelchair users who wish to attend meetings in Committee Rooms in the Palace of Westminster. [1012]

  Mr. Michael J. Martin
  I have asked the Serjeant at Arms to look into the matter and to write to my hon. Friend.

  Thomas Paine
  Mr. Allen
  To ask the Chairman of the Accommodation and Works Committee if he will list the locations of pictures and other representations of Thomas Paine in the Palace of Westminster. [402]

  Sir Raymond Powell
  No pictures or representations of Thomas Paine are on display in the Palace. I understand that an engraving was purchased by the Works of Art Committee in March 1996 and is currently in store awaiting conservation prior to display.

  Parliamentary Works
  Mr. Wareing
  To ask the Chairman of the Accommodation and Works Committee what is the estimated cost of building and decorating work carried out to the Palace of Westminster during the summer recess. [595]

  Sir Raymond Powell
  About £17 million-worth of work was carried out on the parliamentary estate during the summer recess.

  Mr. Bernard Jenkin
  To ask the Chairman of the Accommodation and Works Committee what works have been completed in the parliamentary estate during the summer recess. [592]

  Sir Raymond Powell
  During the 12 weeks of the summer recess a large programme of works was undertaken on the parliamentary estate including installation of the parliamentary data and video network at Star Chamber Court and Norman Shaw North, the next phase of the Refreshment Department modernisation programme at Members' and Strangers' Cafeteria as well as automatic fire detection, new telephone wiring, new electrical wiring, lift modernisation including facilities for the disabled, lavatory refurbishment, essential maintenance such as heating modernisation and other minor works.

AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD

  Beef Imports
  Sir Jim Lester
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what tonnage of beef has been imported since March 1996; and what were the figures for the comparable period in 1995. [197]

  Mr. Baldry
  Imports of beef' into the United Kingdom for the periods April to June 1995 and 1996, as recorded in the overseas trade statistics, are as follows:1995: 69,000 tonnes
  1996: 60,000 tonnes
  These figures are provisional.
  Branch C, Statistics (Commodities and Food) Division, Economics and Statistics Group.
  1Beef includes the following; beef carcase meat; bovine offal; and beef meat and bovine offal preparations.

  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many inspectors his Department sent to those countries importing beef into the United Kingdom to examine their farms and slaughterhouses in order to assess their compliance with EU regulations. [258]

  Mrs. Browning
  None. The import of beef into the United Kingdom is subject to harmonised Community rules. For intra-Community trade, responsibility for ensuring premises comply with those rules lies with the competent authority in the member state of origin. Responsibility for auditing member states' controls, and for inspecting red meat premises in third countries approved to export beef to the Community, currently rests with the Office of Veterinary and Phytosanitary Inspection and Control of the European Commission.

  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food which countries outside the EU exported beef to the United Kingdom in each of the last three years; and in what quantities. [255]

  Mr. Baldry
  Imports of beef1 into the United Kingdom from countries outside the EU in each of the last three years, as recorded in the overseas trade statistics, are as follows:

  Thousands of tonnes

  Country

  1993

  19942

  19952

  Brazil

  58

  41

  45

  Argentina

  14

  15

  28

  Uruguay

  8

  8

  13

  Zimbabwe

  14

  9

  12

  Australia

  10

  9

  10

  Botswana

  7

  5

  7

  Namibia

  5

  5

  6

  New Zealand

  3

  3

  5

  Mauritius

  2

  5

  5

  USA

  2

  3

  4

  Other

  4

  2

  2

  1Beef includes the following; beef carcase meat; bovine offal; and beef meat and bovine offal preparations.

  21994 and 1995 data are provisional.

  Area Payments Scheme
  Mr. Tipping
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how many agricultural holdings and what area of agricultural land in hectares came within the area payments scheme in each county in England in (i) 1995 and (ii) 1996; [776]
  51
  (2) if he will set out by county a breakdown of the 1994 arable area payments scheme. [774]

  Mr. Baldry
  The table gives the county breakdown of claims under the arable area payments scheme in 1994 and 1995. A single claim may cover more than one holding where the holdings form part of one business. Equivalent figures for 1996 are not yet available.

  1994

  1995

  Number of claims

  Area paid ha

  Number of claims

  Area paid ha

  Avon

  392

  16,243

  393

  16,134

  Bedfordshire

  593

  64,296

  589

  64,520

  Berkshire

  279

  38,493

  268

  40,633

  Buckinghamshire

  647

  55,651

  632

  58,001

  Cambridgeshire

  2,194

  199,681

  2,155

  198,446

  Cheshire

  991

  28,138

  938

  26,416

  Cleveland

  226

  16,092

  223

  15,986

  Cornwall

  1,688

  39,462

  1,697

  39,371

  Cumbria

  907

  14,951

  905

  15,801

  Derbyshire

  799

  32,892

  793

  32,921

  Devon

  2,637

  65,107

  2,668

  63,392

  Dorset

  726

  60,573

  715

  58,417

  Durham

  661

  41,941

  657

  43,648

  Essex

  1,539

  188,352

  1,530

  193,778

  Gloucestershire

  993

  84,569

  1,000

  84,558

  Greater London

  65

  4,637

  63

  4,734

  Greater Manchester

  145

  5,522

  143

  5,406

  Hampshire

  794

  115,020

  778

  117,954

  Hereford and Worcester

  2,015

  98,986

  1,982

  100,759

  Hertfordshire

  487

  68,991

  483

  71,255

  Humberside

  2,139

  204,332

  2,097

  209,743

  Isle of Wight

  126

  9,674

  126

  10,224

  Kent

  1,050

  113,942

  1,039

  117,870

  Lancashire

  488

  17,953

  484

  18,354

  Leicestershire

  1,133

  100,128

  1,109

  107,256

  Lincolnshire

  3,466

  342,318

  3,386

  356,061

  Merseyside

  190

  9,889

  171

  9,438

  Norfolk

  2,949

  232,519

  2,887

  235,074

  Northamptonshire

  916

  110,522

  910

  117,893

  Northumberland

  860

  90,473

  842

  95,863

  Nottinghamshire

  1,036

  92,580

  1,017

  93,776

  Oxfordshire

  912

  117,621

  914

  125,755

  Shropshire

  1,612

  85,486

  1,581

  86,321

  Somerset

  1,270

  50,673

  1,253

  48,087

  Staffordshire

  872

  48,438

  838

  49,251

  Suffolk

  2,081

  193,026

  2,087

  193,500

  Surrey

  216

  14,453

  207

  14,912

  East Sussex

  440

  30,259

  437

  30,443

  West Sussex

  493

  47,102

  492

  45,912

  Tyne and Wear

  118

  8,996

  112

  9,503

  Warwickshire

  910

  79,348

  877

  80,937

  West Midlands

  102

  5,557

  101

  5,585

  Wiltshire

  1,021

  121,196

  1,010

  118,515

  North Yorkshire

  3,266

  214,945

  3,196

  215,832

  South Yorkshire

  554

  43,424

  543

  44,275

  West Yorkshire

  393

  24,483

  380

  25,169

  Organophosphates
  Mr. Tyler
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to prevent the use of dangerous organophosphates in veterinary products. [77]

  Mrs. Browning
  No veterinary medicine is authorised unless it meets statutory criteria of safety, quality and efficacy. The Government are advised on this by the independent scientific Veterinary Products Committee, VPC. The suspected adverse reactions surveillance 52
  scheme monitors trends in adverse reactions, which are reported regularly to the VPC. The continued use of organophosphorus—OP—sheep dips is kept under review by the VPC. OP sheep dips are important in the control of serious, sometimes fatal, sheep diseases. The committee has advised that, on the basis of current scientific evidence, there is no reason to ban OP dips but that it is essential that they are used properly and in accordance with manufacturers' instructions.

  Mr. Tyler
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects to complete his review of the impact of organophosphate sheep dips on the health of farmers and farm workers. [78]

  Mrs. Browning
  The Veterinary Products Committee, which gives independent scientific advice to the Government on issues concerning veterinary medicines, has completed its most recent review of organophosphate sheep dips, and Ministers expect to receive advice in the near future. An announcement will be made as soon as possible thereafter.

  The Government-funded epidemiological research project to examine the possible long-term human health effects of organophosphate sheep dips commenced earlier this year and is expected to be completed by April 1999.

  Mr. Tyler
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to monitor the investigation of Gulf war syndrome to establish lessons for the examination of the health side effects of exposure to organophosphate sheep dips among farmers and farm workers. [79]

  Mrs. Browning
  Officials of the Veterinary Medicines Directorate are in regular contact on this matter with the Ministry of Defence and the Department of Health.

  EU Fishing Rights (West Africa)
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what rights exist for EU countries to fish off the west African coast: which countries enjoy such rights; and what sums have been paid to African Governments by the EU in order to facilitate these concessions. [253]

  Mr. Baldry
  Details of the fisheries agreements between the European Community and west African countries are shown in the table.

  EU Fisheries Agreements with countries on the west coast of Africa

  Country

  Fishing opportunities

  Main EU beneficiaries

  Annual cost of agreement

  Angola

  Licences for five surface longliners and 19 freezer tuna seiners.

  Spain, France, Portugal

  13,000,000 ECU

  Opportunities for 6550 GRT1 per month of shrimp trawlers, 1900 GRT per month of demersal trawelers and 900 GRT per months of bottom set long liners with fixed gillnet.

  53

  EU Fisheries Agreements with countries on the west coast of Africa

  Country

  Fishing opportunities

  Main EU beneficiaries

  Annual cost of agreement

  Cape Verde

  Licences for 23 freezer tuna seiners, 17 tuna canners and surface longliners and three bottom long-liners. A quota of 4850 tonnes of tuna per annum is available.

  France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  500,000 ECU

  Equatorial Guinea

  Licences for 47 freezer tuna seiners, two pole and line tuna vessels and four surface longliners. A quota of 2750 tonnes of tuna per annum is available.

  France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  222,000 ECU

  Gambia

  Licences for 23 tuna freezer seiners and seven pole and line tuna vessels. Annual opportunities of 410 GRT for fresh fish trawlers, 2000 GRT for freezer trawlers fishing for shrimps and 750 GRT for freezer trawlers fishing for other species.

  France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  466,667 ECU

  Guinea Bissau

  Licences for 26 freezer tuna seiners. 16 pole and line tuna vessels and surface longliner vessels. Monthly quotas of 8800 tonnes of shrimps and 4000 tonnes of fin fish and cephalapods are available.

  France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  6,350,000 ECU

  Guinea Conakry

  Licences for 24 freezer tuna seiners, 10 pole and line tuna vessels and five surface longliners. Opportunities for 4200 GRT per month.

  France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  1,350,000 ECU

  Ivory Coast

  Licences for 46 tuna seiners and seven pole and line tuna vessels and surface longliners. A quota of 7500 tonnes of tuna per annum is available. Opportunities for 600 GRT per month of freezer trawlers fishing for demersal species.

  France, Italy, Portugal. Spain

  833,333 ECU

  54

  EU Fisheries Agreements with countries on the west coast of Africa

  Country

  Fishing opportunities

  Main EU beneficiaries

  Annual cost of agreement

  Mauritania

  Licences for 17 tuna canners and surface longliners, 40 freezer tuna seiners and 22 pelagic freezer trawlers. Monthly quotas of 5500 GRT of crustaceans, 8500 GRT of black hake, 9700 GRT of demersals, 300 GRT of crawfish and 7500 GRT of cephalapods.

  France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

  54,410,000 ECU

  Morocco

  Licences for 27 pole and line tuna vessels and five sponge catching vessels. Monthly opportunities for 30212 GRT cephalapods 11200 GRT shrimps, 11350 GRT longliners, 6100 GRT seiners, 1300 GRT pelagics, 1550 GRT artisanals and 3000 GRT black hake.

  Spain, Portugal

  125,000,000 ECU

  Senegal

  Licences for 11 tuna canners, 47 freezer tuna seiners and six surface longliners. Annual quotas of 1000 GRT ocean going and freezer trawlers and 5000 GRT shrimp freezer trawlers. Quotas for four month period of 2000 GRT for ocean going and freezer trawlers.

  France, Greece, Italy, Spain

  9,000,000 ECU

  SAO Tome E Principe

  Licences for 37 freezer tuna seiners, seven tuna canners and 25 surface longliners. A quota of 9,000 tonnes of tuna per annum is available.

  France, Spain, Portugal

  725,000 ECU

  1 Gross registered tonnes.

  Agricultural Land
  Mr. Tipping
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was(a) the number of agricultural holdings and (b) the hectarage of agricultural land in each county in England in (i) 1995 and (ii) 1996. [775]

  Mr. Boswell
  The information requested for 1995 is set out in the table. Equivalent information is not yet available for 1996.
  55

  Number of holdings1

  Area2 ha

  Avon

  2,032

  81,383

  Bedfordshire

  1,174

  89,285

  Berkshire

  842

  71,456

  Buckinghamshire

  1,853

  123,870

  Cambridgeshire

  3,283

  281,529

  Cheshire

  4,180

  166,038

  Cleveland

  429

  27,616

  Cornwall

  6,679

  276,045

  Cumbria

  6,270

  461,830

  Derbyshire

  3,837

  185,206

  Devon

  11,513

  521,705

  Dorset

  2,949

  196,627

  Durham

  2,169

  156,081

  Essex

  3,554

  263,693

  Gloucestershire

  3,389

  204,613

  Greater London

  431

  13,819

  Greater Manchester

  1,454

  40,215

  Hampshire

  2,981

  226,024

  Hereford and Worcester

  6,531

  307,935

  Hertfordshire

  1,313

  103,265

  Humberside

  3,391

  284,561

  Isle of Wight

  487

  25,859

  Kent

  4,078

  246,643

  Lancashire

  5,307

  215,116

  Leicestershire

  2,888

  194,120

  Lincolnshire

  5,530

  51 9,807

  Merseyside

  454

  19,458

  Norfolk

  4,949

  428,769

  Northamptonshire

  2,014

  184,214

  Northumberland

  2,335

  382,370

  Nottinghamshire

  1,987

  149,672

  Oxfordshire

  2,077

  203,110

  Shropshire

  4,728

  283,205

  Somerset

  5,794

  272,248

  Staffordshire

  4,640

  195,244

  Suffolk

  3,443

  304,483

  Surrey

  1,696

  65,345

  East Sussex

  2,227

  112,718

  West Sussex

  2,225

  123,331

  Tyne and Wear

  271

  13,485

  Warwickshire

  2,403

  153,476

  West Midlands

  459

  15,014

  Wiltshire

  3,062

  266,171

  North Yorkshire

  8,420

  628,643

  South Yorkshire

  1,395

  84,259

  West Yorkshire

  2,989

  97,122

  1Main holdings only (account for some 99 per cent. of agricultural land).

  2Exluding common rought grazing.

  Common Fisheries Policy
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment his Department has made of(a) the advantages and (b) disadvantages of the United Kingdom not re-negotiating the common fisheries policy when it next falls for renewal. [254]

  Mr. Baldry
  It is for the Council of Ministers to decide before 31 December 2002 on any necessary changes to the common fisheries policy. The only realistic course for the United Kingdom is to continue to play a full role in negotiating improvements to the CFP in the run-up to its renewal.

  Thirty-month Scheme
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will provide advance payment to those farmers wishing to send their 30-month-old cattle to slaughter but who are unable to do so due to insufficient capacity at slaughterhouses and renderers. [259]

  Mr. Baldry
  We have no plans to do so. The weekly slaughter rate has been more than doubled, to over 50,000 animals, through the injection of an additional £16.6 million for extra cold storage and changes in rendering practice. As from 4 November, priority will be given to animals over 30 months old awaiting slaughter which have been registered with the Intervention Board under the registration system announced on 21 October.

  Beef Overproduction
  Mr. Steen
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his Department's estimate of the current extent of overproduction of beef in the United Kingdom. [252]

  Mr. Baldry
  The table gives figures for UK beef and veal production as a percentage of new supplies.

  Thousands of tonnes

  Home-fed production1

  Total new supply2

  Home fed production as a percentage of total new supply

  1993

  881

  885

  100

  1994

  943

  851

  111

  1995

  996

  890

  112

  1996 Q1

  226

  198

  114

  Q2

  139

  177

  79

  1Home-fed production includes the meat equivalent of live exports but excludes all animals slaughtered under the over-30-month scheme and the calf processing aid scheme.

  2Home-fed production plus imports minus exports.

  Branch D, Statistics (Commodities and Food) Division, Economics and Statistics Group.

  Sea Defences
  Mr. Corbyn
  To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of(a) changes in sea levels around the coast of the United Kingdom over the next (i) five, (ii) 10 and (iii) 15 years, (b) the likely levels of flooding that could result and (c) the costs of improving sea defences to prevent that flooding. [153]

  Mr. Boswell
  The Ministry's current guidance to operating authorities recommends them to make allowances for sea level rise and predicted vertical land movements of between 4 mm and 6 mm a year when assessing the need for coastal defence measures.

  Virtually all land and property which would be at risk from sea level rise is dependent on existing defences for protection. Operating authorities are expected to consider potential increases in the risk of flooding at individual locations and all recent flood defence works take account of the predicted rise.

  The total cost of allowing for sea level change is not available.

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