asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will seek to pay an official visit to the Seychelles.

My right hon. Friend has no plans for a visit.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made with regard to the release from restriction of Mr. Garfield Todd, former Prime Minister of Rhodesia.

We are urging all concerned to carry out the terms of the agreements reached in Lusaka last month which provide for the release of all detainees and restrictees. That would, of course, include Mr. Todd, whose continued restriction I deplore.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a further statement on Rhodesia.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in securing a constitutional settlement in Rhodesia; and if he will make a statement.

I have nothing to add to the reply I have given to the hon. Member for Cleveland and Whitby (Mr. Brittan) and the hon. Member for Cambridge (Mr. Lane).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will review the standards of recruitment required for police and other personnel called upon to serve in Hong Kong; and if he will make a statement.

We are paying close attention to this question. A United Kingdom official has been appointed as the Secretary of State's personal representative on the Police Selection Board.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals he is considering for strengthening the safeguards on the transfer of fissionable materials embodied in the non-proliferation treaty.

The International Atomic Energy Agency applies to parties to the non-proliferation treaty a system of safeguards designed to meet the treaty's requirements. The best way to strengthen this system would be for all States who have not yet done so to accede to the non-proliferation treaty.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will now make a statement on the future of Anguilla.

The review of Anguilla's constitutional status was initiated when I visited Anguilla and St. Kitts last September. In the course of pursuing this review Her Majesty's Government have now invited Mr. Bradshaw, the Premier of the Associated State, to visit London from 10th to 13th February for further discussions.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he is satisfied with the level of co-operation between Her Majesty's Government and the United States Administration in matters of common policy towards the Gulf States in the Middle East; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Secetary of State are visiting Washington at present for discussions, thus continuing the close co-operation which we maintain with the United States Administration over the whole range of world affairs, including those of the Middle East.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will pay an official visit to the Middle East.

My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received about the future of the Banaban people and their ancestral home Ocean Island; and if he will make a statement.

The Rabi Council of Leaders, in a petition dated 11th March 1974, asked for independence for Ocean Island. I refer my hon. Friend to what my right hon. Friend the Minister of State said in the House on 23rd January.—[Vol. 884, c. 2103–8.]

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will give an assurance that his commitment to maintaining the Polaris force in no way undermines the obligation of Her Majesty's Government under Article VI of the nonproliferation agreement to negotiate any effective measures of nuclear disarmament.

Maintenance of the Polaris force in no way conflicts with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the provisions of which we shall continue to observe.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will propose at the resumed Conference on the Law of the Sea in Geneva that, in return for recognition of an economic zone of 200 miles, coastal States should accept a system of revenue-sharing within such a zone.

At Caracas I indicated the Government's willingness to consider the concept of an economic zone of up to 200 miles. However, we could not accept that the revenue derived from the exploitation of resources lying within such a zone should be shared with the international authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about Her Majesty's Government's policy towards Chinese citizens seeking refuge in Hong Kong.

I have nothing to add to the answer which I gave to the hon. Member for Epping Forest (Mr. Biggs-Davison) on 21st January.—[Vol. 884, c. 314.]

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has for meeting senior members of the USSR Government.

The hon. Member will have seen the announcement that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend are to make an official visit to the Soviet Union from 13th to 17 February.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will seek, on the occasion of his visit to Moscow, to promote British exports to the Soviet Union by arranging for better direct access to customers, and easier movement of customers' representatives to this country.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are his main objectives, and what are the main issues, he will be reviewing with the Soviet leaders on the occasion of his visit to the USSR.

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and I intend to re-establish the practice of high-level contacts between the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union. We shall seek to impress upon the Soviet leaders the seriousness of Her Majesty's Government's desire to build a safer and more productive relationship beneficial to both countries; to have a full exchange of views on important international and bilateral questions; and to give a new impulse to British exports to the Soviet Union and to the development of Anglo-Soviet trade as a whole.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans Her Majesty's Government have for developing democratic forms of government in the Crown colony of Hong Kong.

The special circumstances of Hong Kong make very difficult any constitutional progress on the path normally followed by dependent territories. The situation is well understood locally.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has on the progress made in the talks currently taking place between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.

Mr. Clerides and Mr. Denktash, representing the two communities, have made considerable progress in their discussion of humanitarian issues. They have recently started discussing political issues also. This is an encouraging development, which Her Majesty's Government fully support.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, having regard to the undertaking and assistance given to the Turks to remove their citizens from Cyprus, what assurances he has obtained from the Turkish Government to co-operate in the return of Greek Cypriots to their homes; what steps will be taken to safeguard Greek Cypriot interests; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has represented to the Turkish Government that, although our decision on the Turkish Cypriots was taken on humanitarian grounds and not as part of a bargain, a magnanimous gesture on their part towards the Greek Cypriots would now be appropriate.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government to exercise their right as a treaty guarantor (Cyprus) to intervene in the current Clerides-Denktash talks with a view to implementing United Nations' resolutions; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Clerides and Mr. Denktash are meeting regularly. They have made considerable progress on humanitarian issues, and they have now begun to discuss the political aspects of a settlement. This is helpful. It is for the Cypriots to decide their own future, and we do not think that intervention at this stage would be helpful.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British subjects domiciled in the United Kingdom are at present serving custodial sentences imposed by Spanish courts; in how many cases appeals are pending; what is the estimated average length of time required to the determination of such appeals; and if he will make a statement.

According to our records, 42 British subjects, citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies, are serving sentences imposed by Spanish courts. Three have lodged appeals. The Spanish Ministry of Justice says that appeals are normally determined three to six months after they are lodged.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about the progress of constitutional developments in the New Hebrides.

Work is proceeding in the New Hebrides on draft legislation to establish a Representative Assembly, and local government bodies. Work on elections is also in hand. It is hoped that the first local government bodies will be elected in May, and the Representative Assembly before the end of 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further contacts he has had with the French Government about the future of the New Hebrides.

I visited the New Hebrides from 19th to 22nd January, at the same time as the French State Secretary for the Overseas Departments and Territories. This visit gave us a welcome opportunity jointly to review progress so far made in putting into effect the measures we had agreed in London last November.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether, pending pursuit of claims for compensation against the appropriate authorities for damage suffered by British residents in Cyprus, he has any proposals for interim assistance by way of loan or otherwise to those British residents who suffered damage to their homes or property.

No. It is long-established policy that in peace time Her Majesty's Government do not compensate their nationals in respect of losses or injuries sustained in territories outside their jurisdiction. To breach this principle, even on an interim basis, might well encourage overseas Governments to evade their responsibilities in the hope that Her Majesty's Government would pay compensation.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will consider further increasing the number of entry certificate officers employed on the Indian subcontinent.

We have now almost completed the strengthening of our immigration staffs in the subcontinent to which I referred in my reply of 19th December to the hon. Member for Harrow, Central (Mr. Grant).—[Vol. 883, c. 574–5]. It will not be possible to assess the value of such increases until the larger staffs have been operating for a longer period of time.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with other Ministers in the EEC about the Government's plans to consult the public on the results of the Government's negotiations about the terms of entry.

My right hon. Friend has consistently made clear the Government's commitment to submit the question of membership to the British people.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with other EEC Ministers regarding the Government's plans for consulting the British people through the ballot box on the question of EEC membership.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave earlier this afternoon to the hon. Member for Black-pool, South (Mr. Blaker).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a statement on the progress of consideration of the method by which the Government propose to ask the British people to decide whether Great Britain should retain its membership of the European Economic Community.ment's desire to build a safer and more

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister did so on 23rd January.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects the first direct elections for the European Parliament to be held in the United Kingdom.

I have nothing to add to my earlier reply to the Question from the hon. Member for Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles (Mr. Steel).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress he has achieved in the course of the EEC renegotiations in securing the agreement of other EEC members to the statement in the Government's White Paper that the taxes that form the so-called own resources of the Communities are not acceptable to the United Kingdom.

Heads of Government agreed in Paris that a correcting mechanism should be established to prevent unacceptable situations arising from the "own resources" system. That opens the way to what we are seeking in renegotiation, although there will no doubt be further hard negotiations on details of the mechanism.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions Ministers of Her Majesty's Government have attended the Council of Ministers since 10th October 1974; and what is the estimated number of similar occasions for the whole of 1975.

Since 10th October British Ministers have attended meetings of the Council on 21 occasions. There will be about 50 Council meetings in 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government have agreed to EEC plans for the mutual recognition of doctors' and dentists' qualifications; and, if so, when this assent was given.

Not yet.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in renegotiations towards the objective of retaining parliamentary power over regional, industrial and fiscal policies.

Discussions are taking place on important questions relating to regional and industrial policy. No problems have arisen over fiscal policy.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a further statement on the progress of the negotiations with the EEC.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave earlier this afternoon to the hon. Member for Mid-Oxon (Mr. Hurd).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he now expects negotiations with the EEC to be concluded.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Fife, Central (Mr. Hamilton) on 14th January.—[Vol. 884, c. 184.]

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further meetings he has planned in the next month for renegotiating the terms of United Kingdom membership of the EEC; and if he will now state which problems are now outstanding and unresolved.

My right hon. Friend plans to attend the Council of Ministers meeting early in February.On the second part of the Question I would refer my hon. Friend to my reply earlier today to the Question from the hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Dykes).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the latest position in the EEC negotiations.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about the progress of the Common Market renegotiations.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the latest position in his renegotiations for continued membership of the EEC.

I would refer the hon. Members and my hon. Friend to the reply I gave this afternoon to the hon. Member for Mid-Oxon (Mr. Hurd).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which are the principal subjects still to be dealt with in the renegotiation of the terms of British membership of the EEC.

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier this afternoon in reply to a question from the hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Dykes).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects to present to the House a detailed statement regarding the advantages and the disadvantages which accrue to Great Britain from membership of the European Economic Community.

My right hon. Friend expects to comment on these questions when he reports to the House on the results of renegotiation.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in the Council of Ministers to implement the decision on the EEC Regional Fund taken by Heads of Government at the Paris summit.

A useful discussion of procedural questions relating to the fund took place at the Council meeting on 20th January. Further discussions will be held at official level before decisions on the operation of the fund can be taken by the Council.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the proposed EEC Regional Fund is to be controlled by the Council of Ministers or the Commission.

Decisions about the operation of the Regional Fund have yet to be taken by the Council of Ministers.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total number of regulations, decisions and directives adopted by the EEC Council of Ministers and Commission respectively in 1974.

The respective totals were 505 and 3,431.The vast majority of the Commission instruments are concerned with the day-to-day administration of the common agricultural policy. They cover such matters as minor daily adjustments in the import or export levies on agricultural products, and their average effective life is about nine days.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made proposals within the EEC Council of Ministers to ensure the continued capacity of the British Government to pursue satisfactory regional policies; and what response he has received.

My right hon. Friend has made it clear, in the Council of Ministers and elsewhere, that the Government must be free to carry out regional policies appropriate to the circumstances of this country. Discussions on this matter continue.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the so-called Luxembourg compromise which specified the right of veto within the EEC Council of Ministers has been changed by recent decisions of the Community Heads of Government.

No. The communiqué makes it plain that member States are free to maintain their positions regarding the Luxembourg compromise, but there is a general understanding that they will no longer insist on attaining unanimity on every single question regardless of its importance.

asked the hon. Member for Kingswood, as representing the Church Commissioners, what steps are taken by the Church Commissioners to avoid involvement in property companies whose activities are open to criticism in relation to the welfare of tenants.

The commissioners take ethical and social as well as financial considerations into account before making investments. Should questions of an ethical or social nature subsequently arise in relation to an investment they would follow their normal practice of making representations direct to the company management concerned. If the commissioners were to be satisfied that a company was nevertheless continuing to pursue undesirable policies they would consider disposing of their holding. If the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Cunningham) has any particular instance in mind perhaps he would let me know.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made towards confirming contracts for the supply of sugar from the EEC producers.

Firm contracts have already been made with EEC producers for the import of substantial quantities of sugar into the United Kingdom during the current crop year, and further purchases can be expected. I am aware of no major difficulties in the conclusion of fulfilment of these contracts. If the hon. Member has evidence of any such difficulties, perhaps he could let me know.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made since Christmas with negotiations in Brussels to ensure future sugar supplies to Great Britain.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend gave to the hon. Member for Newbury (Mr. McNair-Wilson) and others on 23rd January 1975.—[Vol. 884, c. 1721.]

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he proposes to discuss EEC fisheries policy with the EEC.

Officials of the Fisheries Departments are in regular touch with our EEC partners on all aspects of the common fisheries policy through the consultative machinery of the Community.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make representations at the Council of Ministers to the Italian Minister of Agriculture on the Italian policy of forbidding the sale of beef in shops on several days each month notwithstanding the existence of a Common Market beef mountain.

The Italian Government are operating no such policy.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what discussions he has had with representatives of West Indian Governments on future arrangements for the importation of bananas into Great Britain in the light of the changes brought about as the result of British membership of the European Economic Community.

Discussions took place in the course of last year both at official and ministerial level. Further talks have been held in Brussels recently in the context of the negotiations for the new Convention of Association between the EEC and the ACP countries, which is likely to contain provisions relating to bananas.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the policy he intends to pursue on the importation of bananas from the West Indies in the light of the changes brought about as the result of British membership of the EEC.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to the hon. Member for Chislehurst (Mr. Sims) on 21st January.—[Vol. 884, c. 307.]

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish in the Official Report the price increases on all foods subject to EEC agreements and common agricultural policy policies since the Treaty of Accession.

The following table shows the first-hand prices at January 1973 and January 1975 of the main foods subject to EEC agreements and CAP policies for which information is readily available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how often agricultural censuses are taken; and if he is satisfied that the fullest use is made of the material contained in the returns.

A comprehensive agricultural census is taken each June in respect of all holdings in England and Wales except very small holdings classified as statistically insignificant. Sample inquiries are held regularly each quarter, and further specialist surveys are conducted as necessary.I am satisfied that good use is made of the data collected. They are extensively analysed and most of the analyses are published. The data are an important element in the annual review of the agricultural industry.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he had been informed by 16th January, when the O'Brien. Report was debated, that the EEC Commissioners were to sell 85,000 tons of subsidised beef to the USSR that day as part of a sale of the Community's stockpile of unsold beef to reduce it from 360,000 to 230,000 tons.

The facts are not as the hon. Member has stated them. No beef has been sold to the USSR by the EEC Commission. The Commission estimate that, out of a total of 130,000 tons of intervention beef sold to traders within the Community in the course of 1974, some 85,000 tons were subsequently exported to the Soviet Union. It has been known for some months that private sales to the Soviet Union were taking place. The Commission's estimate for the whole year was announced on 16th January, and I was not aware of it at the time of the debate on the O'Brien Report that day.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will take steps to ban the import of pâté de foie gras in view of the suffering caused to geese in the process of artificially enlarging their liver.

I do not consider this to be justified. I have received veterinary advice to the effect that the enlargement of the liver of geese fed for pâté de foie gras production does not involve any pathological change in the liver or cause suffering.

asked the Minister of Overseas Development if she will make a statement about the progress of the work on the new hospital at Vila in the New Hebrides.

Progressive occupation of the premises has already begun; the final handover by the contractors is expected on 28th February and it is planned to move in the patients from the old British base hospital the following day. The hospital should become fully operational some time in May.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy when he next expects to discuss energy policy with EEC Ministers.

At the next EEC Council of Energy Ministers on 13th February.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what training facilities are being initiated by the Offshore Supplies Office to provide skilled jobs for Scots from the development of Scottish oil resources.

The Offshore Supplies Office does not itself initiate such facilities. It does, however, actively support the initiative taken by the Training Services Agency for the setting up of the Drilling Technology Centre in Livingston and that by the Manpower Services Commission to set up an underwater training centre, in the Fort William area on Loch Linnhe, to meet the long-term training needs of divers engaged in the offshore oil and gas development programme. Both schemes will provide opportunities for Scots in the development of the oil and gas resources. My Department has also agreed to provide £300,000 to help Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, to set up a petroleum engineering centre. The centre will provide postgraduate and post-industrial experience courses in petroleum engineering.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy which recommendations of the IMEG report are being implemented by the Offshore Supplies Office; and which are not.

I will send the hon. Member a copy of the memorandum submitted last year by my Department to the Select Committee on Science and Technology during the course of its inquiry into sea-bed engineering. This memorandum, together with other memoranda submitted as evidence to the Select Committee, will be published in due course as HC 266.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what efforts have been made by his Department to identify spare production capacity in the North-East of England suitable for supplying equipment now required by operations in the North Sea.

An Offshore Supplies Unit has been established in the Northern Regional Office of the Department of Industry. This unit works closely with my Department's Offshore Supplies Office and has the part-time services of an oil managing consultant. It keeps in close and regular contact with northern industry, particularly the larger firms involved in supplying equipment and services to the off-shore markets. In this task the unit is able to draw on the resources of the Offshore Supplies Office, which identifies the requirements of the offshore operators, and as far as practicable matches these with the production facilities available.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy, what studies have been commissioned by his Department at the Offshore Supplies Office into the industrial benefits and application which can be gained by the Scottish engineering industry from the development of Scotland's offshore oil resources.

None. The relocation of the headquarters of the Offshore Supplies Office (OSO) in Glasgow has, however, improved the service which the OSO is able to provide for the Scottish engineering industry.A major study of the impact of oil-related work on the Scottish economy including the engineering industry is being carried out by the Department of Industry's office for Scotland. The study has been commissioned by the Oil Task Force on which are represented the OSO, the Scottish Office and the Department of Industry. An article on the study will appear in the next issue of the Scottish Economic Bulletin, Additionally, the OSO is represented on the steering committee that controls studies into the onshore impact of North Sea oil which have been commissioned by the Scottish Economic Planning Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy how many Scottish companies have established a presence in offshore oil markets worldwide as a direct result of initiatives of the Offshore Supplies Office since its inception.

The Offshore Supplies Office provides help, advice and encouragement to forward-looking British firms which wish, either on their own or in partnership with others, to establish themselves in the offshore petroleum market. Provided they are ready to work hard at it, there is no reason why a considerable number of British firms, including Scottish ones, should not be successful either in entering this market or in expanding British capabilities that already exist in it. The part played in this process by the Offshore Supplies Office is not precisely quantifiable, but I believe that it is important and worth while.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what co-ordination policies are being considered by EEC Governments in order to avoid economic recession.

At the Heads of Government Conference in December member States agreed that the aim of their economic policies should be to combat inflation and maintain employment. In the financial field the EEC countries were completely united during the recent Washington meetings on the need to set up additional international measures of recycling and financial support to mitigate the risks of serious recession, in addition to the agreement at the end of last year on the establishment of a joint EEC borrowing scheme.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer which tax districts have their PAYE affairs dealt with by offices outside their own area; and what is the location of the offices concerned.

The information is given in the following table: