asked the Secretary of State for Transport, in view of the need to decrease accidents, if he will study the 12-month experiment of edge lining on rural unlit roads by the East Sussex County Council and the remarkable decrease in accidents; and if he will make a statement.

Interim data from the trial in East Sussex has been studied and results are encouraging. I have agreed to look at the two-year results when they become available, and these, taken together with reports from highway authorities, will be studied to see whether there is any need to revise present design policies under which a good deal of edge lining has already been carried out.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what are the present maximum permitted noise levels for new lorries of up to 12 tonnes; what proposals the Government has put forward for reducing these levels; and if he will make a statement;(2) what progress is being made in negotiations with the EEC for a phased reduction in the maximum permitted noise levels of new lorries; from when he expects the new maxima to take effect; and if he will make a statement.

The maximum permitted noise level for new lorries of between 3·5 and 12 tonnes gross vehicle weight is 89 decibels on the "A" weighted scale when measured in accordance with the method described in British Standard BS3425: 1966 or EEC Council Directive 70/157/EEC.Negotiations within the EEC for an amending directive are well advanced. We have sought reductions in the noise limits for all classes of vehicle. Some modest improvements are expected to come into force by 1980, and we have pressed for a longer-term commitment to seek further reductions.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what research has been conducted into the production of quieter heavy goods vehicles; and if he will make a statement on progress so far.

The research phase of the Government-sponsored quiet heavy goods vehicle project was completed at the end of last year. A noise level of 82dB(A) was achieved for the tractive unit of a 32–38 ton articulated vehicle. This vehicle has now been returned to the manufacturers, who are assessing the cost of mass-producing it. It appears from the results of the research that a noise level of 80dB(A)—about the level of present motor cars—is technically feasible, but the cost is still to be determined.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what advice he has given metropolitan counties about snow clearance and other measures to keep roads open in snowy and icy conditions, in both urban and rural districts and to ensure adequate action following advance warning from local weather stations.

Comprehensive advice has been given to all highway authorities on the winter maintenance of roads generally. Responsibility rests with individual highway authorities for taking adequate precautionary measures following advance warnings from local weather stations.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what were the findings in the report of the Transport Road Research Laboratory's survey in 1975 to ascertain the causes of unreliability in bus services; and if, and when, any advice was given to the Greater London Council following the survey.

Analysis of material collected in this survey of experience in four localities outside London, though now well-advanced, has been delayed by staff difficulties, and it would be premature to give advice on this incomplete basis. Results so far indicate that there are several factors at work. These include vehicle, spare-part and staff shortages, industrial relations problems, maintenance difficulties, and traffic congestion. There is, however, considerable local variation in their relative importance.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what has been the approximate total cost to public funds of the current inquiry in Winchester concerning the M3 motorway, including the costs incurred by local authorities.

I regret that I am unable to say what costs have been incurred by local authorities in connection with this inquiry, and that the detailed information required to estimate the costs incurred by the Crown is not readily available. It would require a disproportionate amount of work to obtain.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will seek to ensure that the administrative arrangements of the International Road Freight Office are conducted fairly and urgently in order to assist British exporters.

I am writing to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will provide a list of all major road schemes with estimated starting dates at present in the preparation pool.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 1st February 1977; Vol. 924, c. 106–18], circulated the following amendments and additions:

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food if he will make representations to the European Commission concerning the shortfall of 20,000 tons of cane sugar imports from ACP countries and request reallocations and inclusion of these quotas in subsequent years.

The basis on which the Commission decisions to reduce the agreed quantities for 1976–77 were taken is still under discussion between the Community and the ACP countries. We have, however, already made known to the Commission our view that any reductions in the agreed quantities should be reallocated.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure that all once-grown seed is submitted to the Agriculture Development Advisory Service for testing.

This question is presumably related to the service offered by ADAS plant pathologists whereby seed potato samples can be submitted by farmers and growers for testing for the existence of virus.This voluntary scheme is given wide publicity to encourage its use, for example through ADAS divisional bulletins, the Telephone Information Service, and general Press articles.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the cost to the United Kingdom of storage of EEC intervention stocks for each of the last three years for each of the commodities involved.

The United Kingdom contributes to the Communities' budget as a whole and not to its individual parts. The United Kingdom contribution was 8·78 per cent. in 1973, 11·04 per cent. in 1974 and 13·57 per cent. in 1975.The cost to the Communities' budget of storage of EEC intervention stocks held in public intervention stores and in EAGGF-aided private storage in the last three years for which figures are available are set out below:

	1973 £ million	1974 £ million	1975 £ million
Cereals	29·9	13·4	23·4
Milk and milk products.	47·2	38·9	81·7
Sugar	28·2	32·0	38·3
Beef and veal	5·6	102·8	182·6
Pigmeat	—	2·8	6·0
Wine	2·8	10·8	15·2
Tobacco	1·0	6·9	6·8
Total	114·7	207·6	354·0

All the figures are converted from unit of accounts at the rate of £1 = 2·4 ua.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects there will be an adequate supply of trained poultry meat inspectors to enable the proper implementation of the Poultry Meat (Hygiene) Regulations; and whether it is his intention to seek Government assistance towards the cost of their training.

Discussions are continuing with interested organisations to secure a planned and phased introduction of poultrymeat inspection over the period to 15th August 1979 permitted by the regulations. A sufficient number of trained poultrymeat inspectors should become available by the end of this period.As I told the House on 2nd November 1976—[Vol. 918, c. 1361]—the Training Services Agency will allocate financial resources to assist local authorities with the cost of training poultrymeat inspectors recruited between September 1976 and 31st March 1978.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list in the Official Report those religious communities in the United Kingdom which slaughter animals in a manner peculiar to their religious belief; what methods they each use; and what supervision or control is exercised by his Department to prevent unnecessary cruelty in each case.

The slaughter of animals by religious methods is subject to all the legislation requiring humane treatment of animals in slaughterhouses, with the sole exception of the provision for stunning prior to slaughter. Exemption from this provision is allowed only for animals slaughtered by a Jew or a Mohammedan for the food of Jews or Mohammedans, respectively.All slaughtermen must be licensed by the local authority, which must be satisfied that the licensee is a fit and proper person to hold a licence. It is an offence to inflict unnecessary suffering on animals slaughtered by Jewish or Mohammedan or any other methods. The responsibility for enforcement of this legislation lies with the local authorities.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what financial aid he proposes to give to the British Agricultural Export Council during the coming year; and if he will make a statement.

I hope to bring to an early conclusion my talks with the industries concerned on the future financing of the BAEC.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service (1) what was the total amount spent by the Government in 1975–76 on advertising in Welsh and English, respectively;(2) how much was spent by the Government in 1976 on advertising.

During 1975–76 advertising in Welsh and English language newspapers and magazines published in Wales amounted to £19,850 and £84,700 respectively. Figures for printing in the Welsh language are not centrally available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The total amount spent by the Government on advertising in 1975–76 was £17,528,900. Of this, some £20,200 was spent on advertising in the Welsh language; the remainder in the English language.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service how much was spent by the Government in 1975–76 in England, Scotland and Wales, respectively, on printing and publishing.

Expenditure by Her Majesty's Stationery Office in 1975–76 on Government printing in England, Scotland and Wales was as follows:

				£000
England	…	…	…	52,383
Scotland	…	…	…	2,427
Wales	…	…	…	480

These figures include the cost of printing Government publications.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what was the total Government expenditure in 1975–76 on publishing in Welsh and English, respectively.

Government expenditure in 1975–76 on HMSO sale publications, excluding Parliamentary Debates and The London Gazette, was about £11,000 on publications in Welsh and £9·4 million on publications in English.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service how many people are expected to use the facilities provided in the new Government Press offices in Little St. James Street, London, S.W.I.

I have been asked to reply.No precise estimate can be given. During the next six months the premises will be used extensively during the ministerial meetings at Lancaster House in connection with EEC, Commonwealth and NATO meetings. For major meetings up to 600 people might use the facilities. In the longer term the premises will be used for any similar occasions and for conference uses and will be very much in demand.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will list the Government Departments and the number of civil servants in each Department with offices within the parliamentary constituency of Bury St. Edmunds.

Records are not maintained of numbers of Civil Service staff in parliamentary constituency areas. Information about staff in each Department in the Districts of Forest Heath and St. Edmundsbury is as follows:

Department	Number of staff
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food	120
Court Service Department	13
Ministry of Defence	369
Department of Employment	50
Employment Service Agency	19
Department of the Environment	207
Department of Health and Social Security	149
Home Office	68
Inland Revenue	145
Ordnance Survey	4
Departments of Trade and Industry	1
Total	1,145

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what instructions and advice are issued by the Medical Research Council on the use of live animals in experiments.

The Council's Establishment Code urges that their staff should (i) observe scrupulously the requirements of the Cruelty to Animals Act (1876); (ii) give full weight to the consideration that anyone who makes use of animals in research incurs a moral responsibility to justify his action and a duty to limit pain and give proper care; (iii) use, wherever possible, procedures which do not involve animals or, where this is not possible, use the minimum number of animals that will give valid results in any experiment; (iv) publish in the scientific literature information about any alternatives which they may develop.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children attend nursery schools and nursery classes and what proportion this is of the total number of children aged under 5 years; and what comparative figures there are for five years ago, 10 years ago, and 20 years ago.

In England in January 1976 there were 158,234 full-time and part-time pupils attending maintained nursery schools or nursery classes in maintained primary schools; this figure represents 5 per cent. of the total under-5 population. Figures for 1971, the earliest year for which comparable data are available, were 90,146 and 2·4 per cent. respectively. Corresponding

	Title of Research	Tenure of Grant	Total Value of Grant
			£
(a) Southampton University (Institute of Sound and Vibration Research).	Research in Audiology	1st March 1971–31st July 1977	312,000
	Improved Methods of Testing Hearing Protectors.	9th February 1976–8th February 1979	31,875
(b) Nottingham University (Department of Psychology).	Intellectual Development of the Deaf	1st September 1976–31st August 1981	156,105
	The Development of Communication Skills in Deaf Children from 12 to36 months.	1st October 1976–30th September 1979	30,391

A programme grant for research on mobility of blind people (tenure 1st June 1972–31st May 1980) includes studies, at an estimated annual cost of £2,300, on hearing aids for persons who are both blind and deaf or hard of hearing.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his best estimate of the invisible earnings produced by the clearing banks in the United Kingdom.

The last year for which complete figures are available is 1975, when net invisible earnings of the London clearing banks are estimated to have been about £150 million. This estimate, however, is no more than an order of magnitude.Figures of the overseas earnings of United Kingdom financial institutions are

figures for maintained nursery schools only for the years 1956, 1966, 1971 and 1976 were as follows:

		Number of full-time and part-time pupils	Number as a percentage at population aged under five
1956	…	21,361	0·7
1966	…	26,194	0·7
1971	…	33,421	0·9
1976	…	45,671	1·4

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will publish in the Official Report the Medical Research Council grants for the last five years for research projects concerned with aspects of deafness which have been awarded to (a) Southampton University, including the Institute for Sound and Vibration Research, and (b) Nottingham University; and if she will list the title of the research projects, the duration and the cost.

The information is as follows:published in Annex 4 of the United Kingdom Balance of Payments 1965–75 (the "Pink Book"), a copy of which is in the Library.The preparation of this estimate in respect of the clearing banks has brought to light an error in the figures published in Annex 4, where the debit of £430 million in 1975 in respect of interest paid on borrowing in sterling by United Kingdom banking institutions is overstated by £99 million. The correct figure should be £331 million. As a result, the net earnings of the United Kingdom banking institutions in that year should be £234 million and the total earnings of the City should be £1,077 million. This table is an explanatory one only and the underlying figures published in the main balance of payments accounts are not affected.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what loss of revenue would result, and what compensatory increase in the standard rate of VAT would be necessary, if the bands of taxable income were altered to make tax payable at the following rates: £–0£1,000 at 15 per cent., £1,000–£2,000 at 20 per cent.,£2,000–£3,000 at 25 per cent., £3,000–£4,000 at 30 per cent., £4,000–£5,000 at 35 per cent., £5,000–£6,000 at 40 per cent., £6,000–£7,000 at 45 per cent. and over £7,000 at 50 per cent.

The loss of revenue that would result from the proposed changes in income tax is estimated at about £7,000 million at 1976–77 levels of income and allowances. In order to raise an additional £7,000 million, the standard rate of VAT would need to be increased to 31 per cent., but an increase of this size would cause such substantial changes in the economy that any estimate

[£ per week
				At current prices			At 1976 prices
				1938	1946	1976	1938	1946
(a) One-child family
50 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	—	—	2·02	—	—
100 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	—	0·27	2·02	—	1·42
150 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	0·06	0·43	2·02	0·51	2·31
200 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	0·10	0·43	2·49	0·87	2·31

				At current prices			At 1976 prices
				1938	1946	1976	1938	1946
(b)Two-child family
50 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	—	0·17	4·66	—	0·90
100 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	—	0·56	4·66	—	2·97
150 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	0·06	0·97	4·66	0·51	5·17
200 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	0·17	0·97	5·29	1·55	5·17
300 per cent. of average earnings	…	…	…	0·62	0·97	6·92	5·58	5·17

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the latest estimated current yield of income tax for the fiscal year 1976–77 and at unchanged rates for 1977–78.

The estimated yield of income tax in 1976–77 is £17,045 million, as given in the 1976–77 Financial Statement and Budget Report. The forecast

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost to the Exchequer, in the current financial year, if tax rates were reduced by 2½ per cent. for each child supported by the individual taxpayers.

To reduce income tax liability by 2½ per cent. for each dependent child would cost about £900 million for 1976–77.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will compare the total net weekly value of family allowance/child benefit and child tax allowances, after tax and clawback where applicable, and at current and constant prices, for a one-child and a two-child family in 1939, 1946, 1976 and estimates for 1977, assuming total earnings to be 50 per cent. 100 per cent., 150 per cent. 200 per cent. and 300 per cent. of average male manual earnings in each case.

No published estimate of average earnings for 1977 is yet available. Assuming that the children are not over 11 years of age, the remaining figures are as follows:cast for 1977–78 will be published in the next Financial Statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the GNP each year from 1960 in the United Kingdom expressed in 1972 prices.

The following table shows the movements in gross domestic product at constant factor cost, and national disposable income at constant market prices. The former measures changes in real output and the latter changes in real income after taking account of changes in the terms of trade. Both have been derived from estimates calculated at the relative prices of 1958 for the years 1960 to 1963, those of 1963 for the years 1963 to 1970 and those of 1970 for 1970 onwards. Estimates calculated in detail at the relative prices of 1972 are not available. Estimates of gross domestic product at constant factor cost are also given, however, scaled to a 1972 price level.

		Gross domestic product at constant factor cost		Real national disposable in come at constant factor cost
		Expressed in terms af 1972 price level	Index (1972=100)	Index (1972=100)
1960	…	40,039	72·6	71·6
1961	…	41,078	74·5	73·7
1962	…	41,573	75·4	75·0
1963	…	43,146	78·2	77·9
1964	…	45,700	82·9	81·5
1965	…	46,962	85·1	83·9
1966	…	47,816	86·7	85·3
1967	…	48,850	88·6	87·2
1968	…	50,786	92·1	90·0
1969	…	51,833	94·0	92·2
1970	…	52,856	95·8	94·9
1971	…	53,752	97·5	96·7
1972	…	55,158	100·0	100·0
1973	…	58,295	105·7	104·6
1974	…	58,252	105·6	99·8
1975	…	57,008	103·4	99·4

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the current annual value to the Exchequer from whisky duty.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave him on 29th November 1976.—[Vol. 921, c. 45.]

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the annual loss to the Exchequer if duty on whisky were paid when the whisky was sold and not, as at present, when whisky comes out of bond.

The loss to the Exchequer in the first year of the change would be around £150 million if the duty on all spirits were paid at the time of retail sale and not as now, on delivery from bonded warehouse. EEC obligations would rule out differential treatment of whisky and other spirits in respect of time of duty payment.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has made any estimate of the relationship between the fall in the £ sterling and inflation in the United Kingdom.

Estimates of this kind are necessarily rather uncertain. But, as a rough rule of thumb, a 1 per cent. trade-weighted depreciation might add between ¼ per cent. and ⅓ per cent. to retail prices after about a year, with much of the effect coming through after six months.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what will be the effect of the proposed phasing-out of child tax allowances on the weekly rates of tax refunds payable to families in receipt of short term social security benefits.

The effect of reducing child tax allowances by £300 will be to reduce the weekly value of tax refunds by £2·02.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what notification of impending tax changes in 1978–79 and thereafter has been sent to United Kingdom taxpayers currently in receipt of child tax allowances whose children live overseas; when it was sent; and if he will publish the details in the Official Report.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report details of value added tax revenues from theatres, showing the sum as a percentage of total revenues for the past two years.

I shall let my hon. Friend have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the current annual value to the Exchequer of petrol duty.

The estimate for all road fuel in 1976–77 is £1,915 million; separate estimates for petrol and derv are not made.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report, on the same date as the publication of the public expenditure

£ million at 1976 survey prices
Programme			Goods and Services	Transfers	Total
1. Defence	…	…	5,374	23	5,397
2. Oversea said and other overseas services	…	…	252	1,128	1,380
3. Agriculture, fisheries, food and forestry	…	…	220	296	516
4. Trade, industry and employment	…	…	666	1,803	2,469
5. Government lending to nationalized industries	…	…	—	900	900
6. Roads and transport	…	…	1,582	622	2,204
7. Housing	…	…	1,736	2,539	4,275
8. Other environmental services	…	…	2,117	82	2,199
9. Law, order and protective services	…	…	1,779	27	1,806
10. Education and libraries, science and arts	…	…	5,700	1,481	7,181
11. Health and personal social services	…	…	6,555	32	6,587
12 Social security	…	…	540	11,370	11,910
13. Other public services	…	…	778	27	805
14. Common services	…	…	798	—	798
15. Northern Ireland	…	…	865	638	1,503
Total	…	…	28,962	20,968	49,930

As stated in volume 1 of Cmnd. 6721 the figures for 1979·80 and 1980–81 to be published in the second volume of the White Paper are even more provisional than usual. To publish these in the form requested would serve no meaningful purpose.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total amount of income tax paid in 1975–76 by those people whose earnings are below their supplementary benefit entitlement.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 27th January 1977; Vol. 924, c. 758], gave the following answer:I regret that information is not available about the total amount of income tax payable by persons whose weekly earnings are consistently below their supplementary benefit entitlement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the total revenue obtained from the development gains tax between its introduction and its replacement by development land

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 27th January 1977; Vol. 924, c. 764], gave the following answer:For 1978–79 the information is as follows:tax; what element of that total represented the yield from first lettings charge; and by how much the yield from the tax exceeded its annual administrative costs in Her Majesty's Treasury and the Inland Revenue, including provision for administrative overheads;(2) how many assessments were made by the revenue under the first letting or occupation provisions of the development gains tax between the introduction of the tax and its abolition; and in how many cases no tax was subsequently charged;(3) how many chargeable gains for the purposes of development gains tax were the subject of assessment by the revenue between the introduction of the tax and its replacement by development land tax.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 31st January 1977; Vol. 925, c. 48–9], gave the following information:Although the first letting charge and the charge on development gains have in general been repealed for first lettings or disposals of interests in land on or after 1st August 1976, the charge is preserved transitionally for some transactions after

that date. Moreover, as I said in reply to an earlier Question from the hon. Gentleman—[Vol. 897, c.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is the estimated cost of running the DLT Office during 1976–77, 1977–78 and 1978–79;(2) what is the estimated cost of the work to be undertaken in respect of valuation for development land tax purposes by district valuers in England and Wales in 1976–77, 1977–78 and 1978–79.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 31st January 1977; Vol. 925, c. 48–9], gave the following information:The estimated costs at current prices are as follows. The figures given for 1978–79 assume that work loads for that year will be roughly the same as those expected for 1977–78.

£'000
	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79
DLTO	770	1,340	1,340
DLT Work carried out in District Valuers' Offices	325	650	650

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the value to a parent resident in Great Britain of child tax allowances for three children under 11 years of age resident in Bangladesh, assuming full entitlement to relief at the basic rate, expressing the value as a multiple of the national income per head of Bangladesh according to the latest available estimate.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 31st January 1977; Vol. 925, c. 49], gave the following information:The latest available information as to the national income per head in Bangladesh relates to 1972–73.The value in 1972–73 to a United Kingdom taxpayer paying the standard rate of tax of three child tax allowances for children under 11 was £232, equivalent roughly to 7½ times the estimated national income per head in Bangladesh.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many widows there are between 60 and 65 years of age.

I have been asked to reply.It is estimated that the number of widows aged at least 60 but under 65 years in the United Kingdom on 30th June 1975 was 372,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what plans there are for increasing the staff of jobcentres under the auspices of the Manpower Services Commission.

I am advised by the Manpower Services Commission that there are no plans to increase the staff of existing jobcentres. There are, however, plans to allocate 260 additional staff in the period up to April 1979, mainly in respect of the 245 new jobcentres which are expected to open during that time, in recognition of the immediate increases in work loads which these offices attract.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give the number of people unemployed, male and female, and as a percentage of the total work force, for Halesowen and Stourbridge as at the latest count.

At January 1977, 488 males and 150 females were registered as unemployed in the area covered by the Halesowen employment office. The figures for Stourbridge employment office area were 1,219 males and 395 females. Rates of unemployment are calculated for travel-to-work areas as a whole but not separately for their constituent parts. They are calculated by expressing the numbers unemployed as a percentage of total employees, including the unemployed. The rates for the Dudley travelto-work area, which includes Halesowen and Stourbridge together with Cradley Heath, Dudley and Tipton, were 5·0 per cent. for males and 2·4 per cent. for females.All figures are provisional.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish reports, final and interim, of the subcommittee looking into adverse reactions of whooping cough vaccines, and also the report of the vaccine being developed at Porton Down.

It is the Department's policy to secure publication of the results of research which it commissions, generally by encouraging the publication of reports by the research teams themselves. Accordingly, the results of the study being undertaken on adverse reactions to whooping cough vaccine and of the work on the development of improved techniques in the production of vaccine at Porton Down will be available on completion, subject to commercial confidentiality, as necessary.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he has seen the advertisement by P. & O. Normandy Ferries "French Streaker", offering passengers 200 king size cigarettes with their tickets; and whether it is in accordance with the code of practice for cigarette advertising.

The advertisement to which the hon. Member refers was evidently placed by a shipping company and thus does not constitute a cigarette advertisement within the meaning of the code of practice for cigarette advertising. I would hope, nevertheless, that those responsible for making offers which include free gifts would take into account the Government's known policy on the danger to health of smoking and would avoid in particular offering free gifts of cigarettes in such a way that persons who may not already be smokers might thus be encouraged to take up the habit. I am approaching the General Council of British Shipping on this matter.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what further financial help and encouragement he has been able to give to the Voluntary Council for Handicapped Children; and if he will make a statement.

My Department is making a contribution of £10,000 a year toward the costs of running the council in the current financial year and has promised similar help for the next two years. In addition, we have recently given a special supplementary grant of £7,000 to help with the printing and distribution costs of the council's first publication "Help Starts Here". I have been much impressed by the council's work so far and am pleased to have been able to give its enterprise this practical support.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many wards and how many beds are not in use in hospitals in the metropolitan county districts of the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County, due to staff shortages.

Twenty-six beds in two wards at Stockport and 13 beds in one ward at Bolton.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what percentage of those handicapped by a chronic illness or a permanent disability in the county districts of the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County and England, is (a) under 20 years, (b) 20 to 65 years, (c) 65 years to 80 years and (d) over 80 years.

Information is not available in the form requested. At 31st March 1976, however, the percentages of people on all local authority registers of the handicapped for England and for the districts of Greater Manchester Metropolitan County, by age distribution, were as follows:

		Under 16	16–64	65 and over
England	…	3	35	62
Bolton	…	2	54	44
Bury	…	3	44	53
Manchester	…	3	41	56
Oldham	…	2	36	62
Rochdale	…	1	51	47
Salford	…	3	42	55
Stockport	…	3	38	60
Tameside	…	2	50	48
Trafford	…	3	45	52
Wigan	…	2	60	38

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied that fire precautions and contingencies for the evacuation of geriatric patients in hospitals in the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County are adequate.

Each NHS hospital is expected to have a carefully prepared programme dealing with fire precautions, fire fighting and the movement or evacuation of patients in an emergency. The North Western Regional Health Authority has informed me that its programme for fire precautions and fire fighting is adequate and that staff have been instructed in the movement and evacuation of patients in an emergency. This programme would of course cover geriatric as well as other patients.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services under what circumstances his Department pays for car repairs of persons on social security; on how many occasions this has happened in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what has been the cost.

I am advised that the Supplementary Benefits Commission assists with the cost of car repairs only in very rare cases, such as when a claimant's car breaks down some distance from his home and payment of the repair bill is the cheapest way of getting him home. In appropriate cases the cost can be recovered from subsequent benefit payments. Records of the small number and the cost of such cases are not kept. There are also special measures to assist disabled people with the running costs of a car.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much money has been paid out in lump sum payments to meet exceptional needs in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what percentage went to retirement pensioners.

In 1976 the value of exceptional needs payments made was about £24 million, of which nearly 23 per cent. went to supplementary pensioners.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what percentage of the total number of geriatric patients is in wards above ground level in the hospitals in the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County.

Figures are as follows for the area health authorities concerned:

• Manchester (South District) under 10 per cent.
• Oldham and Bury 31–40 per cent.
• Stockport, Rochdale, Bolton and Tameside 41–50 per cent.
• Salford and Manchester (Central District) 51–60 per cent.
• Wigan and Trafford and Manchester (North District) over 60 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the health services administered by the Cleveland Area Health Authority, and list in the Official Report the present staffing and establishment requirements, respectively, for the hospitals and medical centres in the area in the employment classification of consultants, junior hospital doctors, nurses, and ancillary staffs; and if he will refer to the authority's financial needs and its present financial support.

The present staffing and establishment requirements for the hospital and medical centres administered by Cleveland Area Health Authority are as follows:

		Staff in post	Funded establishment
Consultants	…	140	141
Junior Hospital Doctors	…	201	219
Nurses in hospitals	…	3,400	3,413
Nurses in the community (excluding family planning services)	…	388	396
Ancillary Staff	…	2,063	2,128

Regional health authorities were asked to be guided in the their approach to revenue allocation in the current year by the principles and methods adopted by the Resource Allocation Working Party in its first interim report. This entails establishing a "notional resource target" reflecting the needs of each area. An allocation of £34,141,000 was made to Cleveland Area Health Authority for 1976–77, which included a share of betterment funds. The second report of the Resource Allocation Working Party has since been received, which recommends more refined methods of establishing targets, and this will be taken into account by the regional health authority before allocations are made for 1977–78 and later years.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what contribution is made to the Exchequer annually by the levy on the self-employed; and what the contribution would be if the levy were reduced to 5 per cent.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 6th December 1976—[Vol. 922, c. 68.]The amount of the payment made to the Exchequer, representing a payment towards the cost of the National Health Service, is 7·5 per cent. of whatever total of Class 4 contributions is collected. At an estimated sum of £78 million for the tax year 1975–76, this would amount to slightly less than £6 million.Reducing the levy from 8 per cent. to 5 per cent. would reduce that figure by three-eighths.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much was paid to the actor Tom O'Connor in respect of television appearances on behalf of his Department reminding persons of their rights to child benefits; and why his Department Previously refused to reveal the sum.

Total production cost for the television commercial on child benefit was £7,300, which includes the fee paid to Mr. O'Connor.Fees paid to performers appearing in Government-produced television commercials are negotiated in confidence between the Central Office of Information and the artist or his agent. It is not normal commercial practice to disclose such fees.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement about the proposal to establish a spinal injuries unit at Odstock Hospital in Salisbury.

I am awaiting detailed operational proposals from the team which has been set up to plan the project and my officials will shortly be meeting them. I intend to make a full statement as soon as the preliminary negotiations are concluded.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proportion of the total eligible to submit claims for child benefit in each of the groups (a) 13 to 19 years, (b) 8 to 12 years, (c) 3 to 8 years, and (d) up to 2 years had done so by the end of 1976.

It is estimated that, of families with one child, the proportions who had claimed child benefit by the end of 1976 were (a) child aged 13 to 19, about 45 per cent., (b) 8 to 12 years, about 75 per cent., (c) 3 to 8 years and (d) up to 2 years, about 70 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the cost of (a) printing, and (b) distributing the information slip on display in post offices between the issue of CH 1(T) and the latest child benefit leaflet.

I shall circulate the information in the Official Report as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the cost of printing and distributing the latest —December—child benefit leaflet.

I shall circulate the information in the Official Report as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make a further report on the setting up of an inquiry into the state of affairs at Normansfield Hospital, Teddington.

I am pleased to be able to tell the hon. Member that Mr. Michael Sherrard QC has agreed to chair the proposed statutory inquiry. The terms of reference will be:

"To enquire into patient care and staff morale at Normansfield Hospital, Teddington, and in particular into complaints made by staff at the hospital and others; to enquire into the causes and effects of unrest at the hospital and the action taken to deal with the situation; and to make recommendations."

The other members of the Committee of Inquiry will be:

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many families are entitled to free welfare milk on grounds of low income; and how many are currently claiming.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 9th December 1976; Vol. 922, c. 342], gave the following reply:

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the weekly amount deducted from pensioners to offset the cost of their keep whilst in hospital; what was the total revenue from this source in 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1976; and how many individual weekly payments these figures represent.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 27th January 1977; Vol. 924, c. 729–30], supplied the following information:The rules for the reduction of benefits during periods in hospital apply to insurance benefits such as sickness, invalidity and injury benefits as well as to retirement and widows' pensions. Reductions are made not to offset the cost of keep in hospital but because it is considered that public funds should not be used twice to provide for a person's maintenance. The following is the general position as to deductions from the weekly rate of benefit.

	Deduction
Period	Pensioner with a dependant	Pensioner without a dependant
After eight weeks in hospital	£3·05	£6·10
After 52 weeks in hospital	£3·05*	£12·25†
*Where the balance of the £15·30 personal benefit is paid with the pensioner's agreement to a dependant. Otherwise the reduction is £12·25 but a £6·15 "resettlement benefit" accumulates for 52 weeks.
† A £6·15 "resettlement benefit" accumulates for 52 weeks.

There are special rules for example where both partners are in hospital or where a pensioner enters hospital from local authority accommodation.It is estimated that the amounts of the reductions in retirement pensions on account of hospital in-patiency in the last four calendar years were of the following order:

					£millions
1976	…	…	…	…	40
1975	…	…	…	…	34
1974	…	…	…	…	26
1973	…	…	…	…	21

Figures of the number of weekly deductions made are not available on a yearly basis. The following are the numbers of retirement pensions subject to reduction because of hospital in-patiency in a week in November in 1973, 1974 and 1975. Figures for 1976 are not available.

				Retirement Pensions Subject to Reduction because of Hospital In-patiency
1975	…	…	…	88,000
1974	…	…	…	85,000
1973	…	…	…	86,000

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will report progress on the trials of the Vosper Thornycroft VT2 hovercraft.

The trials of the Vosper Thornycroft VT2 hovercraft in a mine counter measures rôle have been completed and the results are being evaluated.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what was the cost of constructing the new Armagh Barracks; which contractors were concerned; what is the annual running cost; what extensions and improvements remain to be added, and at what cost; and what is the expected life of the buildings.

The contract for the construction of the new Army accommodation at Armagh was awarded to the Northern Ireland firm of H. & J. Martin & Co. The work was carried out in 1975–76 at a cost of £2·9 million. As this accommodation has not yet had 12 months of occupied life annual running costs can only be estimated. They are expected to be of the order of £130,000 per annum including all mains services as well as the maintenance of the buildings. The accommodation, which was provided in order to release Gough Barracks while retaining a military presence in South Armagh, has an expected life of the order of 20 years. The buildings are to emergency scales of accommodation for a battalion headquarters and two companies, and for this purpose no further extensions or improvements are planned.The neighbouring accommodation for the UDR has been completed but is not included in the cost of £2·9 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment which districts in Northumberland would have received additional rate relief, and to what extent, if the scheme of variable domestic relief proposed in White Paper, Command Paper No. 5532, had been implemented.

If the variable domestic relief scheme proposed by the previous Administration had been introduced in 1974–75 the following domestic rate relief provisions would have been made:

• 14·5p in Alnwich.
• 18p in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
• 14·5p in Blyth Valley.
• 15p in Castle Morpeth.
• 19p in Tymeddale.
• 12p in Wansbeck.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in view of his calculation that the national average increase in county rates should not be higher than 15 per cent. as a result of the recent rate support grant allocation, he will list the percentage increases for each administrative county on which he based this calculation.

No such calculation has been made. I estimated that the average increase in domestic rates for all authorities would not be higher than 15 per cent. provided that they kept to the agreed level of expenditure, made sufficient use of their available balances and provided for the same degree of inflation for which the Government have provided in the cash limit.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) on how many occasions since 16th October 1975 the sub-committee of his EEC Liaison Committee on Harmonisation of Codes and Standards has met; and what specific action has followed from those meetings;(2) on how many occasions since 16th October 1975 the sub-committee of this EEC Liaison Committee on Draft Professional Directives has met; and what specific action has followed from those meetings.

None. All matters concerning EEC construction activity have been dealt with in the Standing Consultative Committee on EEC Liaison, which has met twice since October 1975 and will meet again next month. These formal consultations have been supplemented by regular consultations as necessary with the bodies represented on the Committee and its sub-committees. As was made clear in the reply given to the hon. Member on 16th October, the function of these committees is essentially consultative and specific action is not looked for as the outcome of meetings.

asked the Secretary of State for Environment on how many occasions since 16th October 1975 his Action Committee on Dimensional Co-ordination has met; and what specific action has followed from those meetings.

The Action Committee has met four times since 16th October 1976. It has reviewed the situation and identified specific areas for further action. It has set up study groups to consider in more detail two of these areas: one study group is examining the costs and benefits of dimensional co-ordination in order to select the most beneficial areas for action; the other is exploring how best dimensional co-ordination can be covered in education and training.The Committee will be reporting to the National Consultative Council of the Building and Civil Engineering Industries in due course, but its main aim is to stimulate action by those concerned as it identifies particular needs.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the average reduction of gross rateable value of dwellings of disabled people under Section 45 of the General Rate Act 1967 in each of the last 10 years.

I regret that this information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many disabled people have received a reduction in the gross rateable value of their dwellings under Section 45 of the General Rate Act 1967 in each of the last 10 years.

I understand that reductions in rateable value arising from Section 45 of the General Rate Act 1967 applied to 14,242 dwellings on 1st January 1977. Figures for previous years are not available, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the cost in rates forgone of reductions of gross rateable value of private dwellings of disabled people under Section 45 of the General Rate Act 1967 in each of the last 10 years; and what is his estimate of the average benefit to the disabled people concerned in each year.

I regret that the information on which to base such estimates is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he gave to local authorities about making available 100 per cent. mortgages to prospective home buyers.

No advice has been given recently, and none seems called for. Local authorities are making wide use of their powers to grant such loans, which now account for some 30 per cent. of the value of all loans.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he can give a firm date for the issue of the circular, from his Department to local authorities, on the Improvement Grant (Rateable Value Limits) Order 1976.

I cannot give a precise date, but I am about to consult the local authority associations on the terms of the circular, and hope to issue it shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he next proposes to review the house price list of properties covered by the option mortgage guarantee scheme.

I have decided, following consultation with the British Insurance Association and the Building Societies Association, to raise the maximum house valuation for the option mortgage guarantee scheme from £12,000 to £14,000. Also, it has been agreed that the insurance premium rate for new participants in the scheme will be reduced by ¼ per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the share of British companies of the total United Kingdom market for industrial carbon brushes.

I have been asked to reply.I regret that official statistics of United Kingdom production or sales of these products do not exist and that neither the total United Kingdom market nor the share of British companies can be estimated.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can give (a) the number of prosecutions and (b) the number of police investigations in respect of blasphemy and blasphemous libel for each of the periods 1947 to 1956, 1957 to 1966, 1967 to 1976 and for each year since 1970; and what was the number of convictions for each of these periods and these years.

From 1964 to 1975 there were no prosecutions, and therefore, no convictions, for blasphemy and blasphemous libel. Information for the period before 1964 is not available, and that for 1976 is not yet available. Information about police investigations could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he refuses to publish the report of the inspectors into the riot at Hull Prison.

I have not refused to publish the report: the Chief Inspector of the Prison Service has not yet completed it. The question of publication remains as I stated it in my replies to Questions by my hon. Friend the Member for Derby, North (Mr. Whitehead) on 14th October 1976 and my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Short) on 21st October 1976, as amplified by my comment in the course of the debate on crime prevention on 27th January.—[Vol. 917, c. 154; c. 507–8; Vol. 924, c. 1772.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community service orders have been issued to the latest convenient date; and how many have been successful.

The information available from Criminal Statistics is as follows:

PERSONS GIVEN COMMUNITY SERVICE AND PERSONS WHO BREACHED THE ORDER—ENGLAND AND WALES
Number of persons
		Community service orders	Breach of community service orders*
1973	…	513	Not available
1974	…	1,213	42
1975	…	3,126	90
* The breach does not necessarily occur in the year the order was given.

The figures in the above table are on the principal offence basis as defined in Chapter 1 of Criminal Statistics 1975.As regards more recent figures of persons given such orders, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the Questions by the hon. and learned Member for Runcorn (Mr. Carlisle) on 10th January. —[Vol. 923, c.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps are taken in the case of those who fail to complete the hours of community service required.

In such circumstances an offender is liable to have breach proceedings brought against him under Section 16 of the Powers of Criminal Courts Act 1973 and, on proof of failure to comply with the requirements of a community service order, to be fined up to £50 or to

CERTAIN INDICTABLE OFFENCES RECORDED AS KNOWN TO THE POLICE—ENGLAND AND WALES
				Number of Offences
Offences				1969	1973	1975
Offences against the person	…	…	…	67,385	94,373	106,044
Burglary and theft and handling stolen goods	…	…	…	1,332,271	1,391,975	1,789,541
Criminal or malicious damage	…	…	…	14,710	52,815	78,546

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will introduce legislation to enable men and women aged 18 years to stand for election to Parliament.

We have no plans to introduce such legislation in the near future.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list those statutes affecting the position of actors and actresses appearing in films found to be obscene by the courts.

There are no specific statutory provisions about the liability of actors and actresses appearing in obscene films.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what were the statistics for the years 1969, 1973 and 1975 for (a) crimes against the person; (b) burglary, housebreaking and theft, and (c) vandalism.

The following table gives details of offences recorded as known to the police in the categories requested. Offences against the person include offences of violence against the person, sexual offences and robbery. There is no specific offence of vandalism: the figures below relate to offences of criminal damage and malicious damage.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he proposes to take against local authorities in Northern Ireland who refuse to apply the principle of the Fair Employment Act.

Action against local authorities who do not comply with the principles of the Fair Employment Act is a matter for consideration by the Fair Employment Agency.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what effect the attitude of Armagh Council towards the Fair Employment Act will have on his policy toward the functions of councils.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the areas of Wales which are being considered for the underground storage of nuclear waste; and if he will make a statement.

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is planning a research programme to investigate the suitability of certain geological strata in Wales, England and Scotland for the disposal of radioactive waste. The formations to be considered include some mudstone and rock-salt deposits in the Cheshire-Welsh border area. Proposals actually to use geological strata for disposal would only be made after the fullest consideration of all the safety and environmental issues including wide consultations—and on the basis of a conclusion that it would be safe to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make a statement as to the arrangements he proposes for keeping the public informed of incidents affecting safety at nuclear installations.

Licensees of nuclear installations are required by the Nuclear Installations (Dangerous Occurrences) Regulations 1965 to report immediately to the Health and Safety Executive the following occurrences: (a) any release of radioactivity or toxic substances causing or likely to cause death or serious injury; (b) any uncontrolled criticality excursion; (c) any explosion or fire likely to affect safety; (d) any occurrence during the transport of nuclear matter which is likely to cause death or injury from radioactivity, or the breaking open of a container of nuclear matter.They are also required by licence conditions to report incidents involving exposure to radiation above prescribed limits and whenever inspection or testing reveals that the safe operation and condition of plant may be affected. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I have made arrangements with the Health and Safety Executive to be informed of such occurrences, and also to be told of certain occurrences of lesser significance. We propose to inform Parliament at once of any occurrence reported under the Dangerous Occurrences Regulations. More generally we have arranged for a quarterly statement to be published by the Health and Safety Executive, covering all the occurrences reported to us under the arrangements referred to. Besides numerical information, this statement would give short particulars and an assessment of any occurrences that were of significance for safety. Similar arrangements will be made for the reporting of occurrences on AEA sites. These will be covered in the quarterly statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the cost of the Fishery Protection Service during 1976.

The cost of the Fishery Protection Service operated by my Department during 1976 was approximately £1,232,000. This figure covers the normal running costs of the vessels, crewing and an estimate of the management and administrative costs together with the sum of £44,116 which fell due for payment in 1976 towards the cost of fleet replacement.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is satisfied that the Fishery Protection Service is adequately equipped and manned to carry out its duties.

My right hon. Friend considers that the service is adequately equipped, and to ensure that it remains so the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food is commissioning the design of a new ship to replace the oldest of its offshore vessels. Throughout 1976 the service was adequately manned. Unfortunately, we now have

Vessel						Gross Tonnage	Maximum Speed Knots	Recommended Cruising Speed Knots
"Jura"	…	…	…	…	…	892	16½	12½
"Westra"	…	…	…	…	…	885	16½	12½
"Norna"	…	…	…	…	…	580	15	12½
"Brenda"	…	…	…	…	…	412	15	12
"Switha"	…	…	…	…	…	573	12½	11
"Vigilant"	…	…	…	…	…	209	13½	12
"Jura" was returned to my Department on 16th after being on loan to the Ministry of Defence from March 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many patrols, and for what duration, were carried out by his Department's fishery protection vessels during 1976.

81 patrols varying in duration between six and 19 days were carried out by my Department's vessels during 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many patrols of fishery production vessels operated by his Department were cancelled during 1976; and for what reasons.

Two patrols were cancelled because of the need for urgent repairs.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many violations of fishing limits, overfishing or other malpractices were detected by his Department's fishery protection vessels during 1976.

The Department's vessels detected 73 alleged offences during 1976. Details are as follows:

Illegal trawling within the limit	53
Undersized nets	1
Contravention of the Collision Regulations	10
Contraventions of Fishing Boats Registry Order	9

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the fishery protection vessels operated by his Department during 1976, indicating gross tonnage, maximum speed and recommended cruising speed in each case.