asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of experiments in 1977 performed with live animals were conducted for essential medical research; how many experiments were performed for cosmetic or commercial purposes; and if he will institute a full scale Government inquiry into the use of animals for experimental purposes.

Information about the purposes of experiments performed on living animals in Great Britain during 1977 will be published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office in Command Paper 7333 when the present industrial dispute at HMSO is over. The use of animals for experimental purposes has been considered by two Royal Commissions, and more recently the Littlewood committee, which reported in 1965, reviewed the working of the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876. The subject is kept under review, through the machinery of the advisory committee on the Act and in other ways. We have no plans to set up another inquiry.

asked the Secretary, of State for the Home Department how many living animals were subjected to extreme temperatures in experiments conducted under the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 during 1975, 1976 and 1977.

No relevant information was collected centrally for 1975 or 1976. For 1977, some information was collected about burns or scalds, and will be published when the present industrial dispute at HMSO is over.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what is the justification for maintaining the Immigration (Hotel Records) Order 1972/1689; and whether in the interests of paper conservation he will withdraw it;(2) why people born in the United Kingdom are obliged to sign hotel registers and yet people covered by the Diplo- matic Privileges Act 1964 need not do so;(3) why a person, pursuant to the Immigration (Hotel Records) Order 1972/1689, must give his name and nationality, but not his address; and why a person being a British subject is obliged to give his full name though not necessarily his correct one.

The Immigration (Hotel Records) Order 1972 is part of the control exercised under the Immigration Act 1971. It serves a useful purpose and I have no proposals to change it. It is designed to cause the minimum inconvenience to those affected by it and hence it imposes different requirements for aliens and for other people. Persons to whom the Diplomatic Privileges Act 1964 applies are not exempt from hotel register requirements but enjoy a general immunity from the criminal jurisdiction.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many boys and how many girls of each age up to 18 years were reported missing in the county of Leicester in each month of the last five years for which records are available; how many and what percentage were missing from their own homes and how many and what percentage from care; and how many and what percentage were traced and after what period of search;(2) how many boys and how many girls of each age up to 18 years were reported missing in Greater London in each month of the last five years for which records are available; how many and what percentage were missing from their own homes and how many and what percentage from care; and how many and what percentage were traced and after what average period of search;(3) how many boys and how many girls of each age up to 18 years were reported missing in the United Kingdom in each month of the last five years for which records are available; how many and what percentage were missing from their own homes and how many and what percentage from care; and how many and what percentage were traced and after what average period of search.

Much of the information requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only by detailed scrutiny of police records at disproportionate cost. A certain amount of information about missing persons is published in the annual reports of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, the chief constable of Leicestershire, and of other chief constables.The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis has also supplied the follow-

REPORTS* TO THE METROPOLITAN POLICE CENTRAL INDEX OF MISSING PERSONS AGED UNDER 18
		Males					Females
			Absentees from care†		Other			Absentees from care†		Other
		Total	Number	Per cent.	Number	Per cent.	Total	Number	Per cent.	Number	Per cent.
1973	…	9,083‡	4,593	n. a.	4,490‡	n. a.	8,971	2,488	28	6,483	72
1974	…	10,312	4,107	40	6,205	60	8,577	2,255	26	6,322	74
1975	…	9,120	3,948	43	5,172	57	8,488	2,432	29	6,056	71
1976	…	9,596	4,164	43	5,432	57	9,676	2,698	28	6,978	72
1977	…	10,396	4,166	40	6,230	60	10,748	2,699	25	8,049	75

REPORTS* TO THE METROPOLITAN POLICE CENTRAL INDEX OF MISSING PERSONS AGED UNDER 18 (EXCLUDING ABSENTEES FROM CARE†) NOT TRACED WITHIN 48 HOURS
			Males			Females
			Total	Metropolitan Police District	Provinces and overseas	Total	Metropolitan Police District	Provinces and overseas
1973	…	…	1,142	1,000	142	1,975	1,619	356
1974	…	…	1,284	1,119	165	2,070	1,750	320
1975	…	…	1,232	1,087	145	2,061	1,798	263
1976	…	…	1,170	1,039	131	1,982	1,738	244
1977	…	…	1,439	1,092	347	2,456	1,992	464
* Reports cover all cases known to the Metropolitan Police, those cases known to other police forces in England and Wales which have been outstanding for one month and other cases which other police forces, including those overseas, choose to report. The same person may be reported missing more than once.
† Children in the care of the local authority, some of whom may have been residing in their own homes.
‡1st March to 31st December 1973 only.

Notes

Comparison of the above figures of reports for those not in local authority care indicates that a large proportion are traced within 48 hours of their going missing. No information is readily available on the length of search, which may start some time after the person went missing.

As at 10th November, 161 boys and 319 girls were recorded as being missing; these include cases where death is presumed but not body has been found.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there is any constitutional or other legislative reason why polling for the parliamentary General Election should not be held on the same day as the day upon which the first United Kingdom elections to the European Parliament are to be held.

I am not aware of any constitutional or legislative obstacles to the holding of both sets of elections separately on the same day.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans for informing householders of the advice and assistance provided by crime prevention officers in obtaining the best possible means of securing household property against break-ins; and what public information services there have been over the past 12 months to promote the service provided by crime prevention officers.

The Home Office provides information about the free advice available from police crime prevention officers by use of television films, local radio tapes, a booklet and a leaflet. We plan to continue such publicity. Further information is given locally through police crime prevention departments and the crime prevention panels drawn from the community to assist them.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to introduce legislation that will enable local authorities to control the

Force		Function	Manufacturer
All forces	…	The Police National Computer (Home Office maintained) Indices to— Criminal records, Wanted and Missing Persons, Stolen Vehicles, Vehicle Owners, Fingerprint records.	Burroughs
Metropolitan Police	…	Indices to— Crime, Criminals and their associates.	CTL
Thames Valley	…	Analysis and process of force collator's records (Joint Home Office—Force experiment).	Honeywell
Suffolk	…	Command and Control and Operational Information	GEC

Additionally, most police forces make use of their local authority computer primarily for administrative tasks such as pay and pensions and statistics.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has had any recommendations from the Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs regarding the treatment of cannabis offenders; and whether he will make a statement.

I expect to receive the advisory council's report on its review of the classification of drugs and of penalties under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the number of prosecutions for permitting premises to be used for dealing in cannabis in each of the last three years;

So far as I can tell at present there is not likely to be time for such a Bill in the Government's programme this Session.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will list in the Official Report the types of computers maintained by the police force in England.

Apart from a number of small computers used by various police forces in vehicle availability systems, the types of computer used exclusively by the police service in England and Wales are as follows:(2) if he will list the number of prosecutions for permitting premises to be used for smoking cannabis in each of the past three years.

The information available is given in the following table. Information is not available separately on the use of premises for smoking cannabis or for dealing in cannabis.

Persons prosecuted for permitting premises to be used for activities relating to cannabis
UNITED KINGDOM
Year					No. of Persons
1975	…	…	…	…	440
1976	…	…	…	…	424
1977	…	…	…	…	372

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why it is considered necessary to hold Mr. Ebrahim Gaibie in Pentonville prison; and if he will now release him to con- tinue his studies at City and East London college while registering daily with the police.

After reconsideration of all the circumstances of this case I have directed that Mr. Gaibie should be released. His application to remain in this country is being examined.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has given to chief officers of police on the need to alert schools and other institutions on the hazards and risks associated with glue sniffing.

None. This is not primarily a matter for the police, although they are generally aware of the risks associated with the dangerous practice. I understand that the booklet "Health Education in Schools", published by the Department of Education and Science draws the attention of teachers to the dangers of glue sniffing.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what records are maintained in each locality on the number of cases reported of glue sniffing.

I have no information about such records: action to deal with glue sniffing would be primarily a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to meet the president of the Food Manufacturers Federation.

My right hon. Friend, the Minister, is always willing to meet the president of the Food Manufacturers Federation when necessary.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about progress in negotiations about fishing in Icelandic waters.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 22nd June.—[Vol. 952, c. 701.] This is a matter for the Commission and we regret the lack of progress.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will make a statement about the ruling of the EEC Court concerning the levy on isoglucose.

No. The judgment of the European Court is addressed to the High Court and relates to cases still before the High Court.

Roberts asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure the benefits of bumper harvests of wheat and potatoes are passed on to the consumer; and if he will make a statement.

Potato prices in shops are currently low—generally in the range of 3p to 6p per lb. The good United Kingdom harvest for wheat will benefit consumers by helping the milling and feed-stuffs industries to contain their costs. We would like to see the general level of Community prices in real terms reduced and we will continue to press for this in the annual price fixing negotiation.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what extra resources he has allocated during the present year for the improvement of sea defences in the South-East.

In response to requests from the Southern water authority additional sums amounting to just over £2 million have been allocated to it for sea defence work in the current financial year.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any plans to expand food production from the marginal land; and if he will make a statement.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure that the European less favoured areas directive covers the 1½ million acres of marginal land in England and Wales.

My right hon. Friend the Minister is still studying the marginal land question in consultation with his agricultural colleagues.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to meet the president of the Dairy Trade Federation.

My officials and I are regularly in touch with the president and officials of the Dairy Trade Federation.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the net cost of the common agricultural policy to the United Kingdom.

I refer my hon. Friend to what I said in the course of the debate on 21st March 1978.—[Vol. 946, c. 1349–50.]

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a further statement on the pig industry.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given earlier today to the hon. Member for Macclesfield (Mr. Winterton) and others.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he proposes to restrict the purchase of agricultural land by financial institutions and by individuals from outside the United Kingdom which restricts the prospects of young persons entering the farming industry from being able to purchase their own farms.

These matters are currently under consideration by Lord Northfield's committee on acquisition and occupancy of agricultural land, whose advice my right hon. Friend the Minister will await before deciding whether to alter our policy in this general area.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent representations he has received concerning a further devaluation of the green pound.

Representatives of the National Farmers' Union have presented arguments for a further devaluation of the green pound. I always give careful consideration to all representations on this subject.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received about the state of the British bacon and pigmeat processing industry; and what prospects he sees for improvement in the commercial prospects of the industry.

I am well aware of the problems facing this industry. These problems and the industry's prospects for improving its performance are examined in the report of a sector working group of the EDC for food and drink manufacturing published last week. The expansion of the United Kingdom breeding herd will be helpful to the pig-meat curing and processing industry and my right hon. Friend is continuing to press for further monetary compensatory amount changes.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has given further consideration to the banning of exports of live animals for slaughter.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will now take steps to end the export of live animals for slaughter.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he proposes to take on the export of live animals.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he plans to introduce legislation to ban the export of live food animals.

The Government are looking at all the possible options, not only in the United Kingdom but in an EEC context. When this examination has been completed I will immediately make a statement to the House.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, in the light of the concern felt at the continuing slaughter of badgers in the South-West of England, particularly by private landowners, when he expects the present eradication process to be completed.

All but a few of the landowners and occupiers involved have cooperated with Ministry staff in these necessary operations. I cannot forecast when it will be possible to cease gassing badgers, but expect the scale of gassing to decline as the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in badgers is reduced.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, when he will next meet the chairman of the Potato Marketing Board.

My Department is regularly in touch with the chairman and officials of the Potato Marketing Board.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on inshore fisheries conservation measures which he is prepared to introduce, pending the resolution of the EEC fisheries policy.

The Government have already introduced a number of important measures to conserve fish stocks within British fishery limits and stand ready to introduce any further conservation measures that may be necessary.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he intends to implement the Meat Export (Hygiene and Meat Inspection) Regula- tions, in view of the objections which have been raised with him.

Yes. The proposed regulations are designed to safeguard our valuable meat export trade. We are giving careful consideration to the comments received on our proposals and hope to complete the consultation procedures in the first few months of next year.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to meet the chairman of the Forestry Commission.

I have no plans at present to meet the chairman of the Forestry Commission.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he will next meet the chairman of the central horticultural committee of the National Farmers' Union.

I have no plans to do so at present. However, officials of my Department are in frequent contact with the chairman and members of the committee.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he has taken over the EEC Commission's decision on skimmed milk powder subsidies which effectively cut off supplies of skimmed milk powder to the United Kingdom compounders in October and early November: and what response he has received.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend, the Member for Bury and Radcliffe (Mr. White) on 2nd November 1978.

asked the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the current negotiations within the EEC towards a new common fisheries policy.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement concerning the present stage of negotiations of the common fisheries policy and the EEC.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement regarding negotiations for a common fisheries policy.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the latest progress in renegotiatiing the compound fisheries policy.

I refer my hon. Friends and the hon. Members to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Membe for Sheffield, Heeley (Mr. Hooley) on 2nd November.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied with the EEC definition of less favoured areas.

The EEC definition of less favoured areas and the aids authorised in them enabled us to continue with very little change our well tried and longstanding arrangements to assist hill farmers. This was a satisfactory outcome to several years of negotiations.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any plans to meet the chairman of the White Fish Authority.

I hope to do so shortly.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he will meet next the chairman of the Milk Marketing Board.

My officials and I are regularly in touch with the chairman and officials of the Milk Marketing Board.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent representations he has received about a licensing system for fishing boats.

This matter has arisen in the course of consultations between officials and fishermen's organisations but no recent representations on the subject have been made to my right hon. Friend. It will need to be pursued further in the context of discussions about the future structure of the fishing industry.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the cost of fuel to British glasshouse growers, in comparison with the cost of their competitors in the EEC.

The cost of oil to British growers does not differ greatly from the cost of that used in other EEC countries, although Dutch growers still derive some benefit from their onshore resources of natural gas. The Dutch Government have now reached full equalisation of gas and oil prices under the programme announced in 1976.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will bring forward proposals to reduce dependence on imported butter.

Our dependence on imported butter has been reduced considerably in recent years as a result of the encouragement the Government have given to the expansion of milk production in the United Kingdom, and I am confident that present levels of profitability within the industry will provide a further stimulus to production.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will institute European legislation through the Council of Ministers for the provision of standards throughout the European Economic Community for the well-being of animals transported over a distance of more than 20 km.

The possibility of improved EEC legislation is one of the considerations that the Government will take into account in reaching a decision on the future of the trade in live food animals.

asked the Lord President of the Council what consultative procedures he envisages between the Scottish Assembly and United Kingdom Ministries on matters which are both devolved and of EEC competence; and if he will make a statement.

It is premature to speculate about the form that such consultations will take. Procedures cannot be finalised until the Scottish Administration is in being.

asked the Attorney General when he expects to be able to announce an increase in the eligibility limits for civil legal aid; and if he will ensure that the increase is over 7 per cent.

Regulations are at present before Parliament to increase the eligibility limit for civil legal aid by about 7 per cent. with effect from 27th November. My noble Friend has announced his intention of making substantial improvements in the financial conditions for civil legal aid which will be brought into effect next spring.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service when the management review of the Exchequer and Audit Department will be completed; and if its report will be published.

I understand that the review, which is being conducted by the Comptroller and Auditor General, will be completed within the next few weeks.Because of the independent status of the Comptroller and Auditor General, this review does not fall within the normal pattern of management reviews which are commissioned by and submitted to Ministers. I understand that the Comptroller and Auditor General intends to report the conclusions of the review to the Committee of Public Accounts.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will raise in the EEC Council of Environmental Ministers the matter of bird trapping, following the decision by the Belgian Government to relax their 1972 ban.

No. The proposed EEC directive on bird conservation—on which we hope that final agreement will be reached at the next meeting of the Council of Environmental Ministers on 19th December—would require all member States to ban the trapping of birds. In the meanwhile, this is entirely a domestic matter for the Belgian Government.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has for widening his powers to protect estuaries in England from erosion; and whether he is considering any extension of the areas covered by the Coastal Protection Act.

I see no occasion at present to widen my existing powers under the Coast Protection Act 1949 to protect estuaries or to extend the areas covered by the Act.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list (a) the sites in England for which the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority has sought planning permission for test drillings into geological strata as part of the programme of research into ways of disposing of high-level radioactive waste and (b) the decision of the planning authority in each case which has been determined.

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority has submitted two planning applications in England to carry out research into assessing the suitability of geological formations for the possible eventual underground disposal of appropriately treated radioactive waste. The applications, in respect of areas in the Chillingham and Usway forests in the North of England, were rejected by Northumberland county council. I understand that the Atomic Energy Authority is preparing appeals.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he anticipates being in a position to publish the results of the project into the issue of rent arrears and their recovery.

About the middle of next year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will consider issuing a circular advising local housing authorities not to apply for summonses for arrears of rents for amounts of less than £100 except as a very last resort.

I have already advised local authorities to consider a variety of other approaches, but each case needs to be looked at in its own circumstances and I do not think it would be right to suggest an arbitrary monetary limit.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will consider taking action to prohibit the unauthorised use of metal detectors for treasure hunting on known archaeological sites.

The Ancient Monuments Bill which I am preparing will contain provisions regulating the use of metal detectors on statutorily protected archaeological sites.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he proposes to set up a non-statutory public inquiry into the Supplementary Benefits Commission's proposal to establish a purpose-built resettlement unit on the site of the former Battersea general hospital.

I will write to my right hon. Friend shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made with the research project into the effectiveness of "sleeping policemen"; and if he will make a statement.

The first five experiments on the use of speed control humps have now been completed. A report on the safety and effectiveness of these experiments is expected to be published by the Transport and Road Research Laboratory very early in the new year. My right hon. Friend will consider the possibilities for further legislation when the report has been received.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to announce the possible alternative route for the A38 trunk road improvement, Liskeard-Bodmin bypass, for public consultation; and if he will make a statement.

The White Paper "Policy for Roads: England 1978", showed that the Liskeard-Bodmin improvement on the A38 trunk road had a target start date between 1984 and 1986; public consultation is unlikely to take place before about the end of 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science further to her reply to the hon. Member for Eccles, Official Report, 27th October 1976, column 261, what progress is being made on the vaccination against cytomegalovirus; if there is any evidence to suggest that cytomegalovirus vaccine may be reactivated by pregnancy; and if she will make a further statement.

A small trial of a potential cytomegalovirus—CMV—vaccine was recently begun in kidney transplant patients at St. George's hospital medical school and King's College hospital in London. It is too early for any results to be available. There is some evidence to suggest that CMV infection is reactivated during pregnancy, but information is limited. So far there has not been sufficient use of any CMV vaccine to assess whether vaccination would lead to reactivation of infection during pregnancy.The cytomegalovirus sub-committee of the Medical Research Council's committee on the development of vaccines and immunisation procedures continues to keep the field under review.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if, in the light of the 38,000 items of literature in the Butler Esperanto library at the headquarters of the British Esperanto Association in London, she will now correct the letter from her Department to the association dated 3rd August which stated that Esperanto had no literature.

The only reference in the letter to Esperanto being "without literature" was part of a sentence giving the views of two GCE examining boards which had been consulted.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether he will take steps to make it a legal offence to sell juveniles substances which can be used for glue sniffing; and if he will seek to make glue sniffing an offence.

I fully share my hon. Friend's concern about this dangerous practice. But there are so many products which can be misused in this way that it would not be practicable to ban their sale to young persons. I do not consider that legislation prohibiting the practice would be the right answer to this extremely difficult problem.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection if he will list the action taken by his Department on the recommendations of the Price Commission on banking charges for money transmission services, Official Report 134.

Following discussions with the Committee of London Clearing Banks and other interested parties, my right hon. Friend announced on 21st September his conclusions on the Price Commission report on bank charges for money transmission services. A copy of his announcement has been placed in the Library.While the report contained no advice on which statutory action to restrict prices could be based, it put forward a number of important suggestions which have been considered in detail with the banks and other bodies concerned. Certain banks have already announced changes in their methods of setting charges to bring them more in line with the Commission's proposals. Government Departments have been reminded of the need to obtain competitive quotations. The Treasury is in contact with the Trustee Savings Bank central board on proposals of concern to it, while the Bank of England is discussing with the clearing banks the Commission's observations on admission to the bankers' clearing house and cash distribution arrangements. The Committee of London Clearing Banks has established a committee to consider the comparability of accounts and disclosure of bad and doubtful debts, and its conclusions will be reported to the Department of Trade.The question of jointly negotiated tariffs has been referred to the Director General of Fair Trading. The banks and their associations continue to review the scope for flexibility in opening hours. I note with interest that the Midland Bank has recently announced plans for evening opening in particular circumstances, and that Barclays Bank is experimenting with Saturday opening in specific areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether he will make an announcement about the future of his Department's grants to consumer advice centres after March 1979.

My Department is this year making specific grants totalling approximately £3¾ million available to meet the full running costs of the 120 consumer advice centres in Great Britain. We have decided to extend this grant scheme for a further two years, until March 1981, and intend to maintain the same level of support. We hope to have discussions shortly with the local authority associations about the operation of the scheme.The form of our support to consumer advice centres beyond 31st March 1981 will be considered as part of a review of local advisory services which the Government intend to undertake. This will take particular account of recommendations which might be made by the Royal Commissions on legal services in England and Wales, and in Scotland. The reports by the National and Scottish Consumer Councils on local advice services will also make an important contribution to this review.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether he will make an announcement about the future of his Department's grant assistance to the Citizens Advice Bureau Service after March 1979.

My Department expects to provide a total of £1.26 million to the National Association of Citizen Advice Bureaux in the present financial year. We have decided to maintain our total grant assistance to the national association at no less than its present level until 31st March 1981 by extending our five-year development grant beyond its original expiry date of 31st March 1979. It is intended to give special attention to the needs of the citizens advice bureau service in Scotland.The form of our support to the citizens advice bureau service beyond 31st March 1981 will be considered as part of a review of local advisory services which the Government intend to undertake. This will take particular account of recommendations which might be made by the Royal Commissions on legal services in England and Wales, and in Scotland. The reports by the National and Scottish Consumer Councils on local advice services, and proposals for the citizens advice bureau service's future development which are being formulated by the national association, will also make an important contribution to this review.

asked the Prime Minister when he expects next to meet other EEC Heads of Government.

I shall be meeting Heads of Government at the European Council in Brussels on 4th and 5th December. I shall also be meeting Signor Andreotti in London on 22nd November, President Giscard d'Estaing in Paris on 24th November, Mr. Lynch in London on 27th November and Monsieur Thorn in London on 28th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will make an official visit to Ormskirk.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will list his official engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday, 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his public engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his public engagements for Thursday 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will list his official engagements for 16th November.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 16th November.

I refer my hon. Friends and the hon. Members to the reply which I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith).

asked the Prime Minister if he will amend his advice on the publication of background papers to include background papers on public inquiries.

As announced in the Gracious Speech, further proposals will be brought forward to achieve more open government. Meanwhile, and in accordance with current advice to which no immediate changes are proposed, the Government will continue to make information on public policy more readily available.

asked the Prime Minister if he will set up a committee of inquiry into the operation of public inquiries within central Government.

No, but if my hon. Friend has any particular point in mind I will arrange for it to be considered.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a visit to Lancashire at an early date.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister if he will dismiss the Secretary of State for Defence.

asked the Prime Minister if he will now dismiss the Secretary of State for Defence.

The hon. Member may assume that I do not intend to make any changes in ministerial appointments or responsibilities—including my taking on any of the existing responsibilities of other Ministers—unless and until I make a statement to the contrary.

asked the Prime Minister if he has any plans to visit Butley.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the TUC.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet representatives of the TUC.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the TUC.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the TUC.

asked the Prime Minister when he will meet next the TUC.

I refer my hon. Friends to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bolsover (Mr. Skinner) on 9th November.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the TUC and CBI.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Southampton, Test (Mr. Gould) on 9th November.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the CBI.

asked the Prime Minister when he plans next to meet the CBI.

I refer my hon. Friends to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, East (Mr. Thomas) on 14th November.

asked the Prime Minister whether he intends to support Great Britain's membership of the proposed European monetary system at the EEC Heads of Governments meeting in December.

The Government have not yet reached a conclusion on whether the United Kingdom should join the European monetary system.

asked the Prime Minister if he will seek to pay an official visit to Vienna.

I have at present no plans to do so. Chancellor Kreisky and I had a valuable meeting in London on 4th July.

asked the Prime Minister what involvement Government Ministers will have in the campaign for a "Yes" vote in the referenda in Wales and Scotland on the Government's proposed Assemblies.

Devolution is Government policy. Ministers will be united in seeking the support of the Scottish and Welsh people for devolution.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many companies have been refused temporary employment subsidy because they had received other Government aid, including interest relief grant.

I regret that precise information is not available in the form requested, but since the inception of the scheme in August 1975 12 initial applications for TES have been rejected after consultation with the appropriate Government Department or agency because the jobs involved were already being supported by public funds. In many cases—figures are not available—TES provides stop-gap aid and subsidy is terminated when Department of Industry or agency assistance is paid.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if any study has been made of the reasons why vacancies for jobs in the nationalised industries for such as postmen and railway workers cannot be filled, bearing in mind that 1½ million people are without jobs; whether the unemployed (a) lack the skill to do this work or (b) do not consider the pay adequate; and if he will make a statement.

No special study has been made of the reasons why vacancies for jobs of this kind are hard to fill. I am, however, informed by the Manpower Services Commission that it is initiating a study of hard-to-fill vacancies, with a particular focus on vacancies for jobs without high skill content. From vacancies notified to the Commission's employment service, there does not appear to be strong evidence that lack of skill or inadequate pay are significant deterrents to recruitment to jobs of this kind in nationalised industries.The hon. Member may care to note that the total number of people registered as unemployed in Great Britain was 1,364,907 on 12th October.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will set up an independent inquiry into the recruiting and general activities of the Society of Lithographic Artists, Designers and Engravers, particularly in relation to its art union.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in the Official Report the number of vacancies for instructors in the training

					November 1977	May 1978	October 1978
Scotland	…	…	…	…	4	3	7
Northern	…	…	…	…	27	30	27
Yorkshire and Humberside	…	…	…	…	17	19	19
North West	…	…	…	…	18	10	11
Midlands	…	…	…	…	13	34	33
Wales	…	…	…	…	16	22	19
South West	…	…	…	…	8	7	10
South East	…	…	…	…	13	29	40
London	…	…	…	…	18	17	20
Total number of vacancies	…	…	…	…	134	171	186

BREAKDOWN BY COURSE*
			November 1977	May 1978	October 1978
Bricklaying	…	…	Nil	3	5
Carpentry and Joinery	…	…	5	6	5
Capstan setting operating	…	…	8	7	13
Centre lathe turning	…	…	2	4	5
Milling setting operating	…	…	3	3	7
Sheet metal working	…	…	2	5	6
Plate and structural steel work	…	…	8	7	5
Toolmaking fitting and machining	…	…	2	4	5
Welding, electric arc	…	…	12	16	22
Miscellaneous engineering	…	…	8	12	14
Electrical installation and maintenance	…	…	3	3	5
Industrial electronics	…	…	11	14	17
Instrument maintenance	…	…	4	4	5
Radio, television and electronic servicing	…	…	5	5	10
Contractors plant, repair and maintenance	…	…	7	7	5
Heavy vehicle, repair and maintenance	…	…	7	9	8
Motor vehicle, repair and maintenance	…	…	5	12	12
Others (total of 45 courses)	…	…	42	50	37
Totals	…	…	134	171	186
* Trades in which there were 5 or more vacancies at one of the dates given.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many people underwent training opportunities scheme courses in foreign languages in the past year; and what was the breakdown of this figure between languages.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that in the period October 1977 to September 1978, 211 people completed courses opportunities scheme in November 1977, May 1978 and for the most recent convenient date; and if he will provide breakdowns for these vacancy figures based on (a) regions and (b) courses to which these instructors would have been assigned.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the numbers of actual vacancies for class instructors in skillcentres on 30th November 1977, 31st May 1978 and 31st October 1978 were 134, 171 and 186 respectively.Breakdown by region of these figures is:which included some training in foreign languages. The breakdown is as follows:

French	…	…	120
French and German	…	…	36
German	…	…	25
French and Spanish	…	…	16
Spanish	…	…	7
German and Spanish	…	…	2
Spanish and Italian	…	…	2
Italian	…	…	1
French and Italian	…	…	1
Arabic	…	…	1

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many industrial tribunals were held under the terms of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and the Employment Protection Act 1975 in England and Wales and in Scotland, respectively, for the latest year for which figures are available; and in what proportion of these cases, respectively, there were one or more adjournments to a later date.

The numbers of tribunals held under the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and the Employment Protection Act 1975 during 1977 were as follows:

England and Wales—14,151

Scotland—1,950

The actual proportion of cases under these two Acts adjourned to another day is not available. The estimated percentages are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the average length of industrial tribunals held under the terms of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and Employment Protection Act 1975 in England and Wales, and in Scotland, respectively, for the most convenient recent period.

The average length of hearings in Scotland during mid-October to mid-November 1978, was two hours and fifty five minutes. Corresponding information for England and Wales is not yet available but my hon. Friend the Minister of State will be writing to my hon. Friend with this information as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many industrial tribunals were held in terms of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and the Employment Protection Act 1975 in England and Wales, and Scotland, respectively, in which the applicants were represented by a solicitor and a barrister or advocate, for the most convenient recent period available; and what percentages these represent of the total number of cases heard.

This information is not available for hearings under the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and Employment Protection Act 1975 alone. The percentages of all applicants who had legally qualified representatives at hearings during October 1978 were as follows:

England and Wales 33 per cent.

Scotland 40 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will provide a breakdown of Professional and Executive Register appointments in Wales since its inception.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the annual number of placings made by PER through its offices in Wales since March 1973 is as follows:

Financial years
1973–74	…	…	…	…	330
1974–75	…	…	…	…	356
1975–76	…	…	…	…	305
1976–77	…	…	…	…	396
1977–78	…	…	…	…	468

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will set out in the Official Report in tabular form, for each of the employment service offices within the Farnham parliamentary constituency, (a) the number of persons unemployed by previous trade, (b) the number of unemployed young people who have had no employment for more than three months since leaving school and are at the present time registered as unemployed, (c) the number of people resident in the Farnham parliamentary constituency who are currently employed under the youth opportunities programme, and the special temporary employment programme and (d) the number of vacancies for each trade for the latest convenient date.

The following table gives for the Farnham, Godalming and Lip-hook employment office areas, which together correspond closely to the Farnham parliamentary constituency, the numbers of people registered as unemployed analysed according to the industry in which they last worked, the numbers of unfilled vacancies in these industries and the numbers of unemployed school leavers. The industrial figures are for 10th August, the latest date for which this quarterly information is available.

	Farnham			Godalming			Liphook
		Unfilled vacancies			Unfilled vacancies			Unfilled vacancies
	Unemployed	at employment office	at careers office	Unemployed	at employment office	at careers office	Unemployed	at employment office
Agriculture, forestry, fishing	12	—	4	14	7	5	8	—
Mining and quarrying	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Food, drink and tobacco	4	—	—	1	—	—	1	—
Coal and petroleum products	2	—	—	2	—	—	—	—
Chemicals and allied industries	4	—	—	1	3	1	2	—
Metal manufacture	1	—	—	—	—	—	1	—
Mechanical engineering	17	22	4	20	6	2	6	2
Instrument engineering	1	1	2	—	2	—	2	—
Electrical engineering	3	12	1	7	4	1	3	1
Shipbuilding and marine engineering	—	—	—	1	—	—	2	—
Vehicles	—	—	—	2	13	—	3	—
Metal goods not elsewhere specified	2	2	1	3	4	—	7	—
Textiles	—	—	—	6	4	5	1	—
Leather, leather goods and fur	—	—	—	1	—	—	1	—
Clothing and footwear	1	—	—	3	—	—	—	—
Bricks, pottery, glass, cement, etc.	3	—	—	—	—	—	1	—
Timber, furniture, etc.	13	5	4	—	1	3	—	3
Paper, printing and publishing	4	2	—	2	1	—	4	1
Other manufacturing industries	4	2	3	6	5	—	6	1
Construction	28	10	3	19	27	2	50	3
Gas, electricity and water	3	1	—	5	2	3	1	—
Transport and communication	19	2	—	9	8	—	15	—
Distributive trades	54	39	13	30	21	18	24	1
Insurance, banking, finance and business services	16	3	3	14	5	6	10	1
Professional and scientific services	35	8	3	32	51	8	30	—
Miscellaneous services	61	38	11	42	59	5	48	7
Public administration and defence	61	15	2	44	16	3	35	5
Not elsewhere specified (including school leavers)	175	—	—	164	—	—	73	—
TOTALS	523	162	54	428	239	62	334	25
Unemployed school leavers at 12th October (included above)	8	—	—	14	—	—	—	—

The vacancy figures relate only to vacancies notified to employment offices and careers offices; vacancies notified to employment offices are estimated to be about country one-third of all vacancies in the count as a whole. Because of possible duplication the two series should not be added together.

There is no careers office at Liphook.

I am informed by the chairman of the Manpower Services Commission that, in respect of the youth opportunities programme and the special temporary employment programme, the information is not available in the form requested. In October, some 15 people, placed by careers offices and employment services division offices of the Manpower Services Commission within the Farnham parliamentary constituency were on schemes