asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the estimated cost of abolishing the parental contribution to mandatory awards for students aged between 21 and 25 years in the current academic year.

The cost of abolishing the parental contribution to mandatory awards for students aged between 21 and 25 is estimated at some £20 million to £25 million for Great Britain in 1978–79.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the estimated cost of abolishing the parental contribution to mandatory awards in the current academic year.

The cost of abolishing parental contributions to mandatory awards in 1978–79 is estimated at about £100 million for Great Britain.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the trustees of the new national heritage fund will be appointed; and if she will ensure they are representative of all interested bodies, including Parliament.

The trustees will be appointed by the Secretaries of State for the Environment and for Education and Science acting jointly in accordance with the terms of the legislation setting up the new fund when that has been passed. As the White Paper on the national heritage fund (Cmnd 7428) explains, the Government's intention is that the trustees will include some laymen and some who are well informed about, though not necessarily expert in, the area in which they have to operate.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has now completed consideration of the reports which he received into the riot at Gartree prison: and if he will make a statement.

I have now completed my examination of reports from the regional director and the governor on the riot that took place at Gartree prison on the night of 5 to 6 October 1978 and the report of an investigation carried out by the deputy director of Prison Medical Services into complaints made after the riot by a life sentence prisoner, Michael Carl Blake, in a petition. I have also taken into account a report produced by the Gartree branch of the Prison Officers' Association. In the light of these reports, I have considered whether any further inquiry is needed and have concluded that it is not.The immediate cause of the riot was a rumour which circulated in the prison that Mr. Blake had been assaulted and drugged. When evening association and classes began at 6 p.m. on 5 October, a group of prisoners on A wing began to make allegations about Mr. Blake's treatment. They rejected an offer to send two of their number to see Mr. Blake in the hospital and began smashing fittings in the wing and throwing missiles. A senior officer on A wing was injured; the alarm was given to call in off-duty staff; the governor arrived to assume control; and the police, fire and ambulance services were alerted. Evening class teachers were safely evacuated from the classrooms. Eight prison officers who had been trapped in A wing were helped to safety by a few other prisoners who were opposed to violence to the staff. The riot spread to D and B wings, but not to C wing, which remained in the control of staff. In A, B and D wings, the rioters erected barricades and repulsed staff with boiling water and missiles when they tried to regain control in the course of the night. Attempts by the rioters 10 break through the fabric of the building into the prison grounds or on to the roof were unsuccessful.During the riot three prisoners from D wing were allowed to see Mr. Blake in the hospital and were satisfied both from their observations and from what he said that he had not been assaulted. It was decided, with the medical officer's agreement, to allow Mr. Blake to go back to the main prison to show the rioters that he was unharmed. Neither his return nor the evidence of the prisoners who had seen him in the hospital calmed the rioters.The riot ended and prisoners surrendered on the morning of 6 October after considerable damage had been caused within the prison. Because of the damage, 150 of the 298 prisoners had to be transferred to other prisons.The position with respect to Mr. Blake's complaints is that he was transferred to Leicester prison on 7 October. On 10 October he submitted a petition complaining that the medical officer at Gartree prison had wrongfully prescribed drugs for him, that hospital officers had forcibly administered the drugs and placed him in a padded cell and that prison staff had untruthfully stated that he had been found in his cell with a towel tied tightly round his neck. Mr. Blake's allegations were carefully investigated by the assistant director of Prison Medical Services. He concluded that Mr. Blake had told the night orderly officer that he had tried to tighten a towel around his neck and that his admission to the prison hospital on 5 October, his location in the protected room for observation of his mental state and the prescription of a mild tranquillising drug were clinical decisions which it was proper for the medical officer to take. Mr. Blake himself admitted that his allegation that he was forcibly held down to be given drugs was untrue and the deputy director found that his complaint that he was drugged against his will was unsupported by medical or other evidence. In the light of all the available evidence he was satisfied that there was no substance in Mr. Blake's complaints about the medical officer and the hospital staff. I accept these conclusions. The official statement given at the time of the riot that Mr. Blake had been found with a towel tied round his neck was, how-ever, inaccurate; this was due to a mis- interpretation of a report of what Mr. Blake himself had said to the night orderly officer.The riot was dealt with with great efficiency by the governor and staff; there was no loss of life or serious injury. The police and fire services gave valuable support and assistance to the prison authorities. I also express my thanks to members of the Gartree board of visitors, who maintained a presence in the establishment both during the riot and during its immediate aftermath and who were on hand to observe the prisoners' surrender and the collection of their property. Disciplinary proceedings are being taken against a number of prisoners involved in the riot.I am satisfied that the riot was not a planned and concerted action by prisoners with genuine grievances and that no further inquiry is needed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration has been given to the Expenditure Committee's Tenth Report and the conclusions of Lord Goodman's committee on charity law; and if he will now announce the date on which a White Paper will be issued setting out the Government's proposals.

In the light of the reports of the Expenditure Committee and the Goodman committee, the Government have been carrying out their own comprehensive review of charity law. It is our intention to publish a reply to the Expenditure Committee's report.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will publish in the Official Report a detailed chronological list of the correspondence, interviews, discussions and actions taken in the case of Mr. and Mrs. Cain, as raised by the hon. Member for Newham, North-West; and why since October to December 1978, when first mooted, no disciplinary action against the police has taken place until 30 January 1979.

Rees: In November 1976 Mr. Cain was awarded damages against the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution. The Commissioner subsequently appointed an officer to investigate allegations made against two police officers involved in the case. Responsibility for the conduct of the investigation and for the consideration of the disciplinary aspects rests with the Commissioner. He tells me that disciplinary charges have now been preferred, and arrangements for the hearing are being made.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigrants are being detained in prison for illegal entry; and if he will list the countries from which they came and the length of their detention.

There were on 8 February 55 people detained in prison and else-where as illegal entrants under the authority of an immigration officer. 25 had been detained up to one month; 10 for more than one month and up to two months; 11 for more than two months and up to three months; five for more than three months and up to four months; and four for more than four months, the longest period being 20 months.Details by country are as follows:

ILLEGAL ENTRANTS DETAINED ON 8TH FEBRUARY 1979
Country	Number
Algeria	1
Bangladesh	5
Benin	1
Cyprus	1
Egypt	1
India	12
Iran	2
Yugoslavia	1
Morocco	2
Nigeria	3
Pakistan	19
Tunisia	1
Turkey	5
Stateless (Nationality Doubtful)	1
Total	55

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what new proposals he has received for improving the reception of British Broadcasting Corporation Radio Birmingham.

The BBC is carrying out tests to ascertain whether the relocation of the BBC Radio Birmingham trans- missions would offer scope for resolving the current coverage problems.The BBC will need to evaluate the results of the tests and to discuss their findings in the forum of the Home Office local radio working party.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why sections 47 and 48 of the Criimnal Law Act 1977 are not yet in force.

Section 47 has not yet been implemented because of uncertainty about the immediate effect of the partially suspended sentence on the prison population; however, the Government will be keeping the matter under review.As was made clear during the passage of the Bill, implementation of section 48 will depend on considerations of resources. Consultations are taking place about the nature and cost of possible schemes for a greater degree of advance disclosure of the prosecution case in trials by magistrates' courts, but these are not yet complete.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the contribution that the open prisons can make to diminishing the over- crowding in the closed prisons is being adequately employed.

The allocation of prisoners to open prisons is being care-fully monitored to ensure that the fullest use is being made of this accommodation. The safety of the public must, however, be the first consideration and there is a lack of prisoners who meet the criteria for transfer to these establishments.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is satisfied with the efficiency of borstal institutions.

Yes, but the hon. and learned Member will have seen that the Government have published proposals for a new young offender sentence in the discussion paper "Youth Custody and Supervision"

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the latest current expenditure on attendance centres; and how many new ones are expected to open during 1979.

The total estimated expenditure on attendance centres for 1978–79 is £409,000. Six new centres have already been opened this year bringing the total to 79, and another eight to 10 are expected to open during the year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number of burglaries in the Metropolitan Police area in each of the last five years.

In 1977, there were 124,529 offences of burglary recorded by the Metropolitan Police. Information for the earlier years is published in the report of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department for the most recent period for which information is available, how many people were certified by juvenile courts as unruly and, as a result, remanded in custody.

The total number of certificates of unruliness issued by juvenile courts in 1978 was 3,546; 3,404 for boys and 142 for girls. The number of juveniles remanded in custody would have been slightly less than the number of certificates issued because a few juveniles would have been remanded more than once but the reduction would not be significant.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Metropolitan policemen were detained in hospital as a result of injuries received on duty in 1958, 1968 and 1978.

I regret that the information is not available for 1958 and 1968, nor, in precisely the form required, for 1978. In 1978, however, 22 officers were admitted to hospital as a result of being assaulted while on duty.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what futher measures he intends to introduce to deal with the rise in juvenile crime.

The Criminal Law Act 1977 substantially increased the powers of the courts in dealing with juvenile offenders and I do not consider that any further changes in the law are at present necessary. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services is encouraging the further development of intermediate treatment; the number of secure places in community homes is being steadily increased; and several new junior attendance centres have been or will soon be opened. In addition the Government's general policy of strengthening the police and encouraging local initiatives in crime prevention is directed at juvenile as well as other crime.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he now expects to bring forward proposals to enable reasons for Parole Board decisions to be given.

I refer the hon. Member to the replies given to questions by the hon. Member for Banbury (Mr. Marten) and my hon. Friend the Member for Ormskirk (Mr. Kilroy-Silk) on 30 November—[Vol. 959, c. 685–6.] The results of the experiment are still being assessed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the arrangements to protect life and property in the event of a major flood in London caused by a North Sea surge pending the completion of the Thames flood barrier.

Plans to deal with the effects of flooding should the river defences be overtopped in London are the responsibility of the borough councils, co-ordinated by the Greater London Council. I understand that these plans are maintained at a high standard of readiness.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what considerations led him to order the cessasion of the practice of virginity testing by immigration officials; and under what immigration rule under the 1971 Act it was thought previously to be required.

There has been no such practice or requirement. My right hon. Friend decided that no request like the one made in the recent case at Heathrow should be made again because such a request can lead, as it did in that case, to a medical examination of a sort which may cause unnecessary distress and which goes beyond what should be expected for the purposes of immigration control.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he intends to seek comments on the document "Disciplinary Arrangements for Chief Police Officers" from organisations other than those listed therein.

I have no present plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to amend the current licensing laws.

None at present.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will revise the administrative directions to the police, appended to the Judges' Rules, in order to ensure that a witness is in attendance when mentally handicapped suspects are questioned by the police.

Paragraph 4A of the administrative directions, which were re-issued in June 1978, states that as far as practicable, and where recognised as such by the police, a mentally handicapped person should be interviewed only in the presence of a parent or other person in whose care he is, or of some person who is not a police officer—for example a social worker. We have no plans to under-take any further revision of the administrative directions in advance of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on criminal procedure, within whose terms of reference they fall.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library the evidence of the Home Office to the Royal Commission on criminal procedure.

Copies of the Home Office memoranda of evidence to the Royal Commission are placed in the Library of the House as they are published.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many entry certificates were issued to people from Bangladesh to join relatives in the United Kingdom in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

In the 12 months ending 30 September 1978, entry clearances for immediate settlement in the United Kingdom were granted to approximately 4,000 citizens of Bangladesh, to join relatives in the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many mentally disordered persons were in prison establishments at the latest avail able date; and what efforts are being made to find them hospital places.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave earlier today to a question by the hon. Member for Worcestershire, South (Mr. Spicer) and to the reply my right hon. Friend gave to my hon. Friend's question on 12 February.—[Vol. 962, c. 378–79.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from local authorities whose new ward boundary arrangements will not be completed before the May elections and which will be required to hold further full elections in 1980.

Local authorities have represented that future electoral arrangements orders should provide for elections of the whole council, on the basis of new electoral arrangements, to be held in 1980, 1982, and 1983. No orders have yet been made to come into effect in 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is now able to make a statement about future designations under the Fire Precautions Act 1971.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will arrange for the distribution of radiation monitoring equipment at present held in central stores by his Department to the Devon emergency volunteers and similar organisations.

No. A set of radiac instruments is issued to each county council for training purposes; the main stock

			Strength on 31 December 1975		Strength on 31 December 1978		Percentage change between 31 December 1975 and 31 December 1978
Force			Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women
Kent	…	…	2,332	123	2,415	264	+3·56	+114·63
Devon and Cornwall			2,535	118	2,453	176	−3·23	+49·15
Hampshire	…	…	2,673	105	2,722	165	+1·83	+57·14
Greater Manchester			5,497	408	5,592	716	+1·73	+75·49
West Midlands		…	5,184	384	5,217	652	+0·64	+69·79
Essex	…	…	2,177	135	2,178	192	+0·05	+42·22
Merseyside	…	…	3,743	316	3,799	486	+1·50	+53·80
Metropolitan		…	20,348	879	20,473	1,488	+0·61	+69·28

We recognise that with the recent increased intake of women the proportion of women probationers, many of whom are engaged on patrol duties, is higher than the proportion of women in the police forces as a whole. We should like to see an increase in the number of male recruits, and we are hopeful that this will be the effect of the pay award recommended by the Edmund-Davies committee.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is satisfied with present police staff levels; and if he will make a statement.

On 31 December 1978 the strength of the police service in England and Wales was 109,075, a gain of 1,276 over the figure at 30 June 1978. We regard this as an encouraging improvement, and we expect in the coming months to see further reductions in the 8,500 vacancies now existing.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the percentage increase or decrease in the number of policemen and policewomen, respectively, in the period 1976 to 1978 in the Kent, Devon and Cornwall, Hampshire, Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Essex, Merseyside and Metropolitan forces; and whether he is satisfied with the proportion of women in the patrol strengths at police stations in these forces.

The figures are shown below:introduce legislation to give the same legal status prison standing orders as currently exist for prison rules.

I do not propose to do so. Standing orders are management documents providing detailed instructions to governors on the day-to-day running of penal establishments; and it would not be appropriate or practicable for them to be given statutory form.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to be able to sanction the building of a new magistrates' court in Telford town centre, Telford, Salop, to replace the present inadequate facilities.

Agreement to forward planning on this scheme was given to the providing authority last summer, but I am not yet able to say when a start date can be offered.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the new police negotiating machinery is to be put into effect.

I have nothing to add to the reply I gave to a question by the hon. Member for Birmingham, Hall Green (Mr. Eyre) on 6 February.—[Vol. 962, c. 90.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why on 23 October 1978 the actual strength of the regular force of the Derbyshire constabulary was 12·1 per cent. below its authorised establishment.

In March 1976, when the force had only three vacancies, the establishment was increased by 150, 8·78 per cent. of the new establishment. 30 of these vacancies were filled by August 1976. Difficulties over recruitment and wastage then caused the strength to fall, and the situation did not improve until June 1978. Since then the force has gained 13, and I hope will now make further progress.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation to provide that a British woman married to a non British subject has the right to pass on her British nationality to her children born abroad.

The Government said in the Green Paper on British nationality law—Cmnd. 6795—that they favoured altering the law to enable women to transmit citizenship on the same terms as men; but they do not contemplate introducing legislation in the present Session of Parliament.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time taken by his office to deal with an application for British nationality.

Applications for citizenship are of different types, some needing more inquiries and consideration than others. The average length of time is about 13 to 14 months but some applications take considerably longer and many of the more straightforward ones are dealt with in three to four months.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to announce his decision on the representations made to him in March 1978 by the United Kingdom representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees regarding the implementation in the United Kingdom of the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees.

Shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contacts exist between police forces in the United Kingdom and the South African police; and whether any such contacts would need his approval.

Such contacts may need to be made in the course of criminal investigations. During the past 12 months I have, as police authority for the Metropolitan Police, approved two visits to South Africa by Metropolitan Police officers engaged in such investigations. My approval would not be required for other contacts.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give in detail the maintenance and administrative costs of the special constabulary of the West Midlands police.

The costs of the West Midlands special constabulary for the financial year ended 31 March 1978 were as follows:

	£
Part salary of Sergeant instructor	436
Wages of administrative staff	6,500
Uniform	5,400
Boot allowance	1,207
Car allowance	2,004
Subsistence allowance	7,917
Travelling expenses	5,265
Miscellaneous	369
Total	29,098

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the situation under section 14 of the Firearms Act 1968 whereby a visitor to Great Britain, having spent less that 30 days there in the preceding year, may have in his possession, or purchase, a shotgun without holding a shotgun certificate.

Yes. I have no evidence that this provision has led to any substantial evasion of firearms controls.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the Government's present intentions concerning changes in the law on firearms; and when they intend to introduce amending legislation.

I have it in mind to introduce legislation to amend the Firearms Act 1968 so as to tighten the present controls over shotguns and to raise existing age limits for the purchase and possession of all types of firearm. At present I am unable to say when such legislation may be brought forward.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make regulations under the provisions of the European Elections Act 1978 to govern the general expenditure on election promotion so as to make this accountable as part of the expenses of a candidate, in the light of the fact that the date of the European elections is already fixed, unlike general elections where a date is not fixed until dissolution but where all such promotional campaigns are obliged to cease before the election or be counted against election expenses.

I have no plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, in view of the diminution in horse race betting and the consequent increase on betting on greyhound racing in periods of bad weather, he will seek to introduce legislation to enable him to impose a similar levy on betting on greyhound racing.

I have no present plans to do so. The Royal Commission on gambling considered the arguments for and against a levy on betting on greyhound racing but rejected the proposal.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will now grant Mr. Harry Podlewski British citizenship; and, whether he will make a statement.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fatal casualties resulted from fires which occurred in residential houses on Merseyside and how many for which figures are available were non-fatal.

13 fatal and 220 non-fatal casualties were recorded as resulting from fires in dwellings in Merseyside in 1977 which were attended by local authority fire brigades or by Armed Services personnel during the fire service strike. Figures for 1978 are not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the fires which occurred in residential houses on Merseyside in 1978, for which figures are available, were in council houses or in houses in the ownership of housing associations or other public bodies.

The information requested is not collected centrally.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fires occurred in residential houses on Merseyside in the last year for which figures are available; and, of these, how many were flats and maisonettes.

2,226 fires in dwellings in Merseyside in 1977 were recorded as attended by local authority fire brigades—or by Armed Services personnel during the fire service strike. I shall publish in the Official Report as soon as possible the separate figures for flats and maisonettes. Figures for 1978 are not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made by the Royal Commission on criminal procedure in its consideration of experiments, in tape recording of suspects, during police interrogation.

This is a matter for the Royal Commission, but I understand that work has begun on an operational research study into the cost and organisational implications of tape recording interviews at police stations, and that the Commission hopes to be able to conduct a limited experiment in tape recording.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to publish the discussion paper on the private security industry; and if he will make a statement.

The discussion paper is being published today. I hope that this will provide a basis for further debate on the need for control over the private security industry. Views are being invited by the end of July from interested organisations and others concerned. I shall be pleased to receive any comments that hon. Members may have on the issues discussed in this publication.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will make a statement on the issue of public dividend capital to British Airways as it affects Concorde.

It is three years since the introduction of Concorde services. In spite of difficulties in developing particular routes, the Government feel that sufficient experience of operating Concorde has been obtained to justify a review of British Airways financial position. This review has been carried out by a group on which the Departments concerned and the airline were represented. I have today placed a copy of the group's report in the Library of the House.Concorde is now earning for British Airways a positive cash flow and it is hoped that over the remaining lifetime of the aircraft, the surpluses, after meeting operating costs, will be substantial. How-ever, the report indicates that, whatever may be the situation in the longer term, these surpluses will be insufficient for the foreseeable future to cover amortisation of the aircraft and its spares in accordance with the airline's normal accounting criteria. They will likewise be insufficient to pay an appropriate dividend on public dividend capital.The Government have accepted the recommendation of the review group that the Concorde aircraft and spares should be entered in British Airways' accounts as a fully depreciated asset and that a corresponding amount of public dividend capital, amounting to £160 million, should be cancelled. Any surpluses earned on Concorde operations will be divided between the Government, who will take 80 per cent., and British Airways, who will retain 20 per cent. by way of incentive to operate the aircraft economically. The arrangements do not therefore involve any operating subsidy being paid to the airline.British Airways will continue to use their commercial judgment to seek to achieve a financial surplus on Concorde operations consistent with the maintenance of a reasonable level of utilisation and the exploitation of a balanced route pattern.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will make a statement on the outcome of the discussions on civil aviation and shipping at the Transport Ministers Council on 20 February.

Smith: The principal item on the agenda was the question of a Community position on the UN code of conduct for liner conferences. Substantial progress was made on the basis of a helpful set of compromise proposals from the Presidency and the Commission. But it was not possible to reach final agreement.The compromise proposals would open the way for all member States to become contracting parties to the code subject to certain reservations and understandings.The United Kingdom has been particularly concerned to preserve a commercially competitive environment for conferences operating between the OECD countries. The Community has in large measure accepted this aim. The code would, of course, not apply at all where the OECD trading partner was not a contracting party. Where it was, under the compromise proposals, EEC member States would, subject to two caveats, dis- apply the code's cargo-sharing provisions and certain other of the code's rigid features. The two caveats are that the OECD trading partner should reciprocate this disapplication; and that there should be no prejudice to the possibility of participation in such conferences by national lines of developing countries in accordance with the principles reflected in the relevant part of the code.In trades between the EEC and developing countries, the lines of developing countries which are parties to the code would enjoy full codist rights. The EEC lines would place their shares of these trades into a central pot which would then be distributed according to commercial rather than codist criteria. But the final decision on this distribution of cargoes would have to be unanimous with a view to each line carrying a fair share of the conference trade. This commercial distribution process in codist trades with developing countries would be open to the lines of other OECD countries on a basis of reciprocity.The compromise proposals also envisage that the Community would urge other OECD countries considering accession to the code to adopt the Community arrangements as a model.It was not possible to reach final agreement on this package at the 20 February Council. Denmark drew attention to the importance of taking into account the views of other OECD countries, especially the USA and Japan, before taking a final view. We understand and share its concern. Italy was unwilling to accept the commercial distribution arrangements for the codist trades with developing countries without a political declaration indicating that the national lines of each member State would not be expected to suffer a substantial reduction in their codist shares. It was generally felt in the Council that this would defeat the scheme's objectives. The Italian Minister was invited to reconsider the position with his Government colleagues in Rome. The Commission will mean-while make contact with the USA and Japan as well as Italy.I still hope that we can soon achieve a Community position on this important shipping issue. There are likely to be further discussions at Council level in early March.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) if he will publish in the Official Report figures for the number of licensed pilots and certificate holders in each pilotage district; and what estimates have been made of the number of applications likely to be made in each pilotage district by non-British European Economic Community nationals;(2) if he will publish in the

The information we have available is as follows: estimates of the pilotage certificates to EEC nationals are based on ferry movements only and assume that one master and one mate apply for a certificate for each ferry. No estimates have been made of the potential issue of certificates for other EEC ships.No central record is kept of shipping movements in and out of British ports. Where information exists, it is not directly comparable with the records which pilotage authorities keep of the number of acts of pilotage, as these include double acts of pilotage and shifts of ships within a district. The great majority of pilotage authorities do not keep a record of movements by a pilotage certificate holder. Pilotage authorities do not keep records of the movements of exempt ships.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what help he is giving British plastic bottle manufacturers and plastic bottle plant manufacturers; and if he will take steps in this field so as to limit the high level of French and Dutch imports which are likely to occur within the next 12 months.

I shall reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what, for each of the last two years for which figures are available, were the number of live sheep exported for (a) further fattening and (b) slaughter, listed by the country declared as the final destination.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 20 February 1979; Vol.

UNITED KINGDOM EXPORTS OF LIVE DOMESTIC SHEEP NOT FOR BREEDING
						Lambs (up to a year old)		Other
Country of destination						1977	1978	1977	1978
Irish Republic		…	…	…	…	74,059	151,019	79,047	160,519
Belgium-Luxembourg			…	…	…	34,465	17,528	82,308	185,101
Federal Republic of Germany					…	1,265	399	49,828	51,867
France	…	…	…	…	…	2,080	5,081	30,451	9,689
Total		…	…	…	…	111,869	174,027	241,634	407,176
Source: United Kingdom Overseas Trade Statistics, SITC Sub-group 001.2.
Note: The Overseas Trade Statistics do not distinguish between sheep for further fattening and those for immediate slaughter.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is yet able to announce the names and chairman of the committee to be appointed to consider the comparability of pay of public servants with industry; whether these persons will be paid a taxed wage or a tax-free attendance allowance; and what the payments will be.

No. An announcement will be made in due course.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the cost of cutting the basic rate of income tax to 30 per cent. and eliminating the reduced rate band charged at 25 per cent.

At 1978–79 income levels the full year cost is about £360 million.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the findings of the value added tax tribunal on the case of Mr. Bedward of Bournemouth, whose appeal was heard on 16 November 1978.