asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the number of Soviet fishing vessels, or vessels trading in fish, currently operating in British waters; and what estimate he has made of the value of the catch or purchase of the fish, caught or purchased by such vessels, in the latest 12-month period for which he has figures.

No Soviet vessels are permitted to fish in United Kingdom fishery limits. I know of 10 Soviet vessels currently within United Kingdom limits for the purpose of buying fish. Statistics are not kept in such a way as to identify separately the value of fish purchased by such vessels.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consideration his Department is giving to banning Soviet vessels from fishing, or trading in fish, in British waters, until Soviet troops retreat from Afghanistan; and what discussion he has had with United Kingdom European Economic Community partners on this matter.

Soviet vessels have not been permitted to fish within United Kingdom fishery limits since 1977. My right hon. Friend, the Lord Privy Seal made clear in his statement to the House on 24 January that all trade should be pursued on a basis of mutual advantage and that we would apply that principle to British-Soviet trade. Discussions have been held with our EEC partners on the major agricultural and food products traded with the USSR. The situation for fish and other products is being kept under review.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he is taking to identify the areas of marginal land that could qualify for assistance under the less favoured areas directive.

A survey was begun by the previous Administration to identify without commitment those areas of poor quality land outside the hill line which are farmed on a similar extensive system and suffer from much the same natural handicaps.In England and Wales, we have now reached the stage where some field inspections are necessary to define or confirm these areas so that statistical and economic information can be collected about the farms within them for comparison with the objective criteria laid down by the EEC Commission for less favoured areas under EEC Directive 75/268.The fieldwork will be the responsibility of the land service of ADAS, which is already heavily loaded with work on the capital grants schemes. To enable it to undertake this additional task, it is proposed to introduce as soon as possible arrangements to enable more work to start without prior inspection under the grant schemes. Details will be announced shortly. It is hoped in this way to be able to complete the fieldwork on marginal land in 1981.There is, of course, no presumption that any land inspected now will necessarily become eligible for special assistance. The Government cannot give any undertaking at this stage either that the less favoured areas will be extended or, if they are, that extra public funds will be available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, whether the Government have completed the review of food legislation begun by the previous Administration; if so, what their conclusions are; and if they will issue a consultative document.

The review has been completed. The Government have concluded that major changes in the law are not necessary at present and therefore no consultative document will be issued. It would, however, be desirable to strengthen the law controlling the sale of food unfit for human consumption, and interested organisations will be consulted about this shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he is now in a position to make an announcement on the future of the cost escalation scheme operated by the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

Yes. It is the Government's intention to recommend to the House an extension for 12 months of the powers granted under section 5 of the Export Guarantees and Overseas Investment Act 1978 to enable the scheme's operation for a further year. The terms of the scheme are to be amended to increase the rate of premium payable for the cover it provides.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he has received representations from the International Air Transport Association or individual foreign airlines regarding the forthcoming increases in navigation, landing and airport handling charges.

[pursuant to his reply, 31 January 1980]: I have received representations from a number of different bodies representing airlines operating in this country, and I have agreed to meet a delegation from the International Air Transport Association next week.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will estimate the percentage increase proposed in airport handling charges at Gatwick and Heathrow, respectively; and how these charges will compare with those at Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and New York, respectively.

[pursuant to his reply, 31 January 1980] The BAA, which has now submitted its proposals for increased traffic charges for approval, estimates that, in terms of income per passenger, the new charges structure would result in an increase of about 40 per cent. at Heathrow and a little less than 20 per cent. at Gatwick. Comparisons of charges at different international airports will depend upon a number of factors, including current exchange rates, but I have no reason to believe that the BAA's charges will be significantly out of line with comparable charges at other major European airports or charges to airlines using the Port Authority's terminal at Kennedy airport.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will name the county councils, including the Greater London Council, which act on behalf of the Government in the construction of trunk roads; which of the county councils named employ direct labour in the fulfilment of Government contracts; which county councils employ contractors; and if he will name in each cases the contractor employed.

All county councils, except the Isle of Wight, where there are no trunk roads, may act as agents for the Government in the construction of trunk roads, generally for schemes estimated to cost less than £2½ million. For schemes estimated to cost £100,000 or less, a county may carry out the work by direct labour. For schemes costing more than £100,000 the work is only undertaken by direct labour organisations if they tender successfully in competition with private contractors. The list of contractors employed by counties in fulfilment of trunk road contracts is not readily available.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will endeavour to secure a national policy with regard to the movement of high, wide and heavy loads.

The movement of vehicles carrying the type of loads my hon. Friend has in mind is already kept under close control. Movement of those carrying indivisible loads up to 6.1 metres wide and 150 tons gross weight is governed by the Special Types General Order regulations. These provide for the approval of the routes by the highway and bridge authorities in the case of heavy loads and by the police for wide loads. Additionally, the approval of my Department must be obtained for loads between 4·3 and 6·1 metres wide.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will institute a public inquiry into the death of Malcolm Page.

I have asked for urgent reports from the Essex county council and the Essex area health authority and will consider what action might be appropriate when I have received them.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report the percentage increases which will be given on 1 April to house officers, senior house officers, registrars and senior registrars; if these increases are within the Government's economic strategy; and if he will make a statement.

It is for the Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body to make recommendations to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on the remuneration of these grades; when they are received, the Government will announce their conclusions on these recommendations to Parliament in the usual way.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what further action is being taken to implement the recommendations of the Silver Jubilee Committee on Improving Access for Disabled People; and if he will make a statement.

I am not yet in a position to add to my reply of 13 November.—[Vol. 973, c. 595–6.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what representations his Department has had from the replacement specialised vehicle project since the publication of the Motor Industry Research Association's report on vehicles for disabled people; what reply he has sent; and if he will make a statement.

None. I refer the right hon. Gentleman to my reply to him on 31 January.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many patients from Wales in each of the special hospitals have been assessed as fit to be discharged but remain under detention on account of the absence of suitable community accommodation and local authority supervision.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Lewisham, West (Mr. Price) on 16 January. Patients from Wales present no more difficult problems than those from England.—[Vol. 976, c. 765.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many patients from Wales currently detained in each of the special hospitals have been in special hospitals for (a) less than five years, (b) between five and 10 years, (c) between 10 and 15 years, (d) between 15 and 20 years, (e) between 20 and 25 years, (f) between 25 and 30 years, (g) between 30 and 40 years and (h) more than 40 years.

I regret that the information is not readily available and cannot be provided without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how long Mrs. Caroline Pulcella of 20 Moor Street, The Leys, Tamworth, Staffordshire has been awaiting hip replacement surgery at the Good Hope district general hospital, North Birmingham health district; and when her operation will take place;(2) how many patients have been waiting (

I refer my hon. Friend to the Birmingham area health authority (teaching) for information on individual constituents and the waiting lists at particular hospitals.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will set up a cost of living index for one-parent families and ensure the child benefit and other support is increased at a rate in line with or better than this index.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his suggestion. I am advised that existing indices provide an adequate guide to the impact of inflation on one-parent families.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report the number of midwives working in each of the health districts, in (a) Kent, (b) East Sussex (c) Greenwich and Bexley and (d) Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham, for the last year for which figures are available, and show the figures for each of the years following the creation of the health districts.

I regret that this information is not available centrally in the detail requested. I suggest that my hon. Friend should seek it from the South-East Thames regional health authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in percentage and cash terms the proportion of the annual budget spent on administration, and also the annual budget in cash terms for each of the health districts in (a) Kent, (b) East Sussex, (c) Greenwich and Bexley and (d) Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham, for the last year for which figures are available, and to show figures for the first full year after creation.

District budgets are the responsibility of the appropriate area health authority and information about expenditure or the costs of administration are not available by district. I suggest that my hon. Friend approaches either the area health authorities concerned or the South-East Thames regional health authority for such information as is available.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the progress made so far at the constitutional conference.

The conference on the government of Northern Ireland has met for 13 sessions since 7 January. It has so far considered six items on a 14-point agenda, though recognising that the separate items interlock and cannot be agreed in isolation. Discussion is currently centering on the modus operandi of a future Administration.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the maximum period of time the constitutional conference will be allowed to last.

There is no time limit on the conference on the government of Northern Ireland. I believe that all the participants wish it to continue for so long as the discussions are worthwhile, and for no longer.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he intends to have the Irish Republican Army sign at the entrance to Portglenore Forest removed.

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to writing in crayon on the signpost at the entrance to the forest park. This has been removed.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland why the recently appointed Northern Ireland Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Commissioner for Complaints found it necessary to relinquish the posts; and what new arrangements have been made to fill these offices.

On 29 December 17979, Dr. R. Dickson withdrew his acceptance of the posts of Northern Ireland Parliamentary Commission for Administration and Commissioner for Complaints following a report relating to a case investigated by the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Complaints in 1973. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 30 January to the hon. Member for Newbury (Mr. McNair-Wilson, concerning the temporary appointment of Mr. C. M. Clothier Q.C., to these posts.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if the Government of Cambodia have the use of premises at 21 Avenue Road, London N.W., for diplomatic purposes; and if so, what action he proposes to take to assist the council of the City of Westminster to obtain arrears of rates.

The property at 21 Avenue road NW8 has not been occupied by diplomatic representatives of a Cambodian Government since 1975, when it was vacated by the representatives of the Government of the Khmer Republic.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if the holder of passport No. CO85232A holds the same nationality and immigration rights as any native-born passport holder.

No. The passport in question was issued to a citizen of Rhodesia under the special concessionary arrangements announced by the then Attorney-General in the House on 17 June 1968. Such a passport describes the national status of the holder as "British Subject" (which is synonymous with "Commonwealth Citizen"). This does not confer the status of citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies (which is the status of a person born in the United Kingdom) on the holder, nor does it give him the same immigration rights as such a citizen.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has plans to extend the interest-free period over which capital transfer tax in respect of owner-occupied agricultural holdings can be paid by instalment from eight years to 12 years.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out the amount by which the threshold of £10,000 for value added tax exemption would need to be raised in order to keep abreast of inflation.

On the basis of the retail price index for December 1979, the latest published, the VAT registration limit could now be raised to £13,000 taxable turnover per annum.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how soon after the interim approval of new occupational pension schemes the dividend income becomes tax free; what mechanism is used by the Inland Revenue to ensure that any tax held by the Inland Revenue pending interim approval is returned to the pension scheme; what is the average waiting time between granting of interim approval and return of tax; and how much tax is held by the Inland Revenue pending return to pension schemes which have gained interim approval.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects next to raise the blind person's tax allowance.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what is the value of the blind person's tax allowance; when it was last increased; and what its value would be today if it had been increased in line with (a) prices, (b) earnings and (c) other personal tax allowances.

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

asked the Lord Privy Seal what is the number of award holders under the Commonwealth scholarship and fellowship plan who have gone from the United Kingdom to take up places in other Commonwealth countries for the current academic year; and how many have gone to each of the Commonwealth countries participating.

The total number of awardholders under the Commonwealth scholarship and fellowship plan who went from the United Kingdom to take up places in other Commonwealth countries for the current academic year was 21. The breakdown by country was as follows:

Australia	5
Canada	7
Hong Kong	1
India	3
New Zealand	1
Nigeria	2
Sri Lanka	2

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the difference in price between what the motorist pays for naphtha as a constituent of petrol and what the chemical industry pays for naphtha as a feedstock.

It is provisionally estimated that, in the third quarter of 1979,

Year			30 June			31 December
			M	F	Total	M	F	Total
1972	…	…	8,236	—	8,236	8,148	—	8,148
1973	…	…	7,241	—	7,241	6,743	334	7,077
1974	…	…	6,288	490	6,778	5,879	533	6,412
1975	…	…	5,597	605	6,202	5,634	600	6,234
1976	…	…	5,570	602	6,172	5,417	621	6,038
1977	…	…	5,306	638	5,944	5,163	645	5,808
1978	…	…	5,007	649	5,656	4,686	651	5,337
1979	…	…	4,405	618	5,023	4,294	590	4,884

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give some of the large range of equipment disposed

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he is satisfied that the Westinghouse air traffic control system being considered for purchase by the Civil Aviation Authority will meet satisfactorily the requirements of the Royal Air Force; and if he will make a statement.

Westinghouse is one of the systems under consideration by the CAA on behalf of the National Air Traffic Services (NATS). NATS is a partnership of the CAA and the MOD, and its operational requirements are designed to accord with civil and military air traffic control needs. The system eventually chosen will meet both sets of requirements.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish in the Official Report figures showing the strength of the part-time element of the Ulster Defence Regiment on 30 June and 31 December, for each year since 1 January 1972.

The information requested is as follows:of by his Department every year to worthy causes in need of such equipment, such as the Welsh Institute of Marine Archaeology and History.

The sales supply department will be pleased to put organisations such as the Welsh Institute of Marine Archaeology and History in touch with the various public auctions and competitive tendering that we arrange. However, because of the loss of defence funds and the need to make arrangements for refurbishing the goods I regret that it is not possible to give surplus defence equipment to charitable organisations.

Blocks of work											Number of posts
Service and civilian personnel management					…	…	…	…	…	…	325
Stores management and procurement					…	…	…	…	…	…	205
Defence equipment codification, Mottingham						…	…	…	…	…	240
Army pensions, Stanmore			…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	120
Equipment standardisation			…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	100
Assistant directorate of contracts (general stores), Cessington								…	…	…	40
Air technical publications, Chessington					…	…	…	…	…	…	130
Defence research information centre, St. Mary Cray							…	…	…	…	80
Common services staff		…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	160
Total	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	1,400

The make-up of the 1,400 posts in the dispersal package will be kept under review to take account of any changes resulting from the continuing search for economy and efficiency in the functions of the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the assumptions on which he arrived at the estimate, contained in the financial memorandum to the Tenants Rights etc. (Scotland Bill,

asked the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects to announce the selection of his Department posts to be dispersed to Glasgow.

1,400 MOD posts in the London area have now been identified for planning purposes for dispersal to the St. Enoch site. They are made up as follows: —of an increase of £1 million in expenditure on rent allowance.

The figure cannot be estimated with any precision because the effect of the abolition of phasing of rent increases depends on the level of registered rents, which is not under any control, and on the annual limit to be determined under clause 36. On the best calculation I could make, it appeared that £0·8 million might be needed to provide for increased demand from existing claimants and £0·2 million for new applicants.The figure of £1 million in the memorandum does not include extra expenditure which may be required in the form of supplementary benefits. I estimate that additional sum tentatively to be of the order of £1·5 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will carry out a complete review of the expenditure incurred by the Scottish Home and Health Department in the making of such films as "Are we being Conned".

No. These films are commissioned by the Scottish health education unit and the responsibility for reviewing the unit's expenditure rests with the management committee of the Common Services Agency under the general oversight of my Department. I am satisfied, in any event, that the unit's expenditure of about £140,000 over four years on production costs and teachers' support material for the eight films in the "Teenage Talk In" series is justified. All the films in the series, including "Are We Being Conned", have been awarded certificates of educational commendation by the British Life Assurance Trust for health education.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many warrants were exercised by the police under secton 114 of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 1976 in respect of clubs registered with the sheriff clerk at Falkirk during the year ended 31 December 1979.

One.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will now review the provision of the Housing Finance Act 1972, whereunder only the first £4 of a person's war pension can be discounted in determining that person's entitlement to a rent and rate rebate.

Local authorities already have discretionary powers to give more generous assistance than is provided by the statutory schemes, but the case for uprating the mandatory war pension disregard will be kept under review.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the assumptions on which he arrived at the estimate, contained in the financial memorandum to the Housing Bill, of an increase of £72 million in expenditure on rent allowance.

The estimates in paragraph 25 of the memorandum can only be indicative of the broad order of magnitude of possible additional rent allowance payments when the relevant provisions may have come into full effect. The two main assumptions underlying these estimates were that there are some 200,000 controlled tenancies in existence and that fair rents will be increased on re-registration by rent officers at roughly the current rate. The estimates include allowances paid indirectly via supplementary benefit.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his present estimate of the likely proceeds of disposal of surplus Government accommodation by the Property Services Agency during 1980; and what is his estimate of the likely saving in public expenditure as the result of such disposals.

Proceeds from the sale of surplus Government accommodation, including land, on the civil and defence estates are expected to amount to about £50 million in the financial year 1979–80 and £60 million in 1980–81.Information about the likely savings in public expenditure resulting from these disposals is not available centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will seek to ascertain the number of second homes in England, Scotland and Wales by placing a question to that effect in the next household survey.

Not for England, but I have to refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and Wales on those household surveys for which they are responsible in their respective counties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will name the county councils, including the Greater London Council, which act on behalf of his Department in the construction of public construction projects; which of the county councils named employ direct labour in the fulfilment of Government contracts; which county councils employ contractors; and if he will name in each case the contractor employed.

County councils do not normally act on the Property Services Agency's behalf on construction projects. On occasions, however, where it has been the most economical solution, arrangements have been made for county councils to provide Crown and county court accommodation as part of their own development schemes. Private contractors were employed on these schemes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he proposes further to amend the general consent in order to make it easier for council tenants to buy their homes before the Housing Bill becomes law.

I have today further amended the consents issued on 18 May last year so that where sales of council or new town dwellings under negotiation have been delayed they may in general be completed on the basis of the original valuation. This will bring the consents in this respect broadly into line with the provisions of the Bill. The amended consents come into effect on 4 February.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the policy of his Department regarding the issue of work permits to overseas graduates from British universities and polytechnics wishing to stay in Great Britain temporarily to complete professional training; and whether there has been any change in policy, or in the administration of the policy, since 3 May.

It is the long-standing policy of my Department to issue permits for overseas graduates from British universities or polytechnics to enter training or employment in order to complete their professional training, subject to the conditions of the appropriate training scheme being satisfied.Until 31 December 1979, approval was given under the Commonwealth training scheme or, for foreign nationals, the student employment scheme. On 1 January 1980, these schemes were merged to become the training and work experience scheme available to foreign and Commonwealth citizens alike. The new scheme does not represent any change of policy but has been introduced to ensure consistency and equitable treatment for all trainees irrespective of nationality.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many work permits were issued to overseas students who entered into training contracts for each of the years 1977,1978 and 1979 who sought extensions in the United Kingdom to fulfil the practical qualifications for a chartered institute for which they already had the necessary academic qualifications, indicating in each case the chartered or professional organisation for which the work permit was issued, either to fulfil a training contract or otherwise; and what is the expected number of similar work permits expected to be issued in 1980.

Individual statistics are not kept by my Department of the number of permits issued for overseas students who enter training contracts. This information could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. As permits are issued in response to individual applications it is not possible to estimate the number which may be issued in 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment why only three prosecutions were instituted while 58 deaths occurred in quarries between 1975 and 1978; if he is satisfied with quarry inspections; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 31 January 1980]; The policy of the Health and Safety Executive is broadly to prosecute where employers or others concerned appear deliberately to have flouted the provisions of health and safety legislation; where they have been reckless in exposing persons to dangers; or where there have been repeated infringements of the law. Each case is examined carefully and treated on its merits. In reaching a decision on whether to prosecute in cases arising at quarries, HM mines and quarries inspectorate has taken the above criteria into account.I am confident that Her Majestys' Mines and Quarries Inspectorate carries out its duties at quarries satisfactorily.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many prosecutions have been brought in each of the years since the Employment Protection Act 1975 came into effect against employers who failed to inform his Department of proposed redundancies; how many and what percentage of such prosecutions were successful; in how many and in what percentage of such successful prosecutions the defendants were fined and what was the maximum and average of such fines; and in how many and in what percentage of such successful prosecutions redundancy rebates were reduced, and by what amounts.

			Number of penalties imposed	Maximum Penalty	Average Penalty
				£	£
1976	…	…	14	548	150
1977	…	…	157	1,971	141
1978	…	…	287	5,036	131
1979	…	…	142	827	108
The 1979 figures are provisional.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what categories of inspectors appointed under section 19 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 hold full warrants.

[pursuant to his reply, 31 January 1980]: The following categories of inspectors hold full warrants:Agricultural inspectorate: all inspectorial grades with the exception of assistant agricultural inspectors;Alkali and clean air inspectorate: all inspectorial grades;Factory inspectorate: all general and specialist inspectorial grades with the exception of inspectors of factories (fire)/fire surveyors and assistant inspectors of factories;Mines and quarries inspectorate: all inspectorial grades;Nuclear installations inspectorate: all inspectorial grades.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what new road building schemes in Cardigan have been approved by his Department to the latest available date; and if he will make a statement.

Four trunk road schemes in the Cardigan constituency

[pursuant to his reply, 21 January 1980, c. 27–28]: No prosecutions have been brought against employers so far under section 105 of the Employment Protection Act 1975. Penalties are normally imposed under section 104 of the Act, taking the form of a redundancy rebate due to employers from the Redundancy Fund.Information about rebate penalties imposed since the 1975 Act came into effect in March 1976 is given below:costing over £50,000 have been added to the firm programme in the last three years: Rhydybeillen bridge, Sarnau (stage II), Penparc footways and the Morfa diversion. All are on the A487. The contract for the first was recently let. The starting dates of the remaining schemes have not yet been decided.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many patients have undergone psychosurgery in Wales for each of the years 1975 to 1979.

This information was not collected before 1977. In 1977, no such operations were carried out in Wales but five patients were referred to hospitals in England. In 1978, three patients had operations at a Welsh hospital. Information for 1979 is not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what building works are in progress or planned in the special hospitals in Wales; and when such works are expected to be completed.

There are no special hospitals in Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales why he did not ask local housing authorities whether they desired to be designated by order of the Secretary of State as a rural area under the terms of clause 18 of the Housing Bill 1980; and which local housing authorities have expressed a desire to be so designated.

The consultation paper issued on 18 October sought comments on the Government's proposals on the sale of council houses. Rhuddlan BC, Montgomery DC, Glyndwr DC, Arfon BC, Dinefwr BC, Carmarthen DC, Lliw Valley BC, Colwyn BC and Ynys Mon BC asked for all or part of their areas to be designated rural areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any plans to introduce legislation which would alter the present position of proposals to make test bores for nuclear waste, for research and for uranium mining so that such proposals would become permitted development in terms of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 without need for approval by planning authorities or planning inquiries.

The committee on planning control over mineral working—the Stevens committee—recommended that investigatory operations for minerals should become permitted development subject to the right of the planning authority to require an application to be submitted. The Government are considering this recommendation in the context of a revision of the Town and Country Planning General Development Order 1977. It is not proposed to alter the planning position of proposals to investigate the suitability of sites for the deposit of radioactive waste.

(per cent.)
January of each year				Knowsley	Lancashire	England
1974	…	…	…	5	10	9
1975	…	…	…	5	11	10
1976	…	…	…	7	11	12
1977	…	…	…	10	12	15
1978	…	…	…	15	13	17
1979	…	…	…	16	13	18

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total number of Her Majesty's inspectors of schools employed in the service in England and Wales currently compared with 1974 and 1964; and what

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science which independent schools in the North-West have indicated that they wish to join the assisted places scheme.

Schools were invited to indicate a provisional interest in membership of the assisted places scheme by 31 January and replies are still coming in. My right hon. and learned Friend will give a general indication of the response received as soon as possible after that date.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the proportion of children in receipt of nursery schooling in the (a) Kirkby and (b) Ormskirk areas for each of the years 1974 to 1979; and how these figures compare with the rest of England for the same period.

The information requested is not readily available for areas smaller than local education authorities. For Knowsley and Lancashire—the local education authorities within which Kirkby and Ormskirk, respectively, are situated—and England, the numbers of full-time and part-time pupils under five years in maintained nursery schools and nursery classes of maintained primary schools expressed as percentages of the estimated population aged 3 and 4 years were as follows:was the statutory age school population in those years compared with the current year.

At the beginning of 1980 there were 423 HMI in post in England, of whom about three quarters were employed mainly in inspecting schools; in addtion, 60 HMI were on loan to the Welsh Office. The corresponding figures for 1974 are 441 and 47, and for 1964 532 in England and Wales.The numbers of children of compulsory school age in all schools in England and Wales in January of each year were as follows:

	thousands
1964	6,942
1974	8,907
1979	8,781

The minimum school leaving age was raised from 15 to 16 in September 1973. Figures for January 1980 are not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many teachers who qualified in the summer of 1979 still remain unemployed.

Chairman—
Professor R. Kilpatrick, C.B.E.			…	Dean of the School of Medicine, University of Leicester
Member—
Dr. D. C. Abbott	…	…	…	Laboratory of the Government Chemist
Mr. A. Ballentine	…	…	…	Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland
Dr. R. L. Carter	…	…	…	Institute of Cancer Research, Royal Cancer Hospital
Mr. R. F. Clements		…	…	Department of Health and Social Security
Dr. L. E. Coles	…	…	…	County Analyst and Agricultural Analyst, Mid and West Glamorgan County Council
Mr. D. C. M. Corbett		…	…	Agricultural Research Council
Mr. J. J. Davies	…	…	…	Welsh Offic3
Dr. M. J. Fisher	…	…	…	Medical Research Council
Dr. H. C. Gough	…	…	…	Chairman, Scientific Sub-Committee
Dr. D. C. Graham		…	…	Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland
Mr. J. S. W. Henshaw		…	…	Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Mr. M. J. van den Heuvel			…	Employment Medical Advisory Service, Health and Safety Executive
Dr. E. B. G. Jones		…	…	Reader in Biology, Portsmouth Polytechnic
Mr. H. J. Killick	…	…	…	Natural Environment Research Council
Dr. N. J. King	…	…	…	Department of the Environment
Professor J. Knoweldon, J.P.			…	Professor of Community Medicine, University of Sheffield Medical School
Mr. E. W. Langley		…	…	Health and Safety Executive
Dr. R. C. Little	…	…	…	Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Dr. R. I. McCallum		…	…	Reader in Industrial Health, University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Dr. A. T. B. Moir		…	…	Scottish Home and Health Department
Dr. N. W. Moore	…	…	…	Nature Conservancy Council
Miss H. J. Morey	…	…	…	Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Mr. D. Papworth	…	…	…	Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Mrs. J. Percy Davis		…	…	Department of Industry
Ms. J. M. Raimes	…	…	…	Department of Education and Science
Professor G. R. Sagar		…	…	School of Plant Biology, University College of North Wales
Mr. R. S. Taylor	…	…	…	Department of Agriculture and Horticulture, University of Reading
Professor M. J. Way		…	…	Director, Imperial College Field Station
Mr. J. C. Weeks	…	…	…	Health and Safety Executive
Dr. H. Wilson	…	…	…	Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Liverpool

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what research is taking place into Huntington's chorea, its cause and cure; how much money is specifically allocated by his

This information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has any proposals for reducing the school leaving age to 15 years.

My right hon. and learned Friend has no such plans.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list in the Official Report the members of the advisory committee on pesticides.

The information is as follows:Department to research into this complaint; whether he has any proposals to increasing the research programme; and if he will make a statement.

I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to a question by the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Ashley), on 19 December 1970. The research into Huntington's chorea which I described in that reply continues. My Department makes an annual grant-in-aid from the science budget to the Medical Research Council, which has responsibility for the spending of its funds. No part of the Council's grant-in-aid is earmarked by my Department for research into any specific complaint. The Medical Research Council is, however, always willing to consider soundly-based research proposals for support.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what guidance he gives to local authorities concerning allowing headmasters in their schools to use, or threaten to use, corporal punishment in appropriate cases.

My right hon. and learned Friend has not given guidance on this issue, which he believes is a matter for LEAs and for consideration by head teachers in individual cases.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what was the level of investment in the paper and board industry during the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

The latest year for which statistics are available is 1977. In that year total net capital expenditure was £52·8 million, an increase over previous years. Since 1977 several major investments have been announced, particularly by Thames Board Mills Limited at Workington.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he intends to implement the recommendations in the sector working party report on the British paper and board industry; and if he will make a statement.

The Department is considering the recommendations in the end-year report of the paper and board sector working party, and will give its response to the sector working party in due course.

asked the Secrettary of State for Industry if he will make a statement on the effect on the British paper and board industry of the level of import penetration of the United Kingdom market; and what measures he proposes to take to ensure the retention of a viable British manufacturing capacity.

The share of the United Kingdom market taken by imports has been increasing steadily in recent years. The domestic industry is no longer competitive in some product areas, though it has achieved considerable success in others notably in specialty, high value-added and waste paper-based products. It is for the industry to take steps to sharpen its competitiveness and to decide where it can remain viable in future.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will make a statement on the effects on the British footwear and leather industry of the level of import penetration of the United Kingdom market; and what measures he proposes to take to ensure the retention of a viable British manufacturing capacity.

Import penetration in the footwear sector rose from 33 per cent. in 1972 to 42 per cent. in 1978, by volume, and in the leather sector from 33 per cent. to 40 per cent. by value. Provisional figures for the first three quarters of 1979 show further increases to 47 per cent. and 52 per cent. respectively. These increases have been a significant contributory factor in the decline of output employment and profitability in these two industries.The Government appreciate the importance to the Unied Kingdom economy of healthy and viable footwear and leather industries and will fight against unfair trading practices that disrupt the United Kingdom market and put at risk manufacturing output and employment. We are prepared to consider action in appropriate circumstances.Under the footwear scheme of assistance £4·5 million has been allocated to help modernise and stimulate investment in the footwear industry.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what action has resulted from the review of regular statistical surveys instituted in June 1978 to relieve the burden of form filling for small firms.

Government Departments have completed their reviews of their own regular statistical inquiries involving small firms—defined, for the purpose of the review, as those with fewer than 200 employees. Apart from the Department of Employment's annual census of employment, which is being reviewed separately, small firms were included in 241 such surveys, involving the annual despatch of just over 1½ million forms to small firms.As a result of decisions taken in the review, 15 surveys will be discontinued, small firms will be eliminated from the coverage of a further five, and the number of forms sent annually to small firms

Cable and Wireless Ltd
Name								Salary/fees £	Date of appointment
Chairman (part-time)
The Right Hon. the Lord Glenamara				…	…	…	…	16,975	29.10.76
Deputy Chairman
Mr. P.A. McCunn		…	…	…	…	…	…	21,045	1.9.77
Managing directors
Mr. J.L. Bird	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	19,670	1.6.77
Mr. R.W. Cannon		…	…	…	…	…	…	19,670	12.9.77
Directors (full-time)
Mr. R.A. Rice	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	18,295	1.3.65
Mr. E.F. Potter	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	18,875	1.4.79
Mr. D.W. Weedon		…	…	…	…	…	…	18,115	1.4.79
Directors (part-time)
Mr. D. Berriman	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	1,975	1.8.75
Mr. A.J. Kirkwood		…	…	…	…	…	…	1,975	1.8.75
Mr. P.M. Meaney		…	…	…	…	…	…	1,975	11.9.78

Appointments are not for a fixed term; members are subject to re-election at each annual general meeting.

Talbot UK Ltd
Name				Salary/fees £	Date of appointment	Expiry date
Mr. R. A. Grantham (part-time)			…	2,000	May 1977	May 1980
Mr. R. T. Kingdon (part-time)		…	…	2,000	October 1979	May 1981
Info-Line Ltd
Name				Salary/fees £	Date of appointment	Expiry date
Mr. R. J. Franklin	…	…	…	Nil	October 1976	May 1980
Mr. A. C. Nicholas	…	…	…	Nil	October 1976	May 1982
Clothing Industry Productivity Resources Agency
Name				Salary/fees £	Date of appointment	Expiry date
Mr. D. W. F. Johnson	…	…	…	Nil	December 1977	No fixed term
My right hon. Friend is also consulted about certain appointments to the boards of the largest subsidiaries of the National Enterprise Board.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what has been the size of vehicle production, including passenger vehicles for each year since 1970; how many workers were directly employed in the motor industry and how many vehicles; what value of vehicles was produced per employee in each year;

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will list the names of all persons who currently hold the post of Government director on company boards, the salary each is paid, the length of their present tenure and when it expires.

[pursuant to his reply, 24 January 1980, c. 340]: Company board appointments made by my right hon. Friend, or subject to his nomination, are as follows: —and if he will give comparable figures for the European Economic Community as a whole.

[pursuant to his reply, 28 January 1980, c. 444–45]: The information is as follows except for statistics of the value of production in the EEC, which are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what is the total level of all forms of State aid, both direct and indirect, to the private sector of industry over each of the last 10 years; and what are the components making up the total annually and for each of these years.

£ million at 1979 survey prices
					71–72	72–73	73–74	74–75	75–76	76–77	77–78	78–79
Regional Development Grants' Provision for Land and Buildings and Investment Grants		…	…	…	970	610	560	500	450	420	340	350
Sections 7 and 8 of the Industry Act 1972 Local Authority Act 1972 and NEB funding	…	…	…	…	20	50	80	120	550	330	480	360
Aerospace, Shipbuilding R & D and miscellaneous support	…	…	…	…	460	520	600	630	500	290	30	70
TOTAL					1,450	1,180	1,240	1,250	1,500	1,040	850	780

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he will propose to the European Economic Community a common iron and steel policy on the lines of the common agricultural policy; and why steel is treated less favourably than agriculture in the policies pursued by Her Majesty's Government.

The ECSC treaty already covers this field. Within its terms, there are in operation a range of Community measures to help to deal with the problems of the steel industry and the consequences of steel closures. As regards the latter, the United Kingdom along with France, is the major beneficiary.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he has received representations from the British Footwear Manufacturer's Federation for further financial assistance for the establishment of design facilities for stylists; and, if so, whether he intends to provide such assistance.

A proposal from the British Footwear Manufacturers' Federation, endorsed by the footwear economic development committee, for financial assistance to freelance footwear

[pursuant to his reply, 31 January 1980]: Detailed records of the breakdown of support schemes to public and private sectors are not kept in all instances. Approximate figures of support to the private sector within the total assistance for which my Department is responsible are set out below for1971–72 onwards at 1979 survey prices. Estimates on the same basis for earlier years are not readily availabledesigners has been received and given careful consideration. I attended the meeting of the footwear economic development committee on 30 January and informed it that, although I cannot agree to the proposed financial assistance, I am prepared to discuss with the industry other ways of tackling the problem.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many companies in Norwich have applied for assistance under the footwear industry scheme; and how many grants have been made to them and to what value.

To date 33 applications have been received from 13 companies in Norwich. Assistance has been offered on 21 of these applications amounting to £0·21 million. Five applications are under consideration and seven have been rejected or withdrawn.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will list the compensation payments made by his Department, under the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act 1977, together with the companies to which these payments were made and the dates of such payments; and if he will list those companies which have informed him they intend to go to arbitration, and also those companies with which he has not yet reached agreement over compensation.

I refer my hon. Friend to my answers to my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, North-West (Mr. Colvin) on 5 July 1979—[Vol. 969, c. 690–692]—and to the right hon. Member for Manchester, Ardwick (Mr. Kaufman) on 10 December 1979—[Vol. 975, c. 459–460]. There have been no further developments since the latter date.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what schemes of pre-release employment are currently in operation; where these schemes are taking place; whether any such schemes have been evaluated; what plans there are for the evaluation of schemes in the future; and whether he plans to undertake a full inquiry into the possibilities for pre-release employment as outlined by the Expenditure Committee in its report on prison pressures.

For adult prisoners the pre-release employment scheme currently operates at Bristol, Exeter, Swansea, Pentonville, Wormwood Scrubs, Maidstone, Birmingham, Stafford, Nottingham, Wakefield, Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Appleton Thorn and for women Askham Grange. Under the scheme, prisoners live in hostels, work for outside employers at normal industrial wages, and have to meet some statutory and domestic commitments in the same way as private citizens. Schemes based on similar principles are available to trainees from Hollesley Bay, Hewell Grange and Hindley borstals.The schemes at the three borstals are being evaluated and it is planned to review the future of the scheme in adult establishments this year. The Home Office research unit has made a study of adult establishments over the period 1964–74.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons either committed suicide, or attempted to commit suicide, while in detention awaiting removal or deportation under the Immigration Act 1971, during 1979 and to date.

During 1979, none committed suicide. Information on attempted suicide among particular categories of inmates is not centrally recorded.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are currently detained under Immigration Act powers at (a) Her Majesty's prison, Pentonville, (b) Her Majesty's prison, Winson Green, (c) Her Majesty's remand centre, Risley, (d) other prisons, by name and (e) prison department detention centres, by name.

On 30 November 1979, the number of persons held under the provisions of the Immigration Act 1971 in prison department establishments in England and Wales was as follows:

Males		Females
Ashford RC	8	Holloway	14
Bedford	2	Risley RC	1
Birmingham	16	Total females	15
Canterbury	2
Dorchester	1
Durham	1
Gloucester	2
Leeds	1
Leicester	1
Pentonville	78
Risley RC	6
Winchester	3
Total males	121

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give his estimate of the grants likely to be made available by the Voluntary Service Unit to the following national organisations for the year 1979–80; the National Youth Bureau, the Community Service Volunteers, the National Association of Asian Youth, and the National Association of Youth Clubs (multiracial project).

Estimates of the grants to be made by the Voluntary Service Unit in the financial year 1979–80 are: National Association of Asian Youth, £28,400: National Youth Bureau, £84,402 (£72,140 for the Young Volunteer Resource Unit and £12,262 for the National Association of Young People's Counselling and Advisory Services). The final instalment of the grant for a limited action-research project under the National Association of Youth Clubs (on which work is now being completed) was paid in 1978–79. I will be writing to my hon. Friend about the grant to the Community Service Volunteers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he proposes to take in view of the responses to the discussion document on the Wolfenden report, the Government and the voluntary sector.

An analysis of the responses to the consultative document will be published in due course. Meanwhile, we are giving careful consideration to how, within the present financial restraints, we can encourage the development of the voluntary sector. In so doing, we will have regard to the results of the

APPLICATIONS FOR AND REFUSALS OF LEGAL AID FOR CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS* IN MERSEYSIDE MAGISTRATES' AND JUVENILE COURTS, 1978
								Number of applications
Petty sessional division					Committal proceedings		Summary trials of non-indictable offences
					Total	Refused	Total	Refused
Knowsley		…	…	…	494	—	862	331
Liverpool†		…	…	…	2,261	5	2,461	624
North Sefton		…	…	…	155	1	388	131
South Sefton		…	…	…	194	—	206	152
St. Helens		…	…	…	166	—	198	109
Wirral	…	…	…	…	520	—	142	85
Total		…	…	…	3,790	6	4,257	1,432
* Excluding summary trials of indictable or triable either way offences, care proceedings and proceedings with respect to variations in or breaches of court orders.
† Excluding juvenile proceedings for which figures for these types of proceedings are not available separately.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete his review of home defence; and when he will be able to make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to make proposals for improving the civil defence of the nation as a result of the current review of home defence arrangements.

The review is proceeding as rapidly as possible. I shall make

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a list of magistrates' courts on Merseyside showing the number of applications and refusals for legal aid for magistrates' courts proceedings in 1978 and for as many months as possible in 1979, distinguishing between committal proceedings and summary trial of non-indictable offences.

The numbers of applications for and refusals of legal aid for all criminal and care proceedings in magistrates' and juvenile courts are published annually by petty sessional division in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales"(table 25 of the volume for 1978, Cmnd. 7670). Figures for the types of proceedings specified in 1978 are given in the following table. Figures for 1979 are not yet available.a statement as soon as I am in a position to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to make the civil defence booklet "Protect and Survival" more widely available to the public.

This is one of the matters being examined as part of my current review of home defence arrangements.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what offences those currently serving life sentences were convicted.

Murder; manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility (section 2 of the Homicide Act 1957); man- slaughter; rape; buggery; unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl under 13; incest; attempted murder; attempted rape; attempt to strangle or choke; grievous bodily harm; wounding with intent; robbery; assault with intent to rob; causing or conspiring to cause, an explosion; using firearms to resist arrest; arson; administering stupefying drugs; kidnapping; aggravated burglary.