asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what access will be made available to legal advisers to persons detained on the Earl William;(2) what exercise facilities will be made available for persons detained on the Earl William;(3) what is the estimated cost of

All reasonable requests for access to persons detained on the Earl William by legal advisers, friends and relations will be met. There are good facilities on board for interviews to take place. There are adequate exercise facilities on board. The cost of hiring the vessel is the subject of a commercial contract, the details of which it would not be proper to reveal.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how much the ferry Earl William is costing to hire; how long will it be moored at Harwich; what regulations it is subject to; how many and what categories of detainees will be detained there; what will be the total weekly cost of keeping detainees on the ferry; and if he will make a statement;(2) from which detention centres those detainees to be detained on the ferry, the Earl William moored at Harwich, are to be transferred; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 8 May 1987, c. 549]: The cost of hiring the MV Earl William is the subject of a commercial contract with its owners, the details of which it would not be proper to reveal. It has been hired initially for a period of three months, during which it will be moored at Harwich. It will be subject to standard safety and fire regulations and those concerning the way detainees are housed will be the same as other Immigration Service detention centres. The ship is expected to he used principally for passengers awaiting removal or further examination whose cases are not appropriate for temporary admission. The number will depend on the pressure on this and other immigration service detention centres and the continued availability of prison department resources. The total weekly cost of keeping detainees on board will also depend on the number detained.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has received about the success of neighbourhood watch schemes in the Metropolitan police district.

There are some 7,000 neighbourhood watch schemes in the Metropolitan police district. As my right hon. Friend stated in his reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Chislehurst (Mr. Sims) on 8 May, at column 550, the results of the evaluative research of two of these schemes by the Cambridge Institute of Criminology indicated some success in reducing fear of crime and increasing social cohesion but not in reducing levels of crime. There are, however, schemes where a reduction in recorded crime has followed the introduction of neighbourhood watch. For example, on the Ferry Lane estate in Tottenham burglaries were reduced from 30 during the six months preceding the introduction of the scheme to 18 in the six months following its introduction. In the last six months of 1986 no burglaries were reported. In the London borough of Wandsworth an increase in the number of neighbourhood watch schemes from 375 in 1985 to 558 in 1986 coincided with a reduction in residential burglaries from 4,119 to 3,514.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list those companies to which his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract;(2) how much his Department has spent on

Since 1984 the Home Office has awarded contracts for the supply of computer hardware and software intended wholly or mainly for word processing or for desktop publishing to the following companies:

• AES
• British Olivetti
• British Telecom
• Digital
• Ferranti
• IBM
• ICL
• NCR
• Sentinel Software (software only)
• UNISYS
• Wang

For reasons of commercial confidentiality it would not be right to provide details of the value of individual contracts. However, total expenditure since 1984 by financial years is as follows:

	1985–86 (out-turn)	1986–87 (estimated outturn)
	£	£
Hardware	177,657	659,953
Software	26,754	18,207

Planned expenditure for word processing hardware and software in 1987–88 is £703,000 and for 1988–89 is 1,243,000.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to issue guidance to returning officers for national and local elections about (i) the provision of training for polling clerks and (ii) monitoring compliance by polling clerks with electoral regulations.

The training of polling clerks and any monitoring of their compliance with the law governing the conduct of parliamentary and local government elections is the responsibility of the returning officers concerned. If my hon. Friend has a particular incident in mind, I should be glad to have the details so we can consider whether any guidance should be issued to returning officers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, pursuant to his answer of 7 May, Official Report, column 510, he will give comparable clear-up rates for each police force area in England and Wales for 1978.

The clear-up rates for police force areas in 1978 are given in the following table:

Ratio of notifiable offences1 recorded to notifiable offences cleared up by the police, 1978
Police force area	Percentage cleared up
Avon and Somerset	42
Bedfordshire	46
Cambridgeshire	55
Cheshire	59
Cleveland	55
Cumbria	54
Derbyshire	45
Devon and Cornwall	46
Dorset	47
Durham	51
Essex	43
Gloucestershire	51

Ratios of offences cleared up to offences recorded by the police
England and Wales
Percentages
	Police Force area	Theft and handling stolen goods		Fraud and forgery		1Criminal damage
		1978	1986	1978	1986	1978	1986
	Avon and Somerset	38·7	26·6	92·5	75·0	38·8	28·7
	Bedfordshire	45·2	28·3	90·6	56·3	26·6	21·2
	Cambridgeshire	53·0	35·4	92·2	61·6	36·9	28·9
	Cheshire	58·6	41·3	92·6	83·7	52·9	40·6
	Cleveland	55·8	34·8	81·7	52·3	35·1	24·7
	Cumbria	54·1	42·4	93·6	77·2	43·9	37·5
	Derbyshire	43·2	48·7	90·3	87·7	26·4	34·4
	Devon and Cornwall	42·7	37·2	88·3	80·1	32·9	29·9
	Dorset	44·1	29·3	94·5	81·8	38·2	29·9
	Durham	51·8	38·1	95·7	87·1	35·7	31·9
	Essex	42·0	36·4	90·6	57·5	25·8	23·2
	Gloucestershire	49·8	30·6	87·4	50·7	45·3	24·4
	Greater Manchester	45·0	24·8	96·4	84·0	41·1	19·1
	Hampshire	43·5	32·2	92·2	67·2	34·9	25·5
	Hertfordshire	47·7	46·0	97·0	90·4	26·3	27·9
	Humberside	46·1	31·1	83·6	54·7	31·8	19·3
	Kent	37·1	31·5	89·7	55·3	34·2	26·0
	Lancashire	54·2	41·8	95·4	88·9	48·8	39·6
	Leicestershire	55·2	41·4	96·0	77·0	39·2	31·6
	Lincolnshire	57·3	38·5	77·5	58·9	46·3	22·6

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish for 1978 and 1986, for each police force area in England and Wales, the clear-up rate for (a) violence against the person, (b) burglary, (c) theft, (d) fraud/forgery and (e) criminal damage.

The readily available information is given in the following tables.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he intends to make improved arrangements for police units at ports to assist enforcement of the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1984; and if he will make a statement.

I have decided to establish a national co-ordinator of port policing, who will provide advice and assistance to chief officers of police on police work at ports, co-ordinate the work of police units, and represent them in liaison with other services involved in ports. The post of national co-ordinator will be at assistant chief constable rank.The new arrangement adopts recommendations made by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary on the work of police operating the port controls provided by the

School leavers—England
	Boys		Girls
	Number (thousands)	Per cent.	Number (thousands)	Per cent.
Leavers who had attempted
GCE O-level or CSE in Mathematics	302·51	80·8	299·78	82·9
Physics	191·15	51·0	70·90	19·6
GCE A-level in Mathematics	38·30	10·2	17·76	4·9
Physics	30·51	8·1	8·44	2·3

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many computers are provided per 100 pupils in each local education authority in (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools; and how many staff trained to teach computing there are in each local education authority.

The 1985 survey of microcomputers in English schools, a copy of which is in the Library, found that there were on average 0·9 microcomputers per 100 pupils in primary schools and 1·7 per 100 pupils in secondary schools. Since then LEAs have purchased many more microcomputers for their schools both from their own resources and from funds available under the DTI IT Equipment for Schools offer. About 60 per cent. of teachers have received some training in the use of microcomputers in schools. No figures are available for individual local education authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will list those companies that his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract;

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many (a) girls and (b) boys took one or more mathematics or physical science subject at (i) O-level and (ii) A-level in the last year for which figures are available.

Information is not available in the precise form requested. The number and percentage of boys and girls leaving English schools in 1984–85 who had attempted (a) mathematics, and (b) physics in CSE and/ or GCE examinations is shown in the table.(2) how much his Department has spent on

The value of contracts awarded by my Department for word processing hardware and software for the financial years in question is as follows:

	Wordplex Ltd.	AES Ltd.
	£	£
1984–85
Hardware	29,000	32,000
Software	—	—
1985–86
Hardware	106,000	18,000
Software	1,000	—
1986–87
Hardware	47,000	—
Software	15,000	—

For future years, it is the Department's intention to provide word processing facilities as part of its wider office systems strategy, and it is not possible to identify such expenditure separately.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will list those companies that his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of desktop publishing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract;(2) how much his Department has spent on

The Department is undertaking a study into the extent to which desktop publishing systems would be useful in helping to meet its publication requirements. It has not purchased any such systems in the past, and currently has no plans for such expenditure.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish figures for 1985–86 and 1986–87 relating to (a) local authority expenditure in nursery, primary and secondary schools at (i) current prices and (ii) at 1984–85 prices using the Government gross domestic product deflator and (b) pupil numbers in nursery, primary and secondary schools.

Net institutional recurrent spending on maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools in 1985–86 was as follows:

1985–86 provisional actual spending £ million (rounded)
	At 1985–86 outturn prices	At 1984–85 prices	At 1987–88 prices
Nursery schools	40	40	45
Primary schools	2,940	2,765	3,165
Secondary schools	4,050	3,810	4,360

Comparable information for 1986–87 is not yet available. Financial year average pupil numbers for 1985–86 and1986–87 are as follows:

	1985–86 (actual)	1986–87 (projected)
Pupils, thousands, full-time equivalents
Nursery schools	31	31
Primary schools	3,651	3,667
Secondary schools	3,434	3,306

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the schools participating in the assisted places scheme and the fees charged by each school.

I shall reply as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish his Department's review of the internal decoration of schools.

My Department has not undertaken such a review. The results of a general investigation on maintenance provision and practice in a sample of 16 local education authorities was reported in DES A and B Paper No. 7, published in 1984, copies of which are in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what has been the average fee increase at schools participating in the assisted places scheme in each year since the scheme was introduced.

Since the assisted places scheme was introduced in 1981 the estimated average fee increase for assisted pupils at participating schools has been as follows:

Percentage increase over preceding year
School Year	per cent.
1982–83	11
1983–84	12
1984–85	7
1985–86	7
1986–87	12

asked the Secretary of State for Deence if he will make available in the Library those parts of the United Kingdom Commander in Chief's committee home defence plan which would not compromise natonal security; and if he will make a statement.

This is a classified document and it is not our general practice, in response to specific queries, to break up documents in the way that would be entailed. The hon. Member may, however, find it helpful to refer to the "Home Office Emergency Planning Guidance to Local Authorities", a copy of which is in the Library. Although this is not in itself concerned with military Home Defence planning, the hon. Member may find it useful in the general context of his inquiry.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the average per capita contribution to defence expenditure by the United Kingdom in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the Isle of Man, (c) Jersey and (d) Guernsey.

The original provision for defence expenditure in 1986–87 was the equivalent of some £327 per capita in the United Kingdom.The annual contribution made by the Isle of Man towards the cost of defence and other common services provided by the United Kingdom Government was equivalent to some £16 per capita in 1985–86, the last year for which figures are available. The island also provides military training facilities and a bombing range for the RAF.No regular contributions to the costs of defence have been made by either Jersey or Guernsey, but I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Bruinvels) on 1 April 1987, at column 516, for details of the agreements that have been reached with the islands over future contributions.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those companies that his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

The Ministry of Defence procured, primarily through Her Majesty's Stationery Office, dedicated word processing hardware and associated word processing software software from the following companies:

Year and Company	Total expenditure
	£
1984–85
Exxon/Vydec	1,566,000
AES
CPT
Phillips
Rank Xerox
Data Logic
Olivetti
Diamond (OTL)
1985–86
AES	1,184,000
CPT
Phillips
Rank Xerox
Olivetti
Logica
Data Logic
ICL
Canon
1986–87
AES	2,106,000
CPT
Phillips
Amstrad
ICL
Wordplex
Olivetti
OEM
Rank Xerox
GEC Reliance
Canon
Wang

General purpose hardware and word processing software with which it may be used are excluded.Only the figures for total expenditure are readily available, but for reasons of commercial confidentiality it would in any case be improper for me to give details of individual contract value.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on (a) word processing hardware and (b) word processing software in each year since 1984; and what is projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

Expenditure on hardware dedicated to word processing, and word processing software, is not separately identifiable. Total expenditure was:

	£
1984–85	1,566,000
1985–86	1,184,000
1986–87	2,106,000

Projected expenditure for 1987–88 is about £1,200,000 and for 1988–89 about £1,320,000. General purpose hardware and word processing software with which it may be used are not included.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those companies that his Department has 1,184,000 awarded contracts for the supply of desktop hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

Since 1984 the Ministry of Defence has procured desktop publishing hardware and software through Her Majesty's Stationery Office, from Apple Macintosh and Rank Zerox. For reasons of commercial confidentiality it would be improper for me to ive details of individual contract values.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on (a) desktop publishing hardware and (b) desktop publishing software in each year since 1984 and what is projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

Expenditure on hardware and software dedicated to desktop publishing is not separable. Total expenditure was:

	£
1984–85	Nil
1985–86	37,800
1986–87	17,000

Projected expenditure for 1987–88 is about £48,000 and for 1988–89 about £65,000.

asked the Attorney-General if he will list those companies to which the Lord Chancellor's Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

The suppliers of word processing equipment to the Lord Chancellor's Department in the years 1984–85, 1985–86, 1986–87 have been as follows:

• International Business Machines Ltd.
• Rank Zerox (UK) Ltd.
• Wildings Office Equipment PLC

The value of each contract is a matter of commercial confidentiality.

asked the Attorney-General how much the Lord Chancellor's Department has spent on (a) word processing hardware and (b) word processing software in each year since 1984; and what is the projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

The cost of word processing equipment purchased by the Lord Chancellor's Department since 1984 is as follows:

	Hardware	Software
	£	£
1984–85	31,000	5,000
1985–86	106,000	25,000
1986–87	12,000	4,000

Projected expenditure for the financial year 1987–88 is £50,000, and for 1988–89, £125,000.

asked the Attorney-General if he will list those companies to which the Lord Chancellor's Department has awarded contracts for the supply of desktop publishing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

There has only been one set of desktop publishing equipment supplied to the Lord Chancellor's Department and this was purchased from Rank Xerox in the financial year 1985–86. For reasons of commercial confidentiality the value of the contract cannot be disclosed.

asked the Attorney-General how much the Lord Chancellor's Department has spent on (a) desktop publishing hardware and (b) desktop publishing software in each year since 1984; and what is the projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

As there has only been one set of desktop publishing equipment supplied to the Lord Chancellor's Department since 1984 I am unable, due to the commercial confidentiality, to disclose the value of the contract.There are no firm plans for any other system to be purchased in the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

asked the Attorney-General, further to his written answer of 6 May, and in the light of the 10 to one verdict of the coroner's court in the case of Michael Delaney, whether he will consider further the decision of the Director of Public Prosecutions not to prosecute the driver; and if he will make a statement.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has reconsidered the decision made in the case referred to by the right hon. Member. However. the evidence given at the inquest into the death of Michael Delaney did not disclose any basis upon which a prosecution could be brought. The Director cannot, therefore, alter his original decision.

asked the Attorney-General in how many cases where a jury at a coroner's court has returned a verdict of unlawful killing the Director of Public Prosecutions has decided not to prosecute on the grounds of insufficient evidence since 1979.

Records are not kept of the information requested by the right hon. Member.

asked the Attorney-General whether he has received a report from the Crown Prosecution Service Staff Commission; and if he will make a statement.

I have recently received the Report of the Crown Prosecution Service Staff Commission upon its work during the establishement of the new Service. Copies of the report are being discributed to interested parties, and I have arranged for a copy to be placed in the Library of the House.The Chairman of the Staff Commission and his two commissioners have produced a most comprehensive and helpful report and I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for their endeavours.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what percentage of houses and flats built on London Dock lands Development Corporation owned land between January 1986 and December 1986 were sold to those on the waiting lists of the London boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and Southwark.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West on 1 April 1987 at column 553.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those companies that his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

For reasons of commercial confidentiality it is not possible to provide the names of companies to which such contracts have been awarded or the values of the contracts.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much his Department has spent on (a) word processing hardware and (b) word processing software in each year since 1984; and what is projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

The Department's expenditure on word processing hardware and software, which is delivered as one piece of equipment, was:

Year	£
1984–85	180,274
1985–86	243,862
1986–87	664,452

Estimated expenditure in 1987–88 is £500,000. No projections have been made for 1988–89.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those companies that his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of desktop publishing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract.

For reasons of commercial confidentiality it is not possible to provide the information in the form and level of detail requested by my hon. Friend.The Department purchased one desktop publishing software package in 1986–87.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much his Department has spent on (a) desktop publishing hardware and (b) desktop publishing software in each year since 1984; and what is the projected expenditure for the financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

The Department has spent £2,000 on desktop publishing software (in 1986–87). No specialised hardware has been purchased. No details are available for financial years 1987–88 and 1988–89.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will examine possible ways of limiting the opportunities for developers to submit fresh applications for planning permissions for new developments in residential areas after their appeals against local authority decisions are dismissed by inspectors' inquiries.

No. Such a limitation would unjustifiably restrict development which might reasonably be permitted if, for example, circumstances chanhed following the dismissal of an appeal or the developer revised his scheme to take account of objections. An appellant who unreasonably persists in taking a second appeal to inquiry may be at risk of having cost awarded against him.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what consultations were carried out with the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee and what representations were received from it (a) before his decision to abandon research on four possible low-level waste dumps and (b) subsequently.

The Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee's views on shallow disposal of nuclear waste have been made clear in all of the committee's annual reports submitted to Ministers since 1983. There was no consultation with the Committee before my right hon. Friend's statement on 1 May, but I wrote to the Committee about the decision on the day of the statement. No representations have been received from the Committee since 1 May.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will tabulate the calculations made by (a) his Department, (b) the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee and (c) NIREX on the costs of disposal of low-level waste in shallow trenches.

On calculations made by the Department, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the Assessment of Best Practicable Environmental Options for Management of Low and Intermediate-level Solid Radioactive Wastes published by HMSO in March 1986. On the calculations by NIREX, I have nothing to add to the letter from the chairman of NIREX to my right hon. Friend dated 1 May, which is in the Library of the House.The Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee has made no calculations on the costs of disposal.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if there have been any changes in the composition of the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee since his decision to cancel research for low-level nuclear sites.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if non-statutory green belt is included as applicable land in references to Government statements about its policy on protection of green belt land.

Green belt policies apply to land which has been identified as green belt in approved structure plans. In most areas the detailed boundaries have been identified in local plans or in old development plans. Some non-green belt land situated between the urban area and the approved green belt boundary may be kept open for the time being through the normal process of development control.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what instructions he has given, or intends to give, to his planning inspectors to ensure that their decisions in planning inquiries are cognisant of current ministerial speeches and statements on planning policy.

As a matter of course, the Department's planning inspectors are informed of all statements of policy which could be a material consideration in reaching decisions in planning cases.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list his principal achievements in the field of improving the environment; and what plans he has for the future.

I refer my hon. Friend to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 9 May 1986 at column 265 and my own statement of 4 February 1987 at column 726. Since those statements we have continued to act to protect and enhance the environment.The Govermnent have endorsed the Central Electricity Generating Board's plans to install low nitrogen oxide burners at its largest power stations, and at all future fossil-fuel fired power stations.The Department has continued to promote the introduction of unleaded petrol, which is currently available at 260 service stations.We sponsored the international pollution abatement fair and conference as a contribution to European Year of the Environment. At the conference I launched the environmental protection technology scheme, which aims to encourage innovation in the fields of pollution abatement and cleaner technologies.Research on antifouling paints containing tributyl tin has increasingly shown them to be responsible for damage to marine life. Regulations were laid before the House on 7 May which will ban the retail supply of antifouling paints and treatments containing triorganotins, including TBT, from 28 May.On 10 March the Government issued the Farming and Rural enterprise package which set out our policies for agriculture and for encouraging enterprise and development in rural areas.On 8 May the Department issued the circular Development Involving Agricultural Land which stresses the importance of considering together the agricultural, environmental and economic aspects of planning proposals affecting agricultural land.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will publish the preliminary results of the blood lead monitoring programme for 1986.

Preliminary analysis of results from the surveys carried out in 1986 as part of my Department's blood lead monitoring programme shows a continuing fall in levels. Compared with 1985 the blood leads of children surveyed fell by about 1·5 ug/100ml (16 per cent.); those of police officers on traffic duties by about 2 ug/100ml (18 per cent.); and those of other adults sampled by about 1 ug/100m1 (10 per cent.).Individually, the local surveys of children all showed falls in levels but these varied from 8 per cent. to 22 per cent. For exposed adults local changes varied from a fall of around 20 per cent. to a slight increase in one of the surveys. More detailed results will be made available in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was Coventry city council's bid to central Government for housing expenditure, and what was his Department's allocation, for each year since 1979 expressed in 1987 prices.

[pursuant to his answer, 12 May 1987]: The position has changed since 1979, in that local housing authorities nationally now fund more than half their capital expenditure from capital receipts, rather than from housing investment programme allocations made by the Department. The proposed capital programmes shown by authorities in the HIP submissions cannot therefore be compared directly with their HIP allocations.Since 1979 the final HIP allocations made to Coventry city council, and their total capital expenditure on housing, have been as follows:

£ million 1987–88 prices	HIP allocation	Expenditure
1979–80	23·908	27·137
1980–81	15·482	14·427
1981–82	10·260	12·340
1982–83	15·257	16·738
1983–84	9·624	11·893
1984–85	10·223	12·747
1985–86	8·295	20·099
1986–87	8·660	118·396
1987–88	26·166	—
1 Estimated by the authority on form HIP2 in July 1986
2 Initial HIP allocation.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will place in the Library details of the composite package of proposals for pay and conditions of service of teachers in Northern Ireland referred to in his answer to the hon. Member for Woolwich of 27 April, Official Report, column 41.

Yes, copies have been placed in the Library today.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions his Department sponsored advertisements in national newspapers in the last three years; which newspapers were chosen for these campaigns; which local newspapers were used in these campaigns; and which newspaper publishing groups received payment for advertising space.

The information requested in respect of specific promotional campaigns is as follows:

	Number of occasions
National newspapers
Financial Times	50
Times	7
Daily Telegraph	2
Guardian	2
Local Newspapers
Belfast Telegraph	71
Derry Journal	50
Sentinel (Londonderry)	50
News Letter	25
Coleraine Chronicle	6
Irish News	4
Sunday News	2
Newspaper Publishing Groups receiving paid advertising
Pearson Group
News International
Daily Telegraph PLC
Guardian Newspapers Ltd.
Thompson Newspapers Ltd.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) if he will list those companies to which his Department has awarded contracts for the supply of word processing hardware and software in each year since 1984; and what was the value of each contract;(2) how much his Department has spent on

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

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether parity is being maintained between job release schemes in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

Participants in the Northern Ireland full and part-time job release schemes will continue to receive allowances at the rates payable, in corresponding circumstances, under the parallel schemes in Great Britain. As from 6 April 1987 the new rates are:

asked the Paymaster General on how many occasions his Department sponsored advertisements in national newspapers in the last three years; which newspapers were chosen for these campaigns; which local newspapers were used for these campaigns; and which newspaper publishing groups received payment for advertising space.

My Department in the last three years has advertised extensively in the national and local press to publicise its range of employment programmes as listed. Figures for the number of occasions on which the Department sponsored advertisements and a breakdown by newspaper publishing groups could only be produced at disproportionate cost.

asked the Paymaster General if he will publish in the Official Report the percentage level of unemployment in each travel-to-work area for the latest available date and the number of community programme places in the nearest corresponding area in 1986–87 and 1987–88.

Figures showing the numbers of unemployed claimants in the travel-to-work areas of the United Kingdom expressed as a percentage of employees in employment plus the unemployed on 12 March 1987 were published in table 2.4 of the May 1987 issue of the Employment Gazette, a copy of which is in the Library. Unemployment rates incorporating new employment estimates which take account of the 1984 census of employment results will be published on Thursday 14 May 1987. At that time revised unemployment rates will be available in the Library. Information about the number of community programme places is collected at community programme area office level. The following table shows the number of filled places in respect of each area office as on 31 March 1987, the latest date for which statistics are available, and the average number of filled places planned for 1987–88 in respect of the same offices.

Region/community programme area office	Filled places as at 31 March 1987	A verage planned for 1987–88
South-east region
Kent	3,292	2,800
Hampshire and Isle of Wight	2,049	1,980
Sussex	1,960	1,850
Reading	1,473	1,400
Surrey	476	490
High Wycombe	1,915	1,750
Essex	2,534	2,600
Total	13,699	12,870
London region
North London	3,432	3,050
East London	3,074	3,080
Inner London north	5,091	4,620
Inner London south	3,230	3,540
West London	1,304	1,220
South London	1,744	1,590
Total	17,875	17,100