To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) how many staff work in his Department's science section; and what is the distribution of their grades;(2) what are the annual running costs of the Advisory Board for the Research Councils.

There are 36–3 full-time equivalent staff in the 00Department's science branch in the following grades:

	Number
Grade 3	1
Grade 5	2
Grade 6	1
Grade 71	8
SEO	2
HEO(D) (accountant)	1
HEO	7

Number of secondary pupils per youth worker/club leader by LEA
	1989–90	1988–89	1987–88	1986–87	1985–86	1984–85	1983–84	1982–83	1981–82	1980–81	1979–80
Outer London boroughs
301 Barking	829	541	980	1,023	1,168	1,110	1,131	487	705	599	623
302 Barnet	731	1,365	—	1,171	1,133	1,176	1,155	515	971	389	416
303 Bexley	—	408	417	464	485	367	1,204	562	1,336	619	1,629
304 Brent	573	145	161	171	203	138	146	141	374	317	335
305 Bromley	502	515	627	735	774	804	914	1,905	1,800	1,858	1.527
306 Croydon	—	—	500	561	598	876	974	1,162	841	912	1,183

	Number
Senior personal secretary	1
Administration trainee	1
EO	4
Personal secretaries	3
AO	3·5
AA	0·8
Typist	1
1 Grade 7 is seconded to the Link secretariat at the Department of Trade and Industry.

In 1990–91 the net running costs of the Department's science branch amounted to about £767,000 excluding accommodation costs and certain centrally provided services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) how many staff work for the Advisory Board for the Research Councils; and what is the distribution of their grades;(2) what are the annual running costs of his Department's science section.

The advisory board's secretariat currently consists of the following staff:

	Number
Grade 5	1
Grade 7	2
HEO	1
EO	1
Personal secretaries	2
AO	0·5
AA	0·2
and there is one grade 7 vacancy

The ABRC s running costs in 1990–91 totalled £498,000, including the costs of commissioned studies but