asked Her Majesty's Government:When fees for shotgun licences were last reviewed, and what is the established net cost of administering the system.

The present fee levels came into effect on 1st July 1980. They were last reviewed in December 1981, when a costing exercise was conducted in sample police forces. The net cost of administering the shotgun certificate system in 1981–82 was then estimated to be £567,986.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the cases of all prisoners affected by the lowering of the parole threshold will be determined finally by local review committees.Whether full home circumstances reports will be obtained in respect of prisoners whose cases will now be considered for parole because of the lowering of the threshold.How many additional members of local review committees they expect to appoint because of the lowering of the parole threshold; and what additional resources they propose to provide in order to ensure that such members are trained adequately.

My right honourable and learned friend intends shortly to lay a draft order before both Houses of Parliament seeking approval to a reduction in the minimum qualifying period for parole to six months.Since one effect of the measure will be to reduce the minimum qualifying sentence for parole to about 10½ months from the present 19 ½ months, the newly qualified prisoners found suitable for parole by the local review committees at the prisons will be dealt with under Section 35 of the Criminal Justice Act 1972 without reference to the Parole Board; the final decision will rest—as in all cases—with my right honourable and learned friend.An adequate report on the prisoner's likely domestic circumstances on release will be required before parole can be considered. It has been estimated that the increase in the numbers of cases to be reviewed will create a requirement, across the board, for at least 200 new independent members, some 100 new probation members and some 100 new Board of Visitors members of the local review committees. The arrangements for training these new members will be the same as for existing members. The necessary resources will be made available.

asked her Majesty's Government:What is the present state of the law concerning the petroleum revenue tax and allowances against abandonment costs relating to installations on the British continental shelf and how this compares with what the situation would be if the United Kingdom domestic law incorporated the provisions of the UN Law of the Sea Convention.

The costs of closing down all or part of an oil or gas field are deductible for petroleum revenue tax purposes to the extent that they are incurred for the purposes of safety or the prevention of pollution. I expect most of the cost which domestic law now requires companies to incur to be deductible. I have no reason to suppose that this position would be significantly different if domestic law incorporated the provisions of the UN Law of the Sea Convention, but those provisions are subject to rules which have not yet been laid down.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What view they take of the European Investment Bank's lending schemes for small businesses; and which areas of the United Kingdom have been most successful in securing loans under the scheme.

The Government wish to encourage the take-up of loans from the European Investment Bank by small firms and operate the Exchange Risk Guarantee Scheme, which protects borrowers against potential losses arising from currency fluctuations.Since 1978, when the Exchange Risk Guarantee Scheme was introduced, until March 1983, European Investment Bank loans to small firms were confined to projects located in the Assisted Areas, but loans are now available throughout the country using funds made available from the New Community Instrument which is also operated by the European Investment Bank.The breakdown by geographical regions of European Investment Bank loans made since 1978 through the agency operated by the Government is as follows:—

asked Her Majesty's Government:The total uniformed strength of HM Customs and Excise on 1st October 1983, and the complete figures for 1st October 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1982 respectively.

Figures for 1st October each year are not available, but the total uniformed strength of HM Customs and Excise is given below for 1st April each year:

asked Her Majesty's Government:The strength of the investigation branch of HM Customs and Excise of 1st October, 1983, and the comparable figures for 1st October, 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1982 respectively.

The strength of the Investigation Division of HM Customs and Excise at 1st October in each year is given below.

asked Her Majesty's Government:The total street value of the heroin and cocaine seized by HM Customs and Excise so far in 1983, and the comparable figures for 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1982.

The total quantities and estimated street value of the heroin and cocaine seized by HM Customs and Excise in the first 10 months of 1983 and comparable figures for the years 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1982 are shown in the following table:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will make a statement about the future of the Registry of County Court Judgements.

In the light of the representations I have received about the proposal to raise the minimum level of a registrable judgment from £10 to £50, I have instructed my officials to open discussions with users of the registry into the possibility of the functions of the registry being undertaken by the users themselves.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which unions and professional bodies involved in the NHS were consulted in connection with the Griffiths Report on NHS Management; and what responses were received.

The NHS Management Inquiry Team, led by Mr Roy Griffiths, were not required to carry out any form of formal consultation, either in the course of their inquiries into NHS management or on the advice which they gave to my right honourable friend. They were asked for advice, from the point of view of their considerable business experience, on the management of the NHS.However, the team did meet, and receive evidence from, a wide variety of professional and staff bodies in the NHS, including representatives of the trade unions. Mr Griffiths and his colleagues have not included the names of these bodies in their advice, but they do say that they found no significant or serious objection anywhere in the line of inquiry they were pursuing, and indeed gained general support for their developing ideas.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are aware that an offer of financial support by the Arts Council to a client has the character of a contract when accepted and that their cut in the current arts budget has forced the Arts Council to place itself in breach of contract, with most unfortunate consequences, and whether they will therefore rescind the cut.

I have had no representations to this effect from the Arts Council.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What further legislation is envisaged in the control of asbestos.

Three pieces of legislation are envisaged. First, regulations governing the licensing of work with asbestos insulation and asbestos coating are now being considered by the Secretary of State, and will be laid before Parliament shortly.Secondly, the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) have recently agreed the issue of a consultative document containing proposals for regulations to prohibit the importation, marketing and use of blue asbestos (crocidolite) and brown asbestos (amosite) together with products containing them, and to prohibit asbestos spraying and asbestos insulation. The consultative document will be published in the near future, and the aim is to introduce legislation by June 1984.Thirdly, substantial new legislation to implement the requirements of two recently adopted European Community directives on asbestos is in preparation. It is expected that HSC will issue a consultative document early next year, with a view to submitting draft regulations for the consideration of the Secretary of State by the end of that year.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many of the non-statutory training organisations established to succeed the industrial training boards have submitted an annual report, and whether they will arrange for copies of these to be placed in the Library of the House.

There is no requirement on non-statutory training organisations to submit annual reports, to either the Government or the Manpower Services Commission. The Government are satisfied that the Commission is able to maintain adequate contact with non-statutory training organisations without the need for formal report arrangements.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish in tabular form the number of places offered and the number taken up on all the special employment and training measures at the latest date for which figures are available, showing the numbers in the Youth Opportunities Programme before it was wound up as well as those taken over by the Youth Training Scheme.

The information requested, where available, is set out in the following table.

to ask Her Majesty's Government: To publish in tabular form the revised estimates of spending on all the special employment and training measures for 1983–84, and estimates, where they exist, for the following year.

The attached table shows the latest published estimate provision, adjusted by the effects of the cash limit reductions announced by the Chancellor on 7th July, for the spending on the special employment and training measures in 1983–84. Actual expenditure is now expected to be rather less than the provision allows. Discussions are still continuing on public expenditure in 1984–85 and the allocation for the special measures has not yet been finalised. The provisions for the individual schemes will be publiished in the 1984–85 Supply Estimates in due course.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What financial help they will guarantee to British companies bidding for contracts to help to rebuild Beirut, and what aid they intend to give to the Lebanon for this and related purposes.

We cannot guarantee to provide financial help for British companies bidding for contracts overseas. Matters relating to ECGD cover rest between the individual exporter and that department. We have recently contributed £0.5 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and £0.4 million to the Internation Committee of the Red Cross for work in Lebanon, and will be taking our share of the cost of the European Community aid programme; United Kingdom companies will be able to bid for the contracts provided from that programme. There are at present no other proposals for bilateral aid to Lebanon.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many countries are currently in receipt of Embassies from Her Majesty or Legations from Her Majesty's Government, and how many Heads of Mission represent the United Kingdom in more than one foreign country.

We have Embassies in 86 countries and High Commissions in 39 Commonwealth countries. We are represented in 31 other countries by 17 non-resident Ambassadors or High Commissioners.

asked Her Majesty's Government: How many merchant ship registers, as well as the British and those of Hong Kong, Bermuda, Gibraltar, and the Isle of Man, are now in operation under Her Majesty's Government's auspices; what control Her Majesty's Government exercises in all these cases, directly or indirectly, to ensure that the link between the register and the ship is "close" and that all appropriate national and international standards (including those of the Health and Safety Executive and the International Labour Office and International Maritime Organisation) are fully and continuously complied with; and which Whitehall departments are in charge of overseeing these various registers.

Facilities for the registration of ships are available in the following British Islands and Dependent Territories in addition to the United Kingdom Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey, Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Montserrat, St. Helena and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they will institute an inquiry into the claims made in The Times of 25th August that the Chairman and directors of British Nuclear Fuels have indulged in political activity in recommending the sale of a British publicly-owned undertaking for which they have responsibility to private organisations, British or otherwise.

No.