asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about the circulars which he has issued to local authorities in Scotland giving, guidance upon their responsibilities and powers to assist the severely disabled.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many local authorities have provided telephones for severely disabled people as a result of his circular SW 22/1971 of 12th October, 1971, to local authorities.

I have asked for this information, but it is not yet available centrally.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress he has made in providing an assessment unit for disabled people within the Glasgow area.

The Western Regional Hospital Board has completed initial discussions with the other interested bodies, and hopes soon to appoint a design team for the adult assessment unit at Cowglen Hospital. A start in 1973 is hoped for.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many local authorities have submitted plans to build houses for the disabled this year under Section 3 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act, 1970.

The statutory requirement on local authorities to identify this type of housing in building pro-

I am listing below a number of recent circulars on this subject. This guidance should assist local authorities in the development of their services for the disabled, in which I expect a substantial improvement in the next few years.Following is the information:posals submitted to me was introduced only at the end of 1970. Eleven local authorities submitted to me, before this year, schemes which include the provision of houses for the disabled. None, so far, has submitted plans under Section 3.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how much was spent by his Department on research and development to assist disabled people in 1971.

About £70,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what results he has obtained following the circular he sent in 1971 to local authorities with regard to Section 8 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act, 1970.

Information is not available centrally about the provision which is being made by authorities. The Act does not give me power to require this information to be supplied to me.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many premises in the Scottish central fire area and the city of Glasgow, respectively, await inspection by fire prevention officers.

I am informed that the totals are about 2,800 and 8,800 respectively: of these about 98 per cent. are premises registered under the Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act, 1963.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent he requires his staff to work on their normal rest days and to work overtime; and whether such staff are able to refuse to work overtime and on their rest days without disciplinary action being taken against them.

I would refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given to him by my right ho Friend, the Prime Minister, on 27th April.—[Vol. 835, c.361.]

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the expenditure for the last convenient year on house improvement grants in Scotland.

In 1971, local authorities in Scotland paid grants of nearly £3 million to private owners, and improvements of public sector houses costing about £4 million were approved for grant. The amount of annual Government contributions depends on whether the completed works attract the provisions of the Housing Act, 1971.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many inmates in Her Majesty's Prisons in Scotland are engaged on productive work and whose products duplicate those made by outside manufacturing industry; if he will list the types of goods, and the annual value of the goods sold; and if he will make a statement.

Some 2,400 inmates of Scottish penal institutions are currently engaged in the production of items of kinds manufactured also by outside industry. The work is mainly on textile, wooden, metal and concrete goods, but mats, nets and shoes are also made. The annual value of this production in the year to 31st March, 1971, was approximately £850,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make an early ministerial broadcast on Government policy for dealing with the major problems facing Scotland in 1972.

I and my ministerial colleagues at the Scottish Office make frequent appearances on the television networks serving Scotland.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is satisfied with the provision in Lanarkshire for mentally handicapped children; and if he will make a statement.

I am aware that there is some difficulty at present over the placing of mentally handicapped pupils from the county in special schools and hospitals. Provision is the responsibility of the education authority and the regional hospital board which keep it under review and which will, I am sure, overcome these temporary difficulties as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many public authority houses were started in the first quarter of 1972; and what were the comparable figures for each of the last five years.

A total of 4,643 houses were started by local authorities, new town corporations and the Scottish Special Housing Association in the first quarter of 1972. This reverses the downward trend since 1967. For the first quarters of the years 1967 to 1971 the numbers were 8,304, 7,130, 6,242, 5,648 and 4,413.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, what percentage of domestic and industrial waste in Scotland is in any way treated, reclaimed, or made into compost; and what percentage is buried without treatment.

The domestic refuse from about one third of Scotland's population is incinerated, from about 6 per cent. pulverised, and from about 6 per cent. made into compost. Any residue from treated domestic refuse, and all untreated refuse, is disposed of by controlled tipping. Corresponding information is not available about industrial waste.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what representations have been made to him by the Association of First Division Civil Servants, that in certain circumstances where they are under public criticism civil servants should have the right to answer directly to Parliament.

None.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service how many temporary civil servants supplied by agencies are at present employed in London.

The Estimates for 1972–73 provide for the employment of about 800 agency typists. The great majority of these will be located in London.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service whether he will make a statement on the position of widows of post-retirement marriages in the public service.

The reviews of the public service pension schemes have not so far led to any recommendation for covering the widows of post-retirement marriages, but a final decision must await the proposed legislation of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service how many civil servants earn £5,000 per annum or more.

Information about the earnings of individual civil servants is not held centrally but a rough estimate, taking account of current pay scales, is that there are about 6,700 civil servants who earn £5,000 per annum or more.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service to what extent he requires his star to work on their normal rest days and to work overtime; and whether such staff are able to refuse to work overtime a id on their normal rest days without disciplinary action being taken against them.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, to a similar Question oar 27th April.—[Vol. 835, c. 361.]

asked the Minister for the Civil Service how many permanent heads of Departments there are; and how many have been private secretary to the Prime Minister and to other Ministers, respectively.

Of the 20 permanent heads of the major and ministerial Departments, 18 are Permanent Secretaries and two are Deputy Secretaries. None of them has been private secretary to a Prime Minister, but 11 have been private secretary to a Minister.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what was the total cost to the taxpayer in the latest year for which figures are available of the Civil Service establishment in the South-East Region and in the English regions outside the South-East, respectively.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will accelerate the review of the location of Civil Service work; and if he will make an interim statement.

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister told the House on 8th February that he expected to receive recommendations as a result of the review later this year. As my right hon. Friend explained, this is a big task, which is being pressed forward as speedily as possible.—[Vol. 830, c. 1134–35.]

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what requests he has received from the Post Office Board for approval for capital expenditure in order to carry general goods and merchandise traffics.

None.

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what was the average percentage of delay to mail in numbers and extent of time in the work-to-rule period of railwaymen commencing on Monday, 17th April.

Precise figures are not available but the Post Office tells me that many letters were delayed one day and parcels two days.

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications if he will consider seeking legislative powers to allow a grant to be paid to enable those persons who are now unable to receive television broadcasts in their areas to install piped television into their homes.

No. The BBC and ITA are already extending the coverage attained by their UHF services as widely and as quickly as possible. Where local television relay services exist it is for the individual to decide whether or not to make use of them.

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications whether he will issue a general direction to the Post Office not to accept tenders from abroad for telecommunications equipment where to do so seriously prejudices the Government's development area policy.

No. I would refer the hon. Member to the White Paper on Industrial and Regional Development—Cmnd. 4942—which outlines the Government's policy for assisting the development areas to become more competitive. The Post Office gets 70 per cent. of its exchange equipment from those areas and, as my predecessor informed the House on 1st March, recently increased its investment programme by £100 million, much of it to be spent in the designated areas.—[Vol. 832, c. 409.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give details of the grants which are paid to owner occupiers for house improvement work; whether older houses which require such things as new floors, new window frames, walls replastered, replacement of broken toilet cisterns and pipes, new doors outside and inside and door steps, qualify; and what replies he gives to such applications.

The answer to the first part is as I stated in reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Mr. Golding) on 26th April. Up to half the amount of an improvement grant can be for any necessary repairs and replacements carried out at the same time, but this work does not qualify on its own. Applications for grant are made to local authorities and it is for them to give any reply.—[Vol. 835, c. 278]

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he will take steps to institute a system of new grants to all inner authorities serving conurbations of more than a million, for the purpose of improving the environment in respect of tips, dereliction, cleaning of buildings, creation of river valley parks and other schemes approved by the local authority and his Department;(2) whether he will take steps to institute a system of new grants to stabilise rates in relation to inner authorities which provide various amenities for non-ratepayers who live outside but work, shop and enjoy their recreation within the authorities' boundary, based on the amenities provided, the numbers involved and the approval of his Department.

Discussions are still continuing with the local authority associations about the future system of grants to local government, on the lines suggested in the Green Paper. It is the intention that any new grant system should be designed to take full account of both the needs for local authorities to incur expenditure and the resources available to them to meet such expenditure.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will introduce legislation to make it compulsory to display a current certificate of insurance on a vehicle before taking it on to a road.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will instruct motorway maintenance staff, when needing to close one lane, to limit such closure to a miximum of one mile at a time and when needing to close two lanes to limit such closure to three-quarters of a mile at a time;(2) if he is aware that there was a queue of vehicles 1é miles long and three lanes wide on Monday, 24th April on the M6 near Stafford because of repairs to the motorway causing single line traffic for 1·6 miles; and if he will give a direction to motorway maintenance staff to limit single line working to three-quarters of a mile.

I regret the delays which occurred on the M6. Every effort is made to minimise delays consistent with efficient working and safety. I do not believe it would be helpful to give arbitrary instructions as to working lengths because of widely varying operations and circumstances.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take steps to identify the chemical causes for the characteristic smell related to the operation of the Coalite plant at Rossington, and to what extent there is a hazard to health arising therefrom.

The causes of this smell are already known. There is no evidence of any specific hazard to health.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) to what extent in the past 10 years cemeteries in any of the London boroughs have ceased to be used as cemeteries, and have been converted for use by councils for house building;(2) in which of the London boroughs land at present in disuse or used in alternative ways, has beet designated for use as cemetery land during the period 1972–80.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) where, in each of the Londor, boroughs, land is currently in use as cemeteries; what number of those cemeteries are full and have ceased to be used for burying the dead; and in such cases what alternative arrangements have peen made for the future;(2) what area of land in each of the London boroughs is In use as cemeteries, whether as crematoria or grave plots;(3) what is the total amount of land in the Greater London area in use as cemeteries, whether as crematoria or grave plots.

I regret that this information is not available from Departmental records. A survey by the Greater London Council in 1971 showed a total of 2687.8 and 200.5 acres in use in Greater London for cemetery and crematoria purposes respectively. About 300 acres of land in Greater London was held for future use as cemeteries and there were six proposals for the use of about 25 acres of land for crematoria.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the estimated number of units of accommodation which could be built in each of the London boroughs on land currently in use as cemeteries allowing for normal housing densities.

No such estimate can usefully be made in regard to land currently in use as cemeteries. There may he particular cases in which some land can be released from cemetery use but these must be looked at individually.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many parishes there are in the proposed Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester Metropolitan Districts, respectively; how many parishes there are in the proposed Leeds and Bradford Metropolitan Districts; and why there is such a discrepancy in size between the different metropolitan districts proposed.

There are no parishes in the Birmingham district; one in each of the Liverpool and Manchester districts; and 34 in all in the Bradford and Leeds districts. Differences in size between metropolitan districts arise from the nature of the area.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make an early statement on the Superannuation Act, 1972, regulations relating to local government officers.

My right hon. Friend hopes to make new regulations in the Autumn, after consulting bodies having an interest, embodying the main terms agreed between the employers and representative staff bodies.The regulations will provide for all the new benefits to apply to any person whose retirement or cessation of employment begins on or after 1st April, 1972, and payments made in the meantime will be adjusted retrospectively as if the regulations had been in force from 1st April, 1972.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what capital grants have been made to sporting organisations in the Manchester area during 1971 and 1972; and what grants have so far been approved for the rest of 1972.

Only five applications were received from sports associations in the City of Manchester in the period January, 1971, until 31st March, 1972, when the Sports Council took over responsibility for dealing with capital grants. In three of these cases grant offers have been made. No capital grants were made during 1971; one grant was made in 1972 before 31st March.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many miles of canals are currently being used for recreational purposes; and what extension of facilities and waterways are planned for 1972 and 1973.

About 2,000 miles of canals in Great Britain are used for a variety of recreational purposes. The British Waterways Board's current plans for these two years include substantial improvement of 123 miles of their system for recreation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment by how many inches, and in what direction, the tower of Big Ben has leaned from the perpendicular in the years 1952, 1962 and 1972, respectively.

Figures are not available before 1960 but in that year a survey showed an inclination of about 15 inches towards the north-west. No change was detected until 1968 when a more accurate survey with modern instruments of greatly improved design showed that the inclination was 9½ inches in the same direction. The most recent test was carried out on 29th March, 1972, and showed no significant variation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of all road accidents involves lorries.

This information is not available in the precise form re- quested, but of all motor vehicles involved in accidents where personal injuries were sustained, 6·3 per cent. were goods vehicles of over 1½tons unladen weight.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment of the accidents involving lorries, what proportion is caused by lorries crossing a trunk road or major road diagonally.

This information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many accidents occurred on all Staffordshire roads in 1969, 1970 and 1971; and how many fatalities there were in road accidents in Staffordshire in 1969, 1970 and 1971.

Following are the figures:

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what procedures for monitoring dangerous chemicals are in operation in the United Kingdom; and what steps have been taken to improve the system following the Second Report of the Royal Commission on the Environment.

Central and local government and river authorities operate extensive monitoring programmes, including chemical analyses, to assess the level and significance of potential pollutants entering the environment from domestic, industrial and agricultural sources. The dumping of dangerous chemicals at sea is controlled under the terms of the Oslo Convention, and on land by the Deposit of Poisonous Waste Act which became law in March, 1972. Discussions are in progress with the CBI on the development of an early warning system on the environmental impact of new products, including chemicals, and it is hoped fairly shortly to open wide consultations on the question of secrecy with regard to industrial effluents.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if the reports of his alkali inspectors are available to the public regarding the investigation into a particular factory; and if he will make available a copy of such reports to the trade unions concerned in that factory.

No. Such reports are written as internal memoranda from the District Inspectors to the Chief Alkali and Clean Air Inspector, and the great majority of them contain confidential information.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many prosecutions have been instigated by his alkali inspectors in each of the last five years; how many of these have been successful; and what has been the average fine imposed.

Following is the in formation:

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to publish the results of the investigations of the Road Research Laboratory into the effects of heavy vehicles on underground services and foundations of buildings.

With regard to the effect of vehicles on underground services there is nothing I can add to my reply of 1st May to the hon. Member. A report by the Transport and Road Research Laboratory on a survey of traffic-induced vibrations (LR 418) was published in November, 1971.—[Vol. 835, c. 31.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in his forthcoming consultation paper on the future of the Water Resources Board, he will give specific reasons for his proposal to decentralise those of its functions which have national applicability.

My right hon. Friend has made no such proposal.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the local authorities in the assisted areas of the North-West from whom no applications for special environmental grant proposals have been received.

There are 83 local authorities in the North-West Region who are eligible for assistance under Operation Eyesore from whom no applications have yet been received, but a number of these are known to have schemes in preparation. I am sending details to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment to what extent the staff employed in the House of Commons coming under his ministerial control are required to work overtime and on their normal rest days; and whether such staff are able to refuse to work overtime and on their normal rest days without disciplinary action being taken against them.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 27th April, 1972.—[Vol. 835, c. 361.]

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the total cost of payments made under all aspects of grants to firms in West Dunbartonshire, in the burghs and in the landward area, respectively, since the designation of the county as a special development area.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the total cost of payments made under all aspects of grants to firms in East Dunbartonshire, in the burghs and in the landward area, respectively, since the designation of the county as a special development area.

I regret that the information is not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if it is his intention to institute the leak procedure to establish if anyone in his Department is responsible for the information of a commercial confidential nature of the Concorde project being fed to a Sunday newspaper, copies of which have been sent to him.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures he will take to encourage the development of new industry in Halifax in view of closures in the machine tool and textile industries?

The proposals set out in the White Paper" Industrial and Regional Development "and the extension of intermediate area status are designed to encourage consideration of Halifax, amongst other places, as an attractive centre for investment in new industries as well as for the modernisation and development of existing industry.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will seek to call a conference of interested parties, to include British European Airways Helicopter Limited, Her Majesty's Coastguard, the Royal Naval Lifeboat Institution, mountain rescue teams, and representatives of the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy, fire brigades, ambulance services and police, under the chairmanship of his Department, with a view to setting up an integrated emergency service; and if he will make a statement.

The Department's responsibility for search and rescue is limited to civil, marine and aviation incidents, and I consider that the arrangements for these incidents are adequate. However, the Government recently considered whether or not to set up a civilian air search and rescue organisation and reached the conclusion that the present system under which military aircraft give assistance to civilians in trouble works satisfactorily, and that to superimpose a civilian helicopter organisation upon that of the Services would be a wasteful duplication of effort.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, in view of the fact that clearance of derelict areas has disposed of many backstreet workshops, if he will consider the provision of venture capital to encourage small business enterprise in the regions.

The new industrial incentives, both national and in the assisted areas, will be available to large and small firms alike. But so far as capital is concerned, the Bolton Committee took the view that existing financial institutions were adequate for the needs of small firms, and I have received no evidence to the contrary.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the value of exports from the United Kingdom of telecommunications equipment in each year since 1964.

The information for 1971 is given in Table VI (under group 724) of the December, 1971, issue of the Overseas Trade Statistics. For the earlier years, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 15th November, 1971.—[Vol. 826, c. 15–16.]

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what were the numbers of firms in the United Kingdom engaged in the footwear industry who went out of business in each of the five years to 31st December, 1971.

I regret that full information is not available; some indication of the net reduction in numbers between 1968 and 1971 is provided by the answer I gave my hon. Friend yesterday.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will now make a statement on the future investment programme of the steel industry in Scotland; and to what extent Great Britain's entry into the European Economic Community will assist or hamper such investment.

As I said on 17th January to my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow, Cathcart (Mr. Edward Taylor), about an eighth of BSC s approved expenditure for 1972–73 is in Scotland; there is no reason why future investment plans for Scotland should suffer from entry to the ECSC.—[Vol. 829, c. 22.]

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what consideration he is giving to the arrangements for civil aviation security, particularly the searching of passengers; and if he will make a statement.

I have today visited Heathrow Airport to inspect the implementation of security measures operating there. It remains the view of the Government that airline and airport authorities must continue to bear responsibility for the security of the operation of their aircraft and their airports respectively. But the Government have decided that they will in future bear the reasonable costs to British and overseas airlines of screening passengers and their baggage, which is estimated to cost £1 million per annum. The arrangements for ensuring a proper level of security are kept under continuing review through the National Aviation Security Committee and by the airport security committees which have been set up at all principal civil airports.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in remedying the difficulties in Sheffield on the boundary between the private steel sector and the British Steel Corporation, resulting from nationalisation, to which he referred in his statement on 27th April, 1971.

I understand that the British Steel Corporation and Thos. Firth & John Brown Limited have now signed a final agreement, the terms of which are being announced today. This completes the transaction referred to by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State in his statement of 28th June last, and represents a welcome step in removing some of the anomalies in the boundary between the public and private sectors of the industry created by steel nationalisation. The proposals were examined in the usual way in the context of the Monopolies and Mergers Act, 1965, but reference to the Monopolies Commission was not considered to be necessary.—[Vol. 820, c. 33–40.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children, in the latest year for which figures are available. were treated for injuries due to contact with household and garden products of corrosive, poisonous, inflammable and explosive natures, respectively; and how many children subsequently died as a result of their injuries.

The only information available is that in 1968 some 3,100 children under the age of 15 were treated in hospitals in England and Wales for toxic effects of non-medicinal substances. For medicinal substances, the number was 7,300. In 1970, 20 children died from poisoning by medicinal and non-medicinal products.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will make a statement on the circumstances in which a letter was sent from his Department at Princeton House, 271 High Holborn, London, W.C.1, reference M 267147, on 12th April 1972, suggesting that Mr. Godfrey Mkushi in Rhodesia, a student wishing to study engineering at Hull University, should apply for an entry certificate to the British High Commission in Salisbury; and whether he will also make a statement on the sentence in the same letter to the effect that Rhodesian passports are now acceptable to the British Government.

I regret the errors in this letter. I have taken steps which I hope will avoid their repetition. The advice that should have been given was that an application for an entry certificate by someone in Rhodesia should be made to the consular section of the British Embassy in Pretoria, and that the embassy would provide United Kingdom passport facilities if an entry certificate was granted. Her Majesty's Government have never recognised travel documents issued by the illegal régime in Rhodesia, and do not now do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what was the average cost to public funds of each case heard at summary courts in Wales and at higher courts in Wales in 1971:(2) what was the cost to public funds and the estimated total cost of the trial of nine people charged with stealing or handling stolen property at Carmarthen Crown Court during the week commencing 24th April.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete his review of the issues raised by suggestions for amendment of the law to allow the promotion of lotteries for charitable and other purposes, in view of the decision of the House of Lords in the case of Singette v. Martin; and if he will make a statement.

Good progress is being made with this review. I expect it to be completed later this year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he hopes to make a statement on the Salmon Committee's recommendations, in relation to alleged shortcomings by civil servants;(2) what steps he is taking to ensure that before any civil servant who is involved in an inquiry is called as a witness, he should be given notification of allegations in advance, together with the substance of the supporting evidence, and should have an opportunity of preparing a defence against the allegations.

The Royal Commission's recommendations relate to the procedures of tribunals of inquiry in general, whoever may be parties to them. As I indicated when replying to the debate on the V and G tribunal on Monday, 1st May, the Government thought it right that before final conclusions were reached on the recommendations they should be tested by the experience of that tribunal. The recommendations will now be examined in the light of comments which have been sought from its chairman. which I should expect to cover the particular issue to which the hon. Member had drawn attention. The Government's conclusions will be made known when this examination has been completed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government will make special vouchers for settlement in the United Kingdom available to United Kingdom passport holders resident in India.

The Government have reviewed the position of United Kingdom passport holders in India and have decided to make a limited issue of special vouchers for settlement in this country. The vouchers will be issued in accordance with priorities determined from time to time by our High Commissioner in Delhi. With effect from today, the annual global allocation of special vouchers will be increased from 3,000 to 3,500.At the same time the Government have decided to reduce the number of Commonwealth citizens entering this country to take up employment, and my hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department of Employment, is today circulating in the OFFICIAL REPORT a Written Answer giving particulars of changes in the employment voucher scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when Lord Wheatley's Report on safety in fotball grounds will be published; and if he will make a statement.

The Report, for which I wish to thank Lord Wheatley, has been published today as a Command Paper. The Government accept the Report in principle, and, in particular, the recommendation that certain football grounds should be subject to a statutory licensing control administered by local authorities. So that the necessary legislation may be prepared, there will now be consultations with those concerned, particularly with local authority and football interests, on the proposals in the Report.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what local authorities or other employers have notified him that they will refuse to operate all, or any part of, the Industrial Relations Act.

I have not received any such notifications.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will ask the Robens Committee to give consideration to the need to establish legally enforceable minimum standards of quality covering the import and sale of industrial safety clothing and equipment;(2) if he will seek powers to prohibit the sale of industrial safety clothing or equipment that does not conform to British standards.

The Robens Committee have given full consideration to the issues involved in safety and health at work and are now finalising their report. It would not be appropriate at this stage to refer particular questions to them for consideration; but my right hon. Friend will be considering in the light of their report the full range of the powers available to him in this field.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what changes he proposes to make in the arrangements for the issue of employment vouchers.

Following the Home Secretary's announcement of the Government's decision to increase the number of special vouchers available for United Kingdom Passport Holders, the number of employment vouchers to be issued each year will be reduced by 450 to 2,250. Special allocation for Malta will be reduced by 100 to 500 a year and that for the Dependent Territories by 100 to 300 a year of which no one territory will be permitted to take more than 200. There will be no change in the arrangements for the issue of Category A vouchers but the number available in Category B will be reduced by 250 to 750 a year. The new arrangements will come into force immediately.

asked the Lord President of the Council to what extent he requires his staff to work on their normal rest days and to work overtime; and whether such staff are able to refuse to work overtime and on their normal rest days without disciplinary action being taken against them.

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given to his Question of 27th April by my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister.—[Vol. 835. c. 361.]

asked the Lord President of the Council to what extent Great Britain's entry into the European Economic Community on present known terms will affect the position of local and public authorities sponsoring private Bills where such Bills may conflict with the rules and regulations of the Community; and to what extent such local and public authorities powers on sponsoring private Bills will have to be adjusted to Community law.

The powers of local and public authorities regarding the sponsorship of private Bills will not require adjustment after EEC entry. In considering private bills after entry Parliament will, however, have to take account of the need to avoid any action inconsistent with the Treaty providing for United Kingdom membership of the Communities.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what aspects of the operation of the Milk Marketing Board have not yet been approved by the European Economic Community.

The understanding reached between the United Kingdom and the EEC is annexed to the Final Act of the Conference—Cmd. 4862–1. The Government have made it clear that in the light of this understanding they expect the essential marketing functions of the boards to continue.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many students at present attend the Chinese University of Hong Kong; how many were attending in 1967, and how many in 1962.

The following are the numbers of students attending the Chinese University of Hong Kong:

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many students at present attend the Chinese University of Hong Kong; how many were attending in 1970, and how many in 1967.

The following are the numbers of students attending the Chinese University of Hong Kong:

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received from sporting organisations regarding the impact of value added tax on sport; if he will give favourable consideration to such representations; if he will give a breakdown of the cost of value added tax to sport; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has received a large number of representations about the impact of value added tax on sport. The points made were carefully considered in framing the proposals in the Finance Bill. No detailed breakdown of the yield of VAT from various sports is available. VAT is a tax on consumer expenditure and taxable sports organisations will be able to deduct, against the tax on their admission charges, the VAT charged to them on their expenditure. Large numbers of sports clubs and societies of all kinds will come within the scope of the exemption for organisations whose turnover in taxable goods and services does not exceed £5,000 per annum.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many ép coins were in circulation on 31st December, 1971; and what percentage of the total coinage in circulation it represented.

The number of½p coins in circulation on 31st December, 1971, was approximately 1,136 million. This represented about 17 per cent, of the total number of coins in circulation at that date.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Government propose to make any changes in the arrangements for borrowing by the nationalised industries.

Yes. Following the changes in credit control policy introduced last year, nationalised industries will be allowed greater flexibility in arranging short-term finance. Longer-term finance will continue to be provided by the National Loans Fund; but certain restrictions on the terms on which this finance is available will cease to apply. The changes are summarised in a memorandum setting out policy as it now stands. This memorandum has been sent to the industries, and copies have been placed in the Library of the House.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when taxpayers will receive the benefit of the accumulated tax reduction in respect of the period between the beginning of the financial year and the date upon which the £1 a week reduction in tax liability is reflected in the pay packet.

Employees who are taxed under PAYE will find that the reductions I have proposed this year are reflected in their pay packets tomorrow, 4th May, or their first pay packets thereafter. The take-home pay of most taxpayers will on that occasion be increased by the tax saving accumulated since 6th April.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on what date planning permission was sought and granted to enable the construction of the watch tower in Londonderry now being used by members of the Irish Republican Army.

No planning permission has been sought for this "tower" which consists of a small box on high stilts.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to stop the illegal distribution of heroin, cannabis and other drugs in Northern Ireland; and from what countries these drugs are illegally obtained.

The Drugs Squad of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, in close co-operation with the Drugs Inspectorate of the Ministry of Home Affairs, does everything possible to detect and suppress illegal distribution or use of drugs in Northern Ireland. Available evidence suggests that most drugs are not directly imported into Northern Ireland from their places of origin abroad but arrive there from either Great Britain or the Republic of Ireland.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons have been interned in Northern Ireland since 24th March; and if he will make a statement.

None. My right hon. Friend is keeping the position under review in the light of the security situation.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons were released from detention and internment during the three weeks prior to 24th March, 1972, and during the subsequent three weeks.

The numbers of persons released from detention and internment during the periods referred to are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many persons were detained by the security forces during the three weeks prior to 24th March and during the subsequent three weeks.

The number of persons detained by the security forces under Regulation 10 made under the Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act (Northern Ireland), 1922, during the periods referred to is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services that means-tested benefits he estimates a married worker with three children of school age will lose on receipt of a wage increase of £2, £3 and £4 a week, respectively, presuming that his present wage is £20 a week.

A family with three children and a total gross income (excluding family allowances of £1·90) of £20 a week are entitled to a family income supplement of £1·10 a week. Wage increases do not affect current awards of Family Income Supplement, but any increase of £2 or more would in this case mean that an award would not be renewed. Title to other means-tested benefits would depend upon circumstances such as housing costs and working expenses.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what, from information available to him, he regards as the average requirement in Wales per 1,000 persons of beds for geriatric patients; and how soon he expects this level to be reached.

The national norm is 10 beds per 1,000 population aged 65 and over. In total, the number of geriatric beds available in Wales fulfils this norm, but there is a surplus in some areas and a shortage in others. The Welsh Hospital Board is currently undertaking a special study of the needs of the elderly in Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the number of persons in Wales at the present moment who are in need of admission to geriatric hospitals.

On 31st December, 1971, the latest date for which a figure is available, there were 383 on the waiting lists for geriatric beds.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what studies he proposes to make of the need of more beds in hospitals in Wales for geriatric patients.

The Welsh Hospital Board is currently carrying out a special study of the overall health needs of the elderly. The study includes an assessment of the adequacy of present hospital bed provision.

asked the Attorney-General how many magistrates in Wales are sufficiently proficient in the Welsh language to be able to hear a case wholly conducted in Welsh; and what percentage of the magistracy in Wales this number represents.

The figures for which the hon. Member asks are not readily available, but my noble and learned Friend the Lord Chancellor is making inquiries and will let him have the information as soon as he has obtained it.

asked the Attorney-General what is the average time taken in the Taxation Department of the High Court of Justice in London in dealing with taxations of bills of costs and in finalising such bills.

In the Supreme Court Taxing Office, the average time for a small bill is 14 days from lodgement to giving notice of taxation; for a large one normally about 28 days. A Certificate of Taxation can usually be issued in a small case within 14 days and, in a large one, within about four weeks. In the Family Division, the average period from lodgement until adjudication is five weeks where the bill is taxed by a taxing officer, and 10 weeks where it is taxed by a registrar. In both cases about three weeks elapse from adjudication to completion.