Written Answers

                    The text on this page has been created from Hansard archive content, it may contain typographical errors.
                

Written Answers To Questions

Thursday 30th November 1972

Defence

Armed Forces (Republic Of Ireland Citizens)

10.

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will alter the rules for entry into the armed forces of the United Kingdom so that citizens of the Republic of Ireland cease to be treated as British citizens, but are treated as foreign citizens, in accord with the status of the Irish Republic as an independent foreign country.

No. The rules take account of the special position of citizens of the Republic of Ireland in the United Kingdom under Section 3 of the British Nationality Act 1948 and the provisions of the Ireland Act 1949.

Berlin Airlift (Award Of Decoration)

19.

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will give fresh consideration to the award of a decoration for Her Majesty's Forces actively concerned in the Berlin airlift, having regard to the award of the General Service Medal for service in Northern Ireland.

No. The two cases are not strictly comparable.

Ceremonial Occasions (Cost Of Ammunition)

21.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what is his estimate of the cost of blank ammunition expended by the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force Regiment on Royal, national, presidential and other ceremonial salutes for the years 1970–71 and 1971–72.

The estimate of the cost of blank ammunition expended by the Royal Navy, the British Army and the Royal Air Force Regiment on Royal, national, presidential and other ceremonial salutes is £22,000 for the year 1970–71 and £23,000 for the year 1971–72.

Army Pensions (Giro)

22.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what proposals he has for enabling army pensions to be paid direct into Post Office Giro accounts.

Army pensions of men below commissioned rank may be paid direct into a National Giro account if they wish. The method of payment of army officers' retired pay is a matter for the Paymaster-General's office.

Northern Ireland

23.

asked the Minister of State for Defence how many weapons issued to members of the Ulster Defence Regiment in Belfast, and in each of the six counties in Northern Ireland, have been reported lost, mislaid, or stolen this year.

One hundred and ninety-three weapons issued to members of the Ulster Defence Regiment have been lost or stolen during 1972, of which 76 were subsequently recovered. Of these, 130 were lost as a result of raids on armouries or duty posts.Following are the detailed figures:

Belfast	26
County Antrim	1
County Armagh	125
County Londonderry	14
County Down	13
County Fermanagh	1
County Tyrone	13

Of the 76 weapons subsequently recovered, 68 were recovered from Armagh and eight from elsewhere.

35.

asked the Minister of State for Defence how many soldiers are at present stationed in Northern Ireland.

When current moves are completed, there will be about 16,500 Regular troops and also about 9,200 members of the Ulster Defence Regiment in Northern Ireland.

36.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what instructions are given to members of the Ulster Defence Regiment concerning membership of the Ulster Defence Association.

All members of the Ulster Defence Regiment have been reminded that it is a non-sectarian force and have been informed that if a soldier's sympathy for the Ulster Defence Association, Catholic Ex-Servicemen's Association or any similar organisation is strong enough to effect the performance of his military duties or to call in question his future loyalty or his complete impartiality, he will be discharged. The number of men who might be involved is not expected to be large.

39.

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he is satisfied with the present arrangements whereby the Eire authorities notify the Army of movements of the Irish Republican Army on the border; and if he will make a statement.

Close co-operation between the security forces on both sides of the border is most desirable in the interests if preventing cross-border terrorism. The RUC and the Army do, of course, maintain contact with the appropriate authorities in the Republic of Ireland, and Her Majesty's Government are always ready to discuss in practical terms any new arrangements for improving cross-border liaison.

40.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what consideration he has given to expanding the rôle of the Ulster Defence Regiment to enable it to undertake policing duties along the border and in the country areas of Northern Ireland.

The UDR is already actively engaged, in border and rural areas, in support of the Regular forces. These duties do not involve any change of rôle for the regiment.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what is his estimate of the number of Ulster Defence Regiment members who are also members of the Ulster Defence Association.

No precise estimate can be made but the number is believed to be small. With regard to the guidance given to members of the Ulster Defence Regiment about membership of the Ulster Defence Association, I refer the hon. Lady to the answer which I gave to her other Question on this matter today.

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether investigations into involvement of members of the Ulster Defence Regiment in recent terrorist activities in counties Deny and Tyrone have been completed; and what is the result of these investigations.

All the matters which the hon. Member raised in her letter to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in September have been thoroughly investigated. As she was informed by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Northern Ireland in his letter dated 20th October, 1972, no evidence has been found of collusion over the thefts of weapons from 8 UDR or that Ulster Defence Regiment personnel were involved in the 11 shooting incidents in the Coagh area in question or in the incidents on 13th and 27th February and 23rd March. Investigations have shown that there was no collusion between the Ulster Defence Regiment and those who set up the illegal road block on 21st August.

Low-Flying Aircraft (Wales)

24.

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will instigate a study of the effects of low-flying aircraft activity on communities in West Wales.

No. I am well aware that low flying by military aircraft causes a measure of disturbance to small communities in various parts of Britain, though we try to keep it to an absolute minimum. Such flying is, of course, essential to the training of the Royal Air Force.

37.

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will carry out a detailed study of low-flying aircraft activity over West Wales.

No. I already have available very full details of military low-flying activity in West Wales.

Honest John

31.

asked the Minister of State for Defence when he proposes to replace Honest John by a modem tactical nuclear weapon.

No decision has yet been taken.

Nuclear Military Information (Exchange)

32.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what proposals he has made to the United States Government to amend the McMahon restrictions on the supply of nuclear military knowledge by Great Britain to the French and other Governments.

None. As my right hon. Friend said in answer to the hon. Member for Blaydon (Mr. Woof) on 27th January, United States legislation is a matter for the United States Government.—[Vol. 829, c. 504.]

Pay

33.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what steps he is taking to ensure equal pay for equal work amongst civilians employed in Ministry of Defence establishments, with particular reference to the discrepancies in pay between those men and women employed in establishments with productivity schemes and those employed in establishments without such schemes although the work itself may be identical; and whether he will make a statement.

Civil industrial employees in Ministry of Defence establishments receive basic rates of pay common to the industrial Civil Service as a whole. In many cases, these are supplemented by bonuses under productivity or incentive schemes. The principle of the rate for the job is not affected because under such schemes the employee is called upon to give greater effort or make some other concession in return for the bonus.

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he is aware that there are many Servicemen now in receipt of payments net, less than those persons in receipt of supplementary benefits; and whether he will increase the pay of all these Service men to ensure that they receive at least the same net income as those in receipt of supplementary benefits, in view of the information sent to him by the hon. Member for West Ham, North.

I am aware of the situation. Those concerned include young married Servicemen, particularly those who are still under training, and older men, with several children, who have not secured promotion. The pay of the Armed Forces is related to earnings in civilian life by the recommendations of the independent Armed Forces Pay Review Body.

Aircraft Sales (Singapore)

34.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what discussions he has had on the sale of British aircraft to Singapore prior to the purchase by the Government of Singapore of 48 United States aircraft.

Discussions with other Governments on the sale of British military aircraft are normally undertaken by the firm concerned and are regarded as confidential.

Nuclear Submarine Bases

38.

asked the Minis-of State for Defence, having regard to the decision of the United States Government to press ahead with the 6,000 miles range Trident submarine to operate from United States bases, if he will now close down British nuclear bases.

No.

Research And Production Establishments

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he is satisfied with the amount of protection against infection and contamination for workers in Departments of Defence Research and Production establishments; if he will consult with unions and professional bodies regarding possible dangers; and if he will make a statement.

It is our policy at least to equal the statutory requirements for health and safety at Ministry of Defence research and production establishments. We shall continue our long established practice of involving union representatives and professional bodies in seeking to improve the protection afforded against infection and contamination.

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will indicate the machinery for handling complaints about contamination or infection at Department of Defence Research and Production units; if he will describe the mechanism by which such claims are settled; and if he will make a statement.

On the rare occasions when complaints arise, they are normally dealt with by the Ministry of Defence safety services organisation, which consults professional bodies as necessary. Common law claims arising from death, injuries or disabilities alleged to have been sustained at work are considered on their legal merits and, where appropriate, settled by the Ministry of Defence claims commission.

Sound Of Raasay

asked the Minister of State for Defence why he is planning a torpedo testing range in the Sound of Raasay.

The introduction of complex modern torpedoes for the fleet requires a sophisticated range to test and evaluate their performance. An exhaustive study has revealed that the Inner Sound of Raasay, where we already undertake torpedo testing, is the only site in the United Kingdom which meets our requirements. It is estimated that some 80 to 90 permanent jobs will be created for local people, including about 40 associated with range craft.

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his discussions with local fishing interests in the Sound of Raasay.

The Ministry of Defence has been represented at a number of meetings which have been attended by local fishing interests, the last of which was called by the Inverness County Council and held at Portree on 23rd November. These discussions have been of value in suggesting directions in which we can seek to minimise the effect on fishermen of our proposed range activities. We are most anxious to do this wherever possible.

V/Stol Aircraft

asked the Minister of State for Defence when he expects to receive the results of the project definition study on the operation of vertical and short take-off and landing aircraft from ships.

I have nothing to add to the reply given by my right hon. Friend to my hon. Friend the Member for Haltemprice (Mr Wall) on 19th October.—[Vol. 843, c. 436–7.]

Warships (Waste Disposal)

asked the Minister of State for Defence when he expects to receive the report of his working party studying the problem of disposal of waste and pollution from warships; and if he will make a statement.

The working party expects to report in April 1973, and it would be premature at this stage to make a statement about its findings.

Egypt (Military Supplies)

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will list the defence materials which the Government will allow to be exported to Egypt.

It is not the policy of Her Majesty's Government to comment on particular items of defence equipment which may or may not be sold to particular countries. The general policy of sales of military equipment to the parties to the Arab-Israeli dispute remains unchanged. Requests for arms from the countries concerned will be examined on their merits, and we will not permit the sale of any item which, in our view, would significantly alter the military balance or increase the risk of a further outbreak of hostilities in the area.

Defence Projects (Cancellation)

asked the Minister of State for Defence, what defence projects have recently been cancelled.

No major defence equipment projects have been cancelled during the past year.

Polaris Fleet

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will make a progress report on his considerations concerning the conversion of the Polaris fleet.

I have nothing to add to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the then Minister of State for Defence to the hon. Member for Nuneaton (Mr. Leslie Huckfield) on 20th July.—[Vol. 841, c. 880.]

Catering

asked the Minister of State for Defence what is the total strength of officers and of men in the catering branches of each of the three services.

The information is as follows:

	Royal Navy	Army	Royal Air Force
Officers	74	170	136
Servicemen	5,432	5,726	4,423

Deaths Overseas (Notification)

asked the Minister of State for Defence what representations he has received about informing relatives about, and making funeral arrangements for, soldiers killed in action or on manoeuvres abroad; and what replies he has sent.

I have been in correspondence with the hon. Member about a particular case, and I shall be writing to him again shortly.

Showing The Flag

asked the Minister of State for Defence which of Her Majesty's ships are now available to show the flag to Commonwealth and foreign States.

All operational H.M. Ships are available to carry out any tasks required of them, including visits to show the flag to Commonwealth and foreign States. Over 200 visits to foreign and Commonwealth countries have so far taken place this year; over one quarter of these were made to ports east of the Cape. At present, for example, H.M.S. "Devonshire" is visiting Australia, while H.M.S. "Odin" has recently called at Tonga and H.M.S. "Lynx" has just left the island of Labuan of Sabah.

Royal Navy (Catering Fraud)

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will ensure that the findings of the independent inquiry into the Royal Navy catering fraud case are made public.

Yes.

Mv "Lasham"

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will make a statement on the circumstances in which the Royal Navy's 120-ton torpedo recovery vessel M.V. "Lasham" was found abandoned by Mr. Ted Gerrard of the Isle of Pabay.

The naval torpedo recovery vessel "Lasham" grounded off Pabay Island in the afternoon of Saturday, 18th November and was refloated at high water early the next morning. In view of the forecast force 9 gale, the ship's company were taken off to avoid danger to life. Another vessel stood by all night. A board of inquiry has been set up to investigate the circumstances of the grounding but has not yet reported.

Nuclear Disarmament

asked the Minister of State for Defence, having regard to Her Majesty's Government's obligation under the non-proliferation agreement to pursue nuclear disarmanent, if he will undertake not to increase the present British missile strength.

No. Her Majesty's Government will continue to honour our treaty obligations and to do what is necessary to secure this country's defence.

Catholic Ex-Service Men's Association

asked the Minister of State for Defence what information the Army has received as to the connection between members of the Catholic Ex-Service Men's Association and either or both wings of the Irish Republican Army.

I have nothing to add to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Down, North (Mr. Kilfedder) by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on 29th November 1972.—[Vol. 847, c. 172.]

Royal Ordnance Factories (Machine Tools)

asked the Minister of State for Defence what has been the value of orders placed by the Royal Ordnance Factories with the machine tool industry under the terms of the current Exchequer-financed purchasing programme to date; and what is the number of individual orders so placed.

About 200 orders valued at £1·8 million have been placed with the British machine tool industry since 1st April 1972.

Helicopters

asked the Minister of State for Defence whether he will make a statement on the exercise evaluation during the summer of 1972 of the potential of the helicopter in the land battle.

I believe my hon. Friend has in mind Exercise Sky Warrior, which took place last summer near Otterburn. It was designed to test the tactical use of helicopters in North-West Europe. Evaluation of the results is not yet complete.

Home Department

Probation Officers (Training Course)

41.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the complement accepted for the last training course for probation officers; and how many applicants there were for this course.

Training courses for probation officers are provided by universities polytechnics and other colleges of further education and at the Home Office Training Centre, which has three intakes a year. Altogether, 547 probation students were accepted for professional training in 1972, from a total of about 4,500 applicants.

Magistrates' Courts (Interpreters)

43.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will issue a circular to magistrates' courts recommending that a person convicted of an offence should not be penalised as to the costs incurred in employing an interpreter in cases where that person is not capable of communicating sufficiently in English.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list in the OFFICIAL REPORT the magistrates' courts in which it is usual practice to charge an interpreter's fee to anyone found guilty of an offence.

I regret that this information is not available.

Not Guilty Pleas And Acquittals

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to supply the further information regarding not guilty pleas and acquittals promised to the right hon. Member for Birkenhead by the Minister of State, Home Office, on 9th August, 1972.

The information so far available in reply to the right hon. Member's request is set out in the following tables. The figures exclude a small proportion of offences—about 7 per cent.— where the plea was not indicated in the statistical records.

TABLE 1
PLEAS IN RESPECT OF INDICTABLE OFFENCES DEALT WITH IN 1971: ANALYSIS BY COURT FINDING
MAGISTRATES' COURTS, ENGLAND AND WALES
	Violence against the person			Sexual offences			Burglary and robbery
	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Bedfordshire and Luton	126	69	274	29	4	83	137	62	792
Cheshire	164	180	673	25	14	158	124	214	2,594
Cumbria	44	52	189	8	5	64	21	49	707
Derby County and Borough	162	119	441	22	11	148	109	66	1,368
Devon and Cornwall	142	170	602	32	28	187	90	126	1,507
Dorset and Bournemouth	107	56	172	40	5	102	103	55	719
Durham	152	165	911	19	19	211	90	283	3,925
Essex and Southend-on-Sea	233	144	510	34	27	129	186	184	1,891
Gloucestershire	43	87	208	20	8	89	33	69	763
Bristol	49	89	232	14	12	72	70	64	658
Gwent	63	96	325	15	15	60	71	94	1,185
Hampshire	216	133	693	54	21	272	252	205	2,149
Hertfordshire	124	88	367	24	17	132	97	73	1,187
Kent	106	133	417	31	27	197	167	164	1,737
Lancashire	394	312	1,945	92	43	533	623	505	7,152
Liverpool and Bootle	183	221	457	16	20	168	310	356	1,952
Manchester and Salford	279	179	879	47	52	225	322	320	3,723
Leicester and Rutland	60	73	321	11	5	94	38	81	1,153
Lincolnshire	108	102	490	28	10	145	52	90	1,269
London City	19	28	65	2	3	7	48	37	172
Metropolitan Police District	2,369	1,400	3,746	398	227	1,339	1,969	1,703	11,102
Mid-Anglia	154	95	297	23	32	126	109	93	866
Norfolk	73	71	181	9	6	72	86	84	807
Northampton and County	103	125	199	26	16	63	107	135	1,033
Northumberland	120	120	407	18	6	153	155	199	3,020
Nottinghamshire Combined	300	247	1,010	28	15	193	127	185	2,202
Somerset and Bath	81	114	198	27	15	90	56	96	849
Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent	255	98	720	36	9	151	205	70	1,882
Suffolk	56	61	244	16	5	55	25	48	630
Surrey	64	71	250	20	13	107	40	89	937
Sussex	147	130	532	44	14	302	103	130	1,748
Thames Valley	143	230	428	15	22	89	126	242	1,369

	Violence against the person			Sexual offences			Burglary and robbery
	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Warwickshire and Coventry	162	105	513	24	23	148	127	140	1,885
Birmingham	283	121	722	29	34	340	267	143	2,899
West Mercia	63	134	322	20	14	135	52	131	1,663
West Midlands	148	196	582	36	11	122	105	167	2,417
Wiltshire	30	27	130	11	13	55	29	54	570
West Yorkshire	317	298	1,262	66	23	407	272	360	5,537
Bradford	55	64	115	7	15	42	64	126	1,233
Leeds	117	78	330	43	30	177	173	105	2,173
Sheffield and Rotherham	63	77	405	11	9	149	46	67	1,145
York and North East Yorkshire	65	56	313	14	3	133	52	42	1,266
Kingston-upon-Hull	51	47	111	22	66	81	57	24	987
Teesside	74	82	505	14	8	113	106	146	2,218
Dyfed-Powys	87	68	131	19	2	45	63	57	457
Gwynedd	78	110	222	12	10	80	50	78	1,011
South Wales	425	192	604	107	31	234	437	299	3,389
TOTAL—England and Wales	8,657	6,913	24,916	1,658	1,018	8,077	7,951	8,110	91,898

	Theft and unauthorised taking, handling stolen goods and fraud			Other indictable offences			Total
	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Bedfordshire and Luton	377	172	2,205	53	35	211	722	342	3,565
Cheshire	473	502	5,204	41	44	421	827	954	9,050
Cumbria	95	112	1,694	14	17	63	182	235	2,717
Derby County and Borough	315	215	2,870	55	47	285	663	458	5,112
Devon and Cornwall	430	559	4,682	75	80	444	769	963	7,422
Dorset and Bournemouth	458	324	2,317	82	43	338	790	483	3,648
Durham	226	388	5,938	24	23	358	511	878	11,343
Essex and Southend-on-Sea	667	474	4,184	106	58	424	1,226	887	7,138
Gloucestershire	149	229	1,822	19	34	188	264	427	3,070
Bristol	240	170	2,183	20	29	187	393	364	3,332
Gwent	238	199	2,486	14	42	183	401	446	4,239
Hampshire	828	611	6,485	123	60	705	1,473	1,030	10,304
Hertfordshire	276	180	2,759	84	44	285	605	402	4,730
Kent	417	404	3,942	88	100	636	809	828	6,929
Lancashire	1,302	821	13,945	123	97	1,025	2,534	1,778	24,600
Liverpool and Bootle	619	553	5,742	93	70	357	1,221	1,220	8,676
Manchester and Salford	608	569	7,756	67	51	623	1,323	1,171	13.206
Leicester and Rutland	178	214	2,968	25	32	173	312	405	4,709
Lincolnshire	170	269	3,446	32	37	315	390	508	5,665
London City	117	124	710	43	24	153	229	216	1,107
Metropolitan Police District	6,425	3,911	35,485	1,210	804	3,198	12,371	8,045	54,870
Mid-Anglia	412	294	2,511	14	46	193	712	560	3,993
Norfolk	283	252	1,904	19	39	177	470	452	3,141
Northampton and County	420	274	2,090	28	50	190	684	600	3,577
Northumberland	278	331	4,629	23	15	238	594	671	8,447
Nottinghamshire Combined	513	467	6,247	86	43	662	1,054	957	10,314
Somerset and Bath	244	227	2,319	21	44	158	429	496	3,614
Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent	446	240	4,413	89	19	444	1,031	436	7,610
Suffolk	167	269	1,626	18	37	132	282	420	2,687
Surrey	202	196	2,037	27	45	183	353	414	3,514
Sussex	580	551	5,287	105	77	486	979	902	8,355
Thames Valley	447	589	4,334	51	106	344	782	1,189	6,564
Warwickshire and Coventry	423	332	3,798	86	48	515	822	648	6,859
Birmingham	476	294	6,460	87	58	468	1,142	650	10,889
West Mercia	296	392	3,406	50	51	316	481	722	5,842
West Midlands	288	366	3,941	43	42	387	620	782	7,449

			Theft and unauthorised taking, handling stolen goods and fraud			Other indictable offences			Total
			Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force			Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Wiltshire	…	…	148	181	1,754	12	17	127	230	292	2,636
West Yorkshire	…	…	692	938	11,244	74	80	1,040	1,421	1,699	19,490
Bradford	…	…	146	184	1,827	20	30	271	292	419	3,488
Leeds	…	…	482	285	5,047	39	29	348	854	527	8,075
Sheffield and Rotherham	…	…	176	189	3,411	34	12	296	330	209	5,063
York and North East Yorkshire	…	…	178	96	3,137	13	12	214	322	209	5,063
Kingston-upon-Hull	…	…	148	89	2,882	22	41	221	300	267	4,548
Teesside	…	…	271	332	4,687	18	16	423	483	584	7,946
Dyfed-Powys	…	…	219	133	1,196	28	11	99	416	271	1,928
Gwynedd	…	…	201	290	2,550	25	39	208	366	527	4,071
South Wales	…	…	1,120	416	6,661	106	61	690	2,195	999	11,578
TOTAL—England and Wales	…	…	23,864	19,207	218,223	3,529	2,839	19,402	45,659	38,087	362,516

TABLE 2
PLEAS IN RESPECT OF OFFENCES DEALT WITH IN 1971: ANALYSIS BY COURT FINDING
HIGHER COURTS, ENGLAND AND WALES
	Violence against the person			Sexual offences			Burglary and robbery
	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Bedfordshire and Luton	64	13	58	18	—	44	60	20	177
Cheshire	61	30	129	16	4	58	51	44	460
Cumbria	26	6	36	8	2	25	5	4	85
Derby County and Borough	54	41	109	12	4	50	40	20	406
Devon and Cornwall	94	54	154	22	18	72	54	26	378
Dorset and Bournemouth	51	26	43	29	5	43	62	30	261
Durham	40	37	138	10	12	91	29	53	800
Essex and Southend-on-Sea	110	48	114	22	16	50	105	52	437
Gloucestershire	12	19	36	17	3	39	15	11	188
Bristol	22	32	63	8	6	35	30	30	214
Gwent	11	24	36	4	4	25	13	29	188
Hampshire	135	24	248	45	3	141	129	26	623
Hertfordshire	64	33	104	17	9	61	33	12	301
Kent	64	44	83	26	18	81	65	57	370
Lancashire	169	52	390	53	7	83	163	42	1,693
Liverpool and Bootle	140	144	154	13	15	41	192	117	432
Manchester and Salford	168	70	176	26	30	67	142	105	539
Leicester and Rutland	46	40	65	9	2	53	31	27	408
Lincolnshire	52	42	98	26	6	80	25	25	290
London City	9	14	10	—	—	—	30	6	16
Metropolitan Police District	1,810	801	1,194	315	158	380	1,129	591	3,087
Mid-Anglia	60	25	75	16	29	53	29	50	l68
Norfolk	23	34	47	7	5	27	39	33	190
Northampton and County	31	55	42	12	11	25	26	39	254
Northumberland	52	29	83	12	2	66	58	36	496
Nottinghamshire Combined	107	67	137	10	6	57	48	61	508
Somerset and Bath	36	69	39	11	6	27	27	52	140
Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent	133	30	126	24	3	44	87	10	455
Suffolk	17	10	36	11	2	16	14	11	146
Surrey	42	35	80	18	11	59	27	34	283
Sussex	105	35	121	39	3	168	60	46	517
Thames Valley	36	45	32	2	9	19	34	80	125

			Violence against the person			Sexual offences			Burglary and robbery
			Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force			Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Warwickshire and Coventry	…	…	72	33	206	7	13	64	49	24	518
Birmingham	…	…	197	101	210	21	32	102	171	108	976
West Mercia	…	…	8	23	57	8	12	56	11	25	359
West Midlands	…	…	101	82	182	23	3	43	42	33	603
Wiltshire	…	…	19	3	30	10	9	23	14	11	128
West Yorkshire	…	…	148	75	253	40	8	177	103	76	1,028
Bradford	…	…	25	28	19	6	7	6	28	41	231
Leeds	…	…	59	26	127	35	17	81	80	10	626
Sheffield and Rotherham	…	…	45	41	157	8	5	67	19	16	240
York and North East Yorkshire	…	…	10	4	42	8	—	41	13	1	204
Kingston-upon-Hull	…	…	25	15	54	14	63	35	28	7	305
Teesside	…	…	23	6	61	1	2	47	32	21	417
Dyfed-Powys	…	…	28	27	38	11	1	17	12	5	66
Gwynedd	…	…	9	5	22	7	2	32	12	28	147
South Wales	…	…	191	103	175	74	19	98	152	87	590
Total—England and Wales	…	…	4,804	2,600	5,889	1,131	602	3,069	3,618	2,272	21,073

	Theft and unauthorised taking, handling stolen goods and fraud			Other offences			Total
	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Bedfordshire and Luton	129	36	176	41	11	92	312	80	547
Cheshire	180	58	368	29	17	107	337	153	1,122
Cumbria	35	7	66	8	10	19	82	29	231
Derby County and Borough	54	34	265	25	28	109	185	127	939
Devon and Cornwall	163	97	290	66	53	202	399	248	1,096
Dorset and Bournemouth	195	72	306	77	34	144	414	167	797
Durham	54	81	349	10	13	103	143	196	1,481
Essex and Southend-on-Sea	290	123	303	91	36	173	618	275	1,077
Gloucestershire	56	69	155	12	19	45	112	121	463
Bristol	109	31	231	17	25	64	186	124	607
Gwent	46	64	133	1	22	28	75	143	410
Hampshire	348	76	620	93	21	341	750	150	1,973
Hertfordshire	101	25	259	67	20	132	282	99	857
Kent	162	107	336	79	73	171	396	299	1,041
Lancashire	303	39	919	86	23	301	774	163	3,486
Liverpool and Bootle	305	132	385	75	43	95	725	451	1,107
Manchester and Salford	196	111	261	42	30	93	574	346	1,136
Leicester and Rutland	101	89	275	21	32	70	208	190	871
Lincolnshire	45	49	168	28	13	72	176	135	708
London City	45	24	72	34	20	62	118	64	160
Metropolitan Police District	3,112	984	3,461	1,089	659	1,510	7,455	3,193	9,632
Mid-Anglia	121	64	182	7	36	79	233	204	557
Norfolk	123	87	246	17	23	92	209	182	602
Northampton and County	71	79	155	7	33	63	147	217	539
Northumberland	56	29	283	4	10	48	182	106	976
Nottinghamshire Combined	159	100	320	55	20	109	379	254	1,131
Somerset and Bath	102	53	115	17	36	18	193	216	339
Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent	166	66	388	45	12	114	455	121	1,127
Suffolk	59	114	186	12	29	56	113	166	440
Surrey	97	65	211	24	33	73	208	178	706
Sussex	373	155	793	100	55	251	677	294	1,850
Thames Valley	68	115	149	31	65	48	171	314	373
Warwickshire and Coventry	110	92	566	77	20	345	315	182	1,699
Birmingham	257	214	846	63	54	172	709	509	2,306
West Mercia	68	92	262	46	20	81	141	172	815
West Midlands	106	102	462	39	29	198	311	249	1,488

			Theft and unauthorised taking, handling stolen goods and fraud			Other offences			Total
			Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty	Plea of not guilty		Plea of guilty
Police force			Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt	Finding of not guilty	Finding of guilt	Finding of guilt
Wiltshire	…	…	43	29	144	9	8	16	95	60	341
West Yorkshire	…	…	230	147	714	49	32	285	570	338	2,457
Bradford	…	…	40	25	127	8	16	53	107	117	436
Leeds	…	…	147	18	493	23	15	130	344	86	1,457
Sheffield and Rotherham	…	…	89	36	250	25	10	76	186	108	790
York and North East Yorkshire	…	…	29	10	138	4	2	55	64	17	480
Kingston-upon-Hull	…	…	66	16	181	19	36	36	152	137	611
Teesside	…	…	61	40	322	4	3	50	121	72	897
Dyfed-Powys	…	…	52	24	97	15	7	20	118	64	238
Gwynedd	…	…	30	17	69	19	19	98	77	71	368
South Wales	…	…	277	94	517	72	38	166	766	341	1,546
TOTAL—England and Wales	…	…	9,029	4,191	17,614	2,782	1,863	6,665	21,364	11,528	54,310

TABLE 3
PERSONS DEALT WITH AT MAGISTRATES' COURTS OR APPEARING FOR TRIAL AT HIGHER COURTS SHOWING BY OFFENCE GROUP AND SEX THOSE WHOSE CHARGES WERE WITHDRAWN OR DISMISSED OR WHO WERE ACQUITTED
ENGLAND AND WALES, 1971
		Magistrates' courts			Higher courts			All courts
Offence group		Persons dealt with summarily	Charge withdrawn or dismissed	Percentage	Persons for trial	Acquitted	Percentage	Persons for trial and those dealt with summarily	Acquitted, or charge withdrawn or dismissed	Percentage
(1)		(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)	(7)	(8)	(9)	(10)
Violence against the person	M	22,617	3,107	13·7	6,602	1,301	19·7	29,219	4,408	15·1
	F	1,550	308	19·9	388	93	24·0	1,938	401	20·7
Sexual offences	M	5,098	441	8·7	2,432	359	14·8	7,530	800	10·6
	F	28	10	35·7	23	2	8·7	51	12	23·5
Burglary and robbery	M	53,989	2,460	4·6	16,181	1,164	7·2	70,170	3,624	5·2
	F	1,610	135	8·4	508	59	11·6	2,118	194	9·2
Theft and unauthorised taking	M	139,258	7,673	5·5	7,262	1,733	23·9	146,520	9,406	6·4
	F	35,937	1,969	5·5	957	347	36·3	36,894	2,316	6·3
Handling stolen goods	M	17,854	1,423	8·0	3,813	803	21·1	21,667	2,226	10·3
	F	2,396	232	9·7	383	99	25·8	2,779	331	11·9
Fraud	M	10,262	568	5·5	1,700	292	17·2	11,962	860	7·2
	F	1,993	113	5·7	181	40	22·1	2,174	153	7·0
Other offences	M	6,777	505	7·5	6,717	1,208	18·0	13,494	1,713	12·7
	F	1,734	62	3·6	441	101	22·9	2,175	163	7·5
TOTAL	M	255,855	16,177	6·3	44,707	6,860	15·3	300,562	23 037	7·7
	F	45,248	2,829	6·3	2,881	741	25·7	48,129	3,570	7·4

Deportion

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria he intends to use in considering deportation of families pursuant to the Immigration Act 1971.

Those which are set out in the immigration rules current at the relevant time.

Commonwealth Immigrants

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigrants from Australia, Canada and New Zealand, respectively, took up permanent residence in the United Kingdom during the period 1962 to 1970.

The numbers of citizens of Australia, Canada and New Zealand admitted for settlement between 1st July, 1962 and 31st December, 1970 were 12,477, 12,385 and 4,146 respectively. In addition, between early 1965 and the end of 1970, 3,528 citizens of these three countries who had been admitted subject to conditions as visitors and students were subsequently accepted for settlement: there are no figures on this point for the period between 1st July, 1962 and early 1965.

Greater Manchester Council (Electoral Boundaries)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now announce the electoral boundaries for the new Greater Manchester Council.

They are announced in letters being sent out today. A copy is being sent to right hon. and hon. Members whose constituencies are affected.

Scientology

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has now decided to permit the admission of scientology students to the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

I would refer the hon. Lady to the reply which I gave on 17th November to Questions from the hon. Member for Rugby (Mr. William Price).—[Vol. 846, c. 243.]

Artists' Materials (Lead Content)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to introduce regulations to control the amount of lead in artists' materials.

Draft regulations prescribing limits for the amount of lead and certain other toxic metals in pencils, paintbrushes, crayons and similar articles were circulated for comment in September. As soon as consultations have been completed the regulations will be made.

Licensing Laws (Erroll Report)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he received the Report of the Erroll Committee on drinking hours in England and Wales; when this is likely to be published; whether this includes proposals to enable 16-year-olds to purchase alcoholic drinks; and whether he will make a statement.

The Erroll Committee submitted its report on 23rd October. For its contents, I must ask the hon. Member to await its publication next Tuesday.

Police (Press Information)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will ask his committee inquiring into the relationships between the police and the Press to consider' the proposition that no information or comment should be supplied to the Press by the police or anyone acting on their behalf if there is likelihood of a prosecution, until such time as the summons has been issued or a decision taken that no legal enforcement will be initiated.

My right hon. Friend has set up no such committee.

Ugandan Asians

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that of the £7,204,000 grant in aid to the Uganda Resettlement Board only £600,000 is being allocated as grants to local authorities, whereas £6,456,000 is being made for other expenses of reception and settlement; and whether he will give a breakdown of the manner in which this latter figure is being allocated.

Initial provision of £600,000 has been made for those cases in which local authorities submit immediate applications for grant without waiting until the end of the financial year. The estimate for the expenses of reception and resettlement is made up as follows: £1,325,000 for setting up resettlement centres and airport reception centres, £4,775,000 for the running and other costs of the resettlement centres, £80,000 for salaries and wages, £26,000 for payments to voluntary bodies and £250,000 for assistance towards re-emigration.

Stateless Persons (Permanent Residence)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department from what countries the 3,598 Stateless persons and persons of undetermined nationality who were allowed to land and be accepted as permanent residents between 1st January, 1962, and 30th September, 1972, came; and how many of these persons arrived between July, 1972, and September, 1972.

I regret that this information is not available and could not readily be obtained.

Homelessness (Newham)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in view of the Simon Community Trust Report on homelessness in London, a copy of which is in his possession, which points out the problems confronting the London Borough of Newham on homelessness, why he will not seek powers to prevent further people entering "red" areas until they have received the approval of the local borough council.

I do not consider that such powers would be right in principle or enforceable in practice.

Environment

Building Contractors (Defence Contracts)

44.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will consider making it a condition for inclusion in the selected list of tenderers for defence contracts that building contractors employ the recognised quota of indentured apprentices.

Similar proposals have been considered on a number of occasions. Although I recognise the importance of encouraging building contractors to employ a fair proportion of apprentices, it would not be practicable to operate such a condition.

Roadbuilding Materials (Carriage)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what instructions he has issued to road construction units about the choice of railheads for the carriage of road stone for motorway construction.

In consultation with the local highway planning authority concerned road construction units have been instructed to examine all existing railheads which might be used in any particular scheme and to warn contractors of any such railheads that may be unsuitable for the carriage of road stone because of their associated road haulage routes.

Housing Authorities

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give a list of all local housing authorities administering over 500 local authority dwellings in England and Wales.

I would refer my hon. Friend to "Housing Statistics (England and Wales) 1970–71 (Part 2: Housing Revenue and Repairs Accounts)" published by the Institute of Municipal Treasurers and Accountants in March last, a copy of which is in the Library. Columns 47 of the tables in that publication give the most useful information readily available on this matter.

Bridges (Design Studies)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will name the organisations he has consulted, or is consulting, on the question of bridge design.

Bridge design in its broadest sense can involve consultation

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
Name of Organisation	Topics
British Iron and Steel Research Association	Steelwork design.
British Steel Corporation Central Laboratories	Steelwork design.
Cement and Concrete Association	Concrete design.
Constructional Steel Research and Development Organisation (CONSTRADO)	Steel fabrication.
Meteorological Office	Wind speeds and temperature variation.
National Physical Laboratory (Department of Trade and Industry)	Wind tunnel testing.
University Research Departments	Specific research projects.
Welding Institute	Welding problems.

AESTHETICS
Name of Organisation	Topics
The Design Council	Appearance of footbridges.
Royal Fine Art Commission	Specific bridge projects and policy regarding appearance of bridges.

Council Houses (Purchase)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, following his recent circular, he will now list the local housing authorities which do not now allow tenants to purchase their homes.

The returns received from local authorities show only the numbers of houses sold. In 1971, 426 local authorities in England and Wales sold houses, in the first nine months of 1972 the number was 553.

Betterment Levy

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the effects of the effects of the abolition of the Land Commission and the betterment levy.

The abolition of the betterment levy relieved landowners of the anxiety as to the unknown liability resulting from making land available for disposal or development. The 3,000 acres of land acquired by the commission and now disposed of—except for a small quantity—is insignificant against the 30,000 acres made available for housing by the release of land held by the Government Departments and nationalised industries during the last two and a half with numerous organisations including those which have an interest in matters relating to specification of materials and workmanship, and authorities having particular requirements for specific projects. Bodies—other than the Department's own advisory committees—concerned with matters affecting pure design, commonly consulted include:years and against the extra £80 million made available by the Government for borrowing to enable local authorities to make land available for housing. It is not possible, without undue expense, to quantify the results of the abolition of the betterment levy and the effect of the normal taxation system on transactions in land with development value. Staff savings resulting from the abolition of the commission number about 1,000.

Thames Crossing

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will confirm that the study for the new Thames crossing will investigate the possibility of the link being constructed from the Isle of Sheppey, or the Isle of Grain with a link to the Isle of Sheppy, across to a point as close as possible to the new Maplin airport.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects the traffic and engineering studies for the new crossing of the River Thames to be completed.

The complex traffic and engineering studies were only commissioned in October and results are unlikely to be available for at least two years.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will invite local authorities and other interested bodies in north Kent to submit views for consideration by the consultants studying the need for, and location of, a further Thames crossing.

The consultants will as a matter of course seek advice and information from officials of local highway and planning authorities during the course of their studies. The views of local authorities will be sought at a later stage.

Housing Cost Yardstick

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what reply his Department has sent to Islington Borough Council's inquiry on the effect of the housing cost yardstick on schemes in Offord Road and Nelson Place, Islington.

A reply will be sent as soon as the information requested has been obtained, but meanwhile the council has been asked to come and discuss with the Department as a matter of urgency all schemes for which it has received tenders. These particular schemes have not yet been put out to tender, but when tenders are received the Department will take into account local market conditions and reassess the yardstick figure accordingly.

Labour-Only Sub-Contracting

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he takes to ascertain the bona fides of labour-only sub-contractors in the construction industry.

Under the conditions of contract used by the Property Services Agency for its construction work, main contractors are required to seek approval of the superintending officer for any subletting. When asked to approve the use of a labour-only sub-contractors the superintending officer has to secure an assurance from the main contractor that the proposed employment will be in accordance with the declaration of intent prefixed to the working rules of the National Joint Council for the Building Industry.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what estimate he has made of the number of labour-only sub-contractors currently operating in the construction industry;(2) how many labour-only subcontractors were recorded as operating in the construction industry in each of the last three completed years;(3) if he can indicate the number of labour-only sub-contractors currently operating in the civil engineering section of the construction industry.

There are no separate figures recorded, and no reliable estimates, of the number of labour-only subcontractors operating in any section of the construction industry, either currently or in the last three completed years.

Foreign And Commonwealth Affairs

France (Nuclear Tests)

45.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representation he has made to the French Government urging them to desist from further hydrogen bombs tests in the South Pacific.

The French Government are aware of our views. We hope that France, in common with other countries that have not done so, will in due course accede to the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963 which prohibits nuclear testing in the atmosphere.

Mrs Linda Desramault

46.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, following his earlier undertaking to find out what help and advice could be made available to Mrs. Linda Desramault in France, he will, in the light of recent developments in the case, make further inquiries both in France and in Switzerland.

The matter is one for the courts. Mrs. Linda Desramault is legally represented and her lawyers will know how best to continue to pursue her case in France or in Switzerland.

Icelandic Fishing Dispute

47.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement regarding the Reykjavik talks upon the fishing limits dispute with Iceland.

I would refer the hon. Gentleman to the statement which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State made after Questions.

Canada, Australia And New Zealand (Immigration)

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the differences in the immigration laws of Canada, Australia and New Zealand for United Kingdom nationals, compared with United Kingdom immigration laws for nationals of those three countries.

It would not be proper for me to comment on the laws of other Commonwealth countries. All sovereign States have the absolute right to decide for themselves to whom they will grant or deny admission to their territory.

Pakistan And Bangladesh

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what dates, in the view of Her Majesty's Government, Pakistan ceased and Bangladesh commenced to be a Commonwealth country.

In our view the dates are 30th January, 1972, when President Bhutto announced Pakistan's withdrawal from the Commonwealth "with immediate effect"; and 18th April, 1972 when the Commonwealth Secretary-General announced that Bangladesh had become a member of the Commonwealth.

Hong Kong

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if blind workers in Hong Kong have presented a petition or made representations to the Governor at any time in the last two years about their working conditions; and what reply the Governor gave these workers.

A number of petitions from blind workers in the Tok-wawan workshop for the blind were received between September and November 1971 seeking Government intervention in their dispute with the Hong Kong Society for the Blind. The workers were demanding:

(i) re-instatement of those dismissed on grounds of misconduct;

(ii) wage increases;

(iii) improvement of administration and dismissal of the workshop supervisor.

In response the Government arranged mediation by officers of the Social Welfare Department and financial support to the society. All the workers' points were met. Since then the society has been reconstituted, and a number of improvements have been made in the relationship between management and workers and in the production processes generally.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many employers have been prosecuted in Hong Kong in each of the last five years for employing child labour; and if he will state the highest, the lowest, and the average fine imposed by the courts in each of these years.

The information requested by the hon. Member is as follows:

Financial Year	Number of employers prosecuted	Fines (in Hong Kong dollars)
Financial Year	Number of employers prosecuted	Highest	Lowest	Average
1967–68	260	1,000	20	104
1968–69	325	400	10	71
1969–70	541	2,000	10	171
1970–71	617	5,000	25	477
1971–72	207	2,000	25	310

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the last official survey of employment conditions was taken in Hong Kong; and what were its findings with regard to the employment of children in manufacturing and other industries.

In August 1972 the Ninth Special Survey into Child Employment covered 861 industrial undertakings employing 29,411 workers in the light metal and plastic trades. These trades were selected because of the greater likelihood of children being employed in them. The survey detected only 84 children employed in 63 factories, against the owners of which summonses were subsequently taken out.Of the 84 children detected, most claimed to be working only temporarily during school holidays. 70 came from low-income families in resettlement areas, low-cost housing estates or squatter areas. The remaining 14 came from poor families in private tenements. 49 children 13 years old were just below the minimum statutory age for employment in industry. 30 were aged 12 years, and five were 11 years. Most of the children were engaged in unskilled light work, such as assembling, trimming and packing. They worked between seven and eight hours a day and were paid between 10 and 13 HK dollars a day.The outcome of this survey suggests that, although the laws relating to child labour are still being broken despite the efforts of the Labour Department, the incidence of the illegal employment of children is low.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people are estimated to live in the Kun Tong industrial area of Hong Kong; which hospitals are located within this area; and how many hospital beds

		Sales by Auction		Private Treaty Grants		Exchange and Extensions
Year		Number	Premia (Hong Kong Dollars)	Number	Premia (Hong Kong Dollars)	Number	Premia (Hong Kong Dollars)
1971–72	…	321	119,305,936	48	12,809,591	588	17,549,454
1970–71	…	66	158,029,771	60	8,059,999	363	48,372,863
1969–70	…	232	68,532,685	48	14,868,804	279	10,857,777
1968–69	…	190	18,183,142	46	9,955,920	452	5,072,524
1967–68	…	176	11,556,230	95	24,026,934	183	2,127,613
Total	…		357,607,764		69,721,248		83,980,231

	Modification		Regrants		Total Premia by years (Hong Kong Dollars)
Year	Number	Premia (Hong Kong Dollars)	Number	Premia (Hong Kong Dollars)	Total Premia by years (Hong Kong Dollars)
1971–72	195	15,773,433	105	37,137,689	202,576,103
1970–71	11	16,050,535	89	39,411,874	269,925,042
1969–70	229	4,542,409	56	17,470,598	116,272,273
1968–69	79	1,477,088	41	8,139,639	42,828,313
1967–68	56	866,150	14	4,762,111	43,339,038
Total		38,709,615		106,921,911	674,940,769

The income derived in those years includes instalment payments arising from previous transactions and does not

by specialty are available for the population of this area.

The population in the Kwun Tong industrial area of Hong Kong is estimated at 270,000. At present there are 104 beds—of which 24 are maternity beds—provided in a medical centre and a clinic in the area. A private hospital providing a further 555 beds is now under construction and is expected to be ready for use by mid-1973. There are 13 hospitals providing a total of 7,853 beds in Kowloon, all of which are within a radius of five miles and in which various types of specialised treatment are available.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will detail the land transactions undertaken by the Hong Kong Government in each of the last five years, showing the income derived by the Government from each individual transaction.

The number of land transactions undertaken by the Hong Kong Government totals many thousands. To show income derived from each individual transaction would entail very considerable effort and the cost of obtaining it would not be justified. The following table shows the number of transactions completed in the past five years in the main categories:include total sums payable under transactions completed in those years where payment is made by instalments.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give figures, by rank, showing the make-up of the Hong Kong police force in each branch of the service; and if he will show the total expenditure on police services in each of the past 10 years.

Details of the Hong Kong police establishment are being obtained and I shall write to the hon. Member on this point.Details of police expenditure, including capital expenditure and costs of auxiliary police force are as follows:

Year	Hong Kong Dollars
1963–64	93,400,000
1964–65	111,200,000
1965–66	122,600,000
1966–67	120,400,000
1967–68	131,800,000
1968–69	152,300,000
1969–70	170,100,000
1970–71	178,800,000
1971–72	207,800,000
1972–73 (revised estimate)	194,200,000

Governor	Sir Crawford Murray MacLehose. K.C.M.G., M.B.E
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Name	Date of original appointment	Status	Occupation
Lieutenant-General Sir Richard Erskine Ward K.C.B D.S.O., M.C.	11.12.70	Ex-officio	Commander British Forces
Sir Hugh Selby Norman-Walker, K.C.M.G., O.B.E., J.P.	28.3.69	Ex-officio	Colonial Secretary
D. T. E. Roberts, C.B.E., Q.C., J.P.	3.9.66	Ex-officio	Attorney General
D. C. C. Luddington, J.P.	18.5.71	Ex-officio	Secretary for Home Affairs
C. P. Haddon-Cave. M.A., J.P.	1.7.71	Ex-officio	Financial Secretary
Dr. G. H. Choa, C.B.E., J.P.	16.11.72	Nominated Official	Director of Medical Services
Sir Albert M. Rodrigues, C.B.E., E.D., J.P.	28.5.59	Unofficial	Medical Practitioner
Sir John Douglas Clague, C.B.E., M.C. Q.P.M., T.D., J.P.	28.5.61	Unofficial	Company Chairman
Sir Sidney S. Gordon, C.B.E., J.P.	1.7.65	Unofficial	Chartered Accountant and Company Chairman
Sir Yuet-Keung Kan, C.B.E., J.P.	28.5.66	Unofficial	Solicitor and Company Chairman
Woo Pak-Chuen, O.B.E., J.P.	13.12.71	Unofficial	Solicitor
Szeto Wai, O.B.E., J.P.	13.12.71	Unofficial	Chartered Engineer and Architect
D. R. Ross, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	Company Managing Director
Gr. Chung Sze-Yuen, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	Company Managing Director and Industrialist

These figures exclude relatively small sums spent from other than police Votes.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current police-population ratio in Kong Kong; and if he will show how this compares with each of the past 10 years.

The numbers of Hong Kong police per thousand of the population, based on police strength excluding civilians and auxiliary police for the years 1963 to 1972 inclusive are as follows: 2·31, 2·41, 2·55, 2·80, 2·90, 2·90, 2·97, 3·05, 3·09, 2·94.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the membership of Hong Kong's Executive and Legislative Councils, showing their status, occupation and length of membership.

The composition of Hong Kong's Executive and Legislative Councils is as follows:

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
Name	Date of original appointment	Status	Occupation
Sir Hugh Norman-Walker	Ex-officio members, see also Executive Council.
D. T. E. Roberts
D. C. C. Luddington
C. P. Haddon-Cave
D. R. W. Alexander, C.B.E., J.P.	1.4.68	Nominated Official	Director of Urban Services
J. J. Robson, C.B.E., M.I.C.E., A.M.I.S.E., J.P.	28.3.69	Nominated Official	Director of Public Works
John Canning, M.A., J.P	6.6.69	Nominated Official	Director of Education
Dr. G. H. Choa, C.B.E., J.P.	1.7.70	Nominated Official	Director of Medical and Health Services
Jack Cater, M.B.E., J.P.	24.9.70	Nominated Official	Information Secretary
D. C. Bray, M.A., B.Sc, J.P.	1.4.71	Nominated Official	District Commissioner, New Territories
Paul Tsui Ka-cheung, O.B.E., J.P.	17.8.70	Nominated Official	Commissioner of Labour
Ian MacDonald Lightbody, J.P.	8.9.71	Nominated Official	Commissioner for Resettlement
D. H. Jordan, M.B.E.	14.11.72	Nominated Official	Director of Commerce and Industry
Li Fook-kow	16.11.72	Nominated Official	Director of Social Services
Woo Pak-cheun, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.64	Unofficial	See also Executive Council
Szeto Wai, O.B.E., J.P.	13.6.65	Unofficial	See also Executive Council
Wilfred Wong Sion-bing, O.B.E., J.P.	24.6.65	Unofficial	Company Managing Director
Mrs. Ellen Li Shi-pui, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.66	Unofficial	Voluntary Social Worker
Wilson Wang Tze-sam, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.68	Unofficial	School Proprietor and Supervisor
H. J. C. Browne, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.68	Unofficial	Company Chairman
Dr. Chung Sze-yuen, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.68	Unofficial	See also Executive Council
Lee Quo-wei, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.68	Unofficial	Banker
Oswald V. Cheung, O.B.E., Q.C., J.P.	1.7.70	Unofficial	Queen's Counsel
Ann Tse-Kai, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.70	Unofficial	Company Chairman and Industrialist
Mrs. C. J. Symons, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	School Headmistress
Peter G. Williams, J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	Company Chairman
James Wu Man-hon, J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	Company Managing Director
Roger H. Lobo, O.B.E., J.P.	1.7.72	Unofficial	Company Chairman
Mrs. Mary Wong Wing-Cheung MBE., J.P.	14.11.72	Unofficial	Voluntary Social Worker

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many major fires there have been in squatter areas of Hong Kong in each of the last 10 years; and if he will state the deaths and serious injuries arising out of each incident.

Figures for major fires in squatter areas in Hong Kong between 1962–63 and 1971–72 inclusive are as follows:

Number of fires:
- 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2—Total 15.
Deaths:
- 1, 4, Nil, 3, Nil, 1, 2, 2, 1, 8—Total 22.
Serious injuries:
- 3, Nil, 4, 21, Nil, 2, Nil, Nil, 13, 4—Total 47.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will estimate how many private hospitals and hospital beds are available in Hong Kong; and if he will give a sample of the scale of charges known to his Department.

There are 11 private hospitals in Hong Kong providing a total of 1,888 beds. The charges vary from a few dollars a day for a bed in general wards to over 1,000 Hong Kong dollars for a single room.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many free hospital beds are available per head of the population in Hong Kong.

In Hong Kong there are 2,863 entirely free and 6,733 virtually free hospital beds, for which a nominal maintenance charge of 2 Hong Kong dollars per day is charged, which may be waived in case of need. This gives a ratio of 2·4 per 1,000 population.

Uganda (Loan)

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, following his announcement on 31st August that action had been suspended on the proposal for a £10 million loan to Uganda, he is now in a position to make a statement.

I announced on 31st August that action had been suspended on the proposal for a £10 million loan agreement which was about to be signed in August. We had hoped that if circumstances changed for the better it would have been possible to reactivate it. They have not done so and it has been cancelled.The other major part of our aid programme was in the form of technical assistance. We have at present over 800 officers working on technical assistance projects in Uganda. Almost all of them are on contract to the Ugandan Government or Makerere University in Kampala. We make a substantial contribution to their salaries.President Amin has already said more than once that Uganda does not need technical assistance from us, and that so far as he is concerned our staff can leave whenever they want. He apparently hopes to replace them from other countries, or by Ugandans. Our people are highly qualified and I pay tribute to their work. But it makes no sense to go on paying to make them available to a country that does not want them.We have therefore decided that we shall stop supplementing the salaries of our technical assistance staff, once their current contracts have expired. They will virtually all expire within the next two years. It is possible that some staff have decided that for one reason or another they cannot do their jobs effectively in present conditions and will want to terminate their contracts before they run out by giving notice. We shall not encourage them to do this but if they do, we shall do our best to help over financial difficulties arising as a result.

We have also reviewed our relations generally with Uganda and in particular the level of our diplomatic representation. I have decided that our High Commissioner, who left Kampala on 16th October, should not be replaced for the time being.

The position is therefore that for the time being no further aid money will be spent in Uganda, either capital loans or technical assistance, once existing commitments have been fulfilled or wound up: and our representation will remain at acting high commissioner level. We regret that these decisions should have been forced on us and that our relations with Uganda should have come to this pass. The present state of affairs does not serve the interests of either of us.

Overseas Aid

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign ad Commonwealth Affairs how much aid has been given by the United Kingdom to Uganda in the last 10 years; and if, in the case of any loans, he will specify the amount of each loan that has been drawn down, when repayments have commenced, the amount that has been repaid, the total periods allowed for repayment and the rate of interest being charged.

The following is the information required:

TABLE A
UK aid programme disbursements to Uganda 1962 to 1971
(Excluding Commonwealth Development Corporation investment)
	thousands
	£
1962	7,650
1963	5,818
1964	5,388
1965	3,626
1966	4,347
1967	4,861
1968	3,376
1969	3,772
1970	4,251
1971	3,917
Total	47,005

TABLE B
UGANDA LOANS
Terms†
	Loan Description	Maturity	Grace	Waiver	Graduated Grace	Interest Rate	Commitment	Disbursement at 31st December, 1971	First date of repayment	Principal repaid up to 31st December. 1971
							£,000s	£,000s		£,000s
1960/103	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1960	25 years	2 years	—	—	5⅜%	3,000	3,000	4th March, 1963	758
1960/118	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1960	25 years	2 years	—	—	6%	3,000	3,000	23rd July, 1963	717
1961/112	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1961	25 years	2 years	—	—	6¼%	1,750	1,750	23rd June. 1964	352
1961/132	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1961	25 years	2 years	—	—	6½%	300	300	29th December, 1964	59
1962/109	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1962	25 years	—	—	—	6⅜%	1,500	1,500	19th March, 1963	295
1962/117	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1962	25 years	2 years	—	—	6⅜%	350	350	15th June, 1965	59
1962/119	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1962	25 years		—	—	6⅜%	900	900	15th June, 1963	177
1962/127	Government of Uganda Commutation Loan	25 years	6 years	—	—	Free	1,750	1,750	June, 1969	85^*
1962/129	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1962	25 years	—	—	—	5⅝%	350	350	27th September, 1963	74
1952/130	Uganda Exchequer Loan 1962	25 years	2 years	—	—	5⅝%	100	100	27th September, 1965	18
1962/135	Government of Uganda Compensation Scheme	25 years	6 years	—	—	Free	4,750	4,750	June, 1969	195^*
1966/103	U.K./Uganda Loan No. 2 1966	25 years	2 years	—	5	Free	2,367	5,150	31st December, 1968	313
1966/104	U.K./Uganda Loan No. 1 1966	25 years	2 years	—	5	Free	3,133	5,150	31st December, 1968	313
1969/228	U.K./Uganda Loan No. 1 1968	25 years	2 years	—	5	Free	6,500	4,514	15th February, 1971	12
1963/4	E.C.G.D. Section II Loan	25 years	6 years	—	—	Current rate	2,400	2,400	28th February, 1969	372
^* Waived in accordance with the statement on overseas pensions made in the House of Commons on 11th March, 1970.
† The terms governing each loan apply separately to each disbursement made against that loan. Therefore, for a loan having a maturity period of 25 years with disbursements spread over a period of 5 years, the final repayment will be 30 years from the date of commitment

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the total amount of aid made available to African and South American countries, including Central America, respectively, in the last 10 years; and in each case what is the percentage of total aid made available in this period.

British aid disbursed to African and South American, including Central American, countries in the last 10 years was £645,853,000 and £66,810,000, respectively. This was, respectively, 32 per cent. and 3·4 per cent. of the total aid programme.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much aid has been made available to Brazil in the last 10 years.

British aid disbursed to Brazil in the last 10 years was £5,706,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much aid has been made available to Chile in the last 10 years.

British aid disbursed to Chile in the last 10 years was £7,595,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much aid has been made available to Peru in the last 10 years.

British aid disbursed to Peru in the last 10 years was £2,669,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much aid has been made available to Central American countries in the last 10 years.

British aid disbursed to Central American countries in the last 10 years was £17,212,000.

International Women's Year

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs why British delegates to the United Nations did not support the motion before the General Assembly on 10th November nominating 1975 as International women's Year.

We abstained on this question in committee to record our doubts about its timing and the desirability of singing women out for this kind of special attention. The draft resolution has not yet been voted on by the General Assembly itself and we expect to vote in favour.

House Of Commons

Legislative Programme

48.

asked the Lord President of the Council if he is satisfied with the legislative progress of Her Majesty's Government; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. Reasonable progress is being made with the legislative business for the current Session.

Palace Of Westminster

Telephone Directory

asked the Lord President of the Council whether he is aware that although the Government abolished the National Board for Prices and Incomes on 31st March, 1971, the Palace of Westminster Telephone Directory issued in August, 1972 gives the National Board for Prices and Incomes, Serle Street, London, W.C.2, telephone No. 405–8733, and that this is the Department of Health's supplementary benefits section; what is the reason for these mistakes; and whether he will make a statement.

This error has already been noted and is regretted. It will be corrected in the next edition of the directory, which is due to be issued in January.

Civil Service

Departmental Information

49.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he is satisfied with the existing arrangements regarding the transmission from one Department to another of relevant information affecting that Department; and if he will make a statement.

Apart from certain cases governed by statute, whether a transfer of information between Departments is justified is for the responsible Department to decide, and it is for Department to give appropriate guidance to their staff. I am not aware that the arrangements have been found unsatisfactory.

Social Services

Retirement Pensions

50.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he has studied the resolution sent to the Prime Minister by the hon. Member for Coventry, North, condemning the Government for its indifference to the plight of the retirement pensioners, and calling on it to raise immediately the pension of a single person to £10 and of a married couple to £16; and what action he proposes to take.

Yes, Sir. These proposals, allowing for a similar increase in related benefits, would, however, cost about £2,000 million a year, which would mean that the rest of the population would have to accept a massive increase in contributions and taxes. If the cost was to be borne as it is at present, the weekly contribution of a man earning £48 or more a week would go up by £1·35 and that for a man earning £30 a week by 75p. The increase in pensions last month not only made good the loss in value since September, 1971, but gave an increase in real value of nearly four per cent.; and the special payments of £10 which retirement pensioners and others will receive next week is an earnest of the Government's declared intention that, if inflation can be curbed, pensioners will share in the increased prosperity of the nation when pensions are increased next autumn.

Welfare Foods And Health Charges Exemptions

51.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services for each week since 1st January, 1972, how many households have been in receipt of, respect- tively, exemption from prescription, dental and optical charges and free welfare foods; what percentage each of these figures represents of the totals estimated to be eligible; how many in each of these weeks were in receipt for the first time of each of these benefits; how many in each week entered a second or further period of receipt after a successful reclaim; and how many in each week ceased to be in receipt of each of these benefits.

I shall send to the hon. Member the available information.

Hainault Lodge, Ilford

53.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make Hainault Lodge, Ilford, now empty, available to rehouse homeless families.

This property is being disposed of as surplus to National Health Service requirements. The Greater London Council has expressed interest in acquiring it, and negotiations are in train. Future use of the property will be a matter for decision by the acquiring authority.

Retirement Pensioners (Rent, Heating And Lighting)

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will make an estimate of the national average weekly amount that the retirement pensioner spends on rent;(2) if he will make an estimate of the national average weekly amount that the retirement pensioner spends on heating and light.

The amounts paid by retirement pensioners for rent, heating and light vary according to household composition and the type of tenure of housing to an extent which means that no meaningful averages can be calculated. As regards rent, however, the great majority of retirement pensioners who receive supplementary pensions have their rents taken into account in full in the calculation of their requirements; and movements in the cost of heating and lighting are among the factors taken into account when retirement and supplementary pension rates are reviewed.

Lead Pollution

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what replies his chief medical officer received to his letter advising all school medical officers of the dangers of lead in the air, food, water and soil, and asking them what investigations should be carried out, particularly in the case of young children; what action has now been taken in consequence of the chief medical officer's letter; and if he will make a statement.

On 21st December, 1971, my chief medical officer wrote to medical officers of health and referred to possible hazards to health that could arise from lead. The letter was informative and merely suggested that each medical officer of health should consider the need to plan a review of his area. A number of replies were received, most of which were reassuring. Any special problems that were reported have been investigated and appropriate action has been or is being taken.

Commonwealth Immigrants (Births)

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services why the figures in Appendix J to the Registrar-General's Quarterly Return 494 are not denoted as provisional as in the corresponding Appendix D to Return 490; and whether he expects that the final 1971 figures for births to new Commonwealth-born mothers will again exceed the provisional by over 4 per cent.

The figures in question are the final ones.

Census (Privacy)

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) when he hopes to publish the report of members of the Council of the Royal Statistical Society on the privacy of the census;(2) when he hopes to publish the report of the Computer Society on the privacy of the census which has been submitted to the Government.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I are considering the reports of the British Computer Society and the Royal Statistical Society on the security of the 1971 Census. Some of the societies' proposals need to be studied in relation to the recommendations in the recent Report of the Committee on Privacy, Cmnd. 5012, under the chairmanship of the right hon. Sir Kenneth Younger and to the Government's own studies of the categories of personal information held in the computer systems of Government Departments and the uses to which this information is put.I am not yet in a position to announce a date for the publication of a report on the societies' findings and the Government's comments on them.

Thalidomide Children

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will arrange for £50,000 to be subscribed to the Thalidomide Children's Fund by Her Majesty's Government.

I would refer the hon. Member to the undertaking which I gave in the House on 29th November that the Government were making available a sum of £3 million to help the families of children with very severe congenital disability not in any way as compensation but to complement the services which should be available from statutory bodies, and would begin at once to consider, with the statutory and voluntary bodies likely to be concerned, what arrangements can be set up so that the money can best be used for the benefit of the children and their parents.—[Vol. 847, c. 446.]

Trade And Industry

Concorde

54.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the various airlines which have ordered or have options for Concorde and the number of aircraft concerned.

BOAC has ordered five aircraft, and Air France four. The Chinese National Airline has signed a preliminary purchase agreement for three aircraft, and Iranair has signed a letter of intent to purchase two aircraft, with an option on a third. The other option holders are as follows:

Airline	Number of Options
Pan American	8
Continental	3
Trans World Airlines	6
American Airlines	6
Eastern Airlines	6
Braniff	3
Qantas	4
Japan Airlines	3
Sabena	2
Lufthansa	3
Air India	2
Middle East Airlines	2
Total	48

European Economic Community

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many inquiries, since October, 1971, his Department has received from industrialists within the six original European Economic Community countries about possible investment in Scotland; and of these how many have resulted in new productive capacity being established in Scotland.

Sixteen. Of these, two companies have so far established projects in Scotland and one other is taking steps to do so.

North Sea Oil

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimates his Department has made of the number of geologists required by the North Sea oil industry within the next few years.

INDUSTRIAL REORGANISATION CORPORATION INVESTMENTS TRANSFERRED TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY. HOLDING AT 1ST OCTOBER, 1972
Loans
British Leyland Motor Corporation Limited	£5,000,000	Unsecured Loan
	£10,000,000	Unsecured Loan
Clarke Chapman-John Thompson Limited	£5,000,000	Unsecured Loan
Harwood Cash and Company Limited	£1,200,000	Secured Loan
Herbert-Ingersoll Limited (in Receivership)	£237,500	Unsecured Loan
Marwin (Holdings) Limited	£750,000	Unsecured Loan
Nuclear Enterprises Limited	£500,000	Unsecured Loan
Samuel-Osborn Company Limited	£1,750,000	Secured Loan
Loans Convertible into Equity
Marwin (Holdings) Limited	£750,000	8 per cent. Convertible Loan
Rolls-Royce Limited (in Liquidation)	£8,500,000	Unsecured Convertible Loan

This is a matter for judgment by the industry itself, and I have made no estimate.

Gas And Electricity (Connection Charges)

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the connection charges for gas and electricity for new dwellings; and if he will make a statement on the appeal procedure that consumers have in relation to the charges.

The electricity and gas industries have agreed to implement the majority recommendations of the Monopolies Commission. This means that in normal cost cases connection charges for electricity will be in the region of £40 to £45; and for gas nil. The charges will not vary with connected loads. Electricity or gas consumers may make representations to the relevant consultative council on any matter affecting supply in their area, and this would include connection charges.

Industrial Reorganisation Corporation (Investments)

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a further statement about the position of the investments transferred to him from the Industrial Reorganisation Corporation.

The list of holdings as at 1st October, 1972 is given below. A separate heading shows the investments disposed of during the period since 1st April, 1972. No advances against outstanding commitments were made during this period.

Equity and Preference Shares			Cost
British Nuclear Design and Construction Ltd.	260,000	Ordinary Shares of £1	£260,000
Brown Bayley Limited	2,400,000	Ordinary Shares of £1	See Note (1)
George Kent Limited	3,017,577	Ordinary Shares of 50p	£6,504,861
	1,244,180	Deferred Ordinary Shares of 50p	£6,504,861
Herbert-Ingersoll Limited (in Receivership)	38,250	"A" Ordinary Shares of £1	£525,000
	36,750	"B" Ordinary Shares of £1	£525,000
Kearney and Trecker Limited	300,000	Redeemable Convertible Third Preference Shares of £1	£300,000
Nuclear Enterprises Limited	7,353	"B" Ordinary Shares of £1	£100,000
Notes
(1) The following investments are held by Brown Bayley Limited:—
Brown Bayley Steels Limited 2,404,000 Shares of 50p			£1,470,453

CHANGES DURING THE PERIOD 1ST APRIL, 1972 TO 30TH SEPTEMBER, 1972
Advances made pursuant to Agreements by IRC
Nil
Investments disposed of
Loans
British Leyland Motor Corporation Limited	£20,000,000	Unsecured Loan (Part)
Clarke Chapman-John Thompson Limited	£1,000,000	Unsecured Loan (Part)
Herbert-Ingersoll Limited	£237,500	Unsecured Loan (Part)
Mills Equipment Company Limited	£250,000	Secured Loan
Whessoe Limited	£3,500,000	Unsecured Loan
Loans Convertible into Equity
Rolls-Royce Limited (in Liquidation)	£1,500,000	Unsecured Convertible Loan (Interim Dividend of 15 per cent. from the liquidator).

Secretary Of State For The Environment

Q8.

asked the Prime Minister if he will dismiss the Secretary of State for the Environment.

No. I would refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave today in reply to a Question from the hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Meacher).

Transport Research

Q10.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is satisfied with co-ordination between the Departments of Trade and Industry and the Environment over research in transport matters; and if he will make a statement.

Yes.

Corruption

Q12.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will recommend the appointment of a Royal Commission, with power to sit in camera, to investigate the extent of corruption in public and private authorities and local government.

No, Sir. If there were reason to suspect offences against the Prevention of Corruption Acts, it would be a matter for the police to investigate.

Immigration (Correspondence)

Q13.

asked the Prime Minister on what date he received a communication sent by Mrs. Doris A. Facey, of Forest Gate, concerning immigration into the United Kingdom; what was the nature of the matters complained of; and what reply he has sent.

I received a letter from Mrs. Facey on 16th November about the operation of the Commonwealth Immigrants Act. Since this matter falls within the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, his Department will be sending a reply in due course.

Republic Of Ireland (Prime Minister)

Q14.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a statement about the latest official visit of the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave on 28th November in reply to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Down, North (Mr. Kilfedder).—[Vol. 847, c. 103.]

Fishing Industry

Q15.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is satisfied with the co-ordination between the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Departments of Trade and Industry and the Environment in furthering the interests of the fishing industry in relation to improvement grants for fishing vessels and the availability of mooring facilities; and if he will make a statement.

Yes, Sir. My right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food maintains close contact on these questions with other Ministers concerned.

Prime Minister (Guildhall Speech)

Q16.

asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech at Guildhall on the economy on 13th November.

Q17.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech at the Lord Mayor of London's Banquet on 13th November on the economy.

I did so on 14th November, Sir.

Official Information (Disclosure)

Q18.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the information supplied to his office on Thursday, 23rd November giving prima facie evi- dence that civil servants are disclosing confidential Government information to the Press before official ministerial announcements, he will cause an investigation to be made to ascertain to what extent this is being done for payment to these civil servants by the recipients of this leaked information.

No. No such prima facie evidence has been supplied.

Wages And Salaries (Arbitration)

asked the Prime Minister what steps were taken during the period of the Chequers talks to co-ordinate the actions of Ministers engaged in negotiations arising from wage or salary arbitrations; and which Ministers were currently so engaged.

There are longstanding arrangements for co-ordination between all those Ministers who have responsibilities in the field of pay negotiations, and these were in operation during the tripartite talks.

Welfare Tribunals (Legal Aid)

asked the Prime Minister whether he is satisfied with the co-ordination between the Lord Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Services in the provision of legal advice and assistance for those appearing before welfare tribunals; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. Following the Legal Advice and Assistance Act 1972, legal advice and assistance will be available for those appearing before welfare tribunals after 2nd April, 1972.

National Exhibition Centre

asked the Prime Minister whether he intends to attend the ceremony for the opening of work on the National Exhibition Centre.

I hope to visit Birmingham to take part in the ceremony marking the start of work on the National Exhibition Centre in February, 1973.

Agriculture, Fisheries And Food

Lamb Prices

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about lamb prices.

Since early November, auction prices for sheep have risen by about 4½p per lb. This is due partly to seasonal factors, partly to the demand for other meat, and in part to purchases for export to the Continent. There has been a much smaller increase in the price of imports of frozen lamb. Retail prices of fresh lamb also have increased but not to the full extent of the increase in auction prices. Adequate supplies of New Zealand lamb are available.At a meeting yesterday between my officials and all sectors of the meat trades, the current situation was fully examined, aid it was concluded that price increases were being contained as much as possible, in the light of the supply situation. I shall, of course, continue to keep the situation under review.

European Economic Community

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food by what legislative and administrative means he proposes to implement the agreement on dairy products concluded with the European Economic Community on 21st November.

As I stated in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Devizes (Mr. Charles Morrison) on 22nd November, the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce has now been set up as provided for in Section 6 of the European Communities Act 1972 and the Agricultural Board for Agricultural Produce Order 1972. Subject to the direction and control of Ministers, the board is charged with carrying out the functions necessary to implement in the United Kingdom the support arrangements of the European Economic Community common agricultural policy, including those in the milk and milk products sector. Section 6 of the European Communities Act 1972 authorises the Commissioners of Customs and Excise to collect the agricultural levies as if they were Customs duties.—[Vol. 846, c. 431–2.]

Education And Science

Playing Fields

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total annual expenditure by education authorities on the construction of new playing fields, and on the maintenance of existing playing fields.

Capital costs of playing field land are not controlled by the Department and are not recorded.

Turner Collections (Admission Charge)

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans she has for exhibiting the Turner collections at the Tate Gallery in such a manner as to avoid any admission charge.

Although it is sometimes stated that the Tate Gallery received works by J. W. M. Turner under the terms of his will, and that there is therefore an obligation to exhibit them without charge to the public, there is no sound basis for this assumption. Turner died in 1851, but his will was disputed by his next-of-kin, and under the ultimate settlement of 1856 the collections were made available to the nation without any restriction relating to charge of admission.

Dearnley Primary School, Littleborough

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will give urgent consideration to approving the building of two temporary classrooms at the Dearnley Primary School in Littleborough, pending the starting and completion of a more permanent extension to the school; and if she will make a statement.

This is a matter for the Lancashire education authority to determine in relation to other demands on its minor works allocations. My right hon. Friend understands that rather than erect temporary classrooms it is transporting children temporarily to nearby schools which have more room, pending the completion of new building work which should double the number of places at the Dearnley School.

Union Of Women Teachers

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will give the reasons why the representatives of the Union of Women Teachers are not accorded representation on the national salaries negotiating body.

It has been the practice of my right hon. Friend and her predecessors not to change the composition of the Burnham Primary and Secondary Committee unless and until there is clear evidence that the Committee has become unrepresentative of the relevant interests, and to seek as far as practicable a consensus among the parties before making changes. My right hon. Friend is not at present convinced that she would be justified in extending membership of the Burnham Committee to include the Union of Women Teachers.

London Allowance

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many letters or petitions she has received on the recent offer of a revised London allowance to teachers; and if she will make a statement.

1,080. I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by my right hon. Friend in answer to a Question by the hon. Member for Fife, West (Mr. William Hamilton) on 23rd November.—[Vol. 846, c. 459.]

Schools (Immigrants)

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) whether she is aware that in January, 1972 there were 400 children on the roll at Upton Cross Junior School, Newham of whom 193 or 48·3 per cent. were immigrants; and what are the latest figures;(2) whether she is aware that in January, 1972 there were 508 children on the roll at Harold Road Secondary School, Newham, of whom 208 or 40·9 per cent. are immigrants; and what are the latest figures;(3) whether she is aware that in January, 1972 there were 213 children on the roll at Upton Cross Infants School, Newham, of whom 82, or 38·5 per cent. were immigrants; and what are the latest figures;(4) whether she is aware that in January, 1972 there were 407 children on the roll at Elmhurst Junior School, Newham, of whom 194, or 47·7 per cent. are immigrants; and what are the latest figures;(5) whether she is aware that in January, 1972 there were 250 children on the roll at Elmhurst Infants School, Newham, of whom 97, or 38·8 per cent., are immigrants; and what are the latest figures.

No later figures are available. Statistics of immigrant pupils in individual counties and county boroughs are compiled from returns supplied each January by local education authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT details of the number of children on the roll of each stated school in each local education authority area which includes a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons by a member of Her Majesty's Government, in January, July and August, 1972 and at the latest available date and of how many of these were immigrants; and what percentage these were of the total number of pupils on each date.

Statistics of immigrant pupils in individual counties and county boroughs are compiled from returns supplied each January by local education authorities. The Department does not collect information by reference to parliamentary constituencies.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she is aware that in January 1972 there were 7,201 immigrant children of school age out of a total school population of 40,364 in maintained primary and secondary schools in the London Borough of Newham; and what are the latest figures.

In January 1972, there were 7,258 full-time immigrant pupils in maintained primary and secondary schools in Newham. No further figures will be available until those relating to January 1973 have been collated.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT as detailed an analysis as may be available giving for the areas designated by the Government as red areas the number of schoolchildren in each stated school as at January 1972 and the number and percentage of these who were immigrants, and similar details for July 1972, August 1972 and at the latest and most convenient stated date.

Although the Uganda Resettlement Board attempts to discourage settlement in areas where social facilities are under strain, the Government have not published any list of "red" areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she is aware that in January 1972 there were 1,778 children on the roll at five schools in the West Ham, North parliamentary constituency of whom 774 were immigrants, and what are the latest figures; and whether she will give a detailed analysis of the situation in the other schools in this constituency.

No later figures are available. The Department does not collect information by reference to parliamentary constituencies.

School Buses (Inter-Borough Journeys)

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why she will not seek powers to make special grants to councils that have to bus out children to other boroughs for schooling purposes.

My right hon. Friend sees at present no reason to change the existing arrangements.

Employment

English And Foreign Firms (Scotland)

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give an estimate of the numbers employed in Scot- land by United States firms, other foreign firms, and English-based firms.

Information which would enable us to make a precise estimate is not available. However, it is known that these firms provide many jobs in Scotland.

Wales

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will break down the figures of unemployed in Wales into age groups 15–24, 25–30, 31–40, 41–50, 51–55 and 56 years of age and over.

The following table shows information for the nearest age ranges available taken from the latest analysis for 10th July, 1972:

Age range	Number unemployed
15–24	16,527
25–29	4,567
30–39	6,558
40–49	6,524
50–54	3,263
55 and over	9,994
Total	47,433

Loddon Bridge, Berkshire

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will now make a statement on the Loddon viaduct disaster.

I indicated in my reply to the Question on the subject on 10th November that I expected to receive a final report in about four weeks. The further investigation which was referred to in my reply is still continuing.—[Vol. 845, c. 268.]

Construction Industry

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many fatalities there have been in the building and civil engineering industries in each of the last three years, and to the last available date in 1972, arising from accidents.

The numbers of fatal accidents notified from construction sites were:

1969	265
1970	203
1971	196

The provisional figure for the nine months to 30th September, 1972 is 149.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is his estimate of the number of people killed and injured in the last three years, and to the latest date in 1972, as a result of accidents in the course of bridge construction.

The numbers of notified accidents—with included fatalities in brackets—associated with construction work on bridges were:

1969	663 (4)
1970	600 (7)
1971	408 (2)

The provisional figure for the nine months ending 30th September, 1972 is 214 (3).

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the separate figures of killed and injured workpeople arising from accidents directly relating to the collapse of bridges under construction involving the box girder design.

One bridge under construction involving the box girder design has collapsed in the United Kingdom. This was at Milford Haven on 2nd June, 1970. Four men were killed and six injured.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received from the construction industry on the subject of bridge design and construction since he assumed office; and what replies he has given.

My right hon. Friend's responsibility is for the safety of men employed in construction work. He has not received any general representations on this subject, but we have

	Edinburgh	Leith	Portobello	Scotland	United Kingdom
1970
January	3,675	1,467	643	72,409	536,392
June	3,531	1,337	615	64,197	459,077
November	3,784	1,387	748	73,715	500,033
1971
January	4,530	1,766	801	86,512	582,149
June	4,464	1,777	887	89,737	592,779
November	4,695	1,921	937	101,955	708,504
1972
January	5,403	2,078	1,044	112,187	782,465
June	4,472	1,740	821	94,926	647,717
November (provisional)	4,432	1,663	827	91,720	630,065

recently been in correspondence with the operatives' secretary of the Civil Engineering Construction Conciliation Board and I have agreed to meet him.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he is taking to maximise the safety of workpeople employed on bridge construction in Great Britain.

A special survey was recently put on foot to get information, on a national basis, about all concrete bridges under construction in which falsework was being used. The resulting information is being studied by construction engineering specialists at headquarters, who have also paid visits to selected sites. Further, a clearing organisation has been set up to give advice on problems connected with safety and false-work. This has been publicised through the principal employers' organisations and the national and trade Press, and a large number of inquiries have been dealt with.

Edinburgh And The Lothians

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many men aged 18 years and over were registered as unemployed in the employment exchange areas of Edinburgh, Leith and Portobello, respectively, in the months of January, June and November in 1970, 1971 and 1972; and what were the corresponding figures for Scotland and the United Kingdom.

Following is the information:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many men and women, respectively, were wholly unemployed in each of the Edinburgh and Lothian employment exchange areas in

				June, 1970		November, 1970
				Males	Females	Males	Females
Edinburgh	…	…	…	3,698	492	3,977	454
Leith	…	…	…	1,337	125	1,387	107
Portobello	…	…	…	615	73	748	103
Dalkeith	…	…	…	546	113	60S	102
Loanhead	…	…	…	405	92	419	118
Musselburgh	…	…	…	543	73	595	111
Tranent	…	…	…	188	65	219	71
Bathgate	…	…	…	665	130	989	139
Livingston	…	…	…	123	37	173	45
West Calder	…	…	…	82	16	101	22
Broxburn	…	…	…	121	16	177	37
Bo'ness	…	…	…	146	106	182	109
Linlithgow	…	…	…	33	32	45	43
Haddington	…	…	…	160	25	186	48

				June, 1971		November, 1971
				Males	Females	Males	Females
Edinburgh	…	…	…	4,764	566	5,019	735
Leith	…	…	…	1,777	176	1,921	216
Portobello	…	…	…	887	113	937	135
Dalkeith	…	…	…	638	119	711	162
Loanhead	…	…	…	485	129	355	95
Musselburgh	…	…	…	687	139	687	141
Tranent	…	…	…	231	56	252	83
Penicuik^*	…	…	…	—	—	138	36
Bathgate	…	…	…	1,292	275	1,252	298
Livingston	…	…	…	344	62	402	104
West Calder	…	…	…	144	45	324	92
Broxburn	…	…	…	266	49	304	69
Bo'ness	…	…	…	268	131	255	114
Linlithgow	…	…	…	86	44	104	45
Haddington	…	…	…	225	28	206	47
^* Opened September, 1971; previously included with Loanhead.

				June, 1972		November, 1972 (Provisional)
				Males	Females	Males	Females
Edinburgh	…	…	…	4,848	747	4,762	765
Leith	…	…	…	1,740	195	1,663	171
Portobello	…	…	…	821	151	827	108
Dalkeith	…	…	…	883	117	820	130
Loanhead	…	…	…	340	90	336	93
Musselburgh	…	…	…	627	116	611	120
Tranent	…	…	…	262	94	210	85
Penicuik	…	…	…	128	32	109	47
Bathgate	…	…	…	1,186	276	1,204	265
Livingston	…	…	…	315	92	354	90
West Calder	…	…	…	345	94	329	95
Broxburn	…	…	…	269	74	299	112
Bo'ness	…	…	…	243	123	277	123
Linlithgow	…	…	…	85	44	77	47
Haddington	…	…	…	124	20	116	34

June and November; and what were the corresponding figures in 1970 and 1971.

Following is the information:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what were the percentage rates of male and female unemployment in the Edinburgh travel-to-work area in each of the months from June

				1970		1971		1972
				Males	Females	Males	Females	Males	Females
June	…	…	…	5·2	1·0	6·7	1·3	6·8	1·5
July	…	…	…	5·9	1·0	7·3	1·5	7·2	1·6
August	…	…	…	5·8	1·0	7·2	1·4	7·2	1·6
September	…	…	…	5·7	1·0	6·9	1·4	7·3	1·6
October	…	…	…	5·4	1·0	69	1·5	6·8	1·5
November	…	…	…	5·7	1·0	7·1	1·5	6·6^*	1·5^*
^* Provisional.

National Finance

Gross National Product (Eec And United Kingdom)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in the OFFICIAL REPORT the proportion of gross national product represented by profits for each of the six countries of the European Economic Community and the United Kingdom for each of the years 1965–72.

I regret that information on profits is not available for the six

OPERATING SURPLUS AS A PERCENTAGE OF NATIONAL INCOME
	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971
Belgium	38·7	36·3	36·3	36·6	36·8	35·8	n.a.
France	37·5	37·9	38·1	37·7	380	38·0	n.a.
Germany	35·7	34·7	34·4	36·2	34·7	33·2	n.a.
Italy	42·2	42·9	42·8	42·6	42·7	40·3	n.a.
Luxembourg	34·8	33·7	32·7	33·8	37·7	n.a.	n.a.
Netherlands	35·3	33·1	33·5	33·8	33·4	31·2	n.a.
United Kingdom	24·6	22·9	23·7	23·2	22·1	20·5	20·2
n.a. = Not available.

Sources:

E.E.C. Countries—National Accounts 1960–1970.

United Kingdom—National Income and Expenditure 1972 (adjusted to international definitions)

Dollar Parity Depreciation (Compensation)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether sums paid from the United Kingdom reserves in compensation to official overseas sterling holders for the depreciation of the dollar parity of the £ sterling will be recoverable under the terms of the Basle agreements when the exchange rate exceeds 2.3760 dollars, or 2.40 dollars, respectively; and if he will make a statement.

The arrangement under the sterling agreements provide in detail only for the first implementation, which be-

to November, inclusive; and what were the rates in 1970 and 1971.

Following is the information:EEC countries. However, it is possible to derive figures for the national accounting concept of operating surplus for all but the latest years, and these are presented below as a percentage of national income. The figures relate to all trading activities including farming, whether in the public or private sectors and whether incorporated or unincorporated. The different level of the percentages largely reflects different economic structures in the countries concerned; in particular, there are substantial differences between countries in the proportion of the working population which is self-employed.came due on 23rd November. The arrangements for this first implementation were described in my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Enfield, West (Mr. Parkinson) on 9th November. Subsequent arrangements are subject to consultations now in progress.

Northern Ireland

Hijacking

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will introduce legislation to amend the Malicious Damage Acts to provide compensation to persons whose lorries and vans have been hijacked and who are unable under current legislation to claim compensation in relation to the loss of stock which is not covered by insurance; if he will indicate the total amount of such goods lost in each month in 1972; and if he will make a statement.

The Criminal Injury Acts (Northern Ireland) 1956–70 provide a code of law designed specifically to deal with compensation for malicious damage to property. It would not be appropriate to extend these Acts to cover the type of loss to which my hon. Friend refers.The information sought in the second part of the Question is not, I regret, available.

Motor Cars (Entry Permits)

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has considered the reintroduction of an entry permit system for cars entering Northern Ireland.

The reintroduction of an entry permit system for cars entering Northern Ireland is one of many border control measures which have been considered from time to time. The matter is again under review.

Emergency Services

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will list the emergency services available to assist householders and businessmen in Northern Ireland whose premises have been damaged by bomb explosions.

The aftermath of a bomb explosion involves a wide variety of people ranging from the security forces to those responsible for cleansing services.The main schemes of assistance to householders and businessmen whose premises have been damaged are as follows:

Compensation

Subject to certain conditions, the Criminal Injuries Acts 1956–70 enable anyone who has suffered malicious damage to his property, to apply to the County Court for compensation. This applies to all types of property, industrial, commercial and domestic.

First-Aid Repairs to Residential Property

The Ministry of Community Relations operates a scheme for making damaged residential property wind and weatherproof and thus habitable again as soon as possible. If re-housing is required, this is arranged by the Welfare Authorities and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive.

Immediate Help for Shopkeepers, Traders and Businessmen

An emergency finance service has been established by the Ministry of Finance to help traders, shopkeepers and businessmen to recommence trade quickly.

The Ministry of Commerce can help manufacturers and ancillary industries to move into temporary premises. Grants and loans are available towards the removal, installation and replacement costs of buildings, plant, machinery, equipment and stock.

A leaflet providing details of compensation schemes is distributed in areas affected by an explosion. I am sending a copy to my hon. Friend.

Casualties (Co Armagh)

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will give the number of people killed and injured in County Armagh between 12th July, 1972 and 31st October, 1972, civilian and security forces separately.

17 civilians, two members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and seven members of the Regular Army were killed in Co. Armagh during this period. Figures for people injured are not available by counties.

Visits By Members

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has received the communication dated 24th November from the hon. Member for West Ham, North regarding visits to Northern Ireland; when he may expect a reply; and whether he will publish this communication and his reply thereto in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

The hon. Member's letter has been received, and a reply will be sent as soon as possible. I do not consider it appropriate to publish the correspondence in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Posts And Telecommunications

Stereo Radio (North-East)

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications when the stereo radio equipment will be available in the North-East, following the undertaking given to the hon. Member for Tynemouth on 18th November, 1971 that it will be installed by the end of 1972.

The undertaking was that the BBC hoped to begin installing the new equipment towards the end of 1972. The corporation has started on this major scheme, which is expected to take several years to complete. I shall send my hon. Friend details.

Scotland

Charities

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has now completed his consideration of the report of the Scottish Council of Social Services in respect of the registration of charities and the appointment of a Registrar of Charities in Scotland; and what are his conclusions.

I have not yet completed my study of this far-reaching report.

Abortion

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the ratio of known abortions to live births registered for the years 1969, 1970 and 1971.

The ratio of abortions, notified to the Chief Medical Officer in terms of the Abortion Act 1967, to live births in each of these years, expressed as a rate per 1,000 live births, was:

	Rate per 1,000 live births
1969	39
1970	60
1971 (provisional)	73

Edinburgh Airport

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what reply has he sent to the six union leaders of Edinburgh Airport who jointly wrote to him because of their concern over delays over the airport's development; and if he will now make a statement.

I have replied that I am considering the report of the public inquiry and will announce my decision as soon as possible, and that in present circumstances it would not be appropriate for me to meet a deputation.

Volume 847: debated on Thursday 30 November 1972

Written Answers To Questions

Defence

Armed Forces (Republic Of Ireland Citizens)

Berlin Airlift (Award Of Decoration)

Ceremonial Occasions (Cost Of Ammunition)

Army Pensions (Giro)

Northern Ireland

Low-Flying Aircraft (Wales)

Honest John

Nuclear Military Information (Exchange)

Pay

Aircraft Sales (Singapore)

Nuclear Submarine Bases

Research And Production Establishments

Sound Of Raasay

V/Stol Aircraft

Warships (Waste Disposal)

Egypt (Military Supplies)

Defence Projects (Cancellation)

Polaris Fleet

Catering

Deaths Overseas (Notification)

Showing The Flag

Royal Navy (Catering Fraud)

Mv "Lasham"

Nuclear Disarmament

Catholic Ex-Service Men's Association

Royal Ordnance Factories (Machine Tools)

Helicopters

Home Department

Probation Officers (Training Course)

Magistrates' Courts (Interpreters)

Not Guilty Pleas And Acquittals

Deportion

Commonwealth Immigrants

Greater Manchester Council (Electoral Boundaries)

Scientology

Artists' Materials (Lead Content)

Licensing Laws (Erroll Report)

Police (Press Information)

Ugandan Asians

Stateless Persons (Permanent Residence)

Homelessness (Newham)

Environment

Building Contractors (Defence Contracts)

Roadbuilding Materials (Carriage)

Housing Authorities

Bridges (Design Studies)

Council Houses (Purchase)

Betterment Levy

Thames Crossing

Housing Cost Yardstick

Labour-Only Sub-Contracting

Foreign And Commonwealth Affairs

France (Nuclear Tests)

Mrs Linda Desramault

Icelandic Fishing Dispute

Canada, Australia And New Zealand (Immigration)

Pakistan And Bangladesh

Hong Kong

Uganda (Loan)

Overseas Aid

International Women's Year

House Of Commons

Legislative Programme

Palace Of Westminster

Telephone Directory

Civil Service

Departmental Information

Social Services

Retirement Pensions

Welfare Foods And Health Charges Exemptions

Hainault Lodge, Ilford

Retirement Pensioners (Rent, Heating And Lighting)

Lead Pollution

Commonwealth Immigrants (Births)

Census (Privacy)

Thalidomide Children