asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when she now expects to receive the report of the working party on school transport.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what progress has been made in the departmental inquiry on the subject of the transport of school childen; and if she will make a statement.

The working party has collected information from local education authorities and has received evidence from many sources. It is making good progress in considering this material. It will be some time before a report is ready.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many staff employed by her Department have been recruited from private employment agencies; how many of these are under contract; and under what terms.

Twenty-three agency staff are currently engaged by my Department. None of them is under contract.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she is yet in a position to make a statement regarding pay and conditions for teachers working in the Greater London area.

Not at present.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will now institute an inquiry into the whole field of special education.

A lot is already being done for special education. As well as reports on specific aspects of special education I have had the continuing advice of my advisory committee. In 1971 I accepted in full the proposals it made for research. The average level of special school building programmes in 1972–75 will be 45 per cent. higher in real terms than in the previous three years. I have issued a circular on the staffing of special schools and others are in course of preparation. Against this background I am considering whether any further inquiry is necessary or advisable.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many proposals she has received from local education authorities for siting new nursery schools adjacent to existing primary schools; and if she will make a statement.

Local education authorities were not asked for full details of individual projects when they submitted their proposals for the special nursery education building programmes in 1974–76. The vast majority of their proposals are for nursery classes attached to primary schools. Only 138 have been received for separate nursery schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information she has through her Inspectorate of the extent of wastage of ability through early leaving.

None. Early leaving from school does not necessarily imply a wastage of ability. There are opportunities, both full and part-time, in further education to which young people can turn, some of which are based on employment.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what further representations she has received from the London borough of Harrow on secondary reorganisation proposals following her Easter statement.

The London borough of Harrow has submitted statutory proposals, for which, on 10th May 1973, public notice was given under Section 13 of the Education Act 1944, as amended, to make a significant change in the character of Harrow County Boys Grammar School and Heriots Wood Girls Grammar School by altering the age of admission to these schools from 11-plus to 12-plus.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will appoint members of the Central Advisory Councils for Education to consider further education in all its aspects and its relation to secondary and higher education.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps she is taking, by Queen's Award or otherwise, to improve and encourage facilities of technological and scientific studies at universities and similar institutions of learning in the United Kingdom.

The Government's plans for the continuing expansion of higher education, including technological and scientific studies, are set out in the two White Papers issued in December, 1972—"Education—a Framework for Expansion" (Cmnd. 5174), and "Education in Scotland: a Statement of Policy" (Cmnd. 5175). My right hon. Friends would greatly welcome participation by institutions of higher education in the Queen's Award to Industry scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many local education authority areas operating approved schemes of comprehensive secondary education have State grammar schools still operating in their areas.

Seventy-three of the 107 local education authorities in England with at least one comprehensive school also had one or more maintained grammar schools in January 1972.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proposals she has for the capital as well as the income of parents to be taken into consideration in the assessment of students' grants.

None. Income derived from capital is already taken into account in assessing parental contributions to student maintenance.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans she has for the expansion of university education in Scotland.

The number of full-time students at Scottish universities is planned to increase from 37,600 in 1971–72 to 49,700 in 1976–77.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will now initiate discussions between all concerned with a view to revising the constitution and procedures of the Burnham Panel.

I have received a number of different proposals but none so far appears to command widespread support among the parties. I therefore think it a little early to consider initiating discussions.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what consideration she is giving to the recommendations of the report under the chairmanship of Sir Lincoln Ralphs on the rôle, functions and training of education welfare officers.

Sir Lincoln Ralphs' working party on the functions and training of education welfare officers was set up by the Local Government Training Board and its report is, I understand, still under consideration by the board. My Department will be submitting comments on the parts of the report of particular concern to us.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what action she proposes to take, in view of the continuing sale of bogus degrees by non-accredited colleges.

As I said in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Merton and Morden (Miss Fookes) on 24th May, my Department has now issued a document about degrees and equivalent qualifications awarded in the United Kingdom, to which anyone in doubt may refer. I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of this document.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many officials of the Ugandan Government have been sponsored by her Department for visits to British educational establishments in 1973.

In 1973, my Department arranged for three Ugandan educationists to be attached for one week to a local education authority and for a second week to one of my Department's divisional offices. During this period the Ugandans visited some educational establishments.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will give details of plans for the expansion of university education in Wales.

The number of full-time students at the University of Wales is planned to increase from 14,800 in 1971–72 to 20,730 in 1976–77.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will introduce legislation to make herself ultimately responsible for discipline in universities.

No. Discipline in universities is a matter for the university authorities and I believe it is best to leave it there.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she is yet in a position to give a decision on the proposals for the reorganisation of secondary education in the city of Birmingham.

I will be announcing decisions by the end of this week.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the educational expenditure per head of population in the Northern Region; and how this compares with the national average.

In the financial year 1971–72 educational expenditure per head of population in the Northern Region was £47·06 compared with the national average figure of £45·80.

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will make a statement concerning the incident on 21st June involving the collision between the British tug "Lloydsman" and the Icelandic gunboat "Odinn" off the north-west coast of Iceland.

The collision occurred while "Lloydsman" and "Odinn" were manoeuvring at close quarters within the disputed fishing grounds. In such manoeuvres, which are inevitable in view of the aggressive tactics adopted by the Icelandic coastguard vessels, incidents like this are almost bound to happen from time to time. There were no casualties.

asked the Minister of State for Defence what proportion of national output was spent on defence in the last available year by the United Kingdom, Western Germany, and France, respectively.

The latest year for which figures are available is 1972 when the proportions of GNP spent on defence were 5·8 per cent., 4·0 per cent., and 4·2 per cent. for the United Kingdom, Federal Republic of Germany and France respectively. Defence expenditure by the Federal Republic of Germany was significantly greater than our own and that of France somewhat less.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what will be the position of employment advisory committees under the proposed reorganisation.

It will be for the Manpower Services Commission to determine whether it has local advisory committees and, if so, the committee structure and membership. My right hon. Friend will continue the existing local employment committees until about the end of 1974, when the commission takes over the Employment Service Agency and the relevant Sections of the Employment and Training Act 1948 are repealed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will purchase the Loggerheads Sanatorium for a training centre for the disabled and mentally retarded.

No. There is no evidence that existing establishments for the training of the disabled cannot cope with foreseeable demand. Facilities for the mentally retarded are the responsibility of local authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the total number of vacancies for employment as notified to him from the employment exchanges in the Leek parliamentary constituency; and what was the number of vacancies in the comparable period in 1970.

There were 708 unfilled vacancies in the area covered by the Leek, Cheadle, Biddulph and Kids-grove employment exchanges in June 1973 and 555 in June 1970. The statistics relate only to notified vacancies remaining unfilled and do not measure the total unsatisfied demand for labour. The figure for June 1973 is provisional.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many women at the present time in the county borough of Brighton have been registered unemployed for more than six months;(2) how many women at the present time in the county borough of Brighton have been registered unemployed for more than 12 months;(3) how many men at the present time in the county borough of Brighton have been registered unemployed for more than 12 months;(4) how many men at the present time in the county borough of Brighton have been registered unemployed for more than six months.

Following is the information for the Brighton and Hove employment exchange area:

	Unemployed on 9th April 1973
	Males	Females
For over 26 and up to 52 weeks	307	32
For over 52 weeks	575	49

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many specialist recruitment offices have been set up specifically geared to recruiting for the hotel and catering industry; where they are located; what co-operation they have received from employers in supplying information regarding vacancies; and what is their record of placement to date.

In addition to the long-established specialist offices in London, Glasgow and Liverpool we have now provided specialist hotel and catering sections in 20 offices throughout the country. These are located in Torquay, Truro, Newcastle, Middlesbrough, Scarborough, Sheffield, Leeds, Harrogate, York, Great Yarmouth, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Swansea, Llandudno, Birmingham, Coventry, Nottingham, Manchester, Blackpool and Kendal.We are in close touch with employers in the industry; co-operation has been good, resulting in a substantial increase in the number of vacancies notified and placings made. The latest figures available for the six months ending 7th March show 65,094 vacancies notified and 41,999 placings.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many inspectors of factories there were in post on 1st June 1973 who would be likely to carry out a full general inspection at a factory; and what percentage this is of the total number of inspectors in post.

All the inspectors of factories in post in the general and construction districts carry out full general inspections; these include construction sites and other premises under the Act as well as factories. The number in post on 1st June 1973 was 454; this is 68 per cent. of the total number of inspectors in post at this date.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of average family incomes in Cardiganshire is spent on food.

I regret that the information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage, at the last available date, of the average family income in Wales was spent on food.

I regret that the information available is not in the precise form requested by the hon. Member. The 1972 Family Expenditure Survey gives the percentage of total net weekly household income spent on food as 25·9 per cent. This figure relates to all households sampled in Wales for the survey, and is subject to sampling variation.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the latest figures for average earned income in the county of Cardigan.

I regret that the statistical surveys carried out by my Department do not provide estimates of average earnings in the county of Cardigan, but only for larger areas such as South-West Wales, for which April 1972 estimates obtained from the New Earnings Survey were published in the Department's Gazette in December 1972 (Table 63, page 1154).

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many men and women, respectively, were employed in the farming industry over each of the past six years; and what were the figures in 1950 and 1955.

The most recent figures come from the Agricultural Departments' censuses. A series of figures from 1965 to 1972 is published in the Monthly Digest of Statistics (Table 18 of the May 1973 issue). Comparable figures for all workers in Great Britain at June 1950 and 1955 are as follows:

ALL WORKERS*: GREAT BRITAIN
(thousands)
	Total	Males	Females
June 1950	842·5	715·8	126·8
June 1955	731·5	611·4	120·1
* Includes family workers but excludes farmers, wives.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what evidence he has received about the relationship between Rocksil and dermatitis.

My Department has been aware for some time that Rocksil can cause minor skin irritation, but we have no evidence to suggest that it constitutes a serious dermatitis hazard.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many nationals from EEC countries have applied for work in the United Kingdom since 1st January 1973.

The number of EEC nationals who have applied for work in the United Kingdom since 1st January 1973 is not known. Those who obtain work which is expected to last more than six months require residence permits, and the Home Office issued 2,564 such permits up to the end of May. Application for a residence permit must be made within six months of arrival in this country, and issues of permits will constitute only a proportion of the total number taking work at any one time.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will take action to prevent the closure of the emergency and accident unit at the Victoria Memorial Jewish Hospital, Manchester.

The closure of this department is at present the subject of consultations being undertaken, with my agreement, by the Manchester Regional Hospital Board. I await a report from the board on these consultations.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what would be the cost if the present sum of £1 which is now disregarded when calculating supplementary benefits were increased to £3 for aged retirement pensioners.

The cost of raising the £1 disregard to £3 a week would be about £14 million a year. It is not practicable to estimate the cost relating to supplementary pensioners alone, but it would be a substantial proportion of the figure quoted.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will keep under regular review the medical facilities provided in the Seaford area, taking full account of the high proportion of retired people living there and the difficulties for patients and their relatives visiting hospital at Brighton or Eastbourne arising from limited local transport.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he is satisfied with the security arrangements and the supervision of patients at St. Margaret's Hospital, Great Barr, following the escape of a patient through a window without the knowledge of the staff; and whether he will make a statement.

St. Margaret's is an open hospital which has no special physical security facilities. I understand that the patient concerned was not thought, prior to these incidents coming to light, to be dangerous or in need of any special supervision, and three years ago the Home Office agreed to the patient being allowed to go out of the hospital unescorted during the day at the discretion of the consultant. He has now been admitted to Rampton Special Hospital.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is aware of the difficulties experienced by doctors in Leicester in obtaining supplies of disposable hypodermic needles from the executive council; and if he will take immediate steps to make supplies available.

I am aware that there have been certain supply difficulties in some Midland areas. These were of a temporary nature and appropriate action was taken to deal with the situation, which is now satisfactory.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will introduce legislation to require doctors acting as delegated medical practitioners of the Attendance Allowance Board to give full reasons for their decisions and, in particular, to prevent their importation of the word "ordinarily" into the statutory requirement of

"frequent attention throughout the day and prolonged or repeated attention during the night".

No. Regulations already provide that reasons must be given for any determination on review; if the reasons are inadequate this constitutes an error in law, and determinations have been set aside by National Insurance Commissioners on that ground. It is for the Attendance Allowance Board to direct its delegates as to the way in which reasons for determinations are worded, in the light of commissioners' decisions.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, in his examination of the conference which took place in Jersey at which the expenses of doctors and their wives were met by one of the suppliers of medicines to the National Health Service, the assurance of the company concerned that the wives' expenses will not be charged against the National Health Service means that the doctors' expenses will be so charged; what is the cost involved; and if he will make a further statement.

The legitimate expenses incurred by the doctors at this conference will be included in the annual financial return submitted by the company under the voluntary price regulation scheme. This information is supplied on a confidential basis and I cannot give details of any individual item of cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to complete his investigations of the payment of supplementary benefits to these engaged in industrial disputes.

I have nothing to add to my replies to my hon. Friend on 6th February—[Vol. 850, c. 58–9]—and my hon. Friend the Member for South Angus (Mr. Bruce-Gardyne) on 6th March.—[Vol. 852, c. 213–5.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will circularise all local authorities urging them to complete a register of all disabled persons in their locality.

I expect to be issuing guidance on this subject within the next few months.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will commission a survey of the needs and problems of senior citizens in remote rural areas.

I am not satisfied that a special survey of this kind is required. The general problem is well documented, and is best tackled by local initiative in the light of local circumstances.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many agricultural workers have been drawing sickness benefits over each of the past four years, due to contracting the disease labelled "harvest lung"; and if he will make a statement on the action his Department is taking to mitigate the effects of this illness.

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to farmer's lung, which is a prescribed disease under the Industrial Injuries Act. The following table shows the number of successful claims for injury and disablement benefit made from 1969 onwards:

Year	Injury Benefit	Disablement Benefit
1969	13	15
1970	15	15
1971	12	9
1972	Not yet available	13

My Department continues to support the investigations into farmer's lung which have been carried out by the Public Health Laboratory Service Board over a period of seven years. The position will be reviewed at the end of the year.The Medical Research Council is still supporting a number of studies; field studies are being co-ordinated by the pneumoconiosis unit at Llandough Hospital, Penarth. The unit is co-operating with other research workers in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the West of England and hopes to hold a meeting to review progress shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to be able to issue the detailed guidance to regional hospital boards on the development of community hospitals, which he forecast in his written reply to the Question of the hon. Member for Eastleigh.— [OFFICIAL REPORT, 4th April 1973; Vol. 854, c. 108.]

Consultation on a draft memorandum is in progress and I hope it will be possible to issue guidance in the autumn.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what percentage of beds in the Wessex Hospital Region is in community hospitals; what development plans have been submitted to him by the Wessex Hospital Region for the future of community hospitals in the Wessex Region; and what reply he has given.

No hospitals have yet been designated as community hospitals. The Wessex Regional Hospital Board has, however, given preliminary consideration to this matter and will be submitting its development plans when the Department's policy on community hospitals is published.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many persons have died from asbestosis contracted as a result of their occupations in each year since 1960.

The statistics available relate to cases for which death benefit for pneumoconiosis, which includes asbestosis, was awarded under the Industrial Injuries Act and the Pneumoconiosis, Byssinosis and Miscellaneous Diseases Benefit Scheme, and to cases certified for workmen's compensation purposes. The figures show separately the number of cases in the mining and quarrying and

		At 30th September 1970				At 30th September 1971
			Part-time staff				Part-time staff
Area		Number of whole-time staff	Number	Whole-time equivalent	Total whole-time equivalent	Number of whole-time staff	Number	Whole-time equivalent	Total whole-time equivalent
East Suffolk		—	926	260	260	—	987	219	219
Ipswich	…	—	235	89	89	—	272	85	85
England	…	2,574	61,170	27,071	29,645	2,598	72,142	32,587	35,185

While these figures, which relate to numbers in employment on particular dates, show a decrease of 16 per cent. in East Suffolk between the two dates, compared with an increase of 19 per cent. in England as a whole, the numbers of hours worked, on a part-time basis, by home helps in East Suffolk rose by some 18 per cent. over this two-year period.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is satisfied with relations between the Government and Australia and New Zealand.

Yes. We have excellent relations with both Australia and New Zealand.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many home helps are employed in the county of East Suffolk at the latest convenient time compared with 1970; and how the percentage change compares with the national movement in their provision.

The figures for the administrative county of East Suffolk, for the county borough of Ipswich and for England are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his latest estimate of the cost of sanctions on Rhodesia since 1965 in terms of cost, British exports to, and investment in, Rhodesia.

The latest estimate of the direct cost of sanctions to the Exchequer from UDI to 31st March 1973 was about £49 million; in the last financial year it was approximately £3 million.In 1965 United Kingdom exports to Rhodesia were valued at £31·4 million and they have since become negligible. With such a long gap in normal trading I cannot estimate what the level of exports might have been had controls not been introduced.The most recent figures of the value of British investments in Rhodesia show that at the end of 1968 the book value of net assets was £81·1 million. These figures exclude oil, insurance and banking investments. Estimates suggest that by 1971 the value might have increased to around £100 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if Her Majesty's Government will contribute to the World Bank's fund for a programme to eradicate onchocerciasis (river blindness) in the Upper Volta; and if he will make a statement.

One of my officials is now attending an exploratory meeting in Paris on the World Bank programme. I cannot yet give my hon. Friend a considered view.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the level of British investment in African States south of the Sahara, with the exception of South Africa, the Portuguese territories and Rhodesia, in the last year for which figures are available.

The following table sets out estimates of net investment in African States south of the Sahara—excluding South Africa, Rhodesia, and the Portuguese territories—for the years 1969–1971.

	million
1969	56
1970	30
1971	28

NOTE: Net investment (including unremitted profits). Excludes oil investment and Commonwealth Development Corporation transactions.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the level of new British investment over the last three years for which figures are available in African States south of the Sahara, with the exception of South Africa, the Portuguese territories and Rhodesia.

The book value of British investment in African States south of the Sahara—excluding South Africa, the Portuguese territories, and Rhodesia—stood at approximately £328 million at the end of 1968—the last year for which published figures are available. This does not include oil, insurance, banking, or Commonwealth Development Corporation transactions.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is satisfied with the way in which all Government Departments are co-ordinating the planned cuts in public expenditure.

Yes.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the comparative value of the United Kingdom £ sterling on 27th June 1972; and what it was on 13th June 1973 vis-à-vis the Japanese yen.

The London closing middle market rates for £ sterling against the Japanese yen on 28th June 1972 (the Japanese market was closed on 27th June) and 13th June 1973 are given below:

	1972	1973
Japanese Yen	734·50	680·30

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on his discussions with the Price Commission about arrangements for receiving and examining reports from enterprises, such as banks and finance houses, on their net profit margins on interest-earning business.

Arrangements are being made for the Price Commission to receive and examine reports from the banks and finance houses on their profit margins on interest-earning business in accordance with paragraph 195 of the White Paper, "The Operation of Stage Two" (Cmnd. 5267).

asked the Prime Minister if he will make an official visit to Ealing.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister what plans he has for further meetings with the TUC and the CBI.

asked the Prime Minister what further plans he has now for continuing the discussions with the TUC and CBI which began on 17th May.

asked the Prime Minister if he will invite the TUC for further discussions on matters of mutual concern.

As I have told the House, further meetings are planned with both the CBI and the TUC to discuss specific matters proposed at my meetings with the TUC on 13th June and with the CBI on 18th June.

asked the Prime Minister if he will take part in the discussions between the CBI and the TUC on the phasing out of the regional employment premium.

I see no need to do so.

asked the Prime Minister if he is satisfied with the co- ordination between the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Health and Social Security with regard to the payment of retired miners' and widows' pensions.

Payment of pensions to retired miners and miners' widows is the responsibility of the National Coal Board, which keeps in close touch with the Department of Health and Social Security and the Supplementary Benefits Commission.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will seek to place on the agenda of the forthcoming Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference the problem of the Bangalees who are detained in Pakistan and the need for an exchange of populations in the Indian sub-continent.

As I have previously told the House, the consultations about the agenda, which are organised by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, are confidential.

asked the Prime Minister if he will appoint to the Central Policy Review Staff a member with special responsibility for industrial relations law.

Members of the Central Policy Review Staff are appointed on the basis on their individual abilities and aptitudes. As I have said before, I do not intend to appoint to the CPRS members with responsibility for specified subjects.

asked the Prime Minister what plans he has for visiting Brussels.

I have no plans to visit Brussels in the immediate future.

asked the Prime Minister if the public speech made by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on Thursday 7th June 1973 in London in which he stated that public ownership of banking and insurance in Great Britain would cause all holders of sterling to remove their capital from the United Kingdom represents the policy of the Government.

What the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry actually said was that the nationalisation of the insurance companies and the banks would do massive damage to the balance of payments. I agree with him.

asked the Prime Minister if he will re-examine principles governing the way in which Ministers answer Parliamentary Questions or take policy decisions on matters concerning firms with which they had previous substantial financial connections.

No. As I told the hon. Gentleman last week, Ministers are asked to ensure that no conflict arises, or appears to arise, between their private interests and their public responsibilities; and I think that this is the right principle.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the outcome of the recent preliminary talks in connection with the renewal of the International Sugar Agreement.

At the first session of the United Nations Sugar Conference last month, the participating Governments had a useful exchange of views on the issues involved in the renegotiation of the International Sugar Agreement, in particular the foreseeable demand for imports from the world market, the range of world prices to be aimed at, the allocation of export quotas, and the balance between the rights and obligations of importing and exporting countries. I hope that the second session, which is due to be held from 10th September to 10th October, will result in the negotiation of a new agreement to enter into force from 1st January 1974.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if any estimate is available of the numbers of foreign vessels by nationalities regularly fishing within 50 miles of the British coast.

These figures are not available. Information about national catch levels for the various fish stocks in the north-east Atlantic is available as a basis for any necessary conservation action by the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received concerning danger to road traffic at the Sun Arch, Romsey, Hampshire; and what plans he has to alleviate the situation.

Hampshire County Council has requested that the reconstruction of the Sun Arch railway bridge be added to the principal road preparation list. A general extension to the March 1972 announcement on this list is not at present contemplated. The county council is considering other possible measures.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will issue regular reports on the progress of the Avonmouth Bridge section of the M5 and make these reports available in leaflet form so that they may be distributed to the homes of residents in the areas of the Bristol, South constituency who are most seriously inconvenienced by summer holiday traffic congestion.

I am aware of the public interest in the completion of this scheme and have undertaken to keep local authorities informed of progress.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take action to speed up his decision to define the route of the A46 through Newark in view of the delay likely to be caused to the local authorities and others with regard to town planning proposals which will be delayed until his decision is known.

Investigations are proceeding as quickly as possible. I hope that alternative routes can be published for comment by the public early next year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in view of the proposed reduction in railway services, he will consider compensatory increases in the facilities available from public road transport, especially in country areas, before agreeing to any such reductions.

I would ask the hon. Member to await the statement which I hope to make before the House rises for the Summer Recess.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will request local authorities to inform him whether all new buildings intended for public use are being built with clear access for the disabled.

Section 4 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970 requires anyone providing a building or premises to be open to the public to include provision for the needs of disabled persons in so far as it is practicable and reasonable to do so. I have no reason to believe that at this stage a special inquiry of local authorities about the operation of that section is necessary; but I hope the hon. Member will remain in touch with me about this important topic.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, in view of the conflict between the Fire Precautions Act and the provision of access for the disabled, what action he proposes.

Section 11 of the Fire Precautions Act enables my right hon. and learned Friend to make building regulations in respect of means of escape from buildings in the case of fire. Certain regulations under this section will be laid before Parliament shortly. However, where the need to maintain public safety by means of building regulations conflicts with the desirability of providing special access for the disabled, the former must prevail. A reconciliation of these needs is increasingly being achieved through better design. In consultation with my Department the Central Council for the Disabled issued earlier this year a note on the building regulations and the disabled.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will convene a meeting between his experts in fire precautions and those voluntary bodies concerned with access for the disabled.

I am not aware of any immediate reason for such a meeting, but if the voluntary bodies concerned with access for the disabled require any information about the building regulations in respect of structural fire precautions my Department will certainly provide it. A meeting can be arranged later if this proves necessary.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much has been spent on Operation Eyesore in each of the economic planning areas of the country to date.

Figures of expenditure are not available, but the numbers and estimated costs of projects approved during the period of the scheme are as follows:

Region	Number of projects	Total estimated cost£
Northern	3,541	8,739,400
North West	6,754	17,206,272
Yorkshire and Humberside	3,847	7,925,106
East Midlands	199	1,212,723
West Midlands	694	964,919
South West	197	453,456
TOTAL—ENGLAND	15,232	36,501,876

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from the hon. Member for Eccles about Operation Eyesore and church graveyards; what reply he has sent; and if he will make a statement.

A project for the tidying up and partial grassing over of the graveyard of St. John's Church, Pendlebury, was approved for grant by my Department under Operation Eyesore in January. Following a recent inquiry about this project from the hon. Member to the Department the local authority informed the Department that, following certain complaints, it had suspended work while it confirmed that the preliminary steps necessary when work of this kind is undertaken had been taken. After receiving this confirmation it has allowed the work to be resumed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what constraints there are on local authorities with regard to the discharge of sewage effluent into rivers, and if he intends to impose stricter and more effective control.

All discharges of trade and sewage effluent to non-tidal rivers are controlled by river authorities, who may refuse consents to discharge, or grant them subject to conditions, and may vary the conditions from time to time. The river authorities exercise similar controls over discharges to estuaries which are new since September 1960, and over all discharges to a small number of estuaries; and my right hon. and learned Friend has told the House that he hopes to introduce legislation during the lifetime of this Parliament to bring all remaining discharges to tidal waters under control, and to improve the existing system of controls.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what measures have been taken to control industrial pollution and how well equipped the Alkali Inspectorate is to monitor and control such pollution.

Responsibility for the control of industrial pollution of the atmosphere is exercised by both local and central Government authorities. The Alkali Inspectorate is responsible for certain registered industrial emissions where special technical difficulties are encountered. The local authorities are responsible for the remainder, which includes by far the larger number of works. The work of the Alkali Inspectorate is described in the Annual Reports of the Chief Inspectors.I am satisfied that Her Majesty's Alkali and Clean Air Inspectorate is adequately equipped for the purpose of monitoring emissions under its control. The Inspectors carry out tests of their own, and there are four special testing teams mainly for sampling emissions of grit and dust.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the date of the traffic flow recorded in the last traffic census prior to that conducted in August 1972.

If, as I imagine, my hon. Friend's Question refers back to an earlier one, the answer is August 1965.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will study the low priced "park and drive" service envisaged at Bournemouth, details of which are in his possession, with a view to its value in solving the traffic problems in cities.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will introduce legislation to make failure to notify damage to roadside fences caused by vehicles leaving the road an offence.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he can give an assurance that the public inquiry to be held into the proposals for a new trunk road through Plymouth from the Marsh Mills roundabout to the Tamar Bridge will be able to discuss the traffic load on the existing Tamar Bridge, the possibility of building a second bridge across the Tamar and the siting of such a bridge; and whether the inquiry will also consider the problems posed by any trunk road for Saltash or whether there is to be a separate inquiry for Saltash.

In so far as these points are relevant to the draft order for the scheme under inquiry—yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether it is his intention to take over the responsibility for the existing Tamar Bridge from the Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee if the proposed trunk road through Plymouth is built; and what sum of compensation would be paid.

We have no present intention to take responsibility for the existing bridge.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the traffic estimate figure for the peak travel summer months for the existing Tamar Bridge if the proposed trunk road through Plymouth is built in 1976, 1980, and 1985; and if he thinks that this traffic load can be borne by the existing bridge or if it will need to be widened.

This requires further time. I will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will confirm that the very peripheral route for the Plymouth ring road mentioned by the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment at a Press conference in Bristol on 23rd July 1971 was not that route which the Department of the Environment has presently proposed; and if he will give details of the very peripheral route that was envisaged in the preparation pool, prepared by the Department.

A peripheral route has never been favoured by the Department. A line related to the present draft orders has been protected by the local authorities for many years.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is satisfied with steps being taken to reduce the long waiting period for driving tests in Greater London; and what further action he proposes to take to reduce this delay.

Recruitment of new driving examiners is proceeding as fast as is reasonably possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many driving test examiners were employed at test centres in the United Kingdom at the end of May 1973.

1,015.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many driving test examiners have been recruited at each driving test centre in Greater London since 1st January 1973.

The information is as follows:

Barking	2
East Ham	5
Tottenham	3
Winchmore Hill	1
Barnet	1
Burnt Oak	2
Mill Hill	1
Southgate	1
Hayes	4
Ruislip	3
Wealdstone	2
Greenford	3
Isleworth	1
Southall	3
Morden	1
Sutton	1
Croydon	3
Norwood	1
Southfields	2
Bexleyheath	1

None at the remaining centres.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average waiting period at the driving test centre in Redhill, Surrey, for applicants wishing to take their test on the next available date.

Twenty weeks.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the latest available figure for the number of people waiting to take their driving tests at the Redhill, Surrey, test centre.

1,359 at 25th June 1973.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the subsidy paid for the branch line from Derby to Matlock for the past year 1st January 1972–31st December 1972 and from 1st January 1973 up to the most recent convenient date.

The answer to the first part of the Question is £131,000; to the second, £57,100 up to 31st May 1973.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there have been under the Race Relations Act of employers asking the religion of applicants for jobs; and if he will make a statement.

None. The Race Relations Act 1968 does not apply to discrimination on grounds of religion, and it does not enable criminal prosecutions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date permission was given to Mrs. Victoria Bowling and her four children to enter this country; on what grounds entry was permitted and on what date her husband left this country; on what date his Department decided that continuing residence was unlawful and on what date any appeal against his decision is likely to be heard.

Mrs. Bowling came here on 2nd June 1969 to join her husband. One child is understood to have accompanied her; two to have come here

Years Served
Offence																	More than
		2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	20	Total
Murder	…	1		2		1	5	11	26	15	4	6	2	5	1	1	1 (24 years)	81
Manslaughter	…		2			1		4	5	3	2	1						18
Arson	…				1													1
Buggery	…					1												1
Wounding with intent								1										1
TOTALS	…	1	2	2	1	3	5	16	31	18	6	7	2	5	1	1	1	102

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions have taken place in the preceding 12 months for excessive noise by motor cyclists.

I am obtaining the available information and shall write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions in the last 12 months the Metropolitan Police have been called to handle disturbances in universities.

I am obtaining this information and I shall write to my hon. Friend.