asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will seek to have commuter fares included in the price check scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will seek to have commuter rail fares included within the price check scheme.

Commuter rail fares could be brought within the scheme only if Government support for the railways were increased at the expense of other vital programmes, such as housing or the attack on unemployment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the percentage rise in commuter rail fares since she took office; and what reductions, if any, in British Rail fare applications have resulted from references to the Price Commission.

Between about 60 per cent. and 80 per cent. to date, depending on the service, class of travel and type of ticket. No reductions in rail fares have resulted from references to the Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations have been made to him about contradictions in the present requirements under the Road Traffic Act regarding statutory meal breaks for drivers of heavy goods vehicles and local authority byelaws prohibiting the parking of such

PASSENGER AND FREIGHT TRAFFIC 1960–74
Millions
			Number of Passenger Journeys			Freight carried (ton-miles)
			BR	DB	SNCF	BR	DB	SNCF
1960	…	…	1,037	1,276	566	18,650	34,352	34,791
1961	…	…	1,025	1,190	567	17,591	35,019	35,986
1962	…	…	998	1,146	579	16,104	36,119	37,417
1963	…	…	938	1,099	599	15,398	38,993	40,470
1964	…	…	928	1,081	608	16,052	38,366	39,907
1965	…	…	865	1,088	620	15,429	36,829	39,485
1966	…	…	835	1,061	628	14,790	36,234	39,179
1967	…	…	837	937	627	13,609	34,525	40,033
1968	…	…	831	932	578	14,693	36,720	39,881
1969	…	…	805*	949	607	14,214‡	41,803	40,433
1970	…	…	824*	980	613	15,014‡	44,354	44,080
1971	…	…	816*	981	608	13,458‡	40,485	41,964
1972	…	…	754*	979	626	12,858‡	40,170	42,805
1973	…	…	728*	1,019	620	14,043‡	41,777	45,808
1974	…	…	733*	1,010†	642	13,230‡	41,736†	47,130
* Route transfers between BR and London Transport in 1969 and 1970 have led to a reduction in the total number of passengers carried by BR. These amounted to around 40 million journeys in 1970.
† Estimated.
‡ Figures for 1969–74 exclude traffic forwarded by Freightliners Limited and National Carriers Limited.

Griffiths asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total of British Rail employees, and how far this has decreased since the Transport

One representation has been received from a private individual. There is no inherent incompatibility in the two requirements, provided drivers plan carefully where they can take their breaks. It is for local authorities to assess parking needs in their areas.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the total number of passengers carried by British Rail in each year since 1960; and, for purposes of comparison, what information he has regarding the number carried in the same years by the German and French national railways;(2) what information he has regarding the total volume of freight measured in ton-miles carried by French and German national railways, respectively, for each year since 1960.

The following are the figures' for British Rail, the German Federal Railways (DB) and the French National Railways Company (SNCF):Act 1968; and for purposes of comparison, what information he has regarding the number of employees in the German and French railways.

The following are the figures for British Rail, the German Federal Railway (DB) and the French National Railway Company (SNCF):

Number of employees in 1968, 1973, 1974 and 1975
Thousand
			1968	1973	1974	1975
BR	…	…	296	229	234	231
DB	…	…	393	406	404	n/a
SNCF	…	…	323	283	286	n/a
n/a = Not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the present track mileage of British Rail; how far this has declined since 1960; and what is the present track mileage of the German and French railways.

The following table shows route miles open for traffic on British Rail, German Federal Railway (DB) and French National Railways (SNCF):

Route mileage in 1960, 1973 and 1974
Miles
		1960	1973	1974
BR	…	18,383	11,326	11,289
DB	…	19,072	18,033	17,907
SNCF	…	24,134	21,397	21,410

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the losses incurred by rail systems in France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy and the Netherlands in the last year for which figures are available and the amount of State subsidies granted in every case.

Information about losses incurred by the national railways of other countries is not readily available. The following table shows forecast estimates of State aid paid in 1975 under EEC regulations:

Million
France	£900
Federal Republic of Germany	£1,785
Italy	£575
Netherlands	£108

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much of the provision for British Rail's investment programme is included under the item passenger subsidies in Table 2.6 of Command Paper No. 6393; and how such expenditure is distinguished from that appearing in Table 2.5.

Under the capital accounting rules adopted following the Railways Act 1974 British Rail investment in infra structure is charged to revenue account. That part of such investment which is attributable to passenger services is supported by grant and is, therefore, included within passenger subsidies in Table 2.6. To avoid double counting it is then subtracted as "British Rail Infrastructure" at the foot of Table 2.5. It amounts roundly to £90 million per annum.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much British Rail's passenger operations are currently losing.

The Railways Board estimates that the deficit on its rail passenger operations in 1976 will be about £340 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to be able to reply to the letter of 15th April 1975 about his Department's assistance to the charity Make Children Happy, which was sent to him by the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed.

I regret the delay in sending a full reply but intend to do so in the near future.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on his negotiations with the tobacco industry on the sponsorship of sporting events.

I am considering proposals for a voluntary code of practice for sponsorship of sporting events by the tobacco industry as a basis for discussion with the industry.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he proposes to make an order under Section 32(3)(a) of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 relating to the discharge of trade effluent.

As I announced to the House last August, the implementation of Section 32 and other provisions in the 1974 Act concerning discharges to rivers and coastal waters has been deferred, and my right hon. Friend has no plans at present for making an order under Section 32(3)(a).

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total number of different forms which his Department, and its subordinate agencies, have currently available for different purposes requiring completion by members of the general public; when the necessity for each such form was last reviewed; and whether he intends to reduce the number of such forms and to simplify their contents.

The Department of the Environment has about 200 forms which are completed by members of the public. I accept that the forms should be kept as few and as simple as possible. There are set arrangements to check that the forms continue to be needed, that their content is clear and that it complies with relevant statutory requirements.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when Islington Borough Council sought his Department's approval for a compulsory purchase order on All Saints' Street, London, N.1; and when he expects to approve it.

A compulsory purchase order on Nos. 8–36, All Saints' Street, London, N.1, made under Part III of the Housing Act 1957, was submitted to my Department on 24th October 1975. After taking professional advice my right hon. Friend has concluded that these houses should be included in the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest. The council will, therefore, need to review their position under Circular 159/74 before further consideration can be given to the compulsory purchase order.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment why, in view of the fact that the Community Land Act 1975 places the duty of implementation on either the local authorities or the Land Authority for Wales, he intends to appoint a director of estates service and an architect-planner, sup- ported by a multi-disciplinary team, to implement it as well; what specific rôle his appointees will have; and whether he will give an assurance that they will not attempt to undertake the work of local authorities, except after the exercise of the default procedure laid down in Section 48 of the Act.

It is normal practice for Ministers to draw on the advice of professional staff in giving guidance to local authorities on the exercise of statutory functions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the existing staffing establishment of his Estates Division; and how many of its members hold professional qualifications in surveying.

The current complement of the Estates Division is 18. Of the 17 staff in post 11 hold professional qualifications in surveying.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the intended staffing establishment of the multi-disciplinary team which is to be engaged on the implementation of the Community Land Act 1975; and what sum has been budgeted for in the forthcoming financial year to meet its staffing and overheads costs.

The intended complement is seven:

1 Under-Secretary Architect/Planner

1 Director B architect/planner

1 Superintending estates officer

1 Principal planner

1 Senior planning officer

2 Personal secretaries

The cost of salaries and general administrative expenses in 1976–77 is estimated at £75,000.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many civil servants were employed within his Department on 31st December 1975, how many of these worked in London and how many in the provinces; what was the total annual cost of employing them in 1975; and how this compared with the annual wages and salaries bill for 1974.

73,062 staff were employed on 31st December 1975; of these 24,068 worked in the London area. The total annual cost in 1975–76 is estimated to be £255·5 million compared with an outturn of £200 million in 1974–75.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the estimated starting date for the construction of the M90 between Arngask and Bridge of Earn.

I have been asked to reply.Provided the statutory procedures are satisfactorily completed and funds are available, this scheme might start in about three years.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what have been the approximate totals for the money paid over by those London local authorities which have been paying authorities under the London rate equalisation scheme—taken together—for each of the last 10 years.

For the years 1965–66, 1966–67 and 1967–68, the reallocation of grant provided for in the scheme reduced the sums payable to certain London authorities as follows:

	1965–66	1966–67	1967–68
	£m	£m	£m
Hackney	0·11	0·15	—
Hammersmith	0·17	0·14	0·09
Islington	0·14	0·77	0·97
Kensington & Chelsea	1·25	1·67	2·01
Lambeth	1·20	0·97	1·04
Lewisham	0·82	0·71	0·93
Wandsworth	0·86	0·93	1·10
Westminster	—	—	0·49
Total	4·56	5·34	6·63

For the years 1968–69 to 1973–74, the net sums contributed to the scheme were as follows:

	1968–69	1969–70	1970–71
	£m	£m	£m
City of London	1·39	2·44	3·54
Camden	—	0·22	0·64
Islington	0·15	—	—
Kensington & Chelsea	1·71	1·45	1·19
Westminster	5·67	6·57	7·62
Ealing	0·07	0·14	0·20
Hillingdon	—	0·01	0·02
Hounslow	0·03	0·08	0·12
Total	9·02	10·91	13·33

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the tables and reference numbers of the documents in which the London rate equalisation scheme for each of the last 10 years has been published.

The following equalisation schemes have been applied over the last 10 years:1966–67—the Inner London Rate Equalisation Scheme 1965, published under the reference HLG 19854.1967–68—the above scheme, as modified by the Inner London Rate Equalisation (Amendment) Scheme 1967, published under the reference HLG 31921.1968–69–1969–70—the Greater London Rate Equalisation Scheme 1968, published under the reference HLG 35523.1970–71–1973–74—the above scheme, as modified by the Greater London Rate Equalisation (Amendment) Scheme 1970, published under the reference HLG 49407.1974–75—the Greater London Rate Equalisation Scheme 1974, unpublished.1975–76—the Greater London Rate Equalisation Scheme 1975, unpublished.Arrangements have been made for the 1976–77 scheme to be published, and copies will be available in the Vote Office in a few weeks' time.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what advice he has given to local authorities with regard to the collection of rates for 1975 due from caravan owners, where difficulties or delays have arisen in the assessment or the collection of those rates.

When approached for advice on this matter the Department has advised local authorities that rates due from caravan owners in respect of the year 1975–76 must be collected in accordance with current rating law.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what additional provision for British Rail's pension fund has been made beyond the figures given in Table 2.6 of Command Paper No. 6393: if so, where details of this additional expenditure are to be found; and why the sums involved have been excluded from Table 2.6.

The only such provision is the capital cost of refunding existing debt to pensions schemes under the British Railways (Alteration of Pensions Schemes) Order 1973, which does not rank as public expenditure. Provision is made in Class VI, 3, Programme 6.3, Section A4 of Estimates. The cost in 1975–76 is £34·7 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will give a detailed breakdown of the figure of about £28,000 recently given as the cost of erecting a new canopy over the Members' Entrance in New Palace Yard under the following headings: (a) cost of aluminium, (b) fabrication of aluminium, (c) erection of aluminium, (d) cost of glass, (e) cutting of glass, (f) fitting of glass, (g) cost of stone work, (h) fabrication of stone work, (i) laying of stone work, (j) cost of electrical fittings, (k) installation of electrical fittings, and (l) other sundry costs specifying any amount in excess of £100 in detail.

No. To publish such details would be a breach of normal commercial practice. I would refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Newham, South (Mr. Spearing) on 19th February 1976.—[Vol. 905, c. 792.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what grants have been paid to British Rail in each year since 1960; to what extent un-remunerative services benefited from them; and which services were concerned.

Grants have been paid to British Railways as follows:

		£ million
1960	…	115·4
1961	…	136·8
1962	…	139·9
1963	…	133·9
1964	…	120·9
1965	…	132·4
1966	…	134·7
1967	…	153·1
1968	…	147·4
1969	…	76·8
1970	…	75·5
1971	…	73·7
1972	…	147·7
1973	…	180·9
1974	…	391·2
1975	…	505·4

Within these totals, specific grants were paid towards unremunerative passenger services under Section 39(1) of the Transport Act 1968 from 1969 to 1974, as follows:

		£ million
1969	…	61·1
1970	…	61·7
1971	…	63·1
1972	…	59·9
1973	…	81·2
1974	…	139·7

A list of services which have benefitted at some time from these grants is attached.Since 1974 the Railways Board has been compensated for the net cost of operating its railway passenger system as a whole, in accordance with the public service obligation placed on it as provided for in Section 3 of the Railways Act 1974.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the cost of work being done in his Department to change all existing Statutory Instruments into metric measurements when necessary.

The intention is to amend existing Statutory Instruments to metric measure over the next few years, in a phased programme based on the requirements of the particular sector of the agricultural, fisheries and food industries.The amendments will be preceded by consultations, the extent of which cannot be foreseen, with the organisations concerned. As far as possible, alterations will be made as other changes are required.For these reasons, and because of the variety of Orders involved, it is not possible to calculate the cost to the Department of the proposed amendments.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and

Crop Year		Acreage	Average Yield Sugar-in-Beet per Crop Acre	Sugar Production from Home Grown Beet (WSE)	Annual Output of Beet Sugar (WSE) as a percentage of 10 year average 1965–66 to 1974–75
		'000 acres	Tons/acre	'000 tons	Per cent.
1965–66	…	455	2·3	846	98
1966–67	…	446	2·3	848	98
1967–68	…	457	2·4	873	101
1968–69	…	465	2·3	883	102
1969–70	…	457	2·2	847	98
1970–71	…	463	2·3	892	103
1971–72	…	471	2·7	1,069	124
1972–73	…	468	2·2	872	101
1973–74	…	480	2·4	948	110
1974–75	…	482	1·5	559	65
WSE = White Sugar Equivalent.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the latest estimate of the loss or damage caused to livestock by foxes during the last five years.

Significant losses of this kind do occur, notably among lambs in unenclosed upland areas. However, there is no provision for notifying details to Food what was the cost of preparing S.I. No. 42, 1976, Pests; and how many farmers are expected to be affected by it.

The cost is estimated at £180, including printing. These amending Regulations, which do no more than express in metric terms obligations which are contained in the principal Regulations and which relate to fencing against rats, are relevant to those farmers who still have ricks of unthreshed crops for the purposes of seed and other specialist forms of production.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will tabulate in the Official Report for each of the beet sugar years 1965–66 to 1974–75 the acres of sugar beet grown, the average yield per acre, the tonnage of sugar in white sugar equivalents, the tonnage of beet raws in WSE processed by the port refiners, and the annual output of beet sugar as a percentage of the 10 year average or other convenient base.

Information about the processing of sugar beet raws by port refiners is not available. The remaining information is as follows:my Department so I cannot offer any realistic estimate of the loss or damage involved.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the latest estimate of the loss or damage caused to livestock by badgers during the last five years.

We have no evidence that badgers are causing any material loss or damage of this kind other than in limited areas of south-west England, where a clear connection has been established between the incidence of tuberculosis in badgers and its scale and persistence among cattle. I regret that the related loss or damage cannot be estimated with any degree of accuracy.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the total number of different forms which his Department, and its subordinate agencies, have currently available for different purposes requiring completion by members of the general public; when the necessity for each such form was last reviewed; and whether he intends to reduce the number of such forms and to simplify their contents.

The number of forms in use in my Department for completion by members of the public is estimated to be approximately 400.I accept that forms must be kept to a minimum. Senior officers in my Department are under standing instruction to give due attention to the burden of form-filling both when new policies and procedures are introduced and when existing

CASES DEALT WITH BY AGRICULTURAL LAND TRIBUNALS
Areas		1971	1972	1973	1974	1975
Northern	…	2	8	4	6	7
Yorkshire and Lancashire	…	3	4	6	8	8
East Midland	…	7	5	1	5	3
Eastern	…	5	5	7	6	13
South-Eastern	…	6	6	9	3	11
South-Western	…	5	3	6	6	2
West Midland	…	7	9	5	12	7
Welsh	…	3	1	4	9	4
England and Wales	…	38	41	42	55	55

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many assessors have been appointed to agricultural land tribunals in each of the last five years.

I understand that no chairman of an agricultural land tribunal has found it necessary to appoint assessors in the last five years.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he is going to publish the 1976 Annual Review White Paper.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many assessors are on the list proposed by the President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to serve on agricultural land tribunals and in which year each of them last served in that capacity.

I regret that the information is not available. Nominations for the panel of assessors to assist agricultural land tribunals is the responsibility of the President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many cases in each of the last five years have been dealt with by each of the agricultural land tribunals in England and Wales.

The information is as follows:

I refer my hon. Friend to the statement that I made in the House earlier today.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he is requiring or requesting police authorities to reduce the number of civilian aides to the police by 1,000 men and women; and what proportion of this reduction is expected to take place in the Metropolitan Police Department.

The rate support giant settlement for 1975–76 provided for an increase in police civilian staff of about 1 per cent. above the number in post on 30th September 1974. A larger increase in fact took place and in view of the need to restrain expenditure police authorities have been asked to reduce their civilian staff by normal wastage to the level provided by that settlement. For the Metropolitan Police the number of civilian staff is already close to the level required and no significant reduction will be needed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress he has made in promoting the new bail procedures.

On 8th October 1975 a Home Office circular was issued to the courts, the police and the Probation and After-Care Service commending those recommendations of the Working Party on Bail Procedures in Magistrates' Courts which can be implemented without legislation. We hope that a Bill to implement the Working Party's other recommendations will be introduced shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of convictions for indictable offences last year committed in England and Wales by Asian immigrants and by the rest of the population, respectively; and if he will express these figures as a percentage of the Asian community and the rest of the population, respectively.

I regret that this information is not available: the Criminal Statistics do not record the nationality or ethnic background of convicted persons.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from the Social History Society of the United Kingdom about the availability of Home Office records for study and research and the shortening of the period before they are made available.

I have received a copy of a resolution passed by the Society at its inaugural conference asking that the records of the Home Office should be made available to bona fide researchers after 50 years. I have replied explaining the present Home Office policy and informing the Society that it is under review.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish in the Official Report the total number of experiments performed on live animals in each year from 1970 to the latest available date; and how many of these experiments in each year were for commercial undertakings.

The following is the information recorded:

Year			Total no. of experiments	Total no. of experiments for or under a grant from commercial undertakings
1970	…	…	5,580,876	3,604,211
1971	…	…	5,607,435	3,572,079
1972	…	…	5,327,123	3,330,466
1973	…	…	5,363,641	3,298,008
1974	…	…	5,561,211	3,651,744

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will break down the 43 adjudications by the board of visitors at Bristol Prison in the last six months of 1975 into the categories of punishment awarded and indicate in each case the precise punishment;(2) if he will break down the 17 adjudications of boards of visitors at prison establishments for women other than at Holloway during the last six months of 1975 into the categories of punishment awarded and indicate in each case the precise punishment;(3) if he will publish a breakdown of the 22 adjudications conducted by the board of visitors at Holloway during the last six months of 1975 into the categories of punishment awarded and indicate in each case the precise punishment.

I regret that information in this detail is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long each of the two women in cellular confinement on 26th February 1976 had been so confined; who ordered their confinement; for what reasons; and for how long.

In each case for one day, as part of a Governor's award of three days' cellular confinement for an offence against good order and discipline.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many robberies involving the use of firearms have occurred in Walsall since 31st December 1974 and if he will list them; how many bystanders and staff of the establishments that have been robbed, respectively, have been injured; how much has been stolen; and whether there have been any arrests in connection with these robberies.

The information to answer these questions could not be obtained without disproportionate cost and effort.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the extra police required to implement the provisions of the Road Traffic (Seat Belts) Bill.

None. Any Regulations made under the Bill, if it becomes law, will be enforced as part of the general body of road traffic laws.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many traffic wardens will be required to implement the provisions of the Road Traffic (Seat Belts) Bill.

Enforcement of these provisions, if enacted, is unlikely to be a function of traffic wardens.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from the National Association of Licensed House Managers about assaults on publicans; and in what terms he has replied.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave on 3rd March to a Question by the hon. Member for Uxbridge (Mr. Shersby)—[Vol. 906, c. 658].

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers were engaged in the inquiries leading up to the Gay Future fraud case; and how many police hours this involved.

I understand that the inquiries were conducted by two officers of the Metropolitan Police, with the co-operation and assistance of other officers, including officers of other forces; information about the amount of police time spent on the inquiries is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost and effort.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many public appointments are within his gift; what are the highest and lowest emoluments payable; what was the cost in the last financial year; and what were the comparable figures in 1970.

I am currently responsible for 133 paid appointments. Current remuneration ranges from £16 a day for part-time appointments to £10,600 a year for full-time appointments. The total cost of the appointments in 1974–75 was about £205,000.In 1970–71, the number of appointments was 98, including 23 appointments in the broadcasting organisations, which were then the responsibility of the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications. Remuneration ranged from £12·60 a day for part-time appointments to £8,100 a year for full-time appointments. The total annual cost of the appointments was about £145,000.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of different forms which his Department, and its subordinate agencies, have currently available for different purposes requiring completion by members of the general public; when the necessity for each such form was last reviewed; and whether he intends to reduce the number of such forms and to simplify their contents.

About 350. Requests for new forms and for reprints of existing forms are examined centrally against criteria of necessity, simplicity and clarity.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what visiting arrangements are currently in operation for visits to Mr. M. O'Mahoney, sentenced to five years' imprisonment and released into police custody on 21st May 1975.

I understand that arrangements have been made for Mr. O'Mahoney to receive visits twice a week.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions, and under what conditions, Mr. M. O'Mahoney, sentenced to five years' imprisonment and released into police custody on 21st May 1975 has been allowed out of the police station in which he is being held.

In addition to visits to court in connection with various proceedings, I understand that normally once a week Mr. O'Mahoney has been taken under escort to a police sports ground for exercise.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what special equipment, such as radio, television and record player, has been supplied to Mr. M. O'Mahoney, now in police custody after being sentenced to five years' imprisonment; and at whose expense such equipment, if any, has been supplied.

I understand that a television set and a record player have been provided at the expense of his family.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the licensing planning areas existing by order under Section 118 of the Licensing Act 1964; and which of the areas still suffer the consequences of war damage.

The areas are as follows:

• Birmingham
• Bristol
• East Ham
• Gosport
• Kingston-upon-Hull
• Inner London
• Manchester
• Swansea
• West Ham

Up-to-date information about war damage in these areas is not readily available to us; but in 1973 all licensing planning committees were consulted, and those for the areas listed above considered that, in their current stage of redevelopment, the planning arrangements still served a useful purpose. We have recently, with the agreement of the licensing planning committee concerned, revoked the order constituting the Gosport licensing planning area with effect from 30th April this year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many civil servants were employed within his Department on 31st December 1975; how many of these worked in London and how many in the provinces; what was the total annual cost of employing them in 1975; and how this compared with the annual wages and salaries bill for 1974.

The total number of staff—non-industrial and industrial—in post in the Home Office on 1st January 1976 was 32,528, of whom 10,210 were in the London pay area and 22,318 elsewhere. The cost of staff salaries and wages in 1975–76 is not yet available but is expected to be about £152,000,000. The cost of staff salaries and wages in 1974–75 was £105,000,000.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why the orders and regulations made under Section 5 of the Metropolitan Police Act 1929 should be regarded as confidential to the police services.

Because they contain guidance on operational and other matters which it would not be in the public interest to make generally available.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development how much of the Government's returnable grant to the Crown Agents has been handed over to the Crown Agents and in which years; and what arrangements have been made as regards the interest accruing on the total sum promised.

The recoverable grant of £85 million was credited to an account of the Crown Agents at the Bank of England on 24th December 1974. Since the assistance was provided in the form of a grant, no interest is payable on it by the Crown Agents to Her Majesty's Government.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development what is the total number of different forms which his Department, and its subordinate agencies, have currently available for different purposes requiring completion by members of the general public; when the necessity for each such form was last reviewed; and whether he intends to reduce the number of such forms and to simplify their contents.

My Department issues no forms requiring completion by members of the general public. There are, however, in the field of recruitment for service overseas, three forms which applicants are invited to complete. The need for these forms, and their contents, are reviewed in the course of normal business. Similar forms are used by related bodies associated with overseas recruitment but they, of course, are responsible for their own administrative processes.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development what estimate has been made of the cost to the Exchequer of Her Majesty's Government's proposal for economic aid to Mozambique to offset the cost to that country of imposing sanctions against Rhodesia.

No detailed negotiations on economic assistance have yet taken place with the Government of the People's Republic of Mozambique.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what consultations he has held with Members of Parliament concerning the specification of computer equipment for use in Parliament for which tenders have been issued; and if he will circulate to Members the feasibility study from which the tenders have been derived.

No tender has been issued for computer equipment for use in Parliament, and none is likely to be issued in respect of a computer system for the House of Commons in the near future.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service (1) how many civil servants will cease to be employed in each of the years 1977–78, 1978–79 and 1979–80 to secure the cost savings of £50 million, £140 million, and £130 million set out in Command Paper No. 6393;(2) when he will pubish details, Department by Department, of the reductions in Civil Service manpower referred to in Command Paper No. 6393.

The savings in expenditure on staff and related administrative costs set out in Command Paper No. 6393, which refers to cuts in expenditure on manpower and related administration, are reductions below the forecast levels for those years which provided for some increase above present strengths. Departments are at present reviewing thoroughly all aspects of their work and decisions on the precise nature of the reductions in expenditure will be taken in the light of this review. I cannot at this stage anticipate the timing or content of these decisions. But the consequence of achieving savings of this order will be to reduce the strength of the Civil Service by 1978 to a size, allowing for the Manpower Services Commission, similar to that of last summer.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will compare the total remuneration, including and distinguishing between annual increment and increased London allowance as well as increases in the national basic pay rate, in July 1974 and July 1975 of civil servants with three years' seniority in each of the following grades: Under-Secretary, principal executive officer, clerical officer, senior scientific officer, professional and technology officer grade I, telecomunications technical officer grade I, and personal secretary; and if he will also show the total percentage increase in gross earnings and allowances obtained in each case.

The information requested is given in the table below. The Principal Executive Officer grade disappeared with effect from 1st January 1971 following the Administrative, Executive and Clerical Classes merger in to a single Administration Group in the post-Fulton restructuring. It is assumed that the hon. Member may have had in mind the grade of Principal which is, therefore, included in the table.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will publish a table showing, for each of the main Civil Service grades included in his reply to the hon. Member for Cornwall, North (Mr. Pardoe) on 19th May 1975 [Official Report, c. 217–18], the average wage/salary indices for each year from 1st January 1956 to 1st January 1976; and if he will compare these indices with those for retail prices, average manual earnings and average earnings (1955=100 in each case).

Information on average salary-wage indices for Civil Service grades over the period is not available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Furthermore, the degree of reorganisation and restructuring which has taken place in the non-industrial Civil Service following the report of the Committee, which was appointed in 1966 under the chairmanship of Lord Fulton to examine the structure, recruitment

CIVIL SERVICE MANPOWER
	Staff in Post at 1st March 1974			Staff in Post at 1st January 1976
Department	Non-Industrials	industrials	Total	Non-Industrials	Industrials	Total
Cabinet Office	599	—	599	685	—	685
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1)	14,328	1,133	15,461	14,914	1,225	16,139
H.M. Treasury	997	—	997	1,144	—	1,144
H.M. Customs and Excise	24,932	—	24,932	29,285	—	29,285
Inland Revenue	69,659	33	69,692	79,053	28	79,081
Department for National Savings	13,435	132	13,567	13,548	97	13,645
Department of Education and Science (2)	3,858	83	3,941	4,037	105	4,142
Department of Employment (3)	32,080	1,577	33,657	43,683	1,858	45,541
Department of Energy	1,364	82	1,446	1,362	12	1,374
Department of the Environment (4)	42,034	27,480	69,514	46,220	26,843	73,063
Ordnance Survey	4,151	371	4,522	4,076	374	4,450
Foreign and Commonwealth Office	9,967	250	10,217	10,014	234	10,248
Ministry of Overseas Development	2,123	48	2,171	2,295	55	2,350
Home Office	24,858	3,652	28,510	28,704	3,824	32,528
Lord Chancellor's Office and Courts etc	9,428	—	9,428	9,951	—	9,951
Land Registry	4,838	5	4,843	4,868	6	4,874
Civil Service Department	3,492	1,601	5,093	3,888	1,592	5,480
Central Office of Information	1,188	63	1,251	1,304	66	1,370
H.M. Stationery Office	3,142	4,037	7,179	3,319	4,047	7,366
Scottish Office	9,052	755	9,807	9,942	728	10,670
Scottish Courts Administration etc.	731	4	735	730	4	734
Department of Health and Social Security	82,331	209	82,540	91,323	240	91,563
Office of Population Censuses and Surveys	2,706	18	2,724	2,712	24	2,736
Department of Trade (5)	16,550	805	17,355	7,683	47	7,730
Department of Industry (5)	—	—	—	9,397	783	10,180
Department of Prices and Consumer Protection (5)	—	—	—	378	—	378

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will bring up to date the table of Civil Service staff increases given in his reply to the hon. Member for Melton (Mr. Latham) on 3rd December 1975 [Official Report, c. 594]; and if he will briefly signify the legislative or policy reasons which caused a variation in staff manpower between 1st October 1975 and 1st January 1976 wherever applicable.

The number of staff in post, by Department, on 1st March 1974 and 1st January 1976 is given below: