asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice or assistance he has given regarding the cost, lay out and design of the new Richmond-on-Thames Magistrates' Court.

The lay out and design of the Richmond-on-Thames Magistrates' Court were primarily the responsibility of the Greater London Council. Discussions were held with our Department on the accommodation to be provided, and the cost was approved after consideration of sketch plans and estimates submitted by the Council.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will have a meeting with the Chairman of the BBC.

I am happy to meet the Chairman of the BBC from time to time, as need and occasion arise, but I have no immediate plans for such a meeting.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has for regulating the manufacture, sale, import and use of imitation firearms.

We are not satisfied that it would be practicable to control toys or replicas which might be mistaken for real firearms.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many publications have been proceeded against as a result of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Circulation of, and Traffic in, Obscene Publications of which the United Kingdom is a signatory.

Proceedings for obscenity in England and Wales are brought under the Obscene Publications Acts and it is not possible to distinguish particular cases in the way suggested.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps he is taking to prevent illegal entry into the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps he proposes to reduce the scale of illegal immigration into the United Kingdom.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a similar Question from him on 15th January.—[Vol. 903, c. 187.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will carry out an immediate review of the working of the Fire Precautions Act 1971 including the costs which fall on hotels in view of the contribution made by hotels and guest houses to the United Kingdom tourist industry.

The operation of the Act is kept under continuous review, but it would not be right to relieve hotels and boarding houses, on financial or other grounds, of their statutory obligation to provide reasonable fire precautions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the report of the Annan Inquiry into the future of broadcasting in the United Kingdom; and when Her Majesty's Government expect to make their own proposals.

As my right hon. Friend said in replying to a Question by the hon. Member for Macclesfield (Mr. Winterton) on 26th March—[Vol. 908, c. 310.]—we understand that the Annan Committee expects to report early next year. The Government will formulate their proposals as soon as there has been an opportunity to consider the Committee's findings.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will ask the Working Party on Water Safety for an interim report in order that any appropriate measures may be taken before the 1976 summer holiday season.

I doubt whether an interim report would now be of much practical value, and its preparation would be likely to delay the submission of the main report expected later this year. But I shall ask the working party whether there are any matters on which it might usefully issue guidance to the general public before the holiday season begins.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he intends to take to ensure that visitors to the United Kingdom do not take up employment without being in possession of valid work permits.

I have this matter under review, but no practicable system of control could wholly ensure that visitors never unlawfully take up employment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now take steps to stop further encroachment by private security firms into areas of police work, and to bring existing private security firms under regulation and controls as regards their standards.

I do not consider that private security firms, which offer their services mainly to protect or handle other people's property, are assuming police functions. We do not believe that additional measures of legal control are called for; but, as my hon. Friend may know, the industry association concerned recognises the importance of proper standards in this field and already operates a code of practice for its members.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps are being taken to avoid a recurence of the delay in dealing with the petition of Mr. P. Allen at present serving sentence in Parkhurst Prison, following the report made by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration dated 19th March 1976.

As my hon. Friend is aware from the report of the result of the investigation made by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, there were particular reasons why, unfortunately, it took longer than usual to reply to Mr. Allen's petition. The arrangements for dealing with prisoners' petitions are kept under review and every effort within available resources will continue to be made to reply to them as quickly as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what instructions he has given to the Boundary Commission on the inquiry upon which it has just embarked into parliamentary constituency boundaries in England and Wales.

The Boundary Commission for England has given notice of its intention to commence a general review of constituencies in England, but the Commission for Wales has not. The procedure and rules to be observed by the Commissions in conducting a review are prescribed in the House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Acts 1949 and 1958 and I have no authority to issue any instructions in the matter.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will publish in the Official Report the criteria and procedures he employs in his decisions to refer decisions back to the Court of Appeal under Section 17(1)(a) of the Criminal Appeal Act 1968.

The normal criteria are whether there is some new consideration of substance which has not previously been considered by a court; whether it raises such doubt about the Tightness of a conviction or sentence that the Court of Appeal might find grounds for varying the decisions previously reached; and whether it could properly be considered by the Court.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigrants from East Africa were accepted for permanent settlement in the United Kingdom over the last 12 months for which figures are available; and how this figure compares with the previous five years.

Provisional figures for 1975 indicate that 3,600 citizens of the main East African countries and 8,260 United Kingdom passport holders from East Africa were accepted for settlement in the United Kingdom, either on arrival or on subsequent removal of time limit.Corresponding figures for the previous five years are:

	Citizens of East Africa*	UKPH from East Africa
1970	877	7,085
1971	1,691	13,634
1972	3,097	35,931†
1973	2,310	7,784
1974	3,493	8,600
*Covers Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia only. Other East African countries are not separately identified in the readily available figures.
† Includes a small number of UKPH from India.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received concerning the electoral system used in parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom.

The Home Office has received some 26 letters on this subject since the beginning of 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will introduce legislation to repeal the Incitement to Disaffection Act.

I shall consider the possibility of legislation in the light of the views of the Law Commission in its review of the law of treason and related offences.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements exist to ensure that visitors admitted to the United Kingdom for a limited period do not overstay their time.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps he is taking, as part of the total control of immigration, to prevent overstaying.

A check is made on the departure of large numbers of people, including visitors, admitted temporarily. I could not, however, justify the very substantial cost of checking the departure of every single tourist or other bona fide visitor of whom several million visit this country every year.When the checking process suggests someone has overstayed, enquiries are made. Overstayers who are traced, whether or not they are convicted of the criminal offence of overstaying, who have no claim under the Immigration Rules to remain here, and who are not prepared to leave voluntarily then, in the absence of exceptional circumstances, are deported.I keep these arrangements under review.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will increase the number and the proportion of women in senior grades in his Department.

In accordance with Government policy, candidates for appointment and promotion to senior posts in the Home Office will continue to be considered on their merits regardless of sex.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider introducing in the Metropolitan Police, and recommending to all other police authorities, a confidential telephone system for calls with information regarding terrorist activities.

No. I do not believe that in Great Britain such a system would be an improvement on the normal methods by which information can be given to the police.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has refused an extension for an additional period of detention to the police under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1974.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many representations for the exercise of the Royal Prerogative of Mercy in respect of the last Shrewsbury picket, Dennis Warren, he has received since 1st January 1976.

111.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many letters he has received from trades councils, during January, February and March 1976, urging the release of Shrewsbury picket prisoner, Des Warren.

Eight.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation to give the police effective control over the activities of mobile ice cream and hot-dog vans.

In so far as these vans may give rise to problems which are for the police to deal with—such as obstruction of the highway—the existing law appears to give sufficient powers of control. If the hon. Member has any particular problem in mind I should be grateful if he would write to me about it.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list in the Official Report the deaths and casualties, respectively, from terrorism in Great Britain in each of the last eight years and for 1976 to date for the categories. Army, police and civilians, respectively.

I regret that information for the years 1969, 1970 and 1971 is not readily available. Since 1st January 1972, 61 people have been killed in Great Britain as a result of bomb incidents. 15 of these were members of the Armed Forces. In addition over 1,140 people have been injured, including 92 members of the Armed Forces and 25 police officers. The available criminal statistics are as follows:

			Deaths	Injuries
1972	…	…	8	4
1973	…	…	1	383
1974	…	…	43	440
1975	…	…	8	210
1976	…	…	1	110

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish in the Official Report figures showing the remissions of sentences granted to Mr. Ronald Edwards, Mr. Roy James, Mr. James White, Mr. James Hussey, Mr. Thomas Wisbey, Mr. Roger Cordrey and Mr. Gordon Goody, who were convicted for their involvement in the great train robbery.

The following periods of parole were granted (sentences shown in parentheses):

Mr. R. C. Edwards (15 years) 1 year 7 months

Mr. R. James (30 years) 8 years 6 months

Mr. J. E. White (18 years) 3 years 1 month

Mr. J. Hussey (30 years) 8 years 1 month

Mr. T. W. Wisbey (30 years) 8 years 2 months

Mr. R. V. Cordrey (14 years) 2 years

Mr. D. G. Goody (30 years) 8 years

Following conviction of a further offence and the imposition of a sentence of six months, Mr. Edwards' parole licence was revoked. Following a recommendation of the Parole Board he will be released again shortly—about 10 weeks later than his earliest date of release under the six months' sentence.

asked the Prime Minister if he proposes to consult the EEC Heads of State about the situation in Southern Africa.

The Nine regularly confer about the situation in Southern Africa. At their meeting on 1st and 2nd April the Heads of Government discussed Rhodesia and in that connection I would refer the hon. Member to the written statement which my right hon. Friend made last Monday.

asked the Prime Minister when he last visited the Borders.

I have not done so during this Administration.

asked the Prime Minister if he will seek to pay an official visit to the Republic of Cyprus.

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

asked the Prime Minister if he will pay an official visit to Cuba.

asked the Prime Minister when he will next make an official visit to France.

asked the Prime Minister whether he intends to visit North Shields.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister when he last paid an official visit to Aberystwyth.

As the hon. Member will know, I am frequently in Wales and indeed I will be there tomorrow. I have not, however, had the opportunity to visit Aberystwyth during this Administration.

asked the Prime Minister whether he intends to continue with the practice of holding regular meetings with the STUC.

I am still considering my future programme, but I would certainly hope to meet the STUC and other organisations concerned with the economic situation in Scotland in due course.

asked the Prime Minister when he next intends to visit the headquarters of the EEC.

At the next meeting of the European Council which is to be held in Brussels on 12th and 13th July.

asked the Prime Minister if he has any plans to meet the chairmen of the nationalised industries.

I have no plans at present to meet the chairmen of the nationalised industries, but I am ready to do so whenever necessary.

asked the Prime Minister if he will seek an early meeting with the President of France.

I saw the President of France last week at the meeting of the European Council in Luxembourg and I look forward to meeting him again on 22nd to 25th June during his State visit to this country.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will appoint from this House a Minister with sole responsibility for Her Majesty's Government's policy on devolution.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for West Stirlingshire (Mr. Canavan) on 6th April.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech on the state of the nation given at a dinner for Her Majesty the Queen at 10 Downing Street on Tuesday 23rd March.

I understand that my right hon. Friend has already done so.

asked the Prime Minister what are his official engagements for 8th April 1976.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave earlier today to my hon. Friend the Member for Nelson and Colne (Mr. Hoyle).

asked the Prime Minister whether he is satisfied with the co-ordination between the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Secretary of State for Social Services and the Secretary of State for Employment on the position of the lower paid.

asked the Prime Minister if he is satisfied with the co-ordination between the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Department of Employment and the Department of Health and Social Security over the position of the lower paid.

Yes.

asked the Prime Minister if he will give consideration to making an official tour of the new towns in Great Britain.

I have at present no plans to do so, but I shall certainly take account of my hon. Friend's suggestion in planning my future programme.

asked the Prime Minister when he expects to be addressing a trade union annual conference.

I am still considering my programme of forward engagements but I would certainly hope to do so in the coming months.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is satisfied with progress in implementing the policies outlined in the Gracious Speech.

Yes.

asked the Prime Minister if he has any plans to take on new special advisers.

I have decided to retain the Policy Unit at 10 Downing Street under Dr. Donoughue and I have also appointed Mr. Tom McNally, who has been my special adviser in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office since March 1974, to continue in a similar capacity at 10 Downing Street.

asked the Attorney-General if he will publish in the Official Report a list of the cases concluded at the Central Criminal Court in February 1976 in which acquittals were obtained.

This information cannot be provided save at disproportionate cost.

asked the Attorney-General if he will increase the amounts payable by way of "statutory legacy" in cases of intestacy.

My noble Friend the Lord Chancellor has this matter under consideration.

asked the Attorney-General if the Director of Public Prosecutions has completed his study of the report by the Department of Trade, under Section 109 of the Companies Act, on the affairs of Canning Town Glass; and, if so, what action he proposes to take.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has considered the evidence so far available in respect of Canning Town Glass and its subsidiary company Dale Brown & Co. Ltd. consequent upon action under Section 109 of the Companies Act 1967. Police inquiries have been instituted and are still continuing.

asked the Attorney-General for what reasons the Lord Chancellor gave a direction under the Public Records Act 1958 to the effect that Foreign Office file FO 371/27078/ File E 4209/1/93 should not be available for research purposes until 1992.

My noble Friend gave the direction on the ground that disclosure would not be in the public interest.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what is his policy towards the establishment of a closed shop in the Civil Service.

Formal requests for discussions about union membership arrangements have been made by the staff side of the National Whitley Council and by the trade union side of the Joint Co-ordinating Committee, and the implications of these will be considered with the unions concerned before the Government forms a view.

asked the Lord Advocate what has been the total cost of Crown Counsel during the years 1971 to date broken down into appropriate headings and into each year for which statistics are available; what has been the cost of the administration of (1) the Procurator Fiscal Service and (2) the Crown Office during the period 1971 to date broken down annually; and what has been the costs of administering (3) the Court of Session and (4) the sheriff courts for the years 1971–76, broken down annually.

Figures for salaries and wages in respect of Crown Counsel, the Procurator Fiscal Service and the Crown Office from 1971 onwards are readily available and are as follows:

	Crown Counsel	Procurator Fiscal Service	Crown Office
	£	£	£
1971–72	21,550	669,260	52,000
1972–73	22,750	741,610	72,000
1973–74	27,250	848,123	82,397
1974–75	31,500	1,104,130	134,503
1975–76*	52,500	1,678,000	151,000
* Estima

Figures of other administration costs are unfortunately not available for the earlier years; for the year 1974–75 when changes in accounting procedure took place, and 1975–76 (estimated) such figures as are available cannot be broken down under the headings specified.Figures for the Court of Session and the Sheriff Court are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland. The salary figures are as follows:

	Court of Session	Sheriff Courts
	£	£
1971–72	149,510	658,108
1972–73	160,682	707,409
1973–74	177,291	984,015
1974–75	225,469	1,353,873
1975–76*	304,000	1,653,000
*Estimate.

These figures do not include the salaries of the Judiciary. Again, other administration costs are not readily available.

asked the Minister of Overseas Development what financial aid has been given by the United Kingdom and the European Community to the New Hebrides over the last two years; and what aid is expected to be made available in the future under the terms of the Lomé Convention or any other EEC arrangements.

United Kingdom financial aid to the New Hebrides totalled £2·326 million in 1974 and £3·096 million in 1975. In addition, technical assistance was provided at a cost of £0·559 million in 1974 and £0·685 million in 1975.No disbursements were made by the European Community to the New Hebrides in 1974 or 1975, but over the five years of the Lomé Convention it is expected that 1.380 million units of account—£0·802 million at 1.72 units of account to £1—from the European Development Fund allocation for the British Dependent Territories will be made available to the New Hebrides. I cannot say what proportion of the European Development Fund allocation for the French Dependent Territories will be earmarked for the New Hebrides. It is

	1975	1970
Commonwealth Development Corporation	Chairman	Chairman
	Deputy Chairman	Deputy Chairman
	9 board members	8 board members
Crown Agents	Chairman	Chairman
	Deputy Chairman	1 Crown Agent
	5 board members
Indian Pensions:
Civil Service Family Pension Fund (Transferred) Scheme	2 Commissioners	2 Commissioners
Military Service Family Pension Fund (Transferred) Scheme	2 Commissioners	2 Commissioners
Military Widows' and Orphans' (Transferred) Scheme	2 Commissioners	2 Commissioners
The Superior Services (India) Family Pension Fund (Transferred) Scheme	2 Commissioners	2 Commissioners
Overseas Students Fees Award Scheme	Chairman	—
Tropical Medicine Research Board	5 board members	5 board members

The highest individual emoluments in 1975 and 1970 were £20,543 and £8,050 respectively. The lowest was £50 in each of the years. The increase in the highest emolument arises largely from a change in management structure in the organisation concerned in the intervening period. It is not possible to provide an exact figure for the total sums paid because some disbursements depend on the number of attendances a member makes. The approximate annual figures for 1975 and 1970 were £55,000 and £31,250 respectively.Although I make these appointments the payments related to them are not made from funds administered by my Ministry.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development how he will apply, in possible that the New Hebrides could also benefit from the Community's scheme for the stabilisation of export receipts.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development if he will publish in the Official Report a list showing the paid public appointments within his gift, the highest and lowest emoluments payable and the total sum paid in 1975 and 1970, respectively.

pursuant to his reply[Official Report, 1st April 1976; Vol. 908, c. 581],gave the following information:The appointments are:the field of health and medicine, his policy that aid should be concentrated on the poorest people in the poorest countries.

British aid in these fields has in the past been largely based on the concept of a network of doctors and hospitals on the lines adopted in the developed countries. Latterly, however, opinion has been moving away from the idea that the developed country model provides the best means of improving health in the developing countries. The World Health Organisation and other international bodies and assemblies with health interests, in which these countries form the majority, now recognise that the mass extension of Western-type medical services is an unrealistic and inappropriate aim. Much of the disease in the Third World is due to poverty and ignorance, and its prevention is likely to be more effective and less costly if based on public health preventive measures rather than on curative measures, however desirable these still are.This "community health" approach implies greater emphasis on the social, economic and environmental determinants of health; on improving nutrition, child health and family planning and providing safe water and proper satitation; and giving priority to simple systems of primary health care, manned by locally trained and suitably supervised staff, to provide a service accessible to the whole population rather than more sophisticated services which benefit only a minority. My future policy will be increasingly to concentrate on the furtherance of these objectives in my programmes of capital aid and technical assistance to Governments which share them. The Governments themselves must, of course, bear the primary responsibility.On the other hand research into tropical disease must remain an area where much of the initiative rests with the developed countries. Because of the finances and skilled manpower required, such research can be given a new impetus only by a co-ordinated effort led by international institutions and the appropriate expertise of the developing countries in which the diseases occur. I shall give the full support of my Ministry to this effort.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the remit for the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland.

The Commission is required by the House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Acts 1949 and 1958 to keep under review the distribution of parliamentary seats in Northern Ireland. The number of constituencies in Northern Ireland is fixed by the Act of 1949.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list in the Official Report the deaths and casualties, respectively, from terrorism in Northern Ireland in each of the last eight years and for 1976 to date for the categories Army, police and civilians, respectively.

The information requested is shown in the tables below. Figures on persons injured are not available for the whole period.

1. PERSONS KILLED AS A RESULT OF THE SECURITY SITUATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND
	Army/UDR	RUC/RUC 'R'	Civilian
1968	Nil	Nil	Nil
1969	Nil	1	12
1970	Nil	2	23
1971	48	11	115
1972	129	17	322
1973	66	13	171
1974	35	15	166
1975	20	11	216
1st January to 7th April 1976	11	6	83

2. PERSONS INJURED AS A RESULT OF THE SECURITY SITUATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND
	Army/UDR	RUC/RUC 'R'	Civilian
1968	N.A.	N.A.	N.A.
1969	N.A.	711	N.A.
1970	620	191	245†
1971	390	317	1,800
1972	578	466	3,813
1973	548	291	1,812
1974	483	235	1,680
1975	167	263	2,044
1st January to 7th April 1976	60	39*	565*
*Provisional figures only
† From June.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if, in his review of the school transport system, he will consider introducing Regulations making obligatory the stopping of all other vehicles while indicator flashing lights of buses taking primary children to school are flashing.

I am grateful to the hon. Member for his interesting suggestion, which I appreciate is made in the interests of road safety generally and of the safety of school-children in particular.However, it is general policy in the United Kingdom to restrict the use of flashing lights on vehicles to a minimum, so that their impact is not diminished when used in emergencies. Moreover, many of the vehicles used for transporting school children in Northern Ireland belong to Ulsterbus and Citybus and are indistinguishable in this ròle from their normal usage.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if the recommendations of the Finer Report which have been implemented apply to Northern Ireland; and, if not, when he intends making them applicable.

pursuant to his reply[Official Report, 6th April 1976; Vol. 909, c. 120],gave the following information:The Finer Committee was concerned with the situation in Great Britain and did not consider the special position of Northern Ireland. None the less, the social security system in the Province is in strict parity with that of the rest of the United Kingdom and recommendations relating to it are being implemented in Northern Ireland. Some of the other recommendations of the Committee are already being met in the Province and there is a continuing programme for implementation as far as possible of those others which have been implemented in Great Britain.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he can now make a statement on the establishment of a law centre in Northern Ireland.

I have approved in principle a grant for the establishment of a law centre in Northern Ireland. Towards the end of last year I appointed a steering committee comprising representatives of interested parties to advise me on the management and scope of a law centre to serve the Greater Belfast Area; I understand that the report of this committee is now being finalised and will be submitted to me shortly. The report will, I hope, provide a generally acceptable basis for the early establishment of a law centre for an experimental period.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will make a statement about the Ulster American Folk Park in County Tyrone; and whether it will be opened during the American Bicentennial Year.

The Ulster American Folk Park near Omagh first conceived some four years ago will open in July 1976. It will illustrate through its Old and New World buildings the life of early Ulster emigrants in Ulster and America; it will have an educational ròle and should also be a tourist attraction of great potential.The capital costs will be some £500,000. Included in these are the costs of an information centre of about £110,000 most of which are being met by a contribution from the Matthew T. Mellon Foundation. The Folk Park incorporates the Mellon Family Homestead which has been open to the public for some years. The future net annual running cost is estimated at some £50,000.Much of the work has been undertaken by Enterprise Ulster, a Government-financed direct labour agency and has provided about 80 man-years of direct labour employment to date in a high unemployment area. The construction of replica buildings at the Folk Park has enabled unemployed men to demonstrate their skills.Although not planned as part of the United Kingdom contributions to the American Bi-Centennial celebrations, the coincidence of its opening in July this year with these celebrations is particularly apt and has attracted considerable interest in America.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the present trend in the numbers of applications to settle in the United Kingdom from persons living in the Indian subcontinent who are dependants of immigrants accepted for settlement in the United Kingdom.

In the period 1974 to 1975 there has been an increase in the number of such applications. In Bangladesh, India and Pakistan together there were 31,594 applications in 1975 compared with 22,309 in 1974.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many persons in Rhodesia are to be charged with high treason or other crimes against the security of the State.

If individuals against whom there is evidence of a criminal offence in Rhodesia come within the jurisdiction of the courts of this country it will be for my right hon. Friend the Attorney-General to consider whether criminal proceedings should be instituted.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from the glass industry about the use of wired glass for the purpose of reducing fire hazards in fire doors and as a fire preventive; and if he will make a statement.

The representations from the St. Helens branch of the General and Municipal Workers Union, to which I referred in my reply to my hon. Friend's Question yesterday about window frames, included the question of the use of wired glass in connection with fire safety. This is dealt with in my reply of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will advise highway authorities that, in the present economic situation, they should not undertake general replacement and renewal of road signs except where this is essential in the interests of road safety or necessitated by road improvements.

In answer to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Nuneaton (Mr. Huckfield) on 24th July last I forecast economies on road maintenance but assured the House that operations affecting road safety should be substantially unchanged—a proviso which was mentioned in Circular 125/75. I do not think any special advice about road signs is needed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out the sums allocated for home loans to each of the London borough councils and the Greater London Council for 1975–76 and 1976–77 compared with the actual figure of loans made during 1974–75.

Advances in 1974–75 to private persons for house purchase reported by these authorities and their allocations for 1976–77 are given below. In 1975–76 allocations made to individual local authorities were limited to 50 per cent. of the amounts they advanced during 1974–75.

ADVANCES TO PRIVATE PERSONS FOR HOUSE PURCHASE
		£ thousand
	Advances reported 1974–75	Allocation 1976–77
Greater London Council	109,651	52,000
City of London	0	0
Barking	1,764	826
Barnet	3,968	1,549
Bexley	3,518	1,383
Brent	9,464	3,296
Bromley	3,365	1,013
Camden	4,087	1,294
Croydon	5,687	2,575
Ealing	978	531
Enfield	1,123	527
Greenwich	10,248	4,091
Hackney	3,874	1,817
Hammersmith	2,678	961
Haringey	8,625	2,714
Harrow	1,286	568
Havering	5,889	2,410
Hillingdon	9,940	4,059
Hounslow	579	343
Islington	1,284	541
Kensington and Chelsea	3,392	1,243
Kingston upon Thames	1,672	813
Lambeth	1,202	586
Lewisham	2,367	977
Merton	6,934	2,617
Newham	4,060	1,241
Redbridge	12,225	3,968
Richmond-upon-Thames	526	366
Southwark	1,788	784
Sutton	2,336	975
Tower Hamlets	14	116
Waltham Forest	2,093	703
Wandsworth	1,612	648
Westminster	4,265	1,310

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when the investigation being conducted by the Health and Safety Commission into the construction and operation of road tankers transporting hazardous chemicals will be published.

The Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission informs me that the Health and Safety Executive is making a review of the legislation controlling the conveyance by road of hazardous substances, the conclusions of which will, it is intended, form a basis for future legislative proposals.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many accidents involving road tankers transporting hazardous chemicals have been reported by the police.

The Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission informs me that 15 accidents of this nature were investigated by the Health and Safety Executive during 1975. None of them was reported by the police.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is satisfied with the operation of the Hazchem Scheme, the voluntary warning code for tankers carrying hazardous chemicals.

The emergency services have commented favourably on the scheme, but I am disappointed at the slow adoption of the scheme by some sections of industry.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the most recent advice he has given to local authorities concerning the criteria for assessing homelessness in respect of immi

STATISTICAL FORMS SENT OUT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT IN 1975 TO CERTAIN COMPANIES AND FIRMS
	Frequency
I Housing and Construction Industries:
1 Census of output and employment	Annual
2 Sample survey of output and employment	Triannual
3 Sample survey of new orders received	Monthly
4 Sample survey of employment	7 months per year
5 Overseas contracts*	Annual
6 Sample survey of private enterprise housing*	Tiannual
II Transport Industries:
7 Census of public service vehicle operators	Annual
8 Census of public service vehicle operators (excludes smaller-scale operators)	Quarterly
9 Continuing sample survey of roads goods transport	Weekly
10 Census of ferry operators*	Quarterly
11 Pilot survey of international road haulage operators	In 1975
*Voluntary inquiries

The joint circular on homelessness, DOE 18/74, DHSS 4/74, WO 34/74, contains advice to local authorities on the best ways of dealing with homelessness. It draws no distinction between immigrants and other groups in the community.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether local authorities are required to verify with the high commission or embassy concerned that any immigrant arriving in the United Kingdom who claims to be homeless has become homeless as the result of unforeseen events and that such events do not include the voluntary decision of an immigrant to leave his own country and proceed to the United Kingdom without first having arranged for suitable accommodation to be available.

No. The joint circular on homelessness issued on 7th February 1974, DOE 18/74, DHSS 4/74, WO 34/74, asks local authorities to help all homeless people, regardless of the cause of their homelessness.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many forms are required by his Department, or organisations for which he is responsible, to be completed by companies or firms; and if he will list such forms in the Official Report.

In 1975, 11 different types of statistical forms were sent out by my Department to certain companies or firms. The titles and frequencies are listed below:

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the gross total overall cost of the Yorkshire and Humberside Regional Economic Planning Council and all its related activities during the last 12 months.

The costs of supporting the Economic Planning Council form part of the costs of the Department's regional organisation and cannot be separately identified. While the Chairman receives an honorarium, the members of the Council are unpaid.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those trunk road schemes included on the 3,100 mile network which had been expected to start between now and 1980, giving in each case the starting date which had been planned before the latest cuts in public expenditure set out in Command Paper No. 6393 and the starting date now expected as a result of the cuts.

The schemes which had been expected to start between now and 1980 are listed below. It is not yet possible to say how far this reduction of expenditure set out in Cmnd. Paper No. 6393 will affect any individual scheme.

Scheme		Planned Year of Start
A27	Southwick widening	1976–77
A34	M4 to Ashridge Farm	1976–77
A31	Bratley Diversion	1976–77
A27	Falmer Diversion	1976–77
A38	Southern access of M5 to
Gloucester		1976–77
A38	Barton Turn interchange	1976–77
A66	Palliard Bridge to county
boundary		1976–77
A168	Topcliffe and Asenby
bypass		1976–77
A64	Malton bypass	1976–77
A1	Redhouse junction im
provement		1976–77
A45	Cambridge northern by-
pass to Newmarket bypass		1976–77
M58	Aintree - Skelmersdale	1976–77
(Western Section)
A590	Arrad Foot Diversion	1976–77
M180	Thorne to Sandtoft (main
works)		1976–77
A64	Tadcaster bypass	1976–77
M180	Sandtoft to Trent	1976–77
M180	Scunthorpe Southern by-pass	1976–77