asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will investigate the allegations of systematic beating up of prisoners transferred from Her Majesty's prison at Hull to the C wing of Her Majesty's prison, Strangeways, in the light of the various other allegations of ill-treatment and violence by prison officers forwarded to him in respect of that prison.

Three prisoners have made complaints of the kind mentioned by my hon. Friend. After considering reports of preliminary investigations by the Governor of Manchester Prison it has been decided to refer the complaints to the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will investigate the cost effectiveness of the collection of television licence fees by the Post Office in comparison with possible collection by the BBC or a commercial organisation;(2) what is the cost of collecting television licence fees; and what is the total sum collected;(3) what is the estimated number of television licence fees not collected and the sum lost in the fees avoided.

The cost effectiveness of the present arrangements for collecting television licence fees is closely monitored by a working party on which the Home Office, the Post Office and the BBC are represented. The possibility of improving the method of collection is kept under constant review.The estimated cost for 1975–76 of collecting licence fees was £18·8 million and the total estimated revenue was £233 million.It is estimated that some 850,000 households are using television sets without the appropriate licence and that the loss of revenue is of the order of £7·5 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the future cost of television licences.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Warley, East (Mr. Faulds) on 7th February.—[Vol. 925, c. 526–8.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreigners were serving sentences in British prisons during the years 1970 to 1976.

Central information about the nationality of persons serving custodial sentences is not available. The following table shows the number of persons born outside the United Kingdom who were serving sentences in Prison Department establishments in England and Wales on 30th June in each of the years 1973–76 inclusive:

1973	…	…	…	3,800
1974	…	…	…	3,912
1975	…	…	…	4,270
1976	…	…	…	4,481

Comparable information for years prior to 1973 is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many Argentinian political prisoners Great Britain has undertaken to accept; and how many have actually been accepted and arrived in Great Britain;(2) how long it takes to process applications from Argentinian political prisoners; and how many have been rejected as politically undesirable for admission to Great Britain.

No Argentinian prisoners have applied to come here, but, in response to an appeal made last June by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Kingom agreed to accept for resettlement from Argentina up to 75 of the most urgent cases of Latin American refugees of other nationalities who wished to leave that country, together with their dependants.To date 117 applications have been received in the Home Office under this scheme, but it is not possible to say how many were from prisoners. In 56 cases entry clearance has been granted and seven of those concerned, comprising with their dependants, 23 persons, have arrived in the United Kingdom. The remaining applications are still under consideration. The time taken to process applications varies from case to case.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people, convicted of murder since 1945, imprisoned and released on parole, have subsequently committed murder again.

In England and Wales two persons released on licence from a sentence of life imprisonment were subequently convicted of further offences of murder committed while they were at liberty. Another two were charged with murder but convicted of manslaughter, on the ground of diminished responsibility.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what steps he plans to take before any further increase in television licence fees to improve the service for people in the South-West who can only receive Welsh language programmes for part of the day;(2) whether he will seek to exempt from any further increases in television licence fees people in the South-West who can only receive Welsh language programmes for part of the day.

Responsibility for the provision and extension of their services rests with the broadcasting organisations—the BBC and the IBA. I do not foresee the early provision of alternative services for all those localities in the South-West where UHF reception, though possible, has to be from a station in Wales because they are screened by hills from the main transmitting station just north of Wells. The television licence fee is a standard payment for permission to use a television set and it is not varied in individual cases.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether there is a possibility that the Parachute Regiment will be disbanded as a result of the Government's latest defence cuts or will have the number of its battalions reduced.

I have nothing to add to what my right hon. Friend told the House on 12th January 1977.—[Vol. 923, c. 1455–6].

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the outcome of the tri-Service discussions about the proposed ending of gratuities for short-service officers contrary to their original terms of engagement.

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Woking (Mr. Onslow) on 15th November 1976.—[Vol. 919, c. 365].

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many short-service officers who left the Armed Forces after March 1975 preferred to accept the old gratuity, and how many the new preserved pension.

Most short-service officers are not pensionable and receive only gratuities. Of a limited number of aircrew officers in the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force who have had the choice described, all have opted for gratuities.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if, following his statement to the House of 12th January that one job is lost for every £10,000 cut from the defence budget, he will give his estimate of how many jobs have been lost and are to be lost in consequence of cuts announced in planned defence expenditure since March 1974; and if he will give a regional breakdown.

The net reduction in Service and directly employed civilian staff—including those staff of the Property Services Agency engaged on defence work, but excluding those in the Royal Ordnance Factory Organisation which operates under a trading fund—made since March 1974 is 15,200 and 20,700 respectively. It remains the aim to achieve the full reductions of 38,000 Service personnel and 40,000 civilians as set out in the 1976 Statement on the Defence Estimates.I estimate that, in comparison with the programme contemplated before the defence review, job opportunities in the defence industries and associated suppliers have been reduced by about 90,000, and that this figure will rise to a maximum of about 140,000 in 1979. The effect on industrial job opportunities of the reductions in defence expenditure announced by the Chancellor on 15th December cannot yet be assessed.Statistics on the regional breakdown of Service and civilian staff have not been kept regularly in the past. A special exercise to collect this information from 1974 was, however, recently put in hand, and I hope to be able to write to the hon. Member shortly. The methods used to estimate employment in the defence industries do not permit the figures to be broken down geographically.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when his Department is planning to issue its consultation document on proposals for legislation relating to ancient monuments.

Shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether, in the interests of open government, he will publish the confidential document which he has circulated on the future of new towns.

I have not circulated a confidential document on the future of new towns but a letter was sent on my behalf to the Chairmen of five new town development corporations on 19th January. The nature and purpose of this approach was explained in my reply of 7th February to the hon. and learned Member for South Fylde (Mr. Gardner).—[Vol. 925, c. 532.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many applications for grants towards loft insulation for elderly and disabled people have been submitted to his Department under the terms of Circular 160/74; how many have been approved; and what has been the average grant.

Three applications covering 10 dwellings have been received, to all of which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has consented. In relation to one dwelling, costs are not known. The average grant approved in the other cases was about £19 per dwelling.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what guidelines, if any, have been issued to local authorities regarding recommendations 148, 149, 153, 162, and 164 to 169 of the Finer Report on one-parent families;(2) what action has been taken on recommendations 151, 154, 155, 156, 172, 173, and 176 of the Finer Report on one-parent families.

We are at present consulting the local authority associations about a circular of guidance to local authorities which would set out our views on all the recommendations about housing matters contained in the report, except those relative to mortgage matters (Nos. 166–169, 172 and 173). These are the subject of a separate consultation paper which has been sent to both the local authority associations and the Building Societies' Association.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the proportion of the total land area of Telford New Town and of the Metropolitan borough of Birmingham, respectively, which is derelict.

The information is contained in the following table, which is based on the latest available comparative information from the 1974 survey of derelict land. Figures for the Black Country districts are included, since a comparison with the conurbation is probably more relevant than with Birmingham alone.

Statutorily derelict land as a percentage of the total land area of the authority
Authority
Telford New Town	4·2(a)
Birmingham Metropolitan District	0·8
Dudley Metropolitan District	3·9
Sandwell Metropolitan District	3·6
Walsall Metropolitan District	3·7
Wolverhampton Metropolitan District	2·2
(a) Since 1974 this figure has been reduced by over 20 per cent.

As my hon. Friend knows, I was able to see some of the work the Corporation has undertaken to tackle the problem of dereliction on my visit to Telford yesterday.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what objective criteria he has used to measure the relative social deprivation of the old industrial area of East Shropshire, within which Telford New Town is situated, and of Birmingham.

No such measurement of the relative social deprivation has been made.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are his proposals to increase the resources available to Telford Development Corporation for the clearance of the physical dereliction of much of the designated area of the new town.

Land reclamation is an integral part of the programme of work of Telford Development Corporation and as such is taken into account every year when financial allocations are made.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are his proposals for making resources available to Telford Development Corporation, Salop County Council and the District Council of The Wrekin, to remedy the long-standing social deprivation of the indigenous population of Telford New Town.

Social deprivation is only one of a considerable number of factors in allocating resources, all of which are taken into account within the existing machinery.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what criteria are used in assessing compensation for land, property and businesses acquired for the building of the Mass Transit Railway in Hong Kong; and who is responsible for paying the compensation.

Compensation for land and buildings is assessed at market value at the time of acquisition as provided for in the Mass Transit Railway (Land Acquisition and Related Provisions) Ordinance. Businesses as such are not acquired, but compensation is assessed for loss or damage to a business caused by the acquisition of land. The authority for assessing and paying compensation is the Director of Public Works. Compensation matters which cannot be settled between the authority and the owner are referred to the Lands Tribunal.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been paid in compensation for acquisition of land and property for the construction of the Mass Transit Railway in Hong Kong to date; and how many claims are still outstanding.

$HK44,253,637 has been paid in compensation to date. 51 claims are outstanding, 39 of which have been referred to the Lands Tribunal. 36 of these 39 claimants have accepted amounts equivalent to the Hong Kong Government's statutory offer of compensation as advance payments pending adjudication.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance is given by the Hong Kong Government to enable small business men to carry on their trades following compulsory acquisition of their businesses for the construction of the Mass Transit Railway.

As I have explained in answer to another of my hon. Friend's Questions today, businesses are not acquired but compensation is assessed for loss or damage to a business caused by land acquisition. Where claims are referred to the Land Tribunal because a settlement cannot be reached, the Hong Kong Government, pending adjudication, offer assistance in the form of an advance payment equivalent to its statutory compensation offer. Half of this sum is paid on acceptance, and half when vacant possession of the premises has been given. Owners of businesses must be given three month's statutory notice of land acquisition and at least six months' notice of their likely removal date. In practice, longer periods of notice are usually given.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many families and small traders have been evicted to make way for the construction of the Mass Transit Railway in Hong Kong to date; and how many families were rehoused.

221 families and 37 businesses have moved from premises acquired in connection with the construction of the Mass Transit Railway. Domestic occupants have been offered public housing as well as cash compensation, but in 19 cases they have preferred to find their own accommodation. In addition, 784 families have moved into public housing and 257 families into temporary accommodation in licensed areas from squatter structures cleared from Crown land for the Mass Transit Railway.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what negotiations take place between the Hong Kong Government and small traders concerning compensation for acquisition of premises for the construction of the Mass Transit Railway before eviction takes place.

Every effort is made to settle compensation, or advances of compensation, before removal. Meetings are held between those affected and the staff of the Public Works Department, the Housing Department and/or the Home Affairs Department in order to ensure that the provisions of the Mass Transit Railway (Land Acquisition and Related Provisions) Ordinance, the procedures for making claims and the details of individual offers of compensation and rehousing are clearly understood.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the final settlement of compensation to tenants of the Tai On Mansions who were evicted to make way for the construction of the Mass Transit Railway in Hong Kong; what was the original offer in each individual case; and which of these tenants have been resettled in their small businesses.

The domestic occupants of Tai On Mansion have all accepted public housing and payment of removal expenses at a rate of $HK20 per square foot of area occupied and lower rates for storage space. In total $HK186,244 has been paid to 47 families. The position in respect of the former occupants of business premises in the building is as follows:(i)

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the outcome of the recent visit of a Northern Ireland Minister to Saudi Arabia.

I visited Saudi Arabia on 8th and 9th February in conjunction with a Northern Ireland trade mission to that market. In the course of my visit I had discussions with the Saudi Minister of Commerce, the Saudi Minister of Industry and Electricity, the Secretary General of the Royal Commission for Yanbu and Jubail and the President of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce. I also gave interviews to the Saudi Press and visited a dairy farm project being undertaken by a Northern Ireland firm.The objective of my visit was to give support to the members of the trade mission and to make contacts at a high level with Saudi Government Departments and other influential bodies. Some very good contacts have been made and it is hoped to build on those. While some of the mission members are already reporting encouraging business prospects, the real benefits of the mission can only be reaped in the longer term.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to centralise the offices of his Department in Belfast.

New accommodation is becoming available within the Stormont Estate which will enable staff to be redeployed and centralised. As part of this process the house at Laneside, Craigavad, which has been used as office and domestic accommodation, will no longer be required, and arrangements are being made for its disposal.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many places are available in adult training centres for the mentally handicapped in England and Wales in each local authority; and in which authorities the places available are lower than indicated in his Department's guidelines.

The number of places available on 31st March 1976 in adult training centres for the mentally handicapped and severely mentally handicapped in each local authority in England and Wales was as in the table below. The planning targets for adult training centre places set out in the White Paper "Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped" were estimated to take about 20 years to achieve nationally. It was recognised that some authorities had greater gaps in services to make up than others depending on the stage of development of their services at the time. It was, therefore, left to each authority to work out its own programme and no timetable was set by which individual progress could be judged year by year.

ENGLAND
NORTHERN REGION:
NON-METROPOLITAN COUNTIES
Cleveland	…	…	…	…	436
Cumbria	…	…	…	…	368
Durham	…	…	…	…	486
Northumberland	…	…	…	…	266

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what information he has on the percentage of smokers amongst general medical practitioners, hospital doctors, school teachers, pharmacists and general dental practitioners, midwives and health visitors and hospital nurses; and if he will publish this information indicating how these percentages compare with smoking habits in the rest of the population.

A survey of the smoking habits and attitudes of these groups of professional people has been completed and the results will be published in about three or four month's time. They will include a comparison with the general population.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will update the table given in reply to the hon. Member for Bromsgrove and Red-ditch (Mr. Miller) which was published in the Official Report on 17th March 1976, Vol. 907, column 544.

The final figures for 1976 are not yet available, but I will publish the infomation in the Official Report as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the birth rate fall in figures and percentages from 1970 to date and the birth rate projections in figures and percentages for 1977 to 1981. with provisional data for 1981 to 1991, for (a) England and Wales, (b) the South-East Region of England as a whole, (c) the South-East of England minus the Greater London region, (d) the area covered by the Inner London Education Authority, (e) the London borough of Bromley, (f) the London borough of Bexley, (g) the borough of Croydon, (h) the county of Kent, (i) South-East Essex, Southend and (j) East Sussex.

I will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the current staffing ratio of (a) nurses and (b) attendants, to elderly persons in local authority Part III accommodation; and how this compares with the three previous years.

The professional qualifications of staff employed by local authorities in their old people's homes are not recorded centrally. In 1975 there was one member of staff with a caring function per 3·17 residents. In 1974, 1973 and 1972 the equivalent ratios were 3·35, 3·51 and 3·71 respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what action has been taken on recommendations 171, 175 and 177 of the Finer Report on one-parent families.

Recommendation 171 was that the question of the Supplementary Benefit Commission's meeting mortgage capital repayments should be explored. The Finer Committee did not itself form a view about this. The question has been considered, but it is unlikely to rank high in any list of priorities for additional public expenditure on social security benefits. The need to ensure adequate provision of furniture, with which recommendations 175 and 177 are concerned, is referred to in a draft circular to local authorities on housing for one-parent families on which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment is seeking the views of the local authority associations.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list in the Official Report the number of claimants who had their supplementary benefit (a) reduced or (b) withdrawn, on the grounds that they had left, lost or refused work without good cause for each year since 1974.

Following is the available information:

SUPPLEMENTARY ALLOWANCE REDUCED
Year				Number of Claimants Affected
1974	…	…	…	22,000
1975	…	…	…	26,000

Note: These figures are obtained from the Annual Special Enquiry and relate to one particular day in each year.

SUPPLEMENTARY ALLOWANCE REFUSED OR WITHDRAWN
Year				Number of Claimants Affected
1974	…	…	…	5,494
1975	…	…	…	4,262
1976	…	…	…	2,352

Note: These figures include a small number of cases where supplementary allowances were withdrawn for other reasons.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proportion of the estimated adult population were in receipt of supplementary benefit in the month of December 1976 in the designated area of Telford New Town and in the Metropolitan borough of Birmingham, respectively.

I regret the information is not available. It is estimated that in May 1975, to which the latest population figures refer, about 6½ per cent. of the total population of Birmingham were receiving supplementary benefits, but the number of their dependants is not available. A corresponding estimate for Telford New Town is not possible as the area administered by the Telford office extends well outside the town.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will place in the Library a copy of the report of the inter-departmental working group on the feasibility of an earnings-related system for collecting contributions from the self-employed.

I will let my hon. Friend have a reply shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proportions of the estimated number of families within the population in receipt of family income supplement in the month of December 1976 in the designated area of Telford New Town and in the Metropolitan borough of Birmingham, respectively.

I regret that the information requested is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps are taken prior to the closure of a hospital; whether a public meeting has to be held prior to the closure to ascertain the views of the people in the area; whether the health authority would issue its views in relation to the closure and possible replacement to the Press prior to a public meeting being held; and what are the funds granted and to whom, when a hospital closes.

Most enclosures and changes of use of hospital buildings will have been foreshadowed in the planning of future service developments on which wide consultations are held. When a permanent closure or major change of use is to proceed, the health authority is required to consult further with community health councils, local health authorities, staff and professional organisations and other interested parties. A consultation document giving full information is provided by the area health authority for these bodies and others interested and a Press statement is issued. Public meetings are not necessarily held but may be useful in some circumstances. When hospitals are closed health authorities reallocate any funds which may cease to be needed for services hitherto provided there.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the number of clerical grade officers and senior officers employed by the East Roding Area Health Committee in 1975 and 1976 to check the exemption from prescription charges; what was their estimated annual cost; what was the number of prescriptions checked during that year; what was the number of patients found not to have been entitled to exemption; and what was the total of the charge recovered from those patients.

At the Redbridge and Waltham Forest Family Practitioner Committee, whose arrangements for checking declarations of exemption from prescription charges covered the East Roding Health District, the total staff time in higher clerical and clerical grades spent on these checks amounts to the whole-time equivalent of less than half an officer. Because this work is widely

	Unemployed persons* receiving supplementary benefit only as a percentage of:
Reason for non-receipt of unemployment benefit	All such persons	All registered unemployed
Contribution deficiency	44·4	15·3
Benefit exhausted	42·9	14·7
Voluntary unemployment and industrial misconduct	4·4	1·5
Title not yet determined	4·2	1·4
Other reasons	4·2	1·4
* This information relates only to those receiving supplementary benefit from the Department of Employment unemployment benefit offices. Information is not available on the small proportion of persons receiving their supplementary benefit direct from local social security offices.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what, on current projections, will be the population of the United Kingdom in the year 2000.

The latest projection of the United Kingdom's population in the year 2000 is 58·3 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take over centrally the funding of food inspection at ports, at present carried out at the expense of the ratepayers.

The Government will be looking at this issue during their consideration of the Report of the Layfield Committee on Local Government Finance.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the main reasons for the unemployed not receiving unemployment benefit; and if he will indicate the relative importance of these factors in making unemployed persons dependent on supplementary benefit.

I welcome the opportunity of clarifying the figures I gave in reply to a supplementary question from the hon. Member for Burton (Mr. Lawrence) on 11th January [Vol. 923, c. 1241–3]. In May 1976 the relevant information was as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what action has been taken on recommendation 54 and 59 to 63 of the Finer Report on one-parent families.

On recommendation 54, a Working Party set up by the Scottish Courts Administration is making a full review of Scottish civil judicial statistics.On recommendations 59 and 61, the hon. Member will be aware from the replies given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services on 2nd December 1976 and by my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General on 2nd November 1976 that the Government have been unable to accept the Committee's recommendations on guaranteed maintenance allowances and the introduction of family courts. Similar considerations apply in Scotland.On recommendation 60, the Divorce (Scotland) Act 1976 established irretrievable breakdown of marriage as the sole ground of divorce and applied the same criterion for actions of separation.On recommendation 62, a new simplified procedure to deal with certain actions of interim ailment between spouses was introduced on 1st September 1976. The considerations underlying recommendation 63 will continue to be borne in mind.—[Vol 921, c.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has received a request from Lothian Regional Council for approval to purchase the Donaldson Institute's Junior School at Henderson Row, Edinburgh; and if so what decision he has reached on this matter.

Yes; the request was received last week and is under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what conservation measures he is taking to control the losses of immature white fish stocks in the North Sea taken in industrial fisheries.

The Government are very much concerned about the great waste of immature white fish stocks in the North Sea—particularly haddock and whiting—which are taken as by-catches during the course of industrial fishing for species such as Norway pout. We have consistently pressed, both in the international fisheries commissions and in the context of discussions in Brussels on conservation measures, that strict control of indiscriminate industrial fishing is essential for the protection of the white fish stocks which are already heavily taxed.The Government are, therefore, today laying before Parliament an order, to come into operation on 21st February, which will ban fishing for Norway pout in a wide area of the North Sea off the north and east coasts of Scotland between 1st August and 31st March each year. This is an urgent and essential conservation measure for the rebuilding of the white fish stocks and has the support of our fishing industry. A recommendation for the banning of fishing for Norway pout in this area has already been made by the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission. The Government have, however, made clear their hope that this measure can be adopted on a Community basis, even although agreement on this point has not so far been reached.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what evidence he has that the price of seed potato is causing more potato producers to use once-grown seed.

Most producers of ware potatoes use a proportion of once-grown seed. I have no evidence that more producers intend to do so this season. There has, indeed, been a lively demand for certified seed of varieties which showed good resistance to drought and leaf roll last season.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has completed his talks on the future financing of the British Agricultural Export Council; and if he will make a statement.

I have discussed this with leaders of the farming industry and the manufacturing interests primarily concerned, the British Overseas Trade Board and the British Agricultural Export Council. When I met them on 21st January I emphasised the widespread support for the view of the Advisory Council for Agriculture and Horticulture that there was scope to improve exports in the agricultural field and for the basic recommendation that there should be a stronger central body to promote agricultural exports based on the BAEC and financed by the industry. I recognised the general view against funds being provided by means of a levy, and I invited the industry representatives to join together in making a voluntary contribution towards the new body on a basis which would provide an adequate and assured level of support for an initial period of three years. It was indicated that, if sufficient funds were available from the industries to put the new body on a sound footing, these could be supplemented by launching aid from the Government.The industry representatives gave me their reactions at a second meeting today. Some organisations offered limited contributions subject to conditions, but the overall view was against proceeding with the proposed expansion on the grounds that the industries would not derive sufficient benefit from the enlarged body to justify contributions on the scale needed. I find this decision disappointing, and it remains vital that our exports of agricultural goods and ancillary products continue to expand. The industries concerned have an excellent record of exports of machinery, breeding livestock, semen, chemicals and fertilisers and other agricultural goods and requisites. I expect to see this maintained, and I hope that individual companies will be prepared to work together to develop joint ventures. The Government, including my Department, will continue to play their part in helping exporters through the whole range of commercial and diplomatic facilities and services which it provides.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what is the self-financing ratio of British Railways;(2) what have been the total capital write-offs sustained by British Railways since nationalisation; and what is the negative yield on net assets.

If statutory grants are viewed as revenue earned, and their contribution to depreciation is included, the board's self-financing ratio for investment on capital account in 1975 was just under half. If they are not so viewed, then the ratio is effectively nil. Similarly, estimates of return on net assets depend upon the conventions adopted in respect of grants to the board. For information about reductions on capital liabilities I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr. Fry) on 15th December 1976.—[Vol. 922, c. 740–1.]

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the amount of subsidy which has been paid by the State to British Railways in each of the past five years and the total of local authority grants provided to the British Railways Board for operating uneconomic services which have to be maintained for social purposes.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Warwick and Leamington (Mr. Smith) on 10th January 1977.—[Vol. 923, c. 400–6.]

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if, following his decision to set up a Sheffield and Rotherham Transport and Land Use Study, and in the light of the conflict of interest between the South Yorkshire County Council and the Sheffield District Council both as regards transportation and strategic responsibilities, he will hold an independent inquiry to give more detailed attention to the differing interests of motorists, public transport, small traders and shops in the Banner Cross area.

As I understand the position, the Banner Cross traffic management proposals do not require my right hon. Friend's consent, and he is not, therefore, empowered to order an inquiry.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether any investigation by his Department has shown that the model 70 invalid tricycle is unroadworthy.

The model 70 tricycle meets all the current relevant requirements of the Motor Vehicle (Construction and Use) Regulations 1973, as amended. My hon. Friend may like to know that we shall shortly be consulting interested organisations on proposals to include it in the present MOT testing scheme. This will help to ensure adequate maintenance while the vehicle continues in use.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have had to wait for over three months for the issue of driving licences from Swansea; and what is now the present waiting time for the issue of a new licence.

Excluding 418 people who have declared medical conditions calling for investigation, which inevitably delays licence issue, currently 180 people have been awaiting a driving licence for over three months—the vast majority of whom the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Centre has so far failed to satisfy through no fault of its own. During the week ending 4th February, 93 per cent. of driving licences were issued within 10 working days.

asked the Attorney-General whether recommendations 140 and 141 of the Finer Report on one-parent families have been brought to the attention of those concerned; and, if so, what action has been taken on them.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment is consulting local authority associations about the terms of a circular of guidance on housing for one-parent families which, amongst other things, will call attention to the need to have regard to recommendation 140 in local authority arrangements for providing advice and assisting others who provide advice.My noble Friend the Lord Chancellor has drawn recommendation 141 to the attention of the Law Society and the Senate of the Inns of Court and the Bar, which are the bodies responsible for the training of lawyers; the action to be taken on this recommendation is a matter for those bodies.

asked the Attorney-General what action has been taken on recommendations 134 to 139 of the Finer Report on one-parent families and whether, in particular, recommendation 137 has been overtaken by the decision of the Court of Appeal in Allen v. Allen [1974] 1W.L.R. 1171.

Recommendations 134 and 135 have been implemented in Sections 3 and 1 respectively of the Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1976, which my noble Friend the Lord Chancellor hopes to bring into operation in May when associated rules of court have been made.Recommendations 136 to 139 have been brought to the attention of the Law Commission, which has been considering co-ownership of the matrimonial home as part of its Second Programme on Law Reform. My noble Friend expects to receive its report during this year. These recommendations will also be taken into account in the review of the Rent Acts, which was announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 31st January.As the hon. Member suggests, the case of Allen v. Allen indicates that the courts already have power under Section 24(1)(

asked the Prime Minister when he intends to reply to the letter dated 7th January from the Scottish Police Federation about police pay; and if he will make a statement.

An interim reply was sent on my behalf on 17th January, and I hope that it will soon be possible for a full reply to be sent.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what has been the increase in expenditure on education in real terms over the past six years.

The year-by-year progression of expenditure at 1976 Survey Prices on education and libraries, science and arts in Great Britain is set out in the recent White Paper on the Government's Expenditure Plans (Cmnd. 6721—Part I). More detailed information will be contained in the second part of this White Paper to be published shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of pupils at school, eligible to be entered for GCE or CSE examinations, and what proportion of those entered for those examinations attained two GCE A-levels or above, five or more GCE O-levels, and one or more GCE O-level or CSE grade five passes, within

FIGURES RELATING TO GCE AND CSE ACHIEVEMENTS BY SCHOOL LEAVERS FROM THE WEST MIDLANDS AND ENGLAND AND WALES FOR 1974–75 (the latest year available) ARE AS FOLLOWS:
		West Midlands	England and Wales
Percentage of school leavers with:
Two or more A-level passes	…	11·2	12·2
No A-level passes:
Five or more higher grade O-level results*	…	8·0	8·5
1–4 higher grade O-level results*	…	26·0	25·5
1 or more other graded results (GCE and CSE) †	…	30·6	31·1
TOTAL NUMBER OF SCHOOL LEAVERS	…	74,600	691,790
* GCE O-level grades A-C, CSE grade 1.
† GCE O-level grades D and E, CSE grades 2–5.

asked the Prime Minister how many copies of Labour Weekly are purchased by his Department to keep senior civil servants informed of current Labour Party policy and thinking.

Two.

asked the Prime Minister what recent representations he has received from the Social Democratic Alliance about Communist infiltration into official bodies.

I received a letter from the Social Democratic Alliance on 2nd February.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish, on the same basis as table 6 et seq, of Command Paper No. 6721-I, an analysis of public expenditure between 1971–72 and 1978–79

Information is not collected in the form requested, but my Department does collect information of examination achievements from a one in 10 sample of schoolchildren at the point where they leave school. The sample is designed to produce national and regional figures only; in general due to sampling error figures for individual counties or smaller areas are unreliable.broken down by spending authority and economic category.

In view of the number of figures to be compiled, I will write to the hon. Member in due course.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will introduce legislation to seek to defer the liability of children under 18 years of age to pay capital transfer tax on money inherited from a deceased person until the child reaches 18 years of age.

No. I should, however, be happy to look at any specific case the hon. Member has in mind if he would send me details of it.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, assuming no increase in their levels of indebtedness, what will be the annual interest repayment of the nationalised industries for the years 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, and 1980–81.

Assuming no further borrowing, the interest payments due to be made by the nationalised industries are estimated as £1,400 million in 1977–78, £1,350 million in 1978–79, £1,250 million in 1979–80 and £1,100 million in 1980–81.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a table for 1960, 1970 and the latest year for which the figures are available, showing total expenditure on social security, at current prices, at constant prices, and as a percentage of GNP.

Figures for the financial years are as follows:

PUBLIC EXPENDITURE ON SOCIAL SECURITY IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
	1960–61	1970–71	1975–76
£ million at current prices	1,499	3,927	9,755
£ million at 1976 Survey prices	4,940	8,570	11,210
Per cent of GNP (measured at market prices)	5·7	7·4	8·9

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider a subsidised property bond which could be issued to first-time home purchasers as a once-for-all subsidy to encourage home ownership.

The position of first-time purchasers is being considered within the review of housing policy being conducted by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider the total abolition of local rates and rating departments and consider replacing them with an additional tax on PAYE which is then returned to the local authorities.

The Layfield Report on Local Government Finance discusses local rates and other possible sources of income for local authorities. It concludes that there is a good case for a local tax on property and that rates should continue to make a significant contribution to the financing of local authorities. The Government are considering the report in the light of comments received and will announce their conclusions as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much has been advanced by Finance for Industry since November 1974; which firms received moneys advanced at commercial rates of interest; what were the maturity dates on the loans advanced to these firms; and what in each case was the size of the loans.

FFI is a private sector body for which there is no ministerial responsibility. However, I understand that the company would he prepared to give the hon. Member as much of the information as is possible without breaching commercial confidentiality.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer at what gross earnings a married man, with three children and no further allowances, where he is the sole earner reaches a marginal rate of 50 per cent. income tax, and assuming that he is on PAYE, at what point he reaches the 50 per cent. marginal rate on all his withholding deductions.