asked the Minister for the Civil Service whether, in view of the fact that some of the most junior of employees in Government establishments where there is no possibility of their being in any way connected with State security or having access to secret information have to sign the Official Secrets Act, he will arrange for all Members of Parliament, including Ministers, to sign this declaration in future.

There are no plans at present to extend the use of Official Secrets Act declaration forms. The use made in the Civil Service of these forms is subject to central rules and Departments have discretion as to whether or not particular junior employees should be asked to sign a declaration.Appropriate arrangements already exist for hon. Members who are likely to have access to official information not publicly available, namely Ministers and members of Select Committees. A simplied form of declaration is signed by all Ministers on first appointment, whilst as members of Select Committees, hon. Members receive suitable guidance on these matters from Clerks of Committees.

asked the Lord President of the Council how many of the 600 copies of the dossier "The Government Record" have been distributed; how many have gone to Labour, Conservative, Liberal, Scottish Nationalist, Welsh Nationalist and Ulster Unionist Members of Parliament, respectively; whether supplies have been limited to one copy per Member; whether copies have been supplied to any non-parliamentary body, and, if so, to which; and what charge has been made to the recipients.

About 530 copies of "The Government Record" have so far been distributed. The usual procedure was followed of offering it to Labour, Conservative, Liberal, Scottish Nationalist, Welsh Nationalist and Ulster Unionist Members of Parliament with an offer to supply further copies on request. A number of peers have also been given copies.Copies were also supplied to the Labour Party, the Conservative and Unionist Party Research Department and the Trades Union Congress.Supplies have normally been limited to one copy a Member but where there were requests for further copies, these have been met. No charge has been made for any of the copies.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report a list of the United Kingdom representatives at the North Atlantic Assembly.

The following represent the United Kingdom at the North Atlantic Assembly:

From the Government: my right hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Sir G. de Freitas); my hon. Friends the Members for Belper (Mr. MacFarquhar), Woolwich East (Mr. Cartwright), Hornchurch (Mr. Williams), Ilkeston (Mr. Fletcher), Huddersfield, West (Mr. Lomas) and my noble Friends, Baroness Bacon and Lord Wynne-Jones: from the Conservative Party: the hon. Members for Haltemprice (Mr. Wall), Beckenham (Mr. Goodhart), St. Albans (Mr. Goodhew), Weston-super-Mare (Mr. Wiggin), Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. McCrindle) and the hon. and gallant Members for Eye (Sir H. Harrison) and Winchester (Rear-Admiral Morgan-Giles); Lord Lyell: from the Liberal Party: the hon. and learned Member for Montgomery (Mr. Hooson) and Viscount Simon.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there were during the most recent period for which figures are available in the United Kingdom of dog owners who allowed their dogs to foul the pavement or other prohibited area.

The information requested is not available. Data collected centrally relates to all offences in relation to dogs under local Acts and byelaws; in 1976, there were 220 such prosecutions in England and Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the new local government boundaries for Birmingham will be announced.

The Local Government Boundary Commission for England has suspended work on all current reviews of electoral arrangements, including the review of Birmingham, pending the outcome of its appeal against the judgment delivered in the High Court on 25th January 1978 in a case brought by the London borough of Enfield. It is not possible to say when the Commission will submit final proposals for new electoral arrangements for Birmingham. I understand that the Commission is under a statutory duty to review the administrative boundaries of the metropolitan districts during the period 1984–89.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedure applies to those under the age of criminal responsibility who are guilty of murder; and if he will review these procedures with a view to safeguarding members of the public.

A child under the age of criminal responsibility cannot be guilty of murder. Any child may be brought before a juvenile court in care proceedings under Section 1 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1969 if he is considered to be neglected, in moral danger or beyond the control of his parents, and if he is considered in need of care or control which he is unlikely to receive unless the court makes an order in respect of him: responsibility for these provisions rests primarily with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision of secure accommodation for young persons is being made in Berkshire.

I understand from my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Social Services, that four secure places are being provided in a mixed observation and assessment centre. There are no prison department establishments for young offenders in the county.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will seek an assurance from the board of British Leyland that it will not repeat the policy of importing into the United Kingdom Minis or other cars manufactured abroad in order to satisfy domestic demand.

This is a matter for the British Leyland board.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether pay policy conditions to offers of financial assistance to industry under the Industry Act 1972 follow a set form or are negotiable by each applicant.

I shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether, in view of the oral statements made to him by the hon. Member for Newham, North-West giving details of gross overcharging by a shop near the House of Commons for transistor batteries, he will reconsider his decision to take no action on the written evidence now submitted to him by the hon. Member.

On manufacturers' prices, the Secretary of State took action on 20th March in the form of an order implementing the Price Commission's recommendations and restricting battery price increases proposed by the Ever Ready Company. On the prices charged by the particular retailer complained of by my hon. Friend, the action taken was set out in the letters to him of 23rd March and 25th April from the chairman of the Price Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection when he expects the report of the Monopolies Commission on the Wholesale Supply of National Newspapers and Periodicals in England and Wales—Refusal to Supply and Participating in Retailing—to be published.

My right hon. Friend expects to publish the report very shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many deaths are attributed to the effects of smoking in the United Kingdom on an annual basis.

The White Paper "Prevention and Health" (Cmnd. 7047) published on 15th December 1977, gave an estimated total of the order of 50,000 such deaths per year—paragraph 49.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what progress has been made in the diagnosis and treatment of cystic fibrosis since 1975; and if he will list the universities and hospitals at which research projects into cystic fibrosis are currently being carried out.

There have been no major research findings in this country since 1975. Slow but steady progress in the diagnosis and management of cystic fibrosis has been maintained. The hon. Member may be interested to refer to the report of the Committee for a Study for Evaluation of Testing for Cystic Fibrosis, published in the American periodical, "The Journal of Pediatrics" in April 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will investigate the unintended difficulty caused by Regulation 7(1)(h) of the Social Security (Unemployment, Sickness and Invalidity Benefit) Regulations 1975 for those on jury service and at council meetings for which an attendance allowance is payable.

I am not aware that Regulation 7(1)(h), under which claimants may be disqualified for receiving unemployment benefit if their earnings exceed 75p a day, has caused jurors and councillors any unintended difficulties. The reason why jurors are unable to receive unemployment benefit is that they are not regarded as being available for employment while on jury service. As to councillors, the independent statutory authorities regard local authority attendance allowances as "earnings" and Regulation 7(1)(h) therefore applies to a councillor in the same way as to any other claimant with a subsidiary occupation.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he has taken to improve the safety of home confinements in the light of the fact that the stillbirth rate for births at home was improving until 1970 and since 1970 it has risen.

If a woman chooses to be delivered at home, despite the advice against it, health authorities should ensure that the services necessary to make home confinements as safe as possible are provided. I shall shortly be consulting authorities and the professional bodies most closely concerned to see how this may best be achieved.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what research he is sponsoring into the development of portable renal dialysis units which would be cheaper to produce and run than those currently in use; and if he will make a study of the claims of the Lucas Aerospace workers that such units are a practical possibility, and would lead to savings both in production and running costs.

None, but a portable renal dialysis unit is undergoing clinical trials. It would be inappropriate to compare the costs of a portable machine designed for short-term use with conventional units designed for long-term use. I have no information about proposals in this field by Lucas Aerospace and any units produced by it would be in competition with other units available.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what action he intends to take to prevent deliberate overspending by area health authorities whose revenue allocation has been reduced as a result of the implementation of the Resource Allocation Working Party's report.

Under the cash limit allocation system regional health authorities make cash limited allocations to area health authorities. Every health authority is required to keep its outgoings in the year within its approved cash limit. An area health authority may, however, with the agreement of the regional health authority, incur an overspending but the regional health authority is then required to recover it through a corresponding reduction of the area's cash limit for the ensuing year.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the adequacy of existing regulations providing for the inspection and supervision of premises where elderly persons are accommodated; and if he will seek to amend the regulations so that inspection may be made and supervision maintained even if less than four retirement pensioners are resident.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will review forthwith the working of Section 37 of the National Assistance Act 1948 to ensure that however small the number of old people paying guests, all host establishments be registered and subject to inspection instead of the four-persons-and-above rule which is current practice.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 15th May 1978; Vol. 950, c. 39–40], gave the following information:The National Assistance Act 1948 provides, in Sections 37 and 39, for the registration of all persons carrying on disabled persons' or old persons' homes, and provides authorised persons with powers of entry to, and inspection of, any premises so used, or believed to be so used. No regulations made under the Act prescribe that these provisions do not apply where less than four retirement pensioners are resident, though a circular issued in 1949 advised that they would not apply to

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if, pursuant to his reply of 10th May to the right hon. Member for Belfast, East (Mr. Craig) concerning the Government's purchase of shares of Short Bros. Ltd., he will describe how this purchase is to be arranged and financed without statutory powers.

As indicated in my reply of 10th May—[Vol. 949, c. 523]—the purchase is to be arranged using extra statutory procedures. Financial provision will be made in Estimates to be placed before Parliament this autumn in the context of the Northern Ireland Appropriation (No. 3) Order.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what are the total numbers of disabled people who took advantage of the orange badge parking scheme in each of the last three years.

The latest available figure is for June 1976, when 218,247 badges had been issued in Great Britain.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport, following the recent accident in Wakefield when five policemen were killed owing to failure of the brakes on the bus in which they were travelling, if he will give further consideration to the need to introduce legislation to make the electro-magnetic brake retarder a compulsory piece of equipment in buses; and if he will make a statement.

We are still awaiting a full report on this accident, but preliminary indications are that it was due, at least in part, to a braking deficiency. The basic need, for all such vehicles, is to ensure that satisfactory standards of braking are maintained throughout their life. In some cases electro-magnetic retarders may well be an effective supplementary device to improve braking performance, but they are not essential in all cases to achieving high standards, and they are no substitute for an efficient conventional system of friction braking. We do not therefore propose to make their use compulsory.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that the amber and red reflective plates which should be displayed on lorry vehicles are in position on lorries delivering loads from the Continent; and if he will introduce examinations of such vehicles at ports of entry.

Vehicles moving in international traffic must comply with certain agreed requirements relating to lighting equipment and reflectors. But rear markings on heavy goods vehicles are not part of these requirements, and there is in fact no legal obligation for such markings to be displayed on vehicles registered abroad and brought only temporarily into this country. We already operate a system of spot checks at ports of entry where vehicles are examined for compliance with legal requirements on weight and mechanical condition.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many lane-miles of motorway underwent repair in 1976 and 1977; what was the expenditure on this work; and, of these totals, how many miles were slow lane, and what was the expenditure on this work.

The lengths of motorway undergoing major repair in financial years 1976–77 and 1977–78 were as follows:

	1976–77	1977–78
Total lane miles	298	231
Lane miles of slow lane	141	107

Costs at then current prices:

• 1976–77 £7·10 million
• 1977–78 £8·4 million

Expenditure includes some work on the hardshoulder where this was a necessary part of the carriageway works. It is not possible to identify expenditure on the slow lane separately.Short lengths of emergency repair are not included.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many people were killed and how many seriously injured in accodents in which goods vehicles of 1½ to 3 tons, 3 to 4½ tons, 4½ to 6 tons, 6 to 8 tons, 8 to 10 tons, and over 10 tons were involved in the years 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1977.

I regret that this information is not currently available. However, a new road accident reporting form is gradually being introduced by police forces throughout Great Britain. The new form will allow the extraction of numbers of casualties in accidents involving goods vehicles of certain sizes, based on maximum permissible gross weight.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the average period which elapses between application to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Centre for a driving licence and its receipt.

Almost all of these transactions are completed within about three weeks, including time in the post.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what provisions there are for the compensation of householders and others adversely affected by the carriage by road of bulk materials for the construction of a project such as the A3 Burpham-Ladywood diversion (Guildford bypass); and if he will take the likelihood of such claims from residents and business interests in the Woking area into account when he considers any tenders for work in this project which involve use of the British Railways goods yard at Woking.

Generally, a householder has no right to compensation for any adverse effects caused by a change in the number or type of vehicles using an existing highway. It will not therefore be necessary to take the possibility of such claims into account.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will refer the impending closure of the Hanford Street plant at Deltattow Limited to the Birmingham Inner City Partnership Committee.

It is not my present intention to raise this particular closure on the partnership committee.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps were taken by his Department to retain the Caprice Compacts factory at Caernarvon and maintain the employment by this company; and what meetings officers of his Department have had with directors of the company to this end.

On 31st January my Department was notified of the impending closure of the company. The director was advised immediately about the temporary employment subsidy, which is designed to avert redundancy, but stated that the scheme would not help and closure was inevitable. The jobcentre manager is now in touch with the company to assist the redundant workers.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what further steps he intends to take to reduce unemployment.

The special employment and training measures which my right hon. Friend announced on 15th March are still developing. In particular, the youth opportunities programme and the special temporary employment scheme came into operation on 1st April. From the same date the job release scheme was extended to cover the whole country, and from 1st July the allowance for a married person with a dependent spouse—earning £8·50 a week or less—will be increased to £35 tax free. The short-time working scheme for the textiles, clothing and footwear industries came into operation on 15th May, and we are also engaged in consultations on a general scheme of compensation for short-time working as a means of averting redundancies.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the hourly rate of pay regarded as the minimum wage by the Low Pay Unit.

I shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) by how much average industrial earnings have risen since 1st April 1977; and what this represents as an annual rate;(2) what has been the percentage increase in average industrial earnings for each month since 1st August 1977 expressed at an annual rate.

Following are the percentage increases since the same month a year earlier in the new series index of average earnings for all manufacturing industries for each month from July 1977 to March 1978—the latest date for which figures are available:

1977
July	8·9
August	8·1
September	8·8
October	9·4
November	11·3
December	11·2
1978
January	11·3
February	12·0
March	11·7

The figures relate to all employees, including both males and females, those in full-time and part-time jobs and those in manual and non-manual occupations. Information on the average earnings in April 1978 of particular specific groups of employees will become available when the results of the new earnings survey are published in October.

asked the Secretary of State for Emplyoyment how many people are in jobs the existence of which is a result of Government financial support designed directly to reduce unemployment.

The latest available figures show that over 260,000 people currently have jobs being supported by the special employment measures of my Department and the Manpower Services Commission; the special training and work experience measures were assisting a further 70,000 people at 31st March 1978.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment why the Health and Safety Executive has not issued the report of a pilot study on health and safety in the universities contrary to assurances given that it would be circulated in the early part of the year; and when the Health and Safety Commission will be having discussions with the Association of University Teachers on the report.

I shall reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment in the light of the evidence in the book entitled "Your Disobedient Servant" by a former senior civil servant, Mr. Leslie Chapman, of maladministration, neglect and deliberately wrongdoing by the Civil Service, what action he has taken or intends to take to deal with these matters; and if he will make a statement.

I do not accept that the Question fairly reflects the situation.Mr. Chapman left the Civil Service on 31st December 1973. His book is written on the basis of his personal appreciation of events which took place some years ago. The Property Services Agency itself was only established in 1972, and since then there have been significant developments in its management. Its operations are kept under constant scrutiny, and as part of this process, a management review is at present examining the Agency.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he proposes to make public his decision on the planning application for the development and reconstuction of Liverpool Street Station and Broad Street Station.

I am considering the inspector's report following the public local inquiry into applications by British Rail for planning permission and listed building consent for the redevelopment of these two stations. These are major and complex proposals which need time to be considered fully, but a decision will be announced as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the cost of running the Countryside Commission in 1976 and 1977.

£3,359,798 (1976–77) and £4,204,000 (1977–78). Salaries and administrative expenses accounted for £649,891 in 1976–77 and £793,000 in 1977–78. The remainder was direct Commission expenditure on countryside work. The Commission also makes use of allied services provided by the Property Services Agency, Her Majesty's Stationery Office and the Central Office of Information.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he expects to be able to publish the Government's response to the final report of the Northern Regional Strategy Team.

My right hon. Friend expects to publish this response in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has for safeguarding the local population in the event of a major leakage of radioactive material from one of Great Britain's nuclear installations.

I have been asked to reply.The operators of major nuclear installations have emergency plans for dealing with any accident or emergency at the installation. These include provision for the protection of the nearby population in the event of a serious incident, including evacuation if necessary.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why draughtsmen have no nationally agreed allowance for tools and industrial clothing between their union and the Board of Inland Revenue, despite the fact that other workers such as carpenters and joiners have a national agreement for a £58 a year tax allowance and skilled engineers for £49 a year; and if he will end this distinction in treatment.

The conditions of service of draughtsmen, unlike many categories of workers, vary so widely that the Revenue has not found it possible to agree a national flat rate allowance for their expenses. But they are, of course, entitled to relief on an individual basis.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what latest estimate he has made of the single rate of income tax which would bring in to the Treasury the same income as the present rates of income tax if all persons in regular employment were to pay one rate of income tax on all wages, with no allowance whatsoever.

I regret that information on which to give an estimate relating to employment income is not available. However, assuming that the uniform rate was applied to the total income of persons within the purview of the Inland Revenue, as defined on page 41 of Inland Revenue Statistics 1977, the rate required to give approximately the same yield of tax at 1978–79 income levels would be about 20¼ per cent.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has of the number of people (a) in Brecon and Radnor, (b) in Wales and (c) in the United Kingdom, who will benefit from the increase in the level at which the higher rate of income tax is paid as proposed in the amendment to the Finance Bill.

If the amendments passed in Committee on 10th May were enacted so that all higher rate thresholds were increased by £1,000, 940,000 taxpayers would benefit, counting married couples as one, in the United Kingdom. The most recent date for which information is available on higher rate taxpayers resident in Wales in 1975–76, when they were about 3 per cent. of all higher rate taxpayers. I regret that separate figures for Brecon and Radnor are not available.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much income tax relief was allowed in the Budget to a married couple with two children if their gross income is £2,500, £3,000, £4,000, £5,000, £7,500, £10,000, £20,000 or £50,000, respectively; and what would be

		Reduction in tax compared with 1977–78
Annual Earnings	(i) under Budget proposals	(ii) if in addition to (i) reduction in basic rate to 33% were enacted	(iii) if in addition to (i) raising of all higher rate thresholds by £1,000 were enacted
£	£	£	£
2,500	38	39	38
3,000	38	43	38
4,000	38	53	38
5,000	38	63	38
7,500	38	88	38
10,000	148	210	221
20,000	463	525	861
50,000	616	679	1,106

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in the light of the fact that a British Member of Parliament pays tax on his salary and also pays income tax on the notional benefit obtained in assistance towards his travel costs to and from Westminster and his home, and his constituency and home, whether the Members of the European Assembly who receive additional tax-free salaries plus free travel are taxed on the same basis on travel payments as Members of the British Parliament.

Members of the European Parliament do not at present receive salaries. The expenses payments which they receive, like payments made and warrants issued to hon. Members, are taxable subject to a deduction for expenses wholly necessarily and exclusively incurred in the performance of their duties.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the light of the fact that hon. Members are taxed on the notional benefit that they receive on allowances towards the cost of their travel to and from their homes, constituency and Parliament, whether such tax arrangements apply in all respects to Ministers and the permanent civil servants so far as

The figures are as follows assuming that the children are not aged over 11:their travel facilities towards their homes, offices in Whitehall and to and from Parliament are concerned.

The tax treatment of the expenses of travel between home and work is exactly the same for Ministers and permanent civil servants as it is for MPs and any other employee or office holder.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer by how much, in terms of the present value of money, the net take home pay, after deducation of tax and national insurance contributions, of a married man with two children under 11 years of age, in receipt of average industrial earnings, has increased (a) since he took office in March 1974 and (b) since the General Election of October 1974, to the latest date for which figures are available.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost in a full year of reducing the rate of capital gains tax to 25 per cent. and lowering the reduced rate introduced in Section 35(2) of the Finance Bill to 12½ per cent.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he intends to change his proposals for the next issue of national savings certificates.

In view of the increase in interest rates generally which has taken place in recent weeks I have decided to defer the introduction of the new 17th Issue of national savings certificates. The 14th Issue will continue on sale for the time being and the limit on holdings will be raised from 1st July to £3,000. The necessary order to give effect to the change in limit will be laid before the House shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will arrange for an exhibition of Liverpool workers' art to be held in the Upper Waiting Hall.

					(A)	(B)	(C)	(D)
Local education authority					Full-time pupils	Part-lime pupils	Total (full-time equivalent)	Column (C) as a percentage of half the age-group 1–4 (at 30 June 1976)
Barking	…	…	…	…	291	312	447	11·2
Barnet	…	…	…	…	235	1,129	799·5	10·6
Bexley	…	…	…	…	26	428	240	4·2
Brent	…	…	…	…	297	761	677·5	10·2
Bromley	…	…	…	…	22	85	64·5	0·9
Croydon	…	…	…	…	210	211	315·5	3·6
Ealing	…	…	…	…	114	1,305	766·5	9·6
Enfield	…	…	…	…	14	757	392·5	6·1
Haringey	…	…	…	…	280	1,373	966·5	15·8
Harrow	…	…	…	…	101	424	313	6·2
Havering	…	…	…	…	3	215	110·5	1·8
Hillingdon	…	…	…	…	26	1,314	683	11·7
Hounslow	…	…	…	…	45	1,077	583·5	11·7
Kingston-upon-Thames			…	…	89	805	491·5	15·4
Merton	…	…	…	…	53	1,064	585	15·0
Newham	…	…	…	…	83	2,235	1,200·5	17·8
Redbridge	…	…	…	…	14	442	235	4·4
Richmond-upon-Thames			…	…	70	251	195·5	5·4
Sutton	…	…	…	…	82	472	318	7·8
Waltham Forest		…	…	…	61	1,019	570·5	9·4
Inner London		…	…	…	4,612	12,317	10,770·5	19·4
Birmingham		…	…	…	3,246	2,351	4,421·5	15·9
Coventry	…	…	…	…	397	971	882·5	8·8
Dudley	…	…	…	…	437	1,234	1,054	12·1
Sandwell	…	…	…	…	341	1,771	1,226·5	14·3
Solihull	…	…	…	…	27	877	465·5	7·8
Walsall	…	…	…	…	151	2,657	1,479·5	17·7
Wolverhampton		…	…	…	—	2,571	1,285·5	16·4
Knowsley	…	…	…	…	1	622	312	5·2
Liverpool	…	…	…	…	765	3,114	2,322	17·9
St Helens	…	…	…	…	19	835	436·5	7·2

I understand that arrangements have been made with the authorities of the House for the exhibition to be held in the Upper Waiting Hall from 24th May to 26th May.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will list the total number of places available in nursery schools and classes for each education authority in England, giving in each case the percentage of the population under the age of five years this figure represents.

It is normally assumed that the number of children of nursery age can be estimated as about one-half of the 1 to 4-year age group. The following table shows for January 1977 the number of pupils in maintained nursery schools and in nursery classes of maintained primary schools in each local education authority in England and the full-time equivalent number of these expressed as a percentage of the number of children of nursery age:

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she has received a letter, dated 9th May, from Mr. J. W. Dawson of 6 Stanwell Avenue, Birkby, Huddersfield, concerning his son's future place of education; and what reply she has sent.

Mr. Dawson wrote to my right hon. Friend on 9th May regarding the choice of secondary school for his son. Inquiries are being made of Kirklees Education Authority and Mr. Dawson has been so informed.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what information about the United Kingdom Government's energy policy has recently been sent to the EEC Commission.

The Council of Energy Ministers decided at my suggestion in June 1975 to request the Commission to collect and study information on member States' national energy programmes and to report its findings to the Energy Council, as a contribution to the better understanding of the energy situation in the Community. The Commission's third review is currently under way and comprises a request to member States for answers to seven questionnaires about their national energy programmes. I have placed in the Libraries of both Houses a copy of the United Kingdom Governments' reply recently sent to the Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will set out in tabular form the various purposes in the energy sector for which money has been made available to the United Kingdom from EEC sources since the United Kingdom joined the European Community, and the actual sums of money in each case; and if he will provide the comparable figures for each of the other eight member States of the EEC.

Funds made available to the United Kingdom from the European Communities in the energy sector since January 1973 have been as follows:(i) The European Investment Bank (EIB): loans to 31st December 1977.

Sector	Loans to UK (meua)	Loans to all Member States (meua)
Power Stations	229·1	919·6
Gas pipelines	164·0	317·3
Development of oil & natural gas resources	134·0	285·1
Powerlines	48·2	67·7
Coal (loans for capital investment)	13·4	17·7
Other	—	57·9

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the current market price per ton of coal in each of the following countries; Great Britain, France, West Germany, Holland, Belgium, Poland and Spain.

Prices of coal delivered to consumers depend on a number of factors including the quality and type of coal required for particular purposes, the distance from the supplying coalfield and sometimes the quantity supplied. It is not therefore possible to give meaningful average market prices for

LIST PRICES* OF REPRESENTATIVE COALS AT THE PIT HEAD AT 1ST JANUARY 1978
£/tonne
	Germany			Belgium	France		United Kingdom
	Ruhr	Aachen	Saar		Nord	Lorraine	South Wales	Scotland	North Yorkshire
Anthracite (20–30mm)	57·25	—	—	55·28	46·04	—	39·00	—	—
Low volatile coal (20–30mm)	54·82	54·64	—	53·72	—	—	33·35	—	—
Coking coal	42·57	44·64	46·09	32·78	37·27	39·46	37·93	31·01	28·76
High volatile coal (30–50mm)	41·36	—	46·57	38·15	—	27·41	—	29·54	24·96
* Excluding VAT, where applicable.
Source: Commission of the European Communities, Carnet de prix charbon No. 22(1).

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the prices for coal entering the EEC market from the United States of America, South Africa, Australia, Poland and the United Kingdom, the quantities imported by each State for the most recent year for which figures are available, and other cross-frontier movements of indigenous coal output within the Community.

The average values per tonne—cif—of coal imported into the United Kingdom in 1977 from the United States of America, South Africa, Australia and Poland were £39·81, £39·06, £27·14 and £33·43 respectively. Corresponding

							Thousand tonnes
							Of which, from:—
						Total	USA	South Africa	Australia	Poland
Germany		…	…	…	…	5,633	1,523	748	637	1,948
France	…	…	…	…	…	15,048	1,837	4,754	2,229	5,026
Italy	…	…	…	…	…	9,850	3,800	1,000	1,200	3,000
Netherlands		…	…	…	…	3,835	1,494	161	923	754
Belgium	…	…	…	…	…	3,157	1,427	454	275	595
Luxembourg		…	…	…	…	142	0	135	—	—
United Kingdom			…	…	…	1,617	441	6	845	151
Ireland	…	…	…	…	…	630	—	6	—	624
Denmark		…	…	…	…	4,574	91	384	49	2,584
Source: Statistical Office of the European Communities, Coal, Monthly Bulletin 4–1978

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what recent discussions he has had with the EEC to increase coal exports from the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

At its next meeting on 30th May, the Energy Council will be discussing a proposal for a scheme of aid on intra-Community sales of power station coal. The scheme is aimed at assisting the Community coal industry to expand its sales to the power station market and, if it can be agreed, should be of great help to the NCB in meeting competition from third country importers.

asked the Secretary, of State for Energy why is it Her Majesty's Government's policy that the British National Oil Corporation is not liable to petroleum revenue tax but the private sector is subject to the tax.

The Petroleum and Submarine Pipe-lines Act provided for BNOC on this basis.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy why it is Her Majesty's Government's policy that the British National Oil Corporation pays rentals and royalties into the national oil account but alone has access to the national oil account into which all rentals and royalties are paid principally from the private sector.

The arrangements with regard to petroleum royalties and rentals arise directly from the provisions of the Petroleum and Submarine Pipe-lines Act 1975 which were thoroughly debated in the House.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy why it is Her Majesty's Government's policy that the British National Oil Corporation is permitted to negotiate

In awarding licences I intend to take account of factors which bear on the national interest. The performance of applicants in regard to voluntary participation negotiations constitutes one such factor. This was made clear in the arrangements published for the fifth round of licensing, and similarly features in the arrangements currently proposed for the sixth round.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy why it is Her Majesty's Government's policy that the British National Oil Corporation has an option to secure a stake in licences following the assignment of an interest by one of the co-licensees, although not invited to do so by any member of the group.

I refer the hon. Member to my statement of 5th April.—[Vol. 947, c. 439.] The policy gives BNOC the opportunity to negotiate the assignment of interests which the parties concerned freely and willingly wish to dispose of. Resultant agreements will continue to require my approval before they can become effective.