asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his Department's annual expenditure on research into the design of wheelchairs; what proportion the figure is of the total expenditure on the wheelchair service; what action he is taking to improve wheelchair design; and if he will make a statement.

Expenditure by my Department on research into and development of wheelchair design and associated accessories amounted to about £40,000 in 1977–78. This was about 0·7 per cent. of the annual cost of supply and repair of wheelchairs. Expenditure in the current year is expected to be about twice the amount spent last year.In addition, research and development is carried out independently at universities and other institutions, and by wheelchair manufacturers, often with a measure of help from my Department and particularly in relation to facilities and statistics. Moreover, wheelchairs can sometimes be improved without heavy spending on research and development: for example, adopting cold drawn seamless alloy steel tubing has resulted in a welcome reduction in the weight of wheelchairs supplied by my Department.Improvements to the design of wheelchairs and accessories supplied by my Department are always under consideration and are made as and when opportunities occur. Some recent examples include a foot steering mechanism for hemiplegics and a child's transit chair with rigid seat and backrest. Currently under development are growing chairs for children, hub braking, improved swinging footrests and an up-dated version of the much used transit model for adults.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he is now able to disclose the results of his consideration of the legal and medical issues involved in the use of menstrual regulation as a means of abortion.

Not yet, but I hope to be able to do so before long.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many consultant anaesthetists are employed by each health authority; and how many vacancies there are for such posts at the present time.

I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friends the Members for Coventry, North-East (Mr. Park) and West Bromwich, West (Miss Boothroyd) on Wednesday 22nd February 1978.—[Vol. 944, c. 724–6.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the number of doctors currently employed in the National Health Service and the number employed 10 years ago.

The number of doctors employed in the National Health Service in England at 30th September 1977 was approximately 53,500. The corresponding figure for 1967 was 41,500—this latter figure includes doctors employed by local authorities to carry out duties which have been the responsibility of the NHS since 1974.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many community midwives are employed in the Ipswich Health District; and what are these figures expressed in midwives per 10,000 population and per 1,000 live births in the last year for which figures are recorded.

In 1976, the last year for which figures are readily available, there were 24·5 whole-time equivalent midwives employed in community services in Ipswich. Health District; or 0·81 per 10,000 population; or 6·88 per 1,000 live births.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has received the results of the recent research into mobility allowance carried out by his Department; and if he will make a statement.

A study of 540 adults receiving mobility allowance was carried out by my Department in the second half of 1977. A parallel study of children aged 5 to 15 has been conducted by the social policy research unit at the University of York.Full reports on both studies are expected at the end of the year. At present, no information is available on the children's study but preliminary results of the study of adults suggest that the mobility allowance scheme is working well. The main points to emerge from these results are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will arrange for the controls of the National Health Service behind-the-ear hearing aids to be modified and include a combined microphone and pick-up coil position.

The facility referred to by my hon. Friend is a feature of certain models of hearing aids in the MEDRESCO range and will be available on the new body-worn aid which is coming into service in August 1978. The combined switch position mainly benefits hearing-impaired children as it enables sound to be received simultaneously from the teacher, or some other source, and from an induction loop system. It would be uneconomic for all behind-the-ear hearing aids to be modified in the way suggested, but I am considering a proposal that a small number of modified aids in the BE10 series should be produced for use in a field trial before deciding whether they should be made available to children.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people were in receipt of supplementary benefit as a result of being unemployed for more than six months in each of the last 10 years.

Information is not available prior to 1973 nor yet for 1978.The table below shows, for each of the other years, the number of persons who had been registering unemployed for six months and were receiving supplementary benefit:

Year (May)	Number of persons (Thousands)
1973	167
1974	121
1975	144
1976	278
1977	341

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people who are in receipt of sickness benefit are also receiving supplementary benefit; and what is the average amount of supplementary benefit paid to each.

The latest available information relates to December 1976 when 74,000 people receiving sickness^* benefit were also receiving supplementary benefit: their average weekly supplementary benefit payment was £7·08.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will update, in line with recent tax and benefit changes, the net weekly spending power figures published in reply to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North—Official Report, 22nd November 1977, columns 683–90—showing the relative financial position in and out of work for each family grouping, on the assumptions that the taxpayer is contracted out of the State pension scheme and that earnings or previous earnings were: £25, £35, £45, £55, £65, £75, £85, £95 and £105.

The information requested is set out in the tables below. The lowest level of earnings quoted has, however, been raised to £30 a week since full-time earnings below this level are now unlikely. The assumptions made about the ages of children and housing and work expenses are shown at the head of each table. Income tax refunds have not been included as part of the net weekly spending power of the unemployed man for the reasons given in the reply to the hon. Member on 15th October 1976. The approximate weekly amounts of such refunds, where payable, would now be as follows:

	Approximate weekly amount of tax refund
Family type	25 per cent. tax paid only	25 and 33 per cent. tax paid
	£	£
Single person	4·75	7·60
Married couple	7·40	11·05
Married couple plus one child aged 3	7·90	11·70
Married couple plus 2 children aged 4 and 6	8·35	12·35
Married couple plus 4 children aged 3, 8, 11 and 16	9·80	14·25

Receipt of tax refunds may affect entitlement to free school meals but is unlikely to affect any other means-tested benefit.Other assumptions made to compile the tables are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people who are in receipt of retirement pension are also receiving supplementary pension; and what is the average amount being paid to each.

1,637,000 in February 1978 at an average weekly amount of £6·91.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what guidance he has issued to local authorities on the criteria to be used in decisions on the removal of children from foster care.

Local authorities have a statutory duty under Section 12 of the Children Act 1948—as amended—in reaching any decision relating to a child in their care, to give first consideration to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child throughout his childhood and, so far as practicable, to ascertain his wishes and feelings regarding the decision and give due consideration to them having regard to his age and understanding. This duty applies in relation to decisions taken to remove a child from foster care.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what guidance he has issued to local authorities on the criteria to be used in the recruitment of child welfare officers.

Local social services authorities are required to appoint a director of social services, after consulting me, and to provide him with adequate staff. The terms and conditions of staff of social services departments are agreed by the National Joint Council for Local Authorities APT and C staff. Local authorities do not normally recruit staff, other than residential staff, to work with a particular client group and any social worker may be called upon to work with children.I have not issued guidance about the recruitment of local authority staff. Guidance about the percentage of staff which should be qualified and the priority to be given to training has been given through my general endorsement of the report of the Working Party on Manpower and Training for the Social Services; in the consultative document "Priorities for the Health and Personal Social Services in England" issued in 1976; and in "The Way Forward" issued in 1977.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement in response to the representations which he has received to the effect that farmers should be permitted to make declarations that their animals have been treated for warble fly, without the need for a veterinary surgeon to certify such treatment.

We are taking fully into account these and other representations which have been made about proposals to control warble fly and intend to seek the approval of the House in the very near future to an order.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many acres of land have been lost from agriculture in England and Wales in each of the last five years; and if he will specify for each year the purposes for which the land was lost, and how many acres in each case.

The latest information available is given in the publication "Agricultural Statistics England and Wales 1975: Agricultural Censuses and Production" a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how the costs of training poultry meat inspectors compare with those in other EEC countries.

I regret that the detailed information needed for such a comparison is not available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what contribution he has made, or intends to make, towards the costs of training poultry meat inspectors in Great Britain.

The Government have decided to provide assistance towards the setting up of the local authority poultry meat inspection service which is required to be in full operation by August 1979. Grants at the rate of 50 per cent. of the eligible expenditure will be payable in respect of staff employed and trained for this purpose. The detailed arrangements are to be discussed with the appropriate organisations.The payments will rest on the authority of the Estimates and the confirming Appropriation Act. Supplementary Estimates will be presented in due course. The great bulk of this expenditure will be incurred in England and, to take account of it, the appropriate Ministry cash limit for 1978–79 will be increased by £1 million.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the difference in cost of the training of a poultry meat inspector and an authorised meat inspector; and whether he will specify the reasons for the difference.

As there are variations in the costs of training both types of inspector, no useful comparison can be made.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the costs of training a poultry meat inspector are uniform throughout the whole of the United Kingdom; and, if not, whether he will list the highest and lowest cost by area, region and country.

Costs will vary because of a number of factors. It is too early in the training programme to make the detailed comparisons requested.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will make a statement about discussions with the British Poultry Federation on the EEC poultry meat hygiene regulations.

My officials have maintained close contact with the federation on these matters. A meeting with federation representatives was held earlier this week at which most aspects of the phasing-in of the poultry meat inspection service were discussed.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what type and length of training is required, and to what standard, for an authorised meat inspector and a poultry meat inspector.

The basic qualification for an authorised meat inspector is the Royal Society of Health's certificate in meat inspection. Candidates for the certificate must attend a course, the duration of which varies considerably between colleges—with a maximum of about 500 hours—in addition they must complete at least 250 hours of practical experience of meat inspection in a slaughterhouse.The basic qualification for a poultry meat inspector is the Royal Society of Health's certificate in poultry meat inspection. Candidates for the certificate must complete a course comprising 59 hours of theoretical and 420 hours of practical training.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the contribution which an RAF aircraft made to the search for the fishermen drifting off the Galway coast of the Republic of Ireland.

On 24th June the Plymouth Rescue Co-ordination Centre—RCC—was asked by the neighbouring Shannon RCC for assistance in searching for an Irish fishing vessel which was believed to be missing off the west coast of Ireland in international waters in the Shannon RCC's search and rescue area. An RAF Nimrod from RAF St. Mawgan was tasked to search in the area on the same day and again on the following day; altogether some 13½ flying hours were involved. With the completion of this task, Shannon RCC advised that it required no further assistance. I understand that the vessel subsequently reached the coast of the Irish Republic under its own power, with all its crew on board on 26th June.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about Millbank Technical Services Ltd.

As announced in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Dearne Valley (Mr. Wainwright) on 29th March 1977—[Vol. 929, c. 105]—I assumed responsibility for the defence activities of Millbank Technical Services Limited from 1st April 1977. The company has been renamed International Military Services Limited with effect from today.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to announce the result of his current review of local overseas allowances for members of Her Majesty's Armed Forces.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 23rd May 1978; Vol. 950, c. 465], gave the following information:Consideration of the basis for and rates of this allowance is continuing. In the meantime, the 12 months' moratorium on changes in rates of LOA announced in October 1977 has been extended. There will be no change in existing rates before 1st April 1979 except where adjustments are made necessary by movements in exchange rates.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the amount of the Scottish Development Agency's borrowings that are guaranteed by Her Majesty's Treasury.

The SDA has borrowed only from the National Loans Fund and thus the question of guarantee by Her Majesty's Treasury does not arise.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the figures for the total amount of tax deferrals under the stock appreciation scheme in respect of private companies for the year up to the latest date when figures are available.

The current estimate of the accumulated net reduction in corporation tax payments by all companies to 31st March 1978 due to stock relief, is of the order of £4,500 million.Separate details for private companies are not held centrally.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will seek to remove the advantages of building societies, life assurance companies and national savings in relation to the London clearing banks as noted in evidence to the Wilson Committee.

The fiscal and prudential regimes applied to the various classes of financial institution have been developed over time to meet particular objectives in the public interest. Taking these regimes as a whole, it is not easy to establish where the balance of advantage lies, nor whether any particular changes would have wholly beneficial economic effects. The Government will be looking to the Wilson Committee for its views on these questions. There are no immediate plans to alter the treatment of the savings media mentioned.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why sterling silver Jubilee crowns dated 1977 are still being struck by the Royal Mint in midsummer 1978; and what consideration was given in this regard to the position of those who purchased such crowns during 1977.

The silver version of the Jubilee Crown is not still being struck, although production was continued into 1978 because the pressure of export and other essential work made it impossible to meet demand during Jubilee year. The total number struck is no greater than would have been produced in 1977 had capacity been available, and the position of those who purchased last year is therefore unaffected.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the present estimated saving in administrative costs to the Revenue of the life offices deducting life insurance premium relief on qualifying life policies.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 27th June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 501], gave the following information:When the new system is fully in operation, the savings in administrative costs are expected to be in the region of £5 million a year.

asked the Lord President of the Council if, in view of the implementation of the Boyle Committee's proposals for pay increases for civil servants, he will expedite the introduction of legislation to implement the recommendations of the Eighth Report of the Boyle Committee.

Legislation is currently before Parliament to implement the recommendations on pensions made in the Eighth Report of the Review Body on Top Salaries. I look forward to hearing Members' present views on the other issues considered in that report when the House debates parliamentary pay and allowances later in the Session.

asked the Lord President of the Council whether he will initiate immediate discussion with the staff of the Refreshment Department of the House on their entitlement to pensions.

Discussions with union representatives are taking place.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has received the draft White Paper on the Official Secrets Act and the Freedom of Information Act sent to him by the hon. Member for Newham, North-West; whether he will make a statement on the document; and if he will make it his policy, in line with those proposals, to move towards greater public access to official information.

I have written to my hon. Friend to say that we have read his document with interest. With regard to the second and third parts of his Question, I have suggested that he awaits publication of the White Paper on reform of Section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911, which I hope will contribute to the current debate on the availability of official information.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases during the last five years compensatory payments, ex gratia or otherwise, have been made to persons detained on entry into the United Kingdom on suspicion of being illegal immigrants but whose bona fides were subsequently vindicated; and in how many such cases neither apology nor compensation were forthcoming.

Someone who is refused entry to the United Kingdom, but who is thereafter successful in appealing or otherwise making representations against the refusal, has no claim to compensation on that account. An ex gratia payment would be made only in exceptional circumstances. I have not been able to trace any such payment made to someone seeking entry and mistakenly believed to have entered illegally in the past.As to the last part of my hon. Friend's Question, I regret that this information is not separately available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for naturalisation are currently being processed by his Department; and how many were submitted more than three months, more than six months and more than 12 months ago, respectively.

7,751 applications are at present being processed. Of these 6,084 were received more than three months ago, 4,382 more than six months ago, and 2,263 more than 12 months ago.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff in his Department are concerned with the processing of applications for naturalisation and what increases or decreases in staffing have occurred within the past two years.

About 40 people are concerned in some way with the processing of applications for naturalisation. Of these, 22 spend at least 75 per cent. of their time on naturalisation work; these numbers have not changed in the past two years but are under review at present.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of applications for naturalisation have to be referred back to the applicant for further or more accurate information; and what is the average delay on this account.

About 70 per cent. are referred back. The delay in any one case is determined largely by how quickly the applicant responds, but the average is about four weeks.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will give the figures in each year since 1956 in England and Wales for (a) offences of murder known to the police per million of the population, (b) offences of murder known to the police as a percentage of offences of crimes of violence, and all indictable offences, (c) offences of murder of police officers, (d) offences of murder of prison officers, (e) offences of murder by the use of shotguns in the course of theft, and (f) offences of murder for political motives.

I shall write to my hon. Friend as the information is not readily available in the form requested.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will call for a report from the Chief Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police on how many road blocks were set up by the Special Patrol Group in the Metropolitan Police area in each of the last five years;(2) under what legal authority the Special Patrol Group searches motorcars which have been stopped at a random road block;

Members of the Special Patrol Group have only the same powers as other police officers. In organising road blocks or stopping vehicles, the police act not at random but only where they consider that this would assist in the prevention or detection of crime. Section 159 of the Road Traffic Act 1972 empowers a police officer in uniform to stop any vehicle. In addition, Section 66 of the Metropolitan Police Act 1839 authorises the police to stop, search and detain vehicles and their occupants where there is reason to suspect that goods stolen or unlawfully obtained may be found. Various other statutes authorise the searching of persons under certain conditions; the police may also search a vehicle with the consent of the driver.Details of vehicles stopped by the Special Patrol Group are kept in the records of the police area where they occur and are not recorded centrally. The information requested could not therefore be obtained without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what information he has on the comparative construction time required for the building of a 2,000 MW power station in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, the Federal Republic of Germany and Japan.

Information on comparative construction time was published in December 1976 by the National Economic Development Office, for power stations in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the Federal Republic of Germany. The study was not extended to Japan nor did it apply to 2,000 MW stations other than the two United Kingdom examples quoted.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether the Government support the submissions of the National Coal Board to the EEC seeking protection from imports of cheaper coal from outside the EEC, the subsidy of sales and stockpiling of power station coal and the subsidy of new coal-fired electricity generating capacity; and whether he will make a statement of the Government's policy on each of these proposals.

Yes: the Government have supported the proposals brought to the Council of Ministers on coal stocking aid, financial assistance for the provision of additional coal-burning electricity generating capacity, aid for intra-Community sales of power station coal and the surveillance of third country imports. Unfortunately to date only the latter has met with acceptance. We shall continue to press the Community for recognition of the vital role of our indigenous coal industries both now and in the future.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the Independent Commission Against Corruption investigated the complaint of irregularities at the Golden Jubilee Secondary School, Hong Kong; and if the findings of the Independent Commission Against Corruption prove that the Education Department was misleading.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption investigated allegations involving corruption made by three teachers of the Golden Jubilee School. No evidence of corruption was found. At the request of the complainants the Education Department was not informed of the investigations at the time.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report the terms of the petition presented to the Governor of Hong Kong by the Professional Teachers Union and supported by 24 Roman Catholic priests concerning the closure of the Golden Jubilee Secondary School.

Yes. The translation of the petition, which was in Chinese, is as follows:Tel: 3–8863833–884343Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union,46–48 Man King Building,2nd Floor, Ferry Point, Kowloon.16th May 1978Sir Murray MacLehoseThe Governor of Hong KongYour Excellency

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will request the Governor of Hong Kong to dismiss the Acting Director of Education.

No.

asked the Prime Minister whether the Top Salaries Review Body has now reported to him; and, if so, whether he will now make a statement on the report.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 22nd June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 264], gave the following information:The Tenth Report of the Review Body on Top Salaries is published today as Cmnd. 7253. Copies are available in the Vote Office. The Government's decisions on the recommendations in the report will be published shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many incidents involving shooting across the border from the Republic of Ireland have occurred since 1st January 1978 to the latest available date.

Between 1st January and 8th June 1978 there were four shooting incidents in which targets in Northern Ireland came under fire from locations later confirmed by the Gardai as being within the Republic. In a number of other shooting incidents on the border the security forces on either side have not been able to establish where the firing came from.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of railway lines were closed (a) between November 1964 and June 1970, (b) between July 1970 and February 1974, and (c) since March 1974.

The information is available only for calendar years and is as follows:

Year	Railway Passenger and Freight Route Miles Closed
1964	1,005
1965	1,067
1966	1,127
1967	562
1968	748
1969	405
1970	310
1971	161
1972	120
1973	118
1974	37
1975	31
1976	69
1977	21

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the normal period of waiting for a driving test in the Greater London area after an application for a test has been made.

This information is not readily available.The average waiting period in the Metropolitan traffic area is 18½ weeks.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what progress, following the conference initiated by him which included representatives of the Greater London Council, the London borough of Ealing, police, local residents, and the hon. Member for Ealing, North, has been made on construction work for the A40 at Greenford roundabout, Middlesex in relation to improving pedestrian safety.

The measures agreed at the meeting on 16th June have been implemented with the exception of improved surfacing of temporary footpaths, which is almost complete, provision of a spare traffic signal controller and a traffic signal ahead sign.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table showing for 1977: (a) the total number of days lost through strikes and (b) the increase or decrease in percentage terms over 1976 of the number of days lost through strikes.

10,142,000 working days were lost through stoppages of work due to industrial disputes in progress during 1977, an increase of 209 per cent. over 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will indicate the expenditure per capita in Cornwall, respectively, of the Manpower Services Commission and its agencies, the Employment Services Agency, and the Training Services Agency; and to what extent this exceeds or is less than that of the national average per capita.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that information is not available which would enable expenditure by the Manpower Services Commission and its employment and training services to be expressed on a per capita—for example of the registered unemployed—basis in Cornwall for comparison with a national per capital figure.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many members each of the following trade unions have: the Engineers and Managers Association, the Engineering Employers Federation, and the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions.

The latest annual returns made to the certification officer give the membership of the Engineers and Managers Association as 35,500 at the end of 1976; the membership of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions as 2,400,686 at March 1975; and the membership of the Engineering Employers Federation as 20 constituent associations at the end of 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what measures he is taking to promote the development of industrial training in the Northern Region.

The Manpower Services Commission informs me that it is at present carrying out a review of the training needs of the Northern Region. This follows the publication of the Strategic Plan for the Region which made a number of recommendations about training provision. The Commission's aim is to develop the range of training provided so that it is linked more closely to the needs of industry in the region.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether EEC nationals who come to Great Britain and register for work are included in the official unemployment figures; and, if so, how many were included in the latest unemployment figures.

The unemployment statistics include all people who are with

TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT SUBSIDY
A—Applications accepted at 31st March 1978 (Cumulative Total)
B—Jobs involved {Cumulative Total)
	A	B
1 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing	73	2,040
2 Mining and Quarrying	53	2,140
3 Food, Drink and Tobacco	241	15,533
4 Coal and Petroleum Products	4	596
5 Chemicals and Allied Industries	79	4,197
6 Metal Manufacture	148	9,528
7 Mechanical Engineering	427	22,873
8 Instrument Engineering	50	3,156
9 Electrical Engineering	235	20,273
10 Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering	65	4,793
11 Vehicles	83	6,787
12 Metal Goods Not Elsewhere Specified	303	15,991
13 Textiles	908	95,580
14 Leather, Leather Goods and Fur	117	6,227
15 Clothing and Footwear	1,368	98,747
16 Bricks, Pottery, Glass, Cement Etc.	155	8,557
17 Timber, Furniture Etc	328	19,673
18 Paper, Printing and Publishing	271	19,577
19 Other Manufacturing Industries	161	9,022
20 Construction	516	17,046
21 Gas, Electricity and Water	2	33
22 Transport and Communication	111	2,987
23 Distributive Trades	385	12,749
24 Insurance, Banking, Finance and Business Services	20	590
25 Professional and Scientific Services	28	440
26 Miscellaneous Services	290	9,016
27 Public Administration and Defence	—	—
Total	6,421	408,151

asked the Secretary of State for Employment for how many employees temporary employment subsidy is being paid in order to maintain them in a job which would otherwise have ceased; to how many firms this money is paid; and if he will publish a breakdown, so far as is possible, of the industries in which such employers are engaged.

I regret that I am unable to give information in the precise form requested. As at 2nd June, a total of 441,159 jobs in 7,035 applications had been supported by TES in Great Britain since the inception of the scheme. The estimated number of jobs still being supported at that date was 170,500. A breakdown of TES support by industry as at 31st March, the latest date for which figures are available, is given in the schedules below.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the total cost of the youth employment services during each of the last two complete years for which figures are available.

The total cost of the careers service in Great Britain was £21·7 millions in 1975–76 and £25·2 millions in 1976–77.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he is aware that, under the present system of recording unemployment statistics, it is often the case that figures cannot be obtained for parliamentary constituencies or district council areas; and whether he will arrange for every unemployed person to be allocated a reference letter of the alphabet identifying the parish of residence, and for the parish statistics to be collated on (a) a constituency, and (b) district council basis.

, pursuant to his reply, [Official Report, 21st June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 208], gave the following information:The present unemployment figures for local employment office areas are compiled manually from the separate records of individual registrants, and it would not be practicable to do this in respect of constituency and local authority areas also. However, as part of plans for computerisation of the unemployment statistics in the next few years, it is hoped to introduce the use of a locational coding which would allow the economical production of figures for alternative areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many unemployed young people have benefited from the special measures programme in the borough of Lambeth and the constituency of Lambeth Central; and how many more will benefit from plans already approved.

, pursuant to his reply, [Official Report, 27th June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 517], gave the following information:The current schemes my Department operates apply to all age groups, and information about the number of young people who benefit from them is not available. I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the information is not available at present for the progammes for unemployed young people it operates but arrangements are being made to provide statistics about them on a local basis as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what jobs have been created and saved by the Government's special measures since 1974.

The special measures which have been aimed at creating or saving jobs are the job creation programme; the special temporary employment programme; the small firms employment subsidy; the temporary employment subsidy; and the scheme of short-time working compensation in the clothing, footwear and textiles sectors. About 590,000 jobs have been created or saved under these schemes since the first special measures were introduced in 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what guideline was used in imposing a 150 per cent. increase in the cost of renewing petroleum licences for small filling stations operated by self-employed persons.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps are being taken by his Department to advise school leavers of the availability of, and conditions pertaining to, employment in the other member States of the EEC.

, pursuant to his reply, [Official Report, 29th June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 642], gave the following information:Responsibility for the exchange of vacancies between member States of the EEC rests with the Manpower Services Commission, which informs me that member States have agreed between themselves to adopt 18 as the minimum age for accepting applications for employment. Vacancies which are notified by other member States to the MSC are not circulated to local education authority careers officers since the majority of their clients are school leavers below the age of 18. The MSC does, however, supply careers officers with explanatory leaflets to give to any eligible young person who seeks its advice, and the MSC is available for consultation should further assistance be required.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade when he expects to receive a report from the Working Party on Discounted Air Fares.

I expect that I shall receive the report sometime during the summer.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade how many staff from his Department are engaged on import surveillance duties in the EEC; and whether he is satisfied that this number is adequate to undertake the task effectively.

53 import licensing branch staff are employed in operating surveillance import licensing arrangements under both national and EEC schemes; of these, 38 are engaged in the surveillance licensing of textiles. I have no reason to believe that the resources devoted to these tasks are not adequate. The figures do not take account of staff in the Department of Industry and Customs and Excise, who contribute to the operation of the surveillance licensing arrangements and the Commission's monitoring of the various bilateral MFA agreements.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will publish in the Official Report a detailed list of sensitive products imported from Japan each year from 1960 up to the latest year for which this information is available; and how these figures differ with comparable products exported to Japan from the United Kingdom.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what has been the amount of public expenditure on airport development in Scotland and England, respectively, over the past 10 years.

In the 10 years ended 31st March 1978, Government grants of £36·1 million in Scotland and £0·8 million in England have been made for the development of airports.

	Members' expenses during 12 months to 31st March 1978	Other main constituent costs during the same period
Advisory Committee for the National Film Development Fund	Information not available: all costs are met by the National Film Finance Corporation out of its own resources.
Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites	£225	(a)
Advisory Committee on Pilotage	£7,400	£90
Air Travel Reserve Fund Agency	The only information available is in the Agency's Annual Report and Accounts which is laid before Parliament
British Overseas Trade Advisory Council	£298	£562 (a)
Distribution of Statistics Advisory Committee	NIL	£356 (a)
Export Guarantees Advisory Council	NIL	(a)
Insolvency Law Review Committee	£2,784	£1,586 (a)
Insurance Advisory Panel	NIL	NIL
Insurance Brokers' Registration Council	Information not available: no costs fall on public funds
Interim Action Committee on the Film Industry	£510	£124
Northern Lighthouse Board	Information not available: all expenses are met from general lighthouse funds
Overseas Projects Board	NIL	£168 (a)
Simplification of International Trade Procedures Board	£636	£268,912
Working Party to Review Tourist Boards' Accommodation Guides	£95	£162(a)
Note
(a) In certain cases costs additional to any shown are incurred by officials in providing a secretariat, information on which is not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade how many full-time and part-time appointments, respectively, are made by him which are not subject to regulation by the Civil Service Commission; what is the total sum paid annually as salary and expenses for such appointments; and if he will take steps to reduce the number of posts.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 26th June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 399–400], gave the following additional information:

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what are the bodies for which his Department is responsible which would fulfil all the criteria for inclusion in "A Director of Paid Public Appointments Made By Ministers", produced by the Civil Service Department, except for the fact that those appointed are not paid; in respect of which of these bodies expenses are paid; what those expenses amounted to in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what were all the other main constituent costs.

The available information is shown below. In principle, all members whom I appoint are entitled to reimbursement of travel, subsistence and incidental expenses necessarily incurred in the course of carrying out the duties of the appointment.A mistake has come to light in the figure of 274 part-time appointments given to the hon. Member last year.—[Vol. 932, c.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what films are avail- able from the Central Office of Information on access and other matters affecting disabled people; and if he will make a statement.

Twenty four films on matters affecting disabled people are available to the public on hire or sale or loaned free of charge through the central film library of the Central Office of Information. One is specifically concerned with access; the remainder cover different aspects of physical and mental disablement and the care and facilities available.The Central Office of Information regularly produces films for and about disabled people on behalf of Government Departments with responsibilities in this area and the central film library also acquires and distributes films on these themes made by other organisations.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service why Command Papers are not released in Scotland until about 24 hours after the time they are released in London; and if he will take immediate steps to eliminate this practice.

Normally Command Papers, like other parliamentary papers, are available only in London on the day of publication and do not reach Government bookshops and booksellers outside London until the following day. Such papers are often produced at very short notice and it is physically impossible to distribute them for sale outside London on the same day. Moreover, considerations of parliamentary privilege and the high degree of confidentiality attaching to some papers require special security safeguards.However arrangements are made, where time and security considerations permit, to publish important parliamentary papers simultaneously throughout the country.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the subsidiary, associated and other companies of the Scottish Development Agency on 31st May, stating the number and type of shares held, the percentage of the total equity, the cost of the shares, the date acquired and, if appropriate, the Stock Exchange value of the shares on 31st May.

These are matters for the Agency, to which I would refer the hon. Member. Information for the year to 31st March 1978 will be included in the Agency's next report, which will be published later this year.

asked the Attorney-General when the Government expect to publish their legislative proposals following the Pearson Report on compensation for personal injury, and the Law Commission Working Paper on liability for defective products.

The Government are at present considering the report, and hope to be in a position before long to reach preliminary conclusions about its main recommendations, includinr2 those concerning liability for defective products. However, a further period for detailed study and consultation will be required thereafter before the Government are in a position to put forward legislative proposals.

asked the Attorney-General if he will list in the Official Report (a) the number of persons who have been refused an injunction under Section 1 of the Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1976, (b) the number of injunctions granted with a power of arrest and without a power of arrest, (c) the number of injunctions granted in matrimonial proceedings with power of arrest attached, (d) the number of existing injunctions to which a power of arrest has been attached in matrimonial proceedings and under Section 1 of the Act, (e) the number of arrests made under Section 2(5), those where directions were sought out of office hours, and those where directions were sought during office hours, and (f) the number of persons committed to prison; and if he will give the statistics by region.

The information which my hon. Friend seeks is given in the following table:

asked the Attorney-General if extradition proceedings are to be taken against Joyce McKinney and her co-defendant, now fugitives in the United States of America, in order to secure their attendance at trial to answer to a charge of kidnapping.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has no present intention of applying for the extradition of Miss McKinney or of her co-defendant.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what have been the main reasons for the delay in responding to the Cripps Report on the operation of the Caravan Sites Act 1968.

Date	Name of body	Amount £ million
1st January 1970	London Transport Board	270
22nd November 1976	Maplin Development Authority	3
1st April 1977	Covent Garden Market Authority	13

In addition, loans amounting to £50,000 held by local public bodies in England were written off by the Public Works Loan Board in 1968; loans held by the Herring Industry Board in Scotland, amounting to £9,301 and £80,626 were written off in 1969–70 and 1974–75 respectively.Details of capital debt of public corporations operating in the whole of the United Kingdom, written off by central Government in the period 1966 to 1976, are given on page 124 of the notes to the Blue Book "National Income and Expenditure 1966–1976".

Date	Name of body	Amounts £ million
1st January 1970	London Transport Board	270
22nd November 1976	Maplin Development Authority	3
1st April 1977	Covent Garden Market Authority	13

In addition, loans amounting to £50,000 held by local public bodies in England were written off by the Public Works Loan Board in 1968; loans held by the Herring Industry Board in Scotland, amounting to £9,301 and £80,626

The report was published in April 1977. The report contained a large number of recommendations, including proposals for increased public expenditure, and wide-ranging consultations were necessary. I hope to respond in the near future.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give details of action taken over the past 10 years in which central Government have written off capital debt of public authorities or undertakings in England.

I have been asked to reply.The following capital debt of public corporations in England has been written off by central Government since 1966:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give details of action taken over the past 10 years in which central Government have written off capital debt of public authorities or undertakings in Scotland.

I have been asked to reply.The following capital debt of public corporations in England has been written off by central Government since 1966:were written off in 1969–70 and and 1974–75 respectively.Details of capital debt of public corporations operating in the whole of the United Kingdom, written off by central Government in the period 1966 to 1976, are given on page 124 of the notes to the Blue Book "National Income and Expenditure 1966–1976".

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the cost of the letterbox which has appeared beside the letterboard in the Members' Lobby of the House of Commons.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 26th June 1978; Vol. 952, c. 407], gave the following information:The trolley, which is of English Oak and hand made, cost £874.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the total cost, including all main constituent costs

	Expenditure in 1976–77	Estimate for 1978–79
	£	£
The Council for the Welsh Language	3,488	5,000
The Historic Buildings Council for Wales	1,443	3,000
The Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales	152,010	244,000
The Rent Assessment Panel for Wales	59,891	55,000
The Welsh Council	6,938	10,000

The total cost of the area health authorities in Wales and the Welsh Health Technical Services Organisation for 1976

	Expenditure in 1976–77	Estimate for 1978–79
	£	£
Area Health Authorities
Revenue	280,332,000	344,900,000
Capital	6,559,000	9,100,000
The Welsh Health Technical Services Organisation
Revenue	1,768,000	2,200,000
Capital	11,832,000	13,200,000

Summarised accounts of these authorities are laid before the House and are available in the Library.All the other bodies publish reports and annual accounts, copies of which are available in the Library.The Mid-Wales Development Corporation's functions were assumed by the Development Board for Rural Wales at its inception on 1st April 1977 and the Board's annual accounts for 1977–78 will be presented to the House later this year.

Expenditure by the following bodies is wholly borne on Welsh Office Votes. The cost of their general administrative expenses, and so on, in the year 1976–77, with estimates for 1978–79, are as follows:77 and estimates for 1978–79 are as follows:Estimates for 1978–79 assistance by grant in aid and subsidies to those bodies which are borne on Welsh Office Votes are as follows:

	£
The Sports Council for Wales	1,849,000
The Welsh Development Agency (including provision for public dividend capital)	44,593,000
The Development Board for Rural Wales	4,528,000

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what are the bodies for which his Department is responsible which would fulfil all the criteria for inclusion in "A Directory of Paid Public Appointments Made By Ministers", produced by the Civil Service Department, except for the fact that those

	Members' expenses during the last 12 months for which figures are available.	Other main constituent costs during the same period.
Advisory Committee on the Safety of Household Electrical Equipment	£10	(a)
British Hallmarking Council	£117	£11,400
Tate and Lyle Customer Safeguards Committee (b)	No information available: no costs fall on public funds
Domestic Coal Consumers' Council	£6,000	£17,000
Post Office Users' Council for Northern Ireland	£550	£8,000
Post Office Users' Council for Scotland	£2,000	£3,600
Post Office Users' Council for Wales	£2,700	£5,000
Inquiry into Motorway Service Areas	£2,084 (c)	(a)
Notes
(a) In certain cases, costs additional to those shown are incurred by officials in providing a secretariat information on which is not readily available.
(b) Committee set up jointly with Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
(c) Costs shared with Department of Transport.