asked the Secretary of State for Employment when the Manpower Services Commission gave its approval to the special temporary employment scheme to test the feasibility of growing exotic vegetables in Loughborough; who was present when the decision was taken: who is the sponsor of the project; and what consultations the commission had with the National Farmers' Union for coming to its decision.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the decision to approve the special temporary employment programme scheme to grow vegetables in Loughborough was made following the recommendation of the Manpower Services Commission area board in Coventry which considered the proposal at meetings on 19th September 1978 and 25th October 1978. I do not propose to name those present. The sponsor is the borough of Charnwood community relations council. Through an oversight, the National Farmers' Union was not consulted before the scheme was approved. However, at a meeting on 24th November the NFU stated:

" We feel more work needs to be done before the project gets under way, particularly on some of its technical and practical aspects, but the scheme certainly has potential and NFU assistance has been offered.

We appreciate problems new ethnic groups have in finding jobs and I am impressed by the voluntary work undertaken by the Community Relations Council and I believe we should support them ".

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many of the places on the training opportunities programme so far created are for work experience on employers' premises and how many of them are (a) in training workshops, (b) in community service and (c) projects-based work experience schemes; and what were the targets for each of those schemes as at 1st October 1978.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that between 1st April, when the youth opportunities programme began, and the end of October, the latest date for which information is available, 39,800 places were created for work experience on employers' premises, 2,900 places were created in training workshops, 6,600 in community service and 5,700 in project-based work experience schemes.There are no targets relating to individual schemes. The nature and balance of opportunities is decided upon locally, by 28 area boards which administer the scheme, according to the specific needs of the young people in each particular area.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment in the light of the fact that the BBC and other companies are paying as much as £5,000 a week to some of their top staff, how the Government's wage and salary controls apply to these employers and their employees.

The Government's guidelines apply to all wage and salary increases.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will tabulate in the Official Report those wages councils now in existence, together with the lowest remuneration rate fixed by them for adult workers, the date at which this was fixed and the standard weekly hours to which it applies.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the awards made by wages councils in the past two years and the amounts in percentage terms of such awards.

The information given below relates to the lowest grade of adult workerߞ" other worker "ߞin each trade or industry for a standard 40-hour week, except where shown otherwise. Where area rates are set, those shown are for large towns outside London.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what prosecutions have been brought in the past two years for breaches of wages council awards, specifying in each case the award alleged to have been breached.

The information is as follows:

Wages Council making the award and No. of employers prosecuted
Licensed Residential Establishment and Licensed Restaurant.	3
Licensed Non-Residential Establishment	1
Retail Newsagency, Tobacco and Confectionery Trades	1
Retail Furnishing and Allied Trades	5
Unlicensed Place of Refreshment	2
Retail Food Trades (England and Wales)	3
Retail Food Trades (Scotland)	1
Retail Bookselling and Stationery	3
Retail Bread and Flour Confectionery	2

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received from the workers at Fords or their shop stewards and trade unions of industrial action following sanctions imposed by the Government after they have entered into free collective bargaining.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what action he has taken or intends to take to resolve the industrial dispute connected with the journalists' wage application.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what plans the Government have for extension of fortnightly payments of benefits to the unemployed.

I said in an answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Enfield, North (Mr. Davies) on 15th Mayߞ[Vol. 950, c. 33ߝ4]ߞthat the Government were in favour of a system of fortnightly payment of benefits to unemployed people but had decided that pilot procedures needed some refinement before a decision was taken on the timing of any extension. Temporary regulations were subsequently made to allow the pilot scheme to continue until next September, and the Government are now planning to extend the system throughout Great Britain from that date. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services will be submitting the necessary regulations in draft to the National Insurance Advisory Committee as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what discussions on employment and related matters his Department is having with the EEC Commission; and if he will give a breakdown of each topic under discussion with particular reference to EEC proposals and their status within the Community's legislative machinery.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 23rd November 1978; Vol. 958, c. 726], gave the following information:My Department is in touch with the European Commission on a number of subjects in the employment field.Officials of the departmental group represent the Government on four committees chaired by the Commission and set up to advise the Commission on a range of employment-related topics. These advisory committees are:Freedom of Movement for Workers and their Employment in the Community.The Euopean Social Fund.Vocational Training.Safety Hygiene and Health Protection at Work.Representatives of unions and managements are also members of these committees.The Commission also calls informal and ad hoc meetings to consult Government representatives on specific issues and policies under examination. Such meetings attended by officials have recently enabled us to discuss informally with the Commission and with our partners a number of employment-related subjects, including work-sharing, youth unemployment and vocational training.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many improvement notices and prohibition notices have been issued; how many prosecutions have been made how many convictions have been secured; and what was the average amount of fines imposed, by the Health and Safety Executive, up to 30th September 1978.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 4th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 478], 'gave the following information:The chairman of the Health and Safety Commission advises me that provisional figures are as follows:

	January 1975—September 1978*
Improvement notices	20,731
Prohibition notices	8,928
Informations laid	10,582
Convictions secured	9,687
Average penalty per information laid.	£84
*Figures for the Agricultural Inspectorate exclude the three months June to September 1978 and, in the case of informations and convictions, the year 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will state the means of making any changes to salaries of members of the EEC Assembly subsequent to 8th June 1979; and under what powers, and by whom, any such change can be made.

The Community legal basis for determining the emoluments of directly elected Members of the European Assembly is article 13 of the Act annexed to the Council decision of 20th September 1976 which entered into force on 1st July 1978. Under this article, any alteration in the salaries of Members of the Assembly after direct elections will require a unanimous decision by the Council of Ministers on a proposal from the Assembly after consulting the Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what salary, retainer or honorarium will be paid to new British members of the Economic and Social Committee of the EEC; and what expenses were paid for the last year of their term to the previous United Kingdom representatives.

The Economic and Social Committee, which is itself responsible for its administration, pays only allowances to cover travel and subsistence expenses and does not pay any salaries, retainers or honoraria. The money required is provided from the Community budget and is subject to financial control by the European Court of Auditors. We do not, however, have details of the individual payments.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the plight of Mrs. E. Smith and Mrs. E. Phillips, both of Leicester, who have been in a Turkish prison awaiting trial since February 1978.

Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Phillips have been detained in custody since their arrest in February 1978 and are awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to import drugs. There have been a number of investigatory hearings attended, on each occasion, by a consular officer. Another is due today.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer on whose instructions all overseas mail sent to 26 British publishing houses, including the New English Library, is diverted to Her Majesty's Customs for opening and search unknown to the recipients; when the list was last changed; which names have been added since March 1974; and if he will make a statement.

I shall let my hon. Friend have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what date has now been fixed for the publication of the report of the EEC Audit Board.

No date has been fixed for publication of the report of the EEC Court of Auditors. Under the financial regulation of 21st December 1977, however, the court submitted the report to the relevant authorities by 30th November.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many wage earners with children living abroad will be entitled to claim child tax allowances for 1978–79; what total sum is involved; and what would be the cost if these parents were paid the same child benefit as parents with children living in the United Kingdom.

No precise information is available. It is, however, estimated that the number of people, most of whom would be wage-earners, entitled to claim child tax allowances under section 25, Finance Act 1977 for children living abroad could be about 50,000 in respect of up to 150,000 children. The estimated cost of the tax allowances for this group for 1978–79, if all claimed, would be about £15 million. The cost of child benefit, if it were payable for all these children, would be about £20 million in 1978–79.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make provision for a tax-deductible annual allowance of £122·20 to be permitted for all people in full-time employment for travelling expenses.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 7th December 1978], gave the following answer:I assume the hon. Member is referring to the expenses of travelling between home and work I do not think that it would be right to single out this particular form of expenditure for tax relief.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will make a statement about increasing the financial limit of the Northern Ireland Development Agency.

				Capital grants paid by Department of Education	Equipment grants paid by Sports Council
				£	£
Pearse Og GAA Club, Armagh	…	…	…	8,680	Nil
City of Armagh Rugby Football Club	…	…	…	54,153	422
Armagh Golf Club	…	…	…	Nil	Nil

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what consultations have taken place between the relevant Government Departments and the health and social services board and the trustees of the Mater hospital, Belfast, regarding the building works at the above hospital.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 6th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 692], gave the following information:In accordance with the terms of the deed of arrangement between the Government and the trustees of the Mater hospital, the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland has consulted the trustees, the Eastern health and social services board and the Queen's university, Belfast about the detailed content of a scheme of initial reconstruction

I announced on 1st November my intention to introduce legislation in Northern Ireland to increase the financial limit of the Northern Ireland Development Agency. A draft Order in Council, which will seek to double the financial limit of the Development Agency from £50 million to £100 million, will be laid before Parliament in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much in sports grants has been made available to (a) Pearse Og Gaelic athletic association social and development club, Armagh, (b) City of Armagh rugby football club and (c) Armagh golf club, during the past five years.

The total amount of grant paid by the. Department of Education for Northern Ireland and the Sports Council for Northern Ireland during the past five years to the following voluntary sports clubs was:and modernisation of the hospital. These consultations have been carried out by a working group representative of these bodies and of the medical and nursing staff of the hospital.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what agreement has been reached between the Department of Health and Social Services, the health and social services board and the trustees of the Mater hospital, Belfast, regarding the conditions to be observed in the appointment of contractors for the new building work at the hospital.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 6th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 693], gave the following answer:The design for this work has still to be undertaken. The contract will be let by normal methods and no special conditions will be observed in the appointment of contractors.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the new building works at the Mater hospital, Belfast, will cost.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 6th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 693], gave the following answer:The preliminary estimate of cost for new building and modernisation work at the Mater hospital, Belfast, is £6.6 million at 1977 prices.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has received from the Belfast city council, the Sports Council, and the Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games Council about the possibility of Belfast playing host to the 1986 games; and if he will list the reasons for his rejection of the proposal.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 4th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 550], gave the following information:Belfast city council, the Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games Council and the Sports Council for Northern Ireland have jointly and individually made representations about the possibility of the 1986 Commonwealth games being held in Belfast.The Government, in reaching their decision, took account of (

asked the Minister of Overseas Development if she will provide the latest amended figures for the amount of Government overseas bilateral aid and the percentage tied to the purchase of British goods and services.

I regret that there was a mistake in my reply of 22nd November. ߞ[Vol. 958, c. 605.] The correct figure for 1977 for official development assistance under our bilateral aid programme is £376 million, of which 76·9 per cent. was fully or partly tied to the purchase of British goods and services.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when he will announce figures showing quotas for cod, haddock and whiting allocated in Scottish waters; and if he will compare them with previous years.

EEC quota proposals are related to sea areas as defined by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and not specifically to waters within the fisheries jurisdiction of any one member State or any part thereof. The Council of Ministers of the European Communities did not reach agreement on quotas for 1978, and the Commission has not yet put forward proposals for 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what studies he has instituted in Scotland with regard to pollution in relation to the agriculture industry; and what recommendations he intends to make.

My Department undertakes regular surveillance of the use of pesticides and other chemicals used in agriculture and carried out surveys of manure disposal systems on intensive pig farms (1974) and intensive poultry farms (1976) in Scotland. These surveys and studies carried out by other bodies, including the Agricultural Research Council and the Scottish agricultural colleges, formed the background to the evidence submitted to the Royal Commission on environmental pollution on my behalf. The Commission is meantime studying pollution in relation to agriculture, and future policies will be determined in the light of its report.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will seek to amend the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 to enable leaseholders to ascertain the cost of freehold purchase within the enfranchisement of the Act without the present necessity of paying in advance a statutory fee of £25.

Under the Leasehold Reform (Enfranchisement and Extension) Regulations 1967 (SI 1967 No. 1879), a landlord may require a deposit from a tenant who has served notice of his desire to have the freehold of three times the annual ground rent, or £25, whichever is the greater, which will be set off against the eventual purchase price. This is not expressly a statutory fee payable on an inquiry as to the purchase price. In the majority of cases which have come to my notice, inquiries from tenants are answered by landlords without commitment. If the hon. Member has any particular case of difficulty in mind, I shall be grateful if he will send me the details.

asked the Attorney-General how many criminal trials are still pending 12, 18, 24 or more months, respectively, after an arrest was made for the crime concerned.

		Percentage change on previous year
		1975–76	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79	1979–80
Education and related services	…	+3·6	+2·0	-1·5	+1·6	+0·9
Personal social services and port health	…	+5·9	+3·9	+0·8	+2·5	+3·0
Home Office services	…	+2·1	+2·0	+0·2	+1·5	+2·6
Local transport services	…	+2·2	-7·7	-6·5	—	+0·9
Local environmental services (including consumer protection)	…	+4·1	-6·1	-2·2	-1·8	+0·7
Housing (excluding rate fund contribution to the HRA)	…	+6·3	-10·9	+11·4	+6·7	+0·7
Careers Service and Sheltered Employment	…	+0·2	+4·1	+3·1	+1·1	+6·8
Total current expenditure	…	+ 3·5	+0·1	-1·6	+1·1	+1·6

The growth required to achieve the expenditure levels envisaged in each

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will up-date the statistics relating to the extent of grossly polluted rivers and canals, the number of unsatisfactory sewage effluent discharges into rivers, and the unsatisfactory discharges of industrial process water, given in his Department's river pollution survey of England and Wales, 1975.

It is important that this kind of information should be produced and published periodically. But the present river pollution survey is not necessarily the best way to present the data: it takes a long time to produce and the results are often difficult to interpret. I am, therefore, examining other ways of doing the job for the future.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what percentage growth in real terms has been provided for in each rate support grant settlement since 1974–75, expressed (a) as an overall total and (b) by service.

It is for individual authorities to settle their expenditure priorities within the overall provision for current expenditure. The following table sets out the percentage growth in real terms envisaged in the forecasts of current expenditure on the main groups of services which underlay the total of relevant expenditure for the grant year, compared with what authorities were thought to be spending in the current year at the time of the settlement:settlement will, of course, depend on the level of expenditure actually undertaken in the year in which the settlement was made. Thus, the settlement for 1978–79 is now seen to imply growth of 3·4 per cent. over the level of expenditure authorities actually undertook in 1977–78; local authority current expenditure is in fact expected to grow by 2·9 per cent. in that year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the amount paid in rate support grant per head of population, the rate income per head of population in each English and Welsh county, metropolitan district and London borough for each year since 1974.

The estimated amount of rate support grant per head of population and rate income per head of population in each county of England and Wales, metropolitan district, and London borough may be obtained for the years 1974–75 to 1976–77 from"Return of Rates"and for the years 1977–78 and 1978–79 from"Finance, General and Rating Statistics ", both published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. Copies of both publications are available in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what arrangements are being made to continue the building societies' support lending scheme for local authority nominees in 1979–80.

The support lending scheme is developing into an increasingly successful joint endeavour between building societies and local authorities. There is every chance that local authority nominees to building societies will take up the full £300 million of mortgage finance which the societies are making available in Great Britain in 1978–79. In view of the success of the scheme, and the additional contribution it is now making to meeting the needs of prospective home owners at the lower end of the market, the BSA has now agreed to recommend to participating building societies a substantial increase in 1979–80 to £400 million for Great Britain. Together with direct lending by local authorities, this means that over £550 million should be available in 1979–80 to nominees of local authorities. I welcome this action by the BSA and look forward to continuing cooperation between local government and the building societies next year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment which bodies or persons outside his Department he consulted about the invitation which he received to attend or be represented at a symposium on atomic waste and the environment in Newcastle on 16th December; whether he received any representations that he should not attend; and why the nature of his reply to that invitation was known within the nuclear industry in the North-East before it was made known to the organisers of the symposium.

I received no representations nor sought any outside advice about the invitation, originally addressed to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy, to attend the Northumberland and Newcastle Society's symposium on radioactive waste. A reply was sent on 5th December; its terms could only have been speculation before that date.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on mortgage lending in 1979.

The Government and the Building Societies Association (BSA) are committed to supporting an active and stable private housing market. In view of the concern early in 1978 about an undue acceleration in the rate of increase in house prices, the building societies agreed to moderate the level of their lending from last April. For the past six months, the societies have been operating on a lending level averaging not more than £640 million a month. Nevertheless, the number of commitments made by societies has remained at a high level. In 1978 the societies are likely to promise about as many home loans as in 1977, which was an all-time record for a single year.There are some signs that the rate of increase in prices has begun to slow down. In present circumstances, the Government and BSA have now agreed that a figure of £2,100 million is the appropriate level of lending during the first quarter of 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total expenditure by local authorities in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on loan charges on capital expenditure incurred through the construction of council housing; and what was the expenditure on building new dwelling units during 1977–78.

Figures for the loan charges element of capital expenditure incurred through the construction of council housing are not available separately. The expenditure on loan charges on all capital expenditure incurred through construction and improvement of council housing, land and property acquisitions was as follows:

Expenditure in 1977–78 (£m)
England	1,588·6
Wales	88·1
Scotland	257·6
Northern Ireland	61·2
Total	1,995·5

Capital expenditure by local authorities on new dwelling units under construction in 1977–78 was as follows:

	(£m)
England	1,271·7
Wales	61·7
Scotland	105·1
Northern Ireland	73·5
Total	1,512·0

The figures for Northern Ireland relate to expenditure by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive; the figure for loan charges is not strictly comparable with the figures for England, Wales and Scotland, since it covers a wider range of expenditure.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to issue the Government response to the report Strategy for the South-East: 1976 Review.

The response to the report will be published on 11th December. Copies will be placed in the Library and will be sent to all hon. Members with constituencies in the South-East.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what funds have so far been made available to voluntary bodies under the terms of the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977; to which bodies they have been given; and in each case how much.

Grants totalling £115,500 have been made available to voluntary organisations by this Department under section 13 of the Act. The bodies being funded and the amounts given to each are as follows:1. SHAC (The London Housing Aid Centre) £69,000 for the calendar year 1978.2. After Six Housing Advisory Service Trust Ltd, £23,000 from 1st April 1978 to 31st March 1979.3. Gingerbread (An Association for One Parent Families) £4,500 from 1st June 1978 to 31st May 1979.4. SNHAT (The Shelter National Housing Aid Trust) £19,000 from 1st July 1978 to 30th June 1979.Equivalent information about the use made by local housing authorities and the GLC of the powers under section 13 to assist voluntary organisations is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many research publications his Department has issued for the public in the years 1975, 1976, 1977 and the current year to date.

To ensure effective dissemination of research results, my Department issues, both centrally and through its research establishments, a wide variety of publications, ranging from full reports on projects, through brochures and lists of work in progress, to leaflets summarising results and giving technical information. Where the research is carried out by extra-mural contractors, they sometimes take responsibility for publishing the results.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list

Event		Number of poles	Erected	Dismantled	Cosi of erectton and dismantling
£
Commonwealth Day	…	36	6th March 1977	20th March 1977	2,531
Europe Day and EEC	…	16	28th April 1977	(9th May 1977)	2,475
Silver Jubilee	…	25	22nd May 1977	(3rd October 1977)
United Nations Day	…	16	20th October 1977	31st October 1977
Commonwealth Day	…	36	6th March 1978	20th March 1978	2,649
Europe Week	…	16	24th April 1978	8th May 1978	1,018
Council of Europe	…	16	27th June 1978	7th July 1978	928
United Nations Day	…	16	17th October 1978	31st October 1978	928
30th Anniversary of Declaration of Human centers	…	16	30th November 1978	15th December 1978	929

Poles are not left in place because varying numbers are needed at different times and maintenance costs would be incurred. There would be loss of occasion if the poles were left permanently in position.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to receive the inspector's report into the Allestree link road (A38–A3111) inquiry.

My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Transport and for the Environment received at the end of last month the inspector's report on the inquiry into the Derby ring road to Allestree proposals.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a new estimate of the total economic costs, inclusive of cost of change to the environment occasioned by noise, pollution and additional traffic congestion, as well as of accident hazards, for a measured distance of the so-called juggernaut lorry, for the in the Official Report the number of times that flagpoles were erected in Parliament Square during 1977 and 1978, the dates on which they were erected, the dates on which they were dismantled, the occasions for which they were erected, the cost of erection and dismantling on each occasion why they should not be permanently in place; and why it is thought worth-while erecting them at all if it is considered that they should not be there permanently.

Flagpoles were erected in Parliament Square on the following occasions in 1977 and 1978:purposes of comparison with the largest lorries currently permitted to operate on United Kingdom roads; and if he will publish this before implementing any Common Market Directive relating to the use of the juggernaut lorry.

I have no proposals for increasing the size or weight of so-called juggernaut lorries, but I shall continue to make available to the house such information as I possess of the kind my hon. Friend has in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what will be the savings in staff wages and salaries at the Swansea Vehicle and Driver Licensing Centre as a result of his proposal to abolish the road fund licence.

Total administrative savings of about £20 million a year include an estimated £8 million reduction in staff costs, of which about £3 million would be at DVLC.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what are the criteria currently adopted for judging applications for section 8 grants; and which, if any, have been introduced since the enactment of the section 8 provisions.

The main criterion is that the rail scheme should result in environmental and other local benefits through the reduction of lorry traffic, commensurate with its cost. The criteria have not changed since the grant scheme was introduced in 1974 and are explained in the memorandum prepared at the time titled"Road Freight Facilities Grant ", a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the total annual cost of road accidents, including damage to vehicles, time spent by the

PUBLIC SERVICE VEHICLE* CASUALTIES: 1973 TO 1977: GREAT BRITAIN
Number
				1973	1974	1975	1976	1977
Drivers:
Killed	…	…	…	7	5	10	10	8
Injured	…	…	…	700	724	713	652	684
Passengers:
Killed	…	…	…	50	64	105	59	56
Injured	…	…	…	13,870	13,170	13,650	12,084	11,627
* Buses and Coaches.

PASSENGER CASUALTY RATES: 1973 TO 1977: GREAT BRITAIN
Per 100 million passenger miles
				1973	1974	1975	1976	1977
Passengers in:
Public Service vehicles:
Killed	…	…	…	0·1	0·2	0·3	0·2	0·2
Injured.	…	…	…	39	37	38	34	33
Cars and Taxis:
Killed	…	…	…	1·3	1·2	1·1	1·1	1·0
Injured	…	…	…	80	74	71	71	71
Rail:*
Killed	…	…	…	0·2	0·1	0·3	0·1	0·1
Injured	…	…	…	11	10	10	10	10
* Excludes suicides, trespassers and passenger casualties where no train movement involved.
NOTES
1.The PSV killed rate in 1975 includes the Dibble's Bridge accident in which 32 people died.
2.The Rail killed rate in 1975 includes the Moorgate crash on London Transport.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many driving test examiners are employed in the Coventry area; and if he will take on additional examiners with a view to reducing the waiting time for tests.

A total of seven at the two centres in Coventry. The recruitment campaign referred to in the answer given

In 1977 the total cost of road accidents in Great Britain was estimated as at least £1,293 million in 1977 prices and values. Of this, the costs of damage to vehicles, police and administration and medical and ambulance services was estimated as £664 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many fatalities and injuries there have been in coach accidents in each of the past five years; and how these figures compare, as a rate of casualty per passenger mile, with other forms of surface passenger transport over the same period.

The following is the required information:by my right hon. Friend to my hon. Friend the Member for Consett (Mr. Watkins), on 14th Novemberߞ[Vol. 958, c. 144]ߞprovides for additional examiners at these centres.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any proposals for further regulating the activities and operations of private security organisations; whether he is satisfied that their current operations give no cause for concern; and whether he will ensure that organisations with their own armed, uniformed and trained personnel and their own transport and communications systems are not permitted to operate on a national basis without some form of close supervision.

I intend in the new year to publish a paper to facilitate further discussion of the need for control over private security activities. I shall decide in the light of that discussion what action is necessary.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking at national and international level to deal humanely with the Vietnamese boat people.

The United Kingdom has made a very significant contribution to the Indo-Chinese refugee problem. At the international level the Government have contributed over £6 million so far this year to the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, of which £1·5 million has been specifically earmarked for his programme in Indo-China. Financial assistance has also been provided for voluntary agency activities in support of refugees in South-East Asia. The United Kingdom will be represented at an international conference about the Indo-Chinese refugee problem to be called later this month by the United Nations high commissioner for refugees.At the national level we have made it clear that we are prepared to accept for settlement any refugees in distress on the high seas picked up by ships registered in the United Kingdom and not accepted elsewhere. In addition, any cases of refugees wishing to come here are considered sympathetically if ties with this country can be shown, and there are no numerical limitations for these categories. Since the changes of Government in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos in 1975, we have accepted for entry, or allowed to remain in the United Kingdom, over 1,300 refugees from Indo-China.The Government are also giving financial assistance to the British Council for Aid to Refugees to help the voluntary organisations concerned deal with the reception and resettlement of Indo-Chinese refugees admitted to the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current shortage in manpower in percentage terms, excluding civilian vacancies, for each of the police authorities in England.

The position at 31st October 1978 was as follows:

31st October 1978	Percentage deficiency
Avon and Somerset	2·66
Bedfordshire	7·70
Cambridgeshire	5·04
Cheshire	3·87
Cleveland	7·79
Cumbria	6·09
Derbyshire	12·05
Devon and Cornwall	1·60
Dorset	5·49
Durham	5·11
Essex	6·13
Gloucestershire	6·98
Greater Manchester	6·62
Hampshire	3·18
Hertfordshire	5·74
Humberside	7·83
Kent	5·28
Lancashire	1·44
Leicestershire	2·52
Lincolnshire	4·73
Merseyside	4·85
Norfolk	4·74
Northamptonshire	7·05
Northumbria	4·30
North Yorkshire	2·71
Nottinghamshire	2·79
South Yorkshire	10·28
Staffordshire	6·82
Suffolk	6·07
Surrey	10·63
Sussex	4·71
Thames Valley	12·71
Warwickshire	4·22
West Mercia	8·39
West Midlands	10·24
West Yorkshire	10·28
Wiltshire	5·38
City of London	20·74
Metropolitan	18·14

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many drug addicts were imprisoned in the last year for which figures are available; and how many were males and how many were juveniles.

Information is not available centrally in the form requested. The information available relates only to those drug addicts notified to the Home Office by medical practitioners, including prison doctors, as being addicted to notifiable drugs. In 1977 442 such persons, including 387 males and one juvenile aged under 17 years, were recorded as being admitted to a penal institution and not subsequently renotified as addicts before the end of the year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there is any regulation in force which would prevent a visitor to the United Kingdom from playing football as an amateur.

A person given leave to enter the United Kingdom for a visit may be prohibited under the Immigration Act 1971 from entering employment, paid or unpaid, or engaging in any business or profession. It would depend on the facts of each case whether playing football as an amateur constituted employment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were imprisoned for sleeping out or begging in the last year for which figures are available; how many were (a) men and (b) women.

The latest information available is that published in tables 3.2, 4.1 and 5.1 of"Prison Statistics, England and Wales 1977 ", Cmnd. 7286.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many people were remanded in custody by the courts in the following cities during each of the last three complete years for which figures are available; and what proportion of the total number of people charged this represents: Birmingham, Bristol, Coventry, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield;(2) how many people remanded in custody in the following cities during the latest 12-month period for which this information is available were subsequently acquitted of the charges brought against them or given prison sentences of shorter duration than the time they had already spent in custody; and what proportion of the total number of custodial remand prisoners tried during that year in each of these cities, respectively, this represents: Birmingham, Bristol, Coventry, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield.(3) if he will publish in the

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 29th November 1978; Vol. 959, c. 209], gave the following answer:The full information requested is not available.The following table summarises the information which is readily available on those people known to have been remanded in 1977 in the metropolitan districts of Birmingham, Coventry, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield and in the cities of Bristol and Leicester to await trial by courts in custody. For 13 per cent. of all such remands in England and Wales, the place of remand is not available and so these data are incomplete. The proportion of those cases for which data are available where the result was a finding of not guilty or a prison sentence shorter than the time spent on remand was 7 per cent. in Liverpool, 6 per cent. in Manchester, 5 per cent. in Birmingham and Bristol, 4 per cent. in Leeds and Newcastle, 3 per cent. in Sheffield, 2 per cent. in Leicester and less than ½ per cent. in Coventry.This information on persons known to have been remanded in custody is not directly comparable with the information available on persons charged in court with offences, there being differences of coverage and timing, and so the proportions of those charged who are remanded are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what were the total sums paid out in overtime payments to prison officers during the latest convenient 12-month period; and what was the average figure per head for the same period.

In the financial year 1977–78, a total of £18.18 million was paid to prison officers in England and Wales in respect of overtime working. This represented an average of £1,196 an officer.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is in a position to announce a fares increase for the London taxi-cab trade.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to a Question by the hon. Member for Hampstead (Mr. Finsberg) on 30th November. ߞ[Vol. 959, c. 357.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will publish as much detailed information as may be available to show to what extent those engaged in community relations work have had their salaries and expenses increased.

The only information available to us about such increases concerns the salaries and expenses of the members and staff of the Commission for Racial Equality and the salaries of staff employed by local community relations councils which arc funded by the Commission.Details of the increases in the salaries and fees of the chairman, deputy-chairman and part-time Commissioners were supplied in the reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Carlton (Mr. Holland) on 9th November 1978.ߞ[Vol. 957, c. 279–80.]The staff of the Commission received pay awards, with effect from 1st April 1978, analogous to those awarded to the staff of the Civil Service. The overall increase in pay was just under 10 per cent.Allowances and expenses payable to members and staff of the Commission have increased in accord with those payable to civil servants.Salaries of community relations officers and assistant community relations officers employed by local community relations councils and grant-aided by the Commission for Racial Equality are linked to local authority pay scales. Under phase 3 of the pay policy these were increased from 1st July 1978 by between 9½ and 10 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has received further advice on the 1968 restrictions concerning the entry of Scientology students into the United Kingdom; and whether he will make a statement.

The whole question of Government policy towards scientology is under consideration, but I cannot forecast when that consideration will be concluded.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been convicted of, respectively, murder or manslaughter and any other serious crime while on bail, in each of the past five years.

I regret that the information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Arrangements are in hand for collecting information to enable some estimates to be made in the future of the extent of reoffending while on bail.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the timetable for the closure of Sarum airfield; what will happen to the land and buildings; and what will happen to the existing staff.

As announced last March, the Joint Warfare Establishment and all other units at the Old Sarum site will be moved to new locations by 1st April 1979. Surplus land and accommodation will be disposed of by the Property Services Agency under the normal procedures. Few redundancies are expected as a result of the moves, and almost all of the staff will be offered alternative employment in other Ministry of Defence establishments.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when the microbiological research establishment at Porton is to be handed over to the Department of Health and Social Security.

It is proposed that Ministerial and management responsibility will be assumed by the Secretary of State for Social Services and the Public Health Laboratory Service Board respectively from 1st April 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations she has received from parents, teachers' unions and other interested organisations concerning the proposed alteration of the age of transfer of pupils in the Hull division of the Humberside education authority.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what discussions she has had with the Humberside education authority concerning the proposed alteration of the age of transfer of pupils in the Hull education division.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she will prevent the proposed alteration of the age of transfer between Hull schools as proposed by the Humberside education authority.

I understand that the Humberside education authority is still considering this matter. If it decided to alter the age ranges of any of its schools, it would be required to submit proposals to the Secretary of State and to give public notice of its intention in accordance with section 13 of the Education Act 1944. The Secretary of State, in deciding whether or not to approve the proposals, would take account of any objections she received.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many teachers at present are in post; and how many are members of each of the associations represented on the teachers panel of the Burnham Committee.

The number of qualified regular teachers, including part-timers, in post in maintained nursery, primary, secondary and special schools in England and Wales at 31st January 1978 was 491,186. The Department does not collect information about how many of these teachers are members of the associations represented on the teachers' panel of the Burnham primary and secondary committee. The latest total membership figures available from the certification officer for the associations, however, are as follows:

Association	Membership
National Union of Teachers	296,092
National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers	85,535
Incorporated Association of Assistant Masters	40,000
Association of Assistant Mistresses	38,527
Incorporated Association of Head Masters	2,952
Association of Head Mistresses	1,435
National Association of Head Teachers	21,383
National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education	64,731

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will publish the latest figures comparing the numbers of students in further education on first-degree and equivalent courses with the number of undergraduates in universities.

For the academic year 1978–79, provisional estimates show the number of enrolments on full-time and sandwich first degree courses in maintained, assisted and grant-aided establishments of further education in England and Wales as 112,000, and the number of full-time and sandwich course undergraduates at universities in Great Britain as 240,000, of whom 202,000 are in universities in England and Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether the Government propose to grant United Kingdom chemical companies any cost advantage which could derive from the availability of North Sea chemical feedstocks.

The bulk of petrochemical feedstocks is obtained from the refining of crude oil. Since it is our policy for UKCS crudes to be valued and traded at world prices, the feedstocks obtained from UKCS crudes will cost very much the same as those from imported crudes. So far as the gaseous feedstocks are concerned, the cost of transporting petroleum gases is such as to confer substantial advantages on countries with indigenous supplies.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will place in the Library a list of the names and the organisations they represent of the Welsh representatives of the Severn Barrage Committee.

pursuant to the reply given by Dr. Mahon [Official Report, 4th December 1978; Vol. 959, c. 371], gave the following further information:I am now able to announce three further appointments to the Severn Barrage Committee. They are Councillor Claude Draper, Professor Robert Millward, and County Councillor Graham Powell.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish, from the international sources available to him, the proportion of the land surface covered by trees in each EEC member State and each Scandinavian country.

The most recent directly comparable statistics are those in the study"Forest Resources in the European Region ", published in 1976 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. The figures, which relate to land use in 1970, are reproduced below:

	Forests and other wooded land as a percentage of total land
European Economic Community
Belgium	20
Denmark	12
France	25
German Federal Republic	30
Ireland	4
Italy	27
Luxembourg	32
Netherlands	10
United Kingdom	8
Scandinavian Countries
Finland	74
Norway	29
Sweden	64