asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the subject of his recent discussions concerning the organisation of the traffic warden service in relation to London.

In the course of discussions about the control of traffic in London possible ways of providing more traffic wardens have been considered but no conclusions have yet been reached.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, further to his statement that finance for the Freedom of Information Bill will not come from his Department's budget, he will say from where the finance will come.

Any additional costs incurred as a result of the Freedom of Information Bill would fall on the Departments affected by this Bill.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of (a) boys and (b) girls received into prison departments under certificate of unruliness for each month in 1978, indicating in each case, the offence the establishment to which remanded, the period of remand, and the age of the school-child.

All the information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the following table shows the number of juveniles received into custody to await trial in each of the months August to December 1978; for data for earlier months of 1978, I refer my hon. Friend to the reply my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State gave to his question on 28 November. The reply I gave to a question by the hon. Member for Chislehurst (Mr. Sims) on 23 January is also relevant.—[Vol. 959, c. 123–6; Vol. 961, c. 85–8.]Receptions to await trial of juveniles aged 14 to 16 into prison department establishments in England and Wales: August-December 1978 (

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether substantially more resources to trace overstayers and to tackle all aspects of illegal immigration have been afforded to the police, the Immigration Service Intelligence Unit and other authorities since July 1978.

The immigration and nationality department of the Home Office devotes a significant part of its resources to tackling illegal entry and overstaying. It has not been possible to make substantial increases in those resources in the period in question, but ways in which resources might be used more effectively are being developed.The police are well aware that the Government attach considerable importance to effective action being taken against people who attempt to evade the immigration laws, but the extent to which police manpower is used for this purpose is a matter for individual chief officers of police.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will publish an interim report on his discussions with both sides of industry to provide effective sanctions against employers who knowingly employ over-stayers and illegal immigrants.

It is proving difficult to devise additional measures for dealing with unauthorised employment that are both practical and acceptable. The matter remains under consideration, however, and I will report to the House when a conclusion has been reached.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) for the most recent period for which figures are available, how many people were convicted of driving a motor vehicle without due payment of vehicle excise duty;(2) for the most recent period for which figures are available, how many people were convicted of driving without insurance;(3) for the most recent period for which figures are available, how many people were convicted of driving without a valid driving licence being in existence.

The information requested was published in table 4 of "Offences relating to motor vehicles, 1977" (Cmnd. 7349).

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the police negotiating machinery recommended in the Edmund-Davies report is to be put into effect; and upon what date an independent chairman for the new negotiating body is to be appointed.

The implementation of the Edmund-Davies recommendations is still under discussion with the police representative bodies and the local authority associations. It would be premature to appoint a chairman until these discussions are complete.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what studies he has initiated into less regressive methods of funding the BBC than an annual licence, and in particular the feasibility of replacing the licence with a surcharge on national insurance contributions.

As my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State announced on 29 January I am initiating studies on:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police personnel of all ranks were on duty on Monday 22 January in connection with the Hyde Park rally, march and lobby of Parliament by public service workers; what was the total cost to public funds of employing the police on these duties; how many persons were charged in connection with the march and lobby; and if he will make a statement.

The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis tells me that during the rally, march and lobby by public service workers on 22 January, 3,664 police officers were deployed. The demonstration occasioned no disorder and no arrests were made. It would involve disproportionate effort and expense to estimate the additional cost of deploying officers who would not otherwise have been on duty.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he accepts the figures submitted to him by

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to be able to announce the action which the Government propose to take on recommendation 127 of the Royal Commission on gambling.

I cannot yet say when the Government will be able to announce their decision on the recommendation that there should be a national lottery for good causes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Rhodesians have been admitted to Great Britain for temporary or permanent residence in each of the years since 1968; and how many of these have been or are students in full-time education, returning citizens or residents of the United Kingdom and persons claiming political asylum, respectively.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 29 January 1979; Vol. 961, c. 304], gave the following information:The numbers of Rhodesian citizens subject to immigration control admitted to the United Kingdom for temporary or permanent residence, as students or as people returning to the United Kingdom from temporary absence abroad are published annually in the Command Papers the latest of which, "Control of Immigration: Statistics 1977" (Cmnd. 7160) was published in April 1978. Figures for the first three quarters of 1978 are given in the following table. Information about persons claiming political asylum is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been prosecuted by housing authorities under section 11 of the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977 since the coming into force of that Act; and, in particular, how many such prosecutions there have been by the Birmingham housing authority and what has been the range of penalties imposed where there have been convictions in such cases.

The Act came into operation on 1 December 1977 and no proceedings were completed in England and Wales in 1977. Information for 1978 is not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions have been brought and how many convictions obtained under (a) section 1(2) (Unlawfully depriving a residential occupier of any premises) and (b) section 1(3) (Acts calculated to interfere with the peace and comfort &c., of residential occupiers) of the Prevention from Eviction Act and its predecessor, by each London borough during each of the last two years for which statistics are available.

, pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 30 January 1979; Vol. 961 c. 393], gave the following answer:Information in the form requested is not available. The available information is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the unemployment statistics for London employment office areas for January 1979.

Following is the information at 11 January:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the percentage of construction workers unemployed in the Greater London area; and how these figures compare with other trades.

At 9 November 1978, the latest date for which the quarterly industrial analysis of the unemployed is available, the rates of unemployment in the Greater London area were 8·6 per cent. in the construction industry and 3·5 per cent. in all other industries and services.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the number of jobs assisted in the Walsall area under the various special employment and training measures, temporary employment subsidy, small firms employment subsidy, job release, adult employment subsidy, job introduction scheme for the disabled, youth opportunities programme, community industry programme, special temporary employment programme and training places supported in industry; and if he will estimate the cost.

Details of assistance provided to date under these measures in the Walsall area are as follows: 4,865 workers have benefited from the temporary employment subsidy; 65 jobs have been made available through the job release scheme; 17 disabled people have been helped under the job introduction scheme for the disabled; 836 young people have been helped under the youth opportunities programme and 44 people have been helped by the special temporary employment programme. It is estimated that these measures represent a total financial commitment of approximately £4·8 million.The small firms employment subsidy was only extended to cover the whole country on 1 January this year and as yet no applications under this scheme have been approved in the Walsall area. The adult employment subsidy does not apply to the Walsall area and there is no community industry unit at present.I regret that area breakdowns of the numbers of training places in industry supported by special grants and awards are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he is prepared to amend section 79 of the Fair Trading Act 1973 to authorise the Director General of Fair Trading to investigate labour restrictive practices where he has

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what measures he intends to take to prevent the spread among bees in the United Kingdom of Varroa Jacobsonii.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps his Department has taken to prevent the spread of the bee mite Varroa Jacobsonii to the United Kingdom; what action has been taken in respect of bees imported from infected countries; and if he will make a statement.

The Importation of Bees Order 1978, which came into effect on 1 January 1979, prohibits the importation of bees into Great Britain, unless they are accompanied by a certificate issued in the exporting country which states that the breeding apiary has been examined by an official inspector, and no trace of the mite varroa jacobsonii was found. Varroa grounds to believe, or reasonable cause for believing, that they may operate against the national interest, lead to rising prices or create substantial unemployment.

I have been asked to reply.I have no proposals to amend the powers in section 79 of the Fair Trading Act 1973.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what percentage of wooded land per head of population is situated in England and in Wales, respectively.

The position is as follows:has not been reported in the countries which supply bees to Britain, but we are nevertheless keeping a close watch on the situation and are prepared if necessary to review existing controls, taking account both of the need to keep the disease out of the country and to maintain stocks of bees.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food why the Forestry Commission decided to place a contract for advice on marketing small wood with a Finnish company, without first discovering if such advice could be given by British consultants.

British consultants were considered. The Forestry Commission sought the views of trade and growers' organisations and the advice of the Home Grown Timber Advisory Committee. There was general support for the selection of the Finnish company.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many houses were started, were under construction and were completed in the fourth quarter of 1978 in Wales.

Total house building figures for December are not yet available.In October and November 1978, 2,566 dwellings were started and 2,133 dwellings completed in Wales. 18,807 dwellings were under construction at the end of November.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection if, in view of the difficulties for medium-sized companies in obtaining services appropriate to their needs as a result of the increasing polarisation of the United Kingdom accounting profession, he will refer to the Monopolies Commission the proposed triple merger of accountants Whinney Murray and Turquands Barton Mayhew and the United States firm Ernst and Ernst.

A merger only qualifies for investigation under the Fair Trading Act 1973 if, as a result, the enterprise supplies one quarter of the relevant market in the United Kingdom or in a substantial part of the United Kingdom, or if the value of the assets taken over exceeds £5 million. I understand that the Director General of Fair Trading is satisfied that the transaction between the companies involved does not meet either of these requirements. No question of a reference to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission therefore arises.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what discussions he has had with the advertising industry about the further development of advertising controls in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

I met leading members of the industry on 31 January for a full discussion. There was broad agreement that the flexibility of the existing system of self-regulatory control offered the best basis for responding to public opinion and adapting quickly to changing requirements of control; but that certain identified deficiencies in the existing system might best be remedied by the addition of some new statutory powers. I welcomed a suggestion by the industry that a joint working party of industry and Government officials should be set up to consider and to recommend to me how best this reinforcement of the regulation of advertisements should be given effect. I hope that this working party will hold its first meeting in about two weeks and be in a position to make firm proposals by the summer.We also had a useful exchange of views on the wider social and economic implications of advertising. It was generally agreed that these posed problems of some complexity and I have asked my officials to continue discussions with the Advertising Association and to report back to me their conclusions.

asked the Lord President of the Council if he will give the percentage increase in prices, average earnings and the salaries of hon. Members of Parliament from February 1974 to the latest convenient date.

Between February 1974 and December 1978 the General Index of Retail Prices increased by 101 per cent. Between February 1974 and November 1978, after discounting the effects of the three day working week on the 1974 figure, the older series Monthly Index of Average Earnings in Production and Certain Other Industries increased by 109 per cent. The basic parliamentary salary has increased by 53 per cent. in this period.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what has been the cost, in each of the last six financial years, of inflation-proofing Civil Service pensions; and what is the estimated cost for the current year and next year.

It is estimated that the additional cost over the first full year—it declines progressively thereafter—of implementing increases in Civil Service pensions under the Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 was as follows):

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what changed circumstances have caused him to withdraw from 1 February 1979 export credit guarantees relating to credit limits on buyers in Libya which were approved prior to 1 December 1978; and if he will make a statement.

ECGD credit limits on buyers in Libya were withdrawn in February as part of an exercise by ECGD to review its commitments on individual Libyan buyers. The full range of ECGD cover remains available for exports to Libya. However, a review of ECGD's cover on individual buyers is now necessary as a result of developments in Libya involving a major reform of the Libyan private sector. This will affect the standing of some buyers and their ability to continue to meet payments due to United Kingdom exporters. Therefore ECGD policyholders have been asked to re-apply for cover on buyers with whom they are still trading and these applications will then be considered for cover in the normal way.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what is value of United Kingdom investment in Mexico, the percentage holding permitted to United Kingdom companies in local firms, and the type of industries where British investment is primarily located.

Information available about the value and industrial spread of British investment in Mexico relates to the book value of net direct investment in Mexico by United Kingdom companies other than oil, insurance and banking companies. At the end of 1974 this amounted to £51 million. No later information is available. Further details by industry are published in table 3 of "Business Monitor, M4, 1974 Supplement, Census of Overseas Assets 1974", a copy of which is in the library.Certain sectors of industrial activity, for example, petroleum and other hydrocarbons as well as basic petrochemicals, are reserved exclusively for the Mexican State; there are also certain other sectors reserved exclusively for Mexican shareholders. In all other sectors foreign investment is limited to a 49 per cent. shareholding, but the Mexican authorities have indicated their readiness to interpret the law flexibly.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade for how long Ghanaian banks have adopted the policy of opening letters of credit in £ sterling in favour of United Kingdom exporters containing a clause providing that the documents submitted thereon will be released to the buyer against a deposit of local currency after which £ sterling will be remitted as and when it becomes available; whether any other countries follow this procedure; what is the attitude of the Export Credits Guarantee Department; and if he will make a statement

I understand that some Ghanaian commercial banks have been opening such "claused" letters of credit since 1977. This procedure is unusual and ECGD is not aware of banks in other countries adopting this practice. In Ghana it probably stems from the delays which have occurred in the provision of foreign exchange to meet commercial transactions. ECGD understands that normal letters of credit are now obtainable in Ghana and therefore cover is restricted to these and is not currently available for transactions involving the letters of credit of the type referred to here.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will introduce amending legislation to the Post Office Act 1969 which will compel the Post Office to operate a Sunday collection of the mail.

No. The day-to-day operation of postal services is a matter for the Post Office which takes note of the views expressed by the Post Office Users' National Council.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what has been the return on industrial investment over the past 30 years, taking into account inflation, the advance in taxation and the restrictions imposed on profits by State agencies.

I refer the honourable Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Short) on 30 January 1979.—[Vol. 961, c. 416–7.]

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he estimates that there has been an increase or reduction in the profits of the largest 25 private firms in the United Kingdom during the last year; and what has been the percentage increase or reduction in such profits.

For the 25 largest United Kingdom industrial companies, excluding British Leyland, as given in "The Times 1000 1978–1979"net profits before interest and tax as reported in the companies' accounts for accounting periods ending between 31 March 1977 and 1978, were 13 per cent. higher than in the previous year.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what help he is giving to research into robot technology; and what he is doing to further the use of robots in industry.

My Department is taking an active interest in this important field and is sponsoring already a number of commercial research and development projects in addition to commissioning a substantial programme at one of my research establishments. A study on the current activities in robots both in the United Kingdom and in other countries has been commissioned. This should identify areas for support in the future.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry when he intends to make a statement on the future of the shipbuilding industry.

After completion of the Government's review of British Shipbuilders' corporate plan.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he intends to publish the corporate plan for the shipbuilding industry.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Rushcliffe (Mr. Clarke) on 15 January.—[Vol. 960, c. 593.]

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what help he is giving to the engineering industry in the West Midlands area to overcome its present problems.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what police or Government orders for motor cycles have now been placed with the Meriden Co-operative.

The Meriden Co-operative has received orders for 116 motor cycles from police forces in this country and the Ministry of Defence. In addition a limited number of machines have been supplied by the co-operative to various police forces for evaluation purposes. I understand Meriden is hopeful of further orders from police forces in the United Kingdom and the prospects for expansion of its present business with police forces overseas.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she now has the precise figures as to the shortage of teachers of mathematics and science subjects in schools in England; what proportion of those teaching mathematics and science subjects in schools is inadequately qualified or not qualified at all to teach those subjects; and if she will make a statement.

Information about secondary school teachers' qualifications and the subjects they are teaching was sought in autumn 1977, for the first time since 1965. Analysis of the returns is taking longer than originally expected, but I hope to have the information requested by the hon. Member in April.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the current level of applications for admission to universities and polytechnics in the autumn of 1979; and how this compares with the corresponding figures for 1978 and 1977.

My 15 December 1978, the most recent date for which information is available, the Universities Central Council on Admissions had received 150,492 application forms for undergraduate courses. This represented a 7 per cent. rise over the number received by the same time in the previous year when the level was just over 1 per cent. higher than the number received by the same time in the year before that. Similar information is not collected centrally for university postgraduates or for students applying for admission to polytechnics.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she has replied to the letter from the Half-Term Movement; and if she will make a statement.

I have replied today to the letter from the Half-Term Movement about fixed half-term holidays.School holidays are by statute under the control of local education authorities, although subject to the provision of the Schools Regulations 1959. I am sure that education authorities and, where this is their responsibility, the managers or governors of schools, are aware of the inconvenience that may be caused to parents who have children at different schools with different half-term holidays. However, I fear a centrally determined date would create as many problems as it solved.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations she has received from the Half-Term Movement, calling for the same half-term dates in all schools; and what reply she has sent.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave today to my hon. Friend the Member for Belper (Mr. MacFarquhar). I am sending the hon. Member a copy of my letter to the Half-Term Movement.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what reports she has received from local authorities in London and elsewhere about the closure of schools during the recent strike action by members of the National Union of Public Employees including school caretakers and caterers.

I refer the hon. Member to my replies to the hon. and learned Member for Runcorn (Mr. Carlisle) on 29 January and to the statement I made in the House in reply to the private notice question from the hon. Member for Hornsey (Mr. Rossi) on the same day.—[Vol. 961, c. 301-2; Vol. 961, c. 1030–36.] In a survey carried out by my Department on 5 February there were about 1,000 schools closed or partially closed because of industrial action. This means that about 96 per cent. of maintained schools in England were working normally.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is her estimate of the number of schoolchildren who forfeited a day's education on 22 January as a result of the strike by the National Union of Public Employees.

I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave to questions from the hon. and learned Member for Runcorn (Mr. Carlisle) on 29 January. In the 52 authorities sampled on 22 January, it is estimated that about 2 million children were unable to attend school.—[Vol. 961, c. 301-2.]

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will make a statement about the impact of strikes by public service employees on school children and, in particular, the number of schools closed by such action.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Dykes).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans she has made to minimise the effects of the disruption in schools throughout the United Kingdom issuing from industrial action such as that taken by the National Union of Public Employees on 22nd January 1979.

My responsibility for schools does not extend beyond England and local education authorities are responsible for the day-to-day running of schools. I have encouraged local education authorities to keep their schools open wherever possible and I hope that where they cannot do so, local education authorities will take other steps to continue the education of children in their area.For my part, I have had discussions with all the public services unions and with the teachers unions with a view to establishing a code of conduct where industrial action is to be taken that will affect schools. The public service unions have asked their members to give 48 hours' notice of any action proposed except that for action on Mondays notice will be given on the preceding Friday morning. The National Association of Head Teachers is today advising head teachers that if they do not receive at least 48 hours' notice of strike action they should ensure that the pupils are taken into the premises.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the steps which have been taken by her Department to assist in the efforts to reduce unemployment among school leavers.

My Department contributed to the development of the Manpower Services Commission's youth opportunities programme, and continues to be associated with its oversight. The education service contributes to the local management of that programme, and provides training courses and further education associated with work experience. My Department has also provided resources for the expansion of further education to meet the needs of young people faced with the prospect of unemployment.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will now introduce a nationwide system of testing all school children in basic skills.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what bids have been received from the Bedfordshire county council since 1977 for assistance in building nursery schools.

Under my Department's nursery education building programme the Bedfordshire county council made a bid for £110,000 in 1977–78. They made no bid in 1978–79, and for 1979–80, they have made a bid for £9,050.Under the urban aid programme which has invited applications for nursery projects for the past two years, the council has not made a bid for resources to cover capital costs. They have, however, applied for a total of £134,800 under the 1979–80 programme to cover staff salaries and other expenses at two nursery schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she is satisfied with the rate of provision of nursery school places in the county of Avon.

No. The Avon authority has not taken up an allocation under the Department's nursery education programme since it began in 1974–75 and has made no bid for the past three years. It applied unsuccessfully for urban aid in 1978–79 and has again applied in respect of five nursery education projects for 1979–80.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will make a statement on the provision of capital funds for Nursery classes by her Department and the levels of take-up by local education authorities.

In the four years 1974–75 to 1977–78 we made avail- able some £51 million of loan sanction under the nursery education building programme. Of this, £42 million was taken up by local education authoritiesIn 1978–79 the programme is £4·4 million. It is expected that this will be taken up in full. A further £14·3 million is planned for the three years from 1979–80.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what consultations have taken place between her Department and the Cornwall county education committee with a view to increasing the provision of nursery school places in the county; and if she will make a statement.

No specific consultations have taken place. All local education authorities are regularly encouraged to expand their nursery provision both through my Department's annual nursery education building programme and through the urban aid programme. It is, however, a matter for each authority to decide whether to take advantage of these programmes.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will make a statement of her policy on the voluntary schools.

The country is well served by the present dual system of county and voluntary schools. I have no plans to change the existing arrangements which have enjoyed the support of successive Governments over a long period.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps she is taking to ensure that local education authorities are meeting their statutory obligation to provide schooling for children in their area.

I refer the hon. Member to the statement I made in the House on 29 January in reply to the private notice question tabled by the hon. Member for Hornsey (Mr. Rossi).—[Vol. 901, c. 1030–36.] It is a local education authority's duty to ensure that there is adequate schooling for the children in its area. Although I have the power to make an order under section 99 of the Education Act 1944 if an authority is in default of its duties under the Act, it would clearly not be appropriate or sensible to use such powers in this situation. I am confident that authorities will do their utmost to try and minimise the effects of these closures on the children's education in the face of a very difficult situation.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proposals she has to increase the number of comprehensive schools located on one site.

The decline in secondary school population and the recently announced allocations for school building improvements and replacements should enable some split-site schools to be concentrated on one site. It is, however, for local education authorities to decide in the light of their own circumstances the extent to which priority may be given to this particular objective.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information she has regarding the number of schools which were closed on 22 January.

I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave to Questions from the hon. and learned Member for Runcorn (Mr. Carlisle) on 29 January.—[Vol. 961, c. 301–2.]